SBF Seeking ...

Chapter 2-2

Then Wednesday came and it was back to reality.

After oversleeping, almost slipping in the shower as I rushed to jump out to get dressed, and managing to drop my contact lens in the bathroom sink, I discovered the extra pounds I put on since last summer stood in my way of getting dressed in my perfect black and white combo. I was going to have to wear the linen and silk after all. Once I get a color scheme in mind I try to stick with it. With a sigh, I started ironing my outfit. In the middle of my war against wrinkles, the phone rang.

“Vet, are you up? Have you read the paper,” Sandi asked as I heard the frenzied melodies of morning cartoons in the background.

“No, why,” I asked, cradling the phone in the crook of my neck as I draped my shirt over my bed and moved on to the pants.

“Your favorite sheriff in the whole wide world got busted last night for accepting drug money. It is all over the front page and the local stations are leading with it.”

I put down the spray starch with a smile. Yes! My first week at the magazine, I did an interview with a chicken-s**t sheriff of some piss-poor county who thought he was the authority when it came to law enforcement. He was the kind of good ol’ boy never without a toothpick in his mouth. His way of moving through the world meant too much belly, not enough pants, and calling all women ‘darling’, and ‘sugar’. As the president of the state sheriffs’ association, he always made an excuse to come by the office when he was in Raleigh to drop off press releases and grin up in my face with his tobacco stained teeth.

Finally, he sank so low as to ask me out on a date. He called me at home and suggested a little out-of-the-way motel in Johnston County. Somehow, in his haste to get with me, he forgot his wife and four kids. I did not forget, so I turned him down. I was like Ewww and then I got uncomfortable. My home phone number is unlisted so I wondered how he managed to get it. Then I realized being in law enforcement could be helpful when you are trying to stalk someone. He probably called some of his friends saying he was ‘investigating’ me and they rolled over with the digits.

He did not take kindly to my rejection of his offer to give me some down home loving. From then on, it was as if an iron curtain slammed down when it came to the association. To get good news from the group was like pulling teeth and forget about getting a comment when it came to something bad. So hearing about the arrest really made my morning.

“What happened?”

“Well, it seems this drug dealer he arrested four years ago ran this money laundering scheme for some dealers out of New York. Ashley, eat your breakfast. Ashton, put your dish in the dishwasher. I’m sorry, where was I? Oh yeah, the drug dealer offered Billy Ray a cut of the action if he could get some of his deputies to turn their heads when the group used the roads in his county to get from point A to B. Well, one of the officers developed a conscience and turned the boss in.”

“Well, thanks for the tip! This has certainly gotten my day off to a good start.”

“Anytime I can help. I will see you in the office after I drop my kids off at the baby sitters.”

Driving to work I thought maybe this day will not be so bad after all.

Boy was I wrong.

“Yvette, I take it you have seen the paper? That source of yours at the sheriffs’ association has gotten arrested and I want you to work on a story for next month’s issue about cops who break the laws instead of enforcing them,” Kimberly Cleaver said as she barreled toward me.

K.C., the Queen Bee, ran the newsroom with a sheer force of will. Standing 5'1”, her thirst for excellence and disdain for excuses dominated the newsroom. Copy editors dating back to the Carter administration shook when she approached with corrections. Nothing was more dreaded than The Look—when those piercing ice blue eyes stared at you over her glasses. I have received more than my share of those glances, so hearing my new story assignment did not cause the scrambled eggs and cheese biscuit I inhaled for breakfast to sit well in my stomach. Shouting instructions to my co-workers who happened to be in her vocal line of fire, she quickly closed the gap between us as I reluctantly moved toward my desk.

“Kelly, go down to Photo and see if we have a recent picture of this man. Brian, check with advertising. We are going to need space so we will need to move some ads. Charles, I want a time-line graphic about this man’s career. Yvette, devote as long as you need today on this story, but since this is going on the cover next month, I need it ready to go by tomorrow. Make it sparkle and by all means, get a comment from the low-life,” Kimberly said, while roaring past me and heading into her office.

By five o’clock everyone I needed to talk to had either commented or declined out of a sense of ‘There but for the grace of God go I’, except the one person who counted—the infamous sheriff.

“Sandi, I am supposed to meet three of my bridesmaids at six for a fitting. It has been like putting a camel through a needle to get these three in the same place at the same time. But I haven’t heard back from the sheriff,” I said, sitting on her desk as she played Solitaire on her computer.

“Say no more. I am waiting on a few late calls myself so I can catch your phone. When he calls, if he calls, I’ll let you know.”

“You are a godsend. I will come back by the office tonight if he doesn’t call so I can add it into my story,” I said grabbing my purse and shutting my computer down.

“I owe you one.”

“Don’t mention it,” Sandi said waving her hand as I rushed past her desk. “Just remember this when I need a baby sitter.”

As I jumped in my car and merged into the downtown traffic, my heart kept pace with the go-go music playing on the radio during the afternoon traffic jam.

Finally, I arrived in front of the coffee shop and by the luck of the draw, found a parking space just a few feet away from the door. Once I walked in, I looked around to find Neil. As far as I could tell, I arrived first, so I got a drink to calm my nerves.

As I cased the joint for a seat, I realized this wasn’t a bad meeting spot after all. The aroma of coffee mixed with the low hum of students, professors, and professionals who make their livings up and down Hillsborough Street. Despite this being my first time inside the place, it made for an environment where a black woman and a white man meeting for the first time would not seem too out of place.

I found a spot. Midway between the counter and the entrance, it marked a way for me to see him before he saw me and if needed, make a dash. When we agreed to meet, I described what I would be wearing, so when this cute guy with the neat goatee approached, I felt at ease.

“Yvette, I’m Neil from the paper,” he said, smiling shyly as he sat down at my table. I was the only chocolate sister in the place so it was not too hard for him to pick me out the crowd. Matching the voice with the face was a pleasant experience. His curly brown hair cut in a short style framed a handsome, rugged face. The fact he wore glasses also earned him some points. Looking at him put me in mind of the country singer who did the duet with a rapper from St. Louis a few years back.

“Hi, nice to finally meet you in person; I feel like I know you already.”

“Same here. Do you want something to drink? Oh, I see you have something already. I’m going to grab a latte.”

As we sipped our drinks, the resident artist tuned up her guitar and started to play. Then to break the ice, I guess, Neil asked how my day went.

From that point on, the sound of my voice dominated the conversation. Let us just say when I am nervous I tend to talk. I tend to talk a lot. I was really nervous. After fifteen minutes, I stopped for a breath and asked how his day went.

“Not as exciting as yours.”

“What exactly does a paralegal do?”

In a voice that hinted at his upstate New York roots, Neil told me the bulk of his job was doing the legal legwork for the five attorneys in his office. He briefed clients, researched cases and made sure, when the attorneys went to court or negotiated settlements, they were well prepared.

“How did you get interested in law?” I asked

“My sister Catherine and I are two years apart and both wanted to get advance degrees after college. She wanted to become a vet and I wanted to become a lawyer. Since our parents could not afford to help us both, we flipped a coin. She won and I decided to take classes at a community college in New York to become a paralegal. I can learn the business and save up some money to pay my way through law school.”

A man with a good fiscal head on his shoulders. I like him, I like him.

“Well, how did you hear about Raleigh?”

“A fraternity brother of mine in college married a girl from here and when I came down for the wedding, I ran into one of her father’s friends who has a law firm. I followed up when I got home and he offered me a job.”

We talked for a few more minutes, then my purse began vibrating. We both stared at it for a few seconds until it hit me it was probably Sandi. I walked outside to take the call. Sandi said the sheriff would fax over a statement in an hour. She added, with a smirk in her voice, he did not plan to comment to anyone but me.

“Listen Neil, I had a lovely time but duty calls,” I said back at the table.

“No problem, I have to head home anyway,” Neil said, getting up to walk out with me.

“Let me give you my home number in case you want to see me this weekend,” I said, as he pulled out his cell phone to input the numbers.

When I called him back from the ad, I used my cell. I have to put a face to the name before you get the home digits. After the data exchange, we stood there staring at each other for a few minutes trying to determine the best way to part ways. I am a hugger so after a chaste embrace; I got in my car and pulled out onto the busy road. As I drove home, I felt a twitch in my stomach. I actually went out with another man! It bothered me for about a minute, then I decided there was no need to worry myself over something that might not go beyond a simple cup of coffee.

Of course, when I got in, I filled Danita in on all the details. She voiced her approval of my physical description of Neil and chuckled with me about my workday. I considered for a minute calling Yolanda to tell her about my escapade, but reconsidered it. She can be a little long-winded, especially when it comes to matters involving men. So, deciding to hold off on sharing my adventure, I popped in a frozen dinner, flicked on the TV, and reflected on a Wednesday unlike any I have ever experienced.