It had been a long night and morning came far too soon. I was still half asleep when I walked into work.
"Well, look who decided to join us this morning. Good to see you today Tundra. This place was way too warm without you yesterday," my boss, Blaze joked.
"Aww, I missed you to Blaze," I said with a wink.
"Yeah right, nice try. I'm still docking your paycheck."
"Come on Blaze!"
"Nope, you weren't here. We had a client come in and I need the contract and invoice for billing. I had no idea where you put the hard copy. To top it off you did not even enter it into the computer yet. I kept calling you but you never picked up."
"My fault," I mumbled.
"But it gets worst Steph," Blaze told me seriously.
"Oh no what happened," I said as I braced myself for the bad news.
"My mama stopped by and you missed her," he teased.
"Blaze you had me all upset. I thought something was really wrong."
"You didn't let me finish. She brought sweet potato cake with maple frosting and these hungry dudes up in here ate it all."
"No!"
"Yes!"
"You guys make me sick!" I shouted.
"Get to work Tundra. You have some catching up to do," Blaze said Told me.
As far men go Blaze is alright. I like him. But other women love him. It's easy to see why, because Blaze is a dangerously handsome man. His chocolate colored skin is flawless. The man has the shoulders of a linebacker, abs like a model and the muscles of a body boulder, He keeps his hair in a low cut caesar with waves that make the ladies sea sick. His 6'3 frame and amber eyes make the man irresistibly attractive. The problem is that Blaze is a shameless flirt and a notorious playboy. He even flirts with me. I don't mind though. Blaze gets a kick out seeing me blush, but he knows how to keep his hands to himself. He gave me a job when I needed a change of scenery. I like the laid back atmosphere at his business.
When I got to my desk there was a stack of work waiting for me. I spent the entire day taking care of the invoices, accounts billable, and contract. After making sure everything was entered into the computer then filed away, I turned off the light locked up and head home.
My stomach grumbled while I was on the road and I decided to stop at a little cafe that makes a pretty good pulled pork heroes and excellent desserts. I placed my order and before I could sit down. I heard someone calling.
"Beautiful?" Hey, Beautiful!"
I ignored the voice thinking it was some loser from the strip club.
"You gonna do me that Steph," the man said!
I wheeled around to see who was calling me by my given name. There was no way someone from the strip club would do that.
When I looked up I saw six feet of solid muscles standing in front of me. His green eyes twinkled as they met mine and slight smile greeted me.
"Lester Santos?"
"That would me."
Sweeping me into his arms, Lester gave me a bear hug lifting my feet off the floor.
"Wow Steph you look amazing," he told me as set me down! Can I eat with you? "
"Sure ,I guess. It's just you right? "
Lester nodded, I sat down at a table in the back as he placed his order at the counter. Lester scanned the cafe and then sat with me.
"Been a long time Bomber. How have you been?" Lester asked excitedly.
" Not bad. What about you Les ?"
"I can't complain."
"So what brings you to Atlanta," I probed.
"Ranger bought back what used to be Rangeman Atlanta. We are all here to whip the place back into shape," Lester replied.
I bristled at the mention of the name of the man who had selfishly led me on , broken my heart and then fled the seen without a second thought.
"Yeah, he is here too," Lester told me.
I looked down at my lap. "Yeah, I know," I whispered.
"How would you ... he's seen you?" Lester asked while wearing a puzzled expression.
" Yes, briefly."
"Unbelievable!" Lester said as he slammed his fist on the table.
The waitress brought our food and we ate in silence for a few minutes.
Ordinarily, my mouth would have been talking a mile a minute. But it was nice to just sit here with Lester. A quiet wave of comfort washed over me. I felt like a child who had found and old blankie.
"So who else is here," I asked?
" Just me, and Hal. But,Bobby and Hector will be down later. I'm sure they would love to see you Steph. You don't know how much we have missed out little sister," Lester insisted.
"I missed all of you big lugs too," I said playfully.
"How long have you been living down here," Lester inquired?
"Since I left Trenton."
"So what have you been up to. Is there a special guy in your life, he asked with a smile.
"Hell no, I'm not going down that road again," I sighed.
"So what, you're into chicks now," Lester said seriously.
When he made the statement, the soda was drinking sprayed out of my nose as I tried to contain my laughter.
"No, nothing like that silly, " I assured him. I just don't need any more men in my life to play games with my heart.
Lester took my hand and looked at me sadly "Aww, Beautiful all men are not like that."
"How is Ella," I asked changing the subject?
"She is great! I'm sure she would love to hear from you." Ranger is talking about having her come for a visit to help out. Give me your phone number and I'll call you to let you know when she gets here.
"Figures I would run into you when I just lost my phone," I fibbed.
I couldn't let him have my phone number,it would only be a matter of time before Ranger was in my condo. As much as I loved the guys and wanted to reconnect with all of them, I knew it could not happen.
"No problem Bomber," Lester told me as he wrote his number on a napkin. "You can call me."
Lester paid the check and then walked me out to my car.
I was sleeping when my phone rang sometime after midnight.
"Hello," I croaked.
"Hey," Enigma I need you to come in. We have some VIPS in the house and that have requested you.
"Tell them it's my night off. Send in one of the features," I yawned. "I'm in bed".
" They are asking for the white girl with great legs, ghetto booty and pretty eyes I assume that's you. We can talk about making you a feature if you get out of bed and come into work," the club owner told me.
That had my attention. Featured dancers worked the best shifts and had access to the elite clientele. They were paid jut to show up for parties plus they made tips.
"I'm on my way," I said as I hopped out of bed.
"Come ready to hit the stage. You got people waiting to see you dance. And hurry up Enigma."
As soon I pulled up to the club Marcus was waiting impatiently for me. He stepped in front of my car and held his hands out to stop me from circling the lot to find a parking space. He motioned for me to get out of the car. As soon as I had my door open he was pulling out.
"I got you baby girl. Just hurry up and get in there the fellas are getting restless," Marcus told me as he angled behind the wheel.
Jamal was waiting for me when I stepped through the door. "This way Enigma," he said directing me to the elevator. "You nervous ?" he asked.
"Nope, I'm sleepy," I yawned.
"Look alive," he said opening the door to one of the VIP rooms. Then Jamal snapped his fingers and the D.J started to play music from my playlist. When I took the stage I recognized a famous rapper and his entourage.