things I did to Margo. She’s the only woman I’ve ever loved and will ever love, and I prayed to God that when I got out, I would right my wrongs…that I would do everything in my power to see that my family recovers from this awful event in our lives that I created.”
“What makes you think that Margo wants the same thing?”
“Oh. Is that what she told you when you had your arms wrapped around her, kissing her and telling her you could do things for her that I couldn’t do? Huh, you sorry ass hypocrite?”
“Don’t come in here accusing me of things because you’re a no-good son of a bitch.”
“Margo told me herself, this very afternoon that you kissed her and she kissed you back. I’ve come to serve you notice, lover boy. Stay away from my wife. You got it? MY wife! Margo is my wife, and don’t you ever forget it. I have no intention of going back to prison, but put your hands on my wife again…”
“Is that a threat, Jefferson?”
“Call it what you want, Malik, but you’ve heard what I said.” Jefferson gritted his teeth and went eyeball to eyeball with Malik. “Don’t you ever forget what I said.”
Jefferson pushed past Malik and walked out the door. Malik grabbed one of the hangers that held the ink cartridges to the board, yanked it, and knocked cartridges to the floor.
“You don’t deserve Margo!” Malik shouted at the closed door. “And I’m not scared of you, Jefferson. I will have Margo.” But there was no one in the room to hear those words.
29
Ari cracked open the door and found Angelica tucked deep beneath the warm comforter. There was little movement, save for her breathing, which was marked by little shifts of her body as she inhaled and exhaled. Ari smiled. He knew he wanted more of her.
He closed the door to the room and headed for the porch to retrieve the morning paper. The air was brisk when he stepped onto the porch, but it was what he needed in order to cool the hormones that had been awakened in his body. Ari picked up the paper and noticed a long black car slow when it neared his house and then continue to move forward. Ari shook his head.
After finishing the paper, Ari went to the kitchen and made a piece of dry toast. He washed it down with coffee he had brewed earlier that morning and then went to check on Angelica again. She was still asleep.
The sight of her, the touch of her, excited him. Ari wanted to lay with her and make love to her again, experimenting and exploring every inch of her body. He was smitten hard, and he felt like an alcoholic who needed his bottle or the junkie who needed his fix now! No, he couldn’t wait to make love to her. He couldn’t wait to kiss her tender lips. He couldn’t wait to unleash the animal he was when one of the seven deadly sins lay in front of him. Men had fought and lost wars over the scent of a woman and what lay between her legs.
He paced throughout the house, finally venturing into the living room. The paper he was reading was in disarray, and he picked it up and folded it. Ari went to the window and peered out. He was getting antsy because he was not used to being cooped up in his own house during the day. Waiting on the people at the high rise gave him a high as well as the opportunity to see many celebrities, oftentimes being extended an invitation to one of the fabulous parties they gave. He stopped and stared. A car that looked like the one that had passed the house earlier passed again, this time slowing down almost to a crawl.
Could it be Donna’s killer? Nerves replaced the feelings that had him riding on a cloud for the past few hours. Ari had to wake Angelica because something strange was going on, and he wasn’t able to comprehend what he felt.
Before Ari had a chance to move from his trance-like state, Angelica appeared in the room. She was all smiles. For a brief moment, Ari forgot about the car that seemed to be circling his house and smiled back at Angelica. Pink cotton pajamas covered her body and, with her hand on her hip, Angelica waltzed over to Ari, put her arms around his neck and kissed him deeply in the mouth. Flushed, he responded to her call, and within minutes they were having a re-enactment of their earlier performance, adding a little flavoring along the way. They were too far gone in their lovemaking to respond to the knock on the door.
Arms slumped over the side of the bed, Ari cocked his head. “Did you hear that?” he asked Angelica.
“No,” she slurred under the influence of their lovemaking.
“There it goes again. Someone’s knocking on the front door. The damned doorbell isn’t broke. I’ll get up and see who it is.”
“Do you have to?” Angelica begged, her voice just above a whisper. “I don’t want you to leave.”
“I don’t want to go,” Ari assured her. “But if I don’t answer this door, whoever is there is going to knock it down. Don’t go anywhere; I’ll be right back, sweetheart.”
“Hurry,” Angelica said, throwing Ari a kiss.
Ari jumped in his pants and grabbed his shirt, putting it on as he moved to the front of the house. He couldn’t imagine who was determined to see him, especially when everyone knew he was always at work during this time. He peeked out the front window and moved back abruptly. There it was again-the long black car that had been circling the neighborhood for hours.
Curiosity was getting the best of him, and Ari hurried to the door and opened it. A medium height, medium build, dark-skinned man dressed in a black suit, white shirt, and black tie stood on the porch. Ari looked past the man to the car that sat in front of the house, not sure what to think.
“How may I help you?” Ari asked.
“I’m looking for Angelica Barnes,” the man replied.
Eyebrows arched in suspicion, Ari took another look at the man. “Your name?”
Looking back at the car and then at Ari, the man stared at him pointedly. “Tell Ms. Barnes that Mr. Robert Santiago would like a word with her, now.”
Ari stretched his neck like he was working out a kink. “I’ll see if Ms. Barnes is available to come to the door.” And he shut the door, leaving the man on the porch.
As Ari approached Angelica’s room, she appeared but stopped when she saw the frown on Ari’s face.
“What is it, Ari? Who’s at the door?”
“There’s a gentleman standing on the porch who says that a Mr. Robert Santiago wants to speak with you, and he is insistent that it be now.”
Angelica’s hand flew to her mouth. “Oh, God no.”
30
Angelica rushed back into the room, slid into a pair of jeans and then put on the blouse she had on when the detectives had come to the house. She hated Santiago, but most of all she hated herself for allowing him to manipulate and use her the way he did. Her mind raced back five years when he had attempted to kill her ex-husband, Hamilton, and Jefferson Myles. It was crazy, and she was almost a victim as well. Death might have been a welcome vehicle if she hadn’t wanted to live.
Frustration was written all over Ari’s face. Angelica couldn’t deal with it at the moment; she had to get rid of Santiago. She was frustrated, too, because she had been the recipient of some of the best lovemaking she’d had in a long time. Ari was tender and romantic. He knew what buttons to push and when to push them. Whispers of sweet nothings were music to Angelica’s ears, but the icing on the cake was the way he rocked her body with passion like they were the last two people on earth.
She avoided Ari’s gaze and moved past him toward the front door. Sweaty palms opened the door, and the dark-skinned gentleman dressed in a chauffeur’s uniform still stood on the porch with an expressionless look on his face. Before Angelica could speak, he said, “Mr. Santiago is waiting for you in the car.”
“Did he say what he wanted? I’ve got to get ready for work in a few hours.”
“I don’t make it my business to ask why, and you shouldn’t either.” Angelica rolled her eyes, but the gentleman
