“Would she have to come here?” she asked and Rome almost kissed her. The question meant she was actually considering it.
“No, I’ll pick you up,” he said quickly, “or we can meet you someplace of your choosing. I just need you to do this for me as soon as possible. This evening, maybe?”
“No,” she said with a quick shake of her head. “I have to take Gramps to oncology at five.” She bit her bottom lip then flashed him a look that said she hadn’t meant for that slip out.
“I’m sorry?” he said, immediately picking up on the significance of what she’d said. “Your grandfather has cancer?”
Iyana’s lips tightened and a cloud seemed to descend over her face but she nodded. “Yes. He’s got to do chemo this evening. I can’t do this for you until tomorrow.”
“Of course,” he said instantly, a wave of guilt washing over him. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
“No.” Quickly, she shook her head. “I’m already doing all that can be done. Please…” For a moment she looked confused, as if caught between a rock and a hard place. “Can we talk about this when I get back tonight? I’ll call you after Gramps is in bed.”
“Iyana, if it’s too much-”
“No, I’ll call you. I just…need to get back to him now.”
It was a pensive Rome who drove away from Iyana’s home that afternoon. She’d worked for him almost two years and he hadn’t even been aware of what she was going through.
And then another thought came to him. He hadn’t even asked her why she’d quit.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“I don’t think she’s coming,” Arie said, looking peeved as she toyed with her fork. “Let’s just go.”
“Just relax,” Rome said, taking the fork from her fingers. “Just cut her some slack. Remember I told you, she’s got a lot on her plate.”
That made Arie look pensive. “I know. It’s just…” She sighed. “I don’t see the point of all this.”
“The point of all this,” Rome said, “is that we need to have the truth laid out on the table. We can’t go on like this. We have to do this.”
Another sigh and then Arie gave him a rueful smile. “I guess you’re right. I know she’s going through a lot and I don’t want to judge her. Maybe I was unfair, jumping to conclusions like that.”
“You were,” Rome said, giving her a pseudo-stern look. “You’ll see.”
It was another nine minutes before Iyana pushed open the door to Cafe Beignet, her eyes scanning the place in search of them.
“Over here.” Rome put up his hand and she immediately hurried over.
“I’m sorry,” she said, sounding breathless. “I got held up at my appointment.”
“Something to do with Gramps?” Rome frowned, concern for the old man at the forefront of his mind.
“No, nothing like that.” She shook her head as she slid into the vacant chair across the table. “It had to do with…a job.” She seemed hesitant to share that piece of information, even embarrassed. Considering who she was sharing that information with, it was understandable.
Rome decided to change the subject. “May I get you something? Coffee? Tea?”
“No, nothing please. I can’t stay long. You wanted me to come here. To answer questions, you said. Well, I’m here. Ask.” It was only at this point that she turned her attention to Arie and her stare was cool, with just a hint of challenge.
It was a bit unsettling but Rome was the one who had hounded these women until they’d decided to meet so there was nothing left to do but get that ball rolling. “You ladies already know each other,” he said, “so I’ll get right to it.”
He paused, trying to find the right words. When he’d planned this it had seemed so easy but now that the time was here it was like he was lost for words. He cleared his throat then turned his attention to the woman sitting across from him. He decided to plunge right in. “Iyana, I asked you to meet with us because Arie has drawn the most farfetched conclusion.” He chuckled but it sounded awkward even to his own ears. “She thinks you quit because you fell in love with me.” This time he laughed out loud but he was the only one laughing while the two women stared daggers at each other.
It was not a good sign but he pressed on. “If you could just tell Arie the truth it would clear the air once and for all. Please. Tell her your position because she won’t believe me.”
Iyana lifted an eyebrow as she shifted her attention to him. “My position?”
“Yes, tell Arie exactly how you feel about me.” Rome had to fight to keep the impatience out of his voice. “That’s all I ask and then I won’t bother you ever again.”
For several seconds Iyana just stared back at him, her eyes bleak. When she finally spoke her voice was low. “I’m not sure you want me to do that,” she said.
Losing the battle to his annoyance, Rome glared at her. “Why the hell not?”
“Because,” she said, as she looked him straight in the eyes, “I’m in love with you.”
***
“What the…” Rome felt the blood drain from his face. “What did you say?”
Iyana did not repeat herself. She just sat there, staring back at him, her eyes defiant.
“I knew it. How could you? Have you been cheating on me?" With those words, the first she had spoken since Iyana’s arrival, Arie exploded. But the target of her tirade was not Iyana but Rome.
And Rome was floored. His world was crumbling around his ears and there was nothing he could do to stop it. Arie was bristling beside him but his eyes were fixed on Iyana. “Why the devil would you say something like that?” he demanded, the anger mounting inside him.
“Because it’s true.” And those words, so simply but so clearly expressed, were what finally damned him.
As soon as the words left Iyana’s lips Arie tore into him. “So this woman has been working for you, how long? Almost two years? Working with you every day, in love with you, and you had no idea? Do you expect me to believe that?” Suddenly, she switched from Rome to the other woman. “Were you involved with Rome?”
Iyana was beginning to look sullen but she answered nonetheless. “Not physically, no.” Emphasis on the word ‘physically’. And the way she said it, soft and seductive, made it seem like, physical or not, there’d been a whole lot going on.