Authors: Monique Miller

The Marrying Kind (3 page)

BOOK: The Marrying Kind

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He stood and waited with ten of the twenty dollars Brent had left for a tip at the table. Even though he felt bad about taking half the woman's tip, he didn't think she'd done that good of a job waiting on their table. Plus, it had gotten late and he needed the bus fare. So in his mind it was more than justified.

Travis had to get home to start packing his things. First thing in the morning he was going to call his friend and take him up on his proposal. Finally it seemed as though his luck was changing for the better.

Chapter 3

A week later, Travis still couldn't believe his luck. In just a few short hours he'd have a new address he would be calling home. Brent had picked him up from the car place at which Travis told him his car was being repaired. And he was now taking him over to his house for a tour. Brent needed to be dropped off at the airport and Travis told him he would take him but his car was in the shop. So Brent asked Travis if he wouldn't mind taking him in his car instead so he wouldn't have to pay the fees to park long term.

Travis gladly told him he didn't mind taking him and now Brent was pulling up into the garage of his home. The home was situated on a tree-lined street in a subdivision in which there were other similar two-story homes. When Brent had pulled up to the home, at first Travis wondered if he had pulled into the wrong place. With Brent being a bachelor, Travis figured the guy would be living in a little townhouse or at least a smaller home with a one-car garage, if that.

What Brent had pulled up to was a traditional-styled detached family home with a full front yard and a fenced-in backyard. The home had a full front porch big enough for rocking chairs and a porch swing. Brent opened up the garage and they pulled in. There wasn't another car in the other stall, and Brent had informed him that it would be fine for him to park his car in that spot.

They had entered the home through the attached garage.

“This is a nice home you have here, Brent,” Travis complimented him.

“Thanks. Mom and Dad picked it out. I personally don't need all the space, but I think they are trying to think ahead, trying to tell me in a not-so-subtle way that they would like for me to settle down. My mom is always talking about how she would like to have some grandchildren before she is too old to enjoy them.”

“Why don't you go ahead and make your mom's wish come true?” Travis asked.

“I will, all in due time. I wish Mom and Dad had gone ahead and had more children. This only child pressure gets to be a bit much at times,” Brent said.

Travis couldn't understand why Brent was complaining; he wished his mom could have afforded to buy him a house. Shoot, right now he'd have been happy if his mother or the father he never knew would have been able to provide him with reliable transportation.

Brent looked at his watch. “Okay, I am making good time. Let me show you around and I'll give you the code for the house alarm, also. Pull your bags out of the trunk and I'll put my stuff in there; then we can head for the airport.”

Travis was given a quick tour. Brent showed him the downstairs, which consisted of a foyer, living room, dining room, kitchen with an eat-in breakfast area, and a half bathroom. The foyer was the size of the living room area in his old apartment. Travis didn't see a television in the living room and was a little disappointed. He had seen the fireplace, but knew that he wouldn't need it during the few warmer months that he would be staying at Brent's place.

The upstairs consisted of three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Brent showed Travis the guest room that would be his for the next few months. To complete the tour, he showed him the other bedroom, which was used as an office, and Brent's master bedroom suite, which had a sitting area, a walk-in closet, and a bathroom with its tub separate from the shower stall. And the toilet had a privacy wall.

As Brent was telling Travis about the washer and dryer being on the second floor, he opened the door to another room. At first Travis thought he was opening the door to the washer and dryer, but realized there was another room situated over what Travis figured must have been the garage.

Travis's eyes bugged out when he stepped into this room.

“And this, my bonus room, is my man cave.”

Travis stepped into the room. “I should say. Wow.” He nodded his head as he stood in the middle of the room and turned around a full 360 degrees.

“Mom and Dad had originally put the TV, a couch, and a love seat in here. But I donated the couch and got chairs to replace it and the rest of the items you see in here.”

There was a flat-screen television with a stereo system, and what looked to Travis to be all the games a man could wish for. There was a Sony PlayStation, the Nintendo Wii, and an Xbox. Sitting in the center of the room facing the large-screen television were two leather recliners, each with their own side tables.

“How big is that television?” Travis asked, his curiosity getting the best of him.

Brent's smile beamed. “Looks pretty nice, huh?”

Travis nodded.

“That, my friend, is a sixty-four-inch 3D plasma HDTV. And you should hear the surround sound on it. It makes it sound and feel like you are sitting right there in the movie theater.”

“Man, I can't imagine,” Travis said.

On the other side of the room Brent had a mini exercise room, with weights, a treadmill, and an exercise bike. He also had a mat, medicine balls, a jump rope, and a scale. And on one of the side walls, Travis saw something that made his heart race. Brent had a wall full of DVDs.

“This is really nice. You must be doing pretty good for yourself,” Travis said.

“Oh, well I do all right. I just got that television last month as a graduation present for myself.”

Brent showed Travis how to work the television and DVD player, and how to adjust to play mode for the games he had. Then he took Travis back downstairs where he showed him the backyard.

“Are you serious?” Travis asked as he looked around at all the bells and whistles the backyard held.

There was a deck that had two levels with a screened-in porch. Brent had a hammock, a man-made miniature pond, and an area in which Brent could practice putting his golf ball.

“See? I told you my parents are hinting hard.” Brent smiled.

“I have to agree with you there.”

“You see the back area over there?” Brent said as he pointed to the back corner of the yard.

Travis noticed that there was nothing there, in this almost-filled-to-capacity backyard. “Yeah.”

“I believe my parents left that space for a play yard or something for kids. I am actually surprised they didn't buy one just to have it waiting.”

Brent chuckled and Travis chuckled with him. But inside he thought what a lucky man his friend was. This was entirely too much space for one person. The space would have been more perfect for him, Beryl, and little Cameron and Jayden. He could just see his two little guys running around the backyard, trying to play tag and hide and seek.

Travis shook his head; he couldn't dwell on what would never be.

“Let me show you this before we head on back in to get the bags,” Brent said.

He showed Travis the outdoor shed that held the yard equipment. “The mower should be full of gas, and the gas container, when you need it, is right here.” Brent pointed to the gas can on the shelf. “So, if you can, cut the grass at least every other week. Like I said before, my homeowner's association can be a little anal when it comes to weeds and the height of the grass.”

“No problem,” Travis said.

Brent looked back at his watch again. “Okay, let's head on back in and get these bags situated.”

The men walked back into the house and got Travis's bags first. Travis put his things in the guest room and then helped Brent put his things in the trunk of the car. Next, Brent showed Travis how to work the home security system and gave him a code to use. Lastly he handed Travis a set of keys to the house and the car.

“All right, let's roll.” Brent headed for the passenger side of the car and got in.

Travis took this as his cue to get into the driver's seat. He slid in and closed the door and couldn't believe how good it felt to be in the driver's seat.

He cranked the car and looked around the steering wheel to make sure he knew where most of the buttons he needed were. Brent pointed out how to use the radio as well as how he could open the sunroof if needed. Then Travis pulled out of the garage.

Brent pushed the garage button and closed it back up. “You can just put this remote for the garage in your car to open and close it.”

“Oh, okay,” Travis said, knowing the only place he could put it right now would be in his pocket.

Travis continued to pull out of the driveway and headed for the airport.

Two hours later, Travis returned to the house. He'd stopped at the grocery store and picked up some food and a couple of personal items since he didn't know when he'd be venturing out again. He figured he'd make the stops while he was on the way home; better to justify driving the car by the store. He'd been careful the whole time, not wanting to get into an accident, much less put one scratch on another man's car.

As soon as he got inside he unloaded his groceries. He'd just gotten an unemployment check and the five bags of groceries he had were more than he had ever bought at one time since separating from his ex-wife. But now, since he didn't have to worry about paying rent that next day on April 1 or for the next eight months, he could afford it. He was glad, too, that he didn't have to think about owing any debts to the apartment complex since he had been on a month-to-month paying status and he had paid all of the late fees.

He opened the refrigerator and could have kicked himself. Brent had a refrigerator and freezer full of food. And Travis should have known the man would. Travis opened the cabinets and found food in them as well as matching sets of glassware and silverware, as well as cookware. Many of the items still looked brand new. Brent's mother was still probably treating him the same way she'd treated him when they were in college. He was sure she was probably the reason for Brent's kitchen being stocked the way it was.

Travis nodded his head, thinking that if Brent did ever find a woman, he wondered if she would put up with the degree to which Brent's parents, especially his mom, were so hands-on. Shrugging his shoulders, Travis commenced unpacking his groceries. As frugal as he had become, he wouldn't have to worry about shopping for groceries for a while. He had bought some theater-style microwave popcorn so he could sit in the bonus room and watch some movies. After popping the popcorn he opened up the bottle of Welch's Sparkling Grape Cocktail he'd purchased. He put a couple of ice cubes in a glass, poured himself a drink, and air toasted to himself, knowing this was an occasion to celebrate that called for way more than just grape Kool-Aid.

Chapter 4

Travis was on top of the world. For the first time in days he sat in peaceful silence. He knew there was no way life could get any better than what it was right now. He was sitting in the lap of luxury. He ran his hand across the leather recliner he was sitting on, and looked out of the window of the bonus room, in his home. Well, he knew it wasn't really his, but for the next six months he could and would refer to it as his home. Besides, his friend had said, “
Mi casa es su casa.
” God had really been looking out for him right in the nick of time. Travis looked up toward heaven and mouthed a “thank you” to God. But somehow this small gesture did not seem like enough. He was going to have to make an effort to make it to church at some point in thanks for God's blessing.

But after a week and a half of wasting his time enjoying the luxury and finer things of life, he was starting to get a little restless. It was almost tax day, but Travis put that thought out of his mind. He hadn't filed taxes in years and wasn't planning on filing by the deadline in a couple of days either.

He'd watched movie after movie and when he needed a break from the movies he played games. Travis had eaten so much popcorn that the bonus room smelled like a movie theater. He was sick of it and didn't care if he saw any more anytime soon.

Once he tired of playing games he would turn the television on, enjoying the hundreds of satellite channels his friend had. He'd been able to catch up on more recent episodes of
The Biggest Loser
, and marveled over how real the people on television looked, not grainy as they had on his old-fashioned television. He'd left it on the curb, along with many of the other furniture odds and ends he'd purchased from the Salvation Army to furnish his apartment. He'd figured the items were probably still going to end up out on the curb, but because of God's grace he hadn't ended up on the curb with them. He wouldn't worry about that old stuff now, because if he budgeted and saved his money, he would be able to get some nicer things once he moved out of Brent's place. And maybe he would be able to afford a smaller version of the television Brent had.
I should be,
he thought. It was about time. After losing his wife, and another job, his luck was finally changing.

After picking up the remote and sliding his fingers over the buttons, Travis decided to forgo turning it on. He shook his head. Even though he wanted to look at the marathon that was running on cable with old episodes of
Law & Order,
Travis had more pressing things that were starting to nag his mind. He had six months to get his act together and if he didn't then, he might find himself out on the streets.

He was going to have to think of something to get out of the predicament he was in. If only his wife, Beryl, had stuck with him and given him another chance. He knew he would have been able to eventually find the right job. Then he would have been able to help pay the bills and get their second car fixed. But his wife hadn't kept the vows she'd said during their marriage ceremony. She said she would be there, “for richer or for poorer.” She'd left him when hard times hit.

Although he didn't want to admit it, he missed having someone to talk to, and to love and hold. He missed those great home-cooked meals Beryl made, like the chicken and pastry. His mouth watered just thinking about her banana pudding. But most of all, he missed having someone to be his helpmate with the bills, when he was between jobs.

Other than food, shelter, and transportation, Travis thought about his other needs. The only thing he was missing was a woman. He wanted and needed a woman who was loving, and selfless, but also supportive. Someone who was down-to-earth and could hold her own if need be. But he didn't want someone so strong that she didn't want to be held in his arms when the time was right. He truly wondered if he would be able to find one woman with all those traits.

Travis thought about his Uncle Billy. Even though he had not met his fiancÃ©e, it sounded as if he and the woman had found a good thing in each other. They were working together toward common goals, so much so that his uncle hadn't called him back to say if he would or wouldn't be able to give him a loan.

Maybe that was what he needed. Maybe he needed to see if he could find someone with the traits that he wanted. It had worked for his Uncle Billy so why wouldn't it work for him? He tapped his fingers on the remote and thought long and hard about his situation. Six months seemed like a long time, but in truth, it could tick away faster than he could ever imagine. He was going to have to be smart. He was going to have to be resourceful. He was going to have to be whatever he had to be in order to get what he needed. If he didn't look out for himself, then nobody else would.

His cell phone rang. Looking at the caller ID, he saw that it was Beryl calling again. He hit the button to turn the ringer off. He wasn't in the mood to hear whatever she wanted to complain about today.

Instead he returned to his thoughts. Travis felt a plan forming in his head. He'd tried to play the good-guy role, but that had gotten him nowhere. The player lifestyle appealed to him, but so did the lifestyle his uncle was currently leading with his new fiancÃ©e. Travis made a decision. He was going to have to put himself into the gameâthe player's game. He was going to be a player, but one on a mission. Travis would do whatever he needed to do to find the right woman. He would look for someone who was the marrying kind.

The next day, Travis stepped off of the bus after riding it around for blocks as he tried to get a feel for the side of town he was now living in. He'd found the basic stores that he normally shopped at and had also found an area congested with fast-food restaurants. He'd made a note of where they were on the bus map he'd been using. He'd been pleased to be able to buy a thirty-one-day bus pass for only thirty-six dollars. With this he could ride an unlimited amount of times without worrying about being nickel-and-dimed.

The unlimited pass would give him the freedom to be able to get around and look for a job. The only thing he still had not been able to locate was a local library. He needed to be able to get on the Internet. With all the nice things Brent had in his home, he didn't have a desktop computer. And he had taken his laptop overseas with him.

He walked two blocks back down to a McDonald's he had seen. It was only a little before noon. He was hoping to find a daily newspaper someone might have left after reading it earlier that morning so he could look for job openings. He also made a mental note to ask someone about where the closest library was.

As he stepped into the restaurant he looked around at the tables and saw that, just as he had thought, someone had left a newspaper sitting on a table. He walked over, grabbed it, and placed it under his armpit. He then ordered a coffee with extra cream and sugar, then found a seat near the television.

He glanced over the headlines and a few of the local stories and saw an advertisement for a Sonnette concert coming to the city. Sonnette was one of his most favorite R&B singers. He wished he could go, but knew the tickets would be too high. And if he actually had a budget, he was sure it would be too high for it also. So he flipped on over to the want ads and started circling a few that looked like they had potential.

His cell phone rang. He looked at the caller ID and saw that it was Beryl, yet again. He wasn't going to answer. Most likely all she wanted was to know when he was going to send her some money for child support. He'd already told her time and time again that he was barely able to make it himself with the small amount he got paid in unemployment, but she never wanted to hear it. She was like a scratched CD repeating itself over and over again. Travis was tired of it.

He could normally gauge what kind of message Beryl might be leaving by looking at the message indicator. The indicator not only told him the name of the person leaving a message, it also told him how long the message was. This particular message from Beryl was a minute and twenty seconds. Travis knew she was probably telling him off for avoiding her and not contacting her. And he figured if there was an emergency with the boys, she would send him a text.

After circling five jobs that looked as if they might be promising, Travis folded the newspaper and stepped back up to the cash register to ask if anyone knew where the library was located. If he was able to get on the Internet, then he would be able to find out where the jobs were located in relation to the bus routes.

From the directions given by the cashier, the nearest local library was only about four blocks away. Travis got a refill on his coffee, added some more cream and sugar, and headed out to the library. As he stepped out of the McDonald's, he saw a petite, young African American lady with a dark-chocolate complexion standing outside her car with the hood up. She was dialing numbers on her cell phone, but didn't seem to be getting anyone to connect on the other end.

Travis walked over to her and asked, “Do you need any help?”

The young woman, who looked like she was in her late twenties, hunched her shoulders. “I don't know. The check engine light on my dashboard keeps flickering on and off. I don't know what is going on with this car. And I could be wrong, but my hood seems a lot hotter than it normally is.”

Travis set his coffee on the ground and asked, “Do you mind if I take a look?”

As he said this he had a flash, back to the first time he and Beryl had met. Similar to this, she was having problems with her car. He'd helped her and later ended up getting married. Travis shivered at the thought.

“You okay?” the woman asked.

“Ah, yeah. Just remembered something, that's all,” Travis said.

He looked around for the radiator coolant and saw that the level in the reserve looked fine. Upon touching the cap he felt that it was hot, so he didn't remove the cap. He also checked to see if she had any wires loose and then checked the level of oil. He pulled the stick out and saw nothing on it. He stuck it back in, then pulled it out and again did not see any oil registering on the stick.

“Young ladyâ”

The woman interrupted him. “You can call me Tory.” “Tory, huh?”

“Well, my name is Victoria, you know, like the girl on
Young and the Restless.
But my family and friends call me Tory.”

“Family and friends, huh? Am I a friend now?”

Tory winked her eye.

“Well, okay then, Miss Tory.”

She smiled to indicate he was right to call her “Miss.”

“I don't really know if this has anything to do with why your check engine light keeps coming on, but you are about out of oil in your engine.”

“Seriously?”

“Uh, yeah. Actually I didn't see any oil on the dipstick, so before I'd crank it and go anywhere else, I'd put some oil in it if I were you,” Travis said.

“Ah, man.”

Tory's cell phone rang. “Hello,” she said.

As Tory spoke, Travis looked over the rest of her engine and even looked under her car and saw a couple of drops of oil.

When she finished her call, she said, “Great, my girlfriend is on her way over here. What kind of oil do I need? I know it will only be a Band-Aid on the situation but hopefully the oil will hold me over until I can get some money back from my taxes. I am going to file them tomorrow.”

Travis thought about it. “Pick up a couple quarts of 10w-40. I am guessing you don't know what brand you normally use.”

“Nope.”

“For now you can probably get the store brand. It is normally cheaper than the brand names. And it looks as if you have an oil leak, so you probably want to get it to a shop as soon as possible.”

He then pulled out the stick to show it to her. “Put about two quarts in then check the stick. See these two dots?” He pointed to two dots on the stick. “You want the oil to at least be between the two dots, not over the top one. If you still don't see any after you put the first two bottles in, you may need to put a little more in.”

Tory placed her hand on Travis's shoulder. “Thanks. See, that's why I need a good man in my life to help me with all this mechanical stuff. I am clueless when it comes to cars.”

Travis smiled, showing his pearly white teeth.

The woman's hand lingered for a moment before she finally took it away. “So you know my name; what's your name?”

“Oh, me? You can call me T.J.,” Travis said, thinking he'd try out a new nickname.

“T.J.? What does that stand for?”

“The T is for Travis. And I think it just sounds better to add a J behind it. So you, my friend, can call me T.J.”

“Well okay then, friend,” Tory said.

A minute later, a car pulled up and the driver blew the horn.

Tory looked over at the car. “Oh, that's my girlfriend.” She turned her attention back to Travis. “So, T. J., what do you like to do for fun?”

“I like to do lots of things for fun. What about you?”

BOOK: The Marrying Kind

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