"It's a man, Mom."
"Oh, so you're going on a date."
"No Mother! It's not a date! Well, I guess you might call it that. But I'm just going to have dinner. A girl's gotta eat, right?"
"Jennifer, you know that your father and I love Todd, and we're hoping that you two can straighten things out and get back together soon." Then, after a pause, she looked Jenny straight in the face and said, "Just don't fall for someone new."
"Don't worry Mom. I'm not going to."
It was late afternoon when Jenny got home. Levon would be there to pick her up in two hours. She was getting more anxious and stepped out onto her patio to smoke a cigarette. After taking a shower and doing her makeup, Jenny put on her new halter top party dress. She knew that Levon had undoubtedly seen her wearing it at the reunion, but it was her newest and nicest dress, so he would be seeing it again.
Right on time, Jenny heard her doorbell. She still had butterflies, but after taking a deep breath, she opened her front door. There stood Levon Washington, wearing a dress shirt and slacks, and holding a bouquet of flowers. Jenny's first thought was that Levon was very black, darker than she had remembered. The next thing she noticed was his bright smile. It was a nice big smile and it made it a lot easier for Jenny to smile back.
Jenny was reminded of why Levon was on the high school basketball team when he stepped in and leaned down to give her a kiss on the cheek. He was well over six-feet-tall. Jenny asked Levon to take a seat in the living room while she put the flowers in a vase. She thought about offering him a drink, but she didn't feel entirely comfortable being alone with him, so she set the flower vase down on the coffee table and announced that she was ready to go. Without touching her, Levon led Jenny to his car.
As he drove, Levon turned toward Jenny and said, "I never noticed the tattoo on your arm the other night. It so colorful and it looks great on you! Somehow I knew that you were a woman who liked flowers, and I'm so glad that you wore that dress! I've been thinking about that dress and how beautiful you looked in it since I saw you at the reunion."
"Oh, thank you, Levon!" Jenny said, smiling widely. "I'm glad you like my dress. It cost a lot of money so I need to get some wear out of it! You know, I wish that you had said something to me at the reunion."
"I wanted to, but you were busy with Curt and it didn't seem like a good time for me to butt in. Now, I think that tonight is the perfect time for me to butt in!"
Jenny laughed out loud. "I couldn't agree more, Levon. Tonight is the perfect time!"
Levon drove to one of the most popular restaurants in town. Jenny was a little worried that she might run into someone that she knew there. She concocted a little speech in her head, where she would say that they were high school pals who didn't get much chance to talk at last week's reunion, just in case anyone saw her having dinner with someone other than her husband, and a black man at that.
As soon as they were seated, Levon ordered a bottle of wine. As they perused the menu and ordered their food Levon made sure that Jenny's wine glass stayed full. Once again, they talked and laughed about high school. When their food was served, Levon said, "let's talk a little about us."
"Well, I think you know my story, Levon. Todd got me pregnant in our senior year. He was my first, and my only. We married right after graduation, before my oldest daughter, Cassie, was born. Heather came along two years later. I thought our marriage was okay, then a few weeks ago, Todd said he wanted a trial separation and he left me."
Levon got serious and said, "Please don't take this the wrong way, but I think your husband must have lost his mind."
Jenny smiled meekly and said, "Okay Levon, now tell me your story. Is there, or was there, someone special in your life?"
A melancholy expression overtook Levon's face before he began to speak. "Yes, I had someone special once. Back in school, I'd always hoped to get a college basketball scholarship, but I didn't, so after we graduated I joined the Army. It was good for me and I liked it. After basic training, I was stationed in Germany - it's beautiful there - and I met a woman. She was in the service too. We fell in love and we got married. Life was great for a couple years, then she got her orders. She was deployed to Afghanistan. Her assignment was supposed to be a fairly safe one, but you're never safe in that part of the world. She was asleep when the rocket attack came. They tell me that she never felt a thing when she was blown to bits. I stayed in the Army for another hitch, then I moved back here a year ago. I've got a good job and a nice apartment. My wife and I promised each other that we would move on with life if anything ever happened to either of us. So that's what I'm doing. I'm getting out and dating - the ladies seem to like me - but I haven't found anyone that I'd want to settle down with."
Levon had been staring into space as he told his sad story. When he focused on Jenny again, he saw that she was wiping tears from her eyes with her napkin.
"Jenny! Honey! Don't cry! I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you. Let's talk about something funny again. I remember when you got busted for smoking in the bathroom. Tell me about that!"
"Oh my gosh!" Jenny said, starting to smile again. "I'm surprised you remember that fiasco! It wasn't very funny at the time!"
Jenny told the story about being caught smoking in the girls' room. Levon laughed when Jenny dramatically described how terrified she was when the principal called her mother to report the misbehavior and how she was grounded for a month. Jenny chuckled that she smoked a lot that month, and kept smoking until she got pregnant. Then she became an ardent anti-smoker until Todd left her and she foolishly picked up the habit again. Levon said he did not smoke, except for weed now and then, but he told Jenny to feel free to have a cigarette if she ever wanted one.
It was nothing but more good times, and lots of laughs, that Jenny and Levon shared for the rest of their dinner, along with another bottle of wine. The more she talked and laughed with Levon, the more comfortable Jenny became.
Levon placed one hand in the small of Jenny's back and they walked out of the restaurant. Jenny stopped half-way through the parking lot and turned toward Levon, telling him that she hadn't had such a nice dinner in an awfully long time.
"I'm glad to hear that," Levon said. "I haven't had such a beautiful dinner companion since I can't remember when."
Levon started to lean down toward Jenny, who knew then that a first-time-kiss was coming her way. In a welcoming gesture, Jenny rose to her tiptoes and met Levon's lips with hers. The first kiss was short and sweet. The fact that she had just kissed a black man reverberated in Jenny's brain, and she knew immediately that it was something she enjoyed, and would want to enjoy again. A second kiss followed soon after and it lasted much longer.
They got into Levon's car, but he did not start the engine right away. Levon turned toward Jenny and spoke.
"You know, Jenny, back in school I thought you were the prettiest girl there. I wanted to ask you out, but I never did. If I had asked you to go out with me, would you have gone?"
Jenny smiled. "You want the truth?" Levon nodded a yes.
"No," Jenny answered. "No. Dating black boys was just not something that I would have done back then. Even now it seems kind of strange to me, and I was going to tell you 'no' when you called the other day. But talking to you on the phone I realized that we have a lot in common, and I like you, even though you're black and I'm white."
Levon laughed. "Even though I'm black?!"
"You know what I mean!" Jenny said, smiling and touching Levon's arm with her hand. "You're going to have to cut me some slack, Mister, but if you do I think we could have a lot of fun together!"
Jenny moved her face to meet Levon's, and when their lips connected Jenny pressed her tongue into Levon's mouth. It occurred to Levon that Jenny really did want to have some fun, and he tickled Jenny's tongue with his. Sitting in the car in the restaurant parking lot, the two French kissed for several long minutes. Levon finally broke away and spoke.
"So, Jenny, what would you like to do now? And don't say, "Take me home, black man!"
Jenny laughed. "I won't be saying that. Not for a while, anyway. You told me that 'the ladies seem to like you'. Why don't you show me why?"
With a wry grin, Levon said, "That'll be easy, white girl! But hey, I saw how well you danced at the reunion with Curt. I know a dance club that we could go to for a while."
Jenny said that was a great idea, and after one more kiss, Levon cranked the engine and drove to the dance club. It was a predominantly black club that Jenny had heard about but never visited. Everything Jenny had ever heard about the club, and its patrons, was negative and she was nervous about being there.
When they exited the car, Jenny reached into her purse and brought out a cigarette and lighter. "You sure you don't mind?" she asked. Levon answered, "No. It's okay."
After lighting her cigarette and taking a long drag, Jenny asked, "Do you really think we're going to be okay here? I'm not too sure about this. I feel like I'm going to stick out like a sore thumb."
Levon laughed loudly. "Oh, you will. You'll stick out alright, but not just because you're white. You'll stick out because you'll be the best-looking woman in the place! But it's all good. The brothers know me pretty well here, and they know that I expect my woman to be treated with respect."
As Jenny took another drag on her cigarette, she was taken back a bit to hear Levon refer to her as "my woman". Levon put an arm around Jenny and led her into the club.
Jenny's initial apprehension was not curbed when she saw a sea of black faces, and most of them seemed to be staring at her. As Levon took her by the hand and led her through the place to find an empty table, Jenny did notice a couple of other white females. As soon as they took their seats a cocktail waitress approached and took their drink orders. The drinks arrived, they each took a sip, then Levon stood up and said, "let's dance!"
"It's not exactly my kind of music," Jenny spoke into Levon's ear. The DJ was playing a hip-hop tune that Jenny had never heard before. When they reached the center of the dance floor, Levon smiled and started moving with the driving bass beat. Jenny followed his lead and in a couple of minutes she was shaking and grinding with the best of them.
They danced to another song, then went back to their table to have another sip to drink. Levon put an arm around Jenny and drew her close for a kiss. As she closed her eyes and pressed her lips against Levon's, Jenny imagined that everyone was watching her. She popped her eyes open and discovered that she and Levon were being ignored, for the most part. She began to feel more at ease and sat there, drinking and kissing, until Levon led her back to the dance floor. They danced for another hour, with a couple of breaks.
Jenny excused herself to use the ladies' room. She had to pee, but she also wanted to have a few minutes to sit by herself, even if it was on the toilet, and contemplate how her date with Levon was going to end. She could ask Levon to drive her home and finish the evening with a kiss on her doorstep. That might be the best thing, she concluded. Or, she could invite Levon in for a while. She also considered that Levon might invite her to his apartment. That would put him in control and he would very likely want to have sex.
Jenny thought about how her friend Lisa, who gave Levon her phone number in the first place, had raved about sex with black men, telling her she "had to try it". Jenny admitted to herself that she was curious. She also admitted to herself that she was quick to surrender her body to her two previous extra-marital lovers, Bobby Mitchell and Curt Anderson. Jenny decided that she would just wait and see how the rest of the night played out.
When Jenny returned to their table, Levon stood and held her chair as she sat. Jenny was glad that she had taken a few minutes to ponder the possibilities when Levon put his arm around her and spoke.
"Jenny, I hope that you've enjoying yourself half as much as I am. I'm not really ready for this evening to end. We can stay here, have another drink and dance some more if you like, or we could go to my place. I've got a little bit of everything to drink, and I could put on some different music."
Jenny smiled, silently noting that being taken home to her house was not even an option. She surprised herself when she heard her own voice saying, "We can go to your place."
Just right
As they rode in the car, Jenny wondered whether Levon's apartment would be a place where she would feel comfortable. She was pleasantly surprised when he turned into an upscale condominium complex. "This is a nicer neighborhood than mine," Jenny observed. "You must do all right for yourself."
