A Special Relationship (24 page)

 
He ordered a beer when the bartender approached him, but the last thing he came to do was drink.
 
He kept his eyes glued to Carrie, just waiting for the first wise guy to try something.
 
The big dude sitting at the other end of the bar, where Carrie stood, was so busy looking her over and talking to her that Robert couldn’t tell if he was trying to come onto her or to encourage her to get out while she could.
 
Either way, he didn’t like the way he was looking at her.
 

 
Carrie, it seemed to Robert, was in another world.
 
Her small body seemed almost stiff as she stood there, as if she wanted desperately to make a move but was frozen in place.
 
He didn’t know if he should get her out now, or wait and see if she had the spunk to get out on her own.
 
But when the big dude at the bar reached out and touched her soft hair, Robert saw red and he wasn’t about to delay any longer.
 

 
Although Carrie immediately slapped Dooney’s hand away from her, Robert didn’t care.
 
He nearly leaped from his bar stool and hurried to her side, his comfortable attire making him look not unlike their other patrons.
  
But Dooney knew better.
 
He saw him coming and stood to his feet.
 
Carrie, however, didn’t see a thing.
 

 
When she turned Robert was already upon her, grabbing her by the arm and all but dragging her out of Simms.
 
Dooney was yelling, asking him who
did he think
he was, but Robert didn’t even look Dooney’s way.
 
His anger was palpable.
 
His frustration was grinding.
 
His inability
to
 
rein
in these crazy feelings he was having for Carrie was tearing him apart.
 
That was why, when they made it to the sidewalk outside the club, the breezy night air like a reminder of the turmoil in both their hearts, he slung her away from him and let her have it.

 
“Now do you see what I was talking about?” he said loudly, not even trying to temper his anger or worry about the people coming and going.

 
“I thought they had a restaurant part!”

 
“And I told you they didn’t.
 
This is a strip joint, Carrie.
 
A topless bar!
 
And I told you that.
 
But nooo.
 
You know better.
 
This is a multiplex.
 
This is just like Jetson’s.
 
Yeah, right.
 
You are so
naive,
you hear what I’m saying to you?
 
Where the hell have you been living, lady?
 
In a cave somewhere?!”

 
 
Tears began to come into Carrie’s eyes and all she wanted was for Robert and Dooney and Popena and everybody else in this world to just leave her alone.
 
She even tried to get away from him, but Robert blew out a sigh of exhaustion and stopped her.
 
“Let’s go,” he said. “Get in the truck.”

 
“No, thank-you,” Carrie said stubbornly.
 

 
“Carrie?”

 
“No!’ she said more forcefully and began to walk away.
 
Robert started to just let her leave.
 
He’d gotten her out of Simms at least.
 
That was enough.
 

 
But it wasn’t enough.
 
He hurried up behind her and grabbed her by her upper arm, turning her toward him.
 

 
“I said let’s go.”

 
“And I said no,” Carrie said as she tried to wrestle her arm away from him.
 
“Leave me alone!”

 
Maybe it was the fact that she’d been crying.
 
Maybe it was the fact that they weren’t in the safest neighborhood.
 
Maybe it was the fact that he was just plain tired of feeling so strongly toward her, but something snapped in him.
 
He gripped Carrie’s arm tighter and began pulling her, kicking and screaming, in the opposite direction of where she had been heading, ignoring her shouts and hits as he hurried along.
 

 
Despite all of her protests, and they were many and well voiced, he refused to release her from his grasp until they made it up to his truck and he had slung her inside.
 
She immediately tried to get out again, but he put a finger in her face.
 
“Don’t try me, Carrie,” he warned, and then slammed the door.

His anger showed in his driving as he drove her home fast and, she felt, furiously.
 
Simms was located in Arlington, on Justina Road, which was a good distance from Dresel Street, but Robert was getting there in record time.
 
It wasn’t until he was crossing the Matthews Bridge, near Jaguars Stadium, did he finally slow down and, with it, ease up on that rage that had grabbed him earlier and seemed determined to never let him go.

 
He looked at Carrie.
 
Her head was leaned back and she was staring out of the side window.
 
She was disappointed enough, he felt.
 
She didn’t need him beating up on her too.
 
“You all right?” he asked her, but she didn’t say anything.
 
“I can easily get you a job, Carrie.”

 
“No thanks.”

 
“And how are you supposed to survive without employment?
 
Tell me that, Carrie.
 
Now don’t get too proud for your own good.”

 
Carrie sighed in exasperation and continued looking out of the window.
 
He could take his job and shove it, as far as she was concerned tonight.
 
She wasn’t about to accept anything from him because she knew, just like every other man she’d ever known, he’d try and corrupt her too.
 
She was done with all of that.
 
Ever since she decided to do the right thing and turn down Dale, her life had become a shining example of poor judgment and stupid mistakes.
 
She wasn’t praying hard enough, or trusting God enough, something was wrong.
 
Why else would everything turn out so disappointing for her?
 
Now Robert Kincaid had the nerve to show up at Simms, as if he had to have his say in her life too.
 
And he had the nerve to call her
proud
?
 
Because she wasn’t going to bow down to him?
 
She placed her hand to her forehead, to help ease her oncoming headache.
 
She wasn’t bowing down to any man, she didn’t care what kind of pretty package he came in.
 
All she wanted was to be left alone, to get away from him and all of this so-called civilization as fast as falling asleep could take her away.

 
She got her chance when Robert’s SUV pulled up in front of her building.
 
She slung open the door before the truck barely rolled to a stop.
 

 
“Carrie,” Robert said quickly.
 
She started to just keep going, but she didn’t.
 
She looked at him.
 
He looked so distraught that she almost felt compelled to reassure him.

 
“Take this,” he said.
 
He had a business card in his hand and was attempting to hand it to her.

 
“What is it?” she asked.

 
“Just take it, Carrie.”

 
“What is it?”

 
Robert exhaled.
 
She was more trouble than any woman could possibly be worth.
 
“It’s my direct line at Dyson.
 
In case you need to get in touch with me.”

 
Carrie looked at the card and then she looked at Robert.
 
Taking a card like that didn’t make any sense and she knew it.
 
Why would she be getting in touch with him?
 
But he’d been nothing but kind to her since the day they’d met.
 
She knew he really didn’t deserve her ire.
 
She took the card.

 
“Take care of
yourself
,” he said to her.

 
“You too,” she said to him with zero emotion and got out of his truck.
 
He watched her as she practically ran past the young men on the stoop and then disappeared inside her building.
 
The young men seemed less curious about Robert’s presence in their world than they had the previous night, a fact that wasn’t lost on Robert.
 
It didn’t take much, he supposed, to get accustomed to someone.
 
He knew that for a fact.
 
He’d only known Carrie Banks a few weeks, a few short weeks, and he was already feeling
an emptiness
every time she wasn’t by his side.

SIXTEEN

Millie Rawlings looked at her watch and then took another sip of her Coke.
 
She only had another hour before she had to be at work - and in less than thirty minutes her bus would be coming.
 
She already had her lunch before her, a ham and cheese sandwich the Mirror diner was famous for serving, but she’d hoped to have more time with Carrie.

 
It was another ten minutes, however, before Carrie finally showed up.
 
She was smiling, but Millie could tell she was a long way from happy.
 
“It’s about time,” she said as Carrie sat down.

 
“Sorry I’m late but I had a job interview out Dunn Avenue and had to catch two buses back into town.”

 
“How did it go?”

 
Carrie shook her head.
 
“Horrible.
 
The manager is something like nineteen years old and he couldn’t believe somebody my age wanted to work there.
 
I told him ‘what do you mean my age?
 
I’m only twenty-four.’
 
He says, ‘I know.’”

 
Millie laughed.
 
“Silly boy.”

 
“I know.”

 
“Any other prospects?”

 
“Not really.
 
It’s been nearly three weeks since Alphonso fired me and I’m just about running out of places to try.”

 
Millie hesitated, and then she sighed.
 
“Maybe if I talked to Phonso again.”

 
Carrie quickly shook her head.
 
“No, thanks.
 
He fired me because I made a mistake.
 
I could never work for anybody like that.”

 
“But you were a very good worker, Carrie, and he knows it.
 
You went above and beyond night in and night out.
 
Phonso ain’t stupid.
 
Maybe he’s just waiting for you to come and apologize or something.”