Sin's Iniquity - Chapter 3

Author Note: Okay, I had a list of names of people on my mailing list and I believe I made a mistake and deleted those names. So if you were not alerted as to the update of this post, please forgive me and resubscribe again to this blog by going to:
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Sorry bout that. Enjoy...

Her head was spinning seriously and she didn’t think she could breath in enough air to cover the massive overload requested suddenly.

Gripping the front of her shirt whether in excitement or exasperation, she forced her breathing steady so she wouldn’t stutter when she spoke. “I’m sorry,” she said, just knowing she heard him wrong. “W-What did you say?”

“I want to take you out for dinner?”

“I can’t date customers,” she said obviously. It wasn’t a law. Michelle had never said this, but Sinclaire wasn’t a fool. ‘You don’t shit where you eat,’ Momma Gerty said.

“Is it a policy?” he asked suspiciously not liking her negative answer.

‘Maybe this was some cruel joke and he needed a charity to support. You’re big enough’ The last was said sounding very much like Mel.

Sinclaire was not going to be his monthly charity case. Was this how a busy man got ass? Take an ugly chick out just to get some? ‘Ain’t nothing a light switch can’t fix!’ Momma Gerty’s voice shouted in Sinclaire’s head. But at the time the old lady wasn’t talking about Sinclaire’s face. She was actually referring to Mel who’d do anyone with enough money.

It wasn’t in her nature to lie just to avoid something. “No, it’s not policy, but I just don’t date customers.”

“I don’t date people who work in retail stores, but I do date very beautiful smart women.”

‘Don’t you dare let him see you affected!’ She bit her lip to fight the blush. “Mr. Bowman-“

He leaned on the counter and gave her a very serious look to make her stop speaking. “Before you find reason to reject me, let me say that I don’t like the word no when it’s something I really want and I want the pleasurable company of dining with you, Sinclaire. I find you refreshing and different and I feel now that I’m overwhelmingly impressed by the fact that you do possess intelligence – although your common sense was just fascinating in itself. I can’t allow this to be the only experience that I see myself talking to you in my entire life. So I would like you to please reconsider the offer, think about it and then call me with your answer.” He handed her his business card.

Hesitantly, she took the card, still looking warily at him as if he were going to snatch it back and scream, “Syke!” and then a hundred cameras would come out of no where and some one would yell, “Sinclaire McGentry, you just got punked.”

But no one came out as she took the card and looked at it to see his name: Dwight Bowman, Esquire, CFO of Bowman and Bellini Investments.

“How long should I think about it before I call you and still tell you no?” she asked.

“A day or so or until you want it to be yes,” he said. “I’ll wait.”

She rolled her eyes as if this was still some type of sick joke. “I’ll think about it,” she promised.

“That’s all I can ask.” His phone rung and he again frowned at the screen. “I have to take this call, but I’ll be hearing from you soon.”

It wasn’t a question or a request and Sinclaire watched the back of him until he was out of sight.

Slumping in the chair looking down at the business card, she felt conflicted, confused and very frustrated. On one hand she wanted to call him, but on the other hand, she seriously wondered what had she done to deserve someone like him.

Going around the counter, she looked at herself in a nearby mirror trying to see if there was something different about herself. Michelle always required them to look professional in dress when working, but tonight was no different than any other night on what she was wearing.

On top of that, she had the ugly reading glasses still on!

‘Maybe those gorgeous eyes of his was blind,’ she said to herself.

No, his eye contact was too direct. He had been looking at her! Directly at her! All over!!

Her body still felt hot just thinking of that lustful look that was in his eyes.

‘This was crazy,’ she told herself and began closing procedures to keep her mind off Dwight Bowman.

Soon it was time for the store to close and she went through the motions of doing everything she needed to do in order to get everything done.

Nothing out the ordinary happened the rest of the night and when she wasn’t thinking of the store closing procedures, she forced herself to think about her cases. There was a lot to remember and the forcing helped her to remember with key words.

On the way out, she passed by the main department store and could smell a familiar scent.

Stopping immediately, she looked inside the doorway to see the cologne counter. The guard was standing by the door so she knew she couldn’t just step into it.

“Sinclaire!” she heard her name being called.

Looking through the gate that had been pulled down, Lena was running to the gate. They were about the same body type except Lena had dark caramel skin and shoulder length hair, which she usually kept a wig on or in a ponytail. Being a single mother struggling never gave her the luxury of going to the hair dresser all the time.

“Hi!” Sinclaire said unexpectedly.

“I’m so glad you stopped by here,” Lena said relieved. “I need a ride to my other job. Someone didn’t show up for their shift and I had to stay to keep my department opened.”

Sinclaire’s eyes traveled over to the counter because the scent was clearly bothering her. Lena followed her gaze.

“Want to come in?” Lena asked concerned.

“Uh… no, I was…”

Lena motioned to the guard to raise the security gate. “If you take me home, you can walk out with me and be real close to where you park.”

“Sure, Lena,” Sinclaire agreed. “That’s no problem.”

“Good.” Lena ushered her in and Sinclaire found herself stopping over at the cologne’s unable to stop smelling that scent.

“Is there something you’re looking for Sinclaire?” Lena asked becoming worried.

Picking up several scents, she found the familiar scent that he had on. “What’s this?”

Lena looked at the area she had picked up the bottle. “That’s Versace Man,” she answered leaning over and smelling it with Sinclaire.

“It smells wonderful.” It was the cologne Dwight had been wearing.

“It better for fifty dollars an ounce.”

Sinclaire almost dropped the bottle. When she put it back down, she asked, “When did you start working here?”

Lena was still chuckling from Sinclaire’s shocked expression at the cost of the perfume bottles. “After they cut down the bus service, I couldn’t do my other afternoon job and be on time to my night job at the casino. I missed the last bus to get my to my job, can you take me
downtown?”

“Sure.”

Lena looked very grateful. “I’ll give you gas money.”

“It’s not a problem.”

After Lena closed down her station, they made it out into the chilly air of Metro Detroit. They got in the car and she started driving toward Downtown Detroit.

“You know I meet a lot of eligible men at the casino.”

Before Lena could finish that sentence, Sinclaire firmly said, “No!” she said firmly.

“You know, you keep to yourself too much, Sin, and the fact that you haven’t had any kids is a hindrance.”

Sinclaire glanced at her and then back at the road. “Hindrance? That’s a pretty big word for a high school drop out, Lena.”

“I won’t let you try to dissuade me with your smart mouth, Sin. You need a man and the times are changing. They look at sistah’s now in wariness if you don’t have kids by your age.”

“There’s nothing wrong with me.”

“You sure?”

“Lena, I’m less than six months away from taking the bar and I won’t let a man get in the way of that.”

“Then what? You’ll be this successful lawyer with no time for any man and then you’ll wake up one day and say, oh dear, I just wished I had listened to Lena.”

“If that ever happens, I’ll call you up and adopt one of yours. You’re always trying to sell me one.”

Lena smiled wickedly. “You know I still got that special, buy one, get one free.”

They burst out in laughter. Lena could always make her laugh. In another life, the single mother could have been a wonderful comedian and Sinclaire often wondered what were Lena's dreams and intentions, but with her busy life, she never found the time to ask her.

On paper, Lena was just another statistic. Single struggling mother. She didn't make enough to get what she wanted and she made too much to get on welfare. Stuck in the middle she survived as best she could with what she could do.

After dropping Lena off, Sinclaire headed home. Before going downstairs, she checked the property and saw that someone had left a post it note in the box about renting the downstairs apartment

She yawned before she opened the door to her place. After taking a shower, she went to the couch again, dragged her schoolbag on her lap, took out all her books and then began to study once again until she fell asleep.



Sin's Iniquity - Chapter 3 (c) 2007 Sylvia Hubbard