Just as she was about to ask him what was taking so long, he called to her. “Angle? Can you come in here, please?”

She entered the bedroom, first noticing that his shoes and jeans were thrown rather haphazardly on the floor.  Next, she noticed him, naked from the waist down and erect, sitting on a chair, imploring her, with a wave toward his dick, to come ride him. “The thought of you bare-assed under that skirt was more than I could take.  I have to have you one more time, Angel.  Come here.  Please.”

She didn’t have to be asked twice. The attention that he’d paid to her body as he’d dressed her had left her wet and ready. Ready for this opportunity.  She straddled his lap and lowered herself onto him. He reached under her skirt and squeezed her bare ass, sending a sensation directly to her nipples, which she could feel hardening.

“I’m not going to last long,” he warned her.

“Me either, my Prince. Let go and I’ll be right with you.” Half a dozen more thrusts, with him dragging his cock across her g-spot, and they both erupted.

“Oh, my Angel,” he said with a pant, as they floated back to the ground.  “Being inside you is so sweet, so perfect.”

“Mmmmm.  I know what you mean.  That was so much more than simply scratching an itch!”

“For me too, Angle.  For me too.”

This time she went into the bathroom alone to clean up, knowing where it would lead if she allowed him to do it.

On the short shuttle trip to the airport, he pressed her for details.  “Okay, Angle.  Moment of truth.  I can’t let you go.  I don’t want this to be the last time I see you.  Please, let’s tell each other our real names and exchange phone numbers.”

She took a deep breath, but in truth it was not a hard decision.   “Okay my Prince.  I’ll go first.”  She reached out and caressed his cheek.  “My name is Zora Jackson.”

He took her hand and kissed it.  “How do you do, Zora  Jackson.  I am Ian McIntire.”

She stiffened and pulled away. “What did you just say?”

“I said,  my name is Ian McIntire.  Why?  What’s wrong?”

Her anger was immediate and palpable.  “So I just spent the night with Ian McIntire?  The man whose company basically killed my father?  Fuck!  This is what I get.  I let loose and go wild for one night and look what it gets me.  Shit!”  By the end of her rant, she was muttering to herself more than actually speaking aloud.

“What?”

As if suddenly remembering that he was beside her, she focused her eyes on him.  “Stay away from me.  Forget you ever heard my name and DO NOT attempt to contact me.”

 

Though he tried to get her to say more, she refused. When they reached the airport she grabbed her bags, refusing his help, and marched off toward the baggage check-in and security. He decided that they’d already drawn enough attention, so he didn’t immediately chase after her.  After all, they were on the same plane, how far away could she get?

An older gentleman must have observed the entire exchange, as he patted Ian’s sleeve and said, “Let her cool off, Son. Then apologize – whether it was your fault or not – and agree that all men are stupid.  It has worked for me for 65 years.”

Ian couldn’t help laugh at the advice, and promised to try it, if he could get close enough without being singed.

He checked in at the self-service kiosk, wishing he’d been able to catch up to Zora so that they could sit together.  No matter, he had a plan.

Once he figured out where she was on the plane, he walked back to her row and addressed her seat mate.  “Ma’am?  Could I ask a favor?  My wife,” nodding his head toward Zora, “got mad at me for forgetting her birthday and changed her seat assignment.  Would you be willing to switch with me so that I can try to get out of the dog house?  You’d be closer to the front and you’d get off sooner.  Please?”

Zora’s death-glare must have convinced the woman that there was something between them that she didn’t want to be in the middle of, and readily agreed to the switch.  Ian settled into the vacated seat, determined to figure out what the hell had happened.

“Okay, Angle, what is this about my company killing your father?”  He managed, barely, not to flinch when she focused her death glare on him again.

“I’ve told you my name.  Drop the cutesy ‘Angel’ shit.”

“But when you were my Angel, you would actually talk to me without trying to incinerate me with your eyes.  Can we go back to being those people for a bit?  Please, baby, talk to me about your dad.  Tell me what happened.”  He leaned in to whisper, “Need I remind you that I have your panties in my pocket?  I will resort to blackmail if necessary.”

The death glare turned into an eye roll.  After a few beats, she began to explain.  “My dad worked for Walters, Inc. for 35 years.  He went there right out of college and never left.  When you bought the company, my father was let go.  After 30 years, he was given two-weeks notice and shown the door. Obviously at 57, he was too young, financially or otherwise, to retire. They did not offer him any assistance in finding another position, not even an offer to look over his resume.  The rest of the family tried to help, but it had been so long since he’d had to look for a job, he didn’t know where to begin.  He ended up taking short-term jobs that were well beneath his qualifications.  And being a middle-aged Black man did not help. If it is possible to die of a broken heart, my dad did.  He had my mom and the rest of us, but his identity was tied up in that company.  Without it, he didn’t fully know who he was!”

“Oh, Angle.  I am so sorry.  I promise to look into this.”

“And do what?  Bring my father back?  There are some problems that money can’t solve!”

He could see that she was struggling to contain the tears in her eyes, threatening to fall.  “I’m not saying that, Baby. I know I can’t bring your father back.  But your father’s experience in no way conforms to the guidelines that I specified for those workers who were displaced, certainly not one who’d been with the company as long as your father had.  I will see who is responsible and see to it that there is some restitution.”

She looked at him doubtfully.  He attempted to pull her to him, to rest her head on his shoulder, but she resisted.  He again whispered, “Panties.”  Her eye roll was less fierce this time, and she  finally allowed him to pull her toward him and rested her head on his shoulder.  “This feels familiar,” she said.

He chuckled softly.  “Sure does, Angel.  You do realize that now you have to give me your phone number, so that I can get back to you on your father’s case?”

“Of course, Prince. I’ll put in into your phone when we land.”

“Thanks, Angel.  Now close your eyes.  We’ll be there before you know it.”

True to her word, she typed in her number when he handed her his phone as they waited on their bags.  He’d thought she might decline a ride into the city with him, and said as much.  “I’m only going with you to save my sister a trip.  She has three children and a full plate.”

Fine, whatever, as long as he could put off saying good-bye a bit longer.

When they arrived at her house in East Liberty, she did not allow him to kiss her good-bye, “My neighbors…” only thanked him politely for the ride, took her bags, and headed in.  He watched her go, admiring her fine ass and remembering that she was naked under her skirt.  Whew!  He resolved that regardless what happened between then, he would find out what happened with her father.

 

Three weeks went by and no word from Ian.  ‘Told ya’ she said to herself.  He had a great night – probably his first with a Black woman – fulfilled all his wild fantasies and rode off into the sunset.  Figures.  She got busy planning a girls-night with her friends.  They’d do some man-bashing and, though she’d have to be short on details, she’d feel better.

Two days later, she returned from her night out with her friends, to find Ian parked in front of her house.  “Don’t you believe in calling first?  And isn’t it rather late for a visit?  We don’t know each other like that.”

“Don’t you believe in answering your phone?  Or clearing out your voice mail so that someone can leave you a message?  And by the way, Angel, I DO know you like that.”

She dug her phone from the depth of her purse and looked back up at him with an embarrassed shrug.  “It’s turned off.  It must have been off all day.  I don’t remember looking at it since this morning when I threw it in there.”  

He moved closer, into her personal space.  “Now can we go in before your neighbor across the way calls the police?  She has been watching me since I got here 45 minutes ago.”

“She is not used to big scary white men hanging out in this neighborhood,” she said with a smirk.

“Be nice,” he admonished, patting her on her ass as she went by, “or I’ll tell her all the things you did to tame the scary white man back in Chicago.”

“You wouldn’t dare,” she said, though it lacked certainty.

He simply gave her a raised eyebrow, seeming to enjoy that the tables were turning slightly; that he finally had a bit of power in this situation.  “Let’s go in so that you don’t have to find out.”

She unlocked the door without further comment.  Once inside, she offered him a seat and asked if he wanted anything to drink.

“No thanks, Angel.  Sit down so that I can tell you what I found out about your dad’s situation.”

Rather than sitting beside him, she took the chair on the other side of the coffee table.  He looked as her as if to say ‘Really?’ but she stayed put.  “I want to stay focused,” she explained.

His responding smile was smug.  “Well that’s a good sign.  That I can still have that kind of effect on you.”

“Don’t count your chickens, Prince.  You are still on my family’s hit list.  Be glad I never told them about Chicago or you’d need a body guard to walk the streets of East Liberty.”

Sobering, Ian nodded in acknowledgment, then turned to business.  “Here is what I learned, Angle.  Your father, unfortunately, was assigned a rather young, inexperienced HR person to handle his separation from the company.  I found out from a friend of your fathers – who I tracked over to Alcoa – that when he walked into her office, she assumed that he was part of the custodial staff.  The custodial work is contracted out; they are not even our employees.  He was too outraged to set her straight.  To say that she was less than helpful would be an understatement.  His friend tried to get him to pursue it, but your father refused.”

“He never told us that.  We knew he had not been treated well, but he would never go into detail.  I don’t even think my mother knew that.”

“There’s more.  When I tracked down the HR person, she was not the least bit remorseful.  Said things like, ‘If those people can’t speak up….’  It went downhill from there.  I fired her on the spot.

“My next stop was my legal department. I will save your family the trouble of suing my company.  Considering the severance package your father should have been offered, and the years of his income and benefits your family was deprived of, I am having a check for $2 million dollars prepared.  If you will put me in touch with your mother, I’d like to hand deliver it so that I can apologize in person, and promise her to better monitor those who work for me in the future.”

“$2 million.  That’s impressive.”

“Okay, I can make it $3 million.”

She gave a small laugh.  “How do you stay in business if you’re such a poor negotiator?”

“This is different, my Angle.  I’m sure you know that.”

“Do you think you think that is going to get you into my panties?”

His face looked like a deer trapped in headlights.  “It was all my fault and all men are stupid.”

Zora laughed out loud.  “What?!?”

“Just some advice I got from a wise older man.  Is it working?” he asked, with the look of a third grader trying to charm his teacher.

“I’m not sure yet. By the way, did you bring my panties back?”

“No, I had more serious things on my mind with I left home.  Besides, those are mine; you put them in my pocket.”

“At the time, I didn’t know who you were.”

“But you did know how good we were together.  You gave them to me because of the wonderful night we had together.  Nothing will change that.”  He gave her a lascivious look.  “Angle, will you come sit with me?”

“I won’t be bought, Ian.”

“Technically, I have not given you or your family any money yet, so I’ve not bought anything.  And, I can promise you that whether or not you let me into your bed tonight, your family will get that check.  The issues are not related.”

She still looked uncertain.

“Please, my Angel.  Come to me because of what we can give each other.  I know you enjoyed it as much as I did. Please, Zora.”

She raised her eyebrow at his use of her name.

“Yes, I’m using your real name, because I want our relationship to be part of our real lives in the real world.  I already know that I love you, Zora. Come to me, Baby.”

She slowly stood and walked around the table to him.  She moved to sit beside him, but he would have none of that.  He pulled her into his lap and kissed her fiercely.  She placed his arms around her neck and returned his passion.

When they finally came up for air, he said, “I just need you to promise me one thing, Zora.”

“What’s that?” she asked, warily.

“Do you promise to protect me from your brothers?  Keep them from beating me up until I can explain?”

They laughed together, before he continued.   “Seriously, though.  I own the company that led to your father’s demise, I’m screwing their little sister, and I’m white. This is not going to be an easy ‘meet and greet.’”

“Well, we could make it a bit easier on you.”

“How?

“By you not screwing their little sister.”

“I am going to assume that you are kidding.  Do you really think I’d let you go at this point?”  He hugged her for emphasis.  “It’s been three weeks, aren’t you about due for a shave?” he asked with a leer.

“You are sooo bad, my Prince.”

“Ian.  Remember….real world.”

“Yes, Ian.  I remember.  Now let me show you the way to my real bedroom…”

“And in the morning,” he said, “we can talk about actually going out on a date.  I can’t have your family think that all we ever do is go to bed.”

“Okay….whatever.”  They were already half way up the steps and three-quarters of the way out of their clothes.