“Surprise me, Jimmy. Make me something special.”
Annabelle couldn’t have been feeling better. She was beginning to remember her lines and the director seemed to be happy, even if rehearsals were still a bit bumpy. Then there was Jimmy. A man hadn’t looked at her this way in years.
He thrust a round to-go tin into her hands. “Here, I made it for you this morning in case you showed up. How about I take you out to dinner tonight? Nothing fancy, just some good food. We can go to the Italian place next door.”
She hesitated. “Thank you, Jimmy. That’s very nice, but—”
“Aw, come on. Give a guy a break. This way I can say I once went out with a famous actress.”
She took a peek inside the tin. A mound of egg salad had been molded in the shape of a heart.
“Hey, I know I’m not Sylvester Stallone, but I’m no Pee-wee Herman either.”
Annabelle was surprised to hear herself laugh. “No, you’re not. You’re my charming gentleman caller.”
“Oh yeah? Who’s that?”
“He’s a wonderful character from The Glass Menagerie. It’s a play by Tennessee Williams that I was once in.”
“So, what do you say? Can I take you to dinner tonight or what?”
Annabelle considered the invitation. What harm could it do? She’d been working hard and was tired of living on canned tuna and pizza. Besides, an evening out might help her relax.
“All right,” she agreed. “I’ll meet you here at seven o’clock.”
Jimmy gave her a wink. “I’ll be waiting with bells and whistles on.”
He kept an eye on the time for the rest of the day. At six forty-five, he opened a bottle of wine, poured two glasses, and slipped some mood music into the boom box. When she hadn’t arrived by seven fifteen, his stomach started to churn. He began to anxiously pace the floor when the clock hit seven thirty.
What in the hell’s going on? Is this bitch standing me up?
He was cursing every woman he’d ever known by seven forty-five when she finally opened the door. He’d never seen such a vision before. Annabelle Rogers was decked out in a gauzy formfitting red dress. B.B. King wailed the blues as she walked into his store. Now this had been something worth waiting for.
Her body tingled as she saw him checking her up and down. “Is one of those glasses of wine for me or do you plan on drinking them both yourself?”
His pulse throbbed as he handed one to her. There was something different about her tonight. Annabelle’s hips swayed to the music as she took a deep sip. His hormones morphed into fireworks while he stood and watched, mesmerized. Jimmy wouldn’t be able to keep his hands off her if they stayed here any longer.
“What say we finish our drink and split this joint? I reserved us a table next door and we’re already late.”
Annabelle thrust out her lips in a playful pout. “It’s such a beautiful evening, I’d much rather be outside. Why don’t we go and eat at the food trucks? I can hear music playing there and we’ll be able to dance.”
Her hips swiveled as B.B. King crooned “I Put a Spell on You.” She twirled and wine from her glass spilled onto the floor like tiny drops of blood. How could he deny her anything?
“It’s a pretty rough place for a lady. Especially with the way you’re dressed tonight. Have you ever been over there?”
No,” she lied. “But I feel perfectly safe with you.”
His eyes remained glued to her hips. “Okay. If that’s what you really want to do.”
“It is, Jimmy. It’s what I want more than anything,” she whispered in his ear, setting his body aflame.
She needed to drown herself in music after what had happened that day. Rehearsal had started off all right but had gone quickly downhill from there. She’d kept forgetting her lines and been told that the director was looking for a replacement.
Jimmy put an arm around her waist and guided her across the street, past the highway, over to the food trucks. He placed his jacket over her shoulders to shield her from the wind.
“Buy me a beer, Jimmy. I’d like a Corona,” she said, and immediately started to dance.
He considered himself a lucky man as every eye in the truck lot turned toward her. By his fourth beer, Jimmy had to admit that the food trucks weren’t half bad. Even better, Annabelle pressed herself tightly against him. The air crackled with sexual tension as they danced, her body moving sinuously with his. It seemed to mold itself to the part of him that was growing. Jimmy was fantasizing how the night might end when a trucker came up and stood closely behind her.
“Hey, mama, remember me? I’m your big daddy from the other night.”
Annabelle turned her head and her heart leaped into her throat. It was Tommy Corona, the trucker she’d gone home with. “I’m sorry, but you must have me confused with someone else.”
“No way, mama. I’d know those hips of yours anywhere. I’ve been thinking about you and was wondering when you would come back again.”
Jimmy’s temper flared when the man brazenly placed both of his hands on Annabelle’s hips. “The lady said she doesn’t know you, buddy. Comprende? So do yourself a favor and back off.”
The trucker’s gold tooth shone bright as a star in the dark. “She knows me all right. She enjoyed nine inches of me the other night. Didn’t you, sweetheart?”
“That’s enough, you goddamn son of a bitch.” Pushing Annabelle aside, Jimmy began to beat the man. He didn’t stop until the trucker looked like a piece of raw veal.
“Come on, Jimmy. Let’s go before the police get here,” Annabelle urged. She began to reach for his hands before realizing they were covered with blood. “Oh, dear. Are your hands all right? Are they hurt?”
He quickly pulled them away. “Don’t worry. I’m fine. I’ve dealt with tougher guys before. Your friend got the worst of it. I think he’s going to be needing another gold tooth.”
Annabelle grew quiet but she’d never been so turned on in her life. Jimmy Carbonara was a lethal weapon and he was all hers.
“Is what that guy said about you back there true? Did you sleep with him?” he angrily demanded as they headed for his store.
Annabelle’s eyes welled up with tears. “No, of course not. How can you even ask that? I’ve never seen him before in my life.”
Jimmy felt like dirt for having questioned her.
“You’re my hero, Jimmy,” she said while straddling him in bed later that night. “You’re my big, strong protector.”
He cupped her buttocks in his hands and gazed at the swell of her breasts in the moonlight. Jimmy wished she hadn’t made him turn off the lamps. She was probably self-conscious but she’d have to get over that. Annabelle had a terrific body from what he could tell, and he wanted to see every inch of it. So what if she was no spring chicken? Neither was he. How had he gotten so lucky? “I’d do anything for you, Annabelle. You know that.”
“Would you? Would you really? I’ve been hurt so many times, Jimmy. Promise you’ll always protect me and won’t let anyone hurt me anymore.” Leaning over, she kissed him lightly on the lips.
“I swear it,” he said, and meant it.
Annabelle didn’t show up at his store the next day or the day after that and Jimmy started to worry. What had happened? Had he done something wrong? He stopped by the theater and was shown to her dressing room, where a woman could be heard crying inside.
“Annabelle, is that you? Is everything all right?”
Her eyes were red and swollen when she opened the door.
“What’s wrong?” he asked. Stepping inside, he closed the door behind him.
Annabelle’s bottom lip quivered and her breath caught sharp. “Oh, Jimmy. It’s the director. He’s firing me.”