“Shame on you, Gage,” Karla chided softly. “Do you usually keep secrets from your woman?”
Gage was slightly annoyed at Karla taking him to task about something he had planned to discuss with Tonya, if only to get her feedback on which songs he should include for the final program. “No, I don’t.”
“Whenever Gage and I are together, we usually don’t discuss our work,” Tonya said matter-of-factly.
If he could, Gage would’ve kissed Tonya for her quick response. And she had told the truth. They had not seen each other that often, and when they did it was to cook together. Tonight was the first time they had gone out on what he deemed a real date. It had been his intention to share dinner, listen to music, and then take a tour of some of the other rock, blues, and jazz music venues. Le Bon Temps Roulé, located uptown on Magazine Street, was his favorite spot to listen to live local bands.
“I hear you,” Cleveland intoned, “because that’s why my last girlfriend left me. She said she got tired of me talking about work every time I opened my mouth.”
“That’ll learn you,” Bobby teased.
“Tonight’s not about work, but eating and listening to good music. You were given tickets when you paid the cover charge, so the first drink is on the house,” Gage informed his co-workers. “After that I’ll cover your tab.”
Running both hands over his braided hair, Cleveland leaned back in his chair. “Toussaint, you may come to regret that offer, because give us a few hours, and Bobby and I can drink this joint dry.”
Karla glared at Cleveland and then Bobby. “I didn’t volunteer to become the designated driver tonight to have you act up like a couple frat boys and barf in my car.”
Gage smiled. “Not to worry, Karla. If I’m paying, then I’ll know when to stop them.”
Bobby reached into the breast pocket of his jacket and placed a credit card on the table. “If Toussaint’s paying for the drinks, then I’ll cover the food.”
Not be outdone, Cleveland also placed a credit card on the table. “I’ll split the food with you, Bobby, because I intend to order everything on the menu.”
Karla pressed her shoulder to Tonya’s. “See what I have to put up with,” she whispered. “They may be grown, but they’re still big boys.”
Tonya nodded in agreement. “It was the same when I used to go out with the guys who worked at several restaurants with me.”
“You’re a chef.” Karla’s remark was a statement.
“Yes.”
“Good for you. Where are you working?”
“Right now I’m working at a small place in Tremé to learn how to prepare some of the local dishes.” Tonya did not want to advertise that she was working at Gage’s family-owned restaurant.
“You’re not from down here, are you?”
Tonya smiled. “No. I’m a born and bred New Yorker. And I can tell from the way you speak that you’re also not from down here.”
“No. I’m a dyed-in-the-wool Green Bay Packers cheesehead from Wisconsin.”
“I thought I detected a Midwest inflection. And I wouldn’t brag about being a cheesehead because you’re in ‘Whodatna-tion. ’ I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve heard folks say ‘who dat say dey gonna beat dem Saints.’ ”
Karla pushed out her lips. “And I’m not scared. I always wear my Packers’ para whenever they play here.”
Tonya nodded. “Good for you, because I intend to do the same whenever the Giants come to town.” She and Karla executed fist-bumps to seal their decision.
The drink orders arrived, and everyone touched glasses to toast old and new friendships. Tonya took an instant liking to Karla, a free-spirited actress turned drama and musical theater teacher, as they shared glasses of prosecco, while the men drank hurricanes and Sazerac. Small plates of appetizers covered nearly every inch of surface on the table.
In between bites of food when the band was taking a break, Karla revealed that after graduating college she had married a fellow aspiring thespian. Their marriage lasted more than ten years and then came to an abrupt end when she came home unexpectedly from rehearsing with a Chicago-based theater company to find her husband in bed with their neighbor’s wife.
“They were so busy getting it on that they never knew I was standing there. Even though I was in shock, I managed to get a camera from a drawer in the home office and took pictures of his naked hairy ass. Once the whore realized they weren’t alone, I snapped a picture of her face frozen in shock and fear. Her husband worked for a private military company, and she told me she was deathly afraid of him.”
Tonya made a sucking sound with her tongue and teeth. “Apparently she wasn’t that afraid if she was willing to screw her neighbor.”
“You’ve got that right,” Karla said, smiling. “I turned a deaf ear to the cheating bastard when he pleaded with me not to leave him. I called my father to pick me up because the car I drove was in that snake’s name. I wanted nothing from him except my maiden name, but my father, who just happens to be an attorney, was so angry that he had cheated on his baby girl that he threatened Langdon that he was going to present the photos as evidence during the divorce proceeding if he didn’t agree to a quickie divorce and a generous settlement. My ex came from a very wealthy family, and by the time he took control of his trust he was worth more than twenty million dollars. Once he agreed to give me a million for every year of our marriage, I signed a statement verifying that I’d destroyed the photos, and I changed the reason for the divorce from adultery to irreconcilable differences.”
Tonya bit down on her lower lip to keep from laughing. Karla’s ex cheating on her wasn’t as funny as her turning the tables on him. It appeared that many of the women she’d talked to lately had had unfaithful husbands: Jasmine, Hannah, and now Karla. Samuel may have been controlling, but she doubted whether he had ever cheated on her.
