“Same difference. You’ve helped enough.”
“You were supposed to be resting while I ironed,” I remind her, “not working on something else.”
“I have a lot to do. I’m meeting with upper management this week. The Foundation Gala is inching closer, and after the event, I plan to ask them for additional funds to continue my pro bono work. Everything needs to be perf—”
I still her hand. “You also need to rest. It’s Saturday.”
“And I will, once this is done. Don’t worry about it.” She smiles, but it doesn’t reach her eyes.
“Can I hel—I want to help.”
Moyo looks up at me. The light seeping in from her curtain hits the side of her face perfectly, giving her an angelic glow.
“This is work, so, no. Thank you. HIPPA, you know. But thank you for the ironing. You’ve saved me some hours this weekend.” She looks around. “I think that’s all you can help with. In exchange, I’ll get the questionnaire back to you ASAP.”
I sigh, not wanting to leave her like this, working alone on a weekend. Surveying the room for anything I can do, my eyes land on the white tote and the DVDs from earlier.
“How about I sort these for you? Save you more hours.”
“I’ll do those during the week. I have a system.”
“So, explain the system.”
“Niyi.” It sounds like a warning.
“Moyo.” I smile. It takes her a second, but she eventually releases the smile she was fighting back.
“I have a way of doing things. Don’t worry, you can go. Everything will get done eventually.” We’ve had numerous back-and-forths, but those were slightly different. I thought her resistance was only towardsCupid’s Bow, not all help in general.
My voice softens. “You don’t have to do everything alone, even though I’m sure you’re used to it. I have nothing better to do today.”
“Really? You wouldn’t rather be at home, or out with friends, or out with—doing whatever it is you do?”
“And give up a chance to iron and arrange DVDs? Never.”
“Blu-rays. Well, I have a couple of DVDs, but most of these are Blu-rays.”
“There’s a difference?”
Moyo looks at me like I’m a lost puppy. “You have so much to learn if you want to be of any help.”
“Teach me.”
She bites on her lip for a moment, and the image sears into my mind before I focus on her spiel about the differences in video quality.
“I’m still hearing it’s a DVD,” I tease, sifting through her storage basket to find new spots for her most recent purchases.
“Well, then you’re a horrible student,” she says.
“I did get a little distracted.” I catch her eye, but she looks away.
“I know. My collection can do that.” She beams at the almost-full basket. After work and her girls, it’s an easy bet that her film collection is the next big thing in her life. When she said she liked horror movies, I wasn’t expecting this. It reminds me of my wine collection.
“It’s arranged by genre, subgenre, last name, and then by color.” She hands me a list of subgenres.
Our fingers linger for a second as I take note of the feel of her hands. “I’ll get to work.”
We work in silence for a few minutes, the sorting and rearranging becoming easy after adding the three new movies to her collection. So easy, it affords me time to glance at Moyo’s stern work face. She looks so much like the passionate, no-nonsense woman I first met, and as hot as she is, I wish she’d take a break.
