Read Online A Lova' Like No Otha' by Stephanie Perry Moore - Free Book Online Page A

nerve, girl, tryin' to force yourself on my man.”
    Now I knew that both Devyn and Aisha were crazy. “What? You can't be serious!” I couldn't believe the stories that Devyn had been telling his girlfriend.
    “Then yesterday he came home with hickeys all over his neck. Girl, I ain't stupid. I know you put them there.”
    “Oh, so he just let me put hickeys on his neck, huh?”
    “You callin' my man a liar?”
    “You figure it out. As far as I can tell, that boy's pullin' the same mess on you that he gave me for years. I never saw it till it was too late. I was a real fool. Seems pretty obvious that you're one now too.”
    “Don't you go callin' me no fool, girl!”
    When she stepped back to swing at me, I pushed the door closed, locking it right away. Shaking with fury, I crossed to the window and stayed there until I saw Aisha finally slump into her car and drive away.
    I rushed into the kitchen, found the phone book and scanned the Yellow Pages. I called until I found a tire shop that was not only open on Sunday but also credit-card friendly. It took less than an hour for the tow truck to come, taking me and my car to the shop.
    “How long will this take?” I asked the mechanic.
    He looked me up and down, making me shift uncomfortably. “Not too long. What? You're in a hurry?”
    I shook my head. I didn't want to make the man who was going to work on my car mad, so I just returned to the waiting room. I sighed, knowing that it would take at least an hour and I would be totally bored. But then I noticed the newspaper stand. I bought a paper and immediately turned to the classified section, searching through the employment ads. But even though I studied all the listings from accountant to zoologist, I didn't find anything that I was qualified for or that looked at all interesting.
    “Are you looking for a job, little lady?”
    I looked up at the mechanic leering at me.
    “Is my car ready?”
    He nodded, and I gave him my credit card. It seemed to take forever for him to ring it up, but when he handed me my keys, I rushed out of there.
    When I got back to the apartment, I changed my clothes and then plopped onto the couch, ready just to watch TV. Then I didn't really want to do that anymore, so I went into the bedroom. Since I had never unpacked, I had to go through my suitcases, pulling out the outfits that I thought would be appropriate for a job interview, if I ever found something worth applying for.
    As I lifted my red dress in front of me and looked in the mirror, I realized what a mess my hair was. My hibernation and sudden cleaning spree left me looking like a wreck. I needed to take care of myself so I'd feel better about wherever God was going to take me. I spent the rest of the night washing and pressing my clothes and trying to bring more order into my life.
    First thing the next morning, I called Keisha. My hairstylist was one of the few who worked on Mondays, and she told me she could squeeze me in if I came right away.
    “Ooh, child,” Keisha squealed as she washed my hair twenty minutes later. “I can't thank you enough for giving me all those referrals. How many bridesmaids did you have? About seven?”
    “Yeah,” I said, trying not to think about that awful day. I wondered why she would bring up the subject. I was sure that everyone already knew what Devyn had done to me.
    Keisha picked up on my misery. “I'm so sorry you got left at the altar like that,” she said, rubbing my head with a towel.
    “Yeah, it wasn't cool.” I squirmed in my seat. I could feel every eye in the shop turning toward me, and they were all filled with pity.
    Keisha didn't seem to notice my embarrassment. “I heard that Aisha girl was in a gang once. But I never found out if the rumor was true.”
    Keisha led me to her stylist chair. I didn't respond to her comment at all, hoping this would give her a hint.
    “Your girlfriend said you should've known,” Keisha continued as she combed out my hair. “She said