Free Many Shades of Gray by Dyanne Davis

profile African American to do the promo, no offense.”
    Watching, Janice saw the little muscles that twitched in Simon’s jaw and she felt anger toward Tommy for treating him that way. He’d been barely civil to him during the entire meeting and she was sick of it.
    “Tell me something, Tommy. Why is Simon’s money good enough for the cause but he isn’t? You didn’t complain about the color of his skin when you took his check, did you?”
    She watched while Tommy’s head snapped back to Simon with his eyes narrowed. His mouth parted as though he were going to speak but he remained silent. The two men eyed each other and she tried unsuccessfully to decipher what was passing between them, what unspoken message they had exchanged. It was Simon who finally broke the silence.
    “Don’t worry about it.” He squeezed Janice’s hand. “I understand Mr. Strong’s objections. I’m sure it wasn’t anything personal.”
    “No, it wasn’t anything personal,” Tommy offered, yet there was a hidden message there and Janice didn’t miss it.
    “Janice, you can stay. Just let me call for a car and you can take the limo.” Simon smiled in Tommy’s general direction. “I’ll loosen things up for you with your deadline. Take all the time you need to help with the bookstores.”
    “Thanks for giving Mary Jo your approval and your permission. I didn’t know that anyone but the writer dictated the time that was needed to write a book. It’s interesting that after all these years of running a bookstore, I’m just now finding out it’s the publisher pulling the strings.” Tommy smiled at Simon, the smile not reaching his eyes. “Do you also do her writing for her?”
    “Simon doesn’t do my writing or my planning. I take care of my own schedule and I run my own life. You don’t need to make arrangements for me, Simon. I can get home on my own. You take the limo.”
    “Yes, Simon, you take the limo. I’ll bring Mary Jo home when we’re done.”
    Both Mary Jo and Simon turned and glared at him. “Sorry,” he said. “After a lifetime of knowing a person it’s very hard to just adjust to calling them by another name.” He smiled. “Somehow Janice Lace doesn’t fit you.” Tommy cocked his head to the left and squinted. “But then again, neither does Mary Jo. I think Mary Jo died about twelve years ago. Am I right?”
    The question was asked politely but it was a loaded one and all three of them were aware of it. Both men wanted to see how she handled it. “Yes, Mary Jo died twelve years ago,” Janice answered Tommy, “but that’s because she grew up.”
    “And became Janice Lace.” Tommy smiled.
    “And became Janice Lace,” she admitted.
    “So you went from a determined young woman wanting to be a positive role model for African Americans to a woman who with the power of her voice, could use words to change things for the better, to write about good things that African Americans do…to being what? What do you do? A hatchet job on us. Now it’s hard to tell that you yourself are black. On second though, it might be easier to package Simon Kohl off to the community, pretend that he’s black. At least they are aware of who he is.”
    “Janice has done a lot to be proud of.” Simon defended her, his voice angry, his stance defiant.
    This time Tommy wasn’t polite. “Maybe Janice has, Mary Jo hasn’t. Mary Jo would never have allowed any man to take over and fight her battle.” He smiled sadly. “I guess you’re right, Mary Jo did die.”
    “Janice doesn’t need me to fight her battles.”
    “Doesn’t she?” Tommy laughed.
    “No, she doesn’t.” Janice glared at Simon. “I can handle my own battles, though I didn’t know we were at war, Tommy. How can our petty fights help with any cause?”
    She waited while silently he fumed. She sensed an underlying anger beneath Simon’s polished veneer but she wasn’t giving into it. She wasn’t going to be in the middle of a testosterone