Free The Savvy Sistahs by Brenda Jackson Page B

please tell her that I’d like to see her immediately.” She then glanced down at the flower on her desk. “And since you’re so taken with that rose you may keep it. I was going to toss it out anyway.”
    He looked at her strangely and said, “All right, I’d love to have it. I’ll take it home to my wife.”
    Brandy leaned back in her chair as she watched Perry Hall leave her office with the rose, closing the door behind him.
    Carla picked up the phone on the first ring. “Yes, Michelle?”
    “I was finally able to reach Ms. Morrison for you, Ms. Osborne. Please hold on while I put her through.”
    Carla tossed the papers she’d been reading aside. She had been trying to reach Sonya all morning to confirm their dinner and movie date. She had tried calling Sonya late last night and into the wee hours of the morning. When she hadn’t been able to reach her, she could only assume that Sonya hadn’t come home last night.
    “Yeah, Carla, what is it?” a very sluggish voice said on the other end of the line.
    “Sonya? Hey, what’s going on? I tried calling you several times last night and early this morning. Where have you been?”
    “Out.”
    Carla lifted a brow. “All night?”
    “Yes. And why are you trippin’? I’m not a sixteen-year-old, Carla. I’m a thirty-two-year-old woman, for Pete’s sake. How about cutting me some slack here.”
    Carla was quiet for the longest while. Then she said, “All right. I was just concerned about you.”
    “Don’t bother.”
    Again Carla didn’t say anything. It was apparent that Sonya was going through some things and more than ever Carla wanted to see her and be there for her. “Look, I just wanted to check to make sure tonight is still on.”
    “Yeah, if you’re sure you can fit me into your schedule.”
    Carla gritted her teeth and forced a smile. Sonya was determined to be difficult. “Hey, girlfriend, tonight belongs to us. Do you have a place you prefer going to grab a bite to eat?”
    “No, you choose. Anywhere is fine with me as long as they serve seafood.”
    Carla couldn’t help but smile. For a moment Sonya sounded like her old self. She knew that over the past year and a half their relationship had been strained but she was determined to get things back right. They had too much history to do otherwise. “Okay, I think I know just the place. How about Letos? We haven’t been there in a while. Then afterwards we can catch that new Queen Latifah movie. How’s that?”
    “I thought you and your friends went to the movies last night.”
    Carla ignored the sneer in Sonya’s voice. “We had planned to go after dinner but changed our minds. But even if I had gone last night there’s nothing wrong with going again is there? I remember a time when we spent a lot of our evenings at the movies, sometimes seeing the same one over and over again, especially if it was one Denzel Washington starred in.”
    Sonya couldn’t help but chuckle. “Yeah, I remember that.” Then there was a long silence before Sonya let out a deep sigh. “Well, I’ll see you later. I need to get some sleep.”
    Carla nodded. “And you’re sure you’re all right?”
    She could hear Sonya’s slight moan on the other end. “Yeah, I’m fine. I just got a hell of a hangover, but I’ll be fine when I see you later. I’ll meet you at the restaurant.”
    “All right.” After Carla hung up the phone she decided that when she saw Sonya they would have a long talk. The two of them were best friends, always had been and always would be, and she couldn’t understand Sonya’s insecurities about their friendship.
    She sighed deeply. Yes, they needed to have a long talk.
    Amber placed the last book in the shelf, then stood back and admired her handiwork. She had color coordinated the books in the section of her store she called the “Kid’s Corner” so they could be easily recognized. Thursdays were her light days and Eileen’s day off. Jennifer wouldn’t be in until noon to