Raya Rose: The Opportunist.

Raya sat on the bed dumbfounded. Her mind was in absolute blank. She didn’t know what to think. Her gay friend had just confessed that he had feelings towards her. Was that even possible? Raya sat there while Jacob paced around the room ranting about how he could totally take down Marc. Raya didn’t pay attention to what he was saying or else she would have argued about how childish he was acting. Her phone rang snapping her out of her state of shock.

“Is that him?” Jacob asked with a clenched jaw.

She looked at her caller id and sure enough Marc’s name appeared on the screen. She nodded her head gently.

“Well are you going to answer?” He asked almost threatingly.

She looked at him not liking the tone of voice he was using with her. She narrowed her eyes at him “You better watch your tone with me” she let him know.

Jacob wanted to say something back, but he bit his tongue not wanting to anger his imprint. He wanted to be on her good side, but he couldn’t help but get angry with her. He didn’t want her talking to guys who were trying to hit on her. He didn’t like that one bit. Instead he bit the inside of his cheek, turned around and left the room making sure the door slammed on his way out.

Raya sighed. Just a couple of minutes ago Jacob and her were doing so well and now Jacob was upset with her. She didn’t know how she was going to handle her situation with Marc. Marc was a sweet guy. He had been kind to her since the beginning. He was funny, charming, and not to mention he had money. Even though Marc would have probably had been the safest pick for her considering the dilemma she was in. Her heart kept screaming out Jacob. Jacob had somehow managed to sneak up in her heart. She had a weak spot for him and she couldn’t just let him go.

Jacob it was, Marc would have to forgive her, but she was a married woman (whether she liked it or not). She walked out of the room and went to the living room, where the guys were all sitting in front of the TV not blinking once as the football game was on.

“Where’s Jacob?” she asked.

No answer.

“Can anybody tell me where Jacob went?” she tried again. She rolled her eyes when she was ignored for the second time. What was it with boys and sports?

She saw the remote from the corner of her eye. He grabbed it and turned the TV off.

“Hey!” all of them screamed turning to her.

“I’m going to ask nicely “ she spoke softly “Where did Jacob go?”

“Why should we tell you when you totally broke the guy code” Paul narrowed his eyes at Raya.

“Yeah!” Embry agreed “You never turnoff the TV when a man is trying to watch the game!”

“I guess you don’t have to tell me, but then again something “bad” could happen to your little friend” she said waving the remote.

“You wouldn’t!” Paul gasped

“Try Me,” she said shrugging her shoulders.

“She’s bluffing” Jared said.

“Am I Jared? Am I bluffing?” she looked at every single one of them have a stare off with them.

“He went to his dad’s!” Seth shouted quickly.

“Seth!” All the guys complained raising her arms in the air.

“Jacob said not to say anything!” Embry scolded him smacking him on the back of his head.

“I couldn’t help it!” Seth said putting his hands up “She’s smell too damn good!”

Paul shook his head “You my little friend need to get laid”

“Thanks Seth!” she said tossing the remote to Paul and giving Seth a kiss on the cheek. “Now where does Jacob’s dad live?” she asked giving them an apologetic smile.

Paul rolled his eyes “I’ll take you”

She knew Paul would be the one to offer to take her. She always felt a like she had a good connection with him. He had always been the one to defend her from Jacob.

When they reached outside, she smiled turning to Paul.

“You’re the best did, you know that?”

“Well no, duh” he smirked pushing her lightly. They walked into the forest at a normal relaxed pace. That’s what she felt when she was with Paul. Relaxed. Which was weird because no one could ever stand Paul’s hash humor. But Paul was never mean to her. He was the opposite actually. She didn’t know why he treated her nicely, but it was nice to be respected by someone who people were afraid of.

Raya sighed, remembering the dilemma she was in.

Paul rolled his eyes sighing, “What’s wrong now?”

“Don’t you mean what’s not wrong?”

“Come on now, don’t be such a drama queen” Paul chuckled.

“Paul I thought things were going to be good with me and Jacob, but then Marc called saying that he might like me and—“

“Wait Marc? Your gay friend?” Paul asked confused.

“ Well, I thought he was gay”

Paul laughed, “Well, look at that. Our little Raya makes them gay guys go straight”

“Paul this is serious!” she tried to sound serious, but she couldn’t and laughed along with him.

“Ok go on” Paul said after controlling his laughter.

“Ok so then he confessed that he liked me and somehow Jacob over heard—wait a minute!” Raya exclaimed realizing something “How could Jacob have heard what Marc said? Marc was on the phone and it wasn’t on speaker and Jacob was on the other side of the door…” she said trailing off.

“Uh, that’s not important” Paul rubbed the back of his neck “So then what happened”

“Well Jacob freaked out,” she said forgetting how Jacob could have possibly heard her conversation with Marc. She jumped over a rock and stuffed her hands in her jacket pockets. “But I think he over reacted”

Paul shrugged his shoulders “He cares about you Raya” he said while moving a branch from her path.

“Out of nowhere though?” she asked a bit suspicious.

“For a while” he said a bit distracted checking out the area.

“Really?” she was surprised.

“Yeah, but—I can’t really tell you everything, but Jacob has gone through a lot and well it’s hard for him to—I don’t know accept people in his life. I guess he thinks they’re all just going to walk away”

“Why?”

“Like I said, I can’ really tell you much, that’s Jakes job”

She whined “But how will I know he’ll tell me?”

“Trust me when I say your wish is his command” he snickered as though it were an inside joke. They soon came to a stop in front of a red house.

“Well there is it” Paul pointed to the house.

She turned and pat his arm “Thanks Paul” she smiled kindly.

“Anything for you Raya” he winked.

She took a deep breath and walked in front of the door. She looked back and saw Paul entering a house without knocking. She shook her head; she swears these boys acted like they owned this town. She knocked on the door softly. She could hear movement in the house and the creaking of the floorboard.

A man in a wheelchair opened the door. He looked at her with kind eyes “What can I do for you?” he asked.

“Is Jacob here?” she asked shyly feeling a bit awkward wondering if he was Jacob’s.

A wide grin made a way on his face. “Do you happen to be Raya?”

“The one and only” she gave him a lopsided grin.

“Well it’s a pleasure to finally meet you,” he said pulling his hand out for her “I’m Billy, Jacob’s old man”

“Nice to meet you too” she shook his hand feeling at ease. “Do you think I could speak to Jacob?”

“I don’t see why not” he smiled. “Come on in” he rolled out of her way. “Make yourself at home. Jacob someone here for you!” Billy called out rolling his way to another room.

Raya entered taking a look at the place. It was a small cozy house. There were a bunch of pictures hanging on the wall. There was Billy when he was younger and could walk. Billy embracing a woman and her smiling like crazy. There was a picture of two little girls dressed the same and young looking Jacob in a little tux in the middle frowning with his arms crossed. She looked at that picture and couldn’t help but grin.

“That’s Rachel and Rebecca” Jacob suddenly said from behind her. She jumped a little not hearing him when he entered the living room. She then turned around to look at him. “They’re my older sisters” he stood there with his hands in his pockets.

“They’re beautiful” she smiled “They look just like your mother” she said pointing to the picture where a woman was standing on he beach, the wind blowing her hair out of her face.

Jacob sighed, “Raya, I’m sorry I overreacted”

“I know,” she said softly.

“It’s just—it took me a while to accept my feelings for you and having a guy you barely met telling you how he feels so easily. I don’t know, it just got to me. I wanted to be the first and only one to tell you how much he cared for you”

“I didn’t barely meet him,” she confessed.

“What?” Jacob asked not understanding.

“I’ve bee talking and seeing him for a bit” she said feeling guilt settle in the bottom of her stomach.

“You’ve ben talking to him for a while now?” Jacob exclaimed not being able to believe what he was hearing. “How could you Raya? You went behind my back!”

“It wasn’t even like that!” she defended herself feeling herself get worked up. “We were just friends! It was nice having someone around who actually cared what I had to say!”

“We’re fucking married Raya!”

“Now you notice?” she retorted “I never said anything when you would sneak off in the middle of the night for heck knows what! Or how you’re never home! And now since I’m trying to enjoy myself a little while my idiot husband is god knows where you decide to notice that we’re married?” she exclaimed becoming out of breath.

“That’s not the point!” Jacob yelled, “The point is that you betrayed me and cheated on me!”
“Cheated on you?” she yelled angrily “Jacob there was nothing to cheat on, we were hardly a couple married or not! You treated me like a dirty rag! You ignored me, you abandoned me most of the time, and you would insult me! I’m stupid enough to have stuck around!”

Jacob’s eyes soon were replaced with hurt rather than anger. “You want to leave too, don’t you?” he said almost in a whisper.

She sighed; “No” she moved closer to him and grabbed his hands in hers. “Why in the world do you think I’m still here?”

Jacob looked at her in the eyes “Raya, I can’t begin to tell you how sorry I am for the way I treated you. You gotta' believe me when I say it eats me up inside”

She looked at him and knew he was being sincere. When he looked at her he looked at her with love, adoration and devotion in her eyes. No one had ever looked at her the way he did. She felt special and wanted.

“I know,” she said hugging his torso and laying her head on his chest. Jacob hugged her back and laid his head on top of hers. “And Marc is just a friend” she said on his chest. “I don’t know where he got the idea that he might like me, but I don’t see him that way,” she said looking up at him “I promise”

Jacob gave her a warm smile “I know” he bent his head down and met her lips with his. They kissed softy, but that softness soon vanished when Jacob brought her closer to him and deepened the kiss. So much for taking it slow she thought, but she didn’t care because she let him deepened the kiss and she couldn’t feel happier and hugged him tighter.

“Is it safe to come out?” Billy called out from the room.

Raya and Jacob separated chuckling.

“Yeah dad” Jacob called out.

Billy rolled out of the room his smile widening when he saw Jacob’s arm around Raya’s shoulder and that big goofy grin he had plastered in his face. It had been a long time since he had seen his son smiling like an idiot. Billy couldn’t be any happier.

“Dad I want you to meet Raya, my wife” he said proudly making Raya’s heart swell up.

“Pleasure to meet you Raya” Billy tipped his cowboy hat.

“Pleasures all mine” Raya couldn’t help but smile widely.
“So what do you say we call everyone and have a big meal” Billy showed his pearly whites. “I need to introduce my daughter in law to the tribe, the right way”

“Sounds like a plan” Jacob grinned from ear to ear.

Billy rolled to Raya and took her hands in his. “Welcome to the family, Mrs. Black”