Her Superhero Lover

“Just kind of happened?” Grady asked, grinning. “I can see why. Those eyes must have caught some talent scout’s attention.”

“Yeah, they’re my best feature,” she admitted. “But I’ve always had two strikes against me with my height and weight. Acting is kind of limited too since Hollywood, even as it opens up, is still favoring lighter skinned black women over ones who look like me. I mean, even Tyler Perry movies are lighter than I am.”

Grady laughed at the obvious joke. “True, but things are changing. Are you really interested in acting?”

“Not really. I mean, sure there’s some glamour to it, but I know I’m not the sort to be able to fake my emotions the way professional actors do. Besides, I enjoy music more than filming. Music is a lot more interesting, I think.”

“I was surprised at your choices and your reviews. No offense, but most of the black DJs in town focus on hip hop and RnB. Your mixes were totally different.”

They pulled into the parking lot at The Brigantine, and climbed out. Grady took her arm again as they went inside and were seated at a reserved table in a quiet corner. “You know Grady, you’re not what I expected,” Renee said as they sat down. “When you came into the shoot, I saw a playboy. Rich for sure, wearing that Italian suit, and driving a car that maybe a thousand people in the USA has. Then at Bang Bang, dropping your black card, it really was weird. But on the other hand, you talk and act like a normal guy in a lot of ways. I mean, as much as that Jeep of yours is nice, it doesn’t look out of place at all in the parking lot outside.”

“I honestly detest people who make their bank accounts the main focus of their lives. I’m not going to shun having the money I do. I’ll admit that I inherited most of it from my father, but I’ve busted my butt as well. Instead though, I take pride in my work, and in what I can do with myself and who I can be. I think the same is for you. When you talk about being on stage, you’re animated, you’re excited, and you’re proud of what you do. Meanwhile, the modeling and acting is just kind of dismissed. I think even if the finances were reversed, and you were making most of your money from the shoots, you’d be the same, right?”

Renee was taken aback at his insight and honesty. She smirked and nodded. “You’re right. Still, it’s rare to meet a man like you.”

Their waiter came, and Renee ordered. She felt a bit self conscious in ordering the size of dinner she did, but when Grady ordered twice as much, she didn’t feel so bad. “Wow, you must have a very advantageous metabolism to eat that much and look like you do,” she said as the waiter walked away. “I feel like a total softie, and I’m always fighting my weight.”

“You look great to me,” Grady replied softly, looking into her eyes. “In fact, I think you’re very pretty.”

Renee was glad again for her darker skin which hid her blushing at his compliment, and took a sip of her lemon water. “Thanks. I do try and stay active, I mean I do yoga three times a week and go bike riding and all, but I’m not as thin as a lot of other women.”

Grady reached across the table and took her hand. “I’m not here with other women though, am I?”

The rest of dinner almost floated by for Renee, as she and Grady talked and enjoyed getting to know each other. She was surprised to find that despite their different current lifestyles, they shared a lot in common. In fact, their high schools had been bitter sports rivals. She and Grady had even once stood across the field from each other on opposite teams. “You did the high jump?” she said, impressed. “I always thought it looked like a fun event. I remember whenever we ran against you guys the jumpers looked like they had the most fun, flopping over onto that big pad. Wait…. did you have the nickname of Angel when you jumped? You had the CIF record your senior year?”

Grady nodded and smiled. “Yeah, that was me. I hated the nickname myself, but someone gave it to me and it stuck. I mean, Angel is a girl’s name, you know? You don’t exactly get a reputation as a masculine guy with a nickname like Angel.”

Renee laughed and took a bite of her fish taco, which she admitted was one of the best she’d ever eaten. The tilapia used was flaky and juicy, exactly what she wanted. “I don’t know, there were quite a few girls on our team who wouldn’t have minded the nickname. In fact, I’m sure more than some of them would be jealous of me right now.”

Grady actually blushed a bit at her words, and she felt herself grow warm on the inside in a different way than just embarrassment. Grady had turned from just handsome to real, and very sexy. “What events did you do?” he asked, turning the attention back to her. “I have to admit I didn’t pay attention to the other events too much. I was kind of overly focused back then on just jumping.”

“I ran the four hundred mostly, although I also dabbled at the four hundred hurdles. But I rarely got into the dual meets, there were so many others in school who were faster than I was. I mean, one of those girls has a chance for the next Olympic squad. But it was fun, and I enjoyed it. It also got me into different kinds of music, since I trained so much with headphones in.”

By the time the check came, Renee was surprised at how quickly the time had gone. They’d spent two hours in the restaurant, enjoying the entire time. She didn’t want the evening to end. She was happy when Grady didn’t want to either. “With all of that food, would you like to take a walk?” he asked, looking at the purple orange sunset. “There’s a nice park nearby, we could walk over there.”

“Sure,” she said, looking down. “These sandals will do fine on the beach.”

Grady drove them the short half mile over to a parking lot, getting out and leading her along the beach. The sand was still warm from the afternoon sun, and she was happy when Grady reached over and took her hand. They walked quietly for about a minute, before Grady cleared his throat. “Ah, I’ve had a really great time tonight.”

“Me too,” Renee replied. “You know, I was kind of surprised. I mean, it’s been a while since I’ve had a date.”

“Me too. Uh, I know we kind of touched on it the other night, but it’s not a problem being who I am, right?” Grady asked, stopping and taking both her hands.