Page 38 of The Need to Know

Work. Work had been a haze. “It was fine. I was mostly thinking about this.”

A smile hung in the corner of his mouth as he kept his eyes on the road. “Me too.”

I took in his periwinkle long-sleeved top and tan slacks. “Did you just get off work too?”

“No,” Ezekiel said.

Oh. It was clean-cut and professional, but it worked for him. The shade of purple complemented his dark brown skin and the material fit him with ease. Together we were both wearing pastels and it made us match effortlessly, almost as if we’d decided together.

I lived in a subdivision on the west side of Belmont, and the farther Ezekiel drove, I realized he was going downtown away from the metropolitan area. Old school hip-hop began to play and I liked the sound of Ezekiel rapping along to “Juicy” as I gazed out the window at the passing scenery. Businesses began to dwindle as residences were no more as we approached Stokely Park.

The park was a large lush landscape with a trail for walking or jogging, a field for recreational sports or picnics, tables for cookouts, a lake where geese and ducks could be spotted in the early mornings, and a basketball court and playground for the youth. It was green from the grass to the trees, and it was gorgeous from the floral beds to the upkeep. Park rangers kept everyone in check, so there was hardly any trash. You couldn’t tell anyone had come out here Monday night for the Fourth to shoot off fireworks, because that’s how clean it was.

Ezekiel turned into the parking area and pulled his truck to a stop by the edge of the trail that circled the park on one side, and led into the nearby woods on the other. He gathered his key fob and shoved it into his pocket before facing me. “Nice and public.”

I managed a laugh. “Smart move, I was going to get you at my house.”

Ezekiel’s full lips made an O shape as he winced at the missed opportunity. “Damn.”

Together we climbed out of the truck and I met him at the trunk where he opened the back and revealed a large picnic basket he’d had stowed away. I watched in wonder as he reached up and shut the back door after grabbing the basket, the muscles in his arm bulging. He’d packed a picnic? How thoughtful.

Ezekiel jerked his head to the side. “Come on, I found us a nice spot.”

Stokely Park was alive with activity, from couples young and old found in various patches of grass, to the lone couple having the gazebo by the lake to themselves, to the parents with their kids at the playground, and to the boys at the basketball court hooping.

Ezekiel paid none of this any mind as he walked with his head held high leading me along the trail to a secluded spot he’d picked out. It hit me that he’d been here before, earlier this day, because as he walked the trail, rounding the large park, I saw a young man standing in the field up ahead of us by a spread of blankets and pillows.

My mouth fell agape as we grew closer and closer and I couldn’t believe my eyes.

Ezekiel went before me and met up with the teen boy, slapping his palm against his hand. “Thanks for watching this stuff for me. Good lookin’ out.” In another second, he was reaching into his pocket and pulling out his wallet. He procured a fifty-dollar bill and passed it to the boy. The boy lit up at the currency before tipping his head at Ezekiel and taking off.

Ezekiel set the picnic basket down and surveyed the area before coming back to me. “Hope you haven’t eaten.”

Strike two.

“I haven’t, actually,” I said as we got down on the bright white blanket. I took off my heels, reveling in the sensation of being free as I wiggled my toes.

We were alone, with a terrific view of the lake and the vast field of life that was Stokely Park. The clean white blanket and the picnic basket with the promise of food, took my breath away.

To further push the idea, Ezekiel had a wireless speaker on the edge of the blanket. It was obviously paired to his phone as he flicked through it for a moment before the sound of R&B serenaded us. Arin Ray. Perfect.

The basket was huge and as Ezekiel opened it up and began unloading things he’d packed, it seemed like he’d never stop.

“This is a lot of food,” I said.

He winked at me. “The way to a person’s heart is through their stomach.”

“Thanks for saying that correctly. I hate how they always assume it’s just men. Who doesn’t love to eat?” I peeked into the picnic basket, releasing a big laugh when he swatted at me for being nosey. He was going to make this slow, taking out each item one at time. The show-off.

There were croissants, slices of what looked like cheddar cheese, a bunch of purple grapes, and a large Tupperware container I couldn’t wait for him to open. First, he pulled out a chilled bottle of champagne and a container of strawberries. He set up a little tray for us to store our plates and glasses on and I sat cross-legged before it.

“What’s in the Tupperware?” I asked.

Ezekiel glanced at it and back to me. He grabbed it and set it on the tray and removed the lid. Inside was a wonderful arrangement of asparagus, red onions, grape tomatoes, spinach, hard boiled eggs, cut up red skin potatoes, and more.

“I made us a niçoise salad,” Ezekiel said.

My mouth watered. “I’ve never had one before.”