can go with you, but they don’t really want a poor little server girl. His mama and papa wouldn’t even let him toss a nickel at you, much less date you, so just get your head out of the clouds right now,” Carolyn’s boss said with disgust in her tone. “Keep your head in this here work, so we can get through this night without any mishaps. You want to keep your job, don’t you?”
Carolyn shook her head up and down vigorously. “Ye-yes, Ms. Carmen. I . . . I will keep my eyes to the floor from now on,” Carolyn assured her, her entire body hot with shame.
“Good. Now it’s time to start the cleanup,” her boss said, tossing a cleaning chamois in her direction.
Carolyn scrambled to pick up the rag. She was glad to be dismissed from that conversation. She rushed away, ready to work and eager to keep her job.
The gorgeous guy boldly approached her at the end of the dinner reception. Carolyn, being from the country, had no idea who he was. She later found out that everyone who was anyone in Idlewild knew who Ernest Johnson was—the gorgeous and very wealthy son of Bernard Johnson, Chicago’s most wealthy black businessman. The Johnsons owned Idlewild’s most exclusive club, the Point, and were at the center of the illustrious social scene. It was a well-known fact that Ernest Johnson could have any girl he wanted. Not only was he strikingly attractive, but he was also rich and single, and the opportunities that came his way were abundant. He was twenty-five and number one on the most eligible bachelor list, a fact that was completely lost on Carolyn when Ernest approached her, flashing his perfect smile and displaying the charm of those Prince Charming types that she’d read about in books as a young girl in the South.
Standing together, they looked like the mismatched pair that they were. Carolyn was dressed in a server’s outfit, with her dark brown hair drawn into a tight bun and her makeup-free face flushed red. The handsome stranger, on the other hand, looked rich in his custom tuxedo and diamond cuff links. Together they looked like master and servant.
“You are stunning,” he said to her. “I’m Ernest. It’s so nice to meet you.” His smile was electric.
Carolyn felt dizzy, and her legs almost buckled. A whoosh of breath involuntarily left her lungs through her mouth in response to his smooth baritone. She couldn’t speak a word. Although she looked like a grown woman, Carolyn was only eighteen years old and had never gone on a date. In that moment, she was overwhelmed by Ernest’s beautiful slanted hazel eyes and his neatly trimmed jet-black hair. He reminded Carolyn of a model she’d seen on a billboard. Looking at him made her pulse quicken, so she lowered her eyes, stared down at her feet, and smiled girlishly.
“You probably say that to one hundred girls per day,” Carolyn murmured, still avoiding direct eye contact.
“I haven’t seen one as beautiful as you in a long time,” Ernest replied, using his pointer finger to push her chin up so she was forced to look at him.
Carolyn reluctantly locked eyes with him, and when he smiled, she swore she could feel her heart melting and oozing down her insides. Standing in his presence, Carolyn forgot she was working and might lose her job by fraternizing with the wealthy guests. She forgot everything, and in that moment, she felt like they were the only two people in the large, crowded ballroom. They spent a few more minutes laughing and talking, until Ms. Carmen peeked around the wall separating the servers’ area from the reception hall. Ms. Carmen had a powerful gaze that could stop a giant in his tracks.
“Um, I . . . I’ve got to go,” Carolyn said nervously, her words rushing out. She had felt Ms. Carmen’s eye slap all too well. She turned and strode away.
“Wait . . . I didn’t get your name,” Ernest called after her.
She stopped, turned around, and mouthed her name to him, hoping that Ms. Carmen wouldn’t catch any of it. Then she turned around again and started walking.
“How do I find you?” he yelled at her back.
Carolyn couldn’t turn around to answer, but she dropped something on the floor in her wake. It was a white paper napkin. She could hear his footsteps behind her and hoped he would pick it up. She had quickly scribbled her information down on the napkin. Carolyn didn’t see him do it, but Ernest picked up the napkin and pushed it into his lapel pocket.
The next day Carolyn returned to the house she and some friends lived in for the summer season to find a note stuck to the door of the tiny room she rented.
“I paid this month,” she grumbled, annoyed to think her landlord was trying to fleece her for extra money again. With her hands shaking, she quickly opened the note. She read it and read it again. She sucked in her breath, flabbergasted.
I can’t stop thinking of you. I hope you don’t think this is invasive, but I had to find you. Please call. Ernest Johnson. 312-998-4560.
Carolyn rushed through the door and collapsed on her bed, weak with joy. She kicked her legs in the air and squealed. But then Ms. Carmen’s words played back in her ears. That’s the kind of cruel shit these little rich bastards do all the time. They try to see how far they can go with you, but they don’t really want a poor little server girl. His mama and papa wouldn’t even let him toss a nickel at you, much less date you.
Carolyn’s joy quickly faded. She crumpled up the paper and tossed it across her room.
“Ms. Carmen is right. A man like that is totally out of my league,” she grumbled aloud, staring up at her dingy off-white ceiling. She sighed and turned onto her side. “When you’re poor, you stay poor. The rich stay with their own kind,” she said out loud. Those were some of the words her grandmother had told her before Carolyn got in her car to make the drive to Idlewild.
That night, Carolyn fell into a fitful sleep. When she awoke the next day, she had a different thought. She’d decided to call Ernest. When she called, Ernest officially asked her out on a date. Carolyn couldn’t believe it. He sounded so excited to hear from her. Even over the phone, Ernest made her feel like the only girl that existed to him.
First, Carolyn felt happy, but immediately after, she became sick with worry about what she’d wear on a date with a rich man. She rummaged through her tiny suitcase, and everything she had looked like rags. Carolyn sighed. Then, against everything she’d ever promised herself, she lifted up her mattress and retrieved the envelope that contained her savings. Her entire life savings was contained in a small, rumpled white envelope. Carolyn sifted through the flattened bills. She flopped onto her bed and stared at the money.
“I could buy a beautiful dress and save the rest,” she said out loud to herself. “But to be with him, I will need an expensive dress,” she continued. Her mind was a tornado’s eye of thoughts. In the end, she rushed out of her room; raced downtown, to a boutique that she had always felt too poor to even look at; and used all her savings to purchase the most beautiful tangerine dress she could find. Carolyn poured every single hour before the time she was scheduled to see Ernest into getting herself beautified. She surprised even herself when it was all said and done.
They went on their first, date and it was magical—dinner at an expensive steak house a million miles out of Carolyn’s league, a romantic walk to the lakefront and, finally, a bottle of wine on the sand. Carolyn was smitten. Ernest wanted to know all about her life. He was the first man ever to talk to her without coming across as an old pervert. They spent that first night talking into the wee hours of the morning outside Carolyn’s place. He told her he didn’t want her to go, but she finally pulled away and went inside.
Ernest was back almost every day. He wanted Carolyn to quit her job, but she refused. He showered her with beautiful gifts. They officially began dating, he called her his woman, and in her mind, he was her man. Ernest made Carolyn feel like she was the only woman in the world. He took her to all of Idlewild’s most exclusive invite-only social events and acted as if he was so proud to have her on his arm. People always commented on what a beautiful couple they made. After a summer of dating, Ernest proposed. When he presented Carolyn with his grandmother’s ruby and diamond engagement ring, Carolyn almost wet herself. It was so sudden, but Carolyn knew without a doubt.
She