As they sat there, she said, "I love you and can't wait to be your wife and to be with you without end."
It was now time for her to board the plane. He walked her to the departure gate, gave her an affectionate kiss and said, "I will be waiting for you."
She said, "Farewell" and got on the plane.
As the jet took off, he waved and left the airport.
After arriving home, Jamo started to make plans to be with Malana. Late that evening, he went on his computer and received an e-mail from her. She arrived home safely and would e-mail him soon. He never told his parents or anyone else about her and wanted to wait a little longer before he made the announcement.
For vacation, Jamo's parents made plans to go to St. Kitts. They would be gone for six weeks and asked him to take over the business. This time, he did not mind since it was just a matter of time before he would be gone for good.
He went to work but could not concentrate. He was always thinking about Malana. For the next four weeks, he was busy and did not have time to obtain his passport or other vital papers needed for his trip abroad.
He and Malana were e-mailing each other almost every day. She told him there was no rush to make travel plans. She would put together a brokerage account packet and send the information to him in a couple of days.
In two months, she was planning to return to D.C.
To make their engagement official, Jamo bought a twenty thousand dollar diamond ring, but her staying with him, in his parents' home, was not possible.
He found a one-bedroom apartment in a nice turn of the century building. Since he did not know how long they would be in town, he decided on a month-to-month tenancy; he put down a security deposit and paid six months' rent in advance.
The community, where Jamo and his parents lived, was like a little village. Everyone knew everybody's business. If a person did not know anything, one was sure to make up something. It did not take long for hearsay to flood the area like a colossal tidal wave.
There were talks that Jamo had a woman in his life, but no one knew who she was. Some saw him going in and out of the hotel with a strange female. She was not from the community. There were even whispers that he was seeing a married woman because their meetings were so secretive.
The talks really heated up when the citizens discovered that he had purchased a pricey diamond ring. People were wondering if he bought that ring for her and if so, she was one of the lucky ones.