“Yeah, just like I thought. Probably your ‘homie’,” she says using air quotes.
I frown as I look into her hazel and orange contacts. “Look, I had a good time hanging with you, but I have something to do,” I say matter-of-factly.
“You’re so full of it,” she says, throwing her middle finger up and strutting toward the door with ass jiggling everywhere.
I shake my head. I have no doubt that I would have had a good ass time with her tonight, but that feeling would have been gone tomorrow. I’m more interested in reconnecting with the woman who has given me a lasting memory from just a short exchange of words.
My eyes drift back to the area where the mystery woman and her friend walked minutes ago. They’re not there any longer. My orbs roam across the room. By the time I look back to the door, I see her leaving out the exit. My mood sours immediately, and I make my way back through the crowd, trying my best to get to the door before she’s out of my sight again.
“Make sure you come back tomorrow night for our Speed-Date night. Who knows, you might get lucky!” I hear the DJ saying on the mic. I walk out into the parking lot and look around for any sign of the mystery woman.
She is gone.
Chapter Three
Astalia
Heart Match
December 15, 2019
2:14 p.m.
“You really stepped in it this time, Stalia. Where are you going to find a whole man by next week?” My cousin, Jayne, sits on my couch, staring at me as if I have completely lost my mind, and maybe I have. She places her glass of wine on the table only to deepen the dumbfounded look on her face. She’s irritating my nerves right now. I have enough stress on me from my mother’s judgments. I don’t need her breathing down my neck too.
“I don’t know, but at this point, I feel like finding an escort service and dishing out half of my savings account to buy a date who fits the description. Mama thinks it’s simple to find a good man. Well, no, it isn’t 1990 anymore. Men these days are taken, transitioning, or just plain out dogs.”
“Girl, tell me about it. I know because I’m still entertaining Ned’s bullshit.” Jayne snaps her lips shut, but it’s too late. She has already put her business out there.
“Ned?” I question her, confused. “I thought you dumped him a long time ago. How is he even still in the picture, and he has a ‘whole’ wife?”
I see the intense pain the moment it hits Jayne’s round and regal face. She’s still in love with Ned, even though she knows he’s a dirty dog—the kind that roams the streets of the city, humping everything he can hump. The way she met him was through Facebook. He sent her a generic, “Hey beautiful, I would love to get to know you better.”
By the time she told me about him, it was too late to stop her from falling for him. She had already slept with him. She showed me his picture, and I was shocked to see that he was the guy who was all in my inbox flirting daily. He sent t
he same kinds of messages to my cousin, Rena. I showed the messages to Jayne, and she just wouldn’t believe her eyes. She wouldn’t let herself believe the man she loved was cheating on her. My cousin was gone way deep down into the sunken place for Ned. I mean, gone-gone off what I assumed was the D.
One day, she drove to Atlanta to have a girls’ day out, and she spilled the beans that not only was he a dog, but he didn’t have any dick either. At that point, I was confused. I didn’t know what to make of her staying with him, knowing he mistreated her and didn’t have a sex game to compensate. At this point, what else could he do for her when she knows he has a wife?
I cringe at the thought. Everyone knows about Ned’s wife because he up and married the woman after six months of being engaged to Jayne. My whole family found out about his wife at the same time—when his wife tagged Ned on social media with their wedding day pictures. So, while my dad was chipping in for a wedding for Ned and Jayne, Ned was out marrying another woman.
Jayne’s thin fingers slide into her straight black hair with blond streaks. She sighs loudly. “Stop looking at me like that, Stalia. I know you’re thinking about my situation, but you don’t have to worry about me. I’m good. His wife is still trying to start shit with me, but I’m not dealing with Ned like that anymore. As of three months ago, I am Ned-free,” she announces as if she has hit a major milestone in her life.
“Are you sure about that?” I ask.
“Yes, I have a new ‘little situation’ that I’m not ready to talk about.”
“Oh, really?” I ask, brow raised.
“I enjoy spending time with my ‘little situation,’ and I think he enjoys being with me, but he’s scared of going to the next level, so really I don’t know if it’s real yet. When I find out, you will know,” she assures me.
“You said a mouthful just now, Jayne.”
“I know. But that’s how my life goes: heartbreak, unfulfilled sex to no sex, and battles with a crazy woman who stole my fiancé.”
“Well, we all have our crosses to bear. But I worry about you, Jayne. I just want you to be happy. I know you took it pretty hard when he married her.”
“I did…” She sucks in a breath and takes a moment to get back her composure. “But I’m over it now. What we need to do is find you a man to take home for Christmas so your mom won’t disown you for lying to her.” Her face lights up with a huge smile. “Oh, I’ve got to be there to see this. I’m going to stop by for Christmas dinner to lend you some support.”