“Yeah, me too, D. But it is what it is. You just go do your event for Miss CiCi and be great. I’m sure it’s going to be amazing.”
“I sure hope so. I put a lot into it.”
“Just like you’ve consistently done. Go do your thing, have a drink or two once things are under control, and loosen up. Don’t take any of this drama with you.”
When her and Elise’s call ended, Dina breathed a huge sigh of relief. She thanked her lucky stars, for the disaster that could have been. With everything that Elise had just spoken, and after her last meeting with Cicely, Dina was absolutely positive that the steps she had taken, were the right ones to take. After confiding in Cicely about the drama between the sisters, Cicely became upset. She couldn’t believe that Alyssa was disrespecting her good friend’s legacy. She took it to heart, and empathized with Elise. “Ingrate” and “entitled”, were just a few of the words thrown around, when CiCi expressed her disdain for the situation.
Thus, the moment she left CiCi’s home, Dina called Alyssa. She pulled the plug on both the invitation, and the banana pudding. There was no way she would risk her reputation by having the two women share in the same space, and possibly come into contact with one another. That was something she couldn’t afford.
As expected, Alyssa had blown her lid, and hurled out a bunch of insults, but Dina stood firm. She was proud knowing that in a few hours she would get to see the fruits of her and her staff’s labor. She was confident that the evening would go off without a hitch, and be one for the books. Everything was now in place; all everyone had to do was show up and have a good time.
With a clear mind, Dina shot off a few text messages to her staff, then set off for her master bedroom to get ready.
22 | TREVOR
I stared back at myself through the full-length mirror, built into the wall of my master bathroom. I couldn’t help admire my look for the night. At first, I was thinking about wearing a white suit. But that whole ensemble had way too much going on, with a tie and all that. Way too formal. I would’ve felt overdressed. So, in the end, I decided to go in a more casual direction. That resulted in a pair of white, Ralph Lauren twill chinos, and a white long-sleeved slim fit, Tom Ford button-down, that I had tucked. On my feet I wore dark-green, suede Oxford boots, then topped off my look with a suede fedora of the same color. Yeah, I’d just gotten freshly cut, but the complement of the hat against the whole fit, was too spectacular to pass on. Top to bottom, I looked good. Casual, but stylish enough to suit the occasion.
When I was done approving what I’d put together, because it was fitting, I sprayed Tom Ford’s ‘Fucking Fabulous’ for my trusted smell-good. On my way out the room, I grabbed a black belt from the belt drawer in my walk-in. After that, I headed downstairs.
Right on time, a succession of rapid knocks began attacking my front door. Without even opening it, I knew it was Skai. She was the only one that did that annoying-ass shit whenever she came over. While the crazy knocking on the door wasn’t a surprise, her being on time was.
“Skai…”
“I know, I know.” Her and her perfume breezed past me and into the house, without stopping. “It’s my thing.”
“Nooo. Seriously?” I asked in sarcasm.
Closing the door, I watched her sexiness from behind in a tight, white jumpsuit. That material accentuated her body in a way that I hadn’t seen. Her ass sat high and firm, looking delicious enough to pounce and nibble on. The curves of her hips seemed more defined. Almost got a little jealous knowing that there would be big-ass crowds of men drooling over her.
She had walked by so fast, that I didn’t get to see what her hair or makeup looked like. Not that she needed makeup at all.
By the time I caught up to her in the kitchen, she was already in the pantry grabbing a bottle of Mountain Valley. She turned around as she was twisting the lid off. “You look good, Mr. Rossi,” she complimented. “I didn’t even notice until right now. Dang, boy.”
She had gotten her eyebrows arched, and wore minimal makeup, but the red lipstick was laid on thick. It was nice. It was a color of red that paired nicely with her golden skin tone. She wouldn’t want me saying it, but to me, she was at her prettiest when her hair was in one of those high ponytails like it was tonight. She even had some of those squiggly, curly hairs laying at her hairline. It was beautiful as fuck.
“Shit, you look good as hell yourself, Ms. Childs.”
She smiled. “Thank you. You like my red stilettos too?” she asked, sticking her foot out for me to see.
“Hell yeah, I do. I like the whole package. That red on white is nice! Like a fuckin’ candy cane! Good enough to lick…”
“Oh my God! Stop it!” she squealed, blushing.
“Well, it does look real-real nice.”
“Thank you.” She stepped to the island, and partially draped herself over it, to size me up. “And who dressed you?” she asked.
“Ha! I dressed my damn self.”
“Riiight. You got some mall hoochie to help you out, huh? You did not do all that yourself. I want the mall surveillance. STAT!”
I winked at her and chuckled, choosing to ignore the question. I walked around the island and over to the fridge, then opened the door wide. I reached for the bouquet of flowers that had been sitting inside since earlier in the day.
I heard a loud gasp from right beside me. “Oh my God, Trevor! That’s so beautiful! Is that a Your Majesty arrangement?”
“Yep,” I replied, letting the door close, then placing the vase on the countertop.
“It’s… sooo… pretty. Thank you, Trevor,” she gushed, descending upon the arrangement.
“What? No, Skai.”
The laugh caught in my throat. It didn’t dawn on me for one second, that she would think they were for her.
She whined out, “What do you mean?” The bright look in her eyes dimmed, when she realized her mistake. “Oh shit,” she remarked. Her eyes widened. “They’re not mine, huh? Oh shit… that’s sooo embarrassing.”
“Don’t be embarrassed. I’ll get you some another day.”
“Don’t bother,” she snapped. “Let’s just go.”
I continued holding in the laugh that wanted to escape so bad. She was mad that the flowers weren’t hers. I grabbed them from the counter and followed behind her.
“Where are those gonna sit?” she pouted sarcastically, over her shoulder. “Because there’s water in that vase, and I’d hate for it to be destroyed on the floor behind your seat.”
“That’s why you’re gonna hold them.”
“Uh… the hell I am.”
“Be a sport, Skai.”
“You really make me sick,” she spat at me, while I was engaging the alarm.
“That’s cool. We can get Tylenol on the way,” I told her, finally unleashing my laughter.
23 | ALYSSA
Alyssa paced angrily, back and forth across the floor of her bedroom. Her anger was due in large, to the phone call she had gotten from Dina telling her never mind on the banana pudding, and also that she didn’t think it was a good idea for her to go to the mansion party. The reason she gave was: “I just found out that I’m not to go over 20, for the people not on the invitation list.”
“Bullshit!” Alyssa had charged loudly, into the phone. “This is some shit that Elise told you to do! Why did you even tell her? You called me! I didn’t reach out to you, Dina! You… called me!”
The verbal lashing that she had given the woman, calling her everything from a Mammy, to a carpet muncher, was venomous. It was deliberate and meant to hurt the bitch. Because what Alyssa wasn’t ever going to stand for, was people treating her like a fucking peasant. She had concluded her rant with, “Oh, and tell ya Massah that I will be dragging the fuck out of her ass in court!”
Since that conversation, Alyssa had had days to contemplate what she was going to do about going to the party. Would she go to the party and slap the hell out of Dina for lying? Go and act a whole-ass fool t
o put dirt on A Queenz Plan’s name? Or would she just go and enjoy herself as a person who had been extended a verbal invite? She already had the address, so having to try getting it was a non-issue.
Y’all fucked with the wrong one…
As if the disrespectful dismissal from Dina wasn’t enough, after their blowup, Alyssa tried calling Trevor, only to find that she had been blocked—from calling his phone, from social media, and from email. She thought seriously about going to his house, but she knew better than to do that. Besides, it wasn’t worth it. And that childish-ass move let her know, that although his ass looked older than he was, he was still well-below a grown man’s threshold.
Except in bed. Now that, she’d miss…
Nevertheless, ignoring her and blocking contact, was all it took for Alyssa. She was done with his ass. Wasn’t no white muthafucka going to curve her, and then she run to ask why. Not ever. So, she was done. And that was why this party was an even better idea. She needed to get out and meet her somebody that would be worthy of her time. Maybe a few that she could take her pick of. A litter of puppies that she could train. They would be all she ever wanted in a man.
Alyssa stopped in her tracks after having padded across the floor for what seemed like hours. She tilted her head back, looking skyward and smiled. Feeling rejuvenated, Alyssa took the trip to her walk-in and began rummaging through her impressive racks of clothes. Some worn, and some still with price tags on them.
“Heyyy best friend. It’s you I love,” Alyssa said to the pretty, white backless dress with a draped neckline. “You are a sexy bitch. We are about to turn a few heads, hunty. You… and this body. Gurrrl!”
Fifteen minutes later, Alyssa had her dress laid out on the bed, with all-silver accessories to accompany. Bangles for her wrist, rings for her fingers, and dangling diamonds to keep her ears company. The works. She chose a rhinestone open toe stiletto to show off her new gel pedicure.
Then with hours left to transform herself into something even more beautiful, Alyssa set about to her kitchen to make the banana pudding she had been asked to deliver.
Damn, this is going to be a fun time.
24 | TREVOR
Later that night…
“Look at this place.” Skai sighed in awe. “I follow this big-time Vegas realtor on YouTube who does tours of mansions that he’s selling, and I just stare at the screen as he goes from room to room. Shock all on my face, at the beauty. Those places are amazing. But daaamn. Now, I get to see the inside of one. If this don’t set the tone for manifesting what I want, nothing will.”
“Then, nothing will… because you don’t know what you want.”
“Trevor, don’t start with me,” Skai said, rolling her eyes.
“You know I couldn’t resist. You left that wide open.”
“Grow up.”
“You first.”
Skai burst out laughing. “Gotta have the last word! So childish.”
“You like it,” I teased, as we neared the estate ahead.
“What I’d like is for you to hurry up and get up the road so I can offload this big-ass bouquet of flowers.”
“We’re almost there. Chill.”
“Says the person that didn’t spend an entire trip babysitting a vase.”
“Maybe not a vase, but a—”
“Hold up,” Skai interjected. “I just know that is not a damn red carpet, Trevor.”
“Then you don’t know your Grandma as well as you think you do.”
We drew closer, and yep, there was a red carpet that trailed up what I figured was the entrance to the party. I smiled at the sight. It was nice for sure. CiCi had gone all out, just as I knew she would. There were valet parking attendants, dressed in white. There was security standing watch at the bottom of the stairs. Even though they were outfitted in tuxedos with bow ties, you could tell by the muscle and their ultra-serious expressions that they weren’t there for games.
“I wonder which one of Gram’s friends this belongs to. I hope they’re still around when I hit the two-five,” Skai said. “I need every square inch of this here, man.”
I got some square inches for you…
I almost said it out loud, but I’d poked at Skai enough for the night. Now was the time to party, and bring in my new year, in style.
Valet attendants appeared on both sides of the truck, opening the doors for Skai and me. And as soon as they did, music coming from inside the party, spilled outside the massive estate. The sounds were crisp and clear.
“Good evening, sir… ma’am…” they greeted us.
“Evening,” we both offered, stepping from the vehicle.
“Mr. Rossi, you and your guest can follow the red carpet inside,” another attendant stated. “Ms. McCall is awaiting your arrival.”
“Oh well,” Skai muttered.
“Damn, you know it’s my party?” I asked him in surprise.
“Absolutely. We have photos.”
“Shit.” Now, it was my turn to be surprised. “CiCi thought of everything.”
“Trevor…” Skai whined.
“I know, I know. Give ‘em here.”
“About time. Dang.” She began shaking the circulation back into her arms and hands.
“Dramatic,” I told her on our way down the walkway.
Suddenly, a familiar shriek sounded from up ahead. “My babies!” CiCi pranced our way in a white pantsuit, and pink high-heeled shoes. “Will you look at this! You two beautiful babies walking up this aisle together is a stunning visual.”
“Grams!” Skai snapped.
“Aww girl. Give your G’Ma a hug! You too, Trevor.”
Skai was the first to take up space in CiCi’s arms, pecking her on both cheeks. “So good to see your face in person, pretty girl.”
“Yours too, Grams.”
“Come give me some love, Trevor.”
I extended the arrangement to her. “Here’s my love and appreciation. It won’t ever be big enough; but hopefully, you like them.”
“Ohhh my goodness.” She pulled a pink manicured hand to her chest. “These are for me? They’re gorgeous,” she cried, grabbing her flowers in her hands, then leaning up on her tiptoes to kiss me on the cheek. “This was so thoughtful of you.”
“You deserve it. And so much more.”
She looked at me, then to Skai and back to me again. “Y’all come on in this party before you have me out here crying.”
25 | TREVOR
The home was massive, and had so much to fall in love with. It had to be the highest level of glamour. Nothing there disappointed. Not that I expected it to. I didn’t fan out over a lot; but fuck! The place didn’t even seem like living quarters, it seemed more like it was built for actual events. There was a soaring, open floor plan with custom flooring, lighting, and floor to ceiling motorized pocket doors. The luxurious hall had tropical fish aquariums built inside the walls—on both sides. I was too busy studying the vast array of stunning fish, to see that we had neared a waterfall. It wasn’t just any waterfall, either. It was a wall made of black marble that had water cascading from it like lava off a volcanic mountain.
Fuuuck…
I turned to see Skai looking at me and smiling. “Fat, right?” she whispered.
“Understatement…”
Right before we exited the hallway, I glanced up at the ceiling. There were enormous glass chandeliers that seemed to lead us down the Italian-tiled road. I felt like I was on a field trip.
Moments later, we arrived at the base of another set of angular stairs. Suddenly, the music cut, and the once-loud environment, went silent. Outside of the water from the falls, and the clicking of CiCi’s and Skai’s heels, nothing could be heard.
CiCi never spoke; just continued to lead us up about eight or so stairs. Before we arrived at the top stair, my eyes met with the elevated DJ booth that had multi-colored lights over its head. It was impressive, and whoever dude was, he was brave as fuck. No way would I be hovering so high off the ground like tha
t. Looked like some shit David Copperfield would do.
At the top of the last stair, we were greeted with a large open area with two huge firepits on either end, and an even larger, brightly-lit onyx bar. I couldn’t even count the number of people that occupied that space.
“Oh shit,” I mumbled. I was assessing the large crowd of partygoers.
“Happy Birthday, Trevor!”
“Wow…” escaped my lips in a low murmur. Instinctively, I stuck my hand in the air and waved to all the acquaintances that showed up to celebrate with me, then bowed my head in appreciation. It was humbling as shit.
CiCi rubbed my back softly. “Look at all that love,” she said, from beside me.
“Dang, Trevor. I didn’t know you had this many friends,” Skai said. “I thought I was the only one!” The she quickly followed up with, “I’m just playin’ big-head.” She leaned up on her tiptoes to kiss me on the cheek. “Happy Birthday, beautiful man.”
As we stepped down into the room, applause erupted.
“Aww!” I called out. “You guys got a grown man about to shed a tear or several! Can’t be doing that. But what I can do is thank you from the bottom of my heart for coming to celebrate with me. Glad to see all your faces.”
“All I see is a goddamn hat over my masterpiece!” Kam called out from the crowd.
“See! You weren’t s’posed to pay attention to that!” I kidded with him.
“Lookin’ good though, my dude. I guess you get a pass!”
“I appreciate it! But yeah, can’t wait to party with all of you. And look… I can’t dance, so don’t expect to see any fancy dance moves from me!”
In the middle of all the laughter, I heard, “Mic check…mic check…” in the distance.
“Can I have everyone’s attention, please!” When the room was slow to quiet, another attempt was made, with a wave of her hand, and a “Shhh…” A few more seconds passed, and when there was dead silence, CiCi began her speech:
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