by Zane
“Yes, Taye,” I said saracastically, jumping all in the mix. “Did you have a good time?”
Taye glared at me. “From the looks of it, you sure did.”
I grinned mischieviously. “I damn sure did.” I paused. “In fact, I had the time of my life.”
Taye came closer to the bed and yanked my arm. “What the fuck do you mean by that?”
Michael reached over and grabbed his wrist. “Let her go, man. What’s wrong with you?”
Taye glared at him. “Stay out of this. This is my business. Why don’t you go home and handle yours?”
Michael continued to pull on his wrist. “I’m not going anywhere unless you let Alicia go and I’m convinced you’re not going to do something foolish.”
Taye released my arm. The pain in his eyes was evident. “I’ve already done something foolish. I’m not going to hurt my wife, but can you please leave?”
Michael looked at me. “Are you going to be okay?”
“Yes, I’ll be fine. We’ll talk later.”
“What do you mean? You’ll talk later?!” Taye yelled. “You don’t need to talk to him about a fucking thing!”
I surpressed a smile. Fucking was exactly what I intended to talk to Michael about, among other things.
Both Taye and I watched Michael get dressed. It never ceases to amaze me how comfortable men are with their nudity. Women might take two years before they feel at ease about walking around the house naked in front of their man, but men will walk around in the buff the day they meet you.
I could tell that Taye was trying to figure out whose dick was bigger. Since Michael was soft, he had no idea…but I did. Michael was definitely holding more.
Before he walked out of the bedroom, Michael turned to me. I could tell he was searching for the right words and was concerned about how Taye would react if he said what he wanted to say. We both knew the truth about our feelings so I made it clear that he did not have to even go there.
“Michael, we’ll talk later,” I whispered. “Just go, please!”
With that, the love of my life was gone. But not for long.
Taye stood there, staring.
“Don’t you dare,” I said once I heard the front door close. “Don’t you dare pull some self-righteous shit on me, Taye. All of this was your doing.”
“Go take a shower. You reek of him,” Taye said. “And then you need to change the sheets.”
I got up and headed for the bathroom, not because he told me to. I did want to bathe so I could get the hell out of there.
Before I climbed into the shower, I yelled out to Taye. “You change the damn sheets!”
Three months later
TAYE
I could not believe that Alicia left me for my best friend. Michael, that rat bastard, was lucky that I did not kill his ass. I found out that when she went out the next day, while I was remaking the bed from their tryst, she ran directly back to his arms. They met at a motel and fucked all day. They tried to tell me, later on, that they had always been in love but had kept away from each other since Alicia and I were already hooked up. Alicia said that she had wanted to be with Michael from day one, but I had approached her first. What the fuck?!
I was so mad when they told me they planned to make a life together that I went over to claim my prize, Marissa. She did not want to be bothered. In fact, she laughed in my face. After I had shot that first load the night of the swap, I could not get another erection to save my life. I think it was because I had built up so much anticipation, or it could have been subconscious guilt about cheating on my wife.
I made the biggest mistake of my life when I suggested swapping mates with Michael. Never, in a million years, would I have foreseen what would happen. It is going to take a long time for me to get over Alicia. I would do anything to get her back. Take a lesson from me. An even swap might not be a swindle but make damn sure that it is an even swap before you make the deal. Mine sure as hell wasn’t!
About the Contributors
Anna Black resides in the Midwest, where she finds that reading and writing erotica helps to make the winters somewhat bearable. She has previously published in The MILF Anthology. Although she enjoys writing short stories, she’s finally settling down to write a novel.
BlissDulce is a former exotic dancer who now lives in your neighborhood. At least once a month she sneaks a peek into the black satin chest that holds her diamond-encrusted keepsake G-string, sighs, and wonders if she will ever dare to work a pole again.
Gwyneth Bolton is the author of three romance novels, one erotic romance novel, and an erotic romance novella. She loves hearing from readers and can be reached at [email protected]. To find out more about Gwyneth and her novels, visit her website at www.gwynethbolton.com.
Kathleen Bradean’s stories can be found in The Best Women’s Erotica 2007, The Mammoth Book of Best New Erotica 6, and She’s On Top. Visit her blog at: www.KathleenBradean.blogspot.com.
Kaia Danielle would like to thank Kimberly, Nathasha, and Steven for their encouragement and support on this project. She dedicates this story to everyone who’s ever lived with “The Ache.” Check out Kaia’s website at www.kaiawrites.com for updates on her future projects and information on the real-life Afro-Brazilian hero Zumbi.
Leni Davidson is formerly from North Carolina but now lives in Woodbridge, Virginia. “Picture Perfect” is her first published story.
Penelope Flynn, a South Florida native, now makes her home in the Southwestern United States, where she produces literary works of erotica, horror, science fiction, and fantasy. Updates regarding her current and planned works can be found at www.PenelopeFlynn.com.
Jordan Grace is the pen name of a writer lucky enough to call the beautiful islands of the Bahamas home. Her first novel, Loving Gabriel, was published by Whiskey Creek Press in 2007. For more info visit her at www.myspace.com/blackbutterfly74.
Kimberly King, a Chicago native and Atlanta resident, has written several confessions stories and articles published by Dorchester Media. She and her alter ego, KD King, are hard at work on several paranormal erotic series. Check her, and the infamous No Sex and the City blog, out by visiting www.myspace.com/pornwriter. Or go to www.kimberlyking.net.
A native New Yorker, Gracie C. McKeever has authored several novels, among them the Siren Bestsellers, Emilia’s Emancipation, Once Upon a Time—Fairy Tale Collection, Eternal Designs, and The Wolf in the Mansion (www.sirenpub.com). She has been writing since the ripe old age of seven, when two younger brothers were among her earliest, captive audience for various short-story readings and performances. It wasn’t until 2001, however, that Gracie caught the erotica bug that produced an instant affinity for the genre and spawned her first erotic romance, Beneath the Surface, published in 2006 by Siren Publishing, Inc. Visit Gracie at www.graciecmckeever.com.
Patt Mihailoff is the author of Two Fantasy Novels, Over 100 True Confessions Stories. She lives with her husband in New Jersey.
Mitch is a retired university professor who researched and wrote on one of the social sciences for a major Southern institution. He has an extensive professional bibliography, has presented research papers on five of the seven continents, and has served on the editorial boards of a number of leading interdisciplinary journals. Writing fiction and erotica was only discovered after retirement. This story is his first published erotica.
CB Potts is a full-time writer who makes her living tucked away in the Adirondack Mountains, not far from where “Alibi” takes place. She splits her time between ghostwriting books for business professionals and penning romantic tales for lovers of every persuasion. You can find out more at www.cbpotts.net.
Kim Rose is a writer from New York.
E. Charles Smith lives in Detroit, Michigan, with his wife and their five children. By day, he works as an engineering technician with a Detroit-based geotechnical engineering firm. By night, he moonlights as an aspiring author of erotica fiction.
As a child, Hugh Smith wa
s privy to a rich Jamaican storytelling tradition, which he credits as his inspiration. He enjoys writing and reading across all genres and is a contributor to www.oystersandchocolate.com. Hugh is currently hard at work on other writing projects, among them a novel, a book of short stories, and several children’s picture books. Hugh lives with his family in New Jersey. He loves to hear from readers and may be reached at [email protected].
Growing up, Amie Stuart wanted to be a lawyer and psychologist. Obviously, she’s seen the error in her ways, though she’s never settled down into any one profession until she took up writing. She’s a native Texan who divides her time between three crazy cats, two hilarious kids, and one demanding muse.
Zane is the publisher of Strebor Books, an imprint of Atria Books/Simon & Schuster. She is the New York Times bestselling author of more than ten titles, as well as a television and film producer. You can join her mailing list by sending a blank email to [email protected] or visit her MySpace page at www.myspace.com/zaneland.