Cheesecake and Teardrops

by Faye Thompson

  The meeting ended, and Charisma returned to her office.

  Just as she was about to read her e-mail, the phone rang. In her haste to answer the phone, she knocked over her cup of coffee, spilling it all over the papers on her desk as well as her lap. She was wearing a turquoise wool suit. She jumped up and grabbed some tissue to mop up the mess with one hand and picked up the phone with the other.

  It was Nate.

  “Yes, Nate.”

  “Charisma, I need to see you in my office.”

  “I just spilled coffee all over myself. Can you give me a second?”

  “Sure, I’ll see you in a few.”

  She headed straight for the ladies’ lounge to blot out the coffee from her skirt before it stained. Then she took a handful of damp paper towels back to her office to clean her desk. Finally, she went in to see her boss.

  “Close the door, Charisma.” She did as she was told and sat down.

  Nate was seated behind his desk with his elbows resting on the arms of the chair, clutching his hands as though he was about to crack his knuckles. He looked at her for a moment without speaking.

  “How’s it going?” he asked.

  “Fine.”

  He got up from his seat and walked over to the front of his desk, where he sat down with one foot dangling in the air. He chose his words carefully.

  “I think we’ve been playing this cat-and-mouse game long enough. First, you play hard to get, and I chase you. Then, I act uninterested and all business, and you’re drawn to me even more. We’re two adults. Let’s be honest with ourselves and each other and admit that there’s something between us.”

  “Nate, I don’t know what to say.”

  “You don’t know what to say, Charisma? Please, let’s cut the bull. Okay? You want me just as much as I want you. We both know that. Stop acting like a child and start acting like my woman. How’s that love of your life, by the way? What’s his name again, Dex?” He smirked.

  “I don’t have to take this,” she said, getting up to leave.

  He caught her just as she reached the door, his hand covering her hand that covered the doorknob. Nate turned Charisma around to face him. He rested his back up against the door and pulled her toward him.

  He smelled so damn good. It was intoxicating. Of course, she was attracted to him too. Why was she fighting it? “Then do this,” he said, his voice husky.

  Charisma put her hands on his shoulders and looked up into his eyes. He held her so close she could barely breathe, and yet her heart was racing a mile a minute. His lips were only inches from hers.

  Who the hell am I kidding? she asked herself, ready to give into her desires.

  Just then the phone rang, ruining the moment and snapping Charisma back to her senses.

  “Damn!” he said simply, releasing her and sprinting back to his desk. He answered the phone, motioning for Charisma to stay.

  She shook her head, and he put the caller on hold.

  “This isn’t over, Charisma.”

  “That’s what you think. I hope you enjoyed yourself, Nate, because this will never happen again. Ever.”

  “Not only will it happen again, Charisma, it’ll happen sooner than you think.”

  “You’re a trip,” she said, shaking her head and leaving him to his phone call.

  Charisma steered clear of her boss, making certain that their only interactions were job related. She spoke only when spoken to and did her very best to stay out of his way, but one evening as she prepared to leave, he cornered her in her office. Everyone else had gone home for the day.

  “How’s the Madison account coming along?” he asked, sliding both hands in his pockets.

  “It’s right on schedule, Nate.”

  “Excellent. We need to talk. You’ve been avoiding me, Charisma. We need to talk.”

  “About what?” she asked as she packed up her briefcase, her back to him.

  “About us.”

  “What us? There is no us.”

  “You are in serious denial. Why are you fighting it? It’s just a matter of time before we get together.”

  Charisma turned around to face him. “Nate, let me explain something to you. I have a man.”

  “And when’s the last time you’ve seen him?”

  She hesitated just slightly. “That’s . . .”

  “That long, huh? Who are you kidding, Charisma? I know he does it to you, but he doesn’t do it for you. What you need is a real man.”

  “And I take it you’re that man? You see this?” she asked, feeling the outline of her body with her hands. “Let me just say that you will never, ever taste this.”

  Nate began to laugh, a deep, hearty laugh. “Sweetheart, never is a long time. You enjoy your evening.”

  Charisma arrived home late that night took a nice, long shower. She made the water as cold as she could stand it and then headed off to bed. Before long she was out like a light.

  Charisma walked along the beach in the moonlight. She paused for a moment while Nate spread the blanket onto the sand. They were alone with the ocean. He sat down first and beckoned for her to sit on his lap. She wore only a white tank top and a full, island print skirt that grazed her legs just bellow the knee. Obliging, she sat in his lap, and he covered them both with a second blanket. With one swift motion, he slid his hand underneath her skirt and unzipped his fly. She repositioned herself on his lap until they were both satisfied. Kissing, they gently rocked to the sounds of the ocean. Yet, at the same time, they were oblivious to them. He held her close and buried himself in her neck, loving the scent of her hair. Then, he slid his arms underneath her top, massaging first her strong back and then her breasts, one at a time. He bent down and slid one breast into his mouth, loving the taste and fullness of it.

  Before long, she was panting and they were both rocking underneath the blanket. He stiffened as he came while her cries of pleasure rolled out to sea with the waves....

  Charisma woke up with a jolt. Her nightgown was soaked, clinging to places she tried to deny. Shamefully, she ran her hand through her hair in an attempt to catch her breath.

  Still flushed, she got up and headed for the bathroom. Then she thought better of it. She couldn’t dare to face herself in the mirror.

  Luckily, the alarm clock went off a little over an hour later and she had other things to occupy her time—like getting ready for work. Then she realized that she’d have to see him. And in an office the size of theirs, there was no place to hide.

  She decided to go nondescript. She’d wear a pair of black wool slacks and a black cashmere turtleneck. She refused to wear anything that would draw attention to her person. She didn’t want his eyes feasting on her body any longer than necessary.

  Charisma drove to work and circled the building twice looking for a parking spot. She was hoping that her boss’s car would be nonexistent and that he’d decided to take the day off. As luck would have it, though, they ended up sharing an elevator. It was just the two of them. So she pretended to be engrossed in the morning paper to discourage any attempts at conversation. Unfortunately, it didn’t work.

  “Was it good for you too?” he asked her point-blank.

  “Was what good for me?”

  “The dream you had about us last night. It must have been hot because you look positively radiant this morning.”

  Her answer was a swift slap across the face.

  “I take it that means yes.” He grinned, rubbing his stinging cheek.

  As the elevator door opened, she stepped off, fuming.

  Why hadn’t she had a quick comeback for his arrogance?

  Now she felt like an idiot. If she left early, she’d feel like a fool, and if she stayed the entire day she wouldn’t be able to look him in the eye. It was a no-win situation. Charisma wondered if her coworkers were aware of any sexual tension between her and Nate. If they were, they kept it to themselves, and Chase was probably too busy plotting and scheming herself to pay Charisma any mind.

 
; Charisma worked all day on the Madison account, tabulating data from various demographics. The report was due by close of business Friday, and it was already Wednesday.

  She stopped at 5:00 P.M., too exhausted to work any overtime. She wanted nothing more than to curl up with a hot cup of homemade cocoa and get some much-needed rest. Funny, as she drifted off to sleep, her last thought was whether or not she had remembered to lock her computer.

  A well-rested Charisma got to work bright and early Thursday morning. The first thing Charisma did was check her computer. Dag, she had forgotten to lock it, but from the looks of her files, everything appeared to be untouched.

  She headed for the conference room and put on a fresh pot of coffee. It was an unwritten office rule that whoever got in first made the coffee.

  By the time Charisma returned to her office, she realized that she wasn’t the only one in. Evidently, Chase had made it in early as well. Normally, she worked from 10:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M. on Thursdays, but apparently, something had gotten her up early that morning. Charisma chose to ignore Miss Crappuccino.

  There was still much to do on the Madison account. When Charisma accessed the file, the data looked strangely unfamiliar. Her flying fingers began typing a mile a minute.

  Someone had deleted all her hard work, and the report was due Friday. Damn, how could she have been so careless?

  And what the hell was Chase doing in so early?

  “We need to talk,” Charisma said.

  “I’m busy,” Chase said without giving her so much as an acknowledging glance.

  “Like hell you are. I know you’ve been in my files.”

  “What?”

  “You heard me,” Charisma said.

  “Prove it.”

  “You think that by making me look bad, Nate’ll reassign the account to you, and you’ll be the new golden girl around her.”

  “Correction, sweetie. In case you haven’t noticed, I already am golden. You’re the one struggling to get to my level, and that next promotion you’ve been eying? It’s mine too.” She laughed.

  If there was one thing Charisma hated, it was a smug white chick. She was ready to slap her silly. All she saw was red. “You just crossed the wrong woman. Watch your back, bitch.”

  “Hmph, is that a threat?” Chase asked.

  “Like I said, watch your back.”

  “Oh, go back to Africa,” she said under her breath.

  “What did you say?” Charisma asked her, getting up in her face.

  “Go back to Africa.”

  “As much black meat you’ve had lately, I’m surprised you’re still here. Don’t think I don’t know about you and Blade.”

  “Please, if your best friend were a real woman, her man wouldn’t have been breaking his neck to share his benefit package with me now, would he? And, mama mia, what a package it was.”

  “Let me remind you of something, cavewoman. Your people were crawling around caves when my people were kings and queens.”

  “Well, you’re certainly not a queen now, are you?” Chase smirked.

  Charisma walked out fuming. She returned to her office, her flying fingers attempting to reinput all the lost data that Chase had deleted, but time was not on her side. By three-thirty that afternoon, her report was only a quarter done.

  Nate stopped by to inquire on the status of the account since it was due by the next day, and he had a meeting with Bob Madison first thing Monday morning.

  Charisma couldn’t decide if she should blow the whistle on Chase or not, but she did admit to Nate that she was behind schedule.

  “Let’s cut to the point, Charisma. Will the report be ready tomorrow?”

  She hesitated slightly. “I hope so, Nate. I’m working as hard as I can.”

  “You hope so? Charisma, if you couldn’t handle this project, you should have informed me immediately. There is no excuse for this. None. And now, all of our asses are on the line. You know this is one of our biggest accounts.” He picked up the phone and dialed his secretary. “Get Chase in here immediately,” he said before hanging up.

  A few moments later, a doe-eyed Chase walked into Charisma’s office.

  “Chase, I need you to help Charisma with the Madison account,” Nate told her.

  Charisma gave her a blank stare as Nate continued. “This project is due tomorrow. Chase, I know you’re due to leave shortly, but is there any possible way you can work until five?”

  “Of course, Nate,” Chase said. “We’re a team. I’ll do whatever needs to be done. In fact, when Charisma mentioned to Lacy that she was behind schedule, I began a preliminary report myself. I just didn’t want to step on anyone’s toes.”

  “I appreciate your initiative, Chase,” he said before turning back to Charisma’s desk. Nate picked up the phone and dialed his secretary again. “Get Lacy in here,” he told her.

  Moments later, Lacy had joined the group. “Lacy, did Charisma tell you anything about the Madison account?” Nate asked her.

  Lacy the office gossiper, refused to look in Charisma’s direction.

  “Just that she was having trouble and that she probably wouldn’t meet the deadline.”

  “You are such a liar,” Charisma told her, realizing that she and Chase were in cahoots. Apparently, all her skinfolk weren’t her kinfolk, as her grandmother used to warn her.

  “Unfortunately, Miss Dearborn, I don’t have the luxury of figuring out who’s lying. Chase, have your figures been verified?” he asked.

  “Absolutely. In fact, I double-checked them this morning,” she told him smugly.

  “Great. Chase, I want you to take over the account and Charisma, you assist her. I want hourly updates on your progress. Is that clear?” he asked them both.

  “Yes,” they both agreed.

  “Charisma, I have the updated test-market results on my desk.” Chase feigned helpfulness, putting her hair behind her left ear. “Why don’t we start with that?” Chase asked innocently in front of Nate.

  “Fine,” Charisma answered, throwing imaginary darts into her back. “Nate, I’ve worked hard on this account from day one, and you’re just going to hand it over to Chase? That’s my account.”

  “Not any more, Charisma,” Nate said before returning to his office. Charisma was the last employee to leave that night. After the day’s events she realized that she had just kissed her chances for a promotion good-bye.

  Charisma worked down to the wire on Friday. Chase, who normally worked half a day on Fridays, stayed for the duration after making certain that Nate knew she was sacrificing her personal time for the good of the firm. She insisted that she’d do whatever it took. Yeah, whatever it takes my ass, Charisma thought.

  Charisma soon caught on to her game. Chase was merely spoon-feeding her results that Charisma had initially tabulated herself. She had stolen the findings, and now she was spoon-feeding them back to Charisma as her own. And Nate was impressed with Chase’s speed and accuracy. If he only knew.... By five o’clock all the data was restored and the report was miraculously completed. Everyone breathed a sigh of relief. Charisma just wanted to get the hell out of there.

  She had an after-work appointment for a manicure at Hot Tips Nails Salon in Rochdale Village, and then she and Tangie were meeting at Cabana for drinks. Eventually, two seats opened up at the bar.

  “Girl, you look whipped,” Tangie said.

  “Yeah, tell me about it.”

  The bartender took their orders and returned with their drinks—two apple martinis. Charisma proceeded to tell Tangie about her week.

  “Why didn’t you speak up?”

  “I didn’t have any proof. It would have just been her word against mine.”

  “But still, Nate could have checked the times you two signed in and out or something. She made you look like a fool.”

  “It gets better. Chase told him that I had confided in Lacy about being behind schedule, and then Lacy corroborated her story.”

  “Oh, they set you up big-time.”<
br />
  “Please, in that office a sister will cut you just as quick as Goldilocks will. There’s no loyalty amongst the sisters. It’s every woman for herself. I blame Chase. She was the mastermind, but like they say, payback’s a bitch.”

  “What did you have in mind?”

  “Karma will put her behind in check. She will curse the day she crossed my path. She messed with the wrong sister. Now, you see why I don’t trust them? They’ll smile in your face and stab you in the back every chance they get.”

  “Let me play devil’s advocate for a minute. Would you have preferred being betrayed by a black coworker?” Tangie asked.

  “I don’t know, but I am just sick and tired of the whole game. I’m tired of their arrogance and the way they look down their noses at us like they own the world and belong to some kind of privileged sect.”

  “Wow, I haven’t seen you this angry in a long time.”

  “And trust me. It’s not over.” Charisma sipped her martini. Slowly.

  Tangie thought for a moment. “Well, you know how I feel about her. Between the two of us I’m sure we’ll have no problem settling the score. Count me in.”

  A smile crept onto Charisma’s face. “Deal.”

  14

  Heather

  Heather had put it off for as long as she could. Charisma and Tangie had told her it was time. Jamal thought it was time. Even the mechanics at Big Apple Tire had told her it was time. One day she woke up and realized they were right. It was time to buy another car—not a new one, but a better one.

  It wasn’t an easy decision for Heather to make. Lord knows, she had been putting it off for quite some time. Giving in made her feel as though she was drifting off track, losing focus of her goal to undergo plastic surgery. She tried to tell herself that she was just taking a slight detour for the sake of pure necessity. She wasn’t abandoning her dream of a new nose—she was merely postponing it.

  With that in mind, she left work early one afternoon and drove up to the Nemet showroom on Hillside Avenue for a car. Her mother had offered to accompany her, but being fully aware of the value of a man’s presence at times like these, Heather opted to have Jamal meet her there instead.