by Paige Patton
Desiree stepped back inside and started to undress. Blessed with the perfect body. Lean and curvaceous, she was a stunner.
As she stripped down to her bra and panties, Desiree revealed a tight body that would give an impotent man an immediate erection. Her body was her ace in the hole where men were concerned; also beneficial in getting her out as well as into trouble.
She stepped into a pair of gray coveralls, zipped it up, pulling her long hair back into a tight ponytail. Even in this drab getup, she still looked amazing.
Grabbing a mop and bucket, she headed for the kitchen to start the task of cleaning. While water filled the bucket, she plugged her earphones into her phone and inserted the earpiece into her ears.
Stepping out of her street attire, Camille reached for her overalls. She was the same height as Desiree with a sculptured body that looked to be a work of art. She piled her light brown hair up into a bun suited her delicate features and gave her a sex appeal that could not be duplicated. Her caramel colored skin, light brown eyes, luscious breasts, and ample booty classified her as sexy hot!
Working together maneuvering meticulously and methodically around each other, they looked like a well-rehearsed performance. As best friends, they rely on each other, even for the smallest of things, a shoulder to cry on, an inspiring word, or brutal honesty. They were indebted to one another for being the best friend a girl could ever have. Neither could imagine a life without the other.
Wiping the sweat from her brow, Desiree took a seat at the kitchen table and pulled a container from her lunch bag. Popping the lid, she indulged in a salad.
“You know I’m sick of Lois pulling out of jobs at the last minute.” She said stuffing a fork full of salad into her mouth. “I had plans tonight.”
Camille washed her hands over the sink then took a seat at the table across from her. “With Liam?” she asked as she removed an apple from her sack and bit into it.
Liam was Desiree’s latest disaster. No one could argue that the man didn’t seem to have it all. There was something about him. It raised every red flag Camille had.
“No. Liam is a fucking jerk!” Desiree said, trying not to sound embittered. Even though, she was. She did not feel like going into every detail of another failed relationship with Camille who would have a hundred and one questions. She would demand full disclosure from beginning to end. Desiree didn’t want to dredge up the painful memories she was trying so hard to forget.
Camille raised a brow and waited. There was more to this story. There always was when it came to Desiree and men. She was notorious for picking the wrong man.
“He’s married.” She finally admitted.
Whoop! There it was! Camille had a feeling the son-of-a-bitch was married. She knew something was up with the smooth-talking, too damn good to be true, hot as hell, Liam Johansen.
Camille reached into her bag and pulled out a bottle of Casa Noble Anejo Tequila she was saving just for this moment. She unscrewed the top and handed the purple bottle to Desiree, who took a mouth full, then handed it back. This is how they dealt with problems of the heart. They drank it away one shot at a time. “Did he have the balls to tell you himself?”
“No, apparently his wife holds the balls in the family. What a sweet woman; she could have texted me, but, no. She called; asked me to kindly stay the fuck away from her husband.”
Desiree reached the bottle and swallowed down more. “I told her that I had no idea that the lying, cheating bastard was married and that I would never see him again.”
Camille did her best to put on a show of genuine compassion. To be honest, she was running short on sympathy when it came to Desiree and her bad choices.
“Of course you didn’t know he was married. It’s not like he would come right out and tell you. That would have interfered with his plan to fuck you.”
Desiree didn’t feel that way about Liam. He was different. Yeah, he came on strong at first, but he was gentle and loving and…, well, different somehow. Sure, he was married, but she could see the decency in him. Trying to convince Camille that he was different would be a waste of time.
“It wasn’t just about that.”
“Then what? You think he was going to leave his wife for you. He’s nothing but a piece of garbage.”
“Well, I gave my word that I would stay far away from that piece of garbage.” Desiree could not understand why it hurt her to call him that. Liam had come to mean a great deal to her. He was not garbage at all, simply married. He was not only her lover but also a trusted friend that she relied on. Oh well, she thought, like all the others, easy come easy go.
Sometimes Camille thought Desiree was one of the original blonde-haired women. The man had married stamped across his forehead. You could practically smell the fondant from his wedding cake on his breath.
“Well, there you go, lesson learned,” Camille said trying hard to keep the annoyance out of her tone.
Desiree wanted to cry, but she refused to let this take her down. Again! She was a tough, black woman who would rather bite a hole in her tongue than to shed another tear over a man. “What lesson?”
“You are gifted. Prepare yourself and wait patiently for what’s to come.”
For a second Camille was not sure if the words she heard came from her mouth. She sat there stunned, wondering what the hell. It sounded like her voice. What would make her say something so random? It had to be the alcohol.
Desiree stared at Camille with a what-the- fuck look on her face wondering if there was a worm in the tequila bottle. Maybe she swallowed it and now it had her talking funny.
“What?” Desiree asked with a confused look on her face.
Out of the two Camille was by far the smartest. With zero effort, she excelled in everything did. She was a straight-A student right up until she graduated from college as valedictorian. Seriously, she didn’t know what the hell she was saying or why she said it.
“I don’t know where all of that came from. I guess I’m just worried about you.”
Camille was worried about her friend. She knew that the drama between Liam and Desiree may be pushed aside, but it was far from over. The Desiree she knew did not forgive easily. She probably already coming up with a plan to teach Liam a lesson he would never forget. Camille prayed that it would not be anything too bad this time. Sleeping in county lock-up was never fun. Facing a judge wasn’t a blast either.
Desiree removed a chocolate pudding cup from the bag and slid one over to Camille.
“You’re taking this awfully well. What’s your plan; confront him at work? Slash his tires?” Camille asked. Hell, she needed to know up front so they could get their lie straight when the police stopped by to question them.
There were many ways Desiree could have make Liam pay for his deceit. A blueprint for revenge would already be laid out on the table. When she thought about it, he never said that he wasn’t married. Omission of the truth was still considered a lie, but what hurt the most was that he said nothing at all. She felt like a fool allowing herself to be tricked once again.
Camille was genuinely worried. Desiree went a little, single black female over shit like this; totally different from single white female. She had a bloody scenario all played out in her head.
“Please tell me he’s still alive, Desi?”
Desiree resented the implication. She understood Camille’s concern. She often went overboard when men failed to live up to her expectations. It was time to grow up; time to take a new approach when dealing with matters such as these.
“What did you do to him, Desi? Please, just tell me.”
“Calm down. He’s still breathing and in one piece.” Hurting Liam was the last thing on Desiree’s mind, hell; she loved the bastard and could never do anything to hurt him. Instead, she decided to take a different path this time- A path of peace and solitude. Coming to this conclusion was not easy, but necessary. She was tired of jumping from man to man with nothing good to show for all her exertion. Most men d
id not even know how to be real men. They were weak, imitations of the real thing. She was sick of it all.
Explaining her decision to Camille was going to be a challenge. Actually sticking to her decision would prove to be an even bigger challenge.
Camille let out a sigh of relief. Grateful that Liam was still among the living. In her mind, she pictured Desiree on trial for murder. It would have served him right though if she had tortured him for a while.
“Aren’t you pissed?”
“Not at all.”
Camille stared at her with a what-the-fuck-has-happened-to-you, look on her face. The woman sitting across from her could jump from being perfectly normal straight to a raving lunatic in a matter of seconds.
“Come on, Desi, what gives? Liam was hounding like a dog for weeks. I was there when he got down on his knees and begged you to go out with him. All along, he had a wife at home. How can you sit there pretending like it’s all good?”
“It is all good.”
“Really? That’s unlike you.”
“Sorry. I don’t know what else to tell you.”
“You could tell me what’s really going on.”
Not that Camille wanted her to retaliate or go all single black female. Liam certainly was not worth all of that, but damn! Show some emotion. Laugh, cry, scream, hell, throw something for God’s sake. Don’t just sit there and hold it in. Shit, pent-up anger could kill a person.
Desiree took another long draw from the bottle of Tequila. “For your information, I’ve been doing some soul searching. I even read, soup for the soul.”
“Oh shit! Not again.” Camille sighed. She hated Desiree’s soul-searching phases. It always did more harm than good.
“I liked Liam. He was the closest thing to a decent man that I will ever see. If he weren't already married, we would have been perfect together.” She paused as if in deep thought, thinking about what could have been. She imagined them married with children, a white picket fence, and the whole nine yards. Never once had she ever thought about settling down and living an ordinary life like other people until she met Liam. “I feel like I owe him. He helped me.”
“How?”
“He helped me arrive at an important life changing decision.”
This could not be good Camille thought. How many times had Desiree reached a very important life changing decision? How long had any of her very important decisions lasted? Two, three days at the most, then she was back to her crazy self; most of the time, crazier than before.
“I’m done with men,” Desiree declared. “They are all liars. Just a fucking waste of my valuable time; so why bother?”
Okay, she was upset, Camille got that, but giving up men on men was just ludicrous. “That’s a little drastic and, might I add, stupid.”
“Whatever! I’m done!”
“Let me get this straight. You’re telling me that you’re going to alter your entire life because of one man. You’re going to give Liam that much power?”
“I don’t see it as giving him power over anything. The choice is still mine. But, yes, that’s precisely what I’m going to do.”
Camille took the bottle away from Desiree and finished it. Life had never been easy for them. Growing up in the system, in and out of foster care, never knowing their parents, and they even lived on the streets for a while. They were the closest thing to family that they had ever known. They jumped every hurdle placed before them together.
Desiree convinced herself that love and family did not matter. Family was just a bunch of fucked up people that thought they had the right to screw around in your life. Making it more miserable than it already was. She was much better off without the added hassle.
Gathering her trash, Desiree stood with tears forming in her eyes. They were ready to fall any second, but she refused to blink and let them wet her face. She was determined to beat this thing called men, and she would do it her way.
“It’s better this way. I don’t need a man hanging around. They’re nothing but trouble.”
Her own words cut a hole in her heart, a heart that bled for true love. Desiree wanted nothing more than to have a man in her life. A man who was capable of taking her away to a place where reason and though disappeared. A man who had the ability to see her for who and what she truly was and was confidence enough to act upon it.
Tossing her trash into the garbage, Desiree disappeared around the corner leaving Camille wondering, what the fuck?
Desiree entered the bathroom and went right to work. First, she sprayed the mirror with Windex and wiped it clean. Damn Liam for forcing her into abstinence, the thing she enjoyed the most about being in a relationship was the intimacy-The closeness-The familiarity. Knowing one another so well and in tuned to each other’s sexual needs. Now she was forced to give it all up.
She should have known better than to trust him. He was too good to be true. She fell for him the moment she saw him. He was handsome, charming, and gainfully employed. A triple super-threat, he had a smooth line of bullshit on a hook, which she bit like a guppy. She should have taken off running when he told her that he was a lawyer. Somehow, he managed to work his magic on her making her. She believed he was one of the good people.
Six months of dating and they never had one single problem. He was so easy to talk to and seemed just as happy as she was. She had fallen fast and deep for Liam. Her heart would race every time she saw him. Marriage had even worked its way into various conversations. She would have said yes the minute he proposed.
Oh, well, what the hell. It was just another failed relationship, love, marriage and all that baloney, who needed it?
Desiree’s heart was slowly turning bitter and cold. She could not understand why every relationship ended badly. It was as if someone was taking her by the hand and leading her directly to the wrong men.
Thinking back there was a trail of losers. Before Liam, there was Carl, the embezzler. The man was a criminal mastermind. Nevertheless, she hung in there giving him time to change. Oh, he changed all right. He turned into a bigger criminal. Not only did he rob his own company blind, he tried to bankrupt their cleaning company as well. Five years behind bars was not enough to pay for the hell he would put her through.
Then there was Louis, the professional cheater. He had women all over California and Arizona. Even in Mexico. He had so many children he could have started his own little league. And who could forget Phillip, the beautiful compulsive liar. He lied about everything, ask him how he was doing, and he would lie about that too. He just could not help himself. He opened his mouth, and a lie fell out.
Why did every man have to be a total and complete fuck-up? If she did not know better, she would swear that the gods were messing with her on purpose, intent on keeping her from finding Mr. Right. Well, it no longer mattered. From this point on every man who cast a shadow on her doorstep would be given an invitation to go straight to hell. She was done-Done wasting time. It was time to purge her system clean, time to focus on important matters in life like being of service to others.
Desiree dunked her mop into the bucket of hot water, rang it dry, and began cleaning the floor.
Celibacy could not be that bad, she thought as she moved the mop over the floor. It could be therapeutic, good for the soul. All women should take a spiritual journey. She could not change the past or the men in her life, but she could change herself and thus changing her future. Perhaps in a year or two she might be in a better place of understanding. Not only herself, but also the men she allowed into her life. When she had a better understanding, she would even revisit her decision. Until then, men were persona non grata.
The more she thought about it, the more she liked her decision. She was starting to feel good about things. She felt liberated. Free from all the bullshit. Why hadn’t she thought of this before, a man cleansing-Freeing herself from all the crap?
She was happy for once and was looking forward to getting to know herself without all the distractions. Maybe a trip t
o India would be next. Just like Julia Roberts did in the movie.
Then Camille entered the bathroom. Plopped herself up on the counter and went about destroying her dream.
“I’ve been giving this man break thing of yours some thought.” She said swinging her legs back and forth like a kid. “It’s a damn good idea. Count me in.”
“Really?” Desiree said.
“Yes, really! If you can do it, so can I.”
No one knew Camille better than Desiree did; the woman loved sex, always had. Moreover, she was quite the expert in all things related to the subject. She was a proud, confident, and highly sexual woman. For her, even to hint at the notion of giving up men for any amount of time was just crazy talk. However, Desiree was grateful for her support.
“What? You don’t think I can do it?”
Desiree said nothing as she went back to cleaning the floor. Hell no was the answer. She just did not have the heart to tell her or the nerves.
“You’re not the only one who can make a commitment and stick to it.” Camille said then jumped down from the counter to admire herself in the mirror.
There was no one on earth who loved Camille more than Camille. She radiated sex appeal. A sensuality that was rare in women nowadays. Once you met her, you had no other choice but to love her.
“I could use some me time and I have plenty of toys to keep me satisfied. A good week or two could do the va-Jay-Jay some good.” She said as she removed the clip from her hair letting the long strands fall down her back and around her shoulder.
“I’m not talking a week, Cami.”
“What? A month?”
“Try a year- Maybe even two or three.”
“Years?” Camille swung around with a horrifying look on her face as if someone just told her that she had to shave her head bald. “Are you serious? Your stuff will dry up if you don’t use it.”
Desiree shrugged her shoulder as she continued mopping. She was serious about this. No amount of begging or rationalizing was going to change her mind.