by Skyy
“Tell me about it,” Dakota agreed. “People ask me all the time, ‘What are you?’ I know they do that about my race, but what if it gets to the point where people start asking that about someone’s sexuality?”
“You know what? I wouldn’t be mad if they did. If it becomes that common, then maybe all the hate would dissipate to some degree.”
Dakota thought for a moment and then nodded. “Yeah, you have a point, William.”
“Can I get you guys dessert or anything?” their waiter walked over to the table and asked.
“Uhhh.” Dakota looked to William.
“That double fudge sundae looked pretty good.”
“I know. I saw that.” Dakota licked her lips and rubbed her belly. “But it looked like so much. I’d waste mine.”
“Yeah, me too.” William looked to be changing his mind about getting it. Then he thought for a moment. “Hey, why don’t we split one?” His eyes lit up again. “You come sit over here by me.” He slid over and patted the empty space next to him. “And we’ll share it. What do you say?”
“I say I hope Rodney doesn’t mind me double dipping with his man.”
The two laughed as Dakota got up.
“I’ll put the order in right away.” The waiter smiled and then walked off.
Dakota sat next to William and the two continued speaking on the whole race and sexuality issue until their sundae arrived.
“This looks delicious,” Dakota said as she took the first scoop. Hot fudge dripped from her spoon.
“It does.” William took a scoop. “Rodney would be fit to be tied if he knew he wasn’t my first.”
Dakota almost choked on a nut that had been sprinkled on the sundae. “Excuse me. Where did that come from?”
William covered his mouth. “Oh, no, I didn’t mean that. I just mean that I’ve never even shared a dessert with him before. This is so nice.”
“Well, I’m glad we could create this milestone together, William. I’m honored.”
Next they each took a scoop at the same time. They looked at each other, thinking the same thing William said, “To a first.”
“To a first,” Dakota concurred as they finished off their dessert.
Chapter 10
Day two in Vegas had been just as eventful as day one. Worn out from a day of seminars followed by an hour and a half on the golf course, and then dinner with William, truly Dakota felt she had every right to climb in her bed and tap out for the night, even if it was only eight o’clock. If she didn’t do anything else, Dakota still had to hit the store and buy her some underwear.
She was definitely going to Ross this time. She’d had to buy a pair of Keds to golf in from the store on site at the golf course. She paid almost fifty dollars for a pair of shoes she probably could have gotten for half the price at a regular store. That definitely cut into her shopping money. Even with her big win last night, she still wanted to at least try to stay somewhere within the vicinity of her budget. Now if she did end up going over, she’d blame that on Marie too, along with anything else she might regret while in Sin City.
So after catching her breath for a few minutes, she went to the elevator to hail a taxi to Ross. And forty minutes later, she was paying her fare and heading into Ross. She couldn’t believe all the traffic along the strip. What she thought should have been only a ten- or fifteen-minute ride seemed like forever. She had almost gotten out of that taxi and put those Keds to more use. But, instead, she just stayed in the taxi and people-watched.
It only took her an hour to find a nice outfit for tomorrow and the day after that. She’d hit the mall for some play clothes for whenever she got a chance to experience Vegas nightlife. She got some undergarments, fancy name-brand ones for a discounted price, and a cute shirt-like gown. She found a nice pair of shoes and some great value jewelry pieces. She decided she’d hit a specialty store in the mall for any smell goods and bath products, although in the bathroom of her suite awaited a nice full-size spa collection, unlike the sample sizes that had been in her original room. That spa set might actually suffice. The products were so amazing, she could almost taste them. She even felt yummy after cleansing with them. She just hadn’t gone completely through the entire spa basket yet, so no telling what other delicious feel good products awaited her.
While standing in the check-out line she spotted this silky black clutch with black stones beaded across the front. It must have been waiting there just for her. Her play clothes would definitely have to coordinate with that. She quickly scooped the little clutch up into her arms along with her other items. She was one of those women you still saw walking around the store every now and then with an armful of clothes versus pushing a buggy around. That was too much like exercise for Dakota. Plus she hated trying to maneuver those carts through stores such as Ross with those small aisles and tons of people trying to luck up on a deal, especially here in Vegas. To her, that was equivalent to mothers trying to fight a crowd at outdoor festivals with a baby stroller. Why bother?
Dakota was back at the hotel by 9:30 p.m. She’d made a mental note to attend the Carnival Buffett, which she’d be able to enjoy for free thanks to Mr. Bentley having had his little casino helper sign her up for a player’s card. But tonight it would be room service. Heck, she was $5,000 richer than when she’d come to Vegas. Hell, I could have bought a different-color pair of Keds for every day of the week, she said after thinking about her financial windfall. I can still be a bit freer with my ducats without being frugal and fruitless. She was going to make up for her most recent backsliding when it came to being a tight wad on room service. She wasn’t even going to look at the price, just the food and what she had a taste for.
She entered her hotel suite, dropped her bags, and dashed to the bathroom to get a nice shower and put on some pajamas and clean underwear. Thank goodness she wouldn’t have to sleep naked like she’d had to last night.
Dakota stuffed herself into the size extra-large pajamas that fit snug around every inch. She couldn’t help but stare at herself in the mirror for a moment. She’d never really noticed just how curvy she was. Yes, she was thick, but in all the right places. She should have been telling people her name was Juicy, because that’s how she felt. For years she’d been hiding all this up under big clothes, when if she’d just worn her true size, she could have been showing off every nook, cranny, and curve and, at the same time, have done her full figure some justice.
The lone tear streaming down Dakota’s face caught her off-guard. Where were all these emotions coming from? She felt like she should have been a cast member in the movie The Best Man Holiday. Every damn body in that movie cried a river. But she couldn’t help it. Although her sister had no idea the depths of it when she said it, Dakota truly was a stranger to herself. Why didn’t she know what her body looked like? If she’d been so okay with who she was and all her thickness, why had she avoided stopping in front of the mirror and taking note of it, showing her own self some deserving attention? Never mind about the woulda, shoulda, coulda. Today was a new day.
“No more,” Dakota whispered to herself before wiping the tear away, turning off the bathroom light and going to order her room service.
Thirty minutes later, Dakota’s gourmet popcorn and cherry Coke, her midnight snack, was delivered. It was billed to her room, but she tipped the delivery guy five dollars.
She found one of her favorite reality shows and indulged. Five minutes after finishing her snack she was knocked out across the bed, dreaming of what awaited her on day three.
Dakota couldn’t have been more grateful she’d requested a wakeup call before closing her eyes for the final time last night. At first she decided against it figuring she was going to bed early enough that her body would wake up on its own. That second thought was the reason why she would be on time to her eight o’clock session. The ringing phone had awoken her from a dead sleep. No way would she have gotten up on her own.
After brushing her teeth, washing her face, an
d doing her hair, Dakota was all set. She grabbed her tote and headed down to her session. She passed on the continental breakfast, hell-bent on experiencing that buffet later today. She was going to eat up some stuff, so she wanted to save all her calories for the buffet. So instead of one of those tasty Danishes with cream cheese icing drizzled about and a fruit filling, she fixed herself a cup of coffee that gave her just enough boost to stay fully awake for the next two hour-and-a-half sessions, with a break in between.
At last, it was lunchtime. Lunch break was an hour and a half. Dakota figured that would be plenty of time to enjoy the buffet, but was disappointed when she was told it didn’t open until four o’clock in the afternoon. Once again she could have had a frickin’ Danish. She made a mental note that tomorrow she was going to get a Danish whether she was hungry for it or not. Even if it had to set in her purse and she devoured it on her flight back home, she was going to enjoy her a Danish.
Dakota decided to just grab her a chef salad and call to check in with her family and friends while she sat in the little café and ate.
“Don’t forget to bring me back a shot glass,” Trice reminded Dakota as the two talked on the phone. “You know I collect those. Every time somebody on my team goes on vacation I always have them bring me back a shot glass.”
“I know,” Dakota said, picking an egg yolk out of her salad and placing it in her mouth. “I haven’t even gone souvenir shopping yet, but I’ll be sure to get it.”
“Well your flight leaves tomorrow afternoon doesn’t it?”
“Yes. The last session ends at eleven in the morning. My flight leaves out at three or four. I have to double check my itinerary.”
“Dang, you won’t even get back to Michigan until late tomorrow night.”
“I know; then I have to turn around and go in to work the next day. Blah.”
“I’m sure you’ll be all right. God knows you are down there getting plenty of rest.” Trice laughed.
Dakota didn’t even get mad at yet another reference to her being a wallflower. She just shook her head and thought, if only you knew, girlfriend. If only you knew. “Well, let me get off this phone. I have to get back to my next session in a few and I want to check in with my mom and dad before I do.”
“Okay, girlie. If I don’t talk to you before you get back, enjoy your last night in Vegas and do everything I would do,” Trice expressed.
Chuckling Dakota replied, “Okay, Trice. Love ya.”
“Love you too.”
They ended the call. Dakota ate more of her salad before calling her parents. There wasn’t an answer on the house phone, so she ended up having to reach her mother on her cell. She checked in, finished up that phone call, and then finished up her salad. She headed back to her afternoon sessions where she was totally engaged. She interacted with a couple of people she’d spoken to and had networked with over the course of the last couple of days.
Too bad William wasn’t there. She missed his company already. William had only been there as a hired speaker and not someone who was attending the full conference. So when they returned to the hotel, they said their goodbyes at the elevator and parted ways. Dakota had actually even gotten teary-eyed. But now it was time to move on to whatever may come.
When five o’clock rolled around, Dakota was grateful. That last speaker had been a complete drag. Dakota almost never drank coffee after the noon hour, but she’d put away two in the last hour and a half trying to stay awake. Not because she was tired, but because the speaker had bored her so.
When she arrived back up to her suite she brushed her teeth. That stale and bitter aftertaste from afternoon coffee was the worst; not to mention it had turned her breath into a deadly weapon that was assaulting everybody she opened her mouth to speak to. But at least it had energized her. She was all set to hit the mall. She wanted to grab something to wear this evening because she planned on trying to catch a show. She also wanted to get her souvenir shopping out of the way. Tomorrow’s schedule was going to be too tight to try to squeeze it in then. And she didn’t want to get gypped by paying airport souvenir prices. That wasn’t being her old frugal self. That was just, once again, using her wisdom.
She just had one day to go in Vegas. Hopefully wisdom would keep her out of any crazy predicaments for the duration of her stay. Only time would tell.
Chapter 11
Dakota was able to pick up a nice maxi dress at Macy’s. In passing the makeup counter, one of the clerks even convinced her of getting a free facial and makeover. Dakota had never had one of those before. She felt like a reality television star who had made it big and now people were paying her top dollar to make club appearances. A glam squad had been assigned to get her all dolled up for the night. Her only concern was making sure that when she took a shower back at her suite that she didn’t get her face wet. Perhaps she’d have to bathe. On second thought, she couldn’t imagine that either Dakota or Marie would ever bathe in a hotel tub. She quivered at the thought.
On her way back in from the mall, she stopped at the concierge desk and asked his assistance in finding a show to attend.
“Oooh, a dinner and a sword fight. That sounds great,” Dakota said. She then frowned. “But shoot. I still have my comp for the Carnival Buffet I haven’t gotten to use.” Dakota was a big girl, but not big enough to have room for two dinners, especially when one was a buffet.
“Perhaps you can go over to the player’s club service desk and get them to swap out something; perhaps switch it for a show ticket instead. You never know.”
“You’re right. What do I have to lose?”
Dakota followed the concierge’s advice. And he was right; they gladly worked it out where she could go see the show of her preference.
“Here you are, Ms. Smith; two tickets,” the lady at the desk said. “Enjoy the show.”
“Thank you, I will.” Dakota took the tickets and went up to her suite. Once there she laid out all her new purchases. She was all set for the night. The show seemed like it might be exciting and her intention was to always go to the show by herself. But that was until she was given two tickets. A smile appeared on her lips at just the thought of her and William enjoying the show together. He would have been great company and appreciated it.
While it was on her mind, Dakota decided she’d swap out her purses right now. She went and got the black clutch she’d purchased at Ross and sat down on her bed. She took things out of the tote and her purse and placed what she’d need in the clutch.
Next, she decided to maybe make some calls. Instead of trolling her call log, she went straight to contacts. The only phone number she knew by heart was her parents’. Everyone else changed their phone numbers every other week it seemed. So she stopped wasting memory cells and just used her call log or favorites. In scrolling down her contact list something hit her like a lightning bolt.
“Leon,” she said as she came across his name. And just like that, a light bulb went off in her head. She bit her bottom lip as she flicked herself upside the head. Should she or shouldn’t she call him and invite him to the show? There really were no pros or cons for either. She hadn’t paid a dime for the tickets so there really wouldn’t be a financial loss. It’s just that she hated that someone else could be enjoying the show. So with nothing to lose, she pressed the little green phone icon and waited for it to start ringing. It ended up going to voicemail. The 1-800 number she’d dialed was clearly a work extension of some sort.
Now here Dakota was once again at another dilemma. Should she leave a message? By the time she’d decided against it, it was too late. The beep signaling for her to leave a message had already chimed.
“Well, uh, you aren’t a man of many words I see,” she joked in reference to the fact that all his greeting said was, “This is Leon. Leave a message.” The beep then immediately followed.
“Well, Leon. This is M—”
Before she could say another word, her other line was beeping in. She looked down at the caller ID scre
en and saw that it was Leon calling her back. She clicked over. “I was just leaving you a message.”
“I’m sorry. Someone at this number just called my phone.”
“Oh,” Dakota said, realizing that she hadn’t even identified herself. It wasn’t like her number was locked in his phone. “This is Marie. You met me at—”
“Oh, Marie, I need not be reminded,” Leon said. “I’d never forget when and where I was the first time I met Marie.”
“You are too funny.” She laughed. “Well, I was calling to see ...” She paused for a moment. “First off, are you still in Vegas?”
“Yes. My flight doesn’t head out until tomorrow.”
“Well, if you’re not busy tonight, I just happen to have an extra ticket to a show. I think it’s at the Luxor Hotel ... the Excalibur, or something like that.”
“What time?
“Nine o’clock. Oh, wait. I think dinner is at eight and the show starts at nine. Or maybe you eat during the show.” She scrambled for the tickets and then looked them over. “Well, whatever it is, it starts at eight-thirty.” She looked over at the digital clock on the nightstand. “Hmmm. I guess that gives us less than an hour. Not much of a notice, so I’ll understand if you can’t make it.”
“Actually, I was about to head down to the sports bar at the hotel I’m staying at and grab a bite there, watch the game, throw back a couple of brews.”
“Oh, well, I definitely don’t want to intrude on your manly moment.”
They both laughed.
“Awww, you got jokes I see.”
“A little bit.”
“You must keep your friends back home well entertained.”
“Wellllll ...” If he only knew.
“But, umm, sure. Who goes to Vegas without catching a show? I’d love to join you.”
“Great. Since time is of the essence, how about we just meet there? Is that okay with you?”