by M. Skye
“Why did you agree to this? I know you want more than just a few meals. I can pay you, it’s not a problem. And if you want to do earlier hours, we can do that too.”
“No, I don’t want your money, and I like the late nights. I wish I could get everyone to agree to this schedule, but not everyone is like us. And to answer your other question, Brittney is one of the best and she needed my help. I took most of her other clients, but she was particular about you. She wants you taken care of, and I want her to come back once she has her baby.”
“Why is it so important to you?”
“Well, I want to keep our best employee happy.”
“Wait, you’re... But I thought he...”
“No, my dad is. I’m Liam Junior.” Draya felt bad for putting her foot in her mouth. Brittney had told her that the owner of the gyms she worked for passed a few months ago.
“I’m sorry to hear about your father.” While she said this, she saw nothing change across his features and figured out there must be a story there. As long as Brittney had been working there, she never mentioned her boss having a son.
“Thanks, but if I’m being honest with you, we hardly knew each other. When I was growing up, he was never home and when he was, we didn’t spend much time together.” After his statement, there was an awkward silence between them and then Liam let out a gorgeous smile. “So now that we have all of that out of the way let’s get started. I have a lot of ground to cover before we leave tonight. I want to get you going on one of my routines. That way, we can cut your sessions down. Brittney tells me how much you hate it, and looking at you, I see you don’t have far to go. We just need to keep that figure of yours nice and tight.”
Nice and tight. There were a few other things that were getting nice and tight, and when he came to lean over her, she closed her eyes as the smell of his cologne hit her nostrils. Everything he was doing was professional, but it didn’t stop the fantasies racing through her head. She knew Brittney had done this on purpose, but she wouldn’t let it distract her. He was just going to be some nice eye candy to look at while she kept her figure on point. Even with all the drama in her life, she knew it was important to look good. As long as she looked good, she would feel better, but it still wouldn’t solve her man problems. No matter what happened, she would always be the girl who was in love with the church deacon who was nowhere near close to ever being hers.
No amount of working out would change that.
Chapter Three: Rising Guilt
“And let the church say amen.” Lowering her head after Reverend George finished his final prayer, Draya tried to hurry out of the service before anyone spoke to her. The years of sleeping with Damien had made her feel like she wasn’t welcome in the church, but old habits did die hard. No matter how bad she felt about herself, she was raised in the church so she came there to seek some sort of guidance, even though she seemed to keep making all the wrong choices. It wasn’t because she wanted to ignore what was right, it was just that every time she made up her mind about leaving Damien alone, he would turn on the charm and worm his way back in.
Ducking out of the sanctuary, Draya thought she was home free until she heard her name called out. Recognizing the voice, she cringed and turned around slowly. This had to be the last person she wanted to face today or quite possibly ever. Reaching out as arms outstretched to her, she leaned into the hug and drew back, quickly.
“I feel like it’s been so long since I’ve seen you, Draya. How are your parents?”
Feeling the guilt mount inside her, Draya closed her eyes briefly and focused back in on her face. “They’re great, Mrs. Winters. I will have to tell them you asked how they were.”
“Thank you, and it’s Deena, Draya. You know that. I have known you practically your whole life; we are definitely on a first name basis. You used to play with my girls for Christ’s sake.” When she laughed, Draya felt her pulse racing. There was nothing accusatory about her tone or comments, but Draya still felt like she was under a microscope. Every time she spoke to Deena, she felt like the worst person in the world. Deena was always nice to her, she was always so inviting and Draya just couldn’t stomach talking to her. It made her feel like she was playing with fire by spending time with her boyfriend’s wife. She felt like every time they talked, Deena got closer and closer to figuring them out, and for as much as she loved Damien, she liked Deena too. It was a strange situation, but she wanted everything to work out for everyone, even though she knew it was not a possibility.
“Well, Deena, I think I better be getting home. I have a busy night ahead of me.” Draya knew she was wrong for lying, in a church no less, but she was so anxious to get out of the conversation, she would have done just about anything. Trying to make her exit, she turned only to hear Deena call out to her again.
“Yes ma’am?”
“Draya, are you busy next week? I thought you might like to come over on Wednesday. It’s been a long time since we had you over for dinner, and I would love for you to join us. You should bring your boyfriend. I know a pretty girl like you has to have a big strong boyfriend on her arm.” Once again, everything sounded innocent enough, but Draya heard her heart beating in ears. She was trying so hard to keep up a good front, but it was becoming increasingly hard with every new offer Deena made. Trying to think of an escape route, she was near breaking down until she felt an arm draped over her shoulder.
“Mrs. Winters, how are you?” Letting out a sigh of relief, Draya turned to find Rico and silently thanked him for the intrusion. “Did I just hear you inviting Draya to dinner?”
“Well, yes I did,” she smiled and Draya sank further into Rico’s embrace. “You feel free to come as well; the more, the merrier.”
“Draya and I actually have plans for that night. I’ve set up a tasting at the restaurant for some new investors and we need our money maker there. You know, Draya is quite the business woman, she really knows her stuff.”
“That, I don’t doubt.” Smiling sincerely, Deena, made Draya feel the guiltiest she had in a long time. She didn’t know why, but something in her was saying to confess everything and beg for forgiveness. She felt like she was in the right place to do so and it would be a weight lifted from her shoulders, and as soon as she opened her mouth, she saw him. There he was in his nice black suit, looking like a doting husband and father and she froze. Most of the time when she and Deena talked he was never around and it made things a little easier, but this time, here he was pretending like he was this happy, well-adjusted man, instead of the abusive, adulterer he really was.
Draya always knew they were together and she knew Deena was a sweetheart, but she couldn’t lie to herself, watching them was hell for her. Seeing the tenderness that he showed his wife while thinking about the way he was with her, made her feel cheap and used. The way Damien was treating Deena was the way he used to treat her when they first began, and Draya just couldn’t figure out what changed so much and made her the bad person in his eyes. When they first started, he wanted to leave Deena until she intervened, telling him she wouldn’t break up his home. Now she was feeling like it was a mistake because here they were seven years later and she couldn’t even go out in public with her boyfriend without the fear of it getting back to his wife.
Attempting to just slink away with him holding Deena’s attention, Draya, was stunned when Damien reached out and grabbed her arm. Walking back up to them, Draya noticed when Rico’s happy demeanor changed. He knew everything and wasn’t upset with Draya, but he despised Damien. Seeing him grab her must have flared up his ill feelings. Making him release her arm, Draya stood before Damien and Deena trying to hold it together.
“Draya,” he spoke and his voice was deep and shot straight through her, “how have you been?”
“Great,” she replied, quietly, wishing this nightmare would end. She had never been so uncomfortable in her life, but he seemed to be enjoying this way too much. “Rico and I were just leaving. We have a lot of things to do.�
� Turning her back, she heard him call out to her again, and Rico’s grip tightened on her. She could tell he was getting more agitated by the second.
“Draya, Deena tells me she has invited you to dinner, you should accept. Next Wednesday night, right?”
Before Draya could voice a response Rico boomed in and she knew it was time to get them out of there. “We have plans, no thank you.” It was entirely too much hostility for the house of the Lord, and she was sure Deena probably noticed it.
“Well, then I guess I’ll leave you to it,” Damien finally stepped aside, letting Draya and Rico leave the foyer.
Walking Draya to her car, Rico helped her inside and then requested for her to roll the window down. “I’m coming to your house right now. We need to talk Dray.”
Sighing, Draya could tell by the look on his face that this wasn’t going to be pleasant. She could already hear the lecture she was about to receive from him. She didn’t blame him, but she wasn’t ready to face his attitude today. “Okay, just follow me over.” Pulling out of the parking lot, she looked back to see Damien emerging with Deena and rolled her eyes. If nothing else did it, this was possibly the last straw for her. She was so beyond this whole affair it wasn’t funny. She was ready to end things and he was definitely about to hear it from her whenever he finally decided to make his way to her bed.
***
For Draya, the drive back to her place was long and torturous, even though it only took twenty minutes. Opening the door, she could feel Rico nearing behind her and as soon as she swung the door open, he laid into her. “You have to stop this, now.”
“Again with the judgment, Rico? I know what I need to do. I don’t need to hear this again.”
“He doesn’t respect you or her, Dray. I wanted to rip his damn head off. I feel like if this continues, he’s going to end up breaking down the girl I love so damn much. You’re like my sister and I love you too much to let you go out like this.”
Sliding down on the couch, Draya kicked her shoes off and Rico followed her actions and joined her. “I know I should be done with it and I feel like I’m ready to be, but I just felt so bad lying to her. Didn’t it make you feel just rotten looking at that sweet woman while keeping our dirty little secrets?”
Shrugging his shoulders, Rico sat back and got comfortable. “You’ve been sleeping with him for seven years, right?”
“Yeah...”
“You have to sit back and think about it, there is no way she doesn’t know he’s creeping. That sugar sweet smile and convenient invitation is probably her way of trying to figure out just what is going on, and I think she knows you are in the loop.”
“You think she knows it’s me?” Draya asked, feeling the fear erupt in her chest. She knew when she got into this situation that it could potentially get ugly, but if Deena was aware of what was going on, it was going to be catastrophic. Her parents were already practically strangers to her, but if word were to get out about her affair with her one of their oldest friends, even those calls would stop.
“I don’t think she knows it’s you, specifically, but I think she knows it’s one of those hot young things from the church. She probably just wants to feel you out and pump you for information. I don’t think you should be worried at this point, but I just want you to be careful, babe. You know I would do anything for you, including lying to a sweet woman about her bullshit husband, but I don’t want to keep having to. My dream is that you will grow tired of his sorry ass and find someone our age that can give you the world. You deserve the world.”
Running her hand over his face, Draya pulled Rico closer to her and exhaled loudly. “You deserve it too Rico. When are you going to tell everyone what’s up? You can’t keep holding in your problems and focusing on mine. It will make you crazy.”
Draya was one of the few people to know that Rico was in the middle of a nasty separation from his wife of five years, Deja. One night after working late, he walked in to find her in bed with another man. They tried to work it out, but Rico could never get past her infidelity. As unforgiving as he was with Deja, she wondered how he didn’t hate her for what she was doing.
“I have my situation under control. I’ve thought long and hard about it and I know it’s what I need to do. I will never be able to trust her again. I know this and I’ve made my peace with it. Deja and I are over, but you still have time to recover your life.”
“What I’m doing, how can you not think it’s almost the same? I’m just as bad as she was if not worse.”
Framing her face with his hands, he shook his head and ran his fingers up through her hair. “No, it’s not. I was there for Deja; she always had me. She had no reason to do what she did, in my bed, in the house where I pay the bills and I am never getting over that. What happened with you is bad, I will admit that, but I know how you were feeling. You never set out to seduce him. He came on to you. He preyed on the fact that you were vulnerable. He latched on to you when you at your most fragile state and he took your virginity. I know how hard it is to break away from something that strong, but you have to, Dray. You can’t keep letting him drag you through the mud. You’re better than how he makes you feel.”
“Am I, though? I have done so many things I’m not proud of, and I swear each day I feel like more of a monster than I did the day before.”
“You have to want it and I think you do.”
Sitting in silence with Rico for a while, Draya had the insight to start dinner for them to enjoy. It had kind of become their thing on Sundays after church to have a meal and plan their work week. This had been going on ever since he left his wife, but it usually started a little later in the day. Sunday was usually a chill day for her because there was no Damien. He usually spent the day with his family and left her to do whatever she needed to do on her own. As much as she hated to admit it, she liked her Sundays with Rico. They were always so carefree and fun. He made her laugh, and it seemed to take a lot to accomplish that over the past few years.
After preparing their meal, Draya sat the plates down and broke out a bottle of wine. While they ate, she and Rico shared stories of their hectic week and then the news of Brittney’s pregnancy came up. It had been a few days since Brittney stopped training her and she had finally told Austin about the baby, and as they expected, he was over the moon.
“Can you believe it though, Dray? Brittney with a baby just sounds strange. I thought that girl would never slow down long enough for that.”
“She hasn’t slowed down, that’s how she got the baby,” Draya laughed. “She’s going to be good at it; she already has that motherly scowl.”
“You never lied. Every time she gives me that crazy look, I swear I just want to start confessing stuff.”
“I promised to help in any way I can, but I doubt she will need me. Austin is great and I know he is going to be there for every step of this kid’s life. She’s lucky.”
Looking at her and dropping his fork, Rico reached over and ran his hand down her face. “She will always need you. Honestly, I know you think we helped you and that we are your only friends, but you are ours too. Brittney may have Austin, but you are her only real friend outside of that. We all have people we encounter that we have a good time with and that’s all they’re good for, but when we have real problems, each one of us looks to each other. You, me, and Brittney are three of a kind and that will never change.”
“But what happens when our wild party nights are replaced with soccer games and kids birthday parties?”
Looking at her in amusement, Rico let out a laugh and she giggled too. “What wild party nights? We’re working most nights, and when we aren’t you’re with... well anyways, that’s all about to change, right?”
“Right,” Draya grinned, “my nights now consist of increased training sessions with my new drill sergeant, Liam.” Saying his name, Draya felt the memories of her first time meeting him flooding back. They had trained once since then and she could already feel the difference. Not that Bri
ttney wasn’t great, because she was; but training with him was a completely different ballgame. Because Brittney was her friend, she tended to take it a little easier on her, but Liam spared no punches. He was firm yet fun, and it was hard to argue with a face like his, so she got much more out of her workout.
Judging by the way Rico was looking at her; she could tell he picked up on her thoughts about Liam. “Liam, huh? Brittney told me she set you up with a new trainer. How is he?”
“Sexy,” she blurted out before thinking. “I mean... he’s good.”
“Sexy? You like him, huh? Is he interested in you?”
“Yes, of course, he is. As his client. He’s a professional and his only interest is keeping my body nice and tight, he said so himself.”
“He actually said nice and tight? Uh hmm, yeah, he wants to sleep with you. It’s only a matter of time before he makes his move. Just do me a favor; when he does, be open to it.”
“He’s my trainer, not a marriage candidate.”
“And I’m not telling you to marry him. I’m telling you to enjoy the wild ride I’m sure he can give you. Well, baby girl, it’s about time for me to bust out of here, so I’ll help you with the dishes and then I have to go meet Deja to get a few more of my things from the house.”
“On a Sunday?”
“Yeah, the joys of divorce,” he laughed sarcastically. “So come on and let’s get cleaned up.”
“Just go, I got it. Get your stuff. I’ll see you at work tomorrow.”
“See ya, beauty. Get some rest, oh, and invite your boy Liam to the tasting next week.”
“That’s really a thing? I thought you just said that for Deena’s sake.”
“It was a little of both, but we do have something set up. That new bar you want isn’t going to pay for itself, crazy girl. Wear something nice and tight, and maybe you can go home stretched and loose,” he laughed. “No, but really, invite him. I want to meet this guy both my girls are raving about.”