Expert Tease

by Kyle, Lola

  Jade: Hey I had fun yesterday. We should do it again sometime.

  Staring at my phone, unsure how to respond. I chewed my lip nervously. What do I do? Ignoring her wouldn’t be nice, I did kiss her after all and I didn’t want to talk about this… Not now anyway. I didn’t even know what I was feeling right now.

  Clearly, we had both been drunk and nothing more. Right? Did I mind kissing her? In that moment, no; but, now something deep in my gut, constricting my breath, making me worry a bit. I was confused. My stomach twisting itself in knots as our kiss replayed in my mind. I liked it. I was going to be sick.

  All plans I had for my day went out the window with one phone call.

  “Hello mother.”

  “Maye darling. How’s things?” my mother greets me, always chipper. Who knew satan was always happy.

  “Things are fine mom. How’s dad? Is he around?” responding sweetly.

  “Oh your father’s at home dear. I’m in your neck of the woods. How about a late lunch?” she suggest.

  “Sure, I could eat.” Rolling my eyes “Where did you have in mind?”

  “Oh Corrine’s, you know that the only place I eat here, the other restaurants don’t compare!” my mother’s voice heightening as she reprimands me. Before I could get a word out she resp;onds. “Bring that handsome son in law of mine, so I can see him. His mom tells me he got a promotion.”

  “Oh about that-” I manage gto get out three words this time before she cuts me off. Not caring what I had to say..

  “Is two o’clock fine? I should be done visiting with Mary-Ann and Victoria by then.” She says, “I have to go now; Oh and dear, please dress nicely. No jeans. Love you. Ciao.”

  Five minutes early is what my mother considered on time. According to my clock, I was late by 3 minutes and if I didn’t want to feel the wrath of Satan I needed to get find a parking spot right now. As if I needed any more pressure in my life.

  Five minutes and one mini argument with the bitch that cut me off later, I walk up to my mother’s table, my hands sweating; wiping them on my paisley halter back dress, walking confidently while plastering a smile on my face.

  “Hello mother!” I say with false enthusiasm.

  “Maye,” She says loudly, her fury barely masked keeping up with appearances kissing my cheek “You’re late!” she whispers, pinching my arm.

  “Sorry I’m late” I say, sitting down and rubbing my bruised arm.

  Her smile fake as her cold eyes appraise me cruelly; my mother gives me a small nod, approving my appearance.

  “Where’s my darling son in law?” she coos.

  “At work? Maybe?” I say softly.

  “What do you mean maybe?” She asks, taken back “Surely he is! I’ve taken the liberty of ordering for you.”

  “Thank you, mother.” I say, blinking to conceal my eyeroll.

  “Are you tired dear? You look pale.” Not like she cared.

  “I’m not feeling well, sorry mom.” Hopefully, I could use this as an excuse to get out of this dreadful lunch.

  Smiling at the waiter she leans forward, “Did you know that your cousin Amy has a girlfriend now,” the disgust apparent in her voice.

  “Yes mother. I know she does,” I say softly.

  “Well it’s just not natural. No one should be allowed to ever be intimate with someone of the same sex.” She says, “Can you imagine how her poor mother feels. Not having grandkids.”

  “Okay mom that’s enough.” I say cutting her off. My stomach turning sour and I get abruptly.

  “Dear are you okay?”

  “Yes” I lie, walking to bathroom. I was truly going to be sick.

  I splash water on my face, pale and flushed with worry. I wasn’t a lesbian and would never be. It must have been the alcohol. I was a horny drunk. No one except me and Jade knew about it. Maybe I’ll text her tonight just to clarify things.

  Walking out of the bathroom, I went back to my mother, who was currently staring at me curiously.

  “Must be a stomach virus,” I mumble as she gave me a expectant look.

  “Oh, Maye!” she claps. “I know that look. You’re pregnant!”

  My eyes go wide, she couldn’t be further off.

  “No mother. I am not!”

  “Why most certainly you are!” she counters, “I too was once pregnant. I had you didn’t I?” my mouth barely opens before she adds “I know the signs, you’re white as a ghost, flushed and the smell of all this food is making you nauseous. You my dear are pregnant!”

  “Mom!” I say, whispering my yell “I am not pregnant!”

  “Now dear, don’t argue. You’re just hormonal.” She coos, “It’s about time anyway!”

  “Mom, I can’t be pregnant. Blake and I have been divorced for almost five months now.” I add softly.

  The horrified look on her face I replaced with raw fury. “What do you mean Divorced!” placing her hand on her head. “Oh, my heart! I don’t think I can handle this. What did you do?” she hisses at me.

  “Why did I have to be the one at fault?” I ask, “He’s the one that likes men.”

  “You hussy. I just knew he was too good for you!” she yells. “You cheated on that poor man.”

  “Victoria! I did not cheat on my husband.” I say, my hands hitting the table, disrupting the plate setting. “For once, just one time I’d like to actually do something right. For once I’d like my mother to feel sorry for me. My husband cheated on me! His wife of thirteen years and instead of my own mother comforting me, I get this!” I stand. “Why don’t you go call your perfect Son in law! I’m going to leave now. Goodbye mother!”

  On the drive home, I decide to phone Jade. I wasn’t sure if she would pick up, but I had to try.

  “Hello?” a woman’s voice answers

  “Hi, may I speak to Jade to please?”

  “Sure, but who is this?” the woman’s voice a bit curious?

  “This is Jade…” I end weakly, losing my courage in one fell swoop.

  “Hello, this is Jade.” The familiar voice answers.

  My heart pounding in my chest as I barely whisper, “Hey Jay.”

  “Maye?” her voice quiet.

  “Yeah.” I clear my throat. The words I called to stuck, making me feel like I was suffocating by them. Nothing was said as we both wait for the other to say something. I don’t know why my body was going into fight or flight mode, but I felt the urge to run over to her place and see who the woman was.

  “Are you okay?” she finally asks.

  “I’m fine… Listen, I don’t want to interrupt you but I wanted to apologize face to face…”

  “You can come by,” her voice soft “Hold on a minute.” Her voice barely a whisper as she answered the other female asking questions in the room.

  Waiting patiently for her finish, I feel my heart leap out of my chest when she started speaking again. “Where are you? Your car’s not in the compound? How soon are you coming?”

  “I’m about twenty minutes away from home.” I say checking the dash for the time. “Is that okay?”

  “Y-yess,” she breathes out before hanging up. My face red, flaming from embarrassment. What in the world was happening with me!

  I pulled into my parking spot as Jade’s guest was leaving. She gave me a look that conveyed excitement, while I walked to Jade’s door hesitantly. Opening the door with a rush, Jade greets me.

  “Hi!” she says, waving goodbye to the female behind me. “That’s just Ashley. Come in!” opening the door wider for me. My face must have betrayed my thoughts because she added. “Ashley is my Personal Assistant. She’s just here to collect some paperwork. No biggie,”

  “Oh,” I breathe out, unsure as to why I was holding my breath.

  “I just wanted to say, I’m sorry about yesterday…” She says playing wi
th her hands, “I don’t know what came over me.”

  “Me too…” I say, wrapping my hands around my abdomen. “Hey Jade?”

  “Yea?” she answers, looking at me expectantly

  “I’ve never been with a woman before.” Looking away I add. “It’s not something that I’m used to, yet I feel like I should be kissing you.” Saying it out loud made me feel better, even though my face was probably redder than a ripe cherry tomato.

  “It’s okay sweetie. I know what it’s like.” She says, touching my cheek gently.

  “Do you really? I’ve only ever known Blake and-”

  Cutting me off she says “I know what it’s like. I struggled with my sexuality. My parents were dead set against it. Have you ever seen an exorcism in the twenty-first century?” quirking her eyebrow she continues, “Well my parents are die hard Catholics and when I told them, I was 16. They took me to our priest and had him perform and exorcism to ‘cast out’ the demons in me. I cried for days. I couldn’t even look at myself in the mirror. I started loathing the girls I found attractive. I could no longer deny what I felt as an adult.”

  “Oh my gosh! What the fuck?” I exclaim.

  “It’s okay” she says leading us to the couch. “It may not be the same for you. It could just be that you like the fact that someone is giving you attention since you are not dating anyone.”

  I felt stupid. Like DUH! It made perfect sense; except I still want to kiss her, so badly.

  “But I still want to kiss you!” I say, blurting out the thoughts floating around my head.

  Squeezing my knee she smiles, “I’ll be whatever you want me to be for you. A friend or something more. It doesn’t matter.”

  MY confusion didn’t stop me from putting my hands around her neck, kissing her lips passionately. She didn’t push me away as I continued to deepen our kiss. I felt her hands wrap around my waist, pulling me closer. I groaned against her lips. Jade pulls away, looking at me.

  “Is this really what you want?” she asks, her eyes clouded over with desire. Nodding, I kiss her again before she pulls away again, looking at me lips she whispers “looks like you’re mine now.”

  A chill ran through me at her comment, whimpering as she bit my ear teasingly, trailing my back with her fingertips. I straddled her, allowing her to pepper kisses all over my body, she releases the clasp of my halter and I hesitate.

  “Stop thinking so hard.” She chuckles.

  “Sorry, I just had a bad day with my mom, who is totally homophobic by the way. I finally told her about my divorce and I don’t think she’ll ever forgive me.” I say, holding my dress up. “How do I explain this? Us?” I sigh, my brows furrowing with my frown. Sighing as she pulls me closer, holding me tenderly. I missed this, I missed affection.

  Stroking my hair soothingly she says “Don’t worry about that for now love. Leave all of that for me. I’ll fight your battles with you.” Kissing my nose, making her way around my face; we sat like that in complete silence, watching the sun’s rays fade through her window, swallowed up by the night sky.

  JADE

  My phone vibrating in my pocket wakes me, I untangle myself from her, careful not to rouse the beautiful angel currently asleep on my couch. I never liked being a situation where I had no control, and from the moment she showed me how vulnerable she was that night at the bar, she had me wrapped around her finger. Unwittingly I was already hers. She had already kissed me a few times and every time I had to keep myself from ripping that barely there dress off and making love to her right then and there. She wasn’t ready.

  Shaking my head as I sent a text message to Ashley and fed my Puffy, I’d have to take her out for a walk soon. Perhaps, Maye would join me. I look up to see the sexy vixen padding bare feet into the kitchen, fixing her hair and blinking to clear her eyes a few times. God, she was so beautiful.

  “Hi, Sunshine!” I smiled, watching her blush deeply.

  “Hey.” She responded shyly. “What time is it?”

  “A little after eight,” I say watching her eyes go wide.

  “Crap! I have to go. I’ll talk to you later!” She says, running barefoot out the door.

  What the hell. Here I was thinking we were over the running after kissing part. My phone rings, showing a number I didn’t recognize.

  “Hello?” I say cautiously to the silence on the other line. “Are you there? Did you call by accident?”

  “Jade?” the woman answers “Is that you? I was hoping you hadn’t changed your number. Please don’t hang up. Hear me out!”

  “Lisette? I have nothing more to say to you” I say, grabbing a wine glass from the cupboard. This conversation needed wine, and lots of it.

  “But Jade!” she whines, drawing my name out in that annoying way only she can execute. “You know I’m the best this that has ever happened to you.” I could feel her pout over the phone.

  “That’s a lie,” I smirk, “because I was the best damn thing that ever happened to you! At least until you went bat shit crazy and tried to kill my assistant. How’s that restraining order working out for you?”

  “I’m going to anger management now, I wrote her an apology. I’ve changed. I promise baby.” She coos over the line. “I miss you. Can we work this out? Please?”

  Her begging is met with silence as I pour the wine, I let breathe earlier into my glass.

  “Pookie? Are you there? I said I was sorry” her whining met with an eye roll. “Fine be that way, but don’t act like you don’t miss my kisses. I know you miss me.”

  I hung up abruptly, huffing at how she could rile me up with just her whining. A serious mood killer. I didn’t need her in my life right now, especially since things were going somewhere hopefully with Maye.

  Maye: Sorry, I had to run, or I’d be late for my shift and Sly would have killed me.

  Jade: It’s okay. I’ll see you?

  Maye: Most def! I’ll text you tomorrow. By the time I’m done, it’ll be too late.

  Jade: K.. be safe.

  Truth is, I was disappointed, I was hoping that we’d spend the night talking and getting to know each other better.

  MAYE

  Sly had been on my case the minute I walked into the door. I was five minutes late, apparently that threw off his entire schedule.

  “My girls show up on time Queen! I’ve put girls on ice for less.” He yells, following me to the changing room.

  “I’m kind of in a great mood Sly.” Taking a drink from the small metal flask in my locker, “Not the best time to hassle me. You’re killing my buzz.” I say, walking away from him to get ready.

  “Another red night?” Duchess asks, watching me get ready for the stage. “You have such a nice rack. I’m still saving up to get mine done.”

  “My breast are all natural.” I retort playfully.

  “I don’t believe you.” She says, sticking her tongue out at me. “Sigh after two kids, I need to go to LA and get me a good doctor to wake these puppies up.”

  “I feel you! I wish I had some of your hips.” I say pulling on my boots, “So what’s the gossip?” because she sure as hell wasn’t here to flatter my boobs.

  “You so know me.” She said smiling “Gage asked me out and Kiki lost her shit!” Wow so he finally chose one. The three of them had a messed up relationship that not even I dared to comment on.

  “That’s good!”

  “I guess so, but you know I haven’t been on a date in a while. She explain, worried “I mean all I’ve been doing is getting naked and fucking.” Lighting a cigarette she adds, “What if I screw things up?”

  “It’s just a date Duchess. It’s not like you’re stripping for the queen or something, just go and have fun.” I states, standing up to head to the stage. “Plus if all else fails, play footsie with his balls under the table.”

  Laughing, she takes a breath “I
guess you’re right.” She says as I walk away. Calling out “Ah I almost forgot!” I knew she had some real gossip for me.

  “I heard Kiki talking to the boss.”

  “And???” I ask, waiting on the details.

  “She was asking that you don’t do any privates with us.” She said, though she said this softly, her eyes twinkled with excitement, anticipating what she assumes would become an all-out stripper death brawl. I took it all with a grain of salt, Kiki wouldn’t do that. I mean she got me this job afterall. “That’s not all!” she adds, “She also said that you didn’t do a good job because no one in our last private came back.”

  “Thanks for the heads up girl.” I say, just as Sly walks back in.

  “I knew it!” our boss said angrily. “Why are you still in here? Get your ass out on that stage!” I roll my eyes walking past him. “And Duchess let this be the last time I find you lazing around!” his voice menacing with a threat we barely acknowledged.

  I walked on stage, my intro song putting me in the zone I needed to be in for this dance. The club was packed, some men cat calls and whistles could be heard over the music making me smile. It was always amazing to feel their eyes on me. Working my way up the pole, I spin freely, my black wig pinned tightly to the makeshift braids I put in to hold them. Ride by Ciara comes on and I bite my lip and slowly made my way across the stage. Each movement precise; taking my time to let the music move me. Making contact with the gentleman immediately in front of me. I crawl to him, pulling him closer by his tie, simultaneously shaking my ass as he shifted in his seat, grabbing his dick to rearrange the now tented fabric of his pants.

  No one was immune to my charm, five, ten, twenty dollar bills rained on me during my performance. For the first time in the game, I pull my strapless bra off, my nipples covered in pink petals, the men went wild, the regulars tossing more bills on the stage. I flip backwards, landing in a split and twerking my ass to some rihanna song. My hands pushing my already perky breast up. I was feeling it. The song ended and making my way off the stage when someone commandeered me for a private.