“I don’t know. If you’re offended, please tell me.”
“I’m not.”
“Good. Because when we met, I thought I was feeling an energy.”
Champagne frowned. Was she that obvious? “What kind of energy?”
“And I’m checking you out on the ‘quiet-tip’ energy.”
Champagne laughed. She did think it was on the quiet tip. “Damn!”
“Let me ask you this,” Sharon said. “What’s your sexual preference?”
“Confused.”
Sharon leaned across the table, surprised that Champagne gave her such an honest answer. “Confused?”
Champagne spotted the waitress heading their way with their plates. She waited until she placed them down and walked away. Then she told Sharon, “Listen, I want to be clear, honest, and upfront.”
“Damn, girl, didn’t know this lunch date was going to be this serious.”
“I didn’t either, but I’ve got a feeling about you.”
“What kind of feeling?”
As they ate and talked, Champagne talked about the Hedonism experience she and Zyair had. She hadn’t told anyone else about it, and it felt so good to get it out.
“Ever since that experience, I’ve been thinking about doing it again. I want to see if I’ll enjoy it as much sober, or if it was just a drunken experiment.”
“What do you want it to be?”
“I’m not sure. I mean, what if I enjoy it the second time around and can’t get enough? What if I get turned out?”
“How are you going about looking for this female? Don’t tell me you and your man went to a strip bar or a gay club.”
Champagne started laughing. “Why not?”
“You have, haven’t you?”
“Yep.”
Sharon just shook her head. “Don’t you know that’s what all couples do when they’re trying to get it on? Why do they think it’ll be that easy?”
“Believe me, we know it’s not.”
“Why don’t you two use someone you know?”
“We don’t know anyone that will be down.”
“What exactly are you looking to make happen?”
Champagne couldn’t help but wonder, Was Sharon asking all these questions because she might be open to it, or was she just asking out of curiosity?
“Well, Zyair can look, maybe touch. I’m not even sure about that.”
“What else can he do?”
“What do you mean, what else can he do?”
“Is he going to be involved sexually?”
“As in intercourse?”
“What else?”
“No, this is really about me.”
Sharon sat back in her seat. “What if I told you I was interested?”
Champagne sat back in her seat too. Shit, she’s just playing with me. “I thought you didn’t like men?”
“I never said that. I don’t have anything against men, I just don’t want one in my bed. Plus, you said he’d just watch.”
Champagne felt her pussy get instantly wet. Could this really be happening? Had she actually found the person? What would Zyair say? What would he think of Sharon? After all, she is fine. Would he be attracted to her, not that it would matter, because she wouldn’t be attracted to him.
“I don’t know what to say.”
Sharon reached across the table and took Champagne’s hand. “Don’t answer that right now. Go home, talk to Zyair about it. Let me know what he says.”
Liking her touch, Champagne asked, “Why are you offering to be the one?”
“Because you look like you’ll taste good.”
There was nothing Champagne could say to that comment. She was sure Sharon could feel her hands sweating.
“Let’s enjoy the rest of our meal,” Sharon said.
All Champagne could do was agree.
* * *
On the way back to the office, Champagne imagined her and Sharon making love, Sharon’s hands and mouth all over her body. She thought about Zyair sitting across the room or on the foot of the bed watching as Sharon played with her titties and licked her juices. She pictured him masturbating while watching.
Champagne knew her thoughts were racing out of control when she almost ran a red light. How she made it back to her office in one piece was a mystery to her.
Candy was sitting at the receptionist’s desk, and on the telephone when Champagne walked in. In the sitting area on the couch sat a young lady reading a magazine.
“Hello,” Champagne said.
“Please hold,” Candy said to whomever she was speaking to on the telephone. She looked up at Champagne. “This is a potential client.”
Champagne glanced at the young lady on the couch.
“Hi, I’m Shay,” she said as she stood up. “I was down at my uncle’s, and he told me you were looking to hire someone. I thought I’d drop my resume off.”
The last thing Champagne felt like doing was speaking on the phone or interviewing someone. She needed to get her head together after the conversation she and Sharon just had. She also wanted to call Zyair, but she didn’t want to be rude. She told Candy to take a very detailed message.
Champagne walked over to the desk and reached past Candy. “Excuse me.” She couldn’t help noticing how good she smelled. She pulled open a drawer and pulled out a piece of paper and gave it to Candy. “As a matter-of-fact, ask them these questions and tell them I will get back to them.”
She looked at Shay and told her, “Give me five minutes and I’ll speak with you.”
“Thank you,” Shay answered.
Champagne went into her office, closed the door behind her, and exhaled. She sat at her desk to clear her head and tried to focus on the business at hand.
Five minutes later, she opened her door and told Shay, “Come on in.”
Champagne could see the nervousness on her face. “No need to be nervous. This isn’t an official interview.”
That didn’t turn out to be true, because thirty minutes later, Shay was walking out the door with the job. “Thank you. Thank you so much,” she told her as she was leaving.
Champagne smiled. She felt in her heart that she’d made the right call hiring this young lady. There was something about her, that “it” thing people talked about. She’d moved here on her own with money saved, found an apartment, and up until this moment was working various temp jobs.
After she was gone, Candy knocked on Champagne’s door.
“Come in.”
“So did you hire her?” Candy sure hoped so. She couldn’t wait to do hands-on work, get involved with the stars, party plan, do the fun and exciting part of the job.
“I sure did. She’s starting tomorrow.”
“That’s good.”
Champagne told Candy to have a seat, and they talked about how her first day on the job went, if it was what she expected.
Champagne then told her that she was going to let her assist with planning a party for an up-and-coming actress.
Now that’s what I’m talking about, Candy thought.
As Champagne stood up to leave, Candy stopped her, “Champagne?”
“Yes?”
“I just want to thank you again for this opportunity. I promise, I won’t let you down.”
Champagne nodded. “I know you won’t.”
“See you tomorrow,” Candy told her.
“That you will.”
Chapter Twenty
“Back And Forth” Cameo
Over the next couple of days, Champagne kept wondering how she was going to tell Zyair she thought she’d found the one. The reason she had yet to tell him was because at first she thought maybe she’d do a “we just happened to run into one another, and oh, by the way, this is Sharon” routine. That idea came and went because she didn’t think she’d be able to pull it off.
“Did you tell him about me yet?” Sharon asked, when they spoke earlier that day.
“No, not yet.”
“Are you ch
ickening out?”
“No.”
“Aren’t you ready for my tongue?”
Whenever they talked, Sharon was always messing with her this way, saying things to turn her on. Verbal foreplay is what she called it.
“I’m ready. I’m going to do it today.”
* * *
Zyair had told her earlier that he would be home early and hinted that he’d love some of her home cooking. “I’ve missed you,” he told her. “We haven’t been spending enough time together since you started your business.”
“You knew it was going to be that way.”
“I know, and I’m not complaining. I want to you to be as successful as you want to be. I just need some time with my lady.”
The way Champagne decided to play it was to cook his favorite, yet simple meal of meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and broccoli. Then they’d make love, and when it was over, she’d bring up Sharon. She’d say something like, “I’ve befriended this girl.”
Of course he’d ask who, and she’d tell him she was a gay girl. From there the tale would unfold.
* * *
Too bad that’s not the way it went. The second Zyair entered the house, she knew it wouldn’t wait past dinner. She was too hyped. “I found her,” she blurted out.
“Found who?” Zyair had no idea what Champagne was talking about but he could tell from her body language that she was excited about it.
He followed her into the kitchen, where she started to pour them each some wine.
“What are you talking about? Who have you found?”
Champagne handed Zyair the drink. “You know . . . her.”
Still a little confused, Zyair looked at Champagne, who started to move her eyebrows up and down.
“Oh, her?”
“Yes, her.”
“Who is she? Where’d you find her? How did you meet her? Did she approach you, or did you approach her?” He had a ton of questions for Champagne.
Champagne told him how she and Sharon met. She told him about them going out to lunch and having a few casual conversations. “The next thing you know, she was telling me she was gay.”
“So, she just came out of nowhere and told you that?”
Champagne wasn’t sure how much she wanted to tell him and how much she wanted to leave out. “Well, I was talking about you and the fact that you own one of the top restaurants in the area, and she said her exgirlfriend owns a restaurant.”
Zyair really hoped this wasn’t someone he knew.”
“Which restaurant?”
When Champagne told him, he felt a little relieved that he didn’t know her personally. Of course, being in the business he’d heard of her. “Go on.”
As Champagne went on with her story, Zyair had to admit to himself that he was feeling somewhat left out, the same way he felt at Fantasies. He thought they’d find someone together. He didn’t think she’d initiate it on her own. However, the thought of another woman in his bed outweighed any minor fear.
“How did you ask her?”
“I didn’t really ask. She sort of volunteered.”
Oh, hell no.
Zyair wasn’t stupid. That meant this chick was trying to get with Champagne anyway. She must have wanted her real bad to suggest it. He needed to know all the details before he made a decision.
“How did she volunteer?”
“We were talking about relationships and sex.”
“Sex?”
“Women talk about sex all the time. She was telling me about Hedonism. She asked me if I’d been there. I told her what happened with us while we were there, and she asked me if I ever thought about doing it again. So I told her yes.”
Zyair wasn’t too sure if he really wanted to go through with it again. Plus, it sounded a bit too coincidental. Between going to the strip club and the gay bar, he was feeling like Champagne wanted this just a tad bit too much. He didn’t tell her he was having second thoughts, though, and decided to just go along with it and hope that it didn’t blow up in his face.
That night as they lay in bed, Zyair suggested to Champagne that they watch a porno movie, something they hadn’t done in quite some time. Probably since they first got together.
“Why? I don’t think we should watch one. We need to just go with the flow.”
He didn’t want to press her. I’ll just watch in the morning when she goes to work. He thought to himself.
That night when they made love, Zyair was trying to go all out, over-caressing, over-kissing, and basically overdoing it.
“Sweetie, this is not a competition,” Champagne told him. She could tell he was trying to prove a point. She could also tell that his excitement about the whole thing was wearing thin, so she decided to bring their lovemaking up a notch. While he was inside her, she closed her eyes, pressed him down inside her, and started to grind her hips in a circle, knowing he wouldn’t last too long.
And he didn’t.
Afterward as Champagne slept, Zyair had a difficult time falling asleep. In his gut, he felt concerned. Not wanting to feel like an outsider in his own house, in his own bed, he was telling himself he had to be in control of the situation at all times. What happened if this girl started giving it to his woman better than he could? How would he handle that? He didn’t think about any of that when they were in Hedonism because that was a spur-of-the-moment situation. This one, however, was going to be planned.
He wondered what this Sharon girl would be open to. Would she let him touch her? Would she suck his dick, or was she one of those lesbians that would only let him watch? Shit, was there levels of lesbianism? he wondered.
Then there was the fact that she was a lesbian, and not a woman into men and women. Did that mean all he could do is touch? Would he even be allowed that much access? He wanted to join in, at least get his dick sucked by her.
It’s official. He’d bitten off more than he could chew.
It was time to come up with some rules for real. Rules such as, anything sexual will only occur when both of us are present. He wasn’t crazy. He’d heard stories about how people started sneaking off and seeing one another. Another rule, there’d be no “being the best of girlfriends.” Hell nah, that wasn’t happening. He was going to have to figure out how to handle that one because they were already talking on the phone and having lunch together.
Zyair felt Champagne stir. He shifted a little closer to her, hoping to wake her.
“Why are you still up?” she asked, interrupting his thoughts.
“I don’t know.”
Champagne didn’t believe that. After all, she was right next to him and was feeling his energy and his restlessness. “Do you not want to do this? Have you changed your mind?”
Not wanting to change his mind and outright disappoint her, he needed to think on it for one more day. “No, I haven’t changed my mind. I’m just a little disappointed that you went about this without me. I feel left out. After all, this was supposed to be an ‘us’ thing, not a ‘you’ thing.”
Champagne didn’t say a word. She knew what he was saying was true.
“What if I came home and said, ‘I found her,’ to you?”
Champagne answered honestly, “I wouldn’t like it.”
“I know you wouldn’t.”
They both remained silent for a minute.
“You know what,” Zyair said, “I’m bugging, that’s all. Let’s go ahead and do this.”
Champagne sat up. “I don’t want you to do something you really don’t want to do.”
Zyair was ready to end this conversation. “I want to. Let’s go to sleep and talk about it in the morning.”
“All right.” Champagne laid back down and cuddled up next to Zyair, her back to his chest. Then she turned around and kissed him on the lips. “I love you.”
“I love you too,” Zyair told her.
The next morning when they awakened, neither brought up what they’d talked about the night before. Zyair had made up his mind that he was going to l
et it happen, and once it’s done, that was going to be the end of it.
Champagne was ready for it to happen and wanted to ask him, “When?” but she decided to wait and speak with Sharon first.
Chapter Twenty-one
“I Wonder If I Take You Home” Lisa Lisa
Alexis sat in Champagne’s office with some serious news to share with her girl. As she waited on her to finish talking to the receptionist, she was growing impatient.
“I’m sorry,” Champagne said when she entered the office and closed the door behind her. “It’s been a hectic day.”
That morning when Champagne arrived, both Shay and Candy were there. Champagne gave Candy a list of things to do. One of her actress clients was starting a foundation and some research needed to be done. If Candy did a good job, Champagne would consider letting her come with her out of town to meet the client.
Alexis stood up and gave Champagne a hug. “Girl, I’ve missed you.”
They hadn’t talked or seen one another since they had dinner at Champagne’s.
“I missed you too,” Champagne replied. “Between me and my business and you and your man, we haven’t had the time to see one another.”
When Alexis thrust her right hand out and started wiggling her fingers, Champagne couldn’t help but notice a ring. “What is that?”
Alexis could barely contain herself. “I’m engaged, girl.”
Champagne plopped down in her chair. “Did you hear me? I’m engaged.”
Champagne thought Alexis had lost her mind or declared temporary insanity. “Engaged?”
Alexis could tell that Champagne wasn’t happy about the news. “Aren’t you happy for me?”
There was no way on God’s green earth that Champagne would even pretend she was happy. If that made her a bad person, so be it. There was something about Khalil that rubbed her the wrong way, and she was going to find out what it was.
“You just met him.”
“I knew you were going to say that. I know we haven’t been seeing each other that long but you can’t help who you fall in love with.”
Champagne wanted to throw up. She couldn’t believe Alexis was talking about being in love and she barely knew the man.
“In love? Girl, please . . .”
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