A Scandalous Philly Love Story (Part 1)

A Scandalous Philly Love Story

Part 1

Chapter 1

Cynthia

It was always said, “Keep your friends close, but your enemies even closer.” Now I realize why I never had many friends because bitches could never be trusted.

Well, allow me to introduce you to Dawn and Marcy, my best friends. And then there’s me, Cynthia. It all started our junior year of high school, when I first met Dawn. We were in the same homeroom, and we had two other classes together. Dawn was new to the school, and I was elected to show her around. She was there that awful day I received the gut-wrenching news that my father had committed murder-suicide, killing both himself and my mother. After I returned to school, we automatically clicked. She would always try her best to cheer me up, even though I knew her home life was chaos. Then, in the middle of the school year, we met Marcy. Nobody liked her ass, including me, but during my absence, Dawn became friends with her, and even though Dawn could sense my dislike for Marcy, she always forced our friendship. Dawn always saw the good in everybody.

Marcy was considered the troublemaker of the group. She stayed fighting and arguing because she was always up in some other girls’ boyfriend’s face. Even though Marcy kept confusion going, nobody or nothing could touch us because we were as thick as thieves by our senior year. It was unbelievable how close we all became. By the time we were adults, we saw each other through college, break-ups, births, abortions, marriages, and deaths. While we were what you would call inseparable, there were times that Marcy would rub me the wrong way, but Dawn would somehow keep the peace amongst us. However, Marcy somehow finally managed to break the bond and trust of our circle. I’ll tell you more about that later, though.

Allow me to introduce myself, my name is Cynthia Reid, but everyone calls me “Cyn”. I’m five foot four, medium built with hazel brown eyes and dimples. I was blessed with long hair that stopped in the middle of my back and with as ass that won’t quit. I was also blessed with 36DDs to complete the package. In addition, I was an only child. After graduating high school, I attended Temple University and took up Business Administration. When my parents died, there was an insurance policy left for me. It was enough money to cover college, plus a little to play with. After receiving my BA in business, I took a course in real state. Now, I was a Regional Property Manager for one of the top Property Management companies. I definitely had dreams of owning my business as a realtor.

Now, my personal life, on the other hand, was messy. I was in a complicated relationship with Eric Greyson, who was an up-and-coming defense attorney. We were destined to either flourish or flock. There were signs that our relationship was suffering a slow death, but I kept ignoring the signs. At first, I didn’t pay it any attention, but then he wasn’t staying over or even coming by as much as he used to. That’s when my instincts started kicking in. I started to notice that he was also calling and texting me less and less. Our sex life was obviously dwindling because he hadn’t touched me in over five months. I started questioning my ability to satisfy my man. Was he still attracted to me, or was there something I was lacking? I knew I attended to his needs because I was freak in the bed.

I finally got tired of wondering why we weren’t spending time together anymore. It seemed as if I were the only one willing to fight for us, and I had no more fight left in me. I made plans to meet him for lunch to see where we stood. Before leaving work, I cleared my schedule and told my assistant, Amy, that I would be gone for the rest of day. I instructed her that once she was finished with her work, she could leave early herself. I had no plans on returning today because I wasn’t sure how lunch would turn out. I arrived at the restaurant five minutes late, but there was no sign of Eric.

“Ms. Reid, you are the first to arrive in your party. Would you like to wait at the bar?” the host asked. I told the hostess that she could seat me now, and I would just order appetizers while I waited.

“Okay, I will let your waitress know,” she replied and walked away. My waitress came over to the table and introduced herself as Sarah. While waiting for Eric, I ordered buffalo wings, a salad, and a glass of Moscato. I could hear my cell phone buzzing in my purse, and there was a text from Eric:

Eric: I’m sorry I won’t be able to make lunch. I got held up in court. When I’m finished, I will give you a call. May be we can meet later.

Me: Why did you wait this long to text me?

Eric: Look, I said I got held up in court. I apologize. Call you later

I couldn’t believe he was canceling our lunch date. Something always miraculously came up at the last minute, or he had to work late on a case. There were too many damn excuses, and I was going to take this one as a sign. I wasn’t sure if he’d lost interest or if he was cheating. I decided to take my food to go, since I was just so fucking irritated with Eric and his bullshit. I had some decisions I needed to make because I was irked with the whole situation. I wasn’t trying to be in a loveless relationship anymore. There was clearly nothing to save here. See, my childhood affected my relationships with men. My mother was always miserable and crying, due to my father’s constant cheating, and I witnessed it all. My father would either come in late, or he would stay out all night. He would come home smelling of sex and perfume. It never turned out good whenever my mother confronted him, and he beat the shit out of her every time. My mom stayed with a busted lip or a black eye. I watched my mother sacrifice her own happiness just to keep a roof over our heads. She worked two jobs because my father was always spending his money on booze and his bitches.

My mom was nursing assistant working at a nursing home, taking care of the elderly, and she was also a home health aide on the weekends. My mother’s dream was to become an RN, but she had let that dream go because she couldn’t work two jobs, go to school, and still have time for me. I was the only family she had. She refused to spend what little time she had away from me. She had a sister, who moved away after my grandmother died, and she managed to swindle my mother out of the insurance money that my grandmother left behind for them. One day, she just up-and-moved away to another state, leaving my mom without a dime. There never was any contact afterwards. Even after that, my mom still tried to search for her, but no one had any contact information for her. I guess that’s how she wanted it to be, so my mother gave up hope of ever finding her. I never understood how my aunt could live with herself, knowing she had the answers to all of my mom’s prayers and didn’t do a damn thing to help.

One day, my mom finally got fed up and decided to pack us up and move away. This particular day, my father came home early and caught my mom packing and decided to take both of their lives. My mother had a very good friend, Emily, who took me in and raised me until I graduated from high school and started college. I was forever grateful to her because I’d heard some horrible stories about foster care, and I dreaded being another statistic of abuse, neglect, and being moved from place to place.

Chapter 2

Dawn

My name is Dawn Hunter, and I own a catering company called, “Soul’s Delight.” I’d always been a go-getter, one who made things happen instead of sitting around and waiting. See, I was the youngest child and I always got my older sisters’ or cousins’ hand-me-downs. I was appreciative of it, but I wanted a choice in what I owned. It didn’t always work out that way, so when I got of age, I applied for a job at McDonald’s. It was a big step for me, and I finally gained my independence. And from that moment on, I was out for mine. Once I graduated high school, I went to Culinary Arts School because cooking and baking were niches of mine. While in school, I met this guy, Anthony Braxton. Things were getting serious, but for a while, I wasn’t too sure if I was ready. Eventually, we became engaged and got married after we graduated. We  decided on waiting to have children because we both had goals of owning our own businesses. I can say—at first—things for me were moving too slow, while Anthony’s consultant firm was flourishing. I never gave up hope, and I later expanded the catering company to include event planning.

After five years of marriage, and when we were financially set, Anthony decided it was time to try for a baby. My only issue was that I just wasn’t ready. I had grown so used to it just being the two of us, that I was scared to tell him I wasn’t there yet. He always dreamed of having two or three kids, but it just wasn’t what I wanted at the age of twenty-eight. I knew it sounded selfish, but I just wasn’t prepared to give that part of my life to children. With all of the sex we were having, Ant couldn’t understand why I wasn’t pregnant already. It was really because I never stop taking the depo shot. And if he ever found out, it would be hell up in here! With my business, I stayed busy, and there was never a dull moment in my life. Plus, with my beautiful figure, I just wasn’t ready to lose that, either. I was 5 foot four and thick in all of the right places. My hair was cut into a beautiful bob, and I had what Ant loved to call “sexy grey eyes”. I loved and adored this man because he stood by me while I was struggling to get my business off of the ground and he provided for the both of us. We lived in a beautiful five-bedroom, three-bath ranch style home, and he just recently bought me an all-black 2015 Lexus ES 350 for our wedding anniversary. Just knowing that he was a loving and caring man, I felt guilty for not being able to give him what he wanted.

I called my girls, Marcy and Cyn, because I needed to have a girls’ night out and get their opinions. See, Cyn was the level-headed one, who always gave it to me straight, no chaser. Whereas, with Marcy, she was the hater of the bunch. She always had something negative to say, and that shit just irked my soul. I felt as though she was jealous because she stayed with a different dude every day. She would use them for whatever she could get and then dump them afterwards. It didn’t matter if it was money, a condo, cars, or clothes, she was just a damn gold digger. She had two kids, Selina and Amina, who she wasn’t taking care of. They were both living with her mother. In reality, all Marcy did was contribute her money but not her time. See, that’s not how I wanted to be—selfish and depriving my kids of my time and my love.

Tonight, we were meeting at our favorite place, Café Delite, where they had all types of dishes. For me, it was seafood that hit the spot. I loved shrimp, crab, lobster, and fish. Plus, the drinks were all that! This was our number one hang out spot. Marcy and I arrived at the same time, and Cyn called to say that she was running late, but there was something in her voice that told me she wasn’t all that apologetic.

Chapter 3

Marcy

So, I’m Marcy Crawford, the youngest of the bunch. See, I was the spoiled one, who always got what she wanted, when she wanted it. By me being the only child, my parents couldn’t help but spoil me. I couldn’t have cared less about what other people thought of me or about their damn feelings; at the end of the day, I was doing me. See, what people didn’t understand was that I go after what and who I wanted. Married, singled, or divorced, if I liked them, I was all over it. I’d had lawyers, doctors, congressmen, and judges, just to name a few. And it cost to play in my yard. Why should I work when it was always given to me? I was just that girl with the long, honey blonde hair down the middle of my back and a set of hazel brown eyes. I might not have been top heavy, but my ass made up for them both. It had made both men and women take notice of me when I walked by. I was what you would call “mixed”. My mother was black, and my dad was Italian. I have two beautiful daughters, Amina who is nine, and Selina, who is seven. They both lived with my parents. My mother knew there wasn’t a motherly instinct bone in my body. So, I granted custody to my parents. My children knew me as their mother, and I spent whatever time I could spare with them. After Selina, I had my tubes tied because being pregnant always slowed me down.

My friends always seemed to judge me because of the way I lived. Like I told them, what I do is my business. If I lay around on my back for these men and they pay me, then that’s my business and it’s my damn body. I give these men what their women couldn’t. And it has kept them coming back for more. See, I only have a select few. They all knew the rules—no strings attached. I don’t catch feelings; however, there is one guy, who seems to have put the moves on my heart. He’s not married, but he’s in a relationship. I knew for a fact that he wasn’t happy with her. In the beginning, he knew I wasn’t a nagging, clingy, or insecure bitch. And no, I don’t consider myself a hoe or a home wrecker. How do you wreck something that was already damaged? At times, I longed for that closeness of my own man, who would love me unconditionally, but, assholes like Richard—my girls’ father—made it hard for everyone after him. I loved him; I was faithful, and I gave him my heart and my undivided attention. There was nothing I wouldn’t do to please him. I cooked, I cleaned, I kept myself looking good, and I was his freak in the sheets. I thought I was all that he needed. However, when I became pregnant with Amina, he cheated on me. When I confronted him, he told me it was over before it began.

So, for a year and half, things seemed to be back on track, and somewhere in there, I became pregnant with Selina. Richard started acting strange again, staying out late, coming in smelling of perfume that wasn’t mine, with lipstick on his collar. You name it, and it was happening. It was as if he had just said, “Fuck it!” and stopped giving a damn about me. So, while I was pregnant with Selina, I lost a lot weight because I was not eating and the stress was getting to me. My mother noticed that something was wrong. I finally opened up to her and moved out a month before I was due. So, that was why I said fuck commitment; it got me nothing but a broken and lonely heart. This “No strings attached” rule worked for me, and at the end of day, I was paid and happy.

So, tonight I was meeting up with the girls at Café Delite for our girls’ night. They were my bitches, and I loved them to death, but they thought they were the only ones who got it all. Like I said, I might not work, but I could get what I wanted, when I wanted. As I was pulling into the parking lot, I noticed Dawn arriving at the same time. As I got out of my truck, she walked over and gave me a hug.

“Hey, girl. How you been?” I asked.

“Bitch, had you been answering your damn phone you would know!”

“Oh, my bad. You know I been busy,” I replied. She gave me the side eye, and we fell out laughing. We walked in, and we were seated right away.

“Did you hear from Cyn?”

“Yeah, she just called while I was parking. She was running late, but she is on her way.” Dawn was saying how Cyn didn’t sound like herself. So, after being seated for ten minutes, Cyn finally walked in the door. When Cyn arrived, we could tell that something was eating her. She had the look of defeat. When she sat down, she called for the waitress, so she could order her drink. She apologized for being late.

“So, Cyn how are you feeling?” Dawn had asked. Her eyes were teary, and she looked like a dam ready to bust. She blurted out that it was over between her and Eric, that she wasn’t sure if he was cheating, or if he was just losing interest in her. She went on to say that they hadn’t been intimate for a while.

“Damn, girl! Yeah, he cheating,” I said.

“Really, Marcy? Could you be a little more sympathetic?” Dawn scolded me. Cyn went on to say that for the last past month or so, he wasn’t coming over, and when he did, he barely paid her any attention. Sexually, he wasn’t interested. He hadn’t made love to her in over four months. At times, he would lose his erection, or not even have one at all. When he did come over, he would make excuses as to why he had leave. “We talked about moving in together and he said that we were moving too fast.”

“Look, boo, you are a beautiful, gorgeous woman. If he can’t see that and appreciate your worth, then kick that ass to the curb!”

“That’s right,” I agreed with Dawn. I sat there, thinking about how ironic it was that Cyn thought she was above everybody and that the world revolved her. Don’t get me wrong, she was a beautiful woman, and if I were into women, I would get at her, but she needed to get rid of that loser. He wasn’t her type. She didn’t know how to handle a man like Eric.

When the waitress had returned, she had our drinks and a basket of bread. We all placed our orders and enjoyed the rest of the night.

“I still haven’t told Ant I’m receiving the depo shot,” Dawn blurted out.

“You’re just being selfish, and holding secrets from him could cause a rift in your marriage.”

“I’m just not ready for a baby,” she said.

“Look, Cyn, who is ever ready for a baby? You would learn as you go along.”

“Girl, you know that babies don’t come with instructions; they need too much love and attention. I’m not sure I can give that right now.”

“Well, sweetie that’s what friends are for,” countered Cyn. “You know it takes a village, and I’m always here for you.”