Hot Girlz: Hot Boyz Sequel (2 page)

“Not like
you did when you first retired.”

“Deadlines
got me tied down, Cedes, I’m telling you. Not for long, though. I should be
finished soon.”

“Okay. And
as far as the meeting, will you call me when you’re done? Let me know how it
goes.”

“I will.”

“Good.”
Mercedes took hold of her purse.

“Have you
checked in on Mom yet this morning?”

“Not yet.”

“Lucinda
tells me Mom hasn’t spoken a word in days.”

She said, “I
noticed. It’s bad enough she can’t get out of bed on her own or even turn over.
And she has to wear that dang colostomy bag and diaper. But I think with her
not being able to speak, that’s the worst part. It’s as hard on her as it is
for us to see her lose her abilities. Mamma’s always been a talker. They
brought up the topic of the non-verbal stage of the disease at the last Alzheimer’s
board meeting. I think it might be time to get her to the doctor for a
checkup.”

“I agree.”

“I’m on pins
and needles when it comes to her.”

“I know you
are. Thanks for taking care of my mom, well, our mom, yours and mine, like you
have. I’ll head into her room in a minute. Maybe I’ll take Nadia in with me.”

“Good idea.
It seems that besides Star, Nadia’s the next best thing for Mamma.” Mercedes
turned around to unhook her phone from the wall charger.

Mason’s eyes
went from her back, to her behind, to her legs, all but licking her down.
“Damn, you’re hot, wifey.”

“Well,
thanks, hubby.” She gave a tiny grin and then turned to stand before him.

“I’d say hot
enough to be a political wife.”

She replied,
“Oh really? I’d say you look good enough to run this entire town or the
country, any day of the week if you choose to.”

“We’ll start
with the council seat first.” He came to a stance. Bowlegged and over six feet,
he picked up his coffee mug and took a seat at his large mahogany desk.

“Deal.”
Mercedes turned toward the door as though ready to head out.

“Plus, I was
just thinking about getting our taxes audited.” He clicked the mouse, eyeing
the computer screen. “You know how the world of politics can be. And also,
keeping our noses clean is critical.” He perused the page, reading a new
message. “Here’s an email from Eric Garcetti’s assistant.” He paused and read
again. “She said the first person I’ll be meeting with is Ryan Germany. I’ve
heard of him. He represents the Ninth District.”

Pop. Pop.
Shit!

Mercedes stopped
and cleared her throat. “Okay.” She faced him again. “Good luck.”

“Thanks. You
gone?” He looked over at her.

“Yeah.” She
walked back to him and leaned down, giving him a kiss. She noticed the subtle
trace of alcohol. Possibly cognac. She kissed him again just to be sure.
Damn.
Not again.
She shook her mind out of its trickery and asked as she turned
toward the door,
“
You gonna feed Nadia?”

“Yep. I’ve
got her.”
He then said as she walked out of the library, “Love you.”

“Ditto.”
Their trademark reply.

If ditto
meant
me too
, Mason was in for a rude awakening, and a very dirty
political nose.

And Mercedes
was in for a reality check revisit from a twenty plus year-old monster.

2

Venus

“. . . does
your husband know . . .”

Years ago,
Claude Wilson’s girlfriend, Fatima, was murdered on the porch of Mason and
Mercedes’s home by a jealous ex who had followed her around for days. He had
called her fifty-two times in a row before he shot her in the head at point
blank range. He then shot himself in the chest. But he survived.

The night
before Fatima was killed, Claude, Fatima, and her best friend, Venus, had a
threesome together. Fatima had asked Venus to do it as a favor, as a birthday
present to Claude on the eve of Thanksgiving.

Little did
Claude know that Fatima was being stalked by her ex, Owen Chambers, whom she
had still been secretly sleeping with. Fatima had asked Venus to keep an eye on
Claude, and on her son, Cameron, if anything ever happened to her. Venus
agreed. But she never imagined the fact that because she and Claude had shared
their mutual grief together, things would lead to him popping the question
while they were in Vegas. Claude and Venus were wed less than one year after
Fatima was killed.

Claude
adopted Fatima’s son, Cameron, who at first would not accept Venus because of
her betrayal to his mother. And even Claude began to have concerns about his
decision to marry Venus, especially after visiting Fatima’s murderer, Owen, in
prison. Owen told Claude that Cameron was his birth son, and that Venus knew
about it all along, but never told Claude.

So, not only
did Claude find out that Cameron was Owen’s son, he also found out about the
agreement between Fatima and Venus for Venus to be with Claude, and also that
Fatima was still sleeping with Owen. The friction between Claude and Venus and
the guilt that Venus felt every time she would make love to Claude outweighed
their bond. Venus moved out. Especially after old-fashioned Claude forbid her
to work.

Claude found
the strength to forgive Venus and ask her back. He had sent flowers and left
messages that she ignored, until finally after both Claude and Cameron invited
her to Mason and Mercedes’s home on Thanksgiving Day, Venus came back, standing
on the very porch where her best friend was killed. By the next year they had
their own child, a baby girl named Skyy. And Venus kept the job she had gotten
as a director at the Make-A-Wish Foundation.

Fast forward, after work on the last
Monday in July, Venus Ortiz Wilson picked up Skyy from pre-K class at Knox
Presbyterian on La Tijera. They had only been at their yellow Senford Avenue
home in upper Ladera for about fifteen minutes when Venus answered her
Blackberry.

“Hi, Claude.”

“Hey. I’m on my way home. Are you
there yet?” There was a pep to Claude’s words.

“Yes, honey,” Venus replied. Her
tailored white suit fit her slender figure like a glove.

“Good. I just finished signing a
contract on a house on Corning.”

Half-Latin with long, curly hair,
Venus stood in their open area family room while six year-old Skyy sat on the
huge mocha sectional, holding the remote, watching cartoons.

Skyy had a heart-shaped face. Her
dark, curly hair hung down her back just like her mom’s hair. She was focused
and still.

Venus sounded excited for her husband
and said, “Good for you. Congratulations.”

“Thanks. You know who Mary is, right?
The new sales agent I told you about who just started at the office?”

“Yeah.”

“She had a conflict in schedule again.
She’s already missed a few caravans and meetings. She has a young son and her
husband travels a lot. My office manager hired her, but I sure can’t say I
would’ve. I’m not sure it’s gonna work out. But hey, we got the house sold
today. It’ll be a good chunk of change for the company, and for her.”

“Good. And Claude, don’t think I don’t
know where you’re going with this.” Her tone had warning. She took off her
blazer and hung it on the coat rack near the front door.

“I’m sure you do. It’s just another
example. I think if a husband and wife can afford it, there should be one
parent who is home with the kids. That’s how my mom was.”

Venus focused to keep her voice down.
“Anyway, I’ve only been home for a hot minute. I’m gonna try and figure out
what to make for dinner. I haven’t even changed my clothes, let alone taken off
my shoes.”

“I’ll just say this and leave it
alone. You need to stay at home and look after Skyy. Not some nanny like before
when we had someone helping us out.”

“What are you talking about? We had a
caregiver here when Mattie lived with us, but she still left here at four
o’clock each day. She wasn’t a nanny. I handled Skyy by myself, basically. Back
then when the family decided Mattie needed a full-time nurse, Mattie went back
to live with Mason and Mercedes. We no longer had a need for anyone. Claude, let’s
not do this again. I already stopped working once.”

He just listened.

She continued, saying, “Honey, we’ve
been through this before. You know it’s not the money that makes me wanna get
up and go to work. It’s a career. I need that. Just because I work doesn’t mean
I love Skyy any less.” She looked over at Skyy again and paced the marble
entryway. “Besides, I do meaningful work.” She took a breath. “Do you know that
yesterday we were able to work out a deal with an organization called
Destination Joy? They’ve decided to donate a ton of celebrity member’s frequent
flyer miles so we can get the kids flights booked for free. I’m excited about
that.”

“That’s great. I know you love what you do. I can hear it
in your voice. But, you know I’d prefer that you put our kid first, at least
just for a little while. Skyy’s been at Knox for a few years and now it’s time
for her to go to kindergarten. Because she was born in January she’s already a
little older than those kids in pre-K. I’m just talking about her having you
home and available now that she’s going into elementary, and then she won’t
have to do the after school program. At least not until maybe fourth grade.”

“That’ll be a while. Besides, what if I asked you to quit
your work?” She kicked off her shoes and then stepped barefoot as she walked to
the gourmet kitchen, taking a peek into the fridge, and then the pantry.

“That’s very different. I own my own
company. I’ve got people who can run it for me so I can take time off. And
maybe I should work from home more often. My point is, no one can look after
Skyy like we can.”

Venus let out an audible sigh.
“Claude, I need to start getting dinner ready.”

“No need. I was gonna tell you that
I’m headed over to our soul food place. What do you want?”

She managed a smile. “Oh, that’s sweet
of you.” She thought for a second. “I’ll just have the catfish with whatever
sides you have. And get Skyy the smothered chicken. She loves it. With
veggies.”

“Okay, I’ll be there shortly. And
Venus, I love you. I’ve got you.”

“I know you do. I love you, too. See
you in a minute.” As soon as Venus disconnected she tried to shake out her
mind. The phone rang. She eyed the display. “Hey there, Cam. How are you?”

Cameron’s words were rushed. “I need
to talk to Dad right away.”

“What’s wrong?”

“Mom, I just called Dad’s cell and he
didn’t pick up. Is he with you?”

“No. We just hung up. He’s in the car
about to stop and get dinner. What happened?” Venus removed her tiny hoop
earrings and placed them on the porcelain tile island.

“I’m in the counselor’s office at
school. My coach is here, too. They’re kicking me out of school.”

“Kicking you out? That’s crazy. Let me
talk to your coach. Put him on the phone.”

“I’ve gotta go. That’s Dad on the
other line.” He clicked over fast.

“Oh my God.” In thought, she paced
back and forth from the kitchen to the family room and back. She called Claude.
No answer.

Skyy called out, “Mommy. My favorite
movie,
Shark Tale,
is on. Can I watch it?”

Venus dialed Claude again, talking as
she listened to his voicemail greeting, telling Skyy, “Oh, sweetie, no. Wait
until later.” She hung up.

“Please?” Skyy’s voice was soft. She
aimed the remote at the screen and searched for more shows.

“No. Maybe after we eat.” Venus walked
into the family room and took the remote from her daughter, powering everything
off. “In the meantime, come on and go outside with me for a minute. Then we’ll
read a book and talk.”

Wearing jean shorts and a flowered Gap
tee, Skyy hopped off the sofa and headed to her mom, taking her by the hand.
Skyy’s purple flip-flops were at the front door.

“Here, slip these on.”

Skyy did just that. “Mommy, is my
brother okay?” She didn’t usually miss much. And calling Cameron her brother
was like her own loving nickname for him.

“Yes, sweetie. Cam’s just fine.”

“Is he coming home? I miss him.” She
looked up at her mom.

“He’ll be home soon enough. Maybe you
can talk to him later.”

Venus and Skyy walked down the porch
steps and along the circular driveway. The concrete was warm upon the soles of
Venus’s feet. The late afternoon prepared its handoff to early evening.

Venus took in the view of Ladera
Heights, known for its well-manicured lawns, fancy cars, and sprawling estate
homes. The look and feel and essence of the upscale neighborhood from the
outside seemed perfect, with towering, strong palm trees lined up along the
street. But Venus knew that chances were, inside of the homes themselves it was
quite possibly anything but.