Independent Women - the Complete BWWM Romance Series Boxset (9 page)

THE

INDEPENDENT WOMEN

EPISODE 2

Summary

Tamika has a big decision to make regarding the baby once she realizes the identity of the father.

Meanwhile, Kalena finds that her secret lover Joseph is actually happy being a secret and she begins to suspect the reason why...

#Chapter1

“If that’s what love is all about, then you can keep it.”

Kalena

Kalena basked in the afterglow of the amazing sex that she’d just had with Joseph. The things that he could do with his mouth were downright sinful. His level of kinky was unlike anything that she’d ever experienced. Having a man that didn’t have a long list of things that he didn’t do was refreshing.

“You good, Babe, or do you want to go again?” Joseph asked with a grin.

“Oh please, you know that I tired you out. There is no way that you can go again so soon.”

“You don’t know me, girl. Give me about 10 minutes and I can put it on you all over again.”

“Okay then, let’s do it,” Kalena said, calling his bluff.

“See, you’re just a little freak and you’re greedy. I just gave you all I had and you want more,” he laughed.

“That’s what I thought!”

“I was just checking to see what you were going to say.”

“Well don’t play with me like that. I’ll ride you all over again and put you out of commission.”

“I don’t doubt that for a minute but I’m going to need a rain check for that.”

“Awww, I guess I’m just too much for you.”

“Normally I would dispute that but you’re dangerous. You’re petite, but that plump little ass gets me going every time.”

“You sure know how to flatter a woman. I’ve always hated my ass and I used to wish that I could gain weight but it never seemed to happen. I wanted to be thick.”

“No need for that, you’re perfect.” He placed a kiss on her cheek and pulled her close to his body. They only knew each other for a short amount of time, but it felt like forever. He was everything that Kalena wanted in a man. He was smart, successful, and an all-around great guy. She just wished that she could see more of him. He worked as a club promoter so his nights were long. She’d offered to spend some evenings with him, but he was a businessman at heart and insisted that she stay at home or hang out with her friends. It sucked, but she understood, it’s not like he could come to her job and hang around.

“Do you have to go to work tonight?” Kalena whined.

“Of course I do. You want to keep going on fancy dates don’t you?”

“Yeah, you better take your ass to work,” she laughed. “When will I see you again?”

“I’ll see you in a couple of days. I have a couple of business deals I have to get focused on, but then it’s me and you boo.”

“It better be.”

“You don’t have to worry about that. You know I’m not missing out on all of this good stuff,” he said as his hand glided down her body.

“Am I just sex to you now?”

“Nope but it’s a hell of a benefit. But I can get sex anywhere. I like you because you’re more than that. I can actually talk to you and I love being around you.”

“That’s how I feel too,” she confessed.

“I guess it’s time for me to get out of here.” He slowly raised himself from the bed and put on his clothing. Kalena watched him in silence as her heartstrings were being tugged. She was fucking and dating a white boy, and her dad was going to be pissed when he found out. The thought made her laugh because it was something that she was looking forward to revealing. Why should he get to have all of the fun? At least she wasn’t married.

It wasn’t even 8 p.m. yet and she wasn’t ready to go to bed. She texted her friend Tommy to see if he was interested in hanging out, he’d been a bit of a crap shoot lately. Their last few exchanges were awkward but she did her best to be completely honest with him and they finally seemed to have an understanding.

Soon, Joseph was out of the door and Tommy was there an hour later. They had a few shows that they had to catch up on together. It was their guilty pleasure and he enjoyed it just as much as she did.

“I almost watched these last couple of episodes without you,” Kalena admitted.

“That’s bogus, you know that I would have never forgiven you for that,” Tommy said as he sipped his wine.

“I know but I’m mad at you anyway, so it serves your ass right.”

“Why are you mad at me?”

“Because you’ve been M.I.A.  I miss my friend.”

“I’ve missed you too, but I’ve just been trying to get my mind right.” Tommy didn’t understand what was wrong with Kalena. He’d been pretty clear about his feelings towards her, but she refused to act like things had changed between them. He was a man and his hormones went berserk when he was in her presence. Shit, she was downright gorgeous, but she’d friend-zoned him. 

He never could figure out what the deal was with women. They claimed that they wanted a good man and usually they had one right in front of their face that they overlooked. Time was never on their side, but life was about what you make it. You have to make the time for the things that are important to you. He was sure that they’d finally gotten their chance, but he was shot down again. It wasn’t time for him to give up, not yet.

They were comfortable on the couch and Kalena rested her head in his lap. She missed her friend tremendously and hoped that things could go back to the way that they were before he started acting weird. Now that she had Joseph, there was no genuine romantic interest there for her anymore. Times changed her feelings; it shouldn’t have taken him so long to make his move. Why was she lying to herself? Her feelings for him still existed, but they were best ignored. Men had come in and out of her life, but he was consistent and safe. If they went down the romantic road and they didn’t work out, that would mean that their friendship was over. Some things just weren’t worth the trouble.

He was comfortable and safe to be around. Tommy was extremely affectionate and she could talk to him about anything. If she lost his friendship she didn’t know what she would do. There was nothing like having a male best friend. Her girlfriends were great, but there were things that they just couldn’t give her. He gave the best advice from the male perspective and he never sugarcoated anything to spare her feelings, and it was appreciated. Sure, he was one of the most amazing men that she’d ever met, but that was even more reason to keep things platonic.

Tommy stroked her hair causing her to look up at him, the attraction between them was undeniable. The nervous feeling settled at the bottom of Kalena’s stomach as Tommy dipped his head for a kiss. His full firm lips felt smooth and cool against hers, and it was a tenderness that was foreign to her senses. Most men were so thirsty that they became aggressive or they were afraid so they touched her timidly and it was annoying. This was different, he knew her very well and his touch reflected that.  Her pulse quickened, she gave a moan that came from the depths of her soul as he stroked her face and deepened their kiss. Tommy’s heart flourished, he was finally getting what he wanted.

Before she could lose herself, she pushed him off her and stood to her feet.

“What are you doing?”

“I was kissing you,” he said with amusement in his voice.

“I know that, but why?”

“You already know how I feel about you and it’s obvious that you feel the same. If you didn’t, then you wouldn’t have kissed me back.”

“That’s called hormones, Tommy. You know that I’m attracted to you, but you can’t keep doing that.”

“Why not? You like it.”

“Stop trying to spoil our friendship. I have a boyfriend now and so it’s inappropriate for you to do that.”

“The same way that it was inappropriate that you kissed me when I was engaged.”

“Exactly like that. You let me know where you stood and you made it clear that we were just going to be friends and I had to respect that.”

“But the timing is good right now. I really care about you and I find it hard  just to be your friend. You’re not married and you’re not engaged. You just met this guy and you’ve known me for years. I don’t see the problem.”

“The problem is that I’m with someone and I’ve given my word to be faithful, that’s what I’m going to do. It’s too late for all of this foolishness. We had our chance when we first met and a couple of times after that, and it has never worked out. We need to stop.”

“That’s no reason for us to give up now. Just because it hasn’t worked out in the past doesn’t mean that it can’t work out now. Let’s stop waiting on the timing to be right and make the time.”

Kalena shook her head in disbelief, still upset over her body’s reaction to him, “If this is going to happen every time we meet, then we will have to stop meeting.” As soon as the words left her mouth she regretted them, but it was too late. The damage had been done.

Tommy looked wounded and it damned near broke her heart. This wasn’t what she had in mind at all, but it was frustrating when a person couldn’t take no for an answer. It was also upsetting because she’d just technically cheated on her boyfriend, that wasn’t the kind of person she desired to be.

Tommy stood up, grabbed his things, and headed out of the door. There wasn’t anything else to be said. He had to respect her wishes even if they were stupid, but that didn’t mean that he had to stick around and allow her to crush his heart.

Kalena sat back down on her couch and felt sorry for herself. She had two great men in her life, but yet she never felt so alone. It was time for her to be married with children, but she was still dating and it didn’t look like wedded bliss was anywhere in her near future. Would she be one of those people that had to adopt or pump her body full of hormones because her baby-making time was over? It was best not thought of, because it would only depress her further.

It was time for her to go to bed so that her brain could be cut off for the evening.  Before  getting to her bedroom,  her phone started to buzz. It was her mother.

“Hello?” 

“Hey Baby.”

“Hey Mom. How are you doing?”

Kalena had an eerie feeling about the conversation, her mom never called her that late at night and her voice was trembling.

“I’m doing okay, getting ready for bed.”

“Did I disturb you?”

“Of course you didn’t, you know that I don’t have a life.”

“You’ve got your entire life ahead of you, you have an amazing job, and you’re making me proud. I love the woman that you’ve become. I know that I’ve never told you, but I admire you. You think for yourself and you don’t let your feelings get in the way of thinking properly.”

Something was definitely wrong with her mother; she wasn’t the kind of woman to give out compliments so freely. The two of them were like oil and vinegar, they didn’t mix. Kalena didn’t understand how she could just bow down to her trifling father, and her mom didn’t understand why she had to be so rebellious. Kalena wasn’t really rebellious; she was a good child that had a mind of her own. But those traits weren’t championed in her household. Her father was the king of his castle and the head of the church. She probably would have been okay with that if her dad was an honorable man, but he wasn’t. He slept with anything that would spread its legs and her mom knew it.

“Thank you, Mom, but are things okay with you?”

“Things are going as well as they can, I guess.”

They stayed on the phone in silence for a few seconds, “Are you going to tell me what’s going on? Is Dad okay? Are you okay?”

“I promised your father that I would wait for him to tell you but I can’t hold it in anymore. It’s been five months and you’re going to figure it out anyway. He should have told you two months ago,” she vented.

“Told me what?”

“Your dad got Natasha pregnant and she’s having your father’s baby in four months.”

“You have got to be fucking kidding me.”

“Language!”

“No! Fuck that! Are you kidding me? He couldn’t even put a damned condom on? Isn’t he too old to have any more kids? He’s going to be dead before that child is even 20, he sickens me and don’t even get me started on that little bitch Natasha. You let her in your house, you took her in when she didn’t have anywhere to go, and then she fucks your husband. So what are you going to do?”

Kalena fought the urge to throw things inside of her own apartment. She loved her father, but she hated him at the same time. He loved her but the greatest way that he could have shown his love was by treating her mother right.

“I don’t know exactly what I’m going to do.”

“Please don’t tell me that you’re staying with him.”

“I said that I don’t know what I’m going to do.”

“Wow, you’re staying,” Kalena laughed in disbelief, “How much more are you going to take from him, Mom? Is he going to have to fuck a woman while you’re watching? What don’t you understand? Dad doesn’t love anyone but himself.”

“Your dad loves me,” her mom said defensively, “But you know how difficult it is to stay faithful when women are throwing themselves at him all day every day.”

“Now here you go, making excuses for him when there aren’t any. Why do you do that?”

“Because it’s the truth, at the end of the day he’s still a man. He’s a powerful man at that. I’m surprised that something like this hasn’t happened sooner.”

“So you called me to tell me that I have a bastard sibling on the way?”