Loose Ends (29 page)
Authors: Electa Rome Parks
Eventually, my anger subsided, and I realized what a mistake I was about to make. Lyric needs me. I need to set an example for her if her own mother can’t. And besides, I wasn’t going to give Brice the satisfaction of going upside his head with a baseball bat and going to jail. He’s not worth it.
It’s been almost two months since I left Mia. I’ve kept myself busy, working all the time. During my time off, I work out and spend quality time with Lyric. I pick her up at my moms-in-law’s and we’ll do the father-daughter bonding thing. My mother-in-law is cool; she’s not interfering or taking sides in the situation. She did inform me that Lyric spends more time with her than she does with Mia.
My pain has subsided a bit. I think it is a part of me now, like an arm or leg. The pain is familiar now. I relish it.
I was surprised to receive a phone call from Kree yesterday at work. We talked for a few minutes about trivial stuff as if our lives hadn’t been turned upside down, inside out. She wanted to know if I could drop by later that evening. Kree wanted to talk and was even going to throw in a home-cooked meal. That sealed the invite. I didn’t think her invitation was strange. I agreed and told her I’d be there around seven P.M. I needed to go back to Michael’s apartment, a place I was calling home nowadays, to shower and change. I figure Kree needs an ear or two to vent in. After all, we’re both in the same boat; we’re the victims.
I arrived at her crib around seven twenty. I rang the doorbell, and Kree greeted me at the door looking simply gorgeous. She wore tight-fitting denim pants and a sleeveless red shirt. I don’t know how I expected her to look, down and out maybe—but she was just the opposite. We were all wrong about her. Kree was strong and a true survivor. I got the feeling that whatever happens, she’ll survive this. No doubt.
Kree’s long hair was loose in wavy, spiral curls that frame her lovely face. She welcomed me with a big smile and a hug that lasted a little too long for comfort.
“Hi, Kree. How are you, baby girl?” I gave her a welcoming hug back.
“I’m taking it one day at a time. I have my good and bad days. Keeping busy. I’m teaching a dance class at Spelman College’s after-school program.
“Good for you.”
“What about you? How are you, Christian?” She stood back to really look at me.
“About the same, keeping busy.”
She invited me in, and I took a seat on her new-smelling leather sofa.
“New furniture?” I asked.
“Yeah, I totally redecorated in here and in our . . . my bedroom. There were just too many reminders of him.”
We were both quiet, lost in our own private thoughts.
Kree asked, “Have you seen him or her lately?”
“No, I have no desire to. They deserve each other. Good riddance.”
“I agree. He’s moved into an apartment near his office, and life is going on for him. As long as he sends me my checks, I don’t care. I decided I deserve so much more for myself! He came over here one night, trying to sweet-talk me and get some. Not!
“I hear his business is taking off. That’s good, because he’ll be receiving divorce papers soon. I intend to get my fair share. Anyway, tonight we are not going to talk about them. Okay? As far as we are concerned, they don’t even exist. All of this was just a real bad dream. Anyhow, I just wanted to see how you were doing. I always liked you, Christian; you seemed real.”
“Thank you. I’ve always liked you too, Kree.”
“Do we have a deal?”
“A deal?”
“Yeah, let’s enjoy tonight and not mention them.”
“You got it, baby girl.” I gave her a genuine smile. It kinda felt funny, because I hadn’t smiled in a while.
Kree and I enjoyed a delicious meal of baked trout, rice, and a garden salad and drank chardonnay. We laughed and talked and laughed even more, like good friends. It felt nice. Real good. I wasn’t thinking about Mia or Brice.
“Christian, I hope you still have room for dessert. I went to the deli around the corner and bought some key lime pie.”
“Sounds good. You’re spoiling me. I haven’t eaten like this in a long time. This was great! Thanks, Kree.” I kissed her on the cheek.
“Give me a minute and I’ll serve it in the living room.”
I retreated to the living room, laid my head back on the sofa and closed my eyes. The radio was playing softly in the background—the Quiet Storm on V-103. I heard Kree moving around in the kitchen.
I must have drifted off for a few minutes. I opened my eyes when I heard Kree softly call out my name. She was standing there stark naked in all her glory. The lady was sexy as hell, with a banging body: big breasts, firm ass, tiny waist. I did a double take and instantly got an erection.
“Kree? Kree, what are you doing? As much as I’d love to, let’s not take it there. I think you need to put on some clothes. I can only take so much temptation. Right now, you’ve got my nature rising. I’m sorry if I gave you the impression—”
“I thought . . . I . . . I’m sorry.” She turned and ran down the hallway in tears.
I gave her a few minutes to pull herself together. Then I walked down the hallway to find her bedroom door closed. I could hear her crying. I knocked softly and called out her name.
“Kree? Kree, may I come in?”
“The door’s unlocked,” I heard her say.
When I walked in, Kree was sitting on the edge of her bed in a silk bathrobe.
“I feel so foolish. So stupid,” she said, biting her nail.
“Kree, no. Don’t feel that way. You’re a beautiful, intelligent woman.”
“I thought we could pay them back if we got together. Give them a dose of their own medicine.”
“Then we’d be lowering ourselves to their level. What would that say about us?”
She just looked up at me with sad, pitiful eyes.
“Kree, believe me, if circumstances were different . . . Like I said, you’re a beautiful, sexy woman. Any man would give his right arm to make love to you.”
“Any man but you, right?” She twisted a strand of her hair around a finger.
“If I went there tonight, I’d just be using you, and I care about you too much to do that.”
“You still love her, don’t you? After everything they’ve done to us, you still love her.”
I didn’t answer. My silence said it all.
“You know Mia doesn’t deserve you. You’re a good man, Christian. She doesn’t realize what a gem she had in you.”
“I guess not or I wouldn’t be here. Anyway, are you okay now?”
“Yeah, yeah, I am,” she said as if she were contemplating something.
“Look, it’s getting late. I should be going. I have a full day tomorrow, but I’m here if you need me. You know my number.”
“I do, thanks. Wait, Christian, I need to talk to you. I want to tell you a story.” She took a deep breath. “I know you still love Mia even if you don’t want to admit it.”
“I—”
“You don’t even have to answer. Just listen carefully to my story. As you know, Mia is not my favorite person in the world. Even before I met her, I felt I was living in her shadow. In my heart, I knew Brice wasn’t over her. And as much as I hate to admit it, I understand the pull Brice has on her. It took me a while to come to that realization, but I understand. And . . . I don’t hate her as much.”
I sprawled across Kree’s bed and waited out of curiosity for her to continue. I had a feeling her story was going to shed some light on our present situation.
“I have never told anyone this story before—I was too ashamed—but after I finish, you’ll understand why I can relate to why Mia did what she did.” Kree took a deep breath and continued the story.
“After dating Brice for about a year in Germany, I knew I loved him with all my heart. I wanted to spend the rest of my life with him. Everything was perfect. Too perfect. We communicated, we had tons of fun together, we shared common goals and dreams. Our sex life was great, but Brice kept talking about taking it to the next level. He had this fantasy about having a threesome with me and another woman. Brice explained that he had had ménage à trois before, but it was just with casual acquaintances. With me—with us—this would take our lovemaking, our intimacy, to the next level, he said. I heard this over and over until he finally persuaded me to do it for him.”
Kree scrutinized me closely, took a deep breath, and continued. “He chose this lady, Jade, that he knew from one of the bars he frequented. She was really lovely, sexy and the complete opposite of me. She wasn’t reserved or inhibited, to say the least. Brice and I had discussed the rules before I agreed to do it. The number one rule was that she couldn’t touch me. He could touch me, he could touch her, but she couldn’t touch me under any circumstances. Brice agreed—only he would be making love to me.”
Kree closed her eyes as the memories flooded her.
“The night of our date came. We’d checked into a luxury hotel for the night and had dinner and drinks. I had a buzz going when we arrived back to the room—room 203. I figured that I needed to be high to carry it out. I was nervous as hell. We got back to the room and Jade was there. She’d already set the mood. You know, dim light, candles, the whole nine yards. Everything started happening quickly.
“Brice took control as usual. By now, we had all undressed, checking out one another’s bodies. There was nervous laughter. We were on the king-size bed and Brice started kissing me, real passionate kisses, and then he’d kiss Jade. Things were getting hot and heavy as he went back and forth between us. Jade and I would sit there and wait for our turn. Then Brice stopped, jumped off the bed, naked, and quickly pulled up a chair from the desk and placed it in front of the bed.”
By now, Kree’s voice was trembling. She struggled to continue.
“He was sitting there like he had center-stage seats at a performance or something. Brice coaxed me to kiss Jade. I said no, because he had promised me that I wouldn’t have to touch her. He finally talked me into just kissing her. Jade’s warm tongue was in my mouth, kissing me like Brice had just done. Brice watched with no emotion. After a while, he told me to touch Jade. This time, I refused. So he told Jade to touch me. I begged her not to, but I guess she had seen something in his eyes that convinced her to follow his instructions instead of mine.
“By now Brice had moved back to the bed. Anyway, Jade started to touch me with her hands, mouth and tongue. She started from my neck and worked her way slowly down. She left wet, moist spots as she went down. What did I do? I sat there and stared at Brice while he watched us and fondled her breasts. I didn’t take my eyes off him. The scene was turning him on. As Jade continued, I started to cry uncontrollably. She hesitated, but Brice commanded her to continue.
“He told me to lie down and open my legs. I wouldn’t do it. Brice said it again in that military, commanding voice of his. I leaned back and spread my legs, and Jade was down between my legs, with her tongue and fingers going in and out. I was crying while Brice watched and enjoyed it. Jade was making this moaning, slurping sound over and over.
“Brice caressed my breast with his hands and mouth. Jade was still busy, working my clit. Brice inserted a finger into my wetness. My body betrayed me and I came, came hard. He finally pushed Jade away from me and climbed on top of her. I tried to get up and walk away, but Brice pulled me back down by my wrist and gave me that look. I lay there crying beside the two of them while he screwed her. I heard all the groans and moans and I knew the exact moment he came in her. Afterward, he acted like nothing had happened.
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