Pretty Fly for a White Guy: The Complete Series Collection Page 15

  My phone buzzed, I looked at the clock, and it was a little before 7. I figured that it was Ken but when I picked it up I saw that it was a number that I didn’t recognize. My clients usually didn’t call me before 9 o’clock unless they were having some kind of inventory crisis and all of their numbers were in my phone. I almost let it go to voicemail, because if it was important they would leave a message, but I answered it anyway.

  “Hello?” I said in a groggy voice. I tried to sound professional, but I sounded like a toad. I didn’t feel badly about it because it wasn’t even 7 yet and so whoever was on the other end would have to just deal with it.

  “Good Morning,” a velvety smooth voice said on the other end. His voice had a deep timbre that went through my body and stroked me in my center. The voice sounded familiar, but I couldn’t place it.

  “Whom am I speaking to?”

  “I’m sorry if I woke you. This is Desmond.”

  I sat straight up in my bed and placed my feet on the on floor.

  “It’s okay, how can I help you?”

  “It’s been a little while since we’ve spoken, and I was wondering why we haven’t met to discuss my new line.”

  I gave myself a mental face palm. I’d totally dropped the ball on Desmond and the truth was that I needed him if his line was any good. My schedule was pretty open until 1 p.m., and I figured that today was as good of a day as any to meet him.

  “I’m so sorry about that Desmond. I’ve been swamped. But how about we meet for brunch today?”

  “That would be wonderful, you name the time and the place and I’m there.”

  “Give me about 30 minutes and I’ll text it to you,” I said.

  “Looking forward to hearing from you.”

  “See you soon,” I said before I hung up.

  That man was downright dangerous and his voice alone did things to my body that should have been illegal. I didn’t notice his voice as much before, but that’s probably because I was too busy pretending like I wasn’t looking at him. I was in a relationship but I wasn’t blind, and I knew a good looking man when I saw him. But none of that mattered because I was with Ken, and he had my heart. I sighed and made my way to the bathroom. I felt a surge of energy, and I was looking forward to our meeting. This could be a good prospect for me.

  I agreed to meet him a restaurant at 11 a.m. I arrived 20 minutes ahead of time, and he was already sitting at the table. He impressed me because I was used to being the early one. He looked absolutely amazing. His short sleeved button up shirt was tailored to perfection, and he paired it with a great pair of jeans. He was urban chic, and I was eating it all up. He looked very masculine and fashionable.

  He stood up to greet me as I walked to the table. I shook his hand, and he leaned down to kiss me on the cheek. I inhaled deeply, and he smelled absolutely divine. I kept my face neutral and had a seat.

  “I’m happy that you could meet me here on such short notice,” he said.

  “It’s okay, my morning was free and so you were right on time.”

  “I’m sorry for waking you up,” he said with a grin.

  “I was already up, I was just in denial,” I laughed, “You actually helped me out. I was able to get out of the bed when I got off the phone with you.”

  He flashed his million dollar smile, “I’m happy that I could be your motivation for the day.”

  I sat back in my chair and gave him a suspicious look. He was flirting with me, and a part of me liked it but I couldn’t allow myself to.

  “Fashion is my passion and so meeting you today got me excited,” I said trying to bring the conversation back into focus.

  “So tell me, what has kept you so busy that you forgot about little old me?” He asked.

  I grinned, “I’ve been working on next season for my clients and I’ve been focusing on getting some softer lines into some of the stores. Everything is studded and in your face right now, and I’m ready to take things in a new direction.”

  He nodded with understanding, “I haven’t been here in a while. Where are the spots to be?”

  He’d completely changed the subject, and it was obvious that he wasn’t trying to talk about clothes. I would continue the small talk for a little bit longer before I forced our conversation forward. I usually had small talk with all of my clients because it’s important to build a relationship with them. I began to rattle off some of my favorite places in Atlanta.

  “Would you consider coming out with me?” He asked.

  I subconsciously began to shake my head, “Now you are cute, really damned cute. But I’m with someone and I’m not looking to disrespect my relationship.”

  “You think I’m cute?” He said flirtatiously.

  “I’m serious Desmond. Are we going to do business or not?”

  My tone sobered him, “I’m sorry about that, you’re right. I don’t want to disrespect your relationship either.”

  He reached into his briefcase and pulled out a black portfolio. He handed it to me.

  “Is this your new line?”

  “Yes it is. Take a look and let me know what you think.”

  I opened it and flipped through the pages. Each look was better than the next, my heart pumped faster because I knew that he was the designer that I’d been looking for. I now knew that the clothes he wore were from his own line. He had impeccable taste and everyone was going to want it.

  “So what about distribution?” I asked.

  “I have a company that’s massively producing my clothes. So now all I need is buyers, I’m hoping like hell that they’ll sell and so I really need your help,” he said seriously.

  “Your clothes will sell and they’ll most likely sell out. You have something really special here. I know that at least 2 of my clients will want your line. I know of many more outside of my clients that will want your line. Hell you can sell your clothes out of your house and people will want them,” I laughed.

  “Really?” He asked quickly.

  “Oh hell yeah,” I said as I looked at him to see if his modesty was real.

  He was genuinely nervous about his designs, and I thought that it was cute. I loved humble designers because that meant that they worked hard. They didn’t produce crap because they actually cared about what the public thought.

  “We can definitely work together. I’m interested in seeing some samples that come directly from the company that you’re using. Once I make sure that the quality and fit are on point, we can move forward.”

  “You’ll love it, I promise. I believe in delivering a quality product. I don’t like to wear crap, and I don’t want other people wearing it either.”

  “Great. Give me a few days, and I’ll contact you about when we can meet so that I can see it for myself.”

  “I’ll be patiently waiting, well kind of.”

  I stood to my feet, “It’s nice to see you again Desmond, and I look forward to possibly working with you soon.”

  Like a gentleman he rose again and shook my hand. This time he skipped the kiss on the cheek, I was happy to see that he learned quickly. I turned and walked towards the door, I could feel his eyes on my backside. I turned around to confirm my feelings and he was staring just as I thought he was. I gave a smile and nod and continued out of the door. I can’t blame the man for looking, I do have a great ass.

  I went about the rest of my day much happier. I was excited to have a male designer on board that I really liked. I was happy that I held out, and I knew that my clients were going to love him. He was so damned fine that he wouldn’t have any problems selling his products at his trunk shows. Women were going to buy the clothes for their men, men were going to want to dress like him, and the gay men were going to want to get on his email list. He was going to be a hit, and I was the first to snatch him up. I felt fortunate because I’d finally caught a break.

  Later, I met Ken for dinner. It seems like my life revolves around places to eat. It’s a good thing that I’ve started working out again, or
I would probably be as big as a house. Sitting across the table from him put my mind at ease, and I was happy to just be around him again. I’d missed him so much even though I’d just seen him a couple of days before.

  “Man I’ve missed you,” he said as he looked at me across the table.

  I smiled brightly, “I’ve missed you too baby. How has the moving been going?”

  “It’s been going pretty well. I can already tell that the guys and me are gonna have a lot of fun.”

  I playfully rolled my eyes, “Whatever.”

  “I know, it’s not going to be long babe. I might only stay a few months actually. Anyway, we’ll get through it.”

  I found it interesting that he could say ‘we'll get through it,’ as if it was some unavoidable conflict. He didn’t have to move in and it shouldn’t have been something that we should have had to get through. I fought my annoyance.

  “What I really want to know about is how your date went with Desmond,” he asked before he took a bite of his steak. He asked the question so casually as if it did not bother him but I knew how he really felt.

  I was a bit shaken up because there’s no way that he should have known about my meeting with Desmond. Who in the hell told him? I hadn’t told anyone about our meeting. I wasn’t hiding it, but it wasn’t anyone’s business either. I was willing to bet that Joshua was somehow mixed up in it, I had a gut feeling.

  “It was just a business meeting, nothing like that,” I said, “Who told you about it anyway?”

  “Why does that matter?” He asked.

  “I would just like to know who is reporting my whereabouts as if I’m a child. You know that I don’t like that.”

  He shrugged, “It doesn’t matter. But I want you to know, I don’t like him. There is something not right about him.”

  Ken had no idea that I knew just how much he didn’t like Desmond. I almost wanted to laugh and tell him that I knew about what he said to Desmond, but I decided to keep it to myself. If Kenneth didn’t tell me about it, then he didn’t want me to know. I wasn’t about to end up arguing in a restaurant over something so trivial.

  “I’m telling you that nothing happened.”

  “I believe you,” he said coolly, “But I know that he wants you so be careful because the dude is a creep.”

  “Okay babe, it’s strictly professional between the both of us and I’m not going to do anything with him. I know what I have, and I know what I don’t want to lose,” I said seriously.

  There was no way in hell that I was going to tell him about how Desmond was flirting with me. I would never hear the end of it, and I wanted him to feel secure. I had no intention of stepping out on my man. I loved him and just because someone looks good to you doesn’t mean that they’re good for you.

  He looked at me dramatically out of the corner of his eye, “Yeah that better be the case.”

  I laughed a little, but I did appreciate that he was showing a little jealousy. I was happy because it confirmed that he didn’t want to lose me. I needed that reassurance, especially with everything that was happening lately. I wanted to keep a closer eye on him and so I came up with an idea.

  “Kenny Baby.” I said to get his attention.

  “Uh oh,” he said, “Whenever you use that tone I know that you’re going to ask for something.”

  “It’s not a big deal,” I scolded him.

  “Yeah, I’ll be the judge of that.”

  “I think that we should go on the paleo diet together,” I said.

  He got quiet, and I could see the wheels turning in his head.

  “Have you heard about it? We could work out every other morning together. I would ask the girls, but there is no way that they’re going to do that diet with me. I know how much you’re into fitness, and I figured it would be a great way for us to connect and hold each other accountable,” I said quickly.

  “I think that’s a great idea baby. Hell, I’ve put on a few pounds recently and so this is right on time.”

  “Yay!” I said as I clapped my hands, “This makes me happy.”

  “You better get ready for a drill sergeant; you know that I don’t play around in the gym.”

  I laughed, “I don’t play around in the gym either.”

  “Yeah whatever, none of those girly push ups either.”

  “I don’t do girly push ups. I’m the real deal baby,” I said with pride.

  “You sure are.”

  I beamed, and I felt great. I chose the paleo diet because it’s an alcohol free diet mainly. Working out with him every other day was the icing on the cake. This way I could keep a close eye on him and he wouldn’t be able to make “drunken” decisions anytime soon. If I could keep him away from parties and the women that come with them then we would be OK.

  Life was turning out to be pretty good. We had a wonderful evening out, and my paranoia was dying down.

  #Chapter6

  “I always wore red lipstick when I wanted to look severe. I was in a severe kind of mood.”

  Nicole

  The first week of our diet and exercise plan was pretty hard.

  What in the hell was I thinking doing an alcohol free diet? Everyone knows that I’m a lush.

  No one warned me about how difficult it would be. I’m used to going home and pouring myself a glass of wine, ordering a cocktail during lunch meetings, and grabbing a glass of champagne at networking events. I didn’t know that giving it up would be so damned hard. Alcohol is a huge part of my life. Kenneth loves reminding me that I can’t have any when we go to events. I want to be upset with him when he says it, but I knew that I planned on conveniently forgetting.

  On the upside, our fitness regime had been going well, and I loved going to the gym with him. He was right about being a drill sergeant, but I didn’t mind because I wanted to push my body to do more. There were also a lot of hating women at the gym. They were there to find men, and I brought one with me. It’s not my fault that he’s so damned fly.

  Everything has also been going great with Desmond. I saw his collection in person a couple of days after our meeting, and I was still blown away. I took his portfolio to a few of my clients, and they fell in love. So now I’m here at his studio, and we’re working out a contract. I was about to bring him a lot of business, but I had to make sure that all of our ducks were in row.

  I’ve come to the realization that Desmond is a huge flirt by nature. It’s as if it’s in his blood, and he just can’t help it. It would be easier to deal with if he wasn’t so damned fine. He gets my blood boiling, and I have to ignore it, I’m not cheating on Ken. But dammit, I can’t stop staring at his lips. They’re so…juicy.

  “Okay so this contract looks pretty good,” he said.

  “Yep, you have your lawyer look it over and if he approves, then we’re good to go.”

  “That’s sounds like a plan to me. Thank you so much Nicole. I really appreciate this and I know that I’m in good hands.”

  “Yep, you just make sure that you continue to spread the word and show the right people your line. You’re about to blow up, so get ready,” I said.

  “I was born ready,” he grinned, “I’m throwing a party this weekend, and I would love it if you and your man could roll though. Everyone is going to be there. Patrice and Nicole have already confirmed.”

  “I really wish that I could I have to work out that very next morning and I’m trying to avoid alcohol because of my diet,” I said.

  “Well that’s disappointing,” he said with a fake pout.

  “Oh, I’m sure that you’ll have plenty of fun without me. You’re the new guy in town and the ladies are buzzing.”

  “You think I’ll get some action?” he asked playfully.

  “I know you’ll get some action, so wrap it up.”

  “Always better safe than sorry,” he laughed.

  *

  The day of the party arrived, and I was looking forward to a quiet evening with Ken because I knew that he wouldn’t be attendi
ng a party hosted by Desmond that is for sure. He and I were overdue for a movie night, and I wanted to do a whole lot of cuddling. I called him a few times to invite him over to my place, but he didn’t answer the phone and he didn’t answer my messages. I was a little sad about it, but it was my fault because I hadn’t asked him earlier. I waited until the last minute and so my night would come to a close early. I drifted off to sleep without the aid of alcohol. I am starting to sound like an alcoholic but it is not that bad honestly.

  In the morning I had an extra pep in my step because I knew that I would be seeing Ken at the gym. He still hadn’t answered my messages, but he never missed a workout.