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#Chapter2

  “I’m not in the mood for that shit tonight. Can’t you tell?”

  Reggie

  Tamika walked into her condo and smiled when she heard the TV in the front room. She was happy that her husband was home, and a bit relieved. She wasn’t sure if she would be greeted by an empty and cold house when she didn’t have any messages or calls from him. She was still disappointed that he didn’t call to check on her, but at least he was in the house. There were some nights when he wouldn’t come home until the morning and he would claim that he was working.

  Tamika did her best to believe him because her “perfect” marriage depended on it. If she went snooping and found out that he was lying, then she would be responsible for that information. Sometimes turning a blind eye is best for keeping the status quo.

  Tamika dropped her keys in the dish on the stand next to the door and walked to the front room.

  “Hey baby,” she smiled.

  “Hey,” he said nonchalantly, never taking his eyes from the TV and taking a long swig of his cold beer.

  “How was your day?” She took a seat next to him on the couch.

  “It was okay.”

  “Same here. Today was really long, but I’m happy that I got to hang out with the girls this evening.”

  Tamika waited for a response from Reggie, but he didn’t give her one. His eyes remained glued to the TV. Tamika stared at him and wished that he could give her that kind of attention. She remembered a time when he couldn’t keep his eyes and hands off of her. She loved the feeling of his stocky 6’4 frame being wrapped around her. His chocolate skin always made her excited. He had features that were straight from the motherland and she couldn’t get enough. His thick lips, strong chiseled jaw, and prominent nose was enough to get her panties wet every time.

  When she first saw him at college on the football field she knew that she wanted him. They were both just freshmen at the time, and the upperclassmen were cute, but there was something about him that she just had to have. She actually turned down one of the star players because she wanted Reggie. It took Reggie two months to ask her out on a date. It was only about 60 days, but it felt like forever to Tamika.

  After they went on their first date they were inseparable and everyone noticed. Tamika never had to worry about other women because Reggie was loyal. He let other women know that he was spoken for and he never put himself in a predicament to cheat. Reggie said that he respected women so much because he’d seen his own mother get dogged out by men. He knew that he didn’t want to be like his own father and he didn’t want to be like the men who cheated on his mother. He decided at an early age that he wasn’t going to do that to the woman that he was with. That was why he never had relationships in high school. He knew that he wasn’t going to be faithful to a girl. Most of the girls thought that they could make him change his mind, but he never did. However, that didn’t stop him from letting them try. If they wanted to give up the panties in hopes of a relationship that he told them that they would never get, then so be it.

  He respected women, but he wasn’t a fool.

  “How was work today?”

  “It was busy. Got assigned to a new case.”

  “Oooh, can you tell me about it?”

  “No.”

  “Um, okay. But I’m glad that they’ve assigned you a new case. They seem to really like you.”

  “I’m the token black man in the office, it makes them look good.”

  Tamika didn’t want to press the issue. Reggie was great at his job, but it wasn’t what he wanted to do. Law school wasn’t in his plans. He planned to be a football player, but he had a career-ending injury during his senior year of college. He was so upset because big name teams had their eye on him, but his knee injury put him out of the running forever. Tamika was surprised at his ability to bounce back because he immediately applied to the law program and he was accepted. They got an apartment together and they were both in school at the same time. Tamika went for her MBA.

  The day that he passed the bar exam, he proposed to Tamika and she couldn’t have been any happier. It took them a year to plan their wedding and they’d been married for two years.

  It had been a long road and many sleepless nights for the both of them, but they got through it. Tamika was an executive recruiter for a top agency. She was a six-figure sister and she loved it. Things were strained when she entered the work force and Reggie wasn’t making any money yet, because he still had another year in school, but Tamika held down the fort so that they could stop living off student loans.

  “They bring you in because you know your shit, Babe. Believe me, if you weren’t on top of your game you wouldn’t be there. Firms don’t have room for people that are lackluster.”

  “Yeah, okay,” he said before he took another swig of his beer.

  He was in one of those moods again. Lately, he’d been shutting Tamika out a lot more. She wasn’t used to him being that way and she hoped that it was just a phase, but it had lasted over a year. She figured all marriages have rough patches. Tamika wanted to confide in her friends and tell them about it, but she didn’t want to ruin the image of her relationship. She hoped that he would be over it soon, but he only seemed to be getting worse.

  Tamika lay down on the couch with him and rested her head in his lap. His body went rigid and he pretended as if she wasn’t even there. She lay that way for a few moments, and then figured that he must be hungry.

  “I’m going to cook you dinner,” she said before she popped up from the couch and went to the kitchen. She didn’t wait for his response because she didn’t want to hear any protest.

  About an hour or two later, they were in bed, and Reggie was well-fed. Tamika’s body was firing off and she wanted sex. She hadn’t had any in months and she was ready. She snuggled up to Reggie’s warm body and placed her hand on his dick. He quickly grabbed her by the wrist.

  “I’m not in the mood for that shit tonight. Can’t you tell?” He said gruffly, “Work is kicking my ass and they’re making me come in tomorrow.”

  “Aw, I’m sorry, baby. How about you let me relieve the stress,” Tamika suggested.

  He shook his head as if she made a dumb ass suggestion, and rolled over to his side. Tamika got the hint and turned her back to him. She didn’t understand why he didn’t want her. She was fucking hot. She had men falling all over her at her job, and some women too. People were mesmerized by her dyed dark brown and honey blonde naturally curly mane. Her hair was her signature and it complimented her cinnamon skin tone, beautiful smile, almond eyes, and pouty lips. She was 5’7 and slender. When she stepped out of the house, she always looked as if she was ready to hit the runway. She was the daughter of a fashion designer and her mother instilled her fashion sense into her. Her mom always wanted her to take over the business and she had no interest in going into that field. It was way too catty and she didn’t have the patience for it.

  Tamika drifted off to sleep wondering how her life had become so bland. She wanted her husband back. She wanted things to go back to the way that they once were. The only thing that she could do was wait.

  #Chapter3

  “If I need to see myself having sex, then I will get a mirror.”

  Kalena

  Kalena got home and was happy for the peace and quiet. Street performers had been on her train and they were so loud. The train loved them so they hooped and hollered the entire time. All she wanted to do was relax and enjoy her buzz, but it was ruined. She could have taken a cab home, but she was a cheapskate. Her house was only one train ride away and she didn’t see the point in paying all of that money.

  Her friends acted like they were too good for public transportation, but Kalena thought that they were insane. It was economical and she wasn’t going to give a huge chunk of her hard-earned cash to rude-ass cab drivers. Besides, most of them drove like they were crazy and it made her blood pressure shoot up.

  She headed straight to the kitchen to grab a bottle of wi
ne and a glass. She wanted the buzz back that had been snatched from her. It would only take a couple of glasses of wine to get her into that glorious place. She took off her coat and plopped down on her couch. She planned to watch The Good Wife on Hulu until she passed out from exhaustion.

  Kalena enjoyed one of the shows and was about to watch another when her phone rang. It was her good friend, Tommy.

  “Hello?”

  “What are you doing,” he asked.

  “Drinking and watching my show.”

  “I don’t even know why I asked.”

  “Exactly, you know how I roll.”

  He laughed, “I’m close to your place so I was wondering if it was okay for me to stop by.”

  “You know that’s never a problem. How far away are you?”

  “I’m at your front entrance.”

  “Wow, you’re a creeper.”

  “Yeah, I stalk you over the weekends. Now buzz me up, it’s cold out here.”

  She ran to the buzzer and let him in. She then opened her apartment door. Just as she opened the door, the couple from across the hall opened theirs. It was clear that they were getting ready to go out and have a good time. She was a little jealous. She wished that she had a man who she could go out with at night. Instead, she went out with her friends and got ditched when their men called. She tried not to feel bad about it, but sometimes it was confusing to her. She stood 5’

  9, she was a runner so her body was tight with shapely legs that went on for days. Her classically pretty looks often got her compared to deceased singer, Aaliyah, but she thought that people were off-base with that comparison.

  Tommy came upstairs and seemed a little out of breath.

  “Oh wow, someone needs to go back to the gym and get that endurance up,” Kalena teased.

  “Really? That’s what you’re on? You’re going to poke fun at a brother that walked up five flights of stairs to see you?”

  “Why didn’t you take the elevator, crazy?”

  “Because I needed the exercise,” he grinned.

  “As long as you know,” she laughed, “Now get in here.”

  “All right, you already know what I want to watch so you better not have watched it without me.”

  “No, the latest episode of Love and Hip Hop is still there and it’s unwatched.”

  “That’s what it better be.”

  “Shut up and let’s watch it. You’re lucky I love you because I usually don’t let anyone get in the way of me and The Good Wife.”

  “Whatever. You just make sure that you don’t tell anyone that I watch this shitty show.”

  “You’re secret is safe with me, because I don’t want anyone to know I watch it, either.”

  “Cool, let’s see what Stevie’s crazy ass is up to.”

  Kalena and Tommy watched their favorite show. The vibe between them was comfortable. The two of them had been friends for years and pretty inseparable. Nights with them sitting on the couch and watching TV had become the norm. Tommy was like the brother that Kalena never had. Kalena always wanted a brother, but she only had two older sisters.

  “That was some crazy shit. I don’t understand how women can take that BS,” Tommy said.

  “Well, they deal with these men for the money and nothing more. If they didn’t have cameras around them, they probably wouldn’t have stayed so long. Contracts will make you do some crazy things.”

  “That’s true and those chicks are an entirely different breed. What would you do if a dude put out a sex tape of the both of you?”

  “First of all, there wouldn’t be a sex tape. If there’s a camera in the room, it’s hidden. I don’t play that. If I need to see myself having sex, then I will get a mirror.”

  “A mirror huh?” He said with a wiggle of his eyebrows.

  “Oh shut up. The point is that I wouldn’t be in that situation in the first place. Mimi is a damned nut for still messing around with him, anyway. I hope that she’s only doing it because of a contract. Also, we all know that if the man leaked the sex tape, she should have kicked him to the curb and sued his ass.”

  “Well, the tape was already out there so she may as well have signed off on the release and made some money. The company was going to release it anyway.”

  “Fuck all of that! I would have let the world know that it was filmed without my wishes, gotten a lawyer, and started a program for teen girls.”

  “You’re crazy. What would the program be about?”

  “It would be about spreading awareness about videos and photos. Too many girls are doing things on camera and it follows you forever. She could have started a program and made a lot of money. Besides, she has a daughter. How in the hell is she going to explain that to her? Oh, mommy took the money because she was already exposed. Dumbest shit ever. She did a horrible job of setting an example for her daughter.”

  “That’s one way of looking at it.”

  “Would you wife a chick that would do something like that, Tommy?”

  “Nah, I couldn’t see myself doing that. Sometimes morals have to trump money.”

  “Exactly.”

  “Well, it’s time for me to make my exit, it’s getting late.”

  Kalena did a playful pout but rose to walk him to the door, “I’ll see you later?”

  “Yep, how about we go and get something to eat next weekend?”

  “That would be cool. I’ll check to see what Crystal and Tamika are doing and then we can settle on a place.”

  Tommy nervously shifted from one foot to the other. “I actually just meant that the two of us could go.”

  Kalena finally got what he meant and she didn’t know what to say. He wanted more from the friendship than what she was willing to give. Good friends were hard to come by and they get messed up when you add romantic relationships into the mix. She wanted to keep him in the friend zone.

  “Umm, what I said before still stands. We have a great friendship so we shouldn’t complicate it. I only see you as a friend.”

  Tommy’s face dropped, but he tried to keep up appearances, “Okay. I understand. I guess I’ll see you later.”

  He walked out without giving her his usually huge goodbye hug and Kalena found that she missed it. He was her comfort. She felt horrible for turning him down again, but she knew it was the right thing to do.

  It wasn’t like Tommy was a bad looking guy. He was about 5’9 with a light complexion. Women would not consider him to be drop dead gorgeous, but he wasn’t unattractive either. Overall, he was a pretty average looking guy but what made him so special was his personality. It’s not every day that you’ll find a man who will watch ratchet TV with you. She always liked being around him and she hoped that he wouldn’t just disappear on her because he wanted more.

  They met during her job with at a pharmaceutical sales company. He was a rep, but she worked in the advertising and marketing department. They saw each other on a few company outings and it didn’t take long for them to start hanging out.

  When she first met him she really liked him but he was engaged at the time. So she never expressed her feelings towards him because they didn’t matter. His marriage didn’t work out and by that time she was no longer interested. She didn’t see him in a romantic capacity anymore. He seemed more like a goofy and silly brother. That was the last thing that Tommy wanted to hear, but it was the truth. He’d been single for quite some time because he was waiting on Kalena to come around, but she wasn’t budging.

  Kalena headed back to her couch, planning to fall asleep while watching her favorite show. Now she would get the chance to watch The Good Wife.

  #Chapter4

  “I thought that things would only get better when we got married, but I was wrong.”

  Tamika

  Tamika got up extra early on Monday so that she could make breakfast and iron Reggie’s shirt for work. She felt like such a domesticated diva. She loved taking care of her man, even when he was acting like an asshole.

  “Good m
orning babe,” Reggie said.

  “Good morning to you, boo.”

  Reggie seemed like he was in a much better mood. She wished that she could say the same. She enjoyed doing things for him, but she still had a horrible feeling in the pit of her stomach. But he was walking around the house as if nothing ever happened. It was as if he’d forgotten the tense weekend that they’d had. She was a little jealous of his sudden amnesia and she wished that she could forget so easily. But then again, it wasn’t him that got turned down for sex and iced out.

  His roller coaster moods had become too much. She was ready to explode at any second. She was a ticking time bomb emotionally and sexually. How could he go so long without having sex? Was he screwing someone else?