The Prettiest Woman Read online

  Each night I had to fight the urge to contact Vince. If he wanted to talk to me then he would have called me.

  “Hey, do you have those files for me?” My boss asked when he came to my cubicle.

  “I do.” I said when I handed him a folder from my desk.

  “You’re awesome. Thank you for putting in the extra hours like a champ. When this blows over, I’d like to talk to you about your future with the company.”

  “Yes, sir.” I said feeling giddy.

  I watched him walk away with a big goofy grin on my face. I was hoping for a job offer but I would settle for minimum wage at that point. I hummed a little tune as I continued to compile data. My phone buzzing interrupted my song. I looked at the phone and saw it was Vince. My heart felt like it was going to jump out of my chest. I didn’t know what to do. I wanted to answer it, but I made it my personal policy to never answer the phone in public at work. I quickly got up from my desk and went to the bathroom. I missed his call and I called him back.

  “Hello?”

  “Hey doll, how are you?”

  He sounded pretty laid back over the phone and not nearly as upset as I thought he would be.

  “Umm I’m doing okay.” I said in relief. I was happy to hear his voice again.

  “That’s good to hear. Did I catch you at a bad time?”

  “No.” I lied, “Well yes… I’m at work but I’m happy that you called.”

  “Really? Why is that?”

  “ I wanted to apologize about the whole money situation. I didn’t mean to...”

  “Don’t worry about it.” He cut me off, “Are you free this weekend? I have an important networking event and I kind of need someone beautiful on my arm. You were the first woman that popped into my head.”

  I warred with myself because I worked on the weekends. I had two shifts to pull at the restaurant but I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to see him again.

  “Umm, I’m not sure.”

  “If you’re busy, I understand. Just let me know.”

  “No, I would love to hang out with you this weekend.”

  “Great, I’ll email you the details this evening and talk to you soon.”

  “Looking forward to it.”

  We hung up and I tried to keep myself from shrieking. I looked in the mirror and smiled. My day was going pretty damn well and I deserved to celebrate. Then I thought to myself that I needed to go shopping. I couldn’t go on a business trip with the clothes that I had. I had to look hot the entire time.

  I vowed not to mess up the experience this time and I hoped that our weekend would be filled with great conversation and more amazing sex.

  *

  “I can’t believe you’re really about to leave for the weekend.” Jessica said.

  I grinned, “I know, right. Seems a bit surreal but I’m so looking forward it.”

  “Just remember everything that I told you. This is a work trip for him. You’re there to make sure that he looks good in front of his colleagues and to relax him behind closed doors.”

  “Ugh, Jessica. You make it sound like I’m pretty woman.”

  “Well technically…”

  “I don’t want to hear it. I want to go and have a good time. I know how to act in public so you don’t have to prep me. I’m not stupid.”

  “Clearly you aren’t stupid. I’m just trying to make sure that he wants to bring you on future trips. You have to be more than a pretty face. You have to be a demure and intelligent pretty face. Smile, nod, collect business cards and charm the people that he’s interested in doing with. Keep the other women company while the men talk business. You want to get the women out of the way so that he can do business.”

  “Okay.” I said in annoyance. “How about you just help me make sure I have everything packed.”

  “We’ve done it twice already. You’re good. Now stop stressing out.”

  She was right. I’d packed and unpacked twice just to make sure that I had everything. I was filled with nervous energy and I spoke to Vincent every day since he’d called.

  “I know I’m tripping. I need to calm the hell down.”

  “When is he coming?”

  “He’s sending a driver to come and get me and I’m meeting him at the airport.”

  “Have fun in Dallas darlin'.”

  “That’s the plan. What are you doing this weekend?”

  “I’m meeting someone new tonight, and hanging out with Steve tomorrow.”

  “The men that you have aren’t good enough?”

  “I didn’t have plans this evening and I have to hedge my bets. I don’t sit around waiting on a man to decide if he’s through with me. I always have a fish on the hook.” she winked.

  I shook my head and was jarred when I heard the honking outside. I looked out the window and saw a black car sitting outside, “I guess it’s time for me to go.”

  “Make sure that the driver helps you from the door to the car with your bags. You’re a lady.”

  “I’m a lady that can take care of myself.”

  “But you shouldn’t have to.”

  “I’m not about to have this conversation with you before I go.”

  “Whatever, you just remember what I said. Rock his world.”

  “Bye Jessica.” I kissed her on the cheek, grabbed my suitcase and headed for the door.

  The driver was at the front gate when I got there and he immediately took my bags.

  “Good afternoon ma’am.” he said with a smile. He was really cute. I had to remind myself not to flirt because it wouldn’t have been appropriate.

  “Hello and good afternoon to you, as well.”

  He held the door open for me and I looked in and saw that Vincent was in the car, “What a pleasant surprise.”

  “I skipped my last meeting. I wanted us to go to the airport together, I hope you don’t mind.”

  “Well I planned on stretching out back here. So you’ve kind of ruined that for me.” I joked.

  “You can still stretch out. That’s what my lap is for. You tired?”

  “I’m used to it. I’m just happy to be here with you.”

  “Come here.” he said with his arm outstretched to me.

  I sat really close to him and rested my head on his shoulder. He kissed me on the top of my head and laced his fingers through mine. I’d missed him far too much for a person that I had only gone out on one date with. I needed a reality check, but I was content to live in my dream world for as long as I could. Vincent was my sweet escape and I wasn’t going to ruin our weekend by bringing up money. That’s what a part of me was thinking but I would be lying if I said that Jessica’s words weren’t ringing through my head. However, I wanted to enjoy the weekend and worry about the rest later. Whatever the case, it was going to be a learning experience for me.

  *

  “I’d like to introduce you to Roxanne.” Vincent said to someone in the banquet hall of the swanky hotel.

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Roxanne.” the gentleman said with a little glimmer in his eye. I could tell he thought I was attractive. The feeling wasn’t mutual but that didn’t matter, anyway. I was with Vincent and I wasn’t interested in meeting anyone else.

  “Doug has gone in with me on a couple of my big deals.” Vincent disclosed.

  I felt gorgeous in the floor-length royal blue gown I was wearing. It hugged my curves, but it still was extremely classy. My hair was swept up with tendrils free falling around my neck and face. Jessica taught me how to do the style. It was quick, easy and really sexy.

  “This is my wife Sandra.” Doug said. I looked at the beautiful woman that was standing next to him and smiled at her. She returned the pleasant smile and the two men began to talk.

  “I’m actually headed to the ladies' room.” Sandra said, “Would you like to come with?”

  “Sure, I don’t mind.” I replied. I looked at Vincent and he gave an approving nod. Once again, I thought of what Jessica said. I guess she was partially corre
ct.

  “So how long have the two of you been together?” Sandra asked. Normally I would have been a little upset at people prying in my business. But nothing seemed vindictive or mean about what she asked. She wasn’t throwing salt; she was simply making conversation.

  “Not that long, our relationship is still pretty new.”

  “Wow and he brought you here? Nice, I haven’t seen him out with anyone since his ex-wife. You must be pretty special. You’ve got a good one, honest.” she smiled.

  “I’m sure you have the same.”

  “He’s alright.” she winked.

  “So where are you from?”

  “Me and Doug live in Houston.”

  “Nice, it’s so beautiful here in Texas. Is it weird that I didn’t know that you all had palm trees?”

  She laughed, “That’s not the first time I’ve heard that. It’s such a beautiful place to live. I like how it’s fast paced, but the people are friendlier.”

  We laughed and talked the entire time and it was easy to get caught up in a conversation with her. We finally returned back to the men and they stared at us in adoration as we approached.

  “You’ve got to bring her out with us one evening.” Doug said, “Actually let’s do brunch tomorrow.”

  “That would be wonderful.” Sandra chimed in.

  Vincent looked at me to see if I was interested and I returned the same approving nod that he gave me earlier.

  “Consider us there. Just let me know where to meet you.”

  “Great. I’ll have my assistant email you over the information before the evening’s over. I’m sure it will be in the area.”

  “Sounds like a plan, we’ll see you in the morning.”

  “Talk to you later, sweetie.” Sandra said before she gave me a light kiss on the cheek. I was taken aback by how nice she was.

  We said our goodbyes and walked towards the center of the room. “Wow, Sandra likes you.”

  I gave him a weird look because I wasn’t sure how he meant it. He laughed, “Not like that. I mean she likes you as a friend and that’s rare. She doesn’t like a lot of people. She hated my ex.”

  “Who knows, in time she may hate me, too.”

  “I doubt it. She’s consistent.”

  “Cool, because she’s really nice.”

  “You make it easy to be nice to you. You’ve had everyone under your spell all evening.”

  “What?”

  “I mean it. Think about it. Has anyone been mean or rude to you this evening?”

  “That Hispanic woman that we saw earlier didn’t seem too fond of me.”

  “She’s just jealous that I’m here with you and not her. She’ll get over it.”

  “I knew there was something between you two.”

  “There’s nothing between us and that’s why she’s so upset. She’s dated quite a few of the men in this room and I don’t like sloppy seconds, thirds or fourths. I can do without a woman that doesn’t mind being passed around.”

  “Well that is a little skanky.”

  He cupped my chin and gave me a peck on the lips, “We’ll be here for about one more hour and then we’re out of here okay? I have two more people that I need to speak to.”

  “Okay.”

  *

  Vincent was a master at working the room. His interpersonal skills were impeccable and he always knew the right time to bring business up. He told me that he learned that skill from his father. I thought it was a great skill to have. I took mental notes as I watched.

  We were on our way back to the car within an hour, just like he promised. I was relieved because I didn’t want to be there for much longer than that. On the surface everything seemed carefree but real deals were being struck in that room. I was the kind of person that preferred to crunch numbers for a living. Give me a great office, a computer, and a calculator any day.

  “I hope that wasn’t too painful for you.” Vincent said.

  “I enjoyed myself.”

  He grinned, “I saw the pained expression that was starting to take over your face. You know, you don’t have to smile the entire time. It’s okay to relax a little.”

  “Sorry. I didn’t want to have the mean black girl face all evening. I swear that my resting face is a bitchy one.”

  He snorted and laughed, “What the hell is the mean black girl face?”

  “Don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about. People always assume that I have an attitude. I could be thinking about daisies and daffodils and people will swear I’m plotting revenge.”

  “All because of the look on your face?”

  “Yep.”

  “I’ve never seen this face.”

  “Well, you make me smile a lot.”

  “I’m glad to be of service.”

  I assumed that we were going back to the hotel but we passed it. Maybe the food served at the event wasn’t enough. He barely ate; he was too busy schmoozing.

  “Are you going to dinner?”

  He grinned, “Nope.”

  “So where are we going?”

  “I have a surprise for you. There is a reason that we left so early. I didn’t want to be late for our next outing. Trust me, you don’t want to miss a thing.”

  “Uh oh, should I be nervous? You aren’t into that kinky shit are you? I’m not going to any dungeons.” I said half-jokingly.

  “What am I going to do with you? What kind of person draws those kinds of conclusions? Don’t worry, I’m not some sicko that’s trying to tie you up in a room full of people. Well unless you’re into that kind of thing.”

  I quickly shook my head, “Then where are we going?”

  “I’m guessing that you’re the kind of woman that doesn’t like surprises.”

  “You’re right. I don’t because they drive me insane. As you can see, I come to crazy conclusions. My mind plays tricks on me and if you don’t tell me, I’m going to assume that you’re going to chop me up and put me in a trunk.”

  “You have a hell of an imagination. Do you really think that I would do something like that?”

  “You seem pretty normal.” I laughed, “But I’ve watched enough Lifetime movies to know that everything isn’t always as it seems.”

  “I hate that damned channel. But I’m going to put you out of your misery. There is a Beyoncé concert happening this evening.”

  My eyes widened and my heart felt like it stopped. Yes, I’m a Beyoncé fan and I’m proud of it. It all felt too good to be true. I’d wanted to go to a Beyoncé concert since forever but I was never able to afford a ticket. “Are you serious right now?”

  “If you don’t want to go just let me know.”

  “No! I mean yes! Of course I want to go, are you kidding me? How in the hell did you even get tickets? They’ve been sold out everywhere.”

  “I know people that know people. I pulled some strings to make it happen; I was hoping that you were a fan.”

  “I’m a huge fan! You don’t even understand. I have every album of hers and I buy all of her DVDs, it’s a little sad really.”

  “It’s not sad. There’s nothing wrong with having a favorite artist. She’s really talented and I’m looking forward to enjoying this evening with you. I have to confess I’ve always wanted to see her in concert too, so this is going to be a treat for the both of us.”

  I sighed and sat back into the seat. I was living a dream and I couldn’t figure out what I did to deserve it. He was being really nice to me. Sure he had the money but he didn’t have to go out of his way to make it happen for me. I looked at him and then leaned over to give him a kiss on the cheek. He grinned from ear to ear. He was obviously pleased with himself and I didn’t mind at all.

  “Wow, this night is turning out very differently than I expected.” I admitted.

  “What did you expect?”

  “I don’t know, honestly. However, I didn’t think that you would be doing things for me on this trip. This is all about you and I expected…”

 
; “To be my secretary and whore for the weekend?”

  I was shocked by his brashness but it resonated with me, “Yes pretty much.”

  “I’m not going to treat you that way. You’re an amazing woman and I want us to enjoy our time together. You don’t have to cater to my every whim or have sex with me if you don’t want to. I want you here with me because I enjoy your company. You don’t have to do anything that you don’t want to. I just want you to be yourself, and I want the pleasure of spoiling you.”