“I do know why you are here, and I’m not going out on a blind date with your cousin Edward.” Ashley sat down at her desk and reached over to turn on her computer. She hoped this conversation wouldn’t last long. She didn’t need Grant bothering her about this now.
Grant raised his eyebrow and stepped into her office, closing the door behind him. “You should get back out there, Ash.”
She snapped, “You know I hate that. Open the door. Our co-workers are already suspicious about our relationship.”
Grant snatched the string to open the window blinds next to the closed door. “There, now they can see that we are not in here having wild passionate sex like animals. Now, back to you. You’ve been here two years and you have not been on one date. I’m hooking you up with someone amazing. You guys will be perfect together.”
Ashley ignored Grant and continued to type.
“You hear me,” he snapped.
Ashley eyed him but refused to stop typing. She rolled her eyes and then turned her attention back to her monitor.
Grant let out a long deep sigh. “This Friday, I’m having my birthday party at the Mansion in Sugarland. Remember we went there for my cousin Helen’s baby shower last year? I emailed the invite to you last night. Be there. If you miss my birthday celebration, we are going to have some problems with your fine self.”
She stopped typing and shook her head. “Fine, Grant, I’ll meet your cousin at your party Friday. Now, could you let me get some work done? Some of us still come to our place of employment to do our job.”
He grinned like he’d won a prize and opened the door. “Great! Catch you at lunch. Whataburger is on you today. I got lunch yesterday.”
“Bye, Grant.” Ashley huffed as she turned back to her monitor. She needed to focus on work. Why did she have to break under Grant’s pressure? It might be time for her to get out there, but she really didn’t want to go on a blind date.
***
Ashley parked her Mercedes in her mother’s driveway. She noticed her cousin Yvette’s car was parked in front of the house on the street. Her wild, older cousin was her favorite. Ashley briefly remembered getting into trouble with Yvette. Funny how those memories made being back home in Texas not as bad. Yvette had a way with men, she could make the meanest of them melt right into her hands. Where did Yvette get that kind of power? She always got what she wanted, until she fell hard for her ex-husband Dax.
Dax was Yvette’s equal. He knew the games Yvette played and would call them out to her, shutting her down. Game over!
Eventually Yvette couldn’t get her way so she decided to end the marriage. Yvette swore to Ashley she would never marry again and almost lose control of her own life. Submission was foreign to Yvette, but she had learned this behavior from her mother, Ashley’s Aunt Miranda. Ashley hated the way her aunt desecrated every man she had ever been with, making them feel less than a human being because of her own personal hang ups.
Ashley reached into her purse and searched for her house keys until she found them. She opened the door to the sounds of laughter and music. After securing the front door, Ashley placed her purse and keys on the hallway table and made her way to the kitchen. Jazz played in the background as Yvette and her mother carried on.
What were these two giggling about?
Instead of the house being filled with the aroma of her mother’s smothered fried chicken, greens and yams, which would have been perfect for dinner tonight, the house smelled like a field of flowers from the Glade plug ins strategically positioned throughout the home.
“Ashley!” Yvette yelled out when she saw her.
“Cousin, where’s my hug?” Ashley walked over to the kitchen island where Yvette sat. “What do we owe for this pleasure? I haven’t seen you since…
“Dax divorced her,” Ashley’s mom added.
“Aunt Barbara, please don’t mention that name and I divorced him. Let him go find his homebody wife,” Yvette said bitterly.
“He didn’t want a housewife. He just wanted you to cook and do some domestic stuff every once in a while,” Barbara added.
Yvette looked at her aunt and rolled her eyes.
“Aunty, we hire people for that,” Yvette shrugged. “I had a business to run too. I know he’s an attorney and all, but my boutique brought in almost as much money as his law firm. Plus, I didn’t have to work as many hours.”
“Which is why he wanted you to help out more at the house.” Barbara pointed out while she searched the refrigerator.
Ashley laughed at both of them.
“Not funny, Ash!” Yvette grabbed a handful of grapes out of the fruit bowl in front of her.
“How was work, Honey,” Barbara asked.
“Fine, Mama.” Ashley walked over to the sink to wash her hands.
“Is that boy still trying to get you to go out with his cousin?” Barbara asked.
“Yep,” Ashley said.
“Ash! That reminds me!” Yvette reached into her Coach purse sitting on the stool next to her and pulled out a piece of paper. “I thought you and I could attend this retreat, cousin. It will be fun.”
Ashley took the paper from her cousin. Confusion marred her face.
“Really, Yvette?” Ashley said.
Barbara took the paper from Ashley and read it. She shook her head and returned the paper.
“What!” Yvette said.
“A divorce retreat! I’ve never heard of such a thing.” Ashley said.
“Right, you’re the one who lost her virginity on your wedding night,” Yvette recalled.
“Aren’t we all supposed to?” Ashley asked.
Barbara laughed at her niece and daughter.
“I thought Michael Waters from down the block was going to get to you first, but nope you got out of that one in the tenth grade,” Yvette laughed.
Barbara stopped laughing and looked at Ashley. Ashley gave Yvette a hard wide-eyed stare. How could she mention something like that in front of
