When she was finally done I stood in the mirror staring at a complete stranger.
“Oh, my goodness!” Was all I could say to my reflection. And of course Stacy took that for a compliment because she was now cheesing so hard you would have thought she was Picasso revealing his Mona Lisa to the applause of a stadium full of people.
“Don’t you look amazing?”
I stared at the front of the dress. The V in it stopped just above my belly-button. The part that laid on my braless breast seemed as if the wrong movement would cause it to slide away exposing me to all the world. I pulled at it so that it could cover more, but Stacy smacked my hand away.
“Don’t pull at it!”
“It’s going to shift and my breast is going to pop out!” I whined. She shook her head frowning slightly at me.
“It’s supposed to look like that, stop being paranoid. The dress is not going anywhere, it won’t shift I promise. Now stay in here for another two minutes and then come down stairs.” She leaned in and kissed my cheek before she nearly skipped out the room.
I barely recognized myself. I had never worn my hair straight before, or had it colored. The purple highlights were just in the front, so maybe that wasn't too bad. I mean it could have been worse; it could have been dyed purple all over. Straightened, my hair fell nearly to my waist. Stacy would not let them pin it up. She insisted I wear it down. My hair I didn’t mind, although I think I liked it curly better.
However, this dress…
This dress was a different story. It wasn’t ugly, don't get me wrong. And I’m sure there were some women out there who would be stunning in it. It just wasn't me. I hated exposing so much of myself. I had spent my whole life hiding from folks and in one day I lost my wig, my contacts, my ball-cap and now my clothes.
The fact of the matter is… I was just a country girl at heart and I liked wearing my pa-pa’s overalls, my jeans and tees. I exhaled. I was really beginning to hate New York and what it was doing to me. Picking up the little handbag that matched my dress, I slid the little strap on my wrist.
Inside was the black credit card that Gabe had not taken from me; my phone and a tube of lipstick to refresh—Stacy's words. I looked at myself one more time in the mirror.
There was nothing I could do about my situation right now. I was good and stuck. Yeah, I wanted to go home but I couldn’t because I killed a man. And yeah, I wanted to leave here but I couldn’t because I tried to rob the wrong man. It seemed like no matter what I did, I just managed to get myself in more trouble.
Maybe this was my penalty for murder. Maybe God didn’t care that it was self-defense. Maybe God didn’t care about me at all. If he did, why would he take everything from me so suddenly?
And if God didn’t care about me anymore, where did that leave me but lost. Now, the only thing I could do was just put one foot in front of the other and walk out what was left of my life.
On legs that shook, I left out of the bedroom and made my way downstairs.
* * * * *
Gabe
I hated wearing tuxedos! I hated going to any event that will cause me to wear a tuxedo.
I hated the fact that I’d let Kenny talk me into going to this fashion show brag fest disguised as a charity event. These pompous jack asses could give two sh*ts about children with autism. They come together just so they can rub their wealth in each other’s faces while pretending to be the upper echelon of the earth instead of the scum they really are.
I can’t even begin to describe the pleasure I get when one of those bastards live beyond their means and are forced to sell their companies to me. Only to watch me dismantle it and then sell it piece by piece to the highest bidder until it no longer resembles what it once stood for.
People call me cruel, most call me a beast, but if I was white, they would call me a shrewd business man. Just today, that prick Peterson and his two wimpy sons had barged into my home office upset with the changes I had begun to make in my company. The chump had gotten it in his head that he and I were partners.
“Calhoun, we need to talk!” He began. “I am your part—” I didn’t need to hear anymore. We can get this straightened out right now. He had been dealing with Kenny and Barry the majority of the time since the merger, so he and I had not gotten the chance to really get to know each other. So, I saw no better time than the present to introduce myself.
“I don’t know what you’ve heard, but you and I are not partners!” I said cutting him off. You see, it was better that I didn’t let him continue to speak so that he will not upset me any more than he already had by bursting into my office uninvited.
“I own the majority of shares in your company, so that makes me your boss. I know you have the misconception that every successful black man is a coon and will be willing to step and fetch to please those that consider themselves their superiors. Please allow
