Charmed By A Steel City Hustler
Chapter 9 — Change Comes With a Price

Lois:

The fall air was so nice in the park right now. The leaves were beginning to get that orange color to them, and the foliage was beautiful. Two weeks had passed since the incident with Adonis and awkward night with Sebastian. I had been sleeping in the guest house behind our mansion and not spoken to either of them. I did take time off work under the guise of personal reasons.

Adonis had been kissing my ass for the past seven days. He took me for a joke and didn't believe me when I said that things needed to change. He claimed the bed was more comfortable without my hair getting in his face after the first few nights. I was initially in the guest room down the hall, but his snarky remarks were getting to be too much.

I was taking this time to rediscover myself and what I wanted out of life. Adonis had defined my actions for so long. Then I got lost in the new feelings that developed for Bash. My world needed to revolve around myself and what I wanted to do. "Excuse me beautiful may I join you."

I smirked and lifted my glasses up to look at Bash. He was standing there in some destructed designer jeans a blue-collar shirt with a pair of boots on his feet. He was the total opposite of my husband yet held an almost equal place in my heart.

I scooted over so that he could sit down next to me. I did not say anything, because what was there to say. He was going to have to do some groveling as well to get back in my good graces. Bash wanted me all to himself and did not care about the consequences of it.

"Your sister is worried about you. Said you have not been returning her calls."

All I could do was laugh at the horrible icebreaker he just used to get me to speak. I closed the current book I was reading and looked to his eyes.

"Let me guess you are being the good brother-in-law coming to check on me out of concern for your wife?"

"Lo don't be like that. That next morning you said that you needed space from me. I respected your wishes no problem. It appears that you are just running away from your life. That is not healthy at all, and you know it. This is the man who cares about you more than life itself speaking right now. Damn those titles you are throwing out there."

"Those are words that should be spoken to another woman. How the hell did you replace me anyway?"

"This is my damn city and stop avoiding the obvious. Are you avoiding Lola because of this thing between us?"

The sincerity in his voice melted the wall around my emotions slightly. Bash flashed that winning smile at me and pulled me into his strong embrace. I wanted to just sink in and wipe away the past two weeks, but nope not possible. We were in a public place, and that just couldn't happen. Clearly, he didn't care because he leaned in for a kiss and I shook my head no.

"Nobody that we know mutually visits this raggedy ass park Lo."

"Bash seriously no not here. Besides we should probably keep things platonic between us for now on. I am focusing on myself and can't be too concerned with a man."

"A man or just me? Lois playing with a person's heart or money is a dangerous game. I play for keeps on both ends and win every time."

"You think this is a game that I am playing? My marriage of six years is a mess, and I am having an affair with my sister's husband," I yelled out louder than I wanted to, and Bash did a quick scan of the park.

"Say that a tad bit louder. I don't think the fat jogger eating a snickers bar heard you clearly."

"My heart is not some prize to be won in a pissing match! Regardless of the bullshit, I'm going through with Adonis, I still love him. You could just be using me as a two-year itch. How many other women have you slept with behind my sister's back?"

Bash chuckled, and it was cold, something I never experienced from him before. He stood up and checked his phone before looking down at me.

"That was a childish accusation to throw out there Lois. Your guilt must be on high alert now that you are on the run and shit. I won't reward you with a response to that question. Maybe you should check your own damn spouse for infidelity. You and your sister have the same damn problem. Y'all think that men are supposed to bow down and never stray. Baby y'all ain't the only bad ass females out here. Shit, a ratchet bitch can be built to operate just like you, and she knows how to keep a fool faithful." CRACK!

I slapped Bash across the face for his remarks. How dare he make such an outlandish statement to me. I didn't exactly know what Bash was getting at about Adonis, but now my curiosity was heightened. Lola raved about him being a thug in the streets 'pushing major weight,' whatever that means. She said his dark side was not to be fucked with under any circumstances.

I never seen that side to him and really didn't care to. My phone went off, and it was Adonis. Bash chuckled and dared me to answer it. I was not a piñata that was going to be passed between the two of them any longer. I sent my husband to voicemail and took a deep breath before addressing Bash.

"Yo keep your damn hands to yourself, Lois. You are standing there with your ass on your shoulders. The truth hurts, doesn't it? I been real with you this entire time, so don't accuse me of shit. Hell, I don't owe you any type of fucking explanation anyway. Look call your sister before she gets suspicious of you and start digging. I mean you don't want your reputation damaged, right?"

"Wow that's how you feel? Well then, it's a good thing we are over now. I can face my sister with a straight face. You can go on about your life. To think I actually had deep feelings for a man like you."

"You are going to face her knowing that you swallowed her husband's nut and fucked in her bed before. Yeah, ok let me know how that goes."

"And that comment right there is not childish on your part."

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"Lois, we are not children. This is not some first love crush that will pass in a few months. Yes, we are married to other people, but we do care deeply for each other. Someone is going to get hurt when this all blows up."

We were not getting anywhere standing here slinging mud at one another. The fact of the matter was we needed to stop our affair and move on from one another. That weakness Bash had over me was still there and vibrant as ever. I was going to fight it every step of the way. My relationship with Lois was more important than any man.

Bash chuckled loudly and just said bet. He walked away without looking back. I could not read his mood which was blanketed in a cold demeanor. His feelings were not my primary concern right now.

A text message came through from Adonis begging me to come home. The message was irrelevant as I was on my way to the house anyway. As I drove off, I dialed my sister, and she began to go in immediately. "Lois Marie Paul, where the fuck have you been? You don't return calls, messages, voice clips, what the fuck!"

I shook my head and responded to her in a calm tone stating I was taking me time. I didn't go into details about my recent disappearing act. Lola cold be very selfish and attempt to turn the situation, making it all about her. I was not in the mood to play therapist to her right now.

She continued to go on and on about our father wanting to have everyone over for dinner soon. My stomach turned at the thought of being in his presence. I loved my dad, but he had become a pompous ass in his older years. He cared more about image and maintaining his vast fortune then his own daughters.

HONK! HONK!

I looked to my right and saw a familiar face staring at me. I smiled widely and pulled over to get out and speak.

"Lola, I have to go. We can discuss this more in detail later. Bye, love you muah."

I quickly disconnected before she could reply. I got out of my vehicle and waited for the other driver to get out of hers. We were in the King's Restaurant parking lot.

"Lois! Girl it's been too damn long how you have been?"

"Nise! You moved down to D.C. and don't know how to return a call come here girl."

I embraced my old friend tightly as if she were an old lover. Nise and I crossed paths in our pre-teens at a creative performing arts school. My mother insisted one of her daughters be a professional dancer. I did not have the build or patience for that mess. Lola played that I'm the oldest card and said I should do it.

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Nise was from the other side of the world of the inner city. She had a foul mouth on her, and bad attitude, but danced beautifully. We became friends as we were the only black girls in our age group.

The rich white girls did not accept me as I was considered 'token' and Nise was considered 'affirmative action'. What a load of shit. Both of our parents paid cash on time for us to dance at the school just like everyone else. This society will always look at our skin tone first and that has not changed.

"Ow shit Lo! Don't squeeze too hard. I was recently in a bad accident."

I let go quickly and looked at her right arm. Nise had a bandage around it. The look on her face was strained. I put on a quick smile but was curious as hell about that 'injury.' I wanted to catch up with her.

Seeing as how the restaurant was right there. I offered to treat her to an early dinner. Nise had no problems with that, and we walked inside. The establishment had upgraded the décor, but that same family restaurant feeling was there. The hostess greeted us, and we were seated immediately.

I grabbed my phone to silence it and saw two text messages from Adonis. I completely forgot about him and all my other troubles when I saw Nise. There was no reason to lie to him, so I texted him who I was with and where. He didn't reply immediately, so I just slid my phone into the wristlet.

We placed our orders and began to catch up. Nise told me how her job in D.C. was going well and that her love life had recently taken a turn. Darryl the guy she was dating turned out to be obsessive and a serial man whore. She had me cracking up at catching him in the act of cheating.

"Girl he said that he was being raped. How when he had that white girl face down ass up on my got damn couch!"

"No hell naw, Nise, I know you beat both their asses. Uh-uh," I said taking a sip of my water. Nise gave me the twisted lips look, and I began to laugh again. Nise had four older brothers, so she was well rounded with her fighting skills. She had broken the nose of Terry Miller, a dance classmate.

Terry called her a poor fool one day, and that was all she wrote. Nise was expelled on account her daddy came up to the school. He made an example out of Mr. Miller, in front of the whole school.

"Lo, be glad you are married, and the dating scene is over for you girl. I came back into town for a business deal. The only man I have ever loved hit me up. For business only, nothing personal and it tore me up inside."

I reached across the table to hold her hand and gave a squeeze. Nise had a great love like all women do from childhood that she never got over. I only ever knew that he didn't approve of her getting into the family business and forced her to choose. She called me that night and cried her soul out. That was the first time I had ever heard her like that.

Nise said she was moving out of town after that, and we kept in touch for a few weeks, then nothing. I was dating Adonis, and she was off to a new adventure. To see her now after all these years, still she has not changed. There was something different about her, like a missing piece of the puzzle.

"Enough about me and my sad love life. Fill me in on the career front. I know damn well playing the legal assistant to those ass hats is not all you are going to be doing. You were meant to do great in the legal field Lo. Always preaching about the law and how to not break it. I remembered all your quotes and apply them in my current profession when needed."

Listening to Nise reminisce on the past and speak about a passion that had been in the dark for me. I had forgotten my own dreams after becoming a wife. Well, no more it was time for Lois Paul to stand on her own two feet in this world, without the help of a man.