|
|
|
|
 |
 |
|
|
Tina was almost ready to slice her birthday cake in front of the hundred or so guests that were gathered in the great room to celebrate her forty-first birthday. Just as the crimson sun was setting, she welcomed the final guests into her home. It had been a magnificent May Day for a party that extended from the six-bedroom house out into the well-maintained back yard. Ethnically dressed in a beige and gold trimmed pants suit with a matching hat, she appeared to be a happily married woman. Skimming the room, admiring all of the guests that were likewise wearing their African attire in accordance with the cultural theme of the party, she was astonished at what a magnificent job the professional party decorator had done with her immaculate home for this special occasion. From the colorful printed banner hanging over the entrance way to the table donned with African violets, Tina was amazed. Suddenly Tina felt her flip-style cellular phone vibrating against her waist. Noticing the loud music thumping along with her heartbeat to the sound of Mary J. Blige singing, “It’s a Wrap,” she reached down to check her phone. She reviewed the second text message that she’d received this evening: “Baby, please meet me outside for your birthday present.” Gasping for air, she quickly erased the message from her cell phone. Tina looked up, trying to conceal the panic on her face, and scanned the room for her husband. There he was in the corner, having a lively conversation with his friends Michael, Ralph, and Terrance. I could sneak out the front door for just a few minutes since everyone is inside and waiting for me to cut the cake. This man is probably not going to leave unless I meet him outside soon. With her heart pounding and the blood racing through her veins, she took another look at the extra large birthday cake on the far end of the table. It was decorated with one of her most recent portraits recreated in the center of the cake. She was wearing a striped sundress in her favorite colors of orange and green. There were many small orange flowers with green leaves along the perimeter of the frosted cake surrounding her smiling face. It had one layer of chocolate cake and one layer of yellow cake with extra buttercream icing, just the way she liked it. Tina hadn’t eaten any sweets in months so she decided to splurge on the cake. Right now, she wished that she could go back to the day that she had taken that picture over two months ago before she started this affair with “Mr. Smooth,” Debonair Jenkins. Tina and Martin had been planning this elaborate bash since the beginning of the New Year, and she wanted it to be a stone cold blast. However, this was not exactly the type of blast that she had anticipated having today. This was her first time having a birthday party in all of her adult life. She had wanted to have one for her fortieth birthday, but Martin and she were just too busy with their friends, Alese and Michael Wayne, who were separated at the time. Anyway, that was over with now and all of her friends and neighbors were there to congratulate her on reaching this milestone in her successful life. “Tina, girl, are you all right? You’re not looking too good. Is something wrong?” Shenedra was touching Tina’s arm and searching her best friend’s eyes for an answer. She sensed that something wasn’t right. “Shenedra, Debonair is outside. He just sent me a text message on my cell phone that he’s waiting for me. Girl, what am I going to do?” Tina stretched her panic filled eyes in horror. “Girl, I know what you better not do. You better not even think about going out there to see that young man. I thought you said that you told him it was over,” Shenedra stated, eyeing Tina suspiciously. “I did tell him that, but he’s been calling me and sending me text messages every day for the last seven days straight.” At that very moment, Tina felt her phone vibrating against her waist again. She knew who it was but still reached down to read his third message for the evening: “Baby, please meet me—I’m waiting outside.” Shenedra arched her thin eyebrows and stretched her gray catlike eyes as she spoke to Tina. “Please don’t tell me that was him contacting you again.” “Yes, it’s him. This is his third time sending me a message in thirty minutes, and I don’t think he’s going to stop unless I go outside to see him. He claims that he has a present for me.” “Well, I know somebody else that’s going to have a present for you if you get busted tonight. Now you stay right here and let me go talk to him.” Shenedra turned to walk away but Tina grabbed her by the left forearm. “No, Shenedra. I can’t let you do that. Besides, I want to see what he got me for my birthday. Keep your eyes on Martin while I slip outside for just a minute, okay?” “Tina, don’t even try…” Before she could finish her statement, Tina had already checked to make sure that Martin was still preoccupied with his friends as she walked towards the door heading outside. When Shenedra looked towards the corner where she had seen Martin engaged in conversation a few seconds ago, he was gone. Before she could block his path, she caught a glimpse of the back of his head as he walked toward the master bedroom. Oh, my God! The master bedroom is adjacent to the front door! Book Titles Available | | The BANYON NETWORK | Betty Byers | Whitlow Synopsis | INNER-VIEWS WITH CELEBRITIES | ECLECTIC REVIEWS | BOOK REVIEWER'S CORNER | The NEWS | SHORT STORIES CORNER | | Return Home | GREAT LINKS | WHAT'S NEW? | CONTACT US | |
||
 |
 |
