Page 6 of Trust Issues
“Laugh all you want but when I have a husband who’s basically the male version of me, you’re going to be jealous,” I pointed out. When Barkley hopped in my lap, I stroked his soft black fur and made kissy faces at him.
“I think not.” She went into the kitchen and I heard the clink of glass. That was my girl. She was always ready to drink.
“Grab me a drink too,” I called out.
“You really think I wouldn’t?” Sure enough, she returned with a champagne flute filled with tequila and pineapple juice. The sight of it brought a smile to my face. “So I got some amazing info today. I’m trying to decide if I should leak it or not. I figured my lovely lawyer best friend could help me figure out if the risk is worth it.” I took a drink and grabbed a pink Starburst from the candy dish on the coffee table.
“Shoot,” I said after I popped the candy in my mouth.
“Okay.” Naima knelt up on the couch and stared at me like I could read the thoughts in her head. “I got word from a very reliable source that a huge star is getting ready to drop a surprise album in two days. Kyle, I have the tracklist and everything. Do you know how huge this is?”
“Uh huh.” I nodded eyeing her. “Who’s the star? That’ll determine if it’s worth it or not.”
“Her name rhymes with fiancé. That’s all I’m gonna say.” She ended her sentence by zipping her lips, locking them tight, and dropping the key into the abyss.
“Her name rhymes with fiancé. Was she in a group that rhymes with Festiny’s Wild?” We both broke out into a fit of laughter while she nodded, confirming the mega-celebrity’s identity. After my laughter died down, I took another few drinks and held my glass away from Barkley’s greedy ass. I looked at Naima and said, “I wouldn’t advise it. Her ferocious fan club will rip you to shreds. There’s nothinglegallysaying you can’t but it would be career suicide and you’re about to move to LA. You’re really gonna blow the fuck up, Naima. Leaking that info would make you crash and burn before your plane touched down. Don’t do it, girl.” I pointed my finger at her and finished the rest of my drink. I hated having an empty glass when I was off work so I went into the kitchen to get myself another drink.
Naima sat quietly on the couch contemplating my words and I watched her while I poured Patron in my flute. “You’re right, Kyle. I hate to admit it but you’re right. I’m being greedy. You always look out for me and reel me back in,” she said with a sigh.
“I know. Plus, I can’t advise you to leak that shit because if you crash and burn guess whose house you’re going to permanently live in?”
“Bitch,” she laughed loudly. We went back and forth about our respective days. I listened to her vent about other blogs copying her stories and stealing her style and she listened to me talk about boring ass case notes that I knew she didn’t give a damn about.
None of that mattered when it came to Naima and me though. We were sisters and if it affected me it affected her and vice versa. Actually, that’s why Naima and I clicked in college. She was going through law school the same as me but she was there because her parents made her go. She came from a family of lawyers so it only seemed right to them. I was there because law had always been in my spirit. I loved fighting for the underdog and proving people wrong beyond a shadow of a doubt.
Whenever school got to be too much, Naima found herself in my dorm room venting and sometimes crying. Whenever I felt like I was leaps and bounds behind everyone else, she listened to me curse and fuss and sometimes cry. She’d seen me through a lot and she always told me the truth whether I wanted to hear it or not. I did the same for her. Sisterhoods like that didn’t exist anymore.
Outside of Barkley, Naima was the only person I trusted.
Well, Barkley wasn’t a person but you know what I mean.
“Ooh, Kyle girl look.” Naima shoved her phone in my face and showed me a picture of someone’s dinner. There were two plates, two wine glasses, and a candle in the middle for ambiance I guess. I shrugged my shoulders and handed her the phone back.
“Okay, someone’s on a date,” I said without a care in the world.
“Yeah, but look who.” She handed me the phone back and I groaned, tossing my head back.
“Naima, just because you run a celeb gossip blog doesn’t mean I care about celebrity drama. Unless they’re getting divorced and they need an attorney. Then, I’d be more than happy to see who’s having dinner with whom.”
“First of all, I run one of the biggest blogs sinceTMZ. Secondly, it’s not celebrity gossip. It’s celebritynews. Third, girl, look at the damn tag.” The moment she told me to look at who was tagged, my eyes honed in. The back of my neck burned with prickles.
“Okay, so? Max is out on a date with one of his little insta-thots.” My eyes scanned the picture over and over to see if I caught a glimpse of Max’s hand, cufflink or anything else distinguishable.
Why though?
I didn’t give a flying fuck who he went out with. He dated any and everything with a phat ass and a cute face. I shook my head and handed Naima her phone back.
“You know he doesn’t let any of his little one-night stands tag him in anything though. He’s so strict about that. I wonder if this means she’s more than just a fling?”
My heart slammed against my chest at her words for some reason. Luckily, I had to refocus because someone was knocking on the door. I didn’t have time to yank my feelings out and examine if I was insanely drunk or if I was losing my mind. Either way, insanity was involved.
I had to stop drinking tequila and pineapple juice so much.
I opened the door and saw Candace’s smiling face. She was such a cute girl, I had no idea why she didn’t have dates lined up. She had honey brown skin and deep chocolate eyes. Her curly hair spiraled outward resting fluffily on her shoulders. It moved every time she laughed. She had a nice body too. Why weren’t men flocking to her?
“Hey, Cadence. Come on in.” I moved to the side to let her in but she didn’t budge. She was transfixed staring at me. Her eyes raked over my hair repeatedly. It took me a couple of minutes to realize she was staring at my locs. I yanked her in the apartment and closed the door.
“Oh my god, Kyla I can’t believe you’ve been wearing a wig to work all this fucking time!” Her astonishment came with excited slaps to my shoulder while I rolled my eyes and ran an idle hand through my hair. “Your hair is gorgeous. I love dreadlocks.”
