Cake

by Nicole Reed

  “I’m sorry, Mads. I can’t. Leo and I have inventory that night for the VIP sale the next day.”

  “Bitch, please. Let Martha or Jess help him out. Don’t make me drag your raggedy ass out.”

  “Sorry love, but my raggedy ass will be working.”

  “When the chance of seeing hot sweaty men in tight pants doesn’t lure you out, I really don’t know what I can do for you anymore. God! Please tell me this isn’t because of Trent Moss, because if it is, I swear I’m going to go all jungle girl and find his sorry ass just so I can choke him out.”

  “It’s not about Trent.”

  “And why don’t I believe you?”

  Saved by the bell, or, in this case, Jess, my newest sales assistant, as she strolls in saying, “I couldn’t help overhearing you girls.”

  Okay, so she is proven to not only be terrific in sales, but a good listener, if not a little too nosey. Great.

  “Okay, who is this Trent Moss? You talk like he is the next Channing Tatum or something,” Jess asks as she hops up to sit her size zero tiny butt on the edge of my desk, loudly popping the chewing gum in her mouth.

  I glance from my personal conversation with Madison to her, rolling my eyes as they land directly on Jess. “Lose the gum, it isn’t allowed around the store inventory.”

  Right in front of me, she leans her platinum blonde head over and spits it in the trash. My. Trash. Can! If she wasn’t so adept when it comes to fashion, I don’t think this would be a mutually beneficial situation. Was I ever this stupid at her age?

  “C’mon, I’ve been listening to you both go on and on about this guy for weeks. What gives? Who is he and where can I find one?”

  My annoyance simmers just a little; however, instead of telling her to get back to work, I find myself giving her a short answer first. Lifting my eyes up to hers, I begin, “Trent is just a guy I met in college.”

  Madison’s guffaw of laughter makes us both jump. Holding her hand up in my face, she barely spits out, “Dear Lord, you did not say he is just a guy you met in college.” Turning fully towards Jess, she continues to laugh, “Trent was the guy she met in college. As in, the girl took one look at him and fell head-over-heels. You see, Trent was this sexy do-gooder college boy that all the girls were gaga’ing with their lady parts over. Except yours truly,” she pauses only to point at herself, “because I like my boys dark and dirty.”

  I return with my own burst of laughter, “No, it’s more dark and dense. And let’s get something straight, Trent was more than just your average college boy. He set out to change the world and save lives,” I reply towards Jess, “he is an Environmental Engineer that travels to third-world countries to establish clean water supplies. While there, he helps build schools, orphanages, and medical centers. He is the most caring, humanitarian that I know, and he is my best friend,” I emphasis the last part for Mads. It always makes her jealous to hear me say that he is my B.F.F.

  “She wishes friends with benefits, but the boy likes his chicks granola-fed and tree-hugging. Alas, he sees our dear maiden as his personal assistant slash friend when he needs her,” she says dramatically. “One night of drunken college passion, that he doesn’t even remember, does not a relationship make.”

  “Shut it, Mads.” There are some things that I do not need, nor want, anyone to ever know. My stupidity in ever confiding to Madison when I should have kept my mouth shut. Giving her the evil eye seems to quiet her for a second.

  “He sounds great,” Jess says sarcastically. “Almost as if Mother Theresa and Gandhi got together with the Peace Corps, had an orgy, and spit out a child. What I really want to know is his stats and do the inches add up?” She holds up each of her index fingers to show about seven inches in measurement. “C’mon Miss Lord, you’re semi-young still. Tell me the stuff that really matters.”

  Frozen by the sheer audacity this girl has, it takes me a second to recover, but before I can add my scathing reply, Madison opens her big mouth.

  “I think I have a serious girl-crush,” Mads says to Jess as they share smiles with one another. “The man is a hottie in an ‘I need a shower and shave look’. Longish thick-curly brown hair with matching dark eyes, lean-muscled body, and I haven’t seen it, but I’ve heard from good authority that the banana is ripe and hard, if you get what I’m sayin’.”

  “Enough!” I stand, yelling at both of them. “Jess, back to work. That is if you still want your job?”

  Smiling at Madison, she turns to me and replies as she walks back to the front of the store, “Sounds like I need to find some granola to munch on and a tree to love.”

  The clicking of her heels on the floor grates my nerves. Turning towards Mads, I ask, “Really?” She only shrugs back at me. Gathering my purse, I decide to call it a day.

  “Where are we going for dinner?”

  Rounding on her, I reply, “Are you kidding me? You just told an employee of mine one of my inner-most secrets that only the good Lord above and you know about. Don’t make me take you out of the equation.”

  Mads’s laughter follows me as I walk to the front of the store. “Jess, I’m out for the night. If you need me, please just call my cell.”

  “Will do, Boss,” she flippantly replies.

  Turning to walk back, Madison leans against the wall her arms crossed against her chest.

  “Look, I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking. Let me take you out tonight to make it up to you.”

  “No thanks. I’ve had a long day. I’m emotionally spent after spending the day with my aunt.”

  “Which is why you need to get out. If I know Aunt Leigh as well as I think I do, she would tell you to get your fabulous phat ass ready. And I mean that with a P...H. There is a small get together downtown for some new artist. I wasn’t planning on attending, but I know how you like that anime artsy junk.”

  I start to reply no, when I remember the words spoken today with my aunt. Before I can think things through, I answer, “Let me find us something fabulous to wear then.”

  Smiling at me, I see the relief on Madison’s face.

  “Follow me up. I have some new inventory in my apartment.”

  As we head to my upstairs, she begins to tell me about Lil Rip’s hectic tour schedule, as if I care, but I listen as she details all of it because she’s my friend. Hearing Jonsie’s barks before even I open the door, Mads groans.

  “I really hate that little shit.”

  Laughing, I reply, “Believe me, it’s mutual.”

  Loving on him for a second, he laps up the attention until I feel his little body go stiff as he turns towards Mads. Low growls emanate from his throat, making him sound pissed.

  “Calm down, mini-Cujo. I’ll feed you to my cat if you bite me on the ass again tonight.”

  Giggling, I answer for him, “He only bit you because you were lying on his side of the bed the last time you were over.” Mads never did anything to him. He’s always disliked her on site, which, deep down, she hates. We’ve both tried to bribe him to like her to no avail.

  “Well he’s lucky that he has a little mouth, and I had thick jeans on. Otherwise, we would know the answer to if All Dogs Go To Heaven. I certainly believe this little devil would not.”

  A barrage of barks sounds as I take him downstairs to do his business. Once we are back up, I feed him and refill his water, returning him back to his crate as I head back to my bedroom. Rifling through the new inventory that I still haven’t decided to personally keep or not, I pick an outfit out for each of us.

  “I really do hate that you can wear almost all of this with your figure and I only get a piece here or there that will fit over my hips,” I say to her.

  “Shut your filthy mouth.” Mads calls back as she changes. “I would kill to have your tits and ass. It’s way better than looking like a stick, which I have to constantly eat to ensure that the little I have stays.”

  “Damn you,” I laughingly call back.

  “Damn my fast metabolism that my super model
mother gave me, who by the way, I haven’t seen in seven months. She’s in Europe ‘touring’ she tells the media, but the truth is, she’s staying away from the gossip rags about my father’s proclivity for young women. I’m still not speaking to the cheating dick.”

  “Hearing you call your dad a ‘dick’ skeeves me out. I would appreciate you referring to him in any other way.”

  “Not all of us had ‘Brady Bunch’ parents growing up. Hell, I would have settled for the ‘Adams Family’ over mine.”

  “Speaking of growing up, I remember a promise of hearing about a certain teenage heartthrob.” With my schedule, I haven’t had time to follow up with her about him. Honestly, I can’t believe I had almost forgotten about it. Walking into my bathroom, I see Mads primping in front of the mirror. Leaning against the sink, I stare intently. “Spill.”

  “I was wishing, and hoping, you had forgotten about that,” she says, applying my lipstick to her lips.

  “No such luck. So unless you want to have your killer wardrobe supplier cut off, I suggest you start squealing piggy.”

  “What can I say? The day I found out about my dad and Miss Teen Georgia, I bum-rushed him at his studio and really things get a little hazy at this point, as my evil twin took over and craziness ensued. Whatever I did or said must have pushed Nicky boy’s buttons, and now, I’m the object of his lust or so he says.” Stepping away, she turns towards me and places her hands on her hips. “He’s not my type, and that is that. I have tried repeatedly to get it through that inflated head of his, but it doesn’t surprise me that he’s not used to women telling him no. I’m not interested in being some conquest of his. So please, don’t listen to what he says or asks because you know me better than anyone. End of story,” she finishes and walks out.

  I really should do as she asks, but the small yearning to help Nick Andrews out, which may be warranted because of the spark of interest behind her eyes that she evidently can’t hide, has me considering not listening to her.

  “Move your ass, Bitch,” she yells.

  Mads spends way too much time with rappers.

  Way.

  Too.

  Much.

  Time.

  Walking towards her, I hear her whisper to Jonsie, “Cats rule and dogs die.”

  “No wonder he hates you,” I say over his hysteric barks.

  Mads offers to drive, and we swing by and grab a quick bite at a local deli. As we arrive, we actually find a decent parking space and only have to walk less than a block to the small gallery. Outside is a small media spot where partygoers have their photo taken for the local press. As much as I hate it, this is what sells for my boutique. Madison and I both dislike being in the paper, but Madison does it for me and never blinks an eye. That’s why I love her like a sister.

  Lights flash from all the cameras around us as people shout for information from those attending. We move in, fake smiles ready for the feeding frenzy.

  “What are you both wearing, Kylie?” a reporter asks.

  “Madison has on an Yves Saint Laurent bustier dress and Gianni Versace black patent leather booties. Myself, I am wearing a very rare Valentino haute couture dress from my private collection.” Smiling, I turn and walk inside, trying my best not to flee faster than normal.

  We both greet mutual friends as we walk through trying to admire the art. Sipping on a glass of wine, I stop to stare at a certain piece. I have to admit to falling in love with them all, but this one I adore. It’s a whimsical little girl with big soulful eyes looking so sad, almost lost. In my opinion, it calls to women of all ages, because at some point, we’ve all felt the deprivation of one’s self. Exactly as I feel right now.

  “You know, I just don’t get it. I could wipe my ass and come up with something way better than some of this shit.”

  Turning towards Dray, I shake my head, answering, “Do you have to be so crude?”

  “Do you have to be such a prude?”

  Rolling my eyes, I ask, “What are you even doing here?”

  “What are you doing there? Ooh look, we sound like an excerpt from a Dr. Seuss book. You know, this isn’t the book that I thought we would write together.”

  Curiosity killed the cat, so I ask, “Now what book, dare I ask, would you and I possibly ever write together?”

  “I am thinking we could come up with, Fifty Shades of Red. You know, see how many shades of scarlet we can turn that tight round ass of yours. My palm is already itching just thinking about it. We could start tonight. I was actually on my way out when I saw you standing here waiting for me.”

  I can’t help the blush that covers my cheeks. No one has ever dared to speak so crass and filthy to me the way Dray does. My palm is itching too, but it’s to strike his visible cheeks.

  “Wow, if your cheeks get that shade of red, I can only wonder about your other ones.”

  My voice comes out in a hiss, “You dick.”

  Laughing, he smirks at me, “Don’t say I didn’t ask. Later, Kylie.” He nods as he walks away.

  He’s lucky that we are in a public place, otherwise...I don’t know what I would do, but it would be painful. Jackass! Turning around, my peaceful outlook on the art is gone. Why did I ever think that I was going to agree to his ludicrous situations and turn the tables around? Why do I let him verbally terrorize me?

  “You know, I can tell when Dray has been around. You look ready to explode and not in a good way,” Madison says coming to stand next to me.

  Turning my head, I ask, “Please say you are ready?”

  “Yep.”

  “Let’s go.” Grabbing her hand, I almost drag her out without a word to anyone. Maybe I can find Dray outside and I can run him over. Twice. Pull forward, then back up again, and maybe pull forward one more time to make sure I got him.

  “Want to talk about?” she asks as she drives me home.

  “Nope.”

  “Still planning his demise?”

  “Yep.”

  Laughing, she answers, “Good girl.”

  Days later, I’m working, sifting through old inventory with one of my head sales associates and friend Leo, for a V.I.P. sale starting tomorrow. Leo has been giving me questioning looks all day long. I’m waiting for him to spit out, whatever it is.

  “So a little birdy named Jess, told me you actually confided to her about the love of your life. Now, I said to myself, she wouldn’t do that to me as I have been begging Kylie for that story for the last two years. So I’m going to ask nicely, one more time, for the 411.”

  Shaking my head, I answer, “It wasn’t like that. I was having a private conversation with Mads when big ears McGhee must have overheard and inserted herself into the conversation. She really didn’t hear the entire story.” No, she just heard the one piece of information that no one else knows.

  “Okay, so give it to me. Who am I going to tell? Tell Uncle Leo all about it. Please. Have you ever been in love?” He playfully begs, batting his eyelashes at me.

  Blowing out my breath, I think to myself, what the hell? “Sit back, shut it, and let me tell the entire story before any questions. Agreed?”

  He emphatically nods his head up and down.

  “Have I ever been in love? Yes, what woman my age hasn’t? I guess you could say I have a one true love. Doesn’t everyone? Mine probably starts like ten-million other single ladies out there. Girl goes to college. Girl falls in love with cliché college coffee house hottie. In this case, his name is Trent Moss, who incidentally already had a beautiful sweet girlfriend, so I opt for next best thing, the ever-lonely best girl pal. Now, I know what you are thinking, everyone has seen this storyline in a movie, and knows how it works out. Said, best girl pal hangs in there long enough, and eventually, the man of her dreams notices, falls madly in love or lust, which I would take either, and they live happily ever after. Alas, in this story, that is a big fat no. You see, I was such a good, sister figure, that I totally screwed myself four ways till Sunday.”

  I look over to see
Leo staring intently at me, so I continue, “At the time, I didn’t know that Trent was an orphan and the only family he had was his foster brother Dray Savage. Yes, that Dray Savage. Trent never had a real family, so he loved that I was there for him no matter what, and he valued that before any girlfriend. Trent is, and always has been, the guy who loves everyone, and on his looks alone, you would think he would be this good-looking asshole, but no, he has the biggest heart. Tall, short, thick, or thin, he was nice to them all. He remembered your name after meeting you once and always made a point to smile your way to let you know he had been thinking of you. I’ve seen girls and guys alike vie for his attention, but he never once lost his patience. He just recruited them for his current save the world cause that he was associated with at the time and gained friend after friend. That was Trent. All-around. Great. Guy.”