Married on Mondays (26 page)

“I’d better get him something to eat,” she said.

Victoria placed her hand on the woman’s hand. “Before we meet again, that is if you’d like to continue this session, I need
you to do three things. Reconnect with the woman you were before you got married. I want you to expand your sexuality through
self-exploration. And I want you to reunite with your husband by inviting him out on a date. But not before you do the first
two things I mentioned.”

The woman exhaled, stood, escorted Victoria to the door. “Thanks for coming. I mean that.”

H
ump day. Winton had to slow things down. Too much happening too soon.

He powered off his computer, stood in his office, looked down at the west side. He sat on the edge of his desk, one foot planted
on the floor. “Six point nine million people.” If he had to guess, he’d say one out of every ten thousand were truly happy,
most of them being children. Not many adults appreciated life. Men were busy trying to get over or stay ahead of whomever
they deemed competition. Women sold themselves on corners or over a hot meal at a decent restaurant.

Men like him were defined by money and material possessions. Money equated to success. The underlying definition of success
meant a man was worthy of having whatever woman he wanted, especially a younger woman or a beautiful woman. Acer was a real
man, and he was right. Winton had nailed Foxy to a rugged cross. Not caring about any of the women in his life, Winton had
a cross for Isis and one for Nova. What he didn’t understand was why?

Why had the women in his life cared enough to bear the burden of his bullshit?

Knock. Knock.

“Come in,” he said, glancing over his shoulder at Acer and Naomi. “What now? More bad news? Found a way to get rid of me?”

“Depends on how you look at it,” Naomi said. “Have a seat.”

“I’m good right here,” Winton said, sitting on the corner of his desk facing them. Winton didn’t take orders from Foxy, and
Naomi would not dictate to him where he sat. Winton had more respect for Acer than he had for any woman.

“I think I can help your marriages and mine,” Naomi said.

Winton smirked. “Yeah, right.”

Acer said, “Leave my marriage out of this.”

“Sorry, Acer. I meant marriage referring to Winton. Go along with me,” Naomi said. “Acer, what does your wife do for a living?”

Acer frowned. Stared at Winton, then at Naomi. “She works at a pastry shop with her sisters.”

“Winton, what does Foxy do?” Naomi asked.

Winton closed, then opened his eyes. “The same as Acer said. Why? I’m not comprehending your point. You do have a point?”

Naomi stood. Her eyes scanned Crème City. She faced the west side. Pointing, she asked, “What’s the brightest area on the
west side?”

Acer pointed. “That section over there.”

“That section over there my partners is Crème Fantasyland,” Naomi said, sitting in Winton’s chair.

Shaking his head, Winton said, “Fantasyland? Our wives work at the pastry shop. Crème is down the street to the left. Over
there.” He pointed toward the bakery.

“Correct. Let’s see. How can I put this? Our wives are multimillionaires.”

Winton laughed. “No disrespect, but they’re not multimillionaires from selling five-dollar pastries. That’s ridiculous. After
overhead and taxes, their annual net is about two hundred fifty thousand tops.”

Naomi wasn’t making sense. But there were moments in the courtroom when it appeared she was headed down a dead-end road and
miraculously she’d present evidence to persuade the jury in her favor.

“Yeah, that would be ridiculous if that were all they were selling. Gentlemen, our wives sell sexual fantasies to the tune
of one point five million dollars a year.”

Acer frowned. “What exactly does my wife do?”

Naomi smiled. “I’ll give you one guess.”

“Massages,” he said.

Winton shook his head. “Massages would translate into ultimate fighting for your wife. She’s too rough.”

“Nah, not at home. She’s firm. Not rough,” Acer explained.

“Acer your wife is a domina, a mistress, a dominatrix,” Naomi said.

Acer’s eyes enlarged with fascination. He smiled, then bit his bottom lip. “Aw, damn, that’s hot. I could see that.”

Winton had to know. “And my wife?”

“Let’s just say you’ve been missing out on a good thing. I’ve booked each of us appointments with our wives. The only question
you’ll have to answer is, ‘What is your fantasy?’” Naomi said, then continued, “The real reason I wanted to talk with both
of you is, we need to have the chief of police transferred to another city in a different state. I tried not to get involved,
but I’m not going to stand by and let him ruin my marriage.”

“Yeah, that was cold how you stole his almost fiancée,” Acer said. “Guess you’ve got skills on and off the case.”

“Rain? He’s still soaking over your stealing Victoria from him?” Winton added.

Naomi replied, “His attitude would be easy to deal with. It’s his actions I don’t approve of. Rain desperately wants my wife’s
virginity and I’m sick of it. He’s threatening to send Foxy, DéJà, and Victoria to jail for operating Crème Fantasyland, but
he won’t because he was Victoria’s client after she married me.”

Winton was intrigued. Acer listened attentively to Naomi. They agreed to book appointments with their wives and to give Rain
an ultimatum to transfer out of state or quit and move out of state. Either way Rain had to move out of Crème City quietly
and quickly.

After the meeting with Naomi, Winton was relieved. He wasn’t angry or disappointed in his wife. Foxy was wise. She’d married
him and maintained her financial independence. Winton had a newfound respect for Foxy and her sisters. His wife was gorgeous,
a multimillionaire, and a freak? That was every man’s dream. It was time for Winton Brown to wake up and reclaim his wife.

T
hursday, 4:00 a.m. Acer nudged DéJà. “Precious, you asleep?”

“Huh?” DéJà stretched her arms, hugged her husband.

He cleared his throat, then said, “Mistress DéJà, you asleep?”

Her eyes flashed open. “What did you call me?”

“My apology. Should I say Domina DéJà?”

DéJà sat up. “How’d you find out? It was Foxy, wasn’t it? She is miserable in her marriage and mad at me. I never thought—”
She stopped speaking midsentence. Retrieved her cell from the nightstand. “I’m calling her right now.”

Acer smiled. “Honey, your sister didn’t tell me. Naomi did.”

DéJà was more furious. She paced the bedroom floor. “So Victoria is the one. Okay. All right. I’ll deal with her. But why
didn’t you say something before now? How long have you known? I can explain.”

Things were not going to fall apart in her marriage. The harder DéJà worked to help her sisters, the more jealous they’d become.
She sat on the bed next to her husband. “I’m sorry. I should’ve told you. But it’s not like I have sex with my clients.”

He touched her hand. “Honey, it’s okay. Why don’t you prepare breakfast and tell me more while we eat?” He smiled. Kissed
her.

DéJà frowned. Her husband was too happy to say he knew. She waited until Acer was in the bathroom, went to the kitchen with
her cell phone in hand, called Victoria.

“Not again. What do you want?” she answered.

“It’s me. Wake up,” DéJà hissed into her Bluetooth, then programmed her oven to four hundred degrees. “I need to speak to
you.”

She overhead Naomi ask, “Sweetcakes, who is it?”

“It’s DéJà. I told you she’d call. And she’d be upset. I’m sure it’s about what you told me last night,” Victoria replied.

“So, it is true. Naomi told Acer I’m a dominatrix?” DéJà placed twelve strips of bacon on the parchment paper, poured two
cups of milk in a pot, then placed the pot on the stove. She added two pats of butter and a teaspoon of salt to the milk,
turned the knob between low and medium.

Victoria told her, “And she told her partners about my situation with Rain.”

“You need to be at work at five sharp,” DéJà said, then hung up.

“I don’t smell anything cooking,” Acer belted out from the bedroom. “Are you feeding me cereal?”

“Of course not, handsome.” He knew she’d never feed him anything cold. DéJà wanted to call Foxy but didn’t have time, so she
texted, “Be at work five o’clock sharp.”

No time for a fancy breakfast. She put the bacon in the oven, scrambled four eggs, dropped four slices of toast in the toaster,
then stirred the grits into the bubbling milk. In ten minutes, everything was ready. She stirred cheese into the grits, then
prepared her husband’s plate.

Acer sat at the table, ate his grits first. DéJà was quiet. “You know, I’m proud of you, honey,” he said.

DéJà kept quiet. Waited for the
But
.

“I understand why you didn’t tell me about your business. But…”

Okay, this was the part that mattered most. DéJà listened attentively.

Acer continued, “I’d be a fool to end our marriage over your choice of profession. And I understand why you didn’t tell me.
What man wouldn’t be intimidated by a dominatrix?”

“My sisters and I promised not to tell anyone. Our dad doesn’t even know. He thinks we own the bakery he bought us. Victoria
broke our promise.” DéJà stirred her grits but hadn’t eaten anything. “I have to talk to her.”

DéJà became quiet again wondering what was next. Would their spouses ask them to close Crème Fantasyland? Victoria had no
right to do this.

“Honey, don’t be upset with your sister. Only a few married people have our kind of love, but Victoria loves Naomi, and like
it or not, your sister did what was best for her—”

“What about me?” DéJà asked. “Family is supposed to do what is best for family.”

“Hold on. She did do what was best for you.”

DéJà shook her head. “No, she didn’t.”

Acer nodded. “We know about Rain’s inappropriate behavior. Happy to hear Mason kicked his ass. Wouldn’t look good if we had
to do that, but today we will have him removed from his position.”

DéJà stared at her husband. “Good.” She wouldn’t have to solicit help from her contacts. “How?”

Acer shook his head. That meant their plan was confidential.

“Now back to you,” Acer said, stuffing the last piece of toast in his mouth. “I want to be your slave, Mistress DéJà.”

DéJà smiled at her husband. “Be careful what you ask for.” He was going to get it really good. Could she be a great mistress
and the perfect mother?

T
rue love

Cannot be broken

Every man has flaws

Before you judge someone else

Take a moment

Pause

Consider your mistakes

True love

Can withstand

The toughest tests

When people in love

Do their best… to

Understand