Hooked!: A Contemporary, Multicultural Romance by Yuwanda Black Page B

mean control over his
sperm?” Kammille questioned.
     
    “As
in, having a whole bunch of kids with a whole bunch of women. Anything more
than one is too many for me. I mean look at President Obama – he managed to
have none. He kept his sperm in check until he got married. Too many men just
don’t know how to do that these days. And we as women don’t make them. If he’s
got three kids with two different women, we just saddle on up like it’s no big
thing … and many of us become baby mama number three. Craziness!”
     
    “Well
Omar didn’t have any children. And his credit was just a little banged up. It’s
nothing that couldn’t have been fixed. People bounce back from bad credit all
the time Liza.”
     
    “But
few of them bounce back from indecisiveness – especially at his age. Again, not
to beat a dead horse, but if he was in his twenties with ‘banged-up credit,’ as
you put it, I could maybe see it Kammille. But Omar was 34 – long past when he
should have had his, forgive my French, shit together. And his pride should
have made him not allow you be the sole signor on that mortgage. I mean,
what kind of man does that? Good thing you make good money and didn’t need him
to pay the bills. You’d be stuck with a big ole mortgage all by yourself. Now
you’re just stuck … by yourself. But that won’t last. One thing he did get
right is that you’re an awesome catch!”
    ***
     
    Maybe
it was time to take that break Liza was always bugging her to take. She hadn’t
taken any time off since her breakup with Omar and in exactly 11 days, it would
be one year to the day since it had happened.
     
    She’d
decided to save her intimate self for a serious relationship, but that didn’t
mean she had to start waiting to enjoy life. After a half hour of surfing,
she’d booked a four-day, three-night excursion to South Beach, Miami. It was the
only amount of time she felt comfortable taking off with a growing business to
look after.
     
    Eleven
days from now she’d be on a plane to sun, sand and hopefully some form of sanity
again. And she could rewrite history; the date Omar had broken her heart would
have a whole new meaning.
     
    A
fresh start; she’d been denying she needed one for way too long.

 
    Chapter
2
     
    11
Days Later
     
    “Try
not to overbook us while I’m gone, will ya,” Kammille threw over her shoulder
as she left her office.
     
    “I’ll
try not to, but I can’t help that your marketing is so effective,” Liza said.
“I don’t know what you say to those Chamber members when you go to those
networking events, but it seems that every time you go, the next day the phone
is ringing off the hook. We need to screen a few more reliable banquet servers,
order some more aprons, look for larger event space … just get your bottom out
of here and get back soon!”
     
    “Are
you sure you’re gonna be okay with me gone Liza? I mean, I know you’re capable
and all, but when I booked this trip, I had no idea we’d be so busy. I could
delay …”
     
    “Oh
no you don’t missy. You’ve delayed this trip by almost a year too long in my
opinion. Now go. Go! Go! Go! … And don’t forget to have fun. Do something
sinful; something you’d be embarrassed to even tell your best friend about.
Something that can remain your little secret; that can bring a smile to your
face during the middle of a hectic day and have people wondering, ‘What the
heck is that impish look about?’”
     
    “Why
Liza, I didn’t know you had it in you,” Kammille said. “You sly devil. Only
someone who has secrets of her own can command someone else to start piling
some up.”
     
    “A
southern belle never tells,” Liza smiled, one eyebrow going up. “Now git you.”
     
    “’Git’?
Really Liza? You do realize that you lapse into southernese when you’re
 up to something or upset, don’t you?”
     
    “Why
yes, I doooo,” Liza said, drawing out the word ‘do’ in her strongest