Free Permanent Resident at the Purse Table by Keisha Bass Page B

dish towel at the same time, Ishmael pulled it closer to him. Ava pulled it back her way, dried her hands, and tossed the towel to him.
    He placed the towel back on its hook and took hold of her hand. “Listen, Ava. You are special, and sooner rather than later, the right guy will come along and sweep you off your beautiful feet.”
    â€œI’ll let you tell it.” If only that were true. She shrugged her shoulders and walked away.
    Ishmael grabbed hold of her arm and turned her back to face him. He ran his finger down her arm and caressed the inside of her palm. “No, I’m serious.” He stepped to Ava and kissed her on the lips.
    Wait, what? “Ishmael, what are you doing?”
    â€œI want to show you how special you are.” His kisses moved to her neck. Strong traces of his cologne heightened the temptation. The warmth of his touch soothed every fiber in her body one by one. Ava felt secure and sexy, and more like a woman than she had in months. He wanted her.
    The three glasses of wine, Ishmael’s debonair looks, and Rene’s description of his “good stuff” in the bedroom added up to the curious tension that took over Ava’s motions. As she returned the affectionate gestures, she felt like a queen sitting on a pedestal. He led her down the hall to her bedroom, leading her down the wrong path in more ways than one, and closed the door behind them.

Chapter 9
    The morning sunlight wove in and out of the blinds. Ava lifted her head to look at her alarm clock. Before her eyes could focus on the numbers, the bell sound of her cell phone acted as an alarm. The upbeat ring didn’t match her slothful disposition. She reached for the phone, and realized how much her head hurt. I ain’t drinking no mo’. The text message read: Happy Valentine’s Day, baby girl! Love you, Daddy
    She set her cell down and turned over to look on the other side of the bed. Ishmael was nowhere in sight. A piece of paper rested in his vacant spot. Ava picked up the scrap paper and read it aloud. “Please don’t tell Rene. I want to make things right with her. Act like nothing happened. Thanks.” She crushed the note and threw the ball of paper across the room. This fool here. How could I sleep with Ishmael?
    After all of her puffed-up talk about how much she wished Rene would leave him alone, Ava tested the waters and fell in. The deep end. That act of sin was wrong on so many levels. Striking herself in the head, she repeated, “What have I done?”
    When she stopped beating herself up, her stomach sounded like a bulldozer riding over gravel. A bolder moved up her chest and into her throat. She dry heaved, covered her mouth, and then sprinted to the bathroom. As Ava kneeled in front of the shiny, white throne, the ice-cold floor cooled her skin. This would be a Valentine’s Day she would never forget. How did this happen? One minute, she was chillin’ in the tub alone with her thoughts and her wine, and the next, she was engaged in relations with Ishmael.
    In between trips to the bathroom, she called in sick to work. She didn’t want to look bad missing her first day of training for her new supervisor’s position, but there was no way she could go in the office an emotional wreck with a hangover. Drinking the entire bottle of water from her nightstand, she paused. Returning Toni’s call was the only thing she could think to do.
    Toni’s voicemail answered. Ava spoke with instability in her voice. “Hey, girl, sorry I missed your call last night. Wish I hadn’t. I messed up, Toni. I messed up big time. Please give me a call as soon as you can.”
    After replaying last night’s scene in her head, she yanked the sheets and pillowcases from her bed. The pile of bedding covered her entire upper body as she blindly walked to the laundry room, and dropped the guilt-stained sheets in the washer. Cleaning up behind her mistake drained