Free Hooked!: A Contemporary, Multicultural Romance by Yuwanda Black

box of tissue on the desk with three used wads in
front of her. She held another in her hand, wiping tears as fast as they
flowed.
     
    “Liza
what’s wrong? I’ve never seen you like this.”
     
    “I
know, not my normal perfectly coiffed, unflappable self, huh?” Liza blew her nose,
obviously not the first time that morning by the color of it. It was
pinkish-red.
     
    “No,
not exactly,” Kammille said, noting the irony in her friend’s voice. Even
though she and Liza still weren’t bosom buddies, they had become more friendly
since landing hotel contract because they’d been working insane hours, often
spending more hours at work than at home. Liza was pretty private and on the
hard side to get to know, but the more Kammille had learned about her business
partner, the more she liked and respected her.
     
    “You
look like Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer, you know?”
     
    Liza
laughed.
     
    “That’s
my girl. What’s wrong Liza? Wanna talk about it?”
     
    Liza
put her hands on her desk, picking apart a fresh piece of tissue she’d grabbed
from the box. “Today’s the second anniversary of the break-off of my
engagement. I know it sounds crazy to be crying over a two-year-old broken
engagement, but it was to the only man I fear I’ll ever love. And to top it
off, my sister – my younger sister, no less – just announced her engagement.
Now all the women in my family are in wedding mode. It just brought everything
crashing down on me Kammille. I thought I’d be married with at least one bun in
the oven by now. But here I am … 31, single, alone and no prospects in sight. …
And I’m losing more eggs every year.”
     
    Kammille
laughed out loud at that, which she knew was Liza’s intention. She had to mean
it that way; it was just too funny.
     
    “It’s
true,” Liza said, unable to keep a straight face herself. “I read a study that
said that by age 30, a woman has lost 90 percent of her eggs. And by 35, well
it’s just downhill after that. Don’t you worry about stuff like this Kammille?
I mean, we are the same age.”
     
    “I
guess I just hadn’t given it that much thought. Of course, I want marriage and
a family, but I’m willing to let nature take its course. There’s no timetable.
I just want to have it with the right person.”
     
    “I
wish I was more like you,” Liza said. “In my family, all the women are married
and have at least one kid by their late 20s; early 30s at the latest. If I hear
one more ‘Old Maid’ reference at Sunday dinner, I’m gonna explode,” Liza said.
     
    “I
guess I can see why you’re upset. I just wish I knew what to say to make you
feel better. … By the way, who is this guy who broke your heart? He must’ve
really been something to move you to tears two years after breaking off your
engagement.”
     
    “I
swore after he broke up with me that I’d never utter his name again. And I
haven’t. … But I still love him Kammille. I can’t help it. I fell in love with
him the first time I saw him and no man since then has caught my eye. Not one.”
     
    “I
know that feeling,” Kammille agreed, reflecting on the year she’d spent alone
after her broken engagement.
     
    “I
know you do. What’s it been, almost a year that you and Omar split?” Liza
observed. “But judging by the look on your face from last night and this
morning, your broken heart has healed and you’ve moved on. You look like the
cat who ate the canary. Spill! What’s his name?”
     
    “What
do you mean what’s his name? How do you know that my mood has anything to do
with a man?” Kammille said coyly.
     
    “For
one, you’re not denying it. But mainly, I know love when I see it and you’re
definitely in love. So who is he? What does he do?  Tell me all about him?
Let me live vicariously through you. Start with what he looks like? Is he
gorgeous? At least tell me he’s better looking than Omar.”
     
    “Omar
was handsome!” Kammille