Read Love, Lies and Scandal Online
Authors: Earl Sewell
Tags: #Fiction, #Romance, #Contemporary, #General
"I want my own apartment," Shantel said. Will chuckled. "I'm serious. If I don't get my own place then the deal is off."
"I'll see what I can do," Will said.
"And DaNikka?" Shantel asked.
"You let me handle her."
"No. Handle her now," Shantel demanded.
"What?"
"I'm serious. If we're going to do this I want you to drop her ass like a bad habit. Call her and tell her it's over."
"What's the rush?"
"I need to make sure you're not all emotionally attached to her. Here, call her on my phone and tell her." Shantel pressed the automatic dial button for DaNikka and tossed him her phone.
"Hey, Shantel." Will heard DaNikka answer the phone.
"It's me, Will," he answered.
"What are you doing calling me from Shantel's phone?" DaNikka demanded to know.
"I don't want to see you anymore, DaNikka. It's over between us. Don't call me anymore and don't expect any more money or favors from me."
"Will! What are you talking about? Where is Shantel? What the hell is going on?" DaNikka shouted. At that moment, Shantel took her phone back from Will.
"He belongs to me now, DaNikka," Shantel said to her friend. "I knew that he was going to like me better the moment he got a taste of my goodies. Thanks for letting me fuck your man and take him from you." Shantel shut the phone.
"You're insane!" Will said.
"And exciting, don't you think?"
Will knew that he was caught up in this young woman's web. His common sense told him what the right thing to do was, but at that moment Will didn't feel like doing what was right.
"When can you get us another girl?" Will asked.
"I'll see what I can do."
"Well, in the meantime, come make me happy." Will rested on his back and Shantel went about the business of removing his trousers. As she placed his manhood into her mouth, Will closed his eyes.
"I'm going to enjoy breaking your wild ass in," Will cooed as Shantel took control of his lust-filled soul.
Will stopped pumping gas and placed the nozzle back in its cage. He knew that having a relationship with a girl like Shantel was a big gamble, but it was a risk he'd wanted to take. It wasn't every day that he'd run across a girl as young, sexually free and exciting as Shantel. At that moment, his cell phone rang. He'd had to change his phone number after he'd broken up with DaNikka because she kept calling him. Now only Angela and Shantel had his new number. He removed the phone from its holster and saw that it was Shantel calling him.
"Hello," Will answered.
"I'm heading over to the Pittsburg Bay Point train station now with my luggage. It won't take me long to get to Oakland City Center train station."
"Good. I gave my speech this morning. We'll make it to the airport in plenty of time to make our flight to Philadelphia." Will couldn't wait to take Shantel to Secrets.
"I don't know why you have me taking the train when you could've just picked me up."
"I told you. I can't afford to have anyone in your neighborhood asking questions about me."
"That's why I need you to get me an apartment. We wouldn't have those problems if you'd take care of that."
"Don't worry. It's being taking care of. By the time we return, your apartment will be ready."
"Okay. I'll see you in a little while," Shantel said and hung up the phone.
Will had already set the wheels in motion to bump a pre-qualified tenant out of one of the new apartments so that Shantel could have it.
ANGELA
I
t had been two days since Will had left for Philadelphia on another one of his secret business trips that he refused to explain to her. Her female intuition told Angela that Will was up to no good. She suspected that he might have a mistress. Angela decided to do a little snooping around the house to see if she could find any receipts that would back up her theory, perhaps for purchases he hadn't told her about or a copy of his cell phone bill with an itemized list of the phone numbers he'd been calling. She searched Will's desk drawers, the pockets of his suits and the shelves of his closet. When she didn't find anything, she went back into his office and began searching cabinets. Still nothing. She was about to give up when she decided to look in one of his file cabinets. She tried to pull one of the drawers open but it was locked.
"Shit," she hissed. She tried to pry the cabinet open but she couldn't. She then ran into the kitchen and retrieved a screwdriver from the toolbox beneath the kitchen sink. Angela then tried to force her way into the cabinet but was unsuccessful.
"What is so important in this cabinet that he has to keep it locked up?" Angela wondered. She glanced at the clock situated atop his desk and realized that if she didn't get going, she'd be late for her show.
As Angela drove to the television studio, she put Will out of her mind and thought about the quick success of her show. After the first episode had aired, the network had placed a few more marketing dollars behind
Love, Lies and Scandal.
The station had created a Web site and posted video clips from her show. Thousands of viewers logged on to view the clips. Television ads encouraged people to tune in.
Over the past few weeks, she'd taped a number of shows. Today, however, Bobbi Franklin wanted it live. Angela's topic today was "The Art of Romance: How to Turn Rambos into Romeos." She knew that the topic was going to stir up some wild conversation. The producers of the show had located a gigolo by the name of Franklin Crenshaw who'd been in the business of escorting and romancing women for a number of years. He'd came highly recommended by several elite women who could afford his services. Angela was looking forward to having a conversation with him.
When Angela arrived at the studio, Shaletha was there as always, making sure she was on track and that the show ran smoothly.
"Has my guest arrived yet?" Angela asked Shaletha.
"Oh, yes. And, baby, that man is fine. Do you hear me? I mean F-I-N-E."
"He can't be all of that," Angela joked.
"Okay. Wait until you see him," Shaletha gushed.
"Well, I'm sure the studio audience will have a great time listening to him."
"Don't forget. One lucky studio-audience member will get a chance to win two airline tickets and hotel accommodations for three nights at Royal Palms Resort and Spa in Phoenix, Arizona."
"Thanks for the reminder," Angela said as she headed off to get her makeup done.
"Are you ready?" Bobbi entered the room just as Angela was getting out of the makeup chair.
"I'm ready." Angela smiled at her boss.
"Good, now get out there and run a good show for me." Bobbi was fired up.
Angela stood in the shadows listening to her familiar theme music until she heard her name announced, then stepped out onto the stage and into the spotlight. The audience clapped loudly for her and rose to their feet.
"Thank you," Angela said as the roar of the clapping began to subside. "Thank you again. Ladies, today's show is all about turning a clumsy lover into a romantic god." The audience laughed. "Now none of us are born lovers, so everything that we've learned has been taught to us by practicing with a number of lovers." The audience began to murmur and giggle and Angela encouraged them to be silly with her for a moment.
"My guest today is a man who makes his living romancing women. But before I bring him out, I wanted to take a few comments or questions from you guys to see what your romantic lives are like." Angela scanned the audience to see if anyone was standing at a microphone. She spotted a young lady standing with her hands behind her back.
"Okay, you. Young lady at microphone one."
"My name is DaNikka, and I'm from Pittsburg."
"Welcome to the show, DaNikka from Pittsburg," Angela greeted her.
"I just want to know. How can you be up there giving people advice and telling them how to make their relationships work when you can't keep your own relationship in order?" The audience gasped at DaNikka's bold statement. Angela laughed and downplayed the insult.
"I've been happily married for a number of years, sweetie. My husband and I are madly in love with each other. And my job here is to share with fans the secrets to love, to expose lies and to shine the spotlight on scandals." Angela placed her best Miss America smile on her face and was about to move on to the next person, but DaNikka continued to speak.
"Your husband is Congressman Will Rivers. A while ago he told you that he was on a business trip in Philadelphia. But he wasn't on a business trip. He was with
me.
And I have a picture to prove it." DaNikka exposed the large envelope that she'd been hiding. She pulled out an eight-by-ten photo, held it up and showed it to the studio audience. The photo was of DaNikka and Will at Zanzibar Blue in Philadelphia. "You don't know too much about romance because your husband has been fucking me ever since I was seventeen years old." The audience gasped again. "I'm twenty-one now--"
"Cut off her microphone!" Angela commanded.
"That's okay!" DaNikka shouted. "Because I can speak loud enough for everyone to hear me. Your husband was suppose to leave you but--"
"Security!" Angela shouted out.
When DaNikka saw the three security officers approaching her, she ran away from them and onto the stage with Angela.
"I hate you, bitch!" DaNikka began attacking Angela. She pulled her hair and slapped her face several times before Angela was able to strike her back. She was able to knock DaNikka off balance. They both fell to the floor and wrestled around until security came out and broke up their scuffle. A chorus of screams billowed up from the audience as Angela's personal drama spilled over into thousands of households.
Angela was sitting in Bobbi Franklin's office holding an ice pack on her upper lip. A flat-screen television was mounted on the wall behind her. Bobbi kept the TV on the world-news station to be alerted to any story of significance.
"Don't you worry," Bobbi said. "I'm going to make sure that we press charges against that woman for attacking you."
"I don't believe this shit happened," Angela said.
"Are you okay?" Shaletha asked, entering the office.
"I'm fine," Angela said.
"Let me see your lip," Shaletha insisted. "Come on. Let me just take a look at it."
"See!" Angela removed the ice pack.
"It's not so bad," Shaletha assured her.
"My dignity is what is hurt," Angela said.
"Oh my God!" Bobbi picked up the remote and turned up the volume on the television.
"Oh, shit!" Shaletha said as she looked at the television that was behind Angela.
"What? What's going on?" Angela asked, turning to see what they were watching.
"Girl, isn't that your husband?" Shaletha asked.
"A warrant has been issued for the arrest of Congressman Will Rivers after this tape was forwarded to authorities anonymously. The tape shows Congressman Rivers engaging in a sexual act with two women, one of whom is a known prostitute. Our investigative team has also obtained documents, which show that Congressman Rivers has been using public funds to pay for expensive trips and purchase luxurious gifts for his lovers. In addition to that, our team has learned that Congressman Rivers used his power and influence to provide Shantel, the young prostitute, with a two-bedroom apartment at the new public-housing complex in Oakland, even though she didn't have an application on file. It has also been confirmed that Congressman Rivers planned to use public money to pay his prostitute's rent."
A video clip of Will lying on his back and two women lying next to him filled the screen. Angela reached for the trash can. Her stomach did several somersaults before she vomited violently.
J
O
A
NN
"J
esse has filed for a divorce," JoAnn said as she took a gulp of her brandy. She was visiting her sister Jackie at work. They were the only two people in the bar.
"How much of your shit did you think he was going to take?" Jackie asked.
"I wasn't that bad." JoAnn still refused to admit that she had caused her marriage to fail. "Bring that bottle of E & J back and leave it here with me on the bar," JoAnn insisted. Jackie did as she asked.
"You know he almost kicked my ass the other night." JoAnn was searching for sympathy from her sister. "He was going to beat the shit out of me but he caught himself. Said that he wasn't that type of man and that I was turning him into something he wasn't."
"He
should
have beaten your ass. You took a lot of money, JoAnn. And you took it from your daughter's college fund. That was crazy."
"You know that I didn't plan to lose all of that money," JoAnn said as she poured herself some more brandy. She held her shot glass up to her lips but paused before she drank. "He wants to buy me out of our house. He said that he's not giving this divorce thing up. And he wants joint custody of Trina." JoAnn took another gulp.
"Well, it doesn't sound like a bad deal," Jackie said.
"What do you mean it doesn't sound like a bad deal! I'm losing my husband. Of course it's a bad damn deal."
"Here's a news flash for you, JoAnn. You lost Jesse and your marriage died a long time ago. It's just been waiting to be buried."
"You're supposed to be on my side, Jackie." JoAnn became irritated with her sister.
"I
am
on your side. No one knows you the way that I do. And I'm telling you that Jesse was too much of a good man for you. You need a man who will keep his foot in your ass. I know I should've said that before but I was being nice because you owed me money."
"What's that supposed to mean?" JoAnn was offended.
"Just what I said. You don't function right unless some man is stalking your every move."
"That's not true," JoAnn complained.
"Whatever," Jackie responded and walked away from her.
"You know, I'm not ready," JoAnn said after her.
"Ready for what?" Jackie asked, turning around.
"Ready for him to be done with me. I'm not ready for him to let me go. I want him to still want me. Do you understand what I'm saying?" JoAnn asked.
Jackie walked back and stood before her. "You can't make that man want you. He's decided to move on. He's gotten an attorney. He's made you an offer. That shit doesn't happen overnight. He's been thinking and planning this for a little while." Jackie took the bottle of E & J. "You drank an entire bottle of this. I think you've had enough."
"But I love him. Why can't you see that I love my man? Why can't you understand that I want him back? Why won't you help me get him back?"
"You're drunk, baby sister. You're a crying drunk."
"Fuck you, Jackie! Fuck you, fuck you and fuck you again. You've always wanted Jesse, haven't you? I know you have. You've always been jealous of me and my man. I know you are. I see the way you look at him. I know you want him." JoAnn stood up but she lost her balance and stumbled.
"He's mine, you hear me? And there isn't another bitch in this world who can have him or take him away from me. I'll cut a bitch fifty ways from Sunday if she tries to move in on
my
good thing. His dick only gets hard for this pussy right here." JoAnn grabbed her crotch and then tumbled backward into one of the booth seats. "Fuck it. I'm leaving," she said. She attempted to rise to her feet but suddenly felt like sitting down instead.
"You are drunk, JoAnn, and you're not going anywhere. I've already taken your keys from you. You might as well sit here and sleep it off."
"Why am I so stupid?" JoAnn asked and then began crying. "Why do I do stupid shit?"
"I don't know, JoAnn. But you're not the only one in the world who knows how to fuck things up for yourself. Plenty of people do it every day."
"You got any weed on you?" JoAnn asked and then drifted immediately off to sleep.
A few hours later, JoAnn woke up lying on a sofa with a blanket covering her. At first she had no idea where she was. It took her a minute to take in her surroundings and realize that she was at her sister Jackie's house, but she had no clue as to how she'd gotten there. She had a massive headache and her stomach was very sour. She sat upright and became dizzy.
"Jackie," JoAnn called. "Jackie," she called to her again.
"I'm in the bathroom," Jackie hollered out.
"Bring me some aspirin out of there when you're finished," JoAnn said as she ran her fingers through her hair. A few moments later, Jackie handed her a glass of water and a bottle of aspirin.
"Trina called here looking for you," Jackie said. "She's very upset about the divorce. You need to talk to her about it."
"Yeah, whatever. I'll get around to it," JoAnn said as she took the glass of water and the aspirin. Jackie sat on the sofa next to her.
"You can't run away from your problems by trying to stay drunk. I see too many people come into the bar to do just that. You got so drunk that I had to have someone help me put you in your car so that I could drive you over here."
"Jackie, I really don't want to hear you preaching at me right now, okay?"
Jackie remained quiet for a moment. "Fine. I'll stay out of it. You're a grown woman who can do whatever you choose. We've been fighting about your mistakes all of our lives and, quite honestly, I'm tired of trying to change you." Jackie said her piece, then got up and walked away from her sister.
"I'm glad she took her preaching ass on," JoAnn uttered as she took her pills and rested a little longer.