The Alex Chronicles:Girlfriends & Secrets (6 page)

Shortly
after our breakup, I started seeing a wonderful, amazing,
sensitive, sexy man that adores me. He
’
s everything I want. I told my girlfriends about
him and they were excited and eager to meet him, until I disclosed
he only exists in my very vivid dreams. That
’
s when they surmised I was losing my mind.
I
’
m not crazy I just
have a very active dream life. Too bad my awake state
isn
’
t as
exciting.

In my
dream state, I have been having a relationship with the same man
off and on for a couple of years. But it wasn
’
t until the one on February 6th that I
started journaling them. I hope none of my friends finds my journal
and reads it. It could be a little embarrassing and difficult to
explain. I named the star of my dreams R
ê
ve, that
’
s French for dream.

I
’
ve never
really seen his face, just his body. He
’
s incredible
…
average height, jet black wavy hair, dark olive skin and
built like a brick wall. His sarong fits low on his hips barely
concealing his uhm
…
let
’
s just say,
he
’
s all man and then
some.

I
don
’
t think
I
’
ll ever forget that
night. I was in a deep sleep and then my conscious drifted into the
most serene place. I was walking along a beach and this incredibly
sexy man approached me. He smiled and it sent a chill through my
body. He asked if he could join me on my walk. We strolled along
the length of the white sandy beach a while before he casually
reached for my hand. His touch felt like I
’
d been shot with an electric jolt straight
to my core. I could barely stand up.

He quickly wrapped me in his muscular arms
and pulled me to his chest. I felt uncomfortable, but safe at the
same time. He gently stroked my temple and followed with a sweet
kiss.

“
Are you
all right?
”

The heat
of those words traveling off his lips and into my mind, were so
powerful. In that brief moment, he
’
d shown me more concern and compassion than any
other man I
’
d been with.
All I could do was smile and nod.

He ran his finger across my lips, down my
chin, gliding down my neck, just stopping at the damp apex of my
cleavage. I could barely breathe. Our eyes locked and he gently
pressed his lips against mine. His tongue slowly invaded my mouth.
He tasted like pineapple and sweet wine. I wanted more. He pulled
me closer and his hands eased under my top and the heat from his
hands penetrated my skin making my blood boil.

He pulled
my shirt over my head and tossed it on the white sandy beach. He
kissed my shoulder and moved his mouth down my collar bone,
dragging his tongue across my hot skin. His hand cupped
my
…
.Bzzzz
…
Bzzzz
…
Bzzzz
…

Crap!
…
Crap!
…
Crap!
…
the alarm
rang. Just as I was getting to the good part, or maybe
that
’
s all there is to
the dream.

Why
can
’
t I find a boyfriend
like the one in my dreams. He
’
s perfect. He has strong hands, soft lips and he can read
my mind. I get chills thinking about him. If it
wasn
’
t a shame,
I
’
d get some sleeping
pills so I could visit with him more frequently. I love my job, but
I could stand an afternoon visit or two or three from my dream man
to alleviate my stress.

_________________________

In
college, I watched my cousin Taylor and friend Chloe juggle men
like they were in the circus. I could never do that. I have always
been a one at a time kind of girl. Grant it, I never had guys like
the ones chasing Chloe and Taylor trying to get with me. No, I
seemed to attract the mama
’
s boy or the under achiever only in college so his parents
wouldn
’
t cut him
off.

I always
wanted to be the girl that dated the hot guy that everyone wanted.
The guy that could stop traffic with his looks. But he had to have
the other things on my list. That
’
s right. I have a list. My girlfriends think
it
’
s childish. But,
after my last debacle I thought I needed to stay focused and not
get distracted with another idiot head just looking for a
sponsor.

I want a
man that appreciates all I have to offer. He also needs to like my
cooking. Really, I can
’
t
afford to be wasting time with someone who doesn
’
t like my cooking. How is he going to give
me good feedback if he won
’
t eat my food?

He also
has to love God. That
’
s
my deal breaker. I don
’
t
have time for mama
’
s
boys, underachievers, day dreamers or free spirits.
I
’
m trying to build an
empire, and I need a man that can help me.

_________________________

So
what
’
s my secret? I have
a few, but one isn
’
t
mine It
’
s someone
else
’
s and they made me
swear never to share it. My other secret would destroy my
relationship with my cousin Alex. The other secret
that
’
s holding me
prisoner is a shocker even for me. I never saw it coming and
I
’
m still in shock.
I
’
m glad Chloe gave me
that gun, because it came in handy.

AS DIFFERENT AS THE FIVE
of us are, we are very much alike and that’s why
we’re friends. I think if there weren’t traces of each of us in
each other, we wouldn’t be friends. We balance each other out. But
when it comes to love, relationships and marriage, we’re all very
different.

Considering our differences, you
’
d think it would be easy to keep a pact we made in
college. That just confirms that pacts are for children and not
grown women who are all searching for love.

The first
part of the pact was simple
…
no dating any of your friend
’
s ex-boyfriends, ex-husbands, relatives or
co-workers. Second part, no secrets. No matter how much the truth
could possibly hurt, we vowed to be truthful and honest with each
other.

However, every last one of us has broken the
pact, several times. Among the five of us there were too many
secrets to keep track of.

The week we spent in Atlanta for my new store
opening was the week that broke the seal on a few secrets that
would change our lives forever.

We all
found ourselves asking,
“
How well do I know my best friends?
”

excerpt
from

book one

this is how it started...

I SCANNED THE ROOM ADMIRING
all the Who’s Who of Atlanta here to help me
celebrate the opening of my new store.

My cousin
Taylor offered to throw me a welcome to Atlanta party, sort of a
pre-opening. She said it
’
s the best way to entice the glitterati of Atlanta to come
to the opening. If I weren
’
t the guest of honor, I
’
d be gone. I have so much to get done before the
opening.

I looked across the room and caught the eye
of the most beautiful man in the room. I convinced myself he was
smiling at me, until I realized my cousin Taylor was behind me.

She
walked over and whispered,
“
Too bad he is so old.
”

“
How old
is he?
”
I
asked.

“
He
’
s in our
neighborhood.
”

“
So now,
we
’
re old?
”

“
No
girl.
”
She
laughed.
“
You know what
I mean. I thought I
’
d
try something a little fresher.
”
She turned to her right and cast a big smile in
the direction of this young, honey colored, bald child standing in
the corner. He was fine, but he still had milk on his lips. She
motioned for him to come over although Mr. Dark Chocolate was also
headed towards us.

Mr. Dark
Chocolate moved like a gazelle, slow and steady gliding across the
room. Swagger...confidence...danger. As he approached, I saw the
details of his face more clearly. His skin looked like smooth dark
chocolate and he had the most incredible light brown eyes.
I
’
ve never seen a man so
dark with such light eyes. They didn
’
t seem real, nor did he. He smiled and I felt
something deep in my core. I don
’
t care if he
’
s only coming over to talk to my cousin.
I
’
m grateful to stand
here in his presence and lust
…
I mean admire him. He stopped in front of us and my mind
immediately filled with thoughts no good, Christian girl should
know anything about. I wonder what he looks like wet and naked. I
looked around hoping I hadn
’
t said that out loud.

“
Hello,
Taylor.
”
He
smiled.

Oh God, did You recycle Barry White
’
s voice box and put it inside
this beautiful package?
My hormones and body went into a tailspin and I was ruined
for any other man on this planet.

Taylor
managed to pry herself from junior
’
s arms long enough to acknowledge what I believe
to be God
’
s best
work.
“
Hi Moses.
I
’
m glad you
came.
”

He kissed
the back of her hand and replied,
“
Thank you for inviting me.
”
He took my hand, turned it over and gently
kissed it. I think my uterus just flipped over.

“
Good
evening, I
’
m Moses
Adair.
”

Moses,
lead me to the Promise land.
“
Alexandra Miller.
”

“
Are
you
the
Alex?
”
He
asked.

If I
wasn
’
t, I was
now.
“
Which Alex would
that be?
”
I replied with
a smile.

“
The Alex
I
’
ve been hearing people
talk about all evening.
”

“
Depends
on what you
’
ve
heard.
”
I
’
m trying to
flirt and that
’
s not
something I
’
m good at. I
wanted to tell him,
“
I
’
m whoever I
need to be in order to keep talking to you.
”

“
Excuse
me
”
, Taylor said, as she
took junior
’
s arm and
left us standing in the middle of the room.

“
I heard
a woman say she hoped the pink dress Alex was wearing would be
available at the store, because she liked the way it...
”
He slowly looked me up and
down. When his eyes met mine, he was smiling. I instantly
recognized that smile. It
’
s the same one I had when I first spotted him.
“
...framed her
face.
”

I gave
him the same smile he gave me.
“
Then, I guess I
am
that
Alex.
”

As soon
as the flirting started, it ended. I saw him looking everywhere,
but at me. Time to move on. I should have known this gorgeous man
wasn
’
t interested in me.
I
’
m going to hurt Taylor
for leaving me with one of her castoffs.

“
Excuse
me, but I
…”

He gently
grabbed my hand.
“
Please
…”
I
looked at my hand and then at his face. Those incredible eyes went
from light to dark brown in a matter of seconds. A jolt hit my core
and I almost fell down.
“
Please
…
don
’
t leave me
alone.
”