Chapter One-Mary

It was almost nine thirty and Mary was still glued to her desk, wanting another couple of hours worth of work under her belt before she finally went to bed. She had a full day ahead of her in the morning, so she wanted to do what she could to lesson the burden for the following day. Mary worked as a game designer for her father's computer company, designing intellectually stimulating computer and video games. The ideas for Mary's games were based on literature and sold primarily to schools and after school programs since they were both entertaining and educational. Two years ago Mary's father, Stephen, decided to start selling them in stores and so far profits were promising.

Mary enjoyed her job since it married her desire to be creative, as well as her need for a dependable, steady job. Despite living in New York City, she was not one of those young women who enjoyed living in a studio with eight roommates running from audition to audition to audition. She was quite comfortable knowing she had a steady income and that her future wasn't in question. Yes, it was true, she did have roommates, two not eight, but that was because they were her dear friends whom she loved spending time with. As Mary worked on her latest story idea, she gaze shifted upward, looking at her friends with affection.

Roommate number one was Terra McCavern, a dear friend since toddlerhood and beloved roomy of many years. Terra and Mary's fathers met ions ago while employed as green berets and quickly became friends. They carried their friendship over into the professional world when they retired from military duty and set up their successful computer software business. Mary thought of Terra as a sister: when Stephen was deployed for two years with Terra's father Mark, Mary stayed with Terra and her mother Linda. Mary and Terra lived like sisters those two years, so it was like coming full circle to live with her again.

Terra was twenty-eight, same as Mary, and at 5'8 was half a foot taller. She was slimly built with modest curves and fair skin. She had straight, shoulder length suny blonde hair, small, wide set pale blue eyes, a slightly pointed nose, and thin, pale pink lips, and small chin. She was wearing her hair loose, as usual, and looked quite comfy in a pink tank top and matching yoga pants. She was sipping tea and leisurely skimming an art book, a favorite pasttime as well as work related since she was a jewelry and accessories designer and often took inspiration from various artists.

Her pieces were in several department stores, as well as a boutique of her own. Four years ago Terra opened her own shop, aptly titled Terra's Pieces to coenside with the name of her accessories line. So far her business was doing well, not surprising since Terra worked constantly to cement her success. Mary wasn't exactly a jewelry fanatic, but she was proud of her friend's success and thought her pieces were stunning.

Mary's final roommate was Embeth D'onofrio, her cousin. Embeth, or Beth as she preferred to be called, was the same age as Mary and Terra and the same height as Terra. In contrast to Terra's blonde hair, blued eyed looks Beth had an olive complexion, chin length dark brown hair and almond shaped, dark brown eyes. Her face was oval shaped and her thin, mulberry colored mouth was almost always formed into a bright, engaging smile. Beth was one of the sweetest people Mary knew, which was fitting since she owned a bakery. Beth's love of all things sweet and fattening started early in life, so it was no surpise when she became a pastry chef.

Her years of hard work paid off when she was able to start her own bakery, Beth's Sweet Treats, two years ago. Beth poured her heart into her business, often times working everyday in order to establish her business. Business was going well and Beth's Sweet Treats now employed another baker, a chef, two assistants, as well as a small cluster of waitresses, since the bakery also served as a cafe, offering breakfast and lunch. Beth opened the bakery, going in between three and four in the morning to do prep work and general opening duties. On the day she was fortunate enough to leave early, she left between two and three in the afternoon, as opposed to working until closing at six thirty.

She would come home, watch Rachael Ray, which she tivoed, and go to bed. When she woke, she would either catch up on the rest of her tivo or go out with Mary, Terra, and the others in their close knit circle. She was now awake, shuffling quietly to the kitchen for something to eat. Considering her profession, Mary would marvel at how her cousin remained in such decent shape, but Beth would just laugh and say she was too busy during the day to eat. She was clearly hungry now, however, since was heating up a can of tomato soup and preparing a grilled cheese, tomato, and bacon sandwich.

"Good evening, Beth. How was your today?" Mary asked, spinning her chair so she could look at her.

"A whirlwind of chaos as always," Beth replied. She was wearing stripped pajama bottoms and a white tank top. "I think everyone in New York is getting married this summer since most of my customers were ordering cakes or coming in for a taste test. We are offically swamped for the next three months."

"That's good, though," Terra replied, looking up from her book and taking off her reading glasses in the process. "having a thriving business nowadays is a blessing."

"That is so true," Beth agreed. "believe me I'm not complaining. I would much rather be swamped than out of business." She stiffled a yawn as she flipped her sandwich. "it's almost as if bakeries are recession proof, since this economy hasn't stopped people from gorging on sweets."

"That's normal. In hard economic times people like to treat themselves as a way of cheering themselves up," Mary commented.

"That's why I'm so surprised Borders is going out of business," Terra said. "with you as a customer one would think they would be set for life."

Mary laughed. "It's all research for work," she teased back, although that wasn't entirely true. Mary had been a bookworm as long as she could remember. Some of her fondest memories were of wandering around bookstores for hours and hours.

"I'm just waiting for you to chain yourself to the doors and stage a protest. I am setting aside bail money as we speak," Beth chimed in. Her meal was now cooked, so she sat at the counter and began to eat. There was warm water left in the teapot Terra used earlier, so Beth was enjoying a cup of English tea.

"Seeing any establishment that sells books fall victim to the economy is painful, but as long as second hand stores remain afloat I'll find the will to survive," Mary replied. She walked into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. She wasn't really hungry, but wanted to snack on something so she pulled out a tupperware bowl of seedless green grapes and joined Beth at the table.

"You know, I have heard of another place in which to find books," Terra replied, rising from the couch she could join her friends at the table. "it's a building that houses hundreds of books that anyone can take for free, provided they have a magic card with their names on it. Oh, gee, what is that place called again..." she said, tapping her chin with her index finger as if deep in thought.

"Ha ha, very funny," Mary said, making a face at her friend. As much as she loved reading, Mary wasn't fond of libraries, since she didn't like the musty smell of the books or having to return them. The few times she did go, she ended up owing late fees since she couldn't bear to part with the books when it came time to return them.

"You look tired Beth. Did you get enough sleep?" Mary asked.

"I am exhausted," Beth admitted, slowly ripping her sandwich into bite sized pieces so she could eat. "I only got out of bed because I was hungry and couldn't force myself to sleep through the stomach growling. Apparently when my body craves food, waiting isn't an option."

"Well, maybe if you ate more during the day you could stay awake in the evening. It's healthier to eat earlier in the day as opposed to later in the evening," Mary replied.

"Mary, I'm usually too busy to breathe, let alone eat," Beth pointed out. "which I guess is a good thing, since I would probably weigh a thousand pounds if I sampled everything we made."

"Don't worry, I'm just messing with you," Mary replied.

"How's your jewelry coming alone, Terra?" Beth asked, dipping her piece of sandwich into her soup before eating.

"It's going well. I have become so inspired by the heat of this summer, so I'm working with lots of brightly colored jewels and bold designs."

"I love the sketch you made of the black onyx ring," Mary added.

"Of course you, Mary, it's black. All you wear is black," Terra said.

"Black is considered fashion forward and bold by the fashion industry," Mary pointed out.

"Since when do you pay attention to fashion trends?" Beth joked, wanting in on the heckling. It was a firmly held belief in their circle that it was pointless having friends if you couldn't tease the crap out of them. If heckling was a sign of love, they were enamored with each other.

"Black is an easy color: it can be dressed up or dressed down, it pairs beautifully with everything, and most importantly of all, requires no effort," Mary said.

Mary was slovenly but fashion wasn't high on her list of priorities: to be accurate, it wasn't on her list at all. She was quite content wearing the same pieces over and over again and only parted with clothing when it was no longer wearable or if one of her trusty roommates disposed of it. At the moment she was wearing a black tank top with black sweat pants and her hair in a messy bun and she couldn't be happier.

"It's such a shame that a woman of your creative talents can't put forth more effort into your wardrobe. If your games bore any resemblence to your wardrobe you would be out of a job," Terra replied.

"Well then thank God the family business involves computers and not couture," Mary said.

"I guess I'm the only one who wants to see Mark and Uncle Steve in stilettos strutting down a runway," Beth joked.

"That image is both hilarious and disturbing," Mary said, her mouth twitching in amusement as the images of her 6'8, powerfully built father sauntering down a runway in heels entered her mind. As she popped a grape into her mouth, she was caught between wanting to fall down laughing or set up an appointment with a therapist.

Beth and Terra laughed and the three women continued chatting until their intercom started buzzing. No one was expecting company, so this came as a surprise. Mary rose from her seat and walked to the door, pressing a button on the intercom box before speaking.

"Hi, who's there?" she asked.

"Hey Mary, it's me. I know it's late, but could I please come up? I...I need to talk to you and the girls."

"Certainly Stace, I'll buzz you in right now," Mary replied, pressing another button to allow her entry.

"Stacee's here," Mary announced to Terra and Beth, who were looking at her with interest.

"I wonder what's up. She's usually not done with work until at least midnight, so this must be pretty important," Terra pointed out, pouring herself more tea and helping herself to a package of Petridge Farm cookies in the cupboard. She offered the package to Beth, who selected some cookies for herself.

Stacee Phillips was Mary and Beth's cousin, who was the same age at the other ladies and lived in a studio apartment in Greenwich Village with her husband Mike. Stacee was the only child of Mary and Beth's Uncle Bill and fellow partner in crime since childhood. Like Beth, Stacee had fallen in love with the culinary world, only she was a chef. She started out small, working as a waitress, then hostess, and then as chef in smaller restaurants before working her way up to larger ones. Two years ago, her hard work paid off when she opened her own restaurant Stacee's, which married high end dining with a downtown, partylike atmosphere.

Stacee was 5'8 with shoulder length, straw colored hair, large almond shaped blue-green eyes, and heart shaped face. Her nose was slightly wide and her chin pointed. Her best feasure was her smile, which was so wide and so exuberant it could charm anyone, which was a plus for someone in the restaurant business. Her curves were generous and despite her efforts to stay in shape, sometimes the evidence of her profession showed in her waistline. She was wearing dark jeans and a plum colored cap sleeved shirt with a v neck.

"I think you all will be happy to know I finally left my lying, cheating, good-for-nothing husband," Stacee replied, following Mary into the kitchen.

"It only took you six years to realize that about him?" Terra remarked. "God, don't I feel stupid for realizing that, oh, I don't know, almost right away?"

"Ha ha, very funny. You and Mary have always been very vocal about your mutual disdain of him," Stacee replied, fixing herself some tea before sitting at the table and helping herself to some cookies. As Stacee munched, Mary slipped into her bedroom, needing to retrieve something.

"The important thing is you finally opened your eyes to the truth and didn't waste another moment with him," Beth said kindly. "at least the two of you don't have children together. That should make things a little easier."

"What was the final straw that broke this blessed union?" Terra asked.

"The demise of our marriage was a long time coming, but the final straw was when the credit card company called me at the restaurant today wanting to discuss some unusual charges. It turns out Mike gave his little girlfriend carte blanche to use my credit card any way she saw fit. It's funny how Mike and his whore have all the time in the world to charge my card into the next millenium and yet he was always too "swamped" to work or help out around the house."

"Were you able to declare the charges as fradulent, since the card was in your name and he wasn't a user on the account?" Terra asked.

"Yes, thank God," Stacee replied, running her hand through her disheveled blonde hair. "I would have been beyond pissed if I would have had to pay $5000 for his whore's shopping spree when he hasn't so much as bought me a cup of coffee-well, with his money anyway."

"Does Mike know you left him or did you come directly here from the restaurant?" Beth asked.

"Oh yeah, he knows. After I finished talking to the credit card companies I called our other credit card companies and had his name removed from the accounts before doing the same thing to our joint accounts."

"Nice," Terra said with approval.

"Mar, what are you doing in there? What are you looking for?" Beth called, looking in the direction of Mary's room.

"Sorry for pulling a Houdini on you guys, but I have been waiting six years for this moment-well, eight if include their lovely courtship-and I wanted to celebrate right," Mary replied, walking back into the kitchen with a large box.

Stacee, Terra, and Beth looked with interest as Mary opened the box and pulled out bottle after bottle of wine, as well as wine glasses, blowouts, party hats, and streamers. The three ladies raised their eyebrows, looking amazed as they rose from their seats and walked over to the counter to inspect the merchandise.

"Sequana Pinot Noir, Ramey Claret, Castiglion del Bosco Brunello...damn girl, you really *did* hate Mike," Stacee said, eyeing the bottles of wine with surprise.

"Oh, lookie here, Bordeaux's 2005 Vintage," Beth said, looking at the bottle hungrily.

"So much for you going back to bed," Terra said, looking at her friend as she donned a party hat.

"If I wanted to be well rested I wouldn't have moved in with the two of you," Beth teased, opening the bottle and pouring everyone a glass.

"Bordeaux is an interesting choice of wine, Mary, especially since 2005 is the year in which I was married," Stacee said, looking at her friend knowingly.

"I felt it made everything come full circle," Mary said with a shrug, thanking Beth as accepted a glass of wine. The foursome sat down and Stacee continued speaking.

"So anyway, I went home to confront Mike about his little indiscretion..."

"Wait," Beth interrupted. "I sorry, I don't mean to interrupt, but how did you know Mike was with another woman and not just blowing the money on himself? Remember the time he charged over $1000 on your card for video games?"

"Yes, but I have suspected for a while now that Mike was cheating on me. When I would come home from the restaurant, for example, I would see him talking on his phone, but as soon as he saw me, he would hang up and shove his phone into his pocket. It was the same thing with his laptop-when I wasn't in the room he would be glued to the damn thing, but as soon as I entered the room he would snap the lid shut and get defensive when I asked what he was doing. He wouldn't let me see his text messages, read his mail, or listen to his voicemail."

"I hope you called the phone company and asked to see a written bill of all calls made and received," Mary replied. "and since your name is on those accounts you would be able to access his voicemail and texts."

"Don't worry Mar, I called ATT&T and they couldn't have been more helpful or understanding," Stacee replied. "I also logged onto his laptop and our desktop to check what he's been doing. I may not be a computer whizz like you, but when someone uses the same three passwords for everything it isn't too hard to find the information I need. It turns out that while I'm at work, my dear sweet husband likes to spend his time purusing porno sites, calling 900 numbers, and meeting women whom he's met off of dating websites. I found his account on E-Harmony and according to him, he's a "foot loose and fancy free entrepreneau looking to find balance in his scheduled, professional life. He's hoping to find the ying to his yang."

"Professional life?" Mary scoffed, trying not to choke on her wine. "since when does being able to smoke an entire bag of weed and drink a 24 pack before noon-if he *is* in fact awake-constitute as being professional? And let me guess what his self-started business is-lifting up the cushions of your sofa and eating or playing with what he finds?"

"I suppose jumping onto the counter of your bar and performing a drunken, tantric style dance counts as 'footloose and fancy free'," Terra added.

Stacee laughed and shook her head, taking a long drink from her glass as Mary interjected with another comment.

"Did you check your laptop as well? I know you checked yours as well, but he could have gone on yours too. Remember when he took his laptop in for repairs and was without it for a week? It's very possible he went onto yours for that period of time, as well as other times as well. And I'm willing to bet there's more on those computers that meets the eye-just because he deleted something doesn't mean it doesn't exist. Give me the IP addresses for your computers and I'll get to the bottom of what he's been doing all these years. Oh-I have something else for you."

"Wow, I need to get divorce more often. Who doesn't love Christmas in June?"

Mary cracked a smile walked over to the counter, pulling a small box out of the larger one before walking back to the table and handing it to Stacee. Stacee removed the lid and raised an eyebrow when she saw the various business cards.

"Those are business cards for the best divorce lawyers in the city," Mary explained. "I highly recommend Nathan Harris. He is considered to be one of the most cutthroat lawyers in the state-he gave *me* chills. You need and deserve the best when you're getting this loser out of your life."

"I will give him a call in the morning," Stacee replied. "I was such an idiot for putting up with his shit for all these years. When I went home to confront him I found him on *my* couch, banging the whore that used *my* fucking credit card! As angry as I am about him cheating, I'm even more furious about him and that slut desicrating my brand new sofa! It was made of Italian leather for God's sake!"

"I can't believe you walked in on them," Beth said, looking sympathetic.

"I can't believe you spent as much as you did on a leather sofa. Leather gets so hot in the summer and it's a pain in the ass to maintain," Terra replied.

"In any event, thank you for this Mary," Stacee said, gesturing to the business cards. "I want an attorney that will go for the jugular."

"From what I hear, not only will Mr. Harris go for the juglar, but he'll rip it out and set it on fire," Mary replied.

"Ohhh, I like fire," Stacee replied, grinning evilly.

The women laughed and chatted a little while longer, enjoying the bottles of wine as well as finger food they pulled out of the cupboards and refrigerator. Stacee swallowed the last of her wine and spoke.

"I should go check things out at the restaurant. I left in a mad rush earlier and haven't called to see how things are going."

"I'm sure everything is going well. You have an amazing kitchen staff," Beth assured her.

"I know, but I want this day to be about more than just my loser, soon-to-be-ex husband," Stacee replied.

"Do you want us to go with you?" Beth asked.

"I think that's a wonderful idea," Mary agreed. "Stace, just give us a few minutes to get ready and we'll be out of here in no time. Besides, it's not like we won't be allowed in past closing."

The ladies left the kitchen and went into their respective bedrooms, knowing time was of the essence since Stacee wanted to get to the restaurant as quickly as possible. As Terra and Beth went into their rooms, Stacee followed Mary into hers. They stepped into her walk-in closet and continued their conversation as Mary examined her options. She decided to don a one sleeved, black silk shirt and dark jeans. She removed her tank top and slipped on her shirt.

Luckily her bra was also black so she didn't have to change it. Mary didn't like showing off her generous bust, preferring instead to either cover up entirely or highlight another part of her body, such as her neck or shoulders. Her top was an ideal choice, since it not only covered her bust entirely, but it also made her broad shoulders look more dainty. Standing at a mere 5'2, she liked to joke that her body consisted of only breasts and leg with a hint of ass. Her torso may not have been as long as she would like, but she had a narrow waist and toned legs, which were the result of endless hours spent on the tennis court and swimming pool. She didn't consider herself athletic, but tennis and swimming were two sports she did well.

Mary was fair skinned with shoulder length, curly auburn hair, medium sized, almond shaped, blue-grey eyes that were slightly wide set, and a smattering of freckles across her nose, shoulders, and arms. Her nose was rounded and her lips slightly full. The rosiness of her cheeks was typically the only color on her face since she seldom bothered with make-up. She would apply lip gloss sometimes if she was going out, but during the day she preferred to remain au naturale. She opted not to bother with make up tonight, so after throwing on her clothes she sat down so she could put on her shoes. Mary loathed heels, so she slipped on a pair of black leather flats with silver detail.

"Are you kicking Mike out of the apartment?" Mary asked. She decided her hair looked fine in its ponytail, so she decided to leave it alone. She did, however, spritz her neck with perfume. She may not be the most fashionable woman in the world, but she did have a weakness for perfume.

"After all the bullshit that's happened in that place I never want to go back. In the morning I'm going to speak to the landlord about buying my way out of the lease. I know it will be expensive, but at least my name will be taken off the lease and I won't have to go back there. That place reminds me too much of Mike and my stupidity."

"Do you want to stay here until you get back on your feet?" Mary asked. "we have plenty of room and we can pretend we're in college again. Think of the fun we'll have: four single ladies taking on the Big Apple. It'll be fun."

"Only if you're sure, Mary. I don't want to impose or make you feel obligated to take me in. I can always rent another apartment or move in with my parents."

"Nonsense, Stac, you're family and family sticks by each other when they're needed. I can't help but feel that if I hadn't been such a hard ass towards you about your marriage, you would have ended things sooner."

Mary disliked Mike the moment she set eyes on him and the feelings were resipricated. Mary's loathing of Mike was so strong that she gave Stacee a card at her engagement party that said: "It's not too late to change your mind, Stacee." Stacee was so angry she didn't ask Mary to be a bridesmaid in her wedding, which was fine with her since Mary knew she couldn't feign happiness over a union that she felt was doomed from the start. Mary tried everything she could to put a stop to the wedding, even going so far as to trying to bribe the groom-to-be, but to no avail.

All Mary accomplished was further estrangement from her cousin, which resulted in Mary not attending her wedding. The two didn't speak for months and even when their relationship was healed enough to resume communication, a dark cloud always loomed over them.

"I'll admit, Mar, that you are a judgemental, impossible to please hard ass, but I know you were just trying to look out for me. I knew all along the type of person Mike was, but I thought he would change. I really believed that with enough guidance and direction he could be the the man I envisioned."

"I think most women have dated a less than stellar man in hopes of changing him. Hollywood has marketed the "bad boy redeemed through love" gimmick for decades, so it isn't surprising women fall into that trap. As much as I hate Mike, I can see why you were drawn to him: he oozed superficial charm and that can be hard to resist for some women. I just hope from now on you realize you are deserving of a fully fuctional, put together man who will love you and treat with the respect you deserve."

"After everything that's happened, I think I want to stay as far away from men as humanly possible," Stacee said, letting out a humorless chuckle.

"I think that's a wonderful idea. I have been single for years and it is so nice being able to come and go as you please without having to answer to anyone."

"I can't even remember the last time you had a boyfriend. Do you ever get lonely?"

Before Mary could respond, Terra and Beth entered the room. Terra was wearing a ruched metallic dress, along with layered bangles and a cocktail ring. Beth looked sweet and festive in a strapless ruffle dress.

"Are you ready to go?" Terra asked.

"Yes. The two of you look certainly look festive: you *are* aware we're just going to be in and out?" Stacee asked.

"Stacee, you know as well as we do that "in and out" isn't a part of your vocabulary. You know perfectly well that as soon as we get there you're going to take over and we're going to be there the rest of the evening," Terra replied.

"We may as well look good and have some fun while you're toiling away in your hot, chaotic kitchen," Beth added. "besides, the best looking men are always out this time of night, so why not take advantage of the situation."

"Beth, you need to be around men as much as I do," Stacee said. "you are an intelligent businesswoman, but some of the men you have dated make Mike look like a prince."

"I think we should make this a ladies' night only and leave men the hell alone tonight. We don't need men in our lives to have fun," Mary said.

"You would know," Beth said.

The foursome exited Mary's bedroom, collected their handbags, and left, hoping for a fun filled, stress free evening.