"Did you ask her if she fucked him?" Brian Kendrick asked Randy.

"No."

Brian admired the young dancers on the stage. He was more than happy to support their dancing by slipping a few dollar bills to them. "Do you plan to?"

Brian Kendrick was the lead supervisor of the product specialists for Parker-Williams. He was a small man with boyish charm and a young face to match. In fact, his face was so young looking, Brian was often confused for a teenager. But his young looks didn't deter him from moving up the ranks at the aerospace company. He knew the air jets like the back of his hand, often showing off his knowledge by participating in the company's annual Jeopardy game at the Christmas party.

Over the years, Brian and Randy formed a close bond, talking about sports, cars, and women—namely, which female at the company was great in bed. So when Randy set his sights on Ayanna, Brian informed all the males to back off—except Dave.

To get Randy to calm down before he did anything too stupid, Brian took him to their old hangout—Spearmint Rhino Gentlemen's Club. It was a place where the girls were easy and the drinks were tasty. While Brian admired the beautiful women walking around the stage, Randy's thoughts were everywhere but the entertainment.

"She didn't know I was listening." Randy stirred his drink. Ayanna was going to arrive in LAX in a few hours and Randy was doing his best to calm down. Since the phone call a day prior, he has been nothing but irate. He was angry that his boss—and good friend—took advantage of his girlfriend. Worse yet, she let him.

"Did she say she fucked him?"

"Not exactly."

Brian did not take his eyes off the dancers in front of him. "Not exactly she did or not exactly she didn't?"

"I saw his naked self. Did you know he has a girly tattoo on his ass?" Randy shuddered disgustedly. "She said she saw him naked." Randy defended. "What more proof do I need?"

"What else did she say?" Brian motioned for a dancer to give him a dance.

"That's all."

"I don't know, man." Brian smiled at the brunette beauty performing for him. "I still think you should ask her."

"And what's she going to tell me? 'Yes, Randy, I sucked off your partner!'" Randy dryly replied, creating laughter in his friend. "I'm glad this is funny to you."

"I'm sorry, man." Brian smiled as he teased another dancer with a dollar bill. "But I'm having a hard time believing Ayanna would do that to you. She doesn't seem like the type."

Another dancer approached Randy and he declined her offer for a show. Unfortunately for him, the strip teases and liquor didn't distract him from his thoughts. "They never do."

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Randy anxiously waited in his Maserati for Ayanna. He tapped endlessly on his steering wheel, figuring out how he could confront his girlfriend. In Randy's mind, there was no right or wrong way to approach her. He needed to get down to his suspicions. If Dave and Ayanna had a tryst in Italy, Randy would be pissed off, no doubt. But he might forgive her.

But if for some twisted reason, she did see him naked accidentally? Randy entertained the thought. There had to have been a plausible explanation for Ayanna's admission. Maybe she walked on him in the shower? Maybe their clothes got wet and they had to change? Randy's calm and collected demeanor quickly dissipated when he thought about the last solution. Maybe they were fucking.

He glanced up and saw Ayanna from a distance. He then got out of his coupe and popped open his trunk. He took out a red rose and waited for her to walk closer to him. As Randy watched his girlfriend, he noticed she stopped walking and turned around. Dave soon joined Ayanna and they were walking together. They're walking too close, Randy thought.

Dave walked Ayanna to Randy's car. "Take tomorrow off." He said. "You're going to be jetlagged."

"Thank you, Dave." Ayanna smiled. She then gave him a hug. "I'll see you on Wednesday."

"See you Wednesday, Ayanna." Dave then acknowledged his business partner. "Randy."

"David." He dryly replied.

After Dave left, Randy helped get Ayanna's bags in his car. They then sped off down the busy streets. "How was your trip?" He asked.

"It was great! I fell in love with Italy." Ayanna exclaimed. "But I couldn't wait to come home, though." She then grabbed Randy's hand and gave it a quick squeeze. "I missed you terribly."

Now did you miss me while you were sucking Dave off? "I missed you, too, Yani."

Ayanna unbuckled her seat belt. She reached over to unzip Randy and pulled out his shaft. "In fact, let me show you how much I missed you." She then leaned over and began to orally please him.

Randy sighed as he kept one hand on the wheel while the other rubbed Ayanna's back. As Ayanna continue to please him, Randy's thoughts drifted from his growing suspicions to how their relationship transgressed. He wasn't sure what the future held—if there was still one—but he knew he wanted her to be a part of it in some aspect. She was charming, intelligent, funny, and could go toe-to-toe with him, something no woman has ever done.

But there was the trust issue. He didn't know what happened between Ayanna and Dave, yet Randy wasn't sure if he wanted to find out. There were a lot of unresolved emotions he was dealing with but at that moment, they could wait.

He didn't want to disturb the best head he was getting.

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"I bought you something." Ayanna smiled. "But close your eyes."

Randy sighed and closed his eyes. Since arriving at his condo, he and Ayanna spent the better part of the night making love. The lovers couldn't make it upstairs to the bedroom and settled for the living room instead. Randy tossed and contorted Ayanna's body in various positions. He missed her something fierce but he also wanted to remind her what she had at home. To Randy, there was nothing more powerful and mind-blowing than to hear Ayanna begging him to give it to her.

Nevertheless, playing games was not something he was interested in currently. "Alright. They're close."

Ayanna unzipped her garment bag and pulled out Randy's gift. "Okay. Open them!"

Randy opened his eyes and smiled. Right before his eyes was an Italian suit, made from the finest cashmere and wool. It was a dark navy single-breasted suit that exuded elegance.

"Now in case you're wondering, I looked into your closet and figured out your size from your other suits. You might need to go to a tailor but it should fit you." Ayanna smiled. "Do you like it?"

Randy was pleasantly surprised and he couldn't stop beaming. "I love it. I…I..." He paused. "Thank you."

"You're welcome, Baby!" Ayanna beamed. "I also have these to go with your suit." She then handed him diamond cufflinks.

Randy glanced at the sparkling diamond cufflinks in his hand. Diamond cufflinks were grossly expensive and Randy knew Ayanna did not have much to spend, despite how much she was getting paid. She's overcompensating. "How much did this cost?"

"Enough for you not to be worried about it." Ayanna replied.

"Hmm, have I heard that somewhere before?"

"Gee, I don't know where!" Ayanna batted her eyelashes.

Randy got up and set the cufflinks down on a nearby table. He then climbed on top of her. "Well, whoever said that was a genius."

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The next several months went without incident at Parker-Williams. Randy didn't mention Ayanna's conversation and Ayanna didn't share with him anything unusual that happened in Italy. However, whatever happened in Italy followed Ayanna and Dave home. For the past six months, they had been too close for comfort. They had meetings only between the two of them and had two-hour lunches often. Things were topped off even more when Ayanna would take secret phone calls at her house and quickly hang up when Randy entered the room.

Approaching Ayanna's desk, Randy looked over and founds she was noticeably absent. Randy then stared at Dave's office. He noticed the blinds were closed. Even in meetings, Dave's blinds always remained opened.

"Keep staring at the window long enough, Orton, and you might be able to see what's inside it." Melina said facetiously.

"Shut it, Perez." Randy retorted. "How long have they been in there?"

"Long enough that it's not your concern." Melina smiled. "He'll be free in an hour if you need to talk to him."

An hour? A fucking hour? Randy was beyond angry. He felt his blood boiling and veins popping out of his neck. Yet, he remained cool. "I guess I'll see him in an hour."

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"So tonight, are you available for the purchase?" Ayanna asked Dave.

Dave glanced at his schedule. "I should be."

"Good." She then laid out a few Mercedes brochures for him. Ever since they came back from Italy, Operation Kristal has been in full effect between Ayanna and Dave. They often spent their lunch hour test driving new cars for Kristal, since her birthday was coming up. "Now here are the cars that she was interested in. She particularly likes that one." She pointed to the SLK55 series.

"Alright. We'll see how it runs for her. Are you available this weekend or do you and Orton have plans?"

"I'm going to meet his family." Ayanna said.

"Really?" Dave asked. "I didn't know it's that serious."

"Well, we've been dating for about six months now."

"Really?" Dave said dryly.

Ayanna shook her head. "I don't like your tone."

Dave held up his hands. "I don't mean disrespect. It's just Randy hasn't been this…this…"

"This, what?"

"This…" Dave snapped his fingers. "Ah yes. He hasn't been this pussy-whipped in a long time."

"I wouldn't be talking Mr. I'm-Going-To-Buy-My-Ex-Girlfriend-A-Mercedes-To-Get-Her-Back." Ayanna scoffed.

"Hey now!" Dave defended. "I'm also taking her to Spain and buying her a ring."

"My bad!" Ayanna laughed.

Dave chuckled. "Well, I'm glad you and Orton are working out. At first, I'll admit, I wasn't too sure about you two but I see he's changed for the better. I hope you guys stay together."

"Thanks, Dave."

"Thank you." He then looked at his watch. "We need to head out to the mall before Tiffany's closes."

"Alright." Ayanna opened Dave's office door and walked out. She quickly grabbed her purse and waited for Dave.

"Melina, Ayanna and I are going to be gone for the rest of the afternoon. Take all of my calls." He instructed her. Dave then spoke to Ayanna. "What time does Tiffany's close?"

"Nine." Melina blurted as Dave and Ayanna turned towards her. "What? You guys talk loud."

Dave shook his head. "Just take my calls." He then walked behind Ayanna out to the parking lot.

In his office, Randy watched Dave and Ayanna leave. He then waited a half-hour before he made his move. He was determined to get to the bottom of what was happening by any means necessary.

He was going to follow Ayanna and Dave.

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Dave stared at the four-carat solitaire diamond for what seemed like forever. The ring wasn't just an engagement ring to him; it was much more to that. It was him admitting the error of his ways and giving up his bachelorhood. It was Dave making a commitment before Kristal, their friends and family, and God. A lot of men are scared shitless to make such a huge purchase but not Dave. He couldn't be more sure about what was he was going to do.

"If you stare at it long enough, it might pay for itself." Ayanna yawned.

Dave shook his head. "This one. It's definitely this one." He handed the ring back to the salesperson. "I'll take it." He then spoke to Ayanna. "Was there anything you want?"

"Well, there's a lot of things I want in here, David. I can't afford any of the shit."

"Well, you worked hard during the past few months so I want you to pick out something." Dave suggested.

"No, Dave, I can't." Ayanna declined. "This is way too much."

"Are you really turning down free Tiffany's jewelry?" He questioned.

"Yes, I'm really turning free…" Ayanna stopped herself mid-sentence. "Wait a minute. I think I saw some things I liked." She walked over to another counter.

"Yeah, that's what I thought." Dave followed her.

Ayanna looked down at the diamond studs before her. Choosing the smallest size available, she settled on a princess cut. "I like those."

Dave bent down and squinted at the glass. "If you can see them." He then spoke to the salesperson. "She's getting the one carat."

Ayanna gasped as Dave held up a hand to silence her. "Just say, 'Thank you, Dave.'"

"Thank you, Dave!" Ayanna gave Dave a bear hug and kissed his cheeks.

From a distance, Randy watched Ayanna and Dave. Incensed couldn't describe Randy's temperament.