Nineteen

by DevondraDamon©

Chapter One

Cold hard and Expensive.

Asia Bingham stared down at the five carat wedding ring she wore on her finger. It was a good phrase to describe the jewelry. It was also a good phrase to describe her marriage. She had been married to Richard Bingham for a year. And for this year she had been the perfect smiling and thoughtful trophy wife. While he globe trotted and hung out with his friends and concocted million dollar deals from real architecture business. He also dabbled in other things that brought him home six figure incomes but she would be hard pressed to name them at any moment.

At the moment she was hosting lunch with all the ladies it was appropriate to be friends with. She nodded and giggled at just the right time as they gossiped relentlessly about who wore what, who was fucking who, and how much their latest plastic surgeries had been.

"You know Jessie and Monique are getting separated." This came from Brandy Holloway, tall gorgeous and married to NBA MVP Irvin Holloway. She could be a bitch in a heartbeat but boy could she dress.

"Oh you just knew that was going to happen." Ree Cooper sighed putting down her drink. Her third glass of Moet, at ten a.m.

"Still you have to feel bad," Asia chimed in right on cue.

"She told me he can't eat pussy." This elegant sentence was spoken by the newest addition to their tribe, Tonya Vonsett. She was the youngest at twenty two and still very much a hood rat. Which they had all been at some point, perhaps hers would wear away like there's had after a few vacations in St. Tropez. But then again maybe not.

Her statement brought a raucous amount of laughter from Brandy, who had taken to her more than the other two, "What fuckin' use is he then?"

Asia tucked her newly dyed dark red hair behind her ear. She kept her opinion to herself.

Savannah shrugged, "Well you know black guys don't really do it."

"Oh that's bullshit." Tonya said rolling her eyes, "I get it all the time."

Savannah tilted her head, "Consider yourself lucky then. But you're new. He'll stop soon enough."

"Especially since he knows you hang with us now." Brandy's eyes held a mischievous gleam as she lit her cigarette.

"Yeah," Savannah added in a low voice, "They are scared you'll tell and it'll get back to their boys."

Tonya's mouth dropped realizing she made a major faux pas, "You guys wouldn't tell would you?"

"No."

"No of course not honey."

"I wouldn't dare!"

Asia crossed her legs as she sat back, knowing the girls secret was as good as scrolling down the bottom of CNN.

A few more minutes into their mindless chatter and they heard a crash that made them all lurch.

"What the fuck?" Tonya said whipping her head to the sound of the noise.

"Oh that's the construction guys, they are doing something with the pool."

Tonya scratched the top of her hand with long manicured acrylic nails, "You better go make sure they're not breaking your shit girl."

The other two woman looked at her in question as well. Sighing silently she stood figuring they were right. She hoped they hadn't done broken anything Richard held dear. God she wouldn't hear the end of it.

She went to the sliding doors and reluctantly opened them emerging from her cool air conditioned environment into the blazing ninety five degrees and rising temperature of southern California. She peeked from side to side and spotted the two handymen that were working outside.

"Hi," she said, "what's going on out here?"

One of them raised his hands up, "Sorry ma'am we had an accident with some glass. It's our stuff we'll clean it."

Her eyes immediately dropped to his shirt less chest before going back up to his face, "Try to be careful please."

He nodded, "We will. Sorry for the disturbance."

She went back inside sliding the door closed behind her.

"Jeez man you sound like a fucking cop." Zack picked his head up from the magazine he was reading to look at Travis.

"Well you wanna get in trouble?" He shaded his bright blue eyes against the sun looking down at his lazy boyhood friend.

"Oh please, these chicks are hopped on so much Vicodin and shit they could give a fuck about what we do out here."

Travis rolled his eyes, "She's not hopped up on anything. And if she's sees we are fucking around out here and tells her husband that's our ass."

Zack closed his magazine with a sigh and put it on the ground next to his bag. He stretched his long body from the long hours he had been sitting their reading through the latest issue of Rolling Stone like it was a bible instead of a music magazine. He didn't need Travis to remind them of their predicament yet again. They were barely holding down their shitty hole in the wall apartment with their three other band members. They certainly didn't need to get fired from this - their third job since moving to California from Austin, Texas six months ago.

"Did you see her though, Jesus God she has got to be the finest looking woman I have ever seen." Travis shook his head as he looked at the closed glass doors where she had been standing, "I can't believe an old bastard like that would land someone like her."

"His money landed her -- that's about it," Zack sneered as he moved toward the pool, already missing his shaded area, "The guys with the money get the chicks man, how many times do I gotta tell you that shit?"

"That doesn't mean I can't look." Travis dusted his brown cowboy hat off against his sweat shorts before placing it over his curly blond head.

"That's all you're gonna do is look too, dumbass."

Travis nodded and said with mock conviction, "Yeah, and whack off at home."

Zack's lips curled into a smile before he gave a thunderous crack of laughter.

Brandy was in Asia's kitchen, when her eye sensed movement she pulled the curtain back that led outside to the backyard. Upon inspection her mouth turned up in a way that could only be described as a cream licking smile.

Just then Asia was walking into the kitchen behind her, "Who is this Grade A beef back here?"

"Grade A beef?" Asia repeated as if ignorant. She immediately knew that Brandy was talking about the two guys working on the pool.

"Yes." Brandy said tilting her head as she watched one of them bend over to pick something up, "The construction help around my house is usually fat and grossly unattractive. You seem to have lucked up."

"Brandy will you put that back before they see you."

Brandy made no motion to stop gawking, "And do what? What could they possibly do to me?" She laughed, "That brings some interesting pictures to mind."

After sighing she let the curtain back, "Enough of this, I have to go. I have an appointment at Nadine's."

Asia's companions all parted company with her at the same time all rushing to make it to their urgent, insignificant appointments. Ladies of their sort only made appointments to get nipped, waxed or dyed. Asia had no such appointments that day.

She was staying at home to welcome her husband back from his trip abroad. Why he required it of her to make such a fuss about his returns was a mystery to her. Especially since it was usually only a matter of days until he was gone again. At least unlike most housewives she didn't have to cook for him. Their regular chef would be there later in the day to start dinner.

Asia winced when she heard another loud bang come from outside. What in the hell were they doing? She got up from the couch and started toward the glass sliding doors again. Her annoyance heightened at the thought having to go back out into the wretched humidity.

She pulled the glass back none too gently and stood out on the concrete with her hands on her hips, "What was that?"

Zack stood up from trying to straighten the toppled over equipment. His gaze was filled with an almost six foot cinnamon skinned black woman who looked like she had been peeled from a fashion ad.

"Sorry about that."

Asia's eyes were squinted against the sunlight. The heat was so intense she instantly felt like her shoulders were burning. She also felt a bit over dressed in the long linen wide legged pants she was wearing. The man before her wasn't the same one she had seen earlier. Her eyes of their own volition went to the sweat that was trickling over his pecks and down his stomach. He was wearing a pair of thin white sweat shorts that were loose about his waist in that baggy way young boys wore that annoyed her. Not today however as she tried her hardest not to stare at his ripped stomach muscles or the iliac crests at each of his hips the low slung pants revealed.

She took a quick breath before she stared him in the eye, "I can't stress how careful you guys have to be around here. If my husband finds out anything went wrong - just trust me if you want to keep your jobs, you will be careful."

Asia watched as he lifted his eyes up from her chest, "We do construction work. It's noisy."

Was he getting smart with her? She shifted in her stance, "All I was asking is that you be careful."

"You don't seem to care what we're doing out here until it makes noise."

He sucked both his lips in and released them staring at her in what she suspected was a challenging way. She realized staring at his face wasn't really any more of a safer reaction than his body. He had dark auburn hair which was a little spiky and reckless looking on the top. His eyebrows were wide thick and arched over creamy jade green eyes. They were framed in lashes that were thicker and longer than any mascara bottle could achieve. His nose was thin and long and his nostrils were angular and pronounced. In an attempt to look older he had a thinly trimmed goatee that wrapped around a heart shaped over ripe lips that were now turned up in the corner in a cynical way. Two small silver hoops in each ear rounded out the package.

"What's your name?" She asked.

He frowned, "Zack."

"Hmpf." Was her reply as she assessed him one more time before turning around and heading back in the house.

Travis came into the backyard with some supplies from their truck, he noticed Zack standing by some toppled over equipment resting his hand on his hip, "What's up?"

Zack turned around not sharing the suspicion that they soon might be looking for job number four, "Nothing."

They worked in silence in the intense hot they were getting more than used to when Zack said, "You're right, she is beautiful."

Dolce and Gabbana, Chanel, Narciso Rodriguez? What did the evening call for, Asia wondered as she stared at the various thousand dollar dresses that flanked her closet.

A funeral shroud? The thought came from the cynical girl she'd tucked into her subconscious. Always ready with some quick repartee; particularly for her long neglectful husband. Not that she wanted him to actually be attentive. They hardly shared many things in common. In fact a conversation between them usually consisted of him talking and her nodding - off that is.

She decided on the red Narciso mini. She hadn't worn it in a while and loved the way the material felt against her skin. She was wearing it more for herself than she was for him. She was sure he wouldn't notice anyway.

Tossing the dress on the bed next to her she fell back onto the plush mattress and stared up at the ceiling darkened by the black shades she always kept pulled.

"What the fuck are you doing?" Travis asked as he tried to shade himself against the house.

Zack was at the glass doors of the house with his hands coned over his eyes looking inside, "You should see the shit they got in here man. Their bar is made out of glass. This shit is hot!

"Will you stop with that peeping Tom act. You seem like you want to get us fired!"

Annoyed, Zack pulled away from the window, "Fine, fuck it."

He stared out over the hills into the valley below that made up L.A. This was just one of the amazing homes that littered the prime real estate around them. Owned by A list actors, producers and the just plain filthy rich that got off knowing they lived near the A list Hollywood elite. Every day on the drive up here, winding through these hills and seeing the homes that were mostly gated he would just stare endlessly wishing for anything that he owned one of those homes. But reality was, they didn't even have a record deal. That was a long way from MTV Cribs.

Travis drained at least half his bottled water before he pulled it from his lips, "Damn it's hot out here."

Zack plopped down next to him, "Gimme some."

Travis instantly pulled the bottle away from his friends hand, "Get your own."

"I said gimme some."

" I ain't drinking after you."

Zack made a face, "What? You've known me since I was nine."

Travis nodded as if thinking about it then said, "Who gives a shit?"

Zack rolled his eyes and grunted as he stood, sweat was making his shorts stick to his body. He went to their small cooler and pulled out a bottled water. As he put it to his lips he stared out at the long horizon in front of them, "I can't wait til we hit it big. I'm gettin' house just like this. Shit I'll buy this house. Throw that snotty bitch out on her ear with her old bastard husband."

Travis stopped silently giggling to ask, "I thought you said she was beautiful?"

"And I'm adding snotty bitch to that description."

"She's snotty based on the reason that she's rich?" Travis was more than amused at Zack's love hate idea of rich people.

Zack shook his head as he thought about seeing her earlier. He secretly wondered if she had ribs removed to have a waist that small. He could probably put both his hands around it and have them touch. Then he remembered the tint in her eyes as she watched him, "She looked at me like I was a piece of shit, Travis."

Travis was draining the last of his water when he pulled it from his lips, "Wait a minute - when did this happen?"

At six thirty on the dot Asia was staring at the array of delicacies that adorned their dining room table. Their chef, Raul, had really out done himself this evening. Everything smelled wonderful but she didn't even move her hand toward her glass of white wine until Richard came home.

Ten minutes later, at the exact time he said he would arrive Asia heard their front door open. A series of swears followed by a long sigh signaled the return of her husband.

She pushed back from the table and walked toward him with her Jimmy Choo's clicking with every step she took. A false smile was plastered across her face as she approached her husband, "Honey, your back, how was Prague?"

Richard Bingham was about six feet tall, about an inch above his wife. Although she was sure he didn't have any Italian in his family tree he looked and acted like a Brooklyn gangster. He looked haggard. His usually slick hair had strands coming down in front of his face. He had gained some weight since they were married giving him a bulkier look around his shoulders and neck. His dark blue silk shirt had a sweat stain on the front of it and annoyance was clear in his dark brown eyes.

"Fuckin' airports make me sick!" He began as he kicked the door closed with his foot, "If I see another skinny smart mouthed prick flight attendant I'm gonna cut off his balls and shove 'em in his eye sockets."

Asia stood ever quiet and attentive. She was used to her husband's colorful phrases. If there was anyone in the world that came up with new ways to rearrange the human anatomy in painful ways it was Richard Bingham.

He tossed his suitcase on their white leather couch and stretched, "I just want to take a God damn shower."

"Raul made calamari."

"Yeah," he said sniffing, "sounds good."

She turned as he walked toward their bedroom, "I opened the white wine, would you like red instead?"

Asia had to yell the rest of the sentence because his long stride had already put them in their bedroom.

"A pint of Jack Daniels! That's what I need after the week I had."

Asia rolled her eyes as Richard began shouting various grievances it seemed he had with his contractors and apparently the rest of the world as she pulled out the red wine and placed it on the table.

Richard came back to the table in about ten minutes wearing a fresh shirt and slacks. He sat down and began unceremoniously digging into the food. Asia prepared a plate for herself and sat mute rolling her ring over her finger. She listened to the sounds of Richard's loud chewing and swallowing as he devoured the food as if he hadn't had a perfectly edible meal on his lear jet. She had a feeling he would eventually balloon to Marlon Brando proportions, opting to have plates on food instead of her on the left side of his bed at night.

After about twenty more minutes of hearing things she didn't want to know, yet had asked about his trip overseas he asked, "What are those assholes doing with the pool back there?"

She cleared her throat sitting up, placing her fork against her half eaten plate, "They are doing fine. They filled the pool today before they left. I think tomorrow they are going to redo that other - stuff you wanted." She felt a bit embarrassed at the fact that she didn't know exactly what they were doing out there.

He only grunted in response sucking in the last bite off his plate. Dropping the fork with a clatter he sat back holding his stomach. Richard rubbed his tongue along his teeth wishing he had a tooth pick. He stared across the glass dining room table at his wife who was wearing her usual jaded stare.

Richard's mouth folded down in the corner, "So what did you do while I was gone?"

Asia's expression went from indifference to surprise the second the words were out of his mouth, when did her husband bother to ask her what she was doing?

"Well I-"

Any attempt at conversation was thwarted by the cell phone ringing at his hip. Asia promptly closed her mouth as he reached down for the phone, growling a response as he answered. Not because he wanted to hear what she had to say, rest assured, but because Richard Bingham always answered the phone like he was getting probed by a proctologist with big hands.

***

"So you never told me when it happened?" Travis asked as he stood next to Zack in McDonald's.

Annoyance clear in his voice Zack answered, "When what happened?"

"When the wife 'looked at you like a piece of shit', end quote."

"Am I supposed to appreciate your sarcasm?"

Zack moved up to the head of the line and gave an order long enough for three people but it was all for himself, "You're avoiding my question, not like you."

"I don't want to talk about that bitch all right."

Travis puckered his lips, "Oooh, two bitch reference's in one day, I haven't heard that since you last had a girlfriend."

Zack rested against the counter as he turned back to his friend, "Man, if you don't shut the fuck up."

Travis laughed heartily.

"I'll just be glad when we finish this job so we can stop going up there." He said frowning, "won't you?"

Travis shrugged, "I don't know, kind of like it. They got a great view of the city. I ain't seen nothin' like it since we been here."

Zack's lip curled in disgust at his friend who smiled in that bright Texas boy way that made him look like he should do advertisements for Stetson. That smile that made him want to sock him in the nose. He rolled his eyes skyward and turned away as he heard the plastic tray with his order of grease and calories hit the counter.

Zack clenched his teeth as he felt a hard poke in the center of his spine, "Relax motherfucker, try that shit."

He ignored Travis' words but he was right. He had been stressed lately. He had been working so hard writing songs and sending out demos - and getting rejected that he was about to break. He hated this job they were doing. Hated going up through those hills and watching that bitch slink around all day entertaining her equally lazy friends who were living the high life solely based on who they were fucking. Chicks had it so easy.