Dance of Desire (1001 Dark Nights) Read Free Page A

husband feels like coughing up a razorblade.
    “God, that’s worse. They any good?”
    “No,” Amber answers truthfully for the first time in her entire life.
    “Well, there’s one small blessing in all of this. You won’t have to listen to them murder cats anymore.”
    “It’s not that easy. The situation with the bar is…complicated.”
    “Yeah. How’s he been at actually running the bar?”
    “Not so great.”
    “Maybe that’ll work in your favor. One thing’s for sure. I’ll work in your favor if you need it.”
    “Thank you, Belinda,” Amber whispers. She’s afraid if she answers in a full voice, her gratitude over this offer of assistance will cause her to break down again.
    “Finish your drink, darlin’.”
    She complies, then gulps much needed air. “Listen, Belinda, if I’ve been falling down on the job, I apologize. I just need a week to—”
    “You haven’t been falling down on the job. Don’t be so damn hard on yourself. I just got sick of listening to you cry. That’s all.”
    “Wait. When did… Oh my God, were you listening to me cry on the intercom?”
    “Honestly, I was hoping to overhear a phone conversation, but you’re really good about not doing cell phone calls at work.”
    It’s called texting, Amber thinks.
    “I’m a bigger fan of Cowboys games, to be frank, but I had to know what was troubling my precious personal assistant on whom I rely for pretty much everything in the world now… Oh, don’t get all sad faced on me. I only did it about five or six times.”
    “It’s your house.”
    “Answer a question for me,” Belinda says.
    “Okay.”
    “Are you sad or are you just angry?”
    “Can’t I be both?”
    “Nope.”
    “Why not?”
    “You’re one more than you are the other. That’s always how it goes when marriages end. Pick one. Just for the sake of this discussion.”
    “Well, I cry all day at work, so what do you think?”
    “What do you do when you’re home?” Belinda asks, sinking back in her chair, hands clasped against her stomach.
    “Not much.”
    “Liar,” Belinda says with a smile.
    “I’ve got a dartboard. I put his picture on it. It sounds stupid, but it makes me feel better.”
    “You any good at darts?”
    “I’ve gotten better.”
    “Congratulations.”
    “Thanks, but there are easier ways to become a better darts player.”
    “I’m sure,” Belinda says with a grunt. She leans forward suddenly. The chair rolls forward a few inches, the ends of its arms thudding against the edge of the desk. But Belinda’s a small enough woman that she’s still got plenty of room in which to make dramatic hand gestures. “You’re not crying over what you’ve lost, Amber. You’re crying because you don’t know what lies ahead. That’s a big difference.”
    “I take it you have some experience with this?”
    “Three experiences to be exact. The first one cheated. The second one drank until I threw him out. The third once starved me in the bedroom ’cause he was hoping I’d cheat and then he could try to get some of my money.”
    “I see,” she says.
    “I didn’t cheat, by the way.”
    “I didn’t ask,” Amber says. “None of my business.”
    “Oh, enough of that now. We’re gonna get all up in each other’s business today, girl.”
    Amber flushes.
    “Oh, no! Not like that, Amber. I haven’t swum in the lady pond since college. Don’t get me wrong. I’ve got plenty of friends who do, but… We’re having a heart to heart. That’s all I’m saying.”
    “So this is your heart that you’re showing me today?”
    “You thought otherwise?”
    Amber just stares at her.
    “Fine!” Belinda cries, shooting up from the chair. “I’m telling you how you feel! And I’m doing it because I’m older and wiser and more experienced than you are. There. You happy?”
    “Happy isn’t really a word I’d apply to my situation just now.”
    “Well, waste as much time on tears as you want, Amber. But I saw y’all together.