ISBN: 9781483540450

Table of Context

Chapter 1 – Introduction

Chapter 2 – Kim’s Romance

Chapter 3 – The Engagement Ring

Chapter 4 – Jasmine’s Family

Chapter 5 – The New Year

Chapter 6 – Tonya’s Questionable Relationship

Chapter 7 – Support From Their Men

Chapter 8 – The Incident

Chapter 9 – CIAA Weekend

Chapter 10 – Tough Love

Chapter 11 – Jasmine and Kim’s Lunch

Chapter 12 – Prom Night

Chapter 13 – Kim and Jasmine’s Conversation

Chapter 14 – Tonya Accepts

Chapter 15 – Marcus

Chapter 16 – Reconnecting

Chapter 17 – The Fitting

Chapter 18 – The Accident

Chapter 19 – Kim’s Love Story

Chapter 20 – The Conversation

Chapter 21 – The Wedding

Chapter 22 – Kim’s Visit

Chapter 23 – The Late Meeting

Chapter 24 – Jasmine’s Secrets

Chapter 25 – Jasmine Needs and Attorney

Chapter 26 – Jasmine’s Truth

Chapter 27 – On-Line Dating

Chapter 28 – Jasmine Struggles

Chapter 29 – Tonya’s Dinner Party

Chapter 30 – The First Meeting of the New Year

Chapter 31 – Letting Go of the Past and Planning the Future

Chapter 32 – Valentine’s Day

Chapter 1 – Introduction

“Friendship isn’t about who you have known the longest…It’s about who came, and never left your side…”

- Unknown

“Oh my God, what a beautiful day,” commented Kim. “Girl you ain’t never lied. I love October. I mean how can you beat 73 degrees and the gorgeous fall colors. Plus, I get to break out my boot collection and light weight leather jackets. Oh yeah, and before I forget, thank you ladies soooo much for such a wonderful day,” stated Tonya. “Glasses up...I want to purpose an official toast to our girl Tonya...who just won one of the biggest cases of her career. Not to mention the largest one since she opened Wright & Associates,” Jasmine chimed in. After they tapped their glasses together and they each took a long sip of their wine, Tonya remarked “Well you ladies totally inspired me with the success of your business.” “I hate to say we told you so, but we knew you would have to step out on faith and open your own practice to realize this type of success. Those white guys at your old law firm were never going to make you a partner,” Kim observed, before taking another sip of her red wine. “I know, I know...but after ten years of closing quality cases and being let down by their empty promises, I knew it was time,” Tonya mumbled with a slight sound of defeat in her voice. The three close friends continued to enjoy the atmosphere at the Vineyards of Southpoint, in Durham, NC; having completed the wine tasting, they were now enjoying their complementary glasses of wine in their souvenir wine glasses, out on the deck. Since Jasmine had been there before, she packed a picnic basket of goodies for the ladies to enjoy, while they talked and took in the tranquil scenery. Jasmine personally enjoyed sitting on the deck and looking out at the fountain in the center of the pond the most.

After a couple of minutes of silence, Tonya admitted “I had no idea where we were going when Kim picked me up this morning. Heck, I thought we were going shopping when we got off at the Southpoint Mall exit. Who knew a vineyard was just a couple of miles down the road? Hey, speaking of the mall, can we stop at Nordstrom Rack on the way home? It’s been a minute since I’ve been out this way and I want to check out their shoes.” “That’s cool with me. I need to get a couple of more cute tops, since Antonio and I are always eating out, and you know I can’t let my man be dressed nicer than me. Let’s pack up and go shopping,” Kim replied. “No problem, but let me go in and buy a bottle of wine or two before we leave,” Jasmine stated as she got up and started walking towards the building. After being gone for close to fifteen minutes she reemerged with a gift bag with two bottles of wine in one hand, and a new glass of wine in the other. “Really...Jasmine, I thought we were leaving?” snapped Kim. “We are...I just got another glass while I waited in the long line. Plus, I’m not driving,” Jasmine responded, as she gulped down the last of her wine.

The three loved to shop together because they were all confident shoppers, who didn’t need the others to co-sign whether or not an item was worth purchasing. They each headed to the departments that they were most interested in, and after an hour or so tended to meet somewhere near the registers. This trip to Nordstrom Rack was no exception to the rule. Kim headed straight to the ladies department, and started working her three step shopping process. First she started at the clearance racks. Then she methodically looked through the sales racks, before shopping for regular priced merchandise. Once she’d loaded up her shopping cart, she walked to the fitting room to try on her favorite selections. Tonya on the other hand was working the shoe racks; looking for designer shoes at a discount. She wasn’t looking for a particular style of shoe, just a good deal. Jasmine on the other hand casually walked around the store. She wasn’t shopping for anything special, so she thumbed through items in the accessory department before checking out shoes and dresses. To her surprise, the department that eventually caught her eye was the ladies athletic apparel department. They were having a big sale, so she picked up a couple of sports bras and yoga pants. In less than two hours, Tonya, Kim and Jasmine managed to spend over five hundred dollars.

As Kim started the car, she fiddled with her iPod until she found Jill Scott. They headed back to Raleigh with “He Loves Me” playing. Tonya closed her eyes in the backseat of the car and thought about how blessed she was to have such good friends. They had all come such a long way from their old customer service days at that insurance company’s home office. Kim and Jasmine had been there for over a year when she started, and they were already lunch buddies. Towards the end of her first week there, they were kind enough to invite her to join them. Tonya happily accepted, since they were headed to the food court at Crabtree Valley Mall. Although there were several options to choose from, she immediately got in the Chick-Fil-A line. Once at the table the three ladies finally had a chance to talk. Their first question was where did she learn to speak Spanish so fluently. Jasmine started with, “Girl, we heard you on that call this morning. Where did you learn to speak Spanish so fluently?” At first Tonya giggled and then responded, “My neighbor and home-girl from back home is Puerto Rican, plus I took Spanish in high school and college.” “You better go girl, I know who to send all my Spanish speaking customers to now,” Kim added. “Where’s home?” Jasmine continued. “Jersey,” Tonya simply replied. “What! We are from the Tristate area too! Tell me you are a Giants fan,” Kim questioned. “Although my brothers prefer the Jets, I’m a Giants fan,” Tonya responded. That simple conversation was the beginning of their lifelong friendship. As they were headed back to the parking deck, Tonya noticed that several of the brothas that they passed were staring. But then again, both Kim and Jasmine were attractive ladies. Kim was around 5’8” with flawless brown skin, a cute Nia Long haircut, and a shape like Niecy Nash. She was thick but well portioned and the men seemed to appreciate all of her curves. Jasmine was also rather curvy, but was shaped more like Serena Williams. It was more of a toned athletic look. She rocked a short bob, and stood about 5’9” with caramel colored skin. Tonya also knew she wasn’t a slouch with her 5’6” Kerry Washington frame, chocolate skin and her earthy India Arie feel.

The ladies had been with the insurance company for three or four years when they all pledged to go back to school. Alisha Moore had just been fired for not handling two cases to upper management’s satisfaction, while their white manager, Susan was breaking every rule known to mankind. She arrived to work 30-40 minutes late at least 3 out of 5 days a week, she was notorious for taking 2 hour lunches, and had more excuses for cutting out of work early than the three of them could believe. Hair appointments, a ridiculous number of doctors’ appointments, family emergencies, and the list goes on. The sad thing was since it was obvious that no one was managing the managers, the three of them felt helpless. At first they waited for her to get reprimanded or fired, but when Alisha, who was poorly trained, was let go they had had enough. Having become lunch buddies after their first lunch in the mall, they held all private conversations during lunch; when they left the building. “Can you believe that shit?” Kim asked. “Yup!” was Jasmine’s only response. Tonya started to ramble on an on, out of frustration, but got their attention when she said, “I’m going back to school, so I can get a better job and get the hell out of her.” She truly had Kim and Jasmine’s attention. “What will you study and where will you go?” Jasmine asked, now fully engaged. “Law and with Duke, UNC, NC State and a host of HBCU’s around, take your pick,” Tonya responded. “I just decided...I’m going to law school.” Kim looked at her two closest friends, and then turned directly to Tonya and stated, “You’re not leaving me here!” “Jasmine, we should go back to school too,” she continued. “Alright Chica’s...pump your brakes. We all have small children at home,” Jasmine countered. “We know that but I have this now or never gut feeling. You chicks can join me if you want, but I have to do this,” Tonya insisted passionately. “I’m in,” Kim confidently smiled. They both looked at Jasmine, who was the most cautious and conservative one in the group. After several moments of silence she responded, “Let me talk to Darrius tonight.”

Darrius was Jasmine’s soul mate, and since he was a high school teacher and beloved track coach, he encouraged her to go back to school. “Baby, we both know how important a good education is and since I have my dream job, I want you to have the same. Tonya’s right, you’re not going anywhere at that company. You’re already more educated than your manager, but you haven’t been promoted,” he explained to Jasmine. “But honey, the kids are so small,” she responded with genuine concern. “That’s why this is the best time to go...before we are consumed by their activities and getting ready to send them off to college. Plus you, Kim, and Tonya can motivate each other, since they are in the same boat,” Darrius replied.

So just like that the three friends, who were now in their mid to late twenties, were studying for the LSAT and GMAT, and applying to graduate and law schools. As planned, Tonya entered law school, Kim started working on her MSA (Masters of Science in Accountancy), and Jasmine focused on getting her MBA. They each worked hard for two years, even working through the summers to ensure that they would all graduate on time, which ended up being a good thing. After months of speculation, it was revealed during a department meeting that the company had just been bought and that severance packages would be based on years of service. As a result of this news the ladies had 90 days to find new jobs. Better yet, to start their new careers.

Chapter 2 – Kim’s Romance

“Love is a friendship set to music.”

- Joseph Campbell

“Good night...have a good weekend,” Kim said, as she locked the door behind the last employee to leave. “Jasmine, are you ready to go,” she continued. “I’ll be about fifteen more minutes. As a matter of fact, why don’t you call Tonya and ask her to meet us somewhere for dinner? I haven’t seen her since the wine tasting a few weeks ago,” Jasmine responded. “She texted me earlier, and said she’s been working late every night for the past two weeks. I guess that big win was the boost that her business needed. Anyway, I can’t go out tonight either, because I’m headed down to Charlotte to see Antonio,” Kim replied. Jasmine looked up from her computer, rather impressed. “Ohhhh...excuse me. Things are getting kinda serious?” Jasmine teased. “Shut up!” Kim blushed. “Yeah, I guess so. Can you believe it’ll be a year soon? Well, in any event, Antonio wants to talk about the holidays. Thanksgiving is a big deal for his family, so I assume he’ll want us to spend that time with them, but Christmas will be tricky,” Kim concluded. “Okay, let me finish this email and we can go. You know I don’t like it when one of us leaves out of here alone. I know this is a pretty nice office park, but my mother raised me on the buddy system,” Jasmine mumbled as Kim started shutting things off for the weekend. “Kim, I have to ask, are you ready for a serious relationship? I mean it’s been years since you opened your heart up to a man,” Jasmine carefully probed. “What are you talking about? I’m good. Hurry up, so we can go. You know it’s a two and a half to three hour drive from Raleigh to Charlotte, and I still need to throw a couple of things into my overnight bag,” Kim responded, purposely dodging the real question. “Okay, I’m logging off as we speak,” Jasmine answered and the two ladies headed towards the front door.

Kim arrived at Antonio’s house at exactly 9:30 pm, and she could see him peeking through the curtains. It really warmed her heart how he made such a fuss over her during her weekend visits, even after a year. Kim also loved Antonio’s home, and as a result she always took her time getting out of the car, so that she could look at the grand entrance. It was a brick four bedroom, three and a half bathroom home with a state of the art kitchen. She honestly couldn’t decide what she liked the most about the house, but she had narrowed it down to the perfectly landscaped backyard, the jetted tub in the master suite, or the oversized bonus room that they watched footballs games in. Even though it was truly a beautiful home, she’d be the first to admit that it wasn’t the nicest home that she’d ever stepped into; it was just so much larger than her townhouse. The thing that amused her most about Antonio’s home was that he lived in it by himself; unless you count the visits from his two college aged children. Always the perfect gentleman, Antonio lifted the garage door for Kim to pull in and park, but as usual she opted to remain in the driveway, so that she could walk in the house through the front door.

After their long kiss at the front door, and after taking Kim’s bag from her, Antonio asked “How was your drive?” But before she could answer, he allowed his eyes to look over every inch of her body before he commented on how beautiful she looked. She was wearing a pair of skinny jeans, a grey v-neck sweater, 3” black ankle boots, and a short leather jacket. And with her short haircut, the large hoop earrings were a must. Using his free hand, he reached for Kim’s hand and led her into the kitchen. “I hope you’re hungry because I made shrimp and grits. Let me run your bag into the bedroom and then I’ll make you a plate,” he said before he disappeared down the hallway. Kim took her jacket off, and laid it next to her purse in the family room. She walked back to the kitchen sink and washed her hands, and immediately reached to take the lid off of the shrimp and grits to steal a peek, but before she could do so Antonio wrapped his arms around her waist and began kissing her on the neck. “What are you doing?” he finally asked. “Stealing a peak and a sniff,” she responded. “And oh my God does it smell delicious,” she continued. He kissed her neck one more time and said, “Not as good as you do,” with a sly smile. Kim blushed and moved to sit on a stool at the bar. After preparing two plates, Antonio directed Kim to the dining room table. He poured them each a glass of wine and lit the large candle in the center of the table. “What’s up? Why are we eating in here?” Kim questioned. “I figured, what’s the point of having a dining room if I never use it,” he said taking his first bite of his dinner.

After a pleasant dinner, Kim realized that she left her laptop in the car, so she grabbed her coat and headed to the front door. Antonio caught a glimpse of her movement out of the corner of his eyes, and stopped her. “Where are you going? Planning to dine and ditch are we?” he joked. “Baby, I just realized I left my laptop in the car, and I’m sure I have some emails I need to address by now,” she said. He walked over to her, grabbed her hand and led her back into the family room. “Not this weekend...this weekend I want you all to myself. No work, no emails, and limited access to text messages. I accept being second to your clients during tax season but this weekend you’re all mine,” he stressed as he kissed her on the neck again, as he slid her coat off. She loved the attention, so she didn’t resist. “So, what would you like to do? I know you don’t want to go out after that long drive, so how about I throw in a movie or we can even watch “Scandal”, since I DVR’d last night’s episode,” he suggested. “I’ll let you decide...just let me take a quick shower, and I’ll be right back,” Kim responded. As Kim took a shower, Antonio lit some candles in the living room and pulled out his iPod and placed it on the docking station. Kim rejoined him in the family room wearing short-shorts and a tank top. Antonio decided to set a mellow mood with a little Maxwell, unfortunately it was too mellow because Kim fell asleep in his arms.

After taking a morning jog together, Kim and Antonio hung out around the house until about 6:00 pm. He wouldn’t tell her where they were going, but told her casual chic was the dress code for the night. The two hung out downtown so much that she didn’t even ask any questions as they approached the heart of the Queen’s City. It wasn’t until she noticed all of the traffic around the Time Warner Cable Arena, which is the home of the Charlotte Hornets that she became suspicious. “Tony...where are we going?” she asked but he never said a word. “Tony...where are we going?” she asked again. Then it hit her. “Oh my God...is the Soul Brothas concert tonight?” she asked but once again Antonio didn’t say a word, he just parked the car and opened her door. Kim on the other hand was bouncing in her seat, because tickets were sold out for months and she never imagined that she would get to see Anthony Hamilton, Jaheim, and her favorite Neo-Soul artist, Musiq Soulchild all in one night. Once the concert started the pair never sat down. They jammed to Jahiem’s “Just in Case”, they held hands and rocked slowly when Anthony Hamilton sang “Can’t Let Go”, but when Musiq sang “Love” and “Don’t Change” Kim was so into it that Antonio thought she was crying. As the concert came to an end, Kim moved in real close and laid her head on Antonio’s shoulder just before they started to walk away from their seats. Antonio smiled to himself because he knew he’d blown her mind, which was his goal. The ride home was quiet, with soft music playing in the background. Kim closed her eyes, but had the ultimate relaxed look on her face. Antonio believed this was probably the happiest and most relaxed he’d seen Kim since they started dating. The ride home was short, and Kim made sure to open her eyes in time to admire the house as he pulled into the long driveway. As soon as they stepped inside the house and the door to the garage closed, Kim turned around to Antonio and gave him a passionate kiss. “Thank you, Tony! I can’t remember the last time I enjoyed myself so much,” she said. “You are very welcome. Would you like a night cap before we turn in?” he asked. “No...I want you,” she replied, as she grabbed him by his belt and led him into the bedroom. Although he was used to being the aggressor, Antonio loved every minute of this part of their evening. Kim started by unbuttoning his shirt and then sliding it off. She quickly pulled his white tee shirt over his head and then started unfastening his belt and jeans. Next she led him closer to the bed and with her hand in the center of his muscular golden brown chest she lightly pushed him onto the bed. She then kicked off her shoes and pulled her fitted top over her head slowly. Antonio smiled, truly enjoying the show. Knowing that he loved her curves, she walked over and kissed him softly on his lips but made sure her full breast rested in front of his face for an extra second or two before she walked away. With her back now to him, she unbuttoned her skinny jeans and pulled them down to reveal her ample bottom in a thong that matched her red bra. When she turned back to face Antonio his smile was larger than before. She walked between his legs and he cupped her butt and started to kiss her stomach. She quickly straddled his lap and he unhooked her bra to release her breast. Antonio kissed one breast and then the other, and then in one fluent movement he flipped her over onto her back. He removed his pants and boxer briefs in one quick motion and crawled on top of her. They kissed passionately for a few minutes before he was ready to penetrate her. Even though Kim was full of emotions, she still had the presence of mind to mumble, “Condom.” After grabbing a condom from the nightstand, along with the KY Warming Gel, Antonio slowly rubbed Kim between her wet, yet warm bikini waxed legs. She squirmed, as he lifted her toned legs to his muscular shoulders and then inserted himself inside of her. Then he started to move in a slow rhythmic motion, as he heard Kim’s customary moan of approval. Wanting to completely please her, Antonio made sure to increase the tempo periodically. For the next few minutes Antonio mixed slow deep thrust with faster shallow ones, as Kim moaned and groaned in ecstasy. Not wanting the night to end too soon, Antonio slowed the intensity down and moved Kim into another position. Kissing passionately between making love, Kim and Antonio went at it for the next two hours.

The next morning Kim was still floating on cloud nine. She had had the time of her life. Knowing that she didn’t like to arrive home late when she had to work the next day, Antonio suggested a lite breakfast and then lunch before she got on the road. And after the concert of her dreams and some of the best sex she’d had in years, she’d do just about anything he asked her that day. Since Kim’s favorite seafood restaurant, McCormick and Schmick’s, didn’t open up for lunch, Antonio had made reservations at the next best thing, Bonefish Grill. Antonio drove his 2014 silver Lexus LS to the restaurant, but he was rather quiet considering the evening they’d just had, but Kim was okay with the quiet because she usually used Sunday’s to review emails and notes to prepare for the next week. So, she figured she’d enjoy these last carefree moments of the weekend, and would refocus once she got on 85 North headed back to Raleigh. As always, Antonio opened her door after they parked, and held her hand as they walked into the restaurant. Since they had a reservation they didn’t have to wait to be seated. After ordering their lunch and a cocktail, Antonio excused himself. When he returned to the table Kim couldn’t believe her eyes. He was carrying a dozen long stem roses in one hand and had a ring box in the other.

Chapter 3 – The Engagement Ring

“Every woman deserves to have a man who is proudly willing to say to the whole world, “Yeah she’s my one and only. She is beautiful and she is mine!””

- loveander.com

Kim could hardly believe her eyes. Her left hand sparkled with what she believed was the most beautiful 1½ carat diamond ring she had ever seen. Antonio truly had impeccable taste. On the drive home, she had already shared the news with her daughter Ashia, who was a freshman at NC A&T. Ashia seemed to be genuinely happy for her. The same was true for her parents, who approved of Antonio from the moment they all met. Now that she was finally home, it was time to call the girls, to tell them about the events of the weekend. Just as Kim was ready to touch contacts on her cell phone, she had a better idea. She quickly took a picture of her hand with the ring sparkling on it, and sent the picture to Jasmine and Tonya.

It only took a few minutes for her cell phone to start to ring. Without even looking at the name or face of the incoming call she answered, “Hello” in a very sing-song voice. “Does the hand wearing this gorgeous engagement ring belong to you?” Tonya asked? “Yes, it does,” Kim quickly responded. But before Tonya could ask another question, Kim’s phone rang again. They both laughed because they knew it was Jasmine. Kim said, “Hold on.” When she clicked back over, Tonya immediately said “Before you say anything, I was in the middle of preparing a legal brief, so I need to run; but I had to call to say congratulations, I love you, and let’s get together this week to celebrate. Tell Jasmine hello, and to text me when you guys iron out the details of where you want to meet.” Kim quickly said okay, thank you, and then clicked back over to Jasmine to fill her in on all of the events of her weekend.

Wednesday ended up being the perfect day for the three ladies to get together, since Tonya’s client had decided to settle out of court and Jasmine and Kim had less appointments scheduled than normal. Their business, J & B Financial, had done rather well from the start but had really started to grow over the last eighteen months. Just as things were coming to an end at the insurance company, and they were preparing for graduation, Jasmine and Kim accepted jobs with large corporations, but it only took them a couple of years to realize that they were never going to reach the career heights that they desired. Kim was working for a large CPA firm, while Jasmine worked as a financial advisor for a well-respected company. It was during a girl’s weekend trip to the spa that the two of them started to talk about leaving their jobs that they realized that with both of their talents being primarily tied to the financial world that they should consider opening their own firm. Besides, with the right support staff and their backgrounds in accounting, insurance and investments, how could they go wrong? They both liked the thought of using their last names, Kimberly Brown and Jasmine Jefferson, as part of the business name but settled on J & B Financial, after meeting with their attorney; Tonya. They immediately hired an office manager, and over time added a junior level accountant and two customer service associates.

Kim had selected Bahama Breeze, since she had the taste for Jamaican Chicken Wings and a Bahama Mama, which was fine with Jasmine and Tonya. The three friends arrived within minutes of each other, and elected to sit at a table on the covered patio, next to the fire pit. Although it was still early, Jasmine hoped that the musicians who played the steel drums would arrive before they left. In her opinion that was the whole point of going to Bahama Breeze; to get that island feeling. Once seated Tonya instructed Kim to hold out her hand, and the three squealed like teenagers as they admired her ring. “Isn’t it beautiful?” Kim questioned. “Absolutely gorgeous,” Tonya replied. “I said the same thing Monday, when she walked into the office,” Jasmine chimed in. Kim proceeded to share all the details of her weekend with the ladies, as they enjoyed their dinner and drinks. “Girl, I wanted to see that concert, but the tickets were sold out when Marcus and I looked on-line,” Tonya stated. “I know...that’s why I was so surprised when we pulled up to the arena. Antonio completely played me, because we tried to order tickets on-line a month or so ago, and we saw that they were sold out too. I had no idea that he had already purchased tickets,” Kim replied with a little laugh. “Don’t get me wrong, I would have loved to be at that concert, but my favorite part of the weekend was how he set you up, and then proposed. Dinner on Friday, the concert on Saturday and then a banging ring on Sunday. Girrrrl, I don’t know the last time I’ve heard such a romantic story,” Jasmine chimed in before taking a sip of her drink. “I know...Kim he’s defiantly a keeper!” Tonya added. As the ladies continued their extremely happy conversation, Jasmine and Tonya surprised Kim with little gifts and they even started discussing wedding dates. It wasn’t until close to the end of the evening that Jasmine made a business observation.

“Kim it just dawned on me that you’ll more than likely move to Charlotte when you get married, so this might be the perfect time to expand the business,” Jasmine stated. After taking the last sip of her second Bahama Mama, Kim seemed to look off into space for a minute before saying “Huh...we have been jokingly talking about opening a second office. You’re right...this might be the perfect time to expand.” “I could hire a small support staff and run the Charlotte office, while you continue to run the Raleigh office,” Kim continued. “Really...are you guys seriously talking business, when we are supposed to be celebrating?” Tonya asked. “You’re right. My bad! Tonight is all about Kim and Antonio. Should we have one more round before we go?” Jasmine asked. “I’m good. Me too,” stated Kim and Tonya. After a few more moments of pleasantries, the ladies wrapped up their dinner celebration with Jasmine and Tonya splitting the bill. They each headed home, but Jasmine’s mind was bursting with ideas for a possible expansion of the business.

Chapter 4 – Jasmine’s Family

“You don’t choose your family. They are God’s gift to you, as you are to them.”

- Desmond Tutu

After hugging Tonya and Kim goodbye, Jasmine hopped into her crystal red Cadillac SRX Crossover and headed to Trader Joes. She figured she could pick up a few things before heading home, but realized how late it was when she turned into the parking lot only to notice that they were already closed. She was so preoccupied thinking about opening a second office that she hadn’t realized that it was already after 9:00pm. Without even stopping her vehicle she exited the parking lot and turned onto I-440 to head for home. She flipped through the radio stations, but stopped when she got to FOXY 107/104. Jasmine could always count on them to play something mellow in the evenings.

It didn’t take Jasmine long to get home, since she lived in one of the many quiet subdivisions just outside of the beltline. Even though she knew that she and Darrius could afford a larger home, she was happy with their current one. They purchased their three bedroom home, when she was pregnant with their first child, Darrius Jr. aka DJ. Most of the house was covered with siding, but the entryway was all brick. Although they considered upgrading to a four bedroom house when the twins were born, Jada and Jamal, they decided to stay in their home and just started to use the large bounce room over the two car garage more effectively. Even with the sun porch and oversized family room, things were often pretty loud at the Jefferson household; but that never mattered much to Jasmine, because in her eyes this was their forever home. She simply didn’t see the logic behind upgrading to a larger house, to only downsize once the kids moved out.

As Jasmine entered the house, she could hear televisions and music coming from all over the house. She knew her family so well that she knew where everyone was before she even closed the door to the garage. Jada was most likely in her bedroom, texting friends and listening to music, lying across her bed in some comfy pajamas. Darrius and Jamal were in the family room watching ESPN, unless there was a game on. This sports viewing partnership had been reduced from a trio down to two, when DJ left for college this past fall. Since he grew up loving the Tar Heels, he had opted to attend UNC in Chapel Hill. Jasmine loved that each of her children had strong personalities and knew what they wanted out of life. Although the twins were only juniors in high school, Jamal had already decided that he wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps by attending a historically black university, while Jada was leaning towards going to NC State. Without anyone noticing that she was home, Jasmine walked into the bedroom and started to undress to take a shower. Still deep in thought about the possibility of expanding the business, Jasmine slid into her bathrobe after her shower and walked into the bedroom. Not realizing that Darrius was now in the bedroom, she was extremely startled when he spoke to her.

“Hey Baby...how was dinner with the girls?” Darrius asked. Still trying to catch her breath from the shock of seeing Darrius in the room, Jasmine responded, “It was really nice, and Kim is sooo excited about getting engaged.” “Good. I’m happy for her, but does he know about the incident and everything she’s gone through?” Darrius questioned. “You know, I’ve wondered the same thing but I haven’t had the heart to ask her. I can’t count the number of years of therapy it’s taken for her to stop having those terrible nightmares. Tonya and I were certain that she would never love another man...but somehow Antonio has managed to break through that protective shell,” Jasmine stated as she pulled back the covers to join her husband in bed. “Darrius, I want to run something by you but before I start, how was your day?” she asked. “Productive,” was all he said. “So what’s up, and make it short because I want to spend some quality time with my wife before we call it a night,” he said scooting closer to Jasmine under the covers. Jasmine rolled her eyes and pushed him away before she started to speak. “Darrius please...I need to ask you something serious and as usual you’re trying to get me out of my night gown,” Jasmine remarked. Darrius knew this was her way of saying, “Not Tonight” so he moved back to his side of the bed. “So what’s up Love?” he asked. Jasmine proceeded to tell Darrius her thoughts on opening up a second office in Charlotte, after Kim got married. Darrius listened to all of her ideas, nodding occasionally, and although he thought his wife’s plans were all doable, he told her to proceed with caution. He didn’t have the heart to tell her that he didn’t think Kim was going to get married.