Love in Disguise

Monday, June 2 The door opened and Kya appeared just as I finished the last chapter of the book I was reading. “It’s one hell of a scorcher out there!” Kya declared. Then she smiled. “How ya doing, babe?” “I’m fine.” I rose to kiss her. As I went to pull away, she pulled me back and wrapped me in a snug embrace. “Not so fast, girl, not so fast.” We kissed a little longer. When I was able to speak, I informed her that I’d soon be going out book-hunting with Mary. That was when the first of many storms erupted. “Oh, come on, Sativa!” I stepped back, surprised by the sudden protest. “You were just out with her,” she whined. “Just out with her? Kya, I haven’t been out with her in weeks.” “It hasn’t been that long. Besides, I was really counting on a nice, relaxing evening together.” “But we can still have that,” I insisted. Kya simply stared at me. It was evident that she was upset. “Oh, so you’re going to put her ahead of me?” “No.” “She’s more important than me?” “No! Kya, why are you doing this? Why must you make me feel guilty for having friends? I don’t put them ahead of you. In fact, I rarely see them anymore. I don’t even talk to them on the phone that much these days. You’ve heard the messages they’ve left, wondering what in the world I’ve been up to, asking why I don’t keep in touch as much.” “Ok, ok, I give up. Just go,” she said and started past me. I stared at her. “My God, you make it sound like a contest you lost.” “I said just go!” she screamed, quickly spinning around to face me. I jumped back a step or two, aghast at her sudden outburst. Before I could say a word, there was a knock at the side door. “I’ll get it,” Kya said. “It’s Mary.” “I don’t care. I’ll still get the door when someone knocks when I’m home.” She walked past me, roughly brushing my shoulder. If I hadn’t taken a step back in time, I might’ve toppled over. Kya opened the door and Mary stepped into the utility area. “Hi!” said Mary’s cheerful, perky voice before she came into view. “Hello,” said Kya, sounding as if nothing was wrong. I wasn’t as good an actress. “Hi there,” Mary said, stepping into the room. Then, “What’s wrong?” “Oh, nothing,” I said, trying to keep it together. Kya flashed me a look of warning as she walked by me and headed into her office. Mary looked as cheery as she sounded in denim shorts and a shirt sprinkled with white daisies on a fuchsia background. Her soft features made her look so innocent. She was petite, curvy, and feminine, a stark contrast to Kya’s dark, distinct features, lanky build, and well-built muscles. “Are you sure? Because if you don’t feel well, we can always go another time.” “No, no, it’s ok. I’m just worn out from all the housecleaning I’ve done today,” I said with a smile. She looked around. Dishes were piled up in the sink and the coffee table was littered with papers, cups, and mugs. “When did you cut your hair, and why?” she asked. “I thought you were going to let it get to your knees.” “That was before I realized how sick I was of dealing with it. My hair’s so thick, Mary. Having it take a half hour to brush out gets really old, and Kya thought it’d make things easier, so I cut it,” I said, twirling the tresses that were now just a couple inches below my shoulders. “Easier?” “Yeah,” I said, telling her of how Kya nearly suffocated when she awoke to find my hair splayed across her face. Mary laughed, though she still wasn’t sure what to make of it. “Kya,” I shouted, “we’re taking off now.” “Ok. Bye.” “Bye,” we both called out. “She busy working?” Mary asked once we got into her car and headed out. “Yeah, she does most of her work at home.” We shopped in several different stores. It was good to get out and get my mind off of Kya’s odd behavior. Along the way, Mary kept insisting that something was wrong and urged me to talk about it. A few hours later, I broke down and told her everything—from my encounter with Laci to Kya’s jealous outburst earlier in the day. “You’ve got to promise never to tell Kya I told you this.” “Of course I won’t say anything to Kya,” Mary assured me. “You know me better.” “If you say anything about this to Andy, he too must keep his mouth shut around Kya. I don’t want either one of you leaving messages about it that she could hear.” “I’m sure he knows better, too. Just relax. It’ll be ok.” We headed to my house when we were done shopping. After a few moments of silence, Mary spoke up. “Do you think you might’ve made a mistake, Sativa?” “I hope not. I really, really hope not.” When we pulled up to the house, I found it sad that my heartbeat had accelerated with nervous anticipation of what might lie ahead rather than the joyous anticipation I’d once felt when her shift at the jail was about to begin. However, Kya was back to her usual self, acting as if all was peachy keen. In the bedroom, she devoured me like a lion, and after a night of rough sex, I awoke to face storm number two.