Inner Circle (5 page)

Jackie took a long pause before answering. “Nooooo!” Although she liked Erin a lot, she detested the fact that KTEL didn’t hire nearly as many black assistants as they did white ones and made it her personal business to change that. She knew the importance of providing as many opportunities to young women that looked like her as possible and was always looking not only to provide those opportunities but also to create them. “Where’s La Shawn?”

“She’s working with Mr. Felton today, and I got assigned to you,” Erin smiled.

“I see. Well, thank you. That’ll be all!” Jackie replied.

Jackie O’Connor was in a league of her own. As a celebrity entertainment journalist, she had received recognition throughout the industry and had won numerous awards for her groundbreaking stories. Not to mention how she sometimes single-handedly got exclusive stories from celebrities that even Oprah, in her heyday, couldn’t get. Jackie had a style that set her apart from other journalists, and that style had eventually catapulted her career to celebrity status.

Being married to the Leopards’ lineman Ray O’Connor had only broadened her appeal by giving her a personal connection to the world’s most prestigious professional athletes. Quite simply, Jackie’s celebrity stories had an added air of interest because they were being reported by someone who not only talked the talk but had also walked the walk.

Since joining the cast at KTEL, Jackie had watched the show’s viewers and ratings increase. It was no secret that that success could be directly attributed to her celebrity entertainment segment. She turned viewers into fans, making them fall head over heels in love with her. The fact that she was an Inglewood, California native was icing on the cake.

Viewers loved knowing that Jackie was living out her own rags-to-riches story, creating a name for herself like other local home-grown celebrities such as Tyra Banks, Shaunie O’Neal, and Paul Pierce, just to name a few. And Jackie was more than happy to make them all proud. As long as they were willing to watch, she’d definitely make sure they always tuned in to something spectacular.

“Mario,” Jackie called out, “find out who put La Shawn on Eric Felton’s team and tell them that I demand to have her back on mine. No offense to Erin, but I’d prefer my PA’s like I prefer my coffee . . . black with no cream. Got it?”

Mario laughed as he whispered into his station radio to locate La Shawn.

“You know you’re a mess, Mrs. Jackie. But I respect what you’re doing. It’s about time somebody with clout looked out for us.”

“Hell, we’re the only ethnicity that doesn’t make it a priority to hire our own. And if I have anything to say or do about it, little brown girls will always be working with women that look and think just like me.”

“Amen, Miss Thang,” Karen, her manicurist, praised. “I’m so sick of trying to make my Puerto Rican ass pass for Asian just to get a job. These stereotypes ain’t nothing nice, I promise you.”

“You are a fool for that, girl,” Jackie laughed. “I don’t give a damn what you are. If you’re a minority and a woman, I’m all for keeping you employed. Hard as I had to work in order for someone to give my Inglewood-bred ass a chance, I’m making for damn sure it’s gonna be easy for the next sista coming along.”

“We as women have to have each other’s back,” Karen affirmed.

Jackie twirled around in her chair and rose to her feet. She thought about her countless conversations with Eve and how passionate she’d been about starting The Wives Association for just that reason. Although distorted at times, Eve had a point in wanting to bond together to protect their families, fortunes, and overall futures as wives. Jackie smiled to herself taking in fully Karen’s comment and
applying it to her own life, especially as it related to Eve and The Wives Association. “Girl, you ain’t never lied. And sticking together will no longer be just what I do. It’s going to become part of who I am.”

Jackie picked up the commentary for the day’s show and made her way out the door. She liked knowing that although life was good, the best was truly yet to come.

3

“I’ve
been telling you bitches that it was just a matter of time before something like this happened. But did anyone listen to me? No! Call me crazy, but I know that two-faced, backstabbing bitch of a president, Paula Andrews, set this whole thing up.” Eve bypassed her Cosmo and poured herself a shot of Ty Ku Soju instead. Although technically considered the minibar in the grand room of her house, covering almost 150 square feet of the room, Eve’s bar was fully stocked with a plethora of top-shelf wines, champagnes, and liquors.

“Now, now, Eve, don’t even go there! Paula wouldn’t do that; she’s one of us. She’s president of the Lady Leopards, for God’s sake,” Jackie protested.

“So you think her introducing her girl Sa’Myra to Amber was a
coincidence
?” Eve quizzed. “Come the fuck on, don’t be so naïve. I did my research.”

“Here she goes, fucking 007,” Jai joked.

“Call it what you like, but I knew that shit stunk the moment Paula tried to pawn that bitch off on me first. Why the hell would someone lobby that fucking hard for her girl unless there was an ulterior motive in play? She was looking to set one of us up. When she got wind of how I roll when it comes to my staff, she pulled back and set
her sights on someone a lot more lenient.” Eve darted a sympathetic glance in Amber’s direction.

Amber rose to her feet and walked to the wall-sized window in Eve’s master study. Eve could only imagine her thoughts as tears rolled down Amber’s cheeks. For nearly four years Eve had been pressing the ladies to start a private association that specifically pledged an order of protection from such a thing. The ladies in the group would be privy to private information about each other’s families, such as travel plans, staff information, the in-and off-season schedules of their husbands, old and new players on each of their husband’s teams, as well as players’ spouses, girlfriends, baby mamas, and possible jump-offs. Upon agreement to actually start, Eve’s association would ensure that everyone in their inner circle was protected.

By becoming founding members, Amber, Jackie, Callie, Jai, and Eve would agree to use their talents, resources, personal and professional connections, and whatever else was needed to make sure that no one could get near their husbands for the purpose of cheating. If cheating did occur, all information gathered would be held in safekeeping as a means of leverage for the relationship. The association would also provide financial protection for any lady that felt her marriage was in jeopardy of coming to an end. With each member’s commitment to contributing a tenth of their monthly net income, the association would have enough in savings to hire the best divorce attorney money could buy. It would also require that each woman helped the others in establishing businesses where each of them would sit on the board and act as principle investors for one another. Their pact would be so strong that nothing could break or stop them.

Eve walked over to Amber and placed her hand on her shoulder. “It’s not too late, you know.”

“Eve, you don’t understand. He cheated on me and clearly slept with this woman without protection. He actually told me he
liked
her,” she whispered.

“What?”

“Nothing,” Amber quickly retracted.

Eve grabbed Amber by the arm and pulled her into her bathroom, closing the door behind them. “Please tell me Sean didn’t catch feelings for that trick?”

Amber’s tears persisted. “I don’t know what to call it. All I know is that when I confronted him, the joke was on me. He said he was glad he finally got caught because he was tired of pretending that things with me were okay. He said the only reason he married me was because I got pregnant and his father told him that if he didn’t, he’d look like the typical black athlete stereotype. He said that marrying me was a good look and that it would get him points with the team. Apparently, the owner gives some kind of private incentives to players who show stability with a family. Better PR.”

“Did he threaten you?”

“Worse. He reminded me of our prenup.”

Eve fumed with anger. “That muthafucka’!” She bit the tip of a freshly manicure nail. “What are you looking at if you leave?”

“Seven thousand five hundred a month at best, plus a condo, and I get to keep a car.”

“Amber, I don’t know what to say.” Eve paced to and fro. “Do you have some stash?”

“I’ve got about sixty grand and some jewelry. Sean has me on a tight budget in terms of liquid assets. I get eight thousand a month in an allowance, and I have access to only one of his credit cards. In college, Sean was a finance major, and he’s notoriously smart when it comes to his money. His dad is the deputy COO for the Chamber of Commerce in San Francisco . . . In other words, I’m screwed.”

“What about your online store?” Eve was desperate for a solution. “With the other wives always shopping and supporting your site, you’ve got to be pulling in at least five figures a month, right?”

“I do all right, but honestly, Eve, how much support do you think I’m going get if I leave him? Sean said he’d make my life a living hell if
I didn’t get on board with this. He said that I needed to just enjoy my life as his wife with all the perks that come with it . . . or else.”

“Or else what?”

“I’ll never know.” Amber wiped the tears from her face, took Eve’s duster that was lying on her vanity counter, and blotted the brush gently around her watery eyes.

“So that’s it. You just become Stevie Freaking Wonder to his cheating ass? It’s like you’re giving him fucking permission to screw around on you.”

“What would you do? If I leave him, Eve, I have nothing. I’m nothing without Sean. And what about Olivia? She loves her daddy. I can’t imagine raising her as a single mother.”

“Women do it all the time,” Eve reminded her.

“But I don’t want to be one of those women, Eve.”

“So, you’re just going to take his shit?”

“Unfortunately, every woman isn’t like you, Eve. Some of us didn’t come into our relationships with a law background or a ready-made attorney looking out for us. Some of us actually came into our relationships buying into the fucking fantasy that true love really existed.”

The ladies were interrupted as Jackie walked into the bathroom.

“How long do you two intend to keep us out there? We came over here to give Amber some moral support and figure out how the hell we’re going to help. Now you asked me to bring my ass over here to help you convince the other ladies to finally form this association, and I’m here. But we can’t do that if you two are locked up in this bathroom,” Jackie said matter-of-factly.

Eve gave Jackie a sharp glance. “This shit is worse than we thought. We’re organizing the association tonight,” Eve said, heading into the study.

Jackie followed closely behind while Amber hesitated. “What good is that going to do me now? The damage is done, and I’m just going to have to accept it.”

“You don’t have to accept shit! Listen, he may have you by the
balls right now, but give me three months after the establishment of our new association, and I’ll personally see to it that the choice to stay or leave will be strictly up to you. Once we establish our bylaws and get the association in play, which shouldn’t take me more than a month, prenup or not, our men will know that we are a group of women you
don’t
want to mess with.”

“You make all of this sound so easy, Eve. What makes you think forming an association is going to protect us from these kinds of things? I mean, forgive me for being a skeptic, but none of this sounds realistic. Men—especially men in positions of power—cheat! How is our sticking together with some ‘little club’ going to change that?” Jai Rodriquez, wife of baseball sensation Tony Rodriquez, protested. Although Eve and Jai had been friends for the past four years, Jai wasn’t the type of woman to play into a hand of drama. From what she consistently conveyed to each of the ladies was a flawless marriage that couldn’t be interrupted. If there were holes to her story, she made for damn sure she kept them covered.

“Well, I’m open to a solution,” Callie said while fidgeting with her four carat pave canary yellow diamond ring. “Drew is constantly putting me through the fucking wringer with some little whore. It’s ridiculous. Six months ago it was a Hooter’s girl he met while negotiating his new U.S. contract. Last month it was some little Ty Ku server chick from the team’s events, and now I think he’s screwing some hair model he met while shooting a commercial,” she whined.

“A hair model?” exclaimed Jackie. “You mean to tell me that your muthafuckin’ husband got that ‘Tresses for men’ endorsement deal? Ray told me they went in a different direction, but a soccer player?”

“Drew has worldwide exposure. He’s on some David Beckham-type level. You know Ray’s ass can’t compete with that!” Jai laughed.

“I’m glad to see you two think this funny, but this isn’t about an endorsement,” Eve reminded them.

“Callie, why didn’t you say anything?” Amber sat beside her in
the toast-colored leather chair. “I didn’t realize you were going through something too.”