The Doctor Is In (6 page)

As she cleaned herself up in the bathroom, Voncile thought about Kasen’s strange demeanor. She wished Kasen had felt comfortable enough to talk to her about why he was so off his game today, but she had an inkling what was bothering him, and it made her super happy. Voncile knew that her time to be with Kasen was coming. Her mission now was to make Kasen forget all about Raine. If it were left up to Voncile, it would be a cold day in hell before that slick bitch had a chance to marry Kasen.

After half an hour, Voncile went across the street and entered the busy restaurant, searching for Kasen. He was already there and had taken a seat at a table near the bar, where he was speaking to someone on his cell phone. She eased her way through the crowded restaurant, bumping shoulders with a few people and eavesdropping on a couple who seemed to be arguing rather than eating. The whole place was too noisy for Voncile, who really wanted to spend a quiet and cozy evening with Kasen, but when he displayed his pearly whites after seeing her coming his way, she was good. She didn’t care where she was with him, just as long as they were together.

Kasen held up one finger as Voncile approached the table.

“I’ll tell you more about it later,” he said over the phone. “You’re not going to believe how it all went down. Then again, maybe I should have listened to you from the beginning.”

Kasen paused to listen then laughed and said, “I hear you, my brotha. I truly hear you. But I have to go. We’ll continue this conversation later for sure.” He paused again then ended the call a moment later.

“Sorry about that,” he said, standing to pull back a chair for Voncile. “That was Omar. It’s always difficult getting him off the phone.”

“I’m sure it is, especially when you have a lot of juicy gossip to share with him,” she said, hoping he might open up a little bit so she could see where his mind was.

Unfortunately for her, Kasen didn’t take the bait. He sat back in the chair and picked up the menu. “I’m really not that hungry, so I’ll just have a chicken wrap or something. Feel free to order whatever you’d like.”

Voncile scanned the menu quickly then said, “I guess I’ll have the bacon cheeseburger, a Cobb salad, fish and chips, and the pasta platter. For dessert, I’m thinking about salted caramel cheesecake and a slice of chocolate cake. Does that sound good or what?” She was hoping to lighten his mood.

“What it sounds like is you’re pregnant,” Kasen joked.

“No, not pregnant, just hungry. Besides, there is no way in hell that I’m pregnant. Women who have sex get pregnant, and, uh, that wouldn’t be me.”

Kasen laughed and shook his head. “You mean to tell me that your boyfriend done left you high and dry? I thought you were serious about the last guy.”

“Dating, yes. Serious, no. We did have sex one measly little time, but I’m too embarrassed to tell you what happened with that.”

Kasen pushed. He enjoyed their open conversation, and he needed a good laugh. “I’m all ears.”

“I bet you are, but I’m not going to tell you, because you may want to charge me for your services. Your fees are too high, and I’ll be the first to admit that I can’t afford to pay you.”

“My services are free after five,” he said, “so let me hear it.”

Voncile flagged down a waiter to order a drink. Before this conversation went any further, she needed to get a little alcohol in her system. “I’ll have rum with a little Coke,” she said to the waiter who came to the table. “And if you don’t mind, we’re ready to order.”

Voncile ordered a T-bone steak, and Kasen ordered a chicken wrap, along with a shot of Hennessy.

“Okay. Now, where were we?” Voncile asked when the waiter left the table to get their drinks.

Kasen was eager to hear Voncile’s story. “Stop teasing me,” he said. “Tell me what happened between the two of you.”

“You mean what didn’t happen. I was hyped; I was ready. I was sooo excited about being intimate with him.” She took a deep breath then blew it out in a huff. “I can’t believe I’m telling you this, but when he pulled it out, I wanted to cry. I was like, ‘Okay, girl, just work with it and do your best.’ But after two long strokes, it was over. Then that fool had the nerve to lay there like he had done something.”

Kasen was laughing out loud. He almost felt bad for the guy, even though he’d never met him.

“And that was the last time I ever saw him,” Voncile said to finish her story.

“Two strokes? Come on, Voncile. You’re lying. You can do better than that.”

She shook her head adamantly. “I thought he could too, but obviously not. I am telling you the truth, and when I tell you I shed tears that night, I’m not lying.”

“So now you’re telling me you cried? Cried for what?”

“Because I was highly disappointed. I had never experienced anything so horrible, and don’t you dare sit there and act like men can’t have bad penises.”

“How in the hell am I supposed to know?” Kasen laughed, and so did Voncile. “It’s just that the two stroke thing seems far-fetched, and I can’t envision you crying just because the sex was bad.”

Voncile playfully rolled her eyes. “Well, I did, and two strokes were all I got. Trust me, I counted.”

“That’s bad. Real bad. But if that did happen, it’s a compliment to you. Your stuff must be so good that the man couldn’t control himself,” Kasen joked.

“Not good, but spectacular. And even you ever want to try it for yourself, just let me know.” Voncile laughed to play down her bluntness, but she wanted to see how Kasen would respond. They kidded around with each other from time to time, but neither one of them had ever put a clear offer on the table.

He definitely paused for a minute, so she knew he’d heard her and understood it was not a joke. But unlike in her many fantasies, he didn’t take her up on the offer. Instead, he looked up at the waiter, who was delivering their drinks to the table, like he was grateful for the interruption.

“Thanks, man. Perfect timing,” he said as he took the Hennessy from him and downed it in one gulp.

There was an awkward moment between them as Voncile’s proposition hung in the air between them. The offer had filled Kasen’s head with images of the two of them, naked in his office, but he wasn’t about to tell her that. She was a beautiful woman—he had always found her attractive—but he didn’t want to take advantage of her. He appreciated the close friendship they’d had, and as tempting as it might be, using her to soothe some of his pain for the night wasn’t what he wanted to do. For her part, Voncile figured she had laid the groundwork by putting the offer out there, but she wasn’t about to start begging. So, to escape the awkwardness they were feeling, they made small talk until the waiter delivered their food.

“Oh my God,” Voncile said, looking at the juicy steak he placed in front of her. “This thing is huge. You’ve got to help me eat this, Kasen. I had no idea it would be this big.”

“Well, if you insist,” Kasen said. “Pour on some of that A.1. sauce and gimme a bite.”

Voncile happily did as he asked, slicing a piece of steak and reaching across the table to feed it to him. Her eyes remained focused on his thick lips as he ate the steak. She wanted to jump across the table and taste those lips. The way his mouth moved, she could tell he was proficient at eating the hotbox. She didn’t mean to stare, but damn, did he have to chew like that? Her pussy thumped from watching him, and in an effort to calm it down, she crossed her legs—tight.

“Now, that was good,” he said. “If you can’t eat all of that, be sure to pass it to me.”

It took all of her self-control not to tell him what she really wanted to share with him. Instead, she continued to feed him more steak, showing him how good she could be to him if given the opportunity.

“Stop spoiling me,” Kasen said with a full belly. He was slightly tipsy, too, and extremely tired.

“I don’t mind spoiling you,” she said seductively. “Whatever you want, all you have to do is ask for it.”

Voncile felt good about sending another hint, but Kasen didn’t bite. He yawned and stretched his arms in the air.

“What I want is some sleep. I’d better go ahead and get out of here before I fall asleep in the car. Let’s get the check and then I’ll walk you to your car.”

“I’ll be fine,” she answered, trying to hide her disappointment. “I think I’m going to stay for a while and have another drink.”

“Okay,” he said, standing up from the table. “Well, you have a good night then. I’ll see you tomorrow at the office.”

She smiled at him, even though she was disappointed that he was really leaving. As much as she wanted things to happen right away, she knew that it was better to be patient. She didn’t want to scare him away by coming on too strong, especially since she already had other plans in place to get her to her ultimate goal. “Thanks for hanging out with me tonight,” she said.

“Anytime. This was fun. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Kasen opened his wallet, dropping a hundred-dollar bill on the table. He gave Voncile a tight hug before making his way to the exit. Even though he had left, she wanted to jump for joy. She predicted that this was just the beginning of many more interesting nights to come.

Voncile sat at the table by herself for a while, thinking about how things had gone that night. Kasen might have pretended he wasn’t interested in her offer, but she could see in his eyes that he really wanted her. Her biggest hurdle, she knew, would be to get his mind off of that waste of space he called a girlfriend.

Voncile had hated Raine from the first time she met her. She walked into the office like she owned the place, and when Voncile tried to make friendly small talk with her, Raine barely even looked in her direction. When she did bother to speak to Voncile, her tone was always sharp and condescending, like she thought she was so much better than Kasen’s secretary. Basically, she treated Voncile like she was a nobody.

The way she treated Voncile was just a part of the problem, of course. The worst part, the most nasty part, was the way she strutted into Kasen’s office like some kind of princess when it was obvious she was really coming to get laid. Sometimes Voncile would stand by the office door to listen in. She could hear the moaning and groaning, the “I love yous” and the sound of Raine slurping on Kasen’s package. It was very unprofessional to carry on that way, although Voncile never blamed Kasen. He was a man, and no man had the strength to resist when a woman was offering to get down on her knees and swallow him whole. As far as Voncile was concerned, Raine was totally to blame for the disgusting behavior. That stupid ho was just doing it to make sure she kept this wealthy doctor in her pocket.

In Voncile’s eyes, Kasen was always innocent. She felt that he could do no wrong, mostly because of the way he treated her. He was always kind, sweet, and respectful. When she first started working for him, she was blown away by how gorgeous he was, but as soon as she got to know him and realized what a caring person he was, that was when she fell head over heels. Sure, she dated other men, but that was really only to pass the time until she could win Kasen over to her team. That would take some time, but she was willing to be patient. She only felt the need to rush things along once she heard that he was thinking of proposing to Raine. That was when she put together a plan that included Patrice Davenport, who was waiting for her now in the parking garage.

Voncile got up from the table and left the restaurant, crossing the street to meet up with Patrice. This was the real reason she had waited to be sure Kasen was long gone before she went to her car. The last thing she wanted was for him to see her meeting with the woman he thought was just a new patient in his practice. In truth, Voncile had hired her friend Patrice to pose as a patient and try to keep Kasen distracted. She figured that the more ways she could utilize to get his mind off of Raine, the better. She was determined to do almost anything to make him forget about a woman who was nowhere near good enough for him. She was sure that once that worthless woman was out of his mind, he would be free to finally act on the lustful feelings Voncile knew he’d always had for her.

Voncile got in her car, shutting the door behind her. She was a little on edge from the sexual tension of her date with Kasen, so she reached for a cigarette in her purse. She lit the cigarette, taking several puffs and blowing smoke rings into the air. A knock on the passenger’s side window startled her, but she relaxed when she looked over and saw Patrice standing there. She unlocked the door so Patrice could get in the car.

“Please put that away,” Patrice griped, fanning away the thick smoke. “I’m about to choke.”

“You haven’t been in here long enough to choke,” Voncile answered, but she opened a window anyway to let the smoke out. “There. Happy? Now tell me how your visit with the doctor was today.”

Patrice smirked. “First of all, why didn’t you tell me he was so damn hot?”

Voncile snapped her head to the side, catching an attitude. “Let me repeat myself,” she said with a stern voice. “I’m not paying you to hook up with Kasen. I’m paying you to keep him occupied. Under no circumstances are you to have sex with him, understand? If you feel as if you can’t control yourself, then I will find someone else who is willing to follow the rules. Let me know now if you’re in or out.” She took another deep drag of her cigarette, purposely blowing the smoke in Patrice’s direction.

Patrice rolled her eyes. “Look, don’t get your panties all in a bunch, okay? I didn’t say I had any plans to fuck the guy. I just meant that he’s easy on the eyes, and this is going to be a lot of fun spending time with him.” Then, because she couldn’t resist jabbing at Voncile, who was obviously in love with this guy, she added, “So much fun that you may not have to pay me. I may have to pay you for hooking me up with him.”

Voncile started to curse her out. “Bitch, don’t make me—”

Patrice began to laugh, cutting her off. “Don’t be so feisty, Voncile. I was only kidding. I am well aware that this is business. Speaking of which, I need my first payment.”

Voncile stubbed out the cigarette into the ashtray, then reached into the glove compartment to retrieve an envelope for Patrice.

With a grin on her face, Patrice sniffed the envelope. “I love the smell of money. It always excites me.” She opened the envelope, flipping through several hundred-dollar bills. “Thank you. I really needed this. You are always right on time, and I love working with you.”

“Same here,” Voncile replied. “I’ll let you know when I need you again. Maybe early next week.”

“Just let me know and I will be there,” Patrice said before leaving the car.

This wasn’t the first time Voncile and Patrice had worked together to get something they wanted. They had known each other since high school, and there was a trail of schemes, plots, and criminal activity that could send the two of them to jail for a long time. Luckily, neither one was worried about being exposed by the other. Even though they argued from time to time, they had developed a good working relationship, and they trusted each other.

Voncile drove home to her two-story, three-bedroom house. She parked near the white picket fence and went up onto the porch, standing beside the porch swing as she searched for the key in her purse. She noticed that the grass was in need of a cut, and she would have to call the landscaper to find out where the hell he had been. If only she had a man in her life, he could take care of things like that, she thought.

Inside, the entire house was as neat as a pin. No dust. No clutter. No noise. The hardwood floors were polished to perfection, and the traditional décor had cost Voncile a fortune. She left her purse and keys on the coffee table in the living room and climbed the stairs up to the second floor, thinking about the day she would finally be walking up those stairs with Kasen. She couldn’t wait for him to share a bed with her, and she looked forward to opening her legs, allowing Kasen to dive right in.

Voncile’s guest rooms were usually empty, but one of them had been occupied for the past day by someone she would rather not have as a guest. Some things were just necessary, though, to reach her ultimate goal, so she would put up with this guest, at least for a while. The door to the guest room squeaked as she pushed it open. Inside the stuffy, windowless room, she saw Raine and the sight made her want to laugh out loud. Little Miss Perfect was totally helpless now, with her mouth gagged and her hands tied behind her back. She was also hideous, dressed in a raggedy cotton pajama top that cut right above her knees, with her hair matted, nappy, and tangled. Smudged mascara stained her face where tears had run from her swollen eyes.

Raine was still in total shock that she had been snatched up from Kasen’s place and brought here. Voncile had lied, telling her that there was an emergency and something horrific had happened to Kasen. The next thing Raine knew, she had been knocked over the head, and when she woke up, she was in this room. She didn’t understand why, until she was forced to write a letter to Kasen, telling him that he was a cheater and she was leaving him for another man. Nothing in the letter was true, but here she was, and there was nothing that she could do about it.

With a wicked smile on her face, Voncile walked up to Raine. She lifted her chin, forcing Raine to look at her. “What is that horrible smell in here?” Voncile asked, wincing. “Did you shit on yourself? If you had to use the bathroom, that’s all you had to say. Damn, stinky woman.”

Raine moaned, knowing that Voncile couldn’t understand her with a piece of cloth tied around her mouth. She kept turning her head in circles, hoping that Voncile would remove the cloth so she could speak.

“You know what?” Voncile said. “I really don’t want to hear anything you have to say right now. Let me go take a shower, get me a bite to eat, and then I’ll be back so we can chat. Okay?”

Raine nodded like a bobblehead doll. She was trying her best to cooperate with Voncile in the hopes that she would rethink this whole thing and let her go. She never would have guessed that Voncile was this evil. This crazy woman was nothing like the woman Raine had seen at Kasen’s office. Kasen had nothing but nice things to say about Voncile, and even though Raine didn’t know her personally, she had still viewed her as a decent person—or at least a normal one. Raine had even felt that Voncile was beneficial to Kasen and his practice, so this situation left her totally in awe. She hadn’t stopped crying all day.

She wondered if or when Kasen would start looking for her. The phony letter had told him not to bother, so all she could do was hope he would ignore what the letter said. Their relationship was strong and loving. He had to know that she wouldn’t just walk away from him, she thought, but then she realized that her behavior the day before might have actually given him reason to doubt her.

She was worried now that her uncomfortable response to his proposal might actually be enough for him to believe all the things Voncile had made her write in the letter. The truth was that she had just wanted a little more time to talk though her trust issues before she committed herself fully to the idea of marriage. Also, she had been keeping a secret from Kasen for a while, and she didn’t want to get married before she cleared the air about Omar.

Omar had been trying to push up on Raine for years, and she had never told Kasen about it. That was his best friend, and she figured as long as she kept Omar in check, there was no need to hurt Kasen’s feelings by telling him. But Omar had become more aggressive lately. He begged her to be with him, and when that didn’t work, he started making threats. He also kept insisting that Kasen was being unfaithful to her, and said he had photographic proof of Kasen’s ongoing affairs. Raine was smart enough to be skeptical, but a small part of her wondered if it could be true, so she held off telling Kasen about it until she was sure Omar was lying.

When Kasen had proposed, she was taken by surprise, and she felt a little stuck. She wasn’t sure how to address the issue of his possible cheating with Kasen. After having kept it a secret for so long, she didn’t feel like she could just blurt out in that moment that Omar was stirring up so much trouble behind the scenes. She needed some time to clear her head and process the whole thing, so that she could decide how she wanted to break the news to Kasen. When she got home, she poured herself a glass of wine and looked through old pictures of her and Kasen together. Each picture reminded her of a beautiful and loving time they’d had together, and the more she saw, the more she realized that this man truly loved her. She finally realized that Omar had been lying, and when Kasen came home, she was going to tell him everything. Then they could go forward with their wedding plans, and she could become Mrs. Kasen Phillips. Instead, she had ended up in this house, on the brink of losing her mind. She hadn’t seen Omar yet, but she was sure that he was someway or somehow involved in this too.

Voncile came back into the room, wearing a comfortable housecoat and smelling like fresh peaches from taking a shower. She pinched her nose as she entered the room then looked at Raine, who was still in the corner, trying to free her hands from the tight rope.

“Girl, forget it,” Voncile said. “You’re wasting your time. Those ropes aren’t going anywhere, and even if you do manage to get them off, there is no way in hell that I’m gonna allow you to leave here.”

In an attempt to intimidate Raine, Voncile sat directly in front of her with her legs crossed yoga-style. She untied the cloth from around Raine’s mouth, watching Raine as she moved her stiff mouth in circles.

“What do you want from me?” Raine asked tearfully. “How long are you planning on keeping me here like this?”

Voncile shrugged. “Hopefully not too much longer, but we’ll see. Are you hungry?”

Raine didn’t answer as she narrowed her eyes and silently cursed Voncile in her head. That look cost Raine a hard slap across the face. Her head jerked to the side, and her hair shifted into another style from the force of the blow. Voncile pointed her finger at the tip of Raine’s nose, speaking through clenched teeth.

“Don’t you dare look at me like that. And when I ask you a question, you need to answer. So, let me try this again. Are you hungry?”

Raine’s head remained lowered. She had no idea that Voncile was capable of doing something like this. She wondered how far Voncile was willing to go.

“Yes,” Raine said in a soft tone. “Yes, I am hungry.”

“It’s late, but I’m thinking about cooking me some good ol’ buttermilk pancakes, cheese eggs, and sausage. I don’t have time to make anything like that for you, but I’ll think of something. Meanwhile, what about going to the bathroom? You really need to clean yourself up. The last thing I want is you walking around my house smelling like a garbage truck. Do you smell this way around Kasen?”

The one thing Raine could attest to today was that this bitch was crazy. She didn’t want to say or do anything else to set Voncile off. Raine knew that she had to be careful with her words.

“I don’t smell like this around Kasen. And as for using the bathroom and getting something to eat, I would love to.”