Crossroads Page 9

  “Hold it!” Marco said. He walked up to Denise and looked her in her eyes. “This isn’t working.” Marco turned around. “This isn’t working! This is not the look she should have at all.”

  Marco walked over to the rack of male clothing. He pulled a pair of black jeans from the rack. “Put these on. And take those shoes off.”

  Mariah handed her the jeans. Denise looked confused. Mariah’s eyes looked down. Denise looked around. Everyone was wondering why she wasn’t’ changing. Denise unbuttoned her jeans, embarrassed to be changing in front of a room of people. She put the loose-fitting jeans on, instantly feeling more comfortable.

  “And these.” Marco handed her a pair of male boots.

  Denise was really relieved. She sat down as a helper pulled her shoes off and put the boots on.

  Marco gave a slight smile. “Now, Denise, I want you to give me Denise. Take pictures like you would if you were at home.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  Denise stood back up in front of the camera. The photographer began to snap pictures. She looked into the camera, intensity in her eyes. Marco and Mariah watched a computer off to the side, occasionally nodding and talking to the other associates. Denise let go of all her thoughts. She didn’t realize just how comfortable she felt in front of the camera.

  Five hours later Denise felt like she had done three days of work. Her looks changed. They mixed male and female clothes together to create Denise’s style. She even took some pictures in boxers and a lace push-up bra.

  The makeup remover felt good against her skin. She felt the removal of layers of foundations, making her face feel light again.

  She looked down at her phone. There were twelve missed calls from Cooley and Carmen.

  “Denise, come here,” Mariah called over to her.

  Denise walked over to the computer.

  “We just wanted to show you a few of your shots,” one of the associates said as she pressed the mouse.

  Marco and Mariah watched Denise’s facial expression as images of her flashed on the screen.

  “Damn, are you serious? That is really me.” Denise felt an overwhelming sense of pride taking over her body. “Wow!”

  “Didn’t know you could look like that, did you?” Mariah said as the images flashed of Denise in a short skirt with no shirt on, holding her chest.

  “Man, my friends are gonna trip. This whole thing is a trip.”

  “Well, do you want to trip more often?” Marco looked at Denise with a stern face. “Because we would like you to become the new face of Jocku.”

  “Are you serious?” Denise put her fist up to her mouth.

  “Very much so. My original look for this season wasn’t sitting right with me. I needed something new, and you are it. It’s fabulous. I’m rushing these images and replacing the original campaign, that is if you accept the job. So is that a yes?” Marco responded, trying to keep his stern expression.

  Denise was speechless; it all seemed surreal. Marco noticed her expression. “Maybe this will make you say yes quicker.”

  Marco scribbled on a piece of paper and handed it to Denise.

  Denise turned the piece of paper over to see more zeros than she had ever seen before.

  Denise’s body froze. Her eyes bucked, and her mouth dropped.

  Mariah hugged Denise. “I told you things were going to work out. Say yes, woman.”

  “Uhhh, yeah,” Denise said, trying to figure out if she was dreaming or not.

  “Great. Welcome aboard.” Marco stood up and shook Denise’s hand. He walked away with his group following him.

  Denise looked at Mariah. “Is this for real?”

  “It is. Are you ready to be a model?”

  “I guess so.”

  “So, big model, what do you want to do first?” Mariah asked as they walked out of the warehouse. She pressed the button on her BMW.

  Denise hesitated. It was identical to Lena’s car. She quickly shook it off and got in the car.

  “We have to celebrate.”

  “I don’t know. There’s so much I need to do. I gotta find a place to stay. When do I sign the actual contract?”

  “The contract signing is tomorrow morning. I have to say, this is exciting. This is big for both of us. Now I have a model to add to my portfolio, not to mention a nice commission for myself. Now we have to get you a place to stay. I’m sure Marco will let you stay in one of his places until you get on your feet,” Mariah rambled.

  “Man, this is unreal. I can’t believe this.”

  “Denise, take a deep breath. You can relax right now. Like I said, what do you want to do to celebrate?”

  “I really would like to just go to sleep.” Denise put her head back on the head rest.

  “Go to sleep? You are seriously no fun. How about a club or something?”

  “Nah, I’m not really a club person.”

  Mariah looked at Denise. “You are really one of a kind, Denise Chambers.”

  Denise looked at Mariah and smiled. She noticed a billboard. “Well, there is one thing I would like to do.” She pointed at the billboard for the Broadway play Wicked.

  “You want to go to a musical?” Mariah frowned.

  “Yeah, I’ve always wanted to go to one. I mean, I used to go to the shows when they would come to town but never actually on Broadway. Why are you frowning?”

  “I just never expected you to be into that type of stuff.”

  Denise laughed. “Well, my grandma was real big on old movies and musicals. I was watching them before anything else. I fell in love with classic movies. I love them. Call it my guilty pleasure. She also used to take me to plays. She always talked about coming to New York to see a musical like Cats. Man, she was elated when she heard The Color Purple was a musical. But she died before—”

  Mariah put her hand on Denise’s thigh. “In that case let’s do it up. Tomorrow night. I’ll make all the plans. After you sign the contract, we will have a night out on Broadway.”

  Denise smiled. “Mariah, thank you so much, for everything. I didn’t know what I was gonna do. I didn’t know I could do anything besides basketball. Thanks for helping me when you didn’t have to.”

  “It’s no problem. Besides, after tomorrow you won’t be my client anymore.”

  Denise’s head whipped back around. “What do you mean?”

  “I mean that believe it or not, I’m a sports agent. You have to sign with a modeling agency that can take care of you and get you where you really need to be. That’s not me.”

  “Damn, that sucks.” Denise looked at Mariah. “Are you sure there’s nothing that can be done?”

  “I’m afraid not, but it’s all good. I did what I set out to do. Now we can focus on a friendship instead of a working relationship.”

  “Of course.” Denise looked out the window. Things were finally looking back up for her.

  16

  Cooley sat at the end of the long conference table. Her week wasn’t as exciting as she expected. Instead it was an endless circle of meetings. So much was already in place before she got there. Sahara was becoming a bona fide star on the mix tape scene. Her collaborations with major artists were all over the airwaves. They had taken the same approach as Drake and Nicki Minaj, Sahara was big, and her album wasn’t dropping anytime soon.

  This meeting was different from the others. She felt Sahara’s eyes on her. Sahara wasn’t present for the other meetings, due to various engagements at nightclubs that had her out of town a lot. Cooley scribbled on a notepad with her pen, trying not to look down the table. She wasn’t quite sure how she was able to not stare when Sahara walked in, let alone not sneak in any peeks during the long, boring planning meeting.

  Sahara couldn’t take her eyes off Cooley. She tilted her head, slanting her oval eyes. She just didn’t get it. Sahara couldn’t tell if Cooley was trying to act uninterested, or if she really was. Sahara was determined to win the ultimate prize, Cooley’s heart. She planned her outfit to the tee, hoping to acc
entuate her finest assets, which included her round apple bottom, thick thighs, and perky breasts.

  Today she took a page out of Alicia Key’s handbook. She picked a pair of grey pants that fit her so right, they could have been painted on. She added a pink and grey halter shirt that not only made her breasts look like juicy ripe grapefruits ready to be picked right off the tree, but showed off her flat stomach that hours in the gym with her trainer afforded her. She knew what was on the mind of every man in the conference room. They all wanted to undress her right there, but with Cooley, she wasn’t sure. The one person she wanted to take her body on a midnight ride wasn’t showing the interest she wanted.

  “So let’s discuss video. The good thing is that the two songs out now are both blazing. We just need to pick which we are going to use as the front-runner.” Marco stood up. The dark Italian man strutted to the stereo system.

  Cooley wanted to laugh. The men on the team were very envious of her. No one could understand why Big Ron put so much faith in a gay-ass girl fresh out of college.

  “At first I thought we should come out with a bang, make the people dance. But we all saw what she could do in the collabo with The Dream. So I think the front runner should be ‘One Night.’”

  Marco pressed play on the stereo. A hot bass line echoed through the room, causing everyone to start nodding their heads to the beat. Cooley wanted to run out the room. The words of the song made her want to laugh and yell at the same time.

  So Cool, but so hot, you make me feel right

  You’re the champ no need for a fight

  He was no more the moment you entered my sight

  My destiny fulfilled, all in one night.

  Cooley’s lips pressed hard against each other. She lowered her head, trying not to laugh. She could feel Sahara’s eyes burning a hole in the side of her head. She couldn’t resist.

  Cooley turned her head and looked directly at Sahara. Sahara nodded while she grinned. No words exchanged, but so much was said. Cooley knew the song was about her.

  James noticed the exchange between the two. Suddenly everything was making sense to him. He had been trying to get Sahara for months but with no luck.

  The words of the chorus played again. His mouth dropped as everything became completely clear. The rumors about Sahara and Cooley were true. She was gay and Cooley had her. James’ piercing eyes shot back at Sahara, who was completely oblivious to his glare. That let him know Cooley still had her.

  “So let’s hear ideas.” Marco stopped the song. “I was thinking that, since she’s talking about leaving her man to be with this other dude, I think that we should do a hot video playing off of the actual words of the song.”

  “Umm, can I say something?” Sahara raised her hand.

  Everyone nodded.

  She stood up. “I agree with Marco. I was a big fan of the old Dru Hill videos; you know, the ‘Sleeping in My Bed, Never Make a Promise’ and ‘5 Steps.’ Those videos told such great stories. I want my video to do the same, in the ‘Sleeping in My Bed’ feel.”

  “OK.” Marco looked at Sahara. “In what ways?”

  Sahara smiled as she began to walk toward the end of the table. “I was thinking we could show a woman whose man isn’t paying her the right attention, like she’s sitting up bored while he focuses on video games and his friends. They go to a club and she runs into this other person. That’s when she no longer seems interested in him. Instead of watching him play games, we see her off in a corner texting and smiling. So in the end he walks in on her with someone else in the bed.”

  Everyone was hanging on to her every word.

  “But to add a twist, we see her in bed with a woman.”

  Cooley’s head jerked up. The men were silent, but their looks screamed NO.

  Sahara stood in her place, irritated.

  Marco stood up. “Sahara, sweetie, that will never work. We are not putting you out like that.”

  “Why not? I’m a lesbian. My songs are about my experiences with women. Why can’t I be real?”

  Sahara’s words angered James to his core. “Because we want to sell records.” James snapped.

  Cooley couldn’t take her eyes off of Sahara.

  “Why the hell can’t I sell records if I am gay? Katy Perry hit it big singing about kissing a girl.”

  “That’s a white pop singer,” Marco added. “Not a black soul artist.”

  “OK, so what about Wanda Sparks? Since she came out, she’s bigger than ever.”

  “Again, a completely different genre altogether; it’s not gonna happen.”

  “Well, explain Nicki. She’s the hottest female rapper in the game. Hell, did you even listen to her verse on Usher’s ‘Little Freak’?” Sahara waited on a response. She made sure she was prepared before she came into the room.

  “Nicki Minaj is also different. You aren’t a rapper, you are a R&B diva in the making we are going to bring out as super mainstream,” Marco added.

  “This is some bullshit.” Sahara folded her arms.

  “You can think what you want, but it’s not happening.” James’ deep voice rumbled. “You might as well give up the gay shit ’cause nothing about your image is going to say gay. Not your videos or anything else.”

  “Cooley!” Sahara looked at Cooley, her eyes filled with despair.

  Everyone turned their attentions to Cooley.

  Cooley looked up, all eyes on her. “Well, I think that being out right now is not the best idea.”

  “Cool!” Sahara stomped her foot against the ground.

  “Chill out.” Cooley looked at Sahara, and she immediately followed instructions, sitting down in her chair and rolling her eyes.

  The idea that when he talked she argued, but when some gay bitch said stop, she shut up infuriated James even more.

  “Can you be out? No. Our focus is on making these people fall in love with you. We are going to make Sahara a house hold name. As far as the video, I think the idea isn’t bad, but it needs some tweaking.”

  Cooley stood up. She could see Marco’s and James’ dislike for her written all in their expressions.

  “I think that instead of you being the woman in question that it should be someone else. I think you and your song should come in as the soundtrack. Maybe having your song playing on a radio in the house, or when they are at the club, you are on stage singing.”

  The other associates looked at each other; the idea was growing on them, including Marco.

  James sat with his same straight face.

  “I think we should get a great director and let them work out the details then meet again so we can go over it. Oh, but ‘One Night’ is for sure gonna be the single.” Cooley picked up her phone and organizer. “Now I think we have discussed everything we need for today. Let’s do this again tomorrow same time, have some dates mapped out for everything. Have a good day, fellas.”

  The meeting room quickly cleared. Sahara grabbed Cooley’s arm before she could make it into the hallway. “Close the door.”

  Cooley looked at Sahara. She knew she meant business. Cooley closed the door.

  “What’s up?”

  Sahara sat on the edge of the desk. “So is this how it’s gonna be. You don’t answer my phone calls. When we are in meetings you won’t look at me.”

  “Sahara.”

  “Fuck that, Cooley. No matter what, we have always kept it real, and right now you being phony as hell.”

  Sahara’s attitude intrigued Cooley. She felt turned on by her aggression. “Damn, girl you got a little too much bass in your voice right now.” Cooley laughed as Sahara rolled her eyes. “Chill out, I’m just trying to do my job.”

  “Well, you aren’t doing a good job of it.” Sahara stood up.

  “What the fuck?”

  “Please, Cooley, look at today. You were like a fucking mute in that meeting. I’m supposed to be your artist. Why are these other men trying to run shit?” Sahara paused.

  Cooley lowered her head. She knew Sahar
a was right. Sahara noticed the look in Cooley’s eyes. She smiled. “Oh, I see. You try so hard to ignore your feelings so that you aren’t letting it show in your work.”

  Cooley shook her head in defeat. “Damn, I’m trippin’. Well, it’s your fault!”

  Sahara’s eyes bucked. “What the hell? How is it my fault?”

  “You walk in here wearing that shit. Trying to fuck wit’ me. You trying to throw me off my game.”

  Sahara grinned. “Oh, but you supposed to be the champ, remember. I shouldn’t be able to throw you off anything.” She walked closer to Cooley.

  “Yeah, well, I was the champ. I’ve been retired for a minute. I’m a little rusty.” Cooley’s eyes locked on Sahara’s.

  “I don’t believe that. I just think you’re a little down right now. I know you have been through a lot, Cooley. I can see it in your eyes. That passion, that fire that made me fall for you to begin with is dying out. But I can see there’s a dim light still flickering. Let go, Cooley. Bring that fire back. That’s what I fell for, and that’s what Ron saw in you.”

  “And I suppose getting with you is supposed to bring it back?” Cooley moved away from Sahara. “Nah, shawty, it’s more than that. I think that psycho bitch fucked up my mojo when she fucked up my face.” Cooley turned away from Sahara. Sahara walked up behind Cooley. She put her hands on Cooley’s broad shoulders. Sahara began to massage Cooley’s shoulders.

  “I know the scar is an issue for you. But, baby, I didn’t fall for your face. I fell for your personality. I fell for that confidence, that attitude that you had. When I see you, I don’t see that scar, I just see Cooley. You need to stop seeing the scar and remember who the fuck you are.”

  Cooley turned around to Sahara. A warmth came over her body. Sahara wasn’t sexy in that moment, she was beautiful. Cooley wrapped her arm around Sahara. She put her right palm on the back of Sahara’s head, pulling it to hers.

  Sahara wrapped her arms around Cooley’s neck. They kissed.

  Cooley didn’t want to let go. She felt the fire growing. Their tongues danced the familiar dance of love.

  Cooley pulled away. “I want to do this. Don’t think that I don’t. But I just—”