A Weekend Affair Read Online Free PDF Page B

know I don’t do clubs,” I whined.
    â€œThis isn’t one of those kinds of clubs. It’s a jazz club. Mature setting and atmosphere. Not that jump-around-N-word-throwing-pants-sagging-booty-clapping-type place.”
    I was chuckling so hard that she could barely finish talking for laughing too. We walked to the front room. While she grabbed her laptop to show me the club, I opened the glass sliding door so some of the cool breeze could saunter in. Gabby kicked off her shoes, then folded her legs underneath her as she sat on the chocolate couch.
    The décor of the room had a chic feel. The blue and cream-toned color scheme consisted of teal, aquamarine, turquoise, sapphire, egg shell, ecru, and splatters of off-white. The main walls were cream, while an accent wall was teal. The picture on the accent wall encouraged us to live, laugh, and love in black lettering, while the backdrop boasted of dark and light blue with specks of white.
    I plopped down beside Gabby and looked at the website for The Treble Cleft on her laptop. I had to admit, the place looked lively from the photos posted. People were all smiles and laughs as they danced and snapped their fingers. A mixture of races and ages dressed in cosmopolitan attire decorated the pages. The establishment tooted its own horn by calling itself “The place for grown folk to be.” I was shocked to see it also had a five-star restaurant. So we’d be able to eat well and enjoy good music.
    â€œTonight, it says a band by the name of Roses is opening up for Something For The People,” she told me.
    â€œOh my gosh! You mean the old nineties group?” I asked, trying to keep the cheer in my voice I didn’t really feel.
    â€œYou got it.”
    We both broke out into a chorus of their old song. Hands in the air and snapping fingers alike. For the next few minutes, we kept scrolling through the website. Checked out their social network footprint. After a while, we decided that it was the place for us to be. While Gabby spoke of her excitement, as much as I tried to stop it, my emotions got the better of me again.
    â€œOh my God,” I muttered.
    â€œWhat?” Gabby asked, looking up from the laptop.
    â€œIt just hit me . . . that my marriage is quite possibly over.”
    She saw my tears, and the empathy she had for me showed on her as she frowned and reached out to hug me. “I’m so sorry, Shell. I really am.”
    I broke down. “I know you want to say I told you so—”
    â€œNo, no. Absolutely not. I’m not here to beat you down any more than you already are. You cry, Shell. Cry for as long as you want. Get it all out, baby.”
    Gabby sat there and rocked me back and forth in her arms like I was her child. She didn’t judge me. Didn’t say anything. She just held me, and I cried for my marriage. Shed tears for my children who could quite possibly lose their two-parent home. I cried for the loss of my best friend, my husband who I never saw leaving me. I never would have thought Malik would have walked away from our marriage or our children. I didn’t know the man Malik was right now.
    After a long while, I dried my tears. “I’m sorry,” I told Gabby. “I don’t mean to suck the life out of this weekend.”
    â€œIt’s okay, girl. Go ahead and get it out now. It’s best you don’t keep it in,” she assured me. “But, what I want you to do is, go upstairs, get dressed, and let me try to take your mind off your adulterous husband and that streetwalker he cheated on you with.”
    I gave a light chuckle, even though I didn’t want to. I nodded. “Okay.”
    * * *
    I got up and headed upstairs. As I showered and took care of my hygiene regimen in solace, Gabby was in her room, no doubt getting dolled up. I decided to wear wide-legged black slacks that hugged my hips, along with a sheer black blouse which tapered to my waist. Underneath