The Art of Deceit

When I got home, Tay’von was sitting on the stairs, waiting for me. I walked into the room as if nothing had gone down.

“Where the fuck have you been for damn near two hours?” he snapped.

“I don’t feel like dealing with your shit right now, Tay’von. And why would you care? I’m a freak, right?”

He reached out, grabbed my arm, and pulled me to him. “You just leave, and no one knows where you are. Then you tell me that I shouldn’t care? Man, fuck what you’re saying. Where the hell have you been?”

I took a cup out of my handbag and showed it to him. “If you would take the time and look, maybe you would see where I was at.”

After I left my little meeting with Evengeliza, I had stopped at an all-night ice cream shop. I had bought a milk shake and then had thrown half of it out. I knew that I would need it to throw Tay off.

“So you just ate there in your T-shirt?”

“Oh, I’m sorry for not stopping and putting on any clothes. The freak in me must have gone to my head and clouded my judgment.”

“Come on, Tangie. You know I didn’t mean that shit.”

“Well, while I was out, I did some thinking. I don’t think that we should go on with the wedding. There are a lot of things that are not right with us, so maybe we should rethink things.”

I could tell that what I was saying was about to make him lose his mind.

“What the fuck are you talking about, Tangie? Don’t do this. I told you that I was sorry.”

I sucked my teeth as if I didn’t care about what he was saying. “If you’re really sorry, I can’t tell. I’m sure this shit is going to happen every time you even think that I have been with someone else, and I will not be able to take that. For you to even bring up Amira’s name is so fucked up. I thought that we were trying to get past all of that?”

“I know, I know, Tangie. Please don’t put this wedding on hold. I know that I was wrong. We’re only a week away from being married. I’m not even going to have you sign this prenuptial agreement that my lawyer drew up. That’s how much I trust you, baby.”

“What! You were thinking about having me sign a prenup?” I crossed my arms in front of me and waited for his answer.

“It wasn’t me. My lawyer thought that it would be a good idea. It’s not about you. It’s just a precautionary measure that most people with money take.”

“So you weren’t going to marry me unless I signed it?”

“Baby, as soon as I saw you, I knew that I wasn’t going to ask you to sign it. I know you love me for me and not for my money, so fuck what everyone has to say.”

I knew that he had people in his ear about me, but fuck them. I would call off the wedding for real before I signed a prenup. But since it seemed that I had him right where I wanted him, I let everything go and stopped playing with his mind.

“Did you talk to Carl about things?”

He nodded. “Yeah. We’re cool.”

I walked away from him and said nothing else on the issue. What most people didn’t know was that there was an art to deceit. You just couldn’t sit around hoping that things would go your way. You had to make them go your way, without any detours.

I went upstairs and found Shamika still packing her things, and it pissed me off. She should have been gone by the time I got back. But as I thought about things, I realized that I could get back at her a better way. I asked Black if I could speak to him. He said yes and followed me into my bedroom. I told him that what Shamika had done was fucked up, but since we were leaving for Miami soon, they didn’t have to leave the house. I also let him know that what little friendship Shamika and I had shared was over. I let him know that I wouldn’t be a bitch to her, but that I really didn’t want to be around her.

The real truth was that I wanted to see what happened when the DVD got leaked and Black found out that it was all her fault.

* * *

The next morning I met with Evengeliza again. Within thirty minutes, the money was in my account, and I couldn’t have been happier. I handed her the DVD, and we determined when the best time would be for the story to break. That bitch Shamika had some shit coming her way that she would not be able to handle. After my meeting with Evengeliza, I made sure to stop and get my hair done so that I would have an alibi. Then I went home, and an hour later, we were on our way to Miami.

The weather in Miami was wonderful. As soon as we landed, fans and photographers bombarded us. We fought our way through the crowd with help from Carl, Tony, and airport security, then made our way to the limo.

“How in the hell did they find out that we would be here?” I asked, as if I didn’t know.

I had made sure that Evengeliza knew where the wedding was going to be held. I wanted cameras there just in case Black killed Shamika. I wanted everyone to see the madness that happened when you crossed the line with me. I wanted it to be a silent warning. Although no one would know that she had fucked with the wrong bitch, I would know, and that would feed my ego big-time. It would bring me much satisfaction to see that bitch lying there, murdered in cold blood.

I went on. “I made sure to keep everything low profile. I don’t know how this could have happened.” I was laying it on thick.

Tay laughed because he knew that this pleased me to the core. “Oh, please, Tangie. You know that you’re happy that everyone is treating this wedding like you are Princess Diana and I’m the prince. You know how these things are. They always find things out that you don’t want them to know.”

I wanted to laugh, but I held it in, making sure my face didn’t show my real feelings. The press was about to get their hands on the story of the decade.

* * *

The house that we were staying in, in Miami was gorgeous. Walking through it made me want to move into it. I knew that I had always said that I’d never move to the South, but this house was calling my name. I thought that maybe I could convince Tay to get me a beach house down there. The week was going to go by fast, so I put that thought on the back burner.

People started flying in, and of course, we put them up in the best hotels. They were all the best players in their field. Singers, rappers, basketball and football players, actors, and even a few talk show hosts came. We had to treat them to the best things a privileged life had to offer. This wedding was starting to look like the event of the year, and we weren’t going to let them down.

I really hadn’t said much to Shamika lately, and it seemed as if everyone else had been giving her the cold shoulder too. Even Carl’s forgiving ass wasn’t talking to her, and with all the running around I was doing, I didn’t have time to pay attention to the drama that surrounded her.

* * *

Friday night had finally come, and Tay’von and I got ready for our dinner party the night before the wedding. Not only was the press hounding us, but they were also after anyone on our star-studded guest list and tried to corner our guests as they flew in. Miami was buzzing outside the norm, and it had everything to do with us. You couldn’t turn on the TV or a radio without hearing about our wedding. We didn’t think that the week would go by so fast, but the next day we would be married, and I couldn’t wait to get that ring on my finger. I put on a scandalously tight little white Dior dress for the dinner party. I dressed it up with a lot of gold bangles and other heavy gold jewelry. I moussed my hair and wore it in a wet, curly look. Hey, I was in Miami, right?

So that meant I had to wear things that I couldn’t get away with in New York. Tay’s attire was also all white, with his hip-hop swagger on full blast. He looked just as good as I did. He always knew what to wear, and he always made it look too easy to be the sexiest man in the room. I guess it came naturally to him. When we were done dressing, we looked at ourselves in the mirror and smiled at what we saw. You could say a lot of things about Tay and me, but the one thing you couldn’t say was that we didn’t look damn good together.

“Look at us, Mr. and Mrs. Miller,” he said with a small smile on his face.

“Are you ready for this?” I asked him. “’Cause once we do this, one of us has to die for this to end.”

He laughed at my statement, as if I wasn’t telling the truth. “Listen to you sounding like me.”

I gave him a serious look. “You said that this was for life. I just need you to understand that what you said is true. There is no going back. This is till death.”

He looked me in the eyes, then pulled me close. “Till death, baby. Till death,” he whispered before wetting my lips with his.

I had hired one of the biggest cruise ships to host our dinner party. It had cost Tay an arm and a leg to guarantee us the entire ship to ourselves, but we didn’t care. It was worth it. We got to the cruise ship an hour before our guests, and then I watched the people’s facial expressions as they got on the ship. I could tell that they were all impressed as they pointed and nodded their heads at the decor. I overheard a few talk of my exquisite taste.

Before dinner, some of guests sat around listening to the live performers or gambled in the ship’s casino, while others stood around sipping on fine liquor and mingling. At seven o’clock we all settled in our seats and ate dinner. While we dined, some friends stood up and wished us the best of luck and much happiness. The liquor flowed, and everyone was having a good time. We even let some of the paparazzi in to snap some pictures. Finally, dessert was served, and it was almost time for the men to leave the ship so that the ladies could get the bachelorette party started.

Over dessert I looked up and saw one of the photographers talking to Black. I watched them talk; then Black scrunched up his face. I could see him mouth the words, “What are you talking about?” That was when the man pulled out a mini DVD player. They stood there as Black watched the footage. On his face was disbelief. He looked from the DVD footage to Shamika and back to the footage again. She didn’t even notice him looking at her.

This photographer walked away from Black and approached a man who was working on a computer. The computer guy had been posting pictures of Tay and me on all the flat screens that were around the dining room. The photographer, whom I had hired for this exact purpose, earned his money by plugging the mini DVD player into the computer. And in front of everyone on the cruise ship, the footage of Shamika fucking Black popped up on all the TVs. Everyone watched it in shock, and I made sure to catch all their reactions when Shamika pulled out the big black dildo. I knew that they were all asking themselves what Black had been thinking when he allowed her to film their sex play.

Now was the time for me to put my acting skills on blast. I ran over to where the computer through which the DVD was being played, and I yanked the plug out of the wall. The screens in the dining room went blank, and so did everyone’s faces. I thought that Black had lost his mind for the moment. He just stood there, so still, with glazed-over eyes. Then he just charged Shamika like a football player on Super Bowl day, and no one made a move to stop him. Everyone knew and felt that she needed her ass whipped. Finally, Carl stepped up to stop him, but Tay held him back. Tay’von was mystified by what Shamika had done. When Tay glanced at me, I put an “Oh, my God” look on my face. Black attacked Shamika ferociously, and one of the guests from the party stood up and pulled him off Shamika before he killed her. She lay on the floor, bloody and hurt. Tay let go of Carl, and Carl went over and helped her up out of pity.

“You fucking bitch! I’m going to kill your ass! Let me go,” Black screamed as the guest held him back.

I walked over to Shamika and acted like I was going to help her as I told Tay to call for a car. I pulled her hair back from her face and handed her a napkin for her bleeding lips.

“Now, pull yourself together, Mika. Everyone is watching. Don’t let them see you break down,” I whispered. “Tay’von called a limo for you. I want you to go back to the house and get your things packed.”

She looked at me as if she didn’t want to leave Miami just yet.

“Now, you know that you can’t stay anymore,” I told her. “Black is going to try to hurt you if you do. Just give him some time to cool off and get his mind right. But there is one favor I need you to do for me. After all that has happened, there’s just one thing that I want you to remember—”

She cut me off before I could make my grand statement. “But, Tangie, I don’t know how this got out. I didn’t make a copy or anything. The only one who could have put this out is you know who.”

I put my arms around her and got real close to her. “You may not know how this got out, but I do.”

She looked at me with shock on her face. I wanted to spit in it, but that was too low class for me.

“Come on, Shamika. Don’t look so surprised. Try to look like we’re having a normal conversation. If you don’t, I won’t tell you what I know.”

She tried her best to keep it together, but her body was shaking uncontrollably under my hands.

“Look at me, Shamika, ’cause I’m responsible for the tape getting leaked. That’s right, bitch. I did it.”

She strained to pull away from my grip, but I held on tight.

“It fucking hurts, doesn’t it?” I said. “I have been setting this up since we were on the road. You fucked me over, so now I’m fucking you with the biggest dick I could find. Tell me, how does it feel? Because I’m feeling damn good!”

“You bitch!” she screamed, but I didn’t break.

I still kept the concerned look on my face and made myself look confused and hurt.

“Calm down, little Mika. Don’t be so mad. You got to admit that you’ve had this coming. I’m the last bitch that you should have fucked with. You messed with my life, so now I’m ruining yours. I hope that you never find a man to spend another dime on you again. I hope that life gets so bad for you that you’ll need to borrow money just to get a sandwich off the dollar menu at McDonald’s. Rot in hell, you dirty bitch, and may you never rest in peace.”

She was speechless as I let her arms go. The thought of me getting her first had never crossed her mind. It had just hit her that she had gravely underestimated me, and that bad choice was to her disadvantage. She had lost the game that she thought she played all too well. That was why my motto had always been, “Before you sit down to play a game, you must not only know the rules to the game, but you must also know all your opponents, even if that means skipping a hand or two just to make sure you know their skill level. Having this knowledge gives you an upper hand every time, and an upper hand always wins the game.”

Tay came over to us and told Shamika that the car was waiting. I told him to send someone with her to make sure that she took her things, and her things only, from the house. He called Carl over and told him what to do. We all just stood there as I took Tay’s hand.

“Well, Shamika, I’m sorry things ended up this way, but take care of yourself,” I said as I leaned into Tay. I wanted to show her that while she was losing everything in Black, I was gaining everything in Tay’von. She tried to lunge at me, but Carl grabbed on to her before she made contact.

“You fucking bitch! How could you do this to me? I should fucking kill you! Let me go. Let me go!” she yelled as Tay put his arms around me as I started to cry for show.

“What is she talking about? I have always been nice to her. Why would she say something like that?” I wailed.

People crowded around me and started to console me. They didn’t want the bride upset the day before her wedding, so they tried everything they could to make me happy.

“It’s okay, baby. She’s just crazy. Don’t even worry about it,” Tay whispered in my ear.

“You know what? I don’t even want her going back to the house. Tell the driver to take her straight to the airport. We can mail her clothes to her at a later time,” I said as I wiped my face.

Tay’von let me go and helped Carl pull a screaming and cursing Shamika off the ship. When they got to the limo, Tay later told me that he told Carl to make sure to head straight for the airport. Carl had to hold her in the car so that she didn’t run out and make a bigger ass of herself. A few months later, he would tell me about their conversation in the car.

* * *

“Carl, I’m telling you that bitch Tangie set me up. She’s the one who put the tape out there,” Shamika insisted.

Carl was thinking that she was off her rocker by that point. There was nothing that she could say to make him think differently.

“What reason would Tangie have to do that to you?”

“’Cause she’s an evil bitch, that’s why.”

“How would she get her hands on the tape? And why would you make something like that in the first place? What did you do with it once you were done taping?” Carl quizzed.

Shamika said nothing. She didn’t want Carl to know why she had taped her and Black or for whom. She may have been brave, but everyone who knew Carmello knew never to snitch on him. Your body would never be found.

Carl went on. “Look, Shamika, it’s too late for you to start blaming other people. You are dead wrong for that shit. I hope you didn’t tape us.”

“Why would I tape us?” she asked, as if Carl was dumb to even ask such a question. He was just a broke bodyguard with nothing to lose.

“Why would you tape you and Black? That’s about the dumbest shit I have ever seen a girl in your position do. Plus, you can’t just go around blaming people if you don’t have any proof.”

She pulled out her cell phone and called the thug boy whom she had met at Carmello’s office. She spoke to him for a minute, then hung up. A short while after, her phone vibrated. She opened her phone and brought up the picture that he had sent her.

“Well, there she is. That’s Tangie leaving the office of the person that helped her set me up,” Shamika explained as she tilted her phone so that Carl could see the picture.

Carl took the phone and looked at the picture closely. It wasn’t very clear. You couldn’t tell who or where the person was. The only thing that rang a bell was the outfit the person had on. I did have one just like it, but still, that could have always been a coincidence.

“From what I can tell, this could be just a close-up of Tangie. This won’t help you prove anything. You could have taken this at any time.”

Once he said that, she started to panic. Maybe he was right. If she didn’t have any evidence, her life could really be over. And if it was, what would she do? The word would spread that she was the one who had set up Black. She would never be able to get another baller. Not a famous one or even a street baller. She wouldn’t even be able to go back to her hood. She was tarnished and wore something akin to a scarlet letter, the letter T for “trifling.”

“That fucking bitch.” She said this over and over again as tears ran down her face. “I’m telling you, Carl. I’m gonna find a way to get that bitch back. My life is all fucked up now, and it’s because of her. I have got to do something to get her back.”

Carl looked at her with pity and disgust. He knew that I was not a nice person, but he didn’t think that I would take things that far.

* * *

Back at the cruise ship, Tay was able to calm Black down. Black was way too ashamed to show his face at the bachelor party, so he left altogether. About a half an hour later, all the men left the ship. It was time for the girls to party alone, and things went down like they did at any high-class bachelorette party: lots of liquor, plenty of male strippers, and women going crazy over them. It was fun as hell. Everyone let their hair down and had a ball. It was always nice to see these celebrities for who they really were, instead of that fake, plastic, “I’m perfect” bullshit they put on for the public.

I partied extra hard and was feeling good because not only had one of my many plans been flawlessly executed, but also when I woke up the next day, it would be the day that I married a millionaire. I didn’t get back to the house until four in the morning. Tay’von didn’t get in until six. Thank God I was having a sunset wedding, because neither of us would be up before noon.

* * *

I woke up to Tay’s warm body next to me. I rolled over and faced him. He looked like he had partied just as hard as I had.

“Tay, baby, wake up. It’s our wedding day. We have got to start getting ready.”

He smiled and slid his hands through my hair. “Don’t you mean it’s your wedding day?”

I laughed because he was right: this day was really all about me.

“It’s twelve thirty in the afternoon. We’re getting married at six thirty. I got a whole lot of things to do, so we have to get up,” I insisted.

“Yeah, well, all that I have to do is shower, get a shape up, and get dressed. After that I’ll be done.” He glanced at me. “What about you?” he asked jokingly.

I rolled on top of him, and I felt his morning wood. “This is your last morning as an unmarried man. Do you have any last words?” I asked as I moved my hips around on his hard wood.

“I don’t have any last words, but I do have a thought running through my mind.”

“And what is it that you’re thinking about?”

He flipped me over and pulled my thong to the side. He played with my clit and got me wet.

“Come on, Tay, you know that you have to wait till after the wedding. Then you can do whatever you want to me.”

He didn’t stop; he just added more fingers.

“Why would I have to wait? We’ve already slept together. Let’s just go ahead and let some of this stress out.”

He was giving me the “sex” look. It was hard for me to say no to him, but I did. I pushed him off me and got out of the bed. “You’ll get some of me tonight. Until then, you can just think about all the things that you want to do to me.”

I took off my bra and underwear. I did this slowly, just to tease him a little.

“I’m going to go in and take a bath. Don’t come in after me,” I told him.

* * *

I had no mother or father coming to the wedding. I had to make do with old friends from my video days and other industry people. It wasn’t what I would have wanted, but that was life sometimes. And although I knew that I would just have to deal with it, it still bothered me. I was pacing the room now, worrying that something was going to go wrong. All kinds of crazy thoughts ran through my mind. I was even wondering if there really was any love between Tay’von and me, not that it should have mattered, but for some reason, at that moment, it did. I wondered, Could there be? I had slept with a lot of people while I had been with him, even fucking his enemy.

Sure, I had come into the relationship with my mind only on his money. But now, now I wanted there to be something more than that. I even wondered what it was that he felt for me. I knew that he had slept with other women when he was out on the road. But could he really love me after what went down with Amira? But the more that I thought about it, the more I forced myself to believe that everything that we had been through had fused us together. All the bullshit had to be enough to force two people to love each other. How could he put up with all this shit if he didn’t love me? I’d even stayed with him after he had put his hands on me countless times. Shit, this had to be love, and if it wasn’t, well, I felt that we could always learn to love one another, right?

I knew what I needed to do. There was only one way to calm myself down. I had to go to Tay’von’s room and get some. I made it to the door behind which Tay was getting dressed, and I was about to walk in, but Carl came walking out.

Carl held up a hand to stop me. “Whoa. Where are you going? He can’t see you yet.”

“Well, I have got to see him. I’m going out of my mind right now. I need him to help me calm down.”

Carl could tell that I was upset, and wanted to help out. But he didn’t know what I had in mind.

“Okay, let’s just go back to your room and get you dressed, ’cause you know if you go in there, you’ll have bad luck,” he said with a smile.

I looked up at him, and he looked damn good. His hair was freshly cut, and his skin looked wonderful against the white shirt he had on. I let him take me back to my room, with only one thought in my mind, him. He walked in before me, which gave me a chance to lock the door behind me.

“So are you ready to get into your dress?” he asked as he held my wedding dress out to me. I took off my robe and pushed the dress back at him.

“Will you help me get into it?” I asked.

I looked into his eyes and saw that familiar place that only he let me go to. He yearned for me, he needed me, and he wanted me. I knew that place that lived deep in his soul, and at times, I loved being there. I could feel his hand on certain parts of my body as he helped me into my wedding dress, and it seemed as if he hoped that I thought that it was all by accident, but his lingering touch told me that his actions were on purpose. Once he had zipped me up, I turned around and faced him.

“So, do I look as good to you as I did that day I tried on the dress in the hotel room?”

“You look even better, Tangie.”

“Aw, Carl, you’re so sweet. Well, these are my last hours as a single woman. After today I’ll be Tay’von’s missus.”

“Yeah, I know. Well, um . . .”

Carl was acting as if he couldn’t think of what to say. He seemed as if he wanted to let me in on his pain and grief, but the words wouldn’t leave his lips. I knew what he was feeling without him having to utter a word. I got close to him and hugged him tightly. His hands ran across my dress and pressed against my body. It sent chills through me, as if I were in an ice-cold room. We stood there and hugged longer than we should have. I kissed his neck and made my way to his lips. I tasted them as he kissed me back.

“Tangie, what are you doing?” he asked before slipping me his tongue.

I didn’t answer him, but feeling his hands lifting up my dress let me know that he understood. Once he got it up around my waist, he slipped his finger in my panties. I moaned and enjoyed his touch.

“Tangie, you’re about to get married, and Tay is right down the hall,” Carl said with his mouth, but he didn’t stop moving his fingers.

“Come on, Carl. This is our last chance. Just bend me over right here.”

He took his time and looked at me while he worked me over slowly. He leaned in and kissed me before turning me around. I held my dress up as he unzipped his pants. He entered me with the force of passion. I held back what would have been a loud moan as he pounded me. I savored the feeling of him inside me. I knew that this was crazy, but I loved it, standing there in my wedding dress while he sexed me up.

Twenty minutes later I was getting cleaned up so that I could walk down the aisle. Yeah, that was fucked up. I knew that a sane person would never do that. But I had to get it out of my system. Hopefully, I wouldn’t feel the need to do it again.

* * *

The time had come to get the show on the road. All the guests had arrived on time to the Miami estate. Everyone stood up as I walked toward Tay’von, but for some reason, my eyes stayed on Carl. I wondered if anyone else could see the look of sadness mixed with satisfaction on his face. For a split second, I asked myself if I should be marrying Carl instead. I knew that he loved me with all his heart, but what about Tay? Was I the woman of his dreams? Would this really be forever? Fuck. I had to stop tripping. I took a look around, and I saw what my life was going to be. It would be filled with jewels, famous people, and lots of money. Fuck it. I forced the crazy thoughts that I was having out of my head. This was what I had always wanted—and not a life with a bodyguard who made just a little more than minimum wage.

The ceremony lasted forty-five minutes. I thought Carl was going to pass out when Tay and I started to recite our vows. Carl tried to hide his true feelings from the crowd, but I knew why those tears ran down his face. He realized that all the thoughts he had about him and me falling in love and spending the rest of our days together were all a dream.

“You may now kiss the bride,” I heard the priest say.

I must have gone so far into my own thoughts that I missed most of what had been said. Tay came close and tongued me down.

“I would like to introduce Mr. and Mrs. Miller,” the priest announced.

We turned around and faced our guests. Everyone had that “aw” look on their face, but I still felt the same thing—nothing. Then I started to wonder if this was what married life was like. Would every day be the same? Who the fuck was I trying to fool? None of my days were ever the same. There would always be someone new to fuck, trick, or lick.

By the time Tay and I had changed into our reception clothes, all the guests had ambled to the back of the estate and were under the tents. We had had large white tents erected and one hundred tables set up to accommodate our guests. The tables and chairs were white and gold. There were big pillars with white candles, gold-colored roses wrapped around them. Everything was candlelit. We had no lights on, nor did we need them. The five hundred big and small candles lighting the area gave the night a romantic glow.

Tay and I made our way across the back lawn and took our seats at the head table. The evening went on as expected. Friends made speeches and toasts as everyone else listened. The liquor was the best, the food was out of this world, and we had the best live music, followed by one of the best DJs Miami had to offer. While Tay and I were having our first dance together, the music stopped.

“Okay, everyone, I just want to stop the partying for a second or two,” Tay said as he turned to me and took my hand. “Now, you didn’t think that I would let this day pass without giving you a gift, did you? It’s nothing too big, it’s nothing too small, and it’s just right for you. I hope that we are able to spend many happy days with this gift.”

Carl walked over to him and handed him an envelope. Then Tay handed it to me. I just stared at it.

“Well, go on and open it,” Tay said as he waited impatiently. “This is the longest she’s ever taken to open anything,” Tay said, joking with the guests.

When I finally opened the envelope, I almost fainted. It contained a check for twenty-five million dollars.

“What, what is this for?” I asked as I read the numbers over and over again.

“Well, you’re always saying how much you hate the house that we live in. Now you can use this money to get us a new one, or two or three.”

Tears ran down my face. It was funny how the wedding did nothing to me, but a check for twenty-five million made me cry instantly.