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One
Avery
“Ithink I want to try pole dancing.”
Allison blinked over at Avery, who sat across from her in the outside eating area at Wildberry Pancakes Café in Chicago.
“You want to do what?”
“You heard me correctly.” Avery lifted a piece of bacon from her dish and ate it, staring at her longtime friend—her bountiful Black ponytail curls bouncing amid the gust of wind.
“Why do you want to try pole dancing? Is there something I should know about? Are you and DeAndre having financial troubles?”
DeAndre Valentine was a multimillionaire aerospace engineer, brother of the multimillionaire Valentine septuplets, and son of multimillionaire media mogul Leslie Valentine.
Avery’s nude-colored lips curved, and she chuckled, then ate another piece of bacon. “You already know the answer to that.”
“I thought I did. But this revelation of you wanting to shake a tail feather has me changing my mind.”
Melodic laughter floated from Avery, and she stretched and swiped her hands up the back of her head, inadvertently checking to make sure not a strand was astray on her ponytail.
“I do want to shake a tail feather, but for DeAndre—not a room full of strangers.”
Allison’s demeanor changed as she perked up, her brows rising, her face glowing with a bright smile.
“You should’ve led with that. So, you’re trying to be freaky?”
More laughter shot from Avery. “I am.”
“Oh shit, girl.” Allison nodded. “I approve. Tell me, what brought this on?”
“I want to have some fun. More fun than we’ve had lately. I take the blame for that. So, I feel the need to change the vibe of our relationship.”
Allison frowned. “What’s wrong with the vibe?”
Avery sighed and drank from her glass of orange juice. It was ten am on a Wednesday morning, and the two ladies had met up for a morning run that turned into a walk, then breakfast.
“I’m always ill.”
Allison’s face softened. “The Lupus flare-ups?”
“Unfortunately. And you know DeAndre is nothing short of amazing. Helping me at every turn, but I don’t want this affliction to define our marriage. One of the things I worried about when we were dating was the prospect of him having to take care of me long-term should this thing turn for the worst.” She shrugged. “Right now, I’m feeling great, and while I do, I want to show him that our relationship can still be daring, sexy, and intriguing like it was when we were dating.”
Allison nodded, her razor-sharp bob bouncing as her head moved. “I understand. Pole dancing takes a lot of physical strength, though. Do you think taking up classes is a good idea?”
“I don’t consider myself fragile.”
“I’m not saying you’re fragile, but you kinda are.”
The two friends stared at each other, with Avery’s eyes wide with surprise and Allison holding her stare.
“I’m not fragile.”
“Okay. You're not fragile. Now answer my question. Do you think pole dancing is a good idea?”
“I think it’s a great idea.” Avery cut into her blueberry pancakes while Allison took a bite of a bagel.
“Can’t you try ballet or something?”
