Every year GlaxoSmithKline hosts a holiday party for the local pharmacists and doctors. This year it is at the Ritz Carlton Philadelphia. The ballroom is beautiful and ornate. The massive chandelier in the center sets the space apart. Natalie is invited now that she is established at the Target pharmacy on Chestnut near University City. When she told him of the party, Akeem was not excited about spending the evening with so many snobby people in the aristocratic Ritz Carlton. Natalie, on the other hand, was ecstatic! She couldn't wait to be the mold breaker and the paradigm shifter.
She immediately thought of ways to make her 'fro look bigger just for the occasion. "Would it be too much to wear one of those African print dresses? Probably! Mmph! Well I'm going to slay regardless! They should have never invited my ass! But they bet-of invited my ass!" She was talking out loud and to Akeem, technically, but his active participation in the
conversation
was not needed or expected. "Ohhh baby, we are going to kill it!" Natalie contemplates her look until she falls asleep.
The next day Natalie spends all morning on her phone looking for dresses. Luckily the pharmacy is slow, so she is not distracted from her important work. Akeem is not so lucky. He is swamped at work, and the constant pings of his phone is not helping. Natalie sends him a new picture of dresses every minute on the minute. He can't keep up, but he tries to chime in with an "I like this one" or "Nah, not this one." In his mind, Natalie is so stunning that it doesn't matter what she wears, she will be the shining star of the party. Her ever growing curly afro highlights her five feet, seven inches of beauty. Its roundness seems to compliment the fullness of her breasts, the curve of her hips. It even makes her melanin shine brighter. All eyes will be on her the moment she steps in the door. Both men and women will whisper about her. Whether they whisper mean things or nice things, there will be no doubt the men will want her, and the women will admire her. Natalie, for all her beauty, is genuinely oblivious to it. She never talks about her looks. She never says anything negative about anyone else's looks. She will spend all evening pumping everyone else up all the while she will shoo away any compliments that come her way. This is one of the many things that makes Akeem love her so much.
Akeem finally gets a chance to step out for lunch and catches up on all the dresses he missed in the last hour or so. How can it be this hard to pick out a dress? And why is she picking out a dress now when the party isn't for a month? Akeem texts back his thoughts on the different dresses. Natalie takes his rapid-fire responses as he's free to talk so she calls him.
"Babe! How is your day going?" asks Natalie. "You're on lunch?"
"Yeah, I finally got a break, so I am running out for food. I forgot that avocado stuff you made for me in the fridge."
"It's like you don't even love me!" she feigns distress. "Sike! What are you doing after work?"
"I want to go ball at the gym then just chill at home. Why? What's up?" he replies.
"Good, you're going to the mall with meeeeee! Nordstrom is holding a few dresses for me and I want to go to Zara and a few other places. And since you love me, you don't want me going to no holiday party looking like a basic chick. So, I know you want to go with me. And give me your two cents. Because you love meeeeeee."
Akeem rolls his eyes, luckily she can't see this, and says, "So you want me to skip the gym and be bored at the damn mall while you try on a million dresses? Oh em gee . . . I can't wait," the sarcasm heavy in his voice. He can never tell her no though. She has that uncanny power over him. He just tells himself it's love so he can keep his pride.
They meet in the parking garage outside of Nordstrom after work. Akeem is wearing a charcoal suit, white shirt, brown tie, and dark brown wingtip shoes -- a gift from Natalie. The color combination makes his chocolate skin tone stand out. Recently he traded in 10 pounds of fat for 5 pounds of muscle working with a new trainer. He's down to 215 pounds from his normal 220. The new definition shows through the suit. Natalie is wearing high wasted green pants that tighten at the ankle, a yellow blouse and cognac loafers. Akeem never casually kisses Natalie on the lips. He always pulls her close at the small of her back, wraps her in a tight hug, or cups her face in his hands. It drives Natalie wild every time. She cannot recall a time his kiss did not initiate a reaction down there. Even this time in a dark, smog smelling parking garage he takes her hand, spins her around like they are dancing, catches her close and kisses her. Yep, Natalie tingles everywhere.
"Thank you for helping me," she says with a puppy dog look.
"C'mon woman. Let's do this."
She locks onto his arm and they stroll into the mall on a mission to find a dress. Three hours later and Akeem's worst nightmare is coming true. He is stuck in a dressing room and his battery is now on three-percent.
"Nat, we got to go. If my phone dies while I'm out here, I may die out here."
"Boy if you don't stop! You can survive for a few minutes without a phone. Plus, I need you to come in here and help me with this dress."
"I can't come in there. This isn't a co-ed dressing room."
"'Keem, I need your help. I'm stuck. Bring yo ass in here," shouts Natalie.
"If I come in there and I see other women naked, you can't blame me. If I see you naked, you can't blame me for what I might do," says Akeem
"Psht! Get in here!"
Natalie is wearing a tight knee-length navy dress with off-the-shoulder straps that show off her shoulders and accentuates her breasts. The zipper on the dress is lodged with some fabric stuck inside. Akeem grabs onto the zipper and pulls. Natalie dislodges from her stance; the zipper stands firm. Natalie presses herself into him. She can feel the print of his manhood. She wiggles a bit and presses more firmly. She works his dick as if she is dancing to trap music and not this soft fitting room music.
Akeem cannot concentrate on fixing her zipper while she is assaulting his senses like this. "Stop!" He pushes her hips away from him. She presses right back into him. His bulge is revealing his bluff. "Stop! You're going to get us in trouble," he mumbles through clenched teeth. She pops her ass up and down on his package while she looks over her shoulder at the expression on his face.
In a flash, he pins her hands to the wall. He uses his pelvis to pin her hips to the mirror in front of them. His entire six feet, one inch two-hundred and fifteen-pound frame pressing against her. Natalie's face is pressed to the mirror. Her breath fogs the surface. Akeem leans towards her ear, "You're not ready for these games. I'll fuck you in this fitting room and make a scene. Don't play with me." He bites the top of her shoulder where it meets her neck. Then he yanks the zipper free of the fabric jam. He turns to leave the fitting room, "And THIS dress is THE dress for the holiday party. JESUS!" After he walks off, Natalie braces herself against the mirror trying to catch her breath. Her heart is racing. Her brow glistens with perspiration. Her womanhood is soaked. She struggles to regain the breath Akeem took with him when he walked out. It takes several minutes for her to regain her composure. She slips back into her green pants and yellow blouse and heads to checkout. She purchases the navy dress Akeem approved of.
