A Common Ind of Love

Chapter 1

Douglas teetered through the crowd back his two friends at the table in the middle of the square. Please don't let me trip and pour this beer in someone's lap, he thought. It was a huge outdoor festival for Oktoberfest, he and his two buddies Dhani and Alberto, who they called Al had decided to take a trip to Germany to experience the true Oktoberfest and it was an experience. Throngs of people, tons of beer, loud music, and good food. He was having a good time, he needed to get away after he'd found his fiancée Tiffani in bed with another man, he'd called off the wedding and he needed time with his boys. She'd begged and pleaded, apologizing profusely for her bad judgment but he'd had enough, he couldn't take it anymore. He couldn't remember what he'd ever seen in her in the first place. As he approached the table Dhani and Al were chatting up two girls, one of whom had Doug's seat.

"Hey guys, I got your beers. Can I set them down?" he asked a bit miffed.

"Oh, sure sit them right here." Al said not looking up at him but still engaging in conversation with a blonde.

Dhani was chatting up some brunette with the biggest pair of breasts Doug had ever seen. How does she stand with those things, she must just topple over every time she walks, he thought.

"Guys, please I need to set these down and I need to sit down too."

"Oh, yea man" Dhani made space at the table, Doug pushed in next him. "Damn man can you give a brother some room." Dhani said looking annoyed.

Doug dropped the glasses the table and beer bounced right out of them on his friends one-night stand prospects. The girls jumped back a little screeching, they mumbled something and gave Doug a scornful look and walked away. That's what you get you harpies, he thought, trying to take my seat.

"Man, look you what you did." Al chastised him "we almost had them in the bag."

"Yea, man what's up with the cock-blocking." Dhani shouted.

"Listen, man I'm not here to hook up any German hoochies. I thought we were here for some guy time, to hang out, drink beer, talking to women is cool and all but letting them take my seat is wrong." Doug was annoyed with his friends.

He'd asked them on this little vacation with him for support after his break up with Tiffani, but now they were acting if this was their poon-tang vacation jaunt.

"Alright, dude, we're sorry man. This was supposed to be a vacation to come and support our boy after the Tiffani debacle. But, personally I'm glad you got rid of her." Dhani told him.

Al spoke up, "Yea, man she was a beeyotch, with a capital B. You're lucky you found out before the wedding because it would have been real heartache if you found out she was a slut after it."

Doug sighed, he really didn't feel lucky, he still felt heartbroken he'd dated Tiffani 5 years he thought she was the one. He'd proposed and she was so happy she cried. They'd been planning the wedding for next May and he was totally into it, how could she have betrayed him. Well, Doug had decided he was off women, off women for a long time.

Naomi sat there between her younger sister, Zoe and her personal assistant Fredericka just looking around. This venue was packed, tons of people, lots of them drunk since many started early in the day and a rowdy atmosphere. It was what she was looking for, something to take her away from the pressures of home. Trying to live up the image of Princess Naomi of Bocara was wearing away at her.

"Okay, what about that one, Freddy?" Naomi looked over to where Zoe pointed to in her question to Freddy.

"No, no not him, mon. Look, look at his hands, they're smaller than mine." Freddy shook her head in disgust.

"Well, what do you think Naomi?" Zoe asked her about the guy she was pointing out.

"I think you two should stop judging men by their hand size." She admonished, her sister and Freddy had some weird thing about hand size equating to sexual prowess. She thought it was ridiculous.

"Oh, my glass is getting empty." Zoe whined "I better get up for a refill, that waitress doesn't come around here enough."

"She's a beer wench you ninny and I'll get up and go get us both another round of beers. How about you Freddy, looks like you're still nursing yours?"

"Not yet, I'm taking my time savoring the flavor." She said.

"It's just beer, it has no flavor," Naomi said and laughed as she got up from the table. She wasn't a fan of beer but it was kind of the drink of choice at Oktoberfest.

She was walking through the crowd grateful to be away from her sister and Freddy for a moment, they were really two peas in a pod, always on the make. Actually, Naomi thought it was would be great to find a guy here in Germany to have a little away from home fling on her holiday but she hadn't come across anyone she found remotely interesting, attractive, yes, interesting, no. And the least she could do is find an interesting man to have sex with and take the edge off on her vacation. She was getting jostled by the crowd while walking through, she spotted three guys at a table, talking and laughing having a good time. Well, at least two looked they were having a good time, the black guy and Hispanic guy looked like that were having a great time, the other guy, the white guy looked like a little like his dog just died but he was trying to pretend it didn't happen. As she approached she noticed them watching her.

"Ooohhh whew, man she is all kinds of fine." Dhani was scoping the chick walking towards them. She was about 5'9", with chocolate brown skin, black hair cut in a bob, the longest legs any of them had ever seen wearing a black ski jacket with a fur hood, tight dark wash jeans, and some black high heeled boots with fur around the top and she was stepping like royalty.

Al was looking at her and commented "I wouldn't mind taking that to bed tonight, I'd rock her world."

As she approached, Doug saw that she was looking at them. Dhani was staring and Al was just plain gawking at her, Doug gave her the once over when his eyes drifted back up to her pretty face he noticed she was staring him straight in the eye, he smiled, she didn't smile back. She looked up and kept on walking past. They turned and looked as she walked away, Doug thought boy does she have a booty on her, you could bounce a quarter off that ass.

"Did you see that look, she's an ice queen." Dhani said trying to dismiss her.

"All she needs is a player like to me to warm her up, I'd melt all that ice." Al said grinning to himself.

"Fool, the only thing you'd play with her is the funky piano with your enchilada ass." Dhani smirked at Al, Doug started to crack up. They'd been friends since college so the race thing was not a big deal. Dhani and Doug had been roommates and Al their suitemate. Dhani and Doug were both into track and field during college, with Dhani doing shotput and Doug running, Al had just been a playboy which he was to this day. Doug really loved these guys, they'd seen each other through a lot. They didn't live in the same city anymore but they were still close and could count on one another. Al was a hotshot attorney in Boston with more woman than he could shake a stick at it, still the playboy, although his family had been in the United States since it's inception almost he used to do the fake accent to get girls in college and surprisingly they fell for it. Dhani was the big man, always had been probably always would be, standing 6'5" in flat feet he was tall and huge with muscles on his muscles but he was great guy, he'd been married but had been divorced for the last 3 years. He was professor of African American history at University of Tennessee, although his ex-wife, Suzanne had been white, he was a proud black man and wouldn't let you forget it. Doug lived in Atlanta, Georgia where he was a doctor working for the Center for Disease Control. They were homeboys, best of friends and always had each other's back.

Doug wondered if they'd have his back if he went over and said hello to that sexy ice queen. Race wasn't a big deal with him, he'd dated all kinds girls, he had just happened to fall in love a petite blonde, he thought was innocent and sexy as the girl next door. Yea, she was the girl next door alright, next door if it was whorehouse. He thought he was off women, but after seeing the fine and vuluptous ice queen maybe he had to re-think that decision.

"I think I'm going to go over and talk to her" Doug told his friends boldly.

"What white boy, forget it. You don't even have that kind of game." Al responded.

Dhani chuckled, "Doug, man if you think you can do it, go head and take a shot but I hate to see my friend get his balls handed to him."

Doug got up ready to make his move and as he began to walk from the table, he turned and replied, "the only handed balls here are going to be my balls in her hand." And he walked away confidently.