Dining Out

Carrie took her time applying her makeup. Foundation. Lipstick. Mascara. Eye shadow. Blush. Primer. Concealer. The works. She wanted to look like a goddess tonight, for her first public date with Jerome.

She was lucky in so many ways. After the almost tragic experience with your dad, she could have been sold to someone truly horrendous. But she was with someone almost her age, with the physical gifts and personality to complement her perfectly. Tall, dark, handsome, and well endowed. She was on cloud nine.

She put on a glittery white dress. Almost marital, she thought absently. Six inch heels, which still left her well short of him. Gold hoop earrings. She wanted to be a trophy.

They went to the nicest restaurant in town. They talked and laughed, but there was an undercurrent of tension. Not with Jerome, of course. But there was that latent racism that she could overhear from adjacent tables. A look from a waiter. A text from the nasty bitch the next table over. It made her blood boil. She was a trophy. _His _trophy. And he was a King. _Her _King. She opened up her social media accounts, adding a photo of her and Jerome playing in his pool and changing her status from 'single' to 'in a relationship with Jerome Washington.' Not much for the mission of equality, but it was something at least.