The Playa Chronicles Read Online Free

afternoon. By eleven o’clock, I felt pretty worn out and was about to go outside to get some air when the phone rang. I looked at the display on the phone. It was Patty, the receptionist calling.   “How are you doing this morning, Patty?”
    “Hi, Rick, I’m fine. I have an Yvette Prentiss for you.”
    Not recalling the name, I asked, “Who is Yvette Prentiss?”
    “One of your many women, no doubt,” Patty quipped playfully.
    Suddenly it hit me. She was the one Victor introduced me to at the DoubleTree . I started to tell Patty to take a message. “I’ll hang up. Give me a minute or two, then go ahead and put her through, Patty.” A little harmless conversation won’t hurt. But that’s how it always starts, playa.
    “Okay.”
    Patty put the call through right away. I smiled and answered. “This is Rick.”
    “Hello, Rick, this is Yvette Prentiss. I met you at the DoubleTree .”
    “I remember. How are you doing?”
    “Not bad for a Monday. What about you, working hard?”
    “As a matter of fact I am. I was working on a proposal. I have to give a presentation this afternoon. If they accept my proposal, I’ll present it to the client in a couple of weeks.”
    “Oh really,” Yvette said with a hint of excitement and curiosity in her voice. “I was callin’ to see if I could take you to lunch today.”
    “I’d love to, but I can’t. I really have a lot to do today, but what about tomorrow?” I said, almost out of reflex. I was a little intrigued, but not really all that interested in her.
    “Sounds good. What time?”
    “Call me tomorrow and we’ll see how the day shakes out.” Giving myself an opportunity to back out if I changed my mind about seeing her. It was dark when I met her, so I didn’t really remember what she looked like.
    “Okay then, I’ll call you tomorrow. I’m looking forward to seeing you again. Don’t work too hard.”
    “I probably will.”
    For the rest of the day I sat at my desk doing my work and thought about how I would tell Laura it was over between us. It shouldn’t be too hard. I’d already laid the foundation. Laura really didn’t have time for me anyway.” She’ll understand. No she won’t. She’ll think it’s about April. Which it is.
    I picked up the phone and called Laura. As always, I got her voice mail, both at work and at home. I considered taking the easy way out and just leaving her a message that I couldn’t see her anymore. Laura deserved better. After all, her only crime was falling for a man who had someone.
    Knowing the kind of person I am, I wondered could I really be a one-woman man. I’m a flirt by nature. I enjoy talking to women. I preferred the company of women. And all that’s fine, as long as I keep my pants on. I decided a live test was in order and if she called, Yvette would be an excellent subject. I’ll have lunch with her and that will be that.
     
    Yvette called the following morning; I made arrangements to meet her for lunch. We planned to meet at one-thirty at Macaroni Grill on Ashford-Dunwoody. I arrived early so I could see her coming. Yvette got there at one-thirty on the nose and walked straight for me. I watched her walk; I looked her up and down—young girl, maybe twenty-two years old. She was fuckable , but that wasn’t why I was here. This is only a test. I would have to keep telling myself that to keep me on task.
    She wore a purple suit, buttoned to the neck with no collar. Her short skirt highlighted her big legs. The girl looked good. I stood up to greet her. “Yvette,” I said, offering her a seat.
    “How you doin’, Rick? I hope you haven’t been waiting long?”
    “Not really. I got here a little early.”
    “Wanted to see me before I saw you, huh?”
    I smiled, knowing that she had busted me. “Something like that.”
    “I don’t blame you. You probably didn’t even remember what I looked like. Well, now that you see me, what do you think?”
    I started to say “You’re fuckable ,” but I