DLD.

Chapter Three.

"Girl, why do you look so tired? Your interview with Mayor Kathleen Bishop starts in twenty minutes! I'd expect you be all upbeat and ecstatic. She's the first black woman to be elected in this state, and she chose this magazine to do her first sit down talk? This is huge for us, Dana. Look alive!"

Sulking, I swung my office chair back and forth in complete agitation. 'Looking alive' was the furthest thing from my mind, for I was so damn exhausted. Minutes following the mediocre sexual exchange between Alaric and I, the conceited bastard fell ill with a stomach virus. Apparently he was allergic to an ingredient in one of the appetizers that was served at his promotional event, and guess who had to take care of the sensitive asshole all night long? Not only did I miss out on my opportunity to dip out on him and get my cheeks clapped the right way, but my sleep schedule was greatly impacted and now I could hardly keep my eyes open. Talk about one disaster after the next.

Pouting at Amaya, I used my eyes to plead with her. Amaya Pitcher was the first friend I met in college, and we've been tight ever since. We studied journalism together, and she was my biggest supporter when I was playing around with the idea of starting a magazine. I trusted her the most out of all my friends/employees, so she was basically my number two especially when it comes to my company. Amaya was dedicated to the craft and always on point, so much so that I honestly didn't know what I would do without her sometimes.

"Amaya sis, I had such a whirlwind night that I'm still recovering from. I forgot all about the interview." I whined. "Listen, why don't you take my place? Like you said, this is huge for the magazine and we need to give nothing but the best. Besides, this would be a great look for you. Come on, you probably want to do it more than me anyways."

Amaya stared at me irritatedly, folding her arms. I finally got a small smirk out of her from wearing her down with my exaggerated moodiness, and I sighed with relief when she started rummaging around my desk for all the necessary tools to conduct the Bishop interview. Amaya was truly a life saver, because there was absolutely no way I was going to be my best self. I disliked how neglectful this made me seem as an owner and business woman, but having my second in command take over was most definitely the right choice.

"Oouuu, I can't wait to rub this in Johnathan's face." Amaya squealed. "He's gonna be so mad, I'm excited. I guess I should be thanking you D. Laters, going to prep."

Amaya practically ran out of my office before I could comment on how petty and childish she was being. Shaking my head, I chuckled briefly as Amaya's statements reminded me of the ongoing, ridiculous rivalry she shared with another fellow employee Johnathan. Those two worked my nerves daily with their bickering, complaining and constant trials of one upping each other. It's been like that since college, and once upon a time I even thought they were secretly in love and wanted to hide their relationship. That notion of mine got shut down with the quickness though, for the blatant detest they had for each other was abundantly clear and wasn't being resolved anytime soon.

Strangely enough, Johnathan and Amaya's beef assisted with keeping my business thriving and on edge. The two sworn enemies were always competing to see who could land the best stories and took turns pushing the other three members of the team to be at their best ability. With their help I now had one of the top magazines in the state, and now that 'Melanin Mania' has gone digital it was only upward and onward from here.

"Dana Ashanti Benjamin, I know you don't like to think too hard on Mondays but what the absolute fuck are you doing?" Johnathan snapped, speed walking towards me angrily. "Out of all the talented journalists here, you're seriously giving Amaya the Bishop interview? Have you lost your damn mind? That woman doesn't know diddly squat about politics. She's gonna fuck this up."

Huffing tiredly, I rolled my eyes. I should have known this was going to happen. I was mentally slapping myself for not leaving the moment I gave Amaya the assignment, claiming that I was sick so I could avoid a Johnathan showdown. As gifted as Amaya and Johnathan are, they act like five-year-old children, and I was their parent. Normally I would put up with it and deal with their atrocious behaviors, but unfortunately for Johnathan my lack of rest had brought on a headache, and I wasn't dealing with anyone's bullshit today.

"J, please. Let this one go." I responded. "I'm incapable of doing the interview myself, which is why I gave it to her. If you think she's going to suck, why don't you be an asset and help her prep? Be my guest. Two heads are always better than one."

Johnathan's body language and facial expressions made it no secret that he was disgusted and displeased with my decision. Thankfully, he said nothing more and calmly strolled out of my office. I could tell he was bummed about the whole thing, and I had to make it up to him someway. Showing favoritism would be detrimental for my business and my friendships, but I'll be the first to admit that keeping the balance isn't always easy.

Drumming my fingernails on the wooden office table, I breathed out fitfully. Every part of me wanted to return home and bury myself under the covers, and the only thing preventing that was having to run an entire organization. I was over the day, and it wasn't even noon yet. Stretching, I was preparing to take a fifteen minute nap on my desk to rejuvenate myself for this long day I had ahead. Of course that didn't happen though, because the moment I was about to lay my head down here goes my phone ringing too loudly. Groaning at the device, I peeped at the phone and realized it was Ace calling, and even hearing his voice wasn't enough to undampened my mood.

"Ace, didn't I ask you not to call me before 10am? We talked about this." I grumbled. "You can't just contact me whenever you feel like. What if I was still at home with Alaric and he answered the phone?"

"Dana, do I look like the type of man who listens to people? And it's 10:05, woman. We need to rap." Ace replied, speaking in a similar tone to mine. "Something's up with the cleaning lady."

Pausing, I sat alert in my office chair. I usually didn't get nervous quickly, yet my breathing was unsteady and my mind started racing. The cleaning lady equals the woman's business we occupy to clean some of Ace's drug money, and I had absolutely no time nor energy for something to be 'up' with her. I met Clarissa at a woman's empowering business retreat last year, and from the time we met we instantly clicked. She was all about getting to the bag and having multiple streams of income, so she was the first person I had in mind when Ace told me he needed an extra business to ensure his funds' safety. Clarissa's cupcake shop was the perfect match, as it was profitable and hiding in plain sight. Ace and I have been working with Clarissa's shop for a whole year now, and I honestly thought we had a great system going.

"What's wrong now?" I smugly asked. "Listen, I'm sure it's nothing. She's good people."

"She can't be too good if she ain't answering my calls." Ace snapped. "I passed her shop a few times between yesterday and this morning to collect. Everything's shut and bolted down tight. Something's telling me she skipped town and Dana, you need to fix this. I'll come scoop you and we'll go looking for her."

"We'll go looking for her?" I repeated, repugnantly. "Ace, do I look like one of your flunkies you be bossing around? I got a whole business to run, I ain't doing that shit."

"Dana." Ace exasperated. "If we don't get ahold of this woman this could be bad for us both. She still has my money, she knows who we are, and on top of that...she has my money! Now I ain't asking you, I'm telling you. Get your fine ass up, and meet me at Clarissa's shop in the next half hour. I'll be waiting."

Ace clicked the phone out before I got a chance to rebuttal, leaving me in a bigger state of annoyance than I already was. How dare he bark orders at me in that sexy ass voice of his and expect me to actually listen. The nerve of him. Somehow, I found myself grabbing my belongings and tiptoeing out of 'Melanin Mania' headquarters, but not before quietly checking in on Amaya and the Bishop interview. From what I could see my good sis was doing a fantastic job, as she and Mayor Kathleen Bishop both seemed fully engrossed and contented with their discussion. Viewing that brought me immediate relaxation, and I felt reassured leaving my business knowing that at least one thing in this hectic world of mine was going on one accord.