“Oh, my God!!! Congratulations, baby!” Goldie grabbed her in her arms, squeezing and rocking her. “And you’re an equity partner, too! Yes!” She fist-pumped the air.
“I know! It’s amazing! With all the wedding stuff going on, I hadn’t checked my mailbox in a couple of days, Goldie. I completely forgot.”
“I knew they’d offer it to you. You’d called a recruiter and everything. You were prepared to bounce.” They both chuckled. “But see? They knew you were worth it and had paid your dues. You earned this. You deserve this! So proud of you, girl!” The woman embraced her once again.
When they parted, Yasmine went to share the good news with her mother, bridesmaids and sisters. They all huddled around her, full of pretty hairstyles and smiles.
“I have to tell Nixon! I’ll just call him. Can you hand me my phone, Mama?” Yasmine plopped down in a chair.
The hairdresser began to remove the rollers from her tresses. They were running a little bit behind schedule. Her mother dug around in her pink bag, found her phone, and placed it in her palm. Mama looked so amazing in her navy-blue gown with matching shawl and heels.
“Yas, you’ll need to file a partnership tax return!” Goldie yelled out her legal advice.
“I know, I know!” Yasmine grinned, waving at her.
“Hello?” Nixon answered, followed his greeting with a big yawn. “Oh, wait? Is today our wedding day? I’m still in the bed.”
“Nixon! Stop playing!” She chuckled. “Guess what?! I got a letter… it’s official. I made partner! I have been offered a partnership at Steinberg & Fairman!”
“Well, baby, you kinda knew this was coming. They spoke to you about it last week.”
She grimaced. Leave it to his ass to blow the air out of her sails and be the pin to prick her balloon of joy.
“It wasn’t etched in stone though, Nixon.”
“Congratulations, gorgeous. I knew you had it. They’d be idiots to not offer you that opportunity. I can’t wait to see you coming down that aisle in just a minute. I love you.”
“I love you too, Nix.” She disconnected the call. Tears of joy filled her eyes and she blinked them away. Soft jazz music was playing and the chatter and laughter of the women she adored drifted to her. In the distance, she heard her Aunt Toni’s all too familiar cackle, and it warmed her heart.
“Yasmine, you know, now that you’re a partner, the pressure is on you to run that place like it’s your own, because it is. I have researched partnerships to death, as you know, and now these guys will be expecting you to always bring in new clients and bring your ‘A’ game, twenty-four-seven!”
“Oh, honey, I invented the ‘A’ game! Color me ready!” Yasmine jetted out her tongue as they laughed and bumped fists.
“All right, enough of that. We have other matters to attend to now,” Mama interrupted.
“Time to slide into your gorgeous dress that you lost seven pounds in one week to get into! You’d been eating too many cookies and cakes, dancing in your happy space!” Goldie teased as she held up the gorgeous wedding gown she’d helped choose. Yasmine looked at the gown and couldn’t believe her eyes. In fact, the whole day seemed surreal.
The hair stylist brushed out her curls and styled her hair just so, the makeup artist prepared her station, and her sisters approached, ready to help her get into her attire. She stood from the chair, her Spanx and special push-up bra on to help her tatas sit just right. About ten minutes later, she was finally in the damn gown.
“I can hardly breathe!” she cried out, and her friends and mother broke into laughter.
“Baby, you look beautiful!” Mama leaned close and placed a sweet kiss against her cheek.
“Thank you, Mama.”
The woman dabbed at her eyes, then grabbed her purse off a table. She pulled out a little jewelry box from it.
Mama’s smile faded and as if everyone knew something Yasmine didn’t. The room drew quiet, the air serious.
“Yasmine.” She opened the box and in it was a necklace with a little dime store blue fish pendant. “This was Tamia’s favorite necklace. I held on to it… but in the last few days, I decided to pull it out of my vanity and give it to you.”
“Mama…” Yasmine blinked away tears. She remembered that necklace now. Tamia wore it often.