Hazel slid on her shoes, a stiletto heel, that matched her grey and white tiger print dress. It was form fitting and sexy. It made her feel confident, although she was anything but. Her hips were wider, her body wasn’t as proportioned anymore, and she had ugly stretch marks across her stomach, hips, and thighs. She tried not to think about that as she turned around.

She watched Isaiah stare at the hotel room artwork. All the artwork in the room was some kind of safari. Cheetahs running across the savannah. Birds flying over treas into the setting sun. Lions and lionesses lying under a tree to get away from the African heat. Hippos doing the same as they sank into the river.

Hazel thought he looked confident. She admired his confidence always. But she knew he would say the same about her. Isaiah turned around and smiled at her. “What?”

She shrugged. “Nothing. You look … happy.”

He turned back to the mirror and straightened out his dinner jacket. “I am.”

Hazel went closer to him. “You ready?”

He took her hand. “Let’s Play.”

Isaiah grabbed the small duffle bag from right beside the door. Together they made their way out of the hotel bedroom and to the elevator.

☼☼

Hazel reached into her small purse and felt for the tickets again. The cover was provocative. Barely clothed men and women photoshopped together with bubbled words at the top: B&C After Dark Party. Outside of it being a predominately BIPOC space, it was specifically inclusive to all sexes and genders, to all sexualities and love-styles.

They had been to a party hosted by Letti and Moholo before. Letti and Moholo were the founders of the B&C, Black and Consensual, the Consensual Non-Monogamy organization they found on FetLife. When they first decided to step into CNM, one of their concerns was finding African Americans and people of color that were also in the lifestyle. They got lucky, with Isaiah meeting Moholo randomly at an event for professional black men, and Moholo, an older man in his 50’s, was happy to take the younger man in his 30’s under his wing.

Moholo invited them to a warm dinner at the farmland in Tennessee he shared with his other three partners. Letti, his ex-wife and current partner of 30 years, Sarina, their partner of the last 12, and Sherwit, who came to them five years ago at the age of 21 after immigrating from Eritrea as a teen. They had 7 children and three grandchildren between them, all living on the 300 acres of land. They started their organization to educate their community and give them the space to be with like minded non-monogamous folks. B&C hosts a few events a year in Memphis and surrounding areas, but they have members that come from all over the country.

They talked with Hazel and Isaiah about their decision to open their marriage, mentoring them, introducing them to the lifestyle. They spent the night...

Let's Play!