That morning Azmir stroked slowly and deep, rolling his hips with precision making sure to hit the right delicate spot inside of me that sent me over the moon again and I brought him along with me. After kissing and panting, we reluctantly left the bed and retreated into the shower where we surprisingly started a flow of fascinating conversation.
It was just after five in the morning and we were naked in the shower discussing politics. That led to the topic of his work and the projects he’d been taking on. I was astounded by his entrepreneurship and ability to launch a growing merger, acquisitions, and liquidations firm, which has been his primary focus along with the rec center for the past three years. Azmir mentioned that in today’s economy corporations are failing and need bankruptcy and liquidations as options to restructure their strategies and maximize their shareholder value. He was a brilliant man.
Azmir rode with me to the airport and in the car, we discussed support systems and how everyone needed them. It made me evaluate my own and come up with the depressing fact that I’d only had one cherished friendship, and that was Michelle. He explained that he had a handful of people on his team who he could count on for various needs.
“I learned at a very young age to pick from the top of the tree for friends. Never pick at eye level or below. You’ll never grow that way.” Azmir sat back with his head on the headrest and one hand wrapped around mine. He looked totally opposite of the urbane figure that waltzed into the hotel suite the evening before. This morning he looked urban in his heather gray velour sweat suit resembling the stature of a professional ball player rather than a corporate CEO. I loved it, too.
Huhn? I wasn’t familiar with the analogy and he must have read that on my face.
“Petey’s is a valued relationship because I admire the way that he can read people. He has a keen ability to discern if someone is good hearted or shouldn’t be trusted. He’s very reserved in his interactions to give himself room to assess an individual. He’s yet to steer me wrong on our friends and associates over the years. When Petey says “run” I abandon ship immediately. My senses are pretty tight but not as acute as his. I value that in him and hold on to that ability of his as we walk through life. He’s simple and easy to get around with.”
I soaked it all in as he continued. “Mark and Eric are the total opposite. They’re Rhode Scholar intellects whose discernments are limited to a macro level. Eric is a fulltime professor at Stanford, the chair of the school of business. I can always run venture ideas past him for a fair evaluation of validity. His knowledge of the corporate arena is out of this world. But…”
“But?” I asked hanging on to his every word.
“But he’s estranged from his family and has been engaged to four different women and is on his second marriage.”
“What? Nooooo!” Aghast couldn’t begin to describe my shock.
“True story.” He chuckled. “I share this with you because in due time he’d tell you himself. He has a handicap on interpersonal relationships.”
“And what about Mark?” I was so caught up in his conversation. Azmir was that captivating. It didn’t matter what he talked about, it warmed me that he talked to me.
“Mark is no better. He holds a doctorate in business as well, even adjuncts at USC in the summer. He has several businesses under his belt including a consulting firm where he goes in and offer ways to strengthen structures and avoid firms like mine coming in and restructuring. He actually comes in beforehand and reorganizes and is great at what he does. Like me, has had the itch for social establishments, which you experienced at Mahogany. He’s an honest dude with a heart of gold—”
“But?” I interrupted him no longer able to hold my suspense.
“I won’t say too much on his personal life, but let’s just say he has identification issues that lure him into social circles that do not benefit his stature.”
Wow… With widened eyes, I gazed off into the distance nodding my head as I processed his implications.