SNEAK PEEK! Platinum Sequel Promises More Dirt, More Scandal

wife ...

He  could  see someone sitting  in  his seat,  facing  Alex,  Birdie, and  Josephine. He  recognized the  jet-black sheet  of hair  immediately.  Ras saw  his wife, frozen in her  seat, her  head  held  high.

She  briefly  caught Ras's eye and  then  looked  back  at the  woman sitting in his seat. The woman saw the  three  of them  looking behind her so she turned around just as Ras reached the table.

"Ras!" Cleo  said,  smiling wide.  "We  were  just talking about you. So good  to see you. Have  a seat."

Cleo gestured to a chair  near  Birdie.

"Get up," Ras said, through clenched teeth.

"Don't be rude, Ras," Cleo said. "We're all  just having  a little chat.  Join in."

Ras  grabbed Cleo's  shoulder and  pulled  her  out  of her  seat.

A few  patrons in  the  restaurant gasped, and  one  couple  quickly exited  the  restaurant.

"Get out.  Or I will hurt you."

Cleo  wriggled out  of his grasp and  then looked  down at  her dress, a black  strapless shift  that  hit the top of her  thigh. She  used both  hands to smooth out  the  wrinkles and  then  picked up  her bag off the table and  put it on her  shoulder.

"I was  just in the neighborhood and  I wanted to say hi," said Cleo.

Ras looked  toward the manager and  gestured for him  to come over.

"There's no need  for all of that, Ras," said Cleo. "I'm leaving." The manager came over and stood  next to Ras.

"Is everything okay here?"

"We  have  an  unwanted guest," said  Ras. "We  need  her  to be removed."

Cleo laughed loud  enough to get  the  attention of anyone in the restaurant who  might have missed  Ras grabbing her arm.

''I'm  unwanted. Can  you  imagine  that?  This  guy"-she pointed to  Birdie-"He was more  than  happy  to get  a blow  job from me in the studio last year. Right, Alex?"

The sounds of silverware hitting several  plates  filled the  restaurant. Alex and  Birdie  looked  at each  other,  but  neither said  a word  or revealed any sort of emotion on their  faces.

 “And my beloved Ras . . .” Cleo continued. “For years, you came to me whenever I called you. And vice versa. And now I’m unwanted? I never thought I’d see the day.”

Ras sat back down at his seat and took his wife’s hand. Jose- phine’s face was stone.

“I’m going to sit here with my wife and my friends and finish my dessert,” Ras announced.

Cleo remained standing.

“It was good to see all of you,” Cleo said. She looked over at Josephine. “Especially you, Josephine. You look amazing. Moth- erhood truly agrees with you.” Josephine didn’t move.

“I’m sure your little girl is absolutely gorgeous.”

Ras felt his wife squeeze his hand so hard that his knuckles began to crack. He knew she was trying to refrain from standing up and punching Cleo out.

“Do not give her the satisfaction,” Ras whispered to his wife. Josephine nodded but kept her eyes on Cleo.

“Please, Ras,” Cleo said. “I’m very satisfied. Your wife knows exactly what we have. And she knows that it won’t change no matter how far away you go. You can pack up and move to China. It doesn’t change a thing.”

Cleo tossed her hair back and turned to walk away.

“If you ever need me—and I think you might—Alex will know where to find me.”

Cleo walked away, leaving the foursome in stunned silence. As soon as she was out of sight, Josephine stood up quickly and grabbed her shawl from the back of her chair.

“Wait, Josephine!” Ras yelled out as she half-ran toward the back entrance, where their driver was waiting.

“Go to hell, Ras!” Josephine yelled out. “Stay away from me!”

Ras turned around to Alex and Birdie. He pointed a finger inAlex’s direction.

“Why did she say you would know where to find her?”

"I have no idea, Ras," Alex said. "I swear I don't."

Ras's eyes went from Birdie's to Alex's. Then he dashed off to catch  up to his wife.

"Josephine! Would you just stop for a second so we can talk about this?!"

Ras's wife continued tossing  clothes  from  her  bureau into  one of several suitcases opened on her bed.

"You  keep  talking," Josephine said. "I'm leaving."

Ras grabbed his wife's wrist  and  pulled  her close to him. "Please. Sit down."

Josephine flopped  down on  the  bed  and  dropped her  head into  her hands. Ras rubbed her back.

"We  are  not  going to let  this  woman run  us off  this  island," Ras said.

"We? There is no  'we,'  Ras."  Josephine spat.  "There is me. There is you. And  there  is her."

"You are my wife," said Ras. "Tell  that  to Cleo."

"She  knows."

"Yes, she does. And  guess what? She  doesn't care. She will fly to  Jamaica, find  out  where we're  having dinner, and  torture  us just for sport. I'm  supposed to stay with you and  deal  with  that? We  moved  here  to get  away  from her. And  she's  just  taken me back  to day one."

"That's exactly  what