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qualifications.”
    “I agree. But it’s unfortunate that we can’t be culturally inclined when we choose baby names.”
    “Yeah, but it’s not even about culture. I mean if it’s an African name with some sort of special meaning, then I can understand it. But you and I both know that Tacquinisha is hardly African or any other nationality.”
    Renee chuckled. “And let’s not forget about those babies who are named after certain types of liquor. Alize, Tequila, Cabernet. Unbelievable.”
    “Unbelievable is right. But girl, enough about that. What I wanna know is if you’re still thinking about having surgery.”
    Renee and I chatted about weight-loss possibilities just about every single day, but recently she’d become extremely interested in the gastric bypass procedure. I was still somewhat hesitant, though.
    “Yep,” she said. “I’ve been researching it more and more and my plan is to schedule a few consultations with maybe four or five doctors, probably next month.”
    “It seems to be working for a lot of people. Plus you only need to lose fifty pounds, so that’s not nearly the same as me having to lose a hundred.”
    “Yeah, but I think it could work for you, too. Especially since you don’t have any medical problems. I have high blood pressure and diabetes, so I need to take extra precautions just because of that.”
    “Well, I do know one thing. I have got to lose this weight. Because more and more, it’s making me miserable. And I’m starting to feel like I don’t have a life outside of food and work. There are days that I do enjoy my work, but when it’s all said and done, food is my greatest pleasure. It’s the one thing that puts a smile on my face. Lately it has given me more enjoyment than any man has. And that’s a doggoned shame.”
    “I know the feeling,” Renee agreed. “Roger pretty much only calls me when he wants sex or when he doesn’t have anything else better to do. And it’s so humiliating.”
    “I know. I’ve been treated that way so many times that I can’t even count them.”
    “And that’s why I’m not putting this surgery off any longer. Our insurance will cover most of it, so once I find a doctor who thinks I’m a good candidate, I’m going for it. I’ll be thin in a matter of months, and I’ll finally know what it’s like to have people treat me with a certain amount of respect and have men truly be attracted to me.”
    “I know what you mean,” I said. “Although I gotta say that I still want men to like me for me and not just because of the way I look. I want them to love me as a person. My mother never showed me that. I’ve never known my father, and my sister doesn’t love anyone except herself.”
    “Not me. I don’t care about any of that. I just want to be beautiful and have men raving over me. I want them to notice me as soon as I walk into a room and then take me straight to their bed if they want to. I want them to want me simply because I look that good.”
    I didn’t bother responding because Renee’s mind was already made up. We both wanted to lose weight, but we wanted it for different reasons. Renee wanted to attract as many men as possible even if they didn’t care anything about her, because she had this dire need to feel gorgeous. I, on the other hand, wanted to attract decent men who would love me unconditionally and I terribly wanted to feel better about myself. I wanted to know what it was like to walk up even one flight of stairs without gasping profusely and trying to catch my breath. I wanted to know what it was like to shop in the regular misses department.
    More importantly, I wanted to know what it was like to truly love myself and live happily ever after with my soul mate.
    I definitely didn’t want to be like Renee, a woman willing to settle.
    I wanted so, so much more than that.
    What I wanted was the grand prize.

Chapter 5
    T AYLOR
    I COULDN’T BELIEVE this was happening. The conference had begun barely two