by Rain, Renee
At the end of most parties, I would somehow end up with Henry. But while the other women would have a smirk on their faces, I knew I would be in for a night of mental and physical pleasure. Henry and I talked a lot. His last name, St. Pierre, was passed down from his father’s family in Louisiana. I learned what turns him on and off, his favorite foods, and even stuff about his childhood. He owned two clubs, a small strip mall that he rented out office and storefront space and had his eye on a third club location. He even shared with me that he and Rachell don’t have sex often and he thought she may be more into women than men. Of course the sex was always great between us. Henry constantly asked me to stop swapping; he wanted me to only see him outside of Rome. It sound crazy to me, but after a few parties, I started declining Rome whenever he asked me to go to one. I agreed to see Henry outside of the arranged swap-dates.
He kept a suite at an upscale hotel open for us to meet at every Tuesday. Sometimes we met on Mondays as well. It wasn’t always sex; many times we just talked and cuddled. I hated that he was married and that he was a close friend of Rome’s, but I don’t think either of us could help the attraction- it was obviously beyond physical. One Tuesday, he shared that he wasn’t always happy with his lifestyle, but he wanted to keep Rachell happy. He said that he wished sometimes she would just get tired of being with him and leave, but he knew that would never happen. “I told her if she gives me a disease, I’ll kill her. And she claims she’d kill herself,” he laughed. “But as long as she’s being careful, I’ll roll with it. It’s just sex…right?” He looked with a sad expression as he poured a drink. It bothered me that he was so sweet and seemed to be in a conflicting situation. I’m sure at one time, he enjoyed all the random sex, but somewhere along the line, his heart changed. Sadly, I only started it to please Rome and I was already done with it. That was the Tuesday I decided to have Henry pull his pants down and lean back. I sucked his dick with all my heart. Even after he came, I kept sucking. I needed to make sure he was relaxed. It felt like an obligation.
I enjoyed Henry’s conversation and sex far more than Rome’s. I often thought about Henry when we weren’t together. That man must have laced me with something that made me want him. I enjoyed him so much that he impeded my thoughts when I would be doing simple things like laundry. Now Rome and I still had our Wednesday dates for the most part. And when we were together, it was as if we were only with each other, but the sex was getting less frequent. He would come to my place most of the time since my condo was closer to our jobs and we would stay in touch throughout the week.
Thursdays and Fridays were busy for me, but they were fast days, so I never minded. One Friday, I hadn’t heard from Rome since he left my place the previous morning, but I figured he must have been having a busy spell as well. There had been times when we would go a day without communication, so it was not a big issue. I never stopped past his office unless he invited me, but I was sure he would be in touch. That evening, I called him on my way home from work, but there was no answer. I left a message for him to call back and after 3 hours, I heard nothing. This was unusual because although we have gone without contact, if one reached out, there would always be a response.
After getting no response from Rome, I called Tamera to see if she was home. She was usually home on Friday nights, but always knew what was going on in the streets, church and even at the commissioner’s office. I asked if she would mind me stopping by and of course I was welcomed. She was sitting on the porch when I pulled up. “Girl you really need to quit smoking,” I yelled in a sarcastic manner as I walked onto the porch. I had been trying to get her stop smoking for years, but Tamera’s motto has always been, “This girl has to die from something, so she might as well be happy.” I sat in a chair that was on the opposite side of the table from where she was sitting. She loved her white wines and had a glass waiting for me.
“So nosey T, what are the streets saying now?” I asked as I hooked my purse on the back of the chair. Tamera looked straight ahead, took two more puffs of her cigarette before answering. “Hmm, girl the streets is saying that you a little freak and you be off with Rome at these special par-ties,” she tilted her head sideways and looked at me as I sat in disbelief of the words that came out of her mouth. “No, no, no…what do you mean by ‘special parties?” I replied in a defensive tone. Tamera shook her head back and forth. “Girl, you know Rome use to mess with Tameka right?” She waited for me to nod my head. “Okay, Tameka’s sister lives three doors down and she know the real deal on why Tameka and Rome broke up,” she lit up another cigarette and leaned back.
She told me that after an HOA meeting on a Wednesday evening, she and a neighbor, Khisha, were trying to figure out how they knew each other. They realized they had a few friends in common and then Rome’s name came up. Khisha told her that Tameka, her sister, left Rome because she wasn’t into the risqué lifestyle he likes. I felt my stomach sinking and drank every drop of wine in my glass. “Girl I didn’t tell her your name, I just told her that a chick I know mess with a guy named Rome,” of course she made sure to say this in her own defense. “But you know what was funny…she knew that Henry had a club, Scott owned a hotel north of town and that they both liked lots of women, but she didn’t know that are were both married.” She tapped her hand on the table as she laughed. She then jokingly asked if she can get a number.
I was speechless. I thought this city was too big for everyone to know somebody who knows something about everybody. “But you my girl, and if you into that swinging and swapping mess, that’s on you, just be careful. And don’t come to me talking about can I spend the night with you and Rome…Okay?” She laughed and then gave me a serious look letting me know that she meant what she said. I told her that it wasn’t what she thought and that I’m wasn’t really into that stuff. “Furthermore, you’re my girl and if I did roll like that, I wouldn’t jeopardize our friendship on some bullshit.” I saw her looking at me as if she didn’t believe me. “Girl look, it’s not like that at all,” I reiterated.
Why did I feel a need to explain myself to her? Did I really care about what she thought concerning the way I was choosing to live? We never kept secrets from each other and I had to tell her the truth. “There’s no point in me trying to lie to you now.” I told her that I had been playing their game. “Wow. Girl, I would have taken that one to the grave with me,” she said in a surprised tone. I had to tell her about Henry. I don’t know why I told her because even though she’s no saint, stepping into marriages is something that she would not justify in any situation. She really wasn’t thrilled about me confiding that I had feelings for him. She couldn’t understand why a married couple would be okay with the other sleeping around. I told her that I wasn’t sure that Henry was sleeping with anyone other than me and she just looked at me. I told her that I was sure it was just a case of him being in a situation where it would cost him too much to leave her.
“Girl, don’t be a fool,” she stated in a sharp tone. “Don’t you sit here for one moment thinking that you two will be an item. Look at my life.” I should have expected that response from her. She had her heart broken by a man four years ago. It wasn’t until she was 5 months pregnant that she found out he was married. He was always taking her out and the weekend trips out of town to meet his family threw her completely off. When she finally worked up the nerves to tell him that she was carrying his child, he told her that she couldn’t have his baby because he was married. She was devastated. Abortion wasn’t an option, but she didn’t want the shame of being known as the other woman. He received the DNA results at his office and was quick to call her to work out an agreement. The upside was that he paid for her house in full, bought her an SUV and gave her $50,000 in savings bonds. The down side was that this was a payoff to never reveal who the father of her daughter Lana was. I was the only other person who knew his identity, and I saw the results of the DNA tests. Despite me not agreeing with the choice Tamera made, I promised my friend that I would on
ly tell who Lana’s biological father was, if she had passed away before Lana became an adult.
“So what did you do with that blank letter head I gave you from the health department?” she asked. I asked her for one a couple weeks ago and was hoping that she wouldn’t ask what I did with it. I told her that I was going to send Rome a letter and some fake lab results to see if he would tell me if he ever got an ill report. “Girl I spilled some spaghetti sauce on it before I could type it up and threw it out”. I got quiet. She asked if I wanted some more wine. I told her that I was going to pass since I had to drive home. We sat on her porch laughing and talking for over 2 hours before I decided to leave.
During my whole drive, I kept looking at my phone. I was getting upset that Rome had not called in all this time. When I got home, I showered and started my nightly routine of putting my hair up. I looked at my phone again, still nothing from Rome. I started thinking about Henry. “Hmm, Rome doesn’t want to talk to me, but I bet Henry does.” I said this to myself as I started looking through the closet for an outfit to wear out. Red thong panties, with an animal print push up bra covered up by a short, black, stretch-satin tube dress that zipped from top to bottom in both the front and back. I put on some red patent-leather peep toed pumps and gave myself two thumbs up as I looked at myself one final time on my way out the door.
~Club Amoré ~
I pulled up to club Amoré, which was located in a shopping plaza. I had never been there before. There was no need since we were seeing each other at least once a week at the hotel. I was impressed by the number of cars in the parking lot. I put on a little more lipstick, checked to see that my hair was still in place and got out of the car. When I got to the entrance, there were two tall and equally big men standing at the door. I stopped to show ID and asked if Henry was in. One looked to the other bouncer then back to me. “Are you on his list?” he questioned in a deep voice. I told him that he and Rachell told me that they are there every Friday, so I was just coming by to visit. I hoped that she wasn’t there and couldn’t believe I threw Rachell’s name in there. But I didn’t want to look like I was coming solely to see Henry. “Of course, she knows Chell,” the second man stated as he stared me up and down like I was the new freak on the scene coming to get laid. Hell, I guess in reality-I was. But I wasn’t coming for Rachell. The first guy saw that I was on the list and offered to walk me to their table so I followed. On our way, he confirmed that they were both in the club. I decided in my mind to just play it off as a social visit, have one drink then leave.
As we approached the round table, there were six chairs and four were occupied. Rachell saw me first and looked me up and down twice before getting Henry’s attention to see who was approaching. She stood up to greet me in a cream colored, short leather tank dress. “Sabbi” she states as she hugged me. I was attempting to correct my name, but she placed a finger over my lips to stop me and whispered in my ear that she and her female friends do not use their real or full names in the club. “Call me Chell, and if Sabbi doesn’t do it for you, we can think of something else later,” she kissed my cheek and lead me to a seat next to hers. “So… no boyfriend tonight?” she asked as she poured me a glass of white wine. I told her that I was indeed alone. Henry stated that Rome had not been to the club since it first opened. “You know he won’t come up in here,” he ended his statement to Rachell as he kept his eyes on me.
“Oh, forgive me for being so rude,” Rachell giggled as she introduced me to Nate and Kristia. They seemed like a nice clean cut couple, but I knew they couldn’t possibly be straight and narrow if they were friends with these two and up in this place. Nate told Henry that he wished Kristia could be more open and sexually aggressive. Kristia nudged him in the waist and playfully told him to stop embarrassing her. He kissed her and told her, “baby I know you’re working on it”. He asked her if she wanted to dance and lead her to the dance floor, leaving me alone with Rachell and Henry.
“I was just stopping by to say hi, see how the club was. I mean, I rode by coming from a friends get together up the road, and saw the club.” I was getting tangled up in my words and took a big sip of the wine Rachell had poured. Rachell leaned in and told me that I didn’t have to rush off. “I know what you came for,” Rachell stated calmly with a smile. She scooted her chair closer to me. “You in that sexy ass dress with those fuck me pumps.” She put an arm around my shoulders and placed her other hand on my thigh. “I’m going to let you have him in just a little while, just not right now. But do keep in mind, if I keep letting you have what you want, I will- in due time- get what I want,” she was close enough that I could feel her breath on my neck. Trying to not make a scene, I leaned away from her and replied “will you?” with a smile. I wanted to tell her so badly how I wished she could be erased from the picture, but I had no right. I saw Henry looking at us. I wasn’t sure if he enjoyed watching his wife come on to other women or what he was thinking about.
“So how about a little tour,” Henry looked to both of us as he stood up. He handed a hand to each and told us to follow. He pointed out the obvious features of the club such as the bar, the restrooms and even the emergency exits. He then stood behind me, put his hands on my waist and kissed my neck. “Baby you know I missed you,” he whispered to me. This caused chills to run through me thinking about how bold he was to be so intimate with me in front of his wife. I quickly reminded myself of what couple I was dealing with and brushed it off. “Are you ready to see what makes Amoré special?” he asked with a hint of liquor on his breath. I told him yes and I began to feel my heart pounding. Rachell walked towards a door that had a V.I.P. sign on it. We entered a short hallway that led to another door. Henry opened the door which appeared to exit the building, but it didn’t. It led to another part of the club. Rachell went in first, then I, followed by Henry. There was a bouncer who stood in the entry way. Henry showed some kind of card that was scanned and the door was opened. We walked past two doors that had locker room signs on them before going through another door. “This is Ero’s,” he said proudly. I looked around; it was dim with blue and pink lights glowing from the ceiling. Everyone was naked or with only towel like terrycloth wraps and they seemed perfectly comfortable. There was a bar with two huge refrigerators located in the center. There were tables and chairs set up, and two separate lounge areas with a couch, loveseats, chairs and dancing poles. The DJ was playing just to the side of the door where we came in. Then I noticed the rooms, seven to be exact. They each had a large window and a door as if they were indoor storefronts.
“The Seven Rooms of Eros: Cloud 9, Chocolate Dreams, Amsterdam’s Window Box, Rodeo Room, The Class Room, The Dungeon, and Your Fantasy,” Rachell stated as she pointed each one out. “The nice thing about Ero’s, you can try just about anything and no one is going to judge you. Or you can try absolutely nothing, and no one is going to judge you,” she said as she placed her arm around my waist and pulled me closer to her. “Really though,” Rachell continued, “I prefer to watch.” I wasn’t sure if I was nervous or being aroused, but I kept looking at Henry and thinking of how I came to Amoré in hopes of being alone with him. He walked closer to us; Rachell still had her arm around my waist. He slowly moved her arm and put both of his hands on her hips. “Let me do this,” is what I thought I heard him say to her. When I looked back, the couple was engaged in a kiss. Feeling uneasy, I walked over to the bar. I only wanted a glass of wine and was disappointed when I found out that you had to bring your own liquor to that side. The bar tender offered me a soda and I gladly accepted.
I stood there drinking my soda trying to get my nerves together so I could leave but then Henry walked up to me. He asked if I was feeling okay and I told him I was fine, but that I was only stopping by to say hello. “Hey, don’t even stress about Rachell,” he took the can from my hand and sat it on the bar. “Rachell likes to play, just not with me,” he said with his deep voice as he stared down at me. I could see the lust in his eyes as he looked me up and d
own. He stroked his hand across my face then ran his finger across my lips. I slowly allowed the tip of his finger to enter my mouth and ran my tongue across it. “You are so sexy. Do you really want to ...” I cut off his sentence with a “Yes, I really do think I should be leaving now.”
He asked me to have a drink and to sit and talk to him. He made a gesture to the bar tender who poured two double shot glasses of clear liquor. He sat on a stool and asked me to sit next to him. “Now let’s throw these back and you can chase yours with that soda if it’s too strong”. I hesitated on drinking it, but decided one drink wouldn’t be too bad. We drank our shots and I immediately grabbed my soda and guzzled it. I told him that was the hottest drink I ever had and I meant hot as in my chest was burning. Henry just looked and smiled. He knew I wasn’t a hard liquor drinker, and before long, I began giggling. We conversed about idle matters for a short while and had another shot. Soon after, I had to take a deep breath and look around. The room wasn’t spinning, but I was feeling the liquor moving through my system. He pulled me over to stand between his legs with my back to him. He kissed down my neck and asked “did you come for me to fuck you?” I replied in a low tone- “yes”. I could see Rachell across the room looking at us. In the moment, I wanted her to see how much I enjoyed the way Henry caressed me. I even wanted her to see how I loved the way he delivered his dick to me.