Three Is A Crowd

by Chenell Parker

  “Man, stop playing and come over here. I’m not on no bullshit today, I swear. All we’ll do is work out and nothing else,” he promised.

  “Nah boo, I’m good. Besides, I’m already here,” Jersi said as she pulled up in front of the gym and parked.

  “Don’t call me later either. I’m blocking your ass since you wanna act bad with it,” Memphis replied.

  “Boy bye. Let me go so I can work out in peace,” Jersi said.

  “Wait!” Memphis yelled before she hung up. “What time you want me to come over there?”

  He had been taking off on the weekends and spending most of his free time with her. He still hung with his boys sometimes but Jersi got most of his attention.

  “I thought you were blocking me,” Jersi reminded him.

  “Girl you know I’m weak as fuck,” Memphis laughed.

  “Okay, well I’m going straight home when I leave here. You know the code to get in the gate,” she replied. Besides her family, he was the only other person that she trusted with it.

  “Cool, I’ll see you around nine,” he replied before they disconnected.

  Jersi grabbed her water bottle and got out of the car right after she spoke with him. She didn’t have her gym bag because she was going home to shower right after.

  “Hey girl. You know your boo is working at a different location today,” Erin said as soon as she saw her.

  “Yeah, I just got off the phone with him. I’m happy that he’s not here. I don’t need the distractions,” Jersi replied as she swiped her membership card and walked through the turnstile.

  The after work crowd was in there but Jersi was happy to find a treadmill that was free. She usually didn’t work out on Fridays but she had to get back on track. If she kept putting it off, she was bound to gain back everything that she’d previously lost.

  After an hour on the treadmill, Jersi was ready to call it quits. When she saw that the stair climber was free, she decided to do another half hour on that before she left. About fifteen minutes into her workout, Lila walked into the room and got on the machine right next to her. There were two other machines on the opposite end but she chose the one closer to Jersi. They were quiet for a while until Lila decided to speak up.

  “I must say, you’ve lasted way longer than some of the others,” Lila said while looking straight ahead.

  “Excuse me?” Jersi asked while looking over at her.

  “I’m speaking of Memphis. He usually doesn’t keep his women around too long. He gets bored fast,” Lila shrugged.

  “Maybe he does but I know how to keep him entertained,” Jersi replied.

  “Entertained at your house I’m sure. I know for a fact that you’ve never been to his. It’s kind of hard to entertain company when you have a wife and son,” Lila replied with a knowing grin.

  Jersi’s rebuttal was caught in between the lump in her throat. She wanted to tell Lila that he couldn’t have a wife at home because he’d spent just about every weekend of the past month at her house. As much as Jersi wanted to refute her claims, she just couldn’t do it. She had never been to his house so maybe what Lila said was true. Hell, Blake had slept out with her several times and she knew for a fact that he had a wife and kids at home. Memphis never wore a ring but that didn’t mean shit to her either. Blake took his off like it was nothing. Instead of entertaining her, Jersi continued her workout in silence. She never noticed the satisfied smirk that Lila wore on her face as she got off the stair climber and walked away. As soon as Jersi got into the car, she called Memphis to see if what Lila said was true. Her first mind told her to block him but he deserved a chance to tell his side of the story. Jersi’s heart beat erratically in her chest as she listened to the phone ring.

  “What’s up baby?” Memphis asked as soon as he answered.

  “How about we stay the weekend at your house this time?” Jersi asked. She didn’t want to come right out and tell him what was up. She wanted to see how he would reply to her request first.

  “Where did that come from?” Memphis questioned in confusion.

  “Why have we never been to your house before Memphis? You never even offered,” Jersi replied.

  “What’s up with you Jersi? Why the sudden interest in going to my house?” Memphis asked.

  “Can we go to your house or not?” Jersi inquired.

  “No,” Memphis replied in a voice that was barely above a whisper.

  “I guess not if you have a wife and son there,” Jersi snapped.

  “Just let me explain,” Memphis begged.

  “Fuck you and lose my number!” Jersi yelled as he hung up the phone.

  She immediately blocked his number as she drove home with tears pouring from her eyes. Just when she finally decided to let her guard down and let him in, he once again proved to her why men weren’t shit. Although Blake was married, that was different to her. Dealing with him was more of a revenge thing and she didn’t have any feelings for him. She was falling in love with Memphis and her heart felt like it was shattering to pieces in her chest. Ariel tried to tell her but she didn’t want to listen. Now she knew why he didn’t want to celebrate Valentine’s Day with her. He probably spent it at home with his wife.

  Once she got home, Jersi took a long, hot shower. She packed a few clothes and decided to go by her brother for the weekend. She didn’t care if Dray had company or not. She was about to be the depressed third wheel. She didn’t even call him before she showed up at his house and rang the bell. It took a few minutes but he finally opened the door.

  “What’s wrong Jersi?” Dray asked with a concerned look on his face.

  His voice sounded deeper than usual and he wasn’t as dramatic as he always seemed to be. He was dressed down in some sweats and a t-shirt but he looked masculine and sexy.

  “I need you,” Jersi cried as she fell into her brother’s arms.

  Dray pulled her inside and closed the door. It was then that Jersi noticed a pretty caramel colored girl laying on the sofa draped in a fleece blanket. Her dress was on the floor in front of her and Jersi felt bad for interrupting their intimate moment.

  “Baby, this is my sister, Jersi. Jersi, this is Jazz,” Dray said as he introduced the two women.

  “I’m sorry Dray. I didn’t mean to interrupt. I can go back home,” Jersi said as she wiped her teary eyes.

  “No sis, you’re good. Jazz, give me a minute,” Dray said as he pulled her down the hall to his spare bedroom.

  “She’s cute,” Jersi said as she flopped down on the bed.

  “Is anybody dead, in jail or the hospital?” Dray asked her as soon as he closed the door.

  “No. Why do you ask?” Jersi countered with a confused frown.

  “Because anything else can wait until tomorrow. That bitch is a freak and I’m trying to see what’s up. Put some music on or something. I can’t promise you that you won’t hear anything,” Dray replied as he rushed out of the room.

  Once he left, Jersi turned on the tv and called Ariel. She needed someone to talk to and Dray was too occupied to even care. Had Jersi brushed him off like that he would have been crying about her not loving him. It was cool though. She knew how inconsiderate her brother was but she loved him anyway.

  Jersi woke up the next morning with a pounding headache. She had talked to Ariel for a while and she cried herself to sleep after that. Ariel tried to comfort her as much as she could and Jersi appreciated her. Dray was no help at all and Jersi had to turn the radio up to drown out the sounds that were coming from his bedroom. Finally, after tossing and turning all night, she went to sleep but it wasn’t peaceful. Memphis had tried calling her from another number but she hung up on his ass soon as she heard his voice.

  “Morning sis. How did you sleep?” Dray asked when he walked into the room.

  “I didn’t” Jersi replied with a yawn.

  “Are you hungry? My girl is about to cook breakfast,” Dray said.

  “Your girl? Who is she?” Jersi asked.

&nbs
p; “My future baby mama,” Dray replied with a wink.

  Draya was long gone and so were the theatrics. Jersi always said that her brother missed his calling. He could have easily been an actor with the many roles that he played.

  “No, I’m good,” Jersi replied right as her phone rang.

  She blew out a breath of frustration when she saw that Blake was calling. Since she didn’t have anything else to do, she decided to answer for his disgusting ass.

  “What’s up Blake?” Jersi said when she answered the phone.

  “Can I see you today?” he asked excitedly.

  “For?” Jersi countered.

  “We can do whatever you want. I know how much you love to shop. We can hit up the mall,” Blake suggested.

  Maybe a little retail therapy was just what she needed to take her mind off of Memphis and his drama. Since it was on his dime, she was all for hitting up the mall.

  “I need to get dressed. Give me about an hour and I’ll meet you at the spot,” Jersi replied.

  “I can come pick you up if you want me to,” Blake said.

  “No, I’ll meet you there,” Jersi replied before she hung up.

  Blake was always trying to be slick. He had been trying to find out where she lived for months but Jersi wasn’t having it. She didn’t want him at her house because she didn’t plan to be with him much longer. He was serving his purpose and his time was almost up.

  After going home to shower and get dressed, Jersi met Blake at the penthouse. He was all smiles as he drove her to the mall and walked around with her. He tried to grab Jersi’s hand but he had her fucked up. It wasn’t that real and she wasn’t about to pretend like it was. He was swiping his card like crazy and he spared no expense. He had already taken a few bags to the car and Jersi still wasn’t done. When they walked into Saks, Blake froze for a second. Jersi didn’t know what was up with him but she continued to look at a few pairs of shoes.

  “Hey Blake,” two women walked up to him and spoke.

  Jersi turned around and immediately recognized one of them as Carter’s ex-wife, Miracle. The woman scowled at her before turning her attention back to Blake.

  “Hey y’all. What’s up?” Blake asked as he spoke to Karma and Miracle.

  Both women were Mariah’s good friends and they often went on spa dates and shopping sprees together. Karma wasn’t one to cause confusion but Miracle was miserable. Since her husband had divorced her, she didn’t want to see anybody else happy. Blake knew without a doubt that she was going to tell Mariah about seeing him with Jersi. Crazy thing is, her really didn’t give a damn.

  “Is everything okay with you and Mariah?” Karma whispered as she looked at Jersi.

  “It’s okay, I guess,” Blake shrugged.

  “We’ve been trying to call her but she never answers. Is something wrong with her?” Karma questioned.

  “That’s something that you’ll have to ask her,” Blake replied.

  “Who is she?” Karma asked while pointing to Jersi.

  “A homewrecking whore. She’s fucking Carter too,” Miracle replied, making Blake’s heart drop.

  “Carter? Your ex-husband Carter?” Blake asked.

  “Yep, they work together,” Miracle replied.

  “What’s going on Blake? If you and Mariah are having trouble, there are professionals that can help you get your marriage back on track. Think about your girls,” Karma reasoned.

  “My girls are fine. Whatever I do outside of my home doesn’t have anything to do with them,” Blake snapped.

  He didn’t mean to bark at Karma like that but he was in his feelings about what Miracle had just told him. He didn’t know that Jersi was seeing someone else and his feelings were hurt. Miracle’s ex-husband was an accountant, so it made sense that he and Jersi worked together. Blake had only seen Carter once or twice. He and Miracle were already having problems and he never really went to the couples event.

  “I want these,” Jersi said as she walked over to Blake with a pair of shoes in her hand.

  “Okay,” Blake replied while handing her his credit card.

  “Wow,” Miracle said as Karma stood with her mouth agape.

  She remembered seeing Jersi in the restaurant on Mariah’s birthday. Everything was starting to make sense to her now. Blake was obviously having an affair with the other woman and that’s why Mariah behaved the way she did. Mariah hadn’t been answering anyone’s calls and Karma had a bad feeling about everything. Blake was Mariah’s world. Knowing that he was cheating on her was probably too much for her to handle. She wished that she could comfort her friend but Mariah obviously didn’t want to be bothered.

  “Thanks boo,” Jersi smiled as she pecked Blake on his lips.

  She’d heard everything that Miracle and the other woman were saying. She didn’t know that Mariah and Miracle were friends but she recognized the other one from the restaurant. She knew without a doubt that they were going to run back and tell Mariah and that was her goal.

  “Oh my God Blake! What the hell are you doing? You’re a married man. Mariah doesn’t deserve this,” Karma chastised as soon as Jersi walked away.

  “Look, I appreciate your concern but this is none of your business. Jersi has been a part of my life for a very long time. She was here long before Mariah was and that will never change. I was with Jersi when Mariah decided to stop taking her pills and trap me with a baby. You should know Karma. I overheard her telling you all about it. Don’t get me wrong, I love my girls but they’re the only reason why Mariah and I even got married in the first place. Your friend is not as innocent as she tries to seem. Before you start pointing fingers, make sure you point them in the right direction,” Blake said before he walked off and stood next to Jersi.

  “These niggas ain’t shit. His wife is probably sitting at home depressed while he’s out here spending their money on another bitch,” Miracle spat angrily.

  As upset as she was, she was also a little relieved. If Jersi was with Blake, that meant that she had left Carter alone. Miracle wanted her husband back but they seemed to be drifting further apart.

  “This is unbelievable,” Karma said as she shook her head in shock.

  “Let’s go. We need to make sure that Mariah is okay,” Miracle said as she walked away.

  “How when she won’t even answer the phone for us? Karma asked as she walked behind her.

  “That’s exactly why we’re not calling. We’re going to her house,” Miracle replied angrily.

  M ariah was over it. She was tired of crying but that seemed to be all that she did lately. Depression was too good a word for how she had been feeling lately. Blake was no longer the man that she had married. He was a familiar stranger who sometimes slept in the same bed. That was when or if he decided to come home. Mariah had been in a foul mood since her birthday and she hadn’t been in the mood to do anything. She didn’t cook, clean or answer her phone. She stayed in the bed most days, crying and sleeping. Eva had been keeping the girls because she didn’t even have the strength to be a mother. Just when she decided that she wanted to get back to her old self, she was hit with some more bullshit the day before.

  Mariah got excited when Karma and Miracle showed up at her house unexpectedly. She thought that they were coming to get her out of the house for a little while and she was looking forward to an outing. When they revealed the reason for their visit, Mariah felt sick to her stomach. It was one thing for her to know that Blake was cheating on her. She was embarrassed that her friends now knew about it too. Blake had the nerve to be parading his side bitch around like it was nothing. He always complained when Mariah wanted to go shopping but he had no problem going with Jersi. Then, if that wasn’t bad enough, he didn’t even bother coming home. It was as if Mariah was an addict who had relapsed once her friends left. All the strength and confidence that she had before was gone and she was back in her funk. When her phone rang, she didn’t even bother to answer it. The doorbell rang a few minutes later and Mariah pulled herself
out of bed to see who it was.

  “Who is it?” Mariah mumbled groggily.

  “It’s Eva. Open up Mariah,” she replied sternly.

  Mariah groaned as she looked around her house. It was filthy and she knew that Eva was going to say something about it. As soon as she opened the door, Eva walked right in without being invited.

  “How can I help you Eva?” Mariah asked impatiently.