by M. T. Pope
“Yes, sir.” She followed me. “They are already on your desk.” She pointed to them as I made my way around the desk and sat down.
“Thank you, Janice. How was your weekend?” I asked. It was a Monday ritual that we went through every Monday morning.
“Sure, it was quite wonderful. Just me and the grands.” She smiled. She was proud of her grandchildren. She was a mother of three successful children: one doctor, a lawyer, and a schoolteacher. She had four grandchildren she loved dearly. She really didn’t have to work, but she did because she said old people sit at home and die.
“That is great, Janice.” I started up my PC and logged on to Microsoft Office.
“Sir, would you like the usual juice and bagel this morning? We have some lovely Danish pastries that were delivered this morning.”
“Who ordered pastries?” I looked at her, confused.
“Well, sir, I thought that you did.” She looked a little confused as well.
“No, it wasn’t me.” I got up and walked into our small kitchenette, and looked on the table to see a tray of pastries set out with a note on the top.
“To all of the staff at Bankable Advertising, Inc.” I read the card out loud. Janice was standing beside me as I read. I smiled, because I knew that this was the work of Mateo, but I played it off.
“You know what, I forgot all about ordering these.” I smiled and put the card back on the table. “I thought you guys would like these. I tried one in Lexington Market and thought that it would be a nice treat for the office.”
“Sir, that is so sweet of you.”
I hated to have to lie about something so small. I just didn’t want people in my business. It was a major pet peeve. “I thought it would be.” I turned to the coffee machine to get my own coffee since I was already in there.
“And I see that some of the staff has already taken advantage.” I spoke as I reached to grab me a cream cheese–filled pastry.
“Well, that is expected, sir.” Janice snickered and turned to leave me standing by myself. That was short-lived though.
“Hey, boss.” Lewis walked up and reached for a pastry. I assumed that he had one before my arrival to work. “These are sooo good.”
I looked at his attire and smiled. Some people probably would say I was throwing shade, but I wasn’t. It was just that he was always overdressed. Bright colors were always his style. He had on a basic suit but he had on purple and gold. I was no hater. I just thought that men should wear certain colors and leave the rest for women. I was an earth-tone type of guy, but I wasn’t afraid to mix in a red or green every now and then. He dressed like he had every color of the rainbow in his closet. I had even seen him in colors that I didn’t even know existed. He did wear his clothes well, but his flamboyant personality and loud clothes were a lot to handle at times. But that was why I hired him. He had an eye for color and fashion, which made him an asset. One of my business teachers in college always told us that a business requires a team. One person wasn’t enough to successfully run a company and you were foolish to think otherwise.
“Staff your weaknesses,” was something he drilled into our heads. It was one of the best things he could have told us. I took that advice and ran with it.
“That they are, Lewis,” I agreed.
Something was up with him and I didn’t know what. He’s being too nice. Not like his regular racy self.
I followed him as he left the break room. He was almost skipping. It wasn’t that I didn’t want him happy. I just didn’t want a “phony happy” working in here. I don’t need a postal employee killing folk in here, especially me. I was just at the breakthrough point and I didn’t want a happy crazy taking me out before my time.
“Everything all right with you today, Lewis?” I stood at his cubical as he sat and looked at his screen.
“I’m doing super, boss.” Still no eye contact. He was a good worker, I’d admit that, but his ass wasn’t this dedicated. “Life is grand.”
“Did you have any of the work done for the Mateo Lopez campaign?” I asked with a small attitude.
“For the most part.” He looked at me briefly and then turned back toward his PC monitor.
“I need the specs on my desk by close of the day,” I instructed. My voice was firm.
“Whatever you want, boss.” He turned and the smile on his face was spread wide. “Will that be all?”
“Are you shooing me away with an attitude?” I asked to see if his “happy” face was an act. Lewis was defiant and I knew that if I pressed him he would press back.
“No, I was just following orders, like you like them to be followed.” He got up and walked past me and back into the break room. I followed him again.
“Lewis, is there something you need to say to me?” I knew that I had taken it too far with that question. A boss really shouldn’t care what an employee thinks. Especially to this degree.
“Nothing at all, boss.” He smiled. The corners of his mouth twitched a little. He was going to blow. I knew it. I needed people to stay the same in the workplace. I knew people changed but this was a drastic change. He was just snappy and flamboyant a few days ago. Now he was quiet and happy. Plus, I could have sworn I heard him humming this morning as I walked past his cubical. Crazy folk exhibit these drastic mood changes.
“Okay.” I turned to leave the room, but turned back around for one more stinger. “Oh, and stop calling me boss, my name is Mr. Spencer to you.” His mouth dropped. I left him where he was standing. The rest of my day was going smoother. Everybody was in line and I received several calls from Mateo to brighten up my day.
Chapter 18
Lewis
Heavenly
His muthafuckin’ ass is pushing to get beat down beside his car in the parking lot. That was the thought I was thinking as I walked back to my desk. His ass just didn’t want to see anyone happy because he wasn’t happy. They say misery loves company, but I didn’t want an invite to that type of party. I was just getting close to happy and loving every moment of it. I loved it so much that I decided to treat myself to a massage and a manicure/pedicure after work.
My day just about zoomed by as I thought about the prospects of Mateo and my future with him. I was excited. More than I should have been probably. I walked out of work with a smile on my face, even with my boss pressing up on me a few more times that day.
“Excuse me, could you take this flyer?” A beautiful black woman gave me half a smile and a frown as she handed me the piece of paper. She looked like she needed some sleep. I looked at the picture of the cute guy as she continued to talk. “It’s a picture and bio of my brother. He’s been missing for a few months. We just trying to find him and get closure. Call us if you see anything.”
“Okay,” I said as I walked away. I felt terrible about someone losing someone and then having to hand out fliers to people who really didn’t give it a second thought unless it was someone close to them.
I got to my car, got in, and looked at the flier briefly. He was my age, size, and as good-looking as me. It looked like he could be gay, too. I shook my head in shame as I opened my glove compartment box and shoved it in with all of the other loose fliers and pamphlets I get handed on a day-to-day basis. I pulled off toward my destination.
I pulled up to the massage/pampering spot and got ready to get the treat of my life. I was so ready to get myself pampered. I thought every man should treat himself to a good time by himself every once in a while.
I walked up to the establishment that was in a quiet little area in Baltimore County. It was new to me and I was just ready to get “done.” I needed and wanted it.
“Hello, sir, how may I help you?” the pretty Asian woman spoke from behind the counter.
“Hello, I am here for the Heavenly Maximum pampering deal.” I smiled politely.
“Sure, follow me right this way.” She opened a door beside the counter where she worked and I walked through behind her. “Have a seat here and your specialist will
be with you shortly.” She exited the room back to the front.
I was so glad this was an establishment that let you pay after the service. I thought that it was unique. I guessed they were confident in their services. Services that I was getting included a nude massage, with a towel on the lower part of the body, of course. They had a pretty nice setup; a few doors were spread around this medium-sized waiting room. The music, small running fountain/pond in one of the corners of the room, and television on one of the walls kept me very entertained while I waited for my specialist to come and get me.
I picked up a magazine that was on one of the tables beside my chair and thumbed through it while I waited to be called in to my room. I couldn’t wait to get undressed and let someone work over my body. I wasn’t really a stressed man, but a good massage and pampering always did the body good.
“Good day, sir.” I was greeted by a familiar voice. “You ready for session?”
The person before me was a person I was familiar with and surprised to see. I never had a conversation with him so knowing he worked here was a surprise and a gift. My Asian lover looked at me and smiled.
“Why yes, I am.” A smile crept across my face too. I knew I shouldn’t do what I was about to do but one last time couldn’t hurt. After this only Mateo could have my body.
“We hurry. My wife back soon.” He turned and walked to the room where he was going to give me a “massage.”
I got up from my chair and practically ran into the room. I was undressed and on the table in minutes.
He did the typical massage. I was face down on a soft table and there was soft music come from a small Bose radio in the corner just like in the waiting room. He worked over every muscle with precision. He started with my shoulders and then my upper back. He was a master at this. Before, he never did any of this; it was just fucking, sucking, and then him sneaking out of my apartment and back to his place.
He then worked my back area with that karate chop–type rhythmic massage. I was ooohhhing and ahhhhh-ing involuntarily. He was doing the damn thing. Then he moved on down to my calf muscles in my legs. He worked them over by kneading them like they were balls of dough. I didn’t know that I could feel this good. The whole time he was working me over I was thinking, why didn’t I get to know him any better? Because if I did, I could have been getting this heavenly treatment on the regular. Shit, he had my toes curling and he didn’t even get to fuck me yet. I was feeling good. Then it dawned on me that he was unhappily attached.
“You like?” he asked as he even worked over my feet with some hot oil.
“Yessssssssss,” was all that I could get out in a moaning type of way. A few times while massaging my feet he made me laugh because I was extremely sensitive on my feet, more than the average person.
He then lifted my towel up so he could work on my thigh muscles. My dick and balls were spread out in between my legs and he touched it a few times as he worked over my thighs. It didn’t take long for me to become aroused. He noticed this and he touched it a few times, making me get harder.
“Turn over,” he instructed. I did as I was told. Now that I was turned over on my back my erection stood up quite noticeably.
“Ahhhhhh, I see he happy to see me.” He smiled and then licked his lips. Never during any of our sessions did he ever once go down on me. I guessed today was a different day. He took some heated oil and poured it onto my dick and watched it slowly make its way down to the shaft and then he took his hands and started to pump me like he would do me if he was fucking me. I thought he was enjoying himself because the smile on his face never left. I just closed my eyes and let him do what he wanted to do. After few more minutes of him just jacking me he took me into his mouth. Now I wasn’t a well-endowed guy. I was a little over average, about seven inches. He had no problems in deep throating me and taking it down to my balls.
“I see someone has been practicing,” I spoke with my eyes still closed and my hand at my sides, clawing at the table a few times. He was good. As I said before he was an ass guy. He tried to suck me off once and scraped his teeth against my dick. And any guy who’s ever experienced that knows that is painful.
“Yes, me have,” was all that he said as he went back down on me. A couple of minutes later I was clawing at the table again as he brought me to a climax.
“You like?” he asked as I opened my eyes. I just nodded my approval. I was spent and needed to take time to get myself together. But that didn’t take long, because before long he was ready to get his rocks off as well.
He went to the door and made sure it was locked, something he should have done at first, but I guessed he was too excited to see me and so was I. He then retrieved a condom from a duffle bag in the corner that I assumed belonged to him. It also let me know that I wasn’t the only one he was doing.
“Turn on your side,” he instructed me again. I followed the instruction. He pulled me over to the edge of the table so that my rear end hung off a little and then he oiled up two of his fingers. He eased them inside of me slowly, one at a time, until he was able to get them in me easily. I watched over my shoulder as he unzipped his pants and eased his dick out. He then stroked himself to a full erection and put the condom on. Once again, he shattered the small-dick Asian man stereotype. He was working with a whole lot of meat. I tensed up when he slid himself into me. It didn’t hurt but his size wasn’t to be fucked with. I was a power bottom so I took it like a champ. At first he slowly stroked me and then he worked up a good pace and fucked me with ferocity. I was taking him blow for blow. This was going to be a good last time with him. I had to make sure I was getting a good fucking because I didn’t know when I was going to take that step with Mateo. I had to get one for the road. It didn’t take him long to get the nut he was fucking me for. He pulled out, wiped himself off, and tucked it back into his pants as if it never happened. He and I were both satisfied.
I got dressed and then I pulled out some cash from my wallet to pay him. He walked out of the room to get me change and then he returned.
“This one was the last one for me,” I said as I put my coat on. “I can’t see you anymore.”
“Okay,” he said nonchalantly. If he was hurt I couldn’t tell nor did I care. He opened the door and walked out and I did the same. I didn’t get all that was offered in my pampering session, but I didn’t care, because getting what I just got was good enough for me. We ran into his wife as soon as we walked into the front room. The look on her face was that of pure hate. I smiled as hard as I could.
“Thanks for the massage, boo.” I kissed her husband on the cheek and then walked out of the door before she could say anything to me. I laughed all the way home.
Chapter 19
Kardell
We Can’t Be Friends
Today I wasn’t doing something I really wanted to do. I was spending the day with my family. It was a Saturday and I wanted to be with Mateo, but I had this planned before I met him. Sucks to be me, right? I, my mother, father, sister, her baby daddy, and a friend of his were doing the family dinner thing that my mother wanted to do for a while now. My nephew was with his father’s mother for the weekend so it was all adults. I usually used my nephew as an excuse to escape the adults, but this time I was left to fend for myself.
I listened to one of my favorite CDs by Deborah Cox on the way over to my mother’s house. When “We Can’t Be Friends” came on I sang like the song was written for me instead of the lead singers. I wasn’t a singer and needed to stick to my day job.
I pulled up to my mother’s house and exhaled a few times before I opened my car door and exited the car. “It’s only for a few hours and then you will be home free,” I coached myself as I walked up the short walkway to her house and put my key in the door.
As I opened the door and entered the house the smell of my mother’s lasagna filled my nostrils. It immediately made it worth the trip for me. I was immediately greeted in the hallway by my mother, who had an apron on and a smile on he
r face. Her smile made me happy. She embraced me in a tight hug that seemed to last for a few minutes. You would have thought that she didn’t see me a week ago nor talked to me every other day.
“How’s my baby doing?” She put both of her hands on my cheeks and wagged my face from side to side.
“I’m doing great, Mama,” I said as I took off my coat and hung it on the coat rack by the door. “How are you doing?” I asked.
“Mama is doing great.”
“That’s good.”
“Angela is in the kitchen helping me finish up the food. Your father, Alex, and his friend are downstairs watching some type of sports game. You know Mama is going to have to turn the sucker over to get them to eat.” She laughed and so did I. We walked as we talked a little bit more. As soon as we got close to the kitchen she stopped me and warned me in a hushed tone, “Be nice to your sister.”
“Mama, if she don’t start nothing it won’t be nothing.” I spoke in the same tone and chuckled a little.
“Boyyyy!” She raised her hand and acted as if she was going to swat me. “Don’t make Mama break out the belt.”
“All right, Mama, I’ll be good.” I was serious about both. I’ll be nice as long as my sister doesn’t get it twisted. My sister and I had a good relationship; it’s just that we could get on each other nerves at times, her more than me, in my opinion. But when it came down to it we stuck together like siblings should stick together.
“Hey, Angie.” I walked up to my sister as she stirred something in a pot that smelled really good. “What’cha cooking?”
“Hey, Dell.” She turned and we embraced. It was a tight hug. It felt good to do it and mean it. “Just some jambalaya.”
“It smells good,” I honestly complimented her. She was a good mother and cook, just like my mother.
“Y’all need any help around here?” I asked, wanting to get busy so I didn’t have to go downstairs with the guys and fake like I was interested in sports. I also didn’t want to see my sister’s baby’s daddy either. My episode with him flashed back in my head and it made me cringe on the way over here.