It was Saturday morning and the store was buzzing with shoppers. Mildred immediately felt overwhelmed.
Geneva had promised to meet her in the women's section at ten-thirty. Mildred needed help with her wardrobe and she hadn't asked Seneca because she felt that Seneca's choice in clothing was a bit too sleazy.
Geneva, on the other hand, while older, seemed to have a knack when it came to dressing her plus-size body.
“Hey, girl!” Geneva squealed as Mildred stepped off the escalator.
They hugged each other.
“Well, first off, we have to get you into something other than gray, black, and brown, okay?”
Mildred nodded. “I'm all yours.”
The women's section, in Geneva's opinion, didn't hold much of a variety. “We should have gone to the Thirty-fourth Street store—they would have had more to choose from. But we can always check out Lane Bryant as well, if we don't find anything in here,” Geneva grumbled as she flipped through the carousel racks of clothes.
In the end, they decided on three brightly colored summer dresses, two pairs of pedal pushers—one in a washed-out denim and another in khaki—and two baby-doll tops that took the emphasis away from Mildred's midsection.
“Okay, let's hit the shoe department.”
Mildred didn't own one pair of sandals, and it showed. Her feet were pretty, but her toenails left something to be desired.
“Make an appointment for a pedicure,” Geneva commented as she peered down at Mildred's bare toenails.
“Okay,” Mildred said, and shamefully curled her toes under.
She ended up buying two pairs of wedges with peekaboo openings.
“Now what?” Geneva said, looking down at her watch. “Lingerie?”
Mildred blushed. She wouldn't dare buy her intimates with Geneva, who represented a motherly figure to her. She just couldn't.
“No, let's go to the watch department.”
“Oh, do you need a watch?” Geneva asked as she stopped to admire a pair of stilettos.
“No, I want to buy one for Tony,” Mildred said, and started toward the escalator.
Geneva made a face. That statement did not sit well with her. She caught Mildred by the elbow just as she stepped onto the escalator. “Whaddya mean, you want to buy him a watch?”
“Just a little gift,” Mildred responded without looking at her.
A little gift? A little keepsake to say, Thanks for fucking me? Thanks for paying me some mind?
Geneva bit down on her tongue. She wouldn't say a word. Mildred was a grown-ass woman. She made her own money and had every right to spend it in any way she chose.
Mildred turned and saw the disapproving look on Geneva's face. “What?”
“Nothing, nothing,” Geneva said, waving her hand at Mildred.
By the time the saleswoman pulled watch number three out of the glass-enclosed case, Geneva had decided she'd seen enough. With each watch Mildred pointed to, the price tag increased.
Geneva couldn't take it anymore. She was about to bust.
“Okay, baby, I've got to get back uptown,” she said suddenly as she wrapped her arms around Mildred's shoulders and gave her a tight hug. “I'll see you Monday, okay?”
Mildred hugged her back. “Are you okay?”
Geneva nodded, forced a smile, and gave her a little two-finger wave before strutting off. As she went, two men shot Geneva approving looks.
Mildred sighed; she wanted men to look at her that way. Not even Tony looked at her that way, and he loved her.
“What do you think about this one?” the saleswoman asked in a bored tone as she presented Mildred with a Coach Legacy sports watch.
Mildred eyed the watch; it was very nice. The price tag read $998.00.
She didn't own one thing that cost as much as that watch did.
The saleswoman exhaled deeply and rolled her brown eyes.
“Yes, I'll take it,” Mildred said, digging into her purse and pulling out the American Express gold card she'd never used in the five years she'd had it. “He's worth every dime.”
“Wow,” Tony said, and then hoisted himself up onto his elbow. “It's great.”
Great wasn't the word she was hoping for.
They'd just finished making love at her apartment. Tony's skin glistened with perspiration. His penis lay limp on his thigh.
“Do you really like it?” Mildred asked, wrapping the sheet around her body and pulling her knees up to her chest.
“I-I love it, babe,” Tony said, and threw a kiss at her before setting the watch down on the nightstand and picking up the remote. He fluffed his pillow and arranged it carefully behind his head before swiftly scrolling through the channels until he found a news program that satisfied him.
She didn't want to complain, but geez, didn't he even want to try it on?
“Aren't you going to try it on?”
“Huh?” Tony said as he turned to her. “What did you say?”
“Nothing,” Mildred said sweetly, and focused her eyes on the newscaster. She could see Tony still watching her.
“Don't be like that, baby,” he said. “I didn't hear you.”
Mildred swallowed. She was being childish. Men didn't like childish. She would drive him away if she continued to behave that way.
“I-I just said I love you.”
Tony grinned. “I love you more, babe.”
CHAPTER
Twenty-nine
Tony looked at the caller ID of his phone. Mildred's number glowed on the dark face for the third time. He knew if he didn't answer, she would keep calling. He could turn the phone off, but that would be suspicious to Mildred, and Zebby had warned him that he had her in the place they needed to have her and that he'd better not do anything to fuck it up.
He turned and looked at Liz Choi, the woman he'd met on the street with Errol some weeks earlier. They'd played phone tag for weeks before finally hooking up. And now she lay there beside him in all her naked glory.
“I got to answer this,” Tony said, giving her an apologetic look.
Liz raised her hand and nodded toward the diamond-encrusted wedding band she wore. “You know I understand,” she said. “Just keep it short.”
Tony grinned at her and flipped the phone open.
“Hey, baby, what's up?” he asked in a groggy voice as he padded out of the bedroom and into the living room.
“Did I wake you?” Mildred asked timidly.
“Yeah, yeah, but that's okay. Something wrong?”
There wasn't anything wrong. Mildred just needed to hear his voice.
“No, I just . . . I just . . .” She couldn't finish, she felt so stupid. It was nearly midnight but she hadn't been able to sleep, her mind was racing with thoughts of Tony.
“You miss me?” Tony said as he sat down on the couch and rubbed his head. This was getting old, and fast. He was tired of the constant calls at work, the late-night calls, the text messages, the dinners, and he was so over the sex!
He was sick and tired of all of it.
Mildred's heart skipped a beat. “Yes, I do. Can you come over?”
Tony rolled his eyes. “Now?”
“Yes.”
Liz walked in and stood in front of him, her twat inches from his face. He shook his head and gently pushed her away.
“Nah, it's too late and you know we both have to get up early in the morning.”
Mildred was hurt.
Liz stepped forward again, this time pushing her bush into his face, muffling his next set of words.
“What, Tony? What? I can't hear you.” Mildred's voice was panicked.
Tony covered the phone with his hand, “Look, just give me a minute, okay?”
Liz folded her hands high on her chest and pouted.
“Nothing, baby. I didn't say anything.”
“It's just that I miss you so much. I wish you were here with me. I wish we could make love right now,” Mildred whined into the phone just as Liz dropped down onto her knees and t
ook Tony's dick into her mouth.
Tony swallowed a moan.
“You—you do?” he croaked.
Mildred pressed the phone against her ear. “Tony? What's going on? What's happening over there?”
“I-I'm touching myself and thinking of you.”
Boy, could he think fast on his feet.
“Phone sex?” Mildred said.
Well, she was a pro at phone sex!
She hurriedly ran over to the dresser and pulled out her vibrator. Jumping back into bed, she wiggled out of her underwear and fluffed her pillows to position herself.
“Are you still there, Mildred?” Tony's voice was guttural.
“I'm still here, baby,” Mildred responded as she flipped the switch on and began rolling the tip of the vibrator over her clitoris.
Tony had one hand on the back of Liz's head while the other clutched the phone. The pleasure he was deriving from the blow job combined with Mildred's ecstasy-filled cries was taking him to a place he'd never been before.
Just as he felt himself about to explode, Liz removed her mouth. Tony's head jerked up and he mouthed, “What are you doing?”
Liz gave him a mischievous grin and walked away. Tony let out a heavy sigh.
“Baby?” Mildred called to him from the other end of the line.
“Yes, I'm here,” Tony said as he looked down at his quickly deflating penis.
“Does it feel good?” Mildred crooned as she worked the vibrator inside her.
“Yes, yes,” Tony said as he wrapped his hands around his penis and began to stroke it.
Liz reappeared, walked over to Tony, and tossed a condom into his lap. Tony quickly retrieved it and used his teeth and spare hand to remove the prophylactic from the package. Liz watched as he slipped it onto his penis.
Then he spread his legs and cautioned her to remain quiet by pressing his index finger to his lips.
Liz climbed on, slipped Tony's penis up into her, and began to ride him so vehemently, Tony couldn't help but cry out in pleasure.
“Yes, baby, yes!” Mildred screamed from her apartment. “I'm coming, I'm coming!” Mildred's body bucked up and down.
Tony just grunted, one arm wrapped tightly around Liz's waist, all of his words backed up in his throat as struggled to keep up with Liz's wild pace.
“Toooonnnnnny!” Mildred cried as her body rushed to a shattering climax.
At the sound of Mildred's voice, Tony's body went stiff and then shook uncontrollably.
Mildred was panting on the other end of the line.
“Did you come?” Mildred asked when she'd finally caught her breath.
“Y-yes, I did,” Tony muttered as he stared deeply into Liz's eyes.
Liz gave Tony a satisfied smile before climbing off him and disappearing into the bedroom.
Tony watched her walk away, then dropped his head onto the back of the couch. He'd forgotten Mildred was on the phone and had begun to slip into slumber when her words pulled him back.
“Do you love me, Tony? I mean, for real?”
Tony shook his head no, but his mouth uttered, “Yes, of course I do.”
“Why? Why do you love me?”
He knew it was coming.
“I love you because you're the only woman I ever felt completely safe with. You're my best friend, Mildred. You're the best thing that has ever happened to me.”
Mildred tossed the vibrator aside and sat up.
“Oh, Tony,” she breathed, and he sensed more than heard the tears in her voice. It was at that moment that he knew he had her hook, line, and sinker and could in effect ask her for anything and everything and she would not deny him.
“See you tomorrow, then?”
“Yes,” Mildred said, and then sniffed. “Good night.”
“Good night, Mildred,” Tony said, and then for added effect blew a kiss into the phone before gently closing the cover.
“Hey,” the beauty yelled at him from the bedroom, “are you coming back to bed or what?”
CHAPTER
Thirty
The sex with Liz had gotten a bit wild, so wild that somehow—Tony didn't know exactly how—his face had ended up running smack into the headboard, and now he had a hell of a shiner.
He'd been pissed in the beginning, but halfway into the city, he suddenly realized how that black eye could help him.
Now, sitting across from Mildred, he explained, “You see, Mildred, I made a really bad investment a few months ago.” He paused as the lie grew in his mind. “A bad real estate investment. That's why I had to go upstate a few weeks ago.”
Mildred nodded as she stared intently at his bruised eye.
“And in order to buy into the investment I had to borrow the money from some really shady guys, and now I'm overdue, and well, this,” he said, pointing to his eye, “is the first reminder of that.”
Tony watched as Mildred's face began to pulsate with terror.
He took her hand in his and said, “If I don't get them their money and soon, I'm in serious trouble.”
Mildred's eyes nearly popped out of her skull. “Oh my God,” she said, clutching her chest with her free hand.
She had money saved. She would lend it to him—hell, she would give it to him.
“How much?”
Tony swallowed hard as he searched for just the right amount. “One hundred and fifty Gs.”
Mildred didn't have quite that much. “I have eighty,” she said.
Tony's eyebrow raised. “Eighty what?”
“Eighty thousand,” she said.
“Shit.”
Who knew?
“I-I can't take your money, Mildred. I just don't know what I'm going to do,” he said with a mournful look on his face.
“Yes, of course you can. Of course you can take my money,” Mildred wailed. “I love you and you love me—this is what people who love each other do for one another.”
He turned his head dramatically away. “I can't.”
Mildred flew from her seat and ran to his side. Bending over, she pressed her cheek against his and whispered, “You can and you will.”
Tony almost laughed—he felt like he'd stepped into a Harlequin romance novel. The drama was just too much.
“What can I do?” Mildred's eyes were glistening with tears now. “Tell me how I can help you. I'll do anything.”
Zebby was grinning and rubbing his chin the entire time Tony relayed the story, like some wise old teacher pleased with his student.
When Tony was done, Zebby applauded him.
“Very good, very good,” he said.
That evening Zebby and Tony met up at the Blue Water Grill for a meal of sushi and Sauvignon Blanc.
Zebby dabbed the corners of his mouth with his hand-kerchief.
“So she's totally cool with risking her job and her freedom for you?”
Tony nodded his head proudly.
“Drop your pants, man,” Zebby demanded, his voice stern.
“What?”
“I said get up and drop your goddamn pants,” Zebby barked. A few of the other diners turned and shot them a quizzical look.
Tony just stared. He didn't quite know what was going on. Then a twinkle appeared in Zebby's eyes and he began to roar with laughter.
“Tone, I figure you must have a diamond-tipped dick to make that bitch risk life and limb for you, and, shit. I ain't seen that before. Me myself, I was only blessed with a gold tip.”
Tony began to laugh, and they gave each other some dap across the table.
“You're a sick motherfucker, you know that?” Tony said before reaching for his chopsticks.
CHAPTER
Thirty-one
A week passed and Tony was beginning to have second thoughts again. He was having bad dreams about being jailed with a bald, brawly man named Butch who was demanding to see his diamond-tipped penis.
Zebby had tried his best to assure him, taking him step by step through the process. Tony would pick an account and as usual researc
h the beneficiaries on it. After finding none, he would then enter one of the names and social security numbers Zebby had given him, along with a fake death certificate of the person who had originally opened the account.
Mildred would then intercept the paperwork that he'd initialed, forging Mr. Henderson's signature and forwarding it on to the Clearing department, where the request would be double-checked. And then, if everything was hunky-dory (and there was no reason that it shouldn't be), the money would be released to the bank account provided.
Easy as pie.
They'd targeted thirty different accounts, none of which held more than sixty or seventy thousand dollars. Pennies to a big firm like Greene Investments. Each of the targeted accounts had been dormant for more than five years.
Tony wanted to know why they couldn't just hit one of the larger accounts. “Why not get a million dollars in one fell swoop?” he'd asked.
Zebby advised that hitting one of the larger accounts would set off too many bells.
“You've been turning over what, three accounts a week?”
Tony had nodded.
“So you'll continue at that speed. This way no one will be the wiser.”
“Okay, but where will the money go? All into the same account?”
“No, that would invite investigation. I've set up thirty different accounts around the country, small banks,” Zebby said.
So it was all set up.
Tony put through two small requests and then waited like a virgin on her wedding night. He expected the feds to bust through the doors, handcuff him, and take him away.
But three days later, Zebby called and said, “Montana and South Dakota just hit.”
One Month Later . . .
CHAPTER
Thirty-two
Mildred was just staring at him.
“Well, say something.”
Mildred took a deep breath and then said, “You lied to me?”
Tony shook his head. “Say something else. You've already said that twice.”
They were in her apartment, Tony seated on the couch, Mildred hovering over him, her hands resting on her wide hips as she glared down at him.
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