Skeezers (The Cartel Publications Presents)

by Shay Hunter

  It didn’t make much difference if Carlita agreed about Spy or not. I’m so use to people, including my cousins, being jealous of me that I let most shit roll off my back. Besides, when it came to club Skeezers I was the one who brought in the dollars while Carlita and the other bitches picked up my scraps.

  “Doesn’t matter if Carlita agrees or not. You been coming down on Spy hard lately and all I’m saying is you should ease up. She’s not somebody off the streets, she’s your cousin.”

  I laughed. “Poe, you don’t have to tell me who she is. And you don’t know nothing about what goes on in my house either. If I didn’t care about her I wouldn’t say nothing. I’m hard on her so she can get her stuff together and that’s our business.”

  “Nobody’s gonna let you pound on them forever, Mo,” he said.

  “And like I said, you don’t know what you’re talking about.” I smeared the strawberry Chapstick on my lips. “Ever since she broke her back she’s been letting her body go and it’s time for the pity party to end. What she gonna do? Eat herself to death?”

  “You know that’s not Spy’s full story,” Carlita interjected. “She eats for a lot of other reasons too.”

  I turned around and looked at her. “What you talking about? Aunt Diana? If you are she chooses to be homeless. You and me both know everybody has tried to get her off the streets, including my mother. And what did she do? Shoot everybody down. Anyway Spy has a home.” I placed my purse on the floor. “Ya’ll can keep feeling sorry for Spy if you want but I’m not giving out no pity points for a bitch who eats more than me. But both of you are welcome to it.”

  Poe shook his head and smirked. I loved Poe, wanted to be with him in a relationship and everything but sometimes he did things to irritate me. He cared too much about people and in my opinion it made him appear soft.

  “Now what’s funny?” I asked.

  “One day she’s gonna prove you wrong. She’s gonna lose all that weight and give you a run for your money.”

  I looked at him for twenty seconds with a straight face and busted out laughing. Spy having it over me would never be possible. The girl was over three hundred pounds. “When that bitch loses weight I’ll turn white. That much I can promise.”

  ****

  As I walked through the doors of Skeezers I was shocked. Before the club was vandalized it was a dark hole and every other thing was broken. I hated coming here sometimes because when it rained water dripped down the walls in the corners, making things smell musty.

  Don’t mistake me, we made money but I always knew if Poe put dough back into the club that it could be the gold pot it was born to be. I did everything I could do to get him to see things my way. I even begged but at the time he wasn’t willing to reinvest capital into Skeezers. I found out when he was over the house for dinner that he had another plan.

  After he ate my food and got drunk he said he was thinking about relocating to LA to run a restaurant with his cousin Quarry. It didn’t matter that if he left I wouldn’t have another place to dance. Nobody but Skeezers gave me the star treatment and I didn’t want that to change.

  Just thinking about him leaving makes me sick to this day. But it’s not all about the money. For as long as I can remember I wanted two things. The first was to get paid; preferably at Skeezers and the second was Poe Christopher. I practically owned Skeezers but he always seemed so out of touch. No matter what I said or did, he didn’t look at me that way and didn’t mind telling me.

  I was forever stuck in the friend zone.

  Throughout the time I knew him I was forced to see other females coming in and out of his life while I remained on the sidelines knowing all the while that he should be with me.

  When he broke up with Vanessa, the night before the club was vandalized, I decided to make my feelings known. In the past I flirted with him but he always brushed me off. I needed to go harder.

  On this particular night I had Spy make a big dinner and invited him over. When he got there I wasted no time. “Poe, I want to say something and I need you to hear me out. We’ve been friends for a long time and I’ve been holding this on my chest.”

  He laughed. “Mo, we only twenty-five. Ain’t been out of school longer than seven years. Why so serious?”

  “Because this is serious! I love you and it broke my heart having to see you with other girls knowing they could never treat you like I could. All I’m asking for is a chance and I promise, you won’t regret it.”

  He cleared his throat and looked surprised. “I love you, Mo, I do. But not in that way.”

  I felt like the dining room was spinning. “But why?”

  “Because…because I’m not attracted to you in that way. I look at you like a sister and I’m not trying to ruin what we got for nothing. You see how I be doing these women out here. I break a lot of hearts and I’m not about to do you the same way.” He picked up his fork and started eating and I wanted to stuff it down his throat until it punctured the inner walls of his skin.

  I remember being so angry my temples throbbed. The only reason I started dancing at Skeezers was because he begged. I use to dance around high school with Spyrella before she gained weight but never thought about being serious until he inherited the spot from his father.

  I put myself out there, flashing my boobs and showing my pussy night after night, just to get him the come up I thought he deserved. And he still didn’t want me! Well he didn’t get to reject me and I decided to show him who was in charge. He needed to be starved of my love.

  He had some friends but I was the best friend he had. For two weeks after he rejected me, I ignored all things Poe. He tried everything to reach out, from sending best friend forever teddy bears too my house, to sending tiny boxes from Tiffany’s. No matter what he did I never bit. I wanted him to see how it would feel not to have me in his life and things were going good until Skeezers was vandalized.

  Now let me be clear. I had everything to do with the vandalization. He was upset by the club being ruined, although I don’t know why since he wanted to leave it anyway, I really did it for the insurance money. I figured if I paid somebody to fuck it up enough he would have the right cash and we could start all over in a new place.

  He was sad when he knocked on my door with the news, telling me how badly it was destroyed. He looked so pitiful that the bitch in me couldn’t turn him away, besides I missed him and punished him enough. With the lines of communication reopened we talked about all possible scenarios for the new and improved Skeezers. At first he was acting like the club being ruined was another reason to go to LA but I think he really missed me. And since I didn’t live there, he would have to stay here.

  He shocked me and decided to have it repaired.

  After spending every day together while the club was getting fixed, we stayed on the couch, watched Netflix and I felt at home with him. He made it clear that he needed me as much as I needed him, even if it were just as friends. But I didn’t want friendship. I wanted a husband. I knew it would take a little longer to make him my husband and the plan was to now move slowly.

  As I walked deeper into Skeezers I ran my hand over the liquid shiny marble stage. Next I eyed the wall fish tank that stood behind it and glanced at the pole that sparkled with gold flakes. The scent of the leather furniture was thick and everything about the club screamed new.

  He walked up behind me and rested his hand on my shoulder. “What you think? Because I been waiting on your opinion for a minute.”

  I exhaled and shook my head softly. “Oh, Poe, it’s fucking beautiful!” I looked at Carlita who already managed to crawl her ass on the stage. Showing off, she gripped the pole, pulled herself to the top and slid down headfirst.

  I rolled my eyes.

  Poe removed his hand off me and clapped at Carlita’s fake ass show. Bitches stay vying for his attention, especially those with my blood in they’re veins it seems. “I guess you ready to get back to spinning huh?”

  Carlita stood up and said,
“I can’t lie, it’s nice as hell.” She looked around. “Females gonna trip over their faces trying to come up in here.”

  “I hear you, but is it nice enough for you to come back?” He asked. “When we were vandalized we lost five girls to other clubs. The only people left is Mo, Tudy and Brenda. I need you.”

  She shrugged. “Don’t know about that, Poe. You know I have to talk to Wisdom. He never was feeling me working here.”

  “But he met you here.” I said.

  “Well he sees more for me in life then showing my ass.” She looked at Poe. “No offense.”

  He raised his hand. “None taken. I don’t want either of you here longer than you have to be. So I understand Wisdom. Respect.”

  I rolled my eyes. Not only because she had to talk to Wisdom about everything before she did it but also because she acted like he was her father. She could fake in front of Poe if she wanted but she was gonna strip in this bitch just like I was. How else would she earn money?

  “Well he’ll be here in a minute,” Poe said glancing at his silver Rolex. “Ask him then.” He returned his hand to my shoulder and electric currents exploded through my body. “Ready to see your dressing room?”

  I turned around and looked up at him. “My dressing room?” I pointed to myself.

  “Yeah…you bring in the ballers, Mo and I’m not telling you anything you don’t already know. You deserve your own space so I made it happen.” He took me by the hand and pulled me away.

  As we moved down the hall and toward a burgundy door I saw a gold star on it. Under the star was my name written in black. This door was never here before so I figured like he said he had it built for me. When I glanced down the other end of the hall I saw the old dressing room, which looked like it was also revamped.

  “Poe…” I covered my mouth. “This me for real?”

  “Open the door and see.”

  I twisted the knob and was dumbfounded by what I saw. If he didn’t prove to me how much he wanted me before I knew now. My personal space was perfect. It was built for a superstar! Directly in front of me was a huge mirror surrounded by lights that sat on a vanity. The color scheme was pink and gold. I could eyeball the furniture and tell not one item was cheap. He really went all out with the insurance money he got from the vandalizing. He had to add some money to this. “Poe, how much was all of this?”

  “Not merely enough.” He winked.

  “Seriously. When we talked about the insurance policy you told me how much you were getting.” I looked around. “This room alone looks like it took half of that amount.”

  “Let me worry about that,” he said looking into my eyes. “You should’ve been treated like this before, Mo. If you ask me I’m late showing you.” When his phone rang he removed it from his pocket and looked down at it. It was probably one of his groupie bitches. Poe had about five or six females who were in different slot positions to be his girl. My plan was to bump them all down and take first place, but I had to play it smooth. Which was hard for a bitch like me, use to getting her way.

  “Wisdom at the bar. Gotta show him how the register works and then I’ll be back.” He kissed me on the cheek and walked out just as my mother was walking inside.

  Poe hugged her before leaving.

  She looked around him, her jaw hung as she moved inside of my dressing room. Tossing her black purse on my pink chaise. “Bitch, you not gonna tell me that nigga don’t love you!”

  “Levine!” I yelled. “He gonna hear you.”

  “I don’t give a fuck if he do. I’ll only be telling the man what he knows already.” She placed her hand on her hips, which were wrapped in tight jeans. She was 45 but looked 30 easily. I don’t know if it was her trendy clothing or her up to date hairstyles but she always looked nice. “Don’t get mad at me because I was right!” She walked around my dressing room and touched everything in sight. “Finally a nigga who knows how to treat my daughter and it’s about time.”

  “You’re over-reacting, Levine.”

  “No!” she stuck her long red nail in my face. “What you need to be doing is having a baby by his fine ass. I been working at this club since his daddy owned it and the only thing I got when he died was 5% ownership.”

  “But you made a lot of money when you sold it to Poe so don’t act like that.”

  “I would’ve made more had I held out for the vandalism check. And anyway I’m not talking ‘bout the money. Women ain’t supposed to be flashing pussy past 30, Mo. You supposed to get yourself a husband and settle down because I don’t want you in here like me.” She moved closer. “Now I don’t care what you got to do but that’s your nigga out there!” she pointed at the door. “And you better not let another bitch snatch him up. If you do it’ll be your fault and you’ll never be able to forgive yourself.”

  CHAPTER THREE

  CARLITA FIELDS

  I walked past Monique’s dressing room on the way to the bathroom. When I glanced inside she was standing in front of her vanity and I was amazed how a soft glow always seemed to surround her. I know it’s a bit much but in my opinion there’s not a more beautiful woman in the world and that includes me. She has it over everybody in the looks department. She would be next to perfect except for one thing.

  She was mean as fuck.

  After going to the bathroom I walked to the bar. My boyfriend Wisdom was standing behind it, his eyes glued on the fancy new cash register screen that glowed on his face. People always looked at us funny whenever we went anywhere due to our height. He’s 6’4, which meant he towered over my 4’11 inch frame.

  When I met him here three years ago he said one thing. “You gonna be my bitch and when you do you gonna come off that pole.”

  I never met another man more diligent than he was. Everyday he would post up in front of the stage as I danced. When people tipped me he was fine but if they tried to touch me he’d let them know I was his wife. It didn’t bother me that he was lying or that he was coming on strong. The only person mad about it was Mo because I think she wanted him too and he was never interested. In the end she left us alone and told me I would soon find out about the man he was and so far all I saw were good things.

  Well, sometimes…

  “You seem out of it,” I said walking up behind him, resting my head on the middle of his back. “Everything okay?”

  He pushed a few buttons and my body moved every time he did. He seemed frustrated as he stabbed the keyboard. “I don’t know what’s wrong with this bitch! Poe should’ve kept the old one. He knows how I feel about new shit.”

  I frowned. “I thought Poe showed you how to use it.” I walked to the side of him to get a better view and to see if I could help.

  “He spent a quick five on me but the nigga so pressed to get ready for opening night tomorrow that he rushed me through it. You know I’m not up on computers and shit.”

  “Want me to help?”

  He waved me off. “I got it.”

  He didn’t like me to see he couldn’t do something, even if I could help. So I walked around the bar and sat on a barstool. Without looking at me he walked to the new cooler, grabbed a Corona, popped it open and sat it in front of me before busying himself with the cash register again.

  I took a gulp. “Thanks, bay.” I raised the beer.

  “Don’t worry about it.” He continued to work.

  “You know he asked me again.”

  He stopped moving, his fingertips hovering over the register. “No.” He went back to stabbing at it. “And it’s settled so ain’t no need in you pressing the issue.”

  “But we need the money, Wis. You do all you can for me and I want to help out too.”

  He sighed, walked around the bar and sat next to me. Holding my hands he looked into my eyes. “I’ve never asked you for a dime. Ever. Plus we have over forty thousand dollars saved. Forty.”

  “Wisdom…”

  “Listen, I know when I met you, you were a dancer. And I know I told you I could handle it but I li
ed. What’s mine is mine and it ain’t nobody else’s business.”

  “But you saw how hard it was for you to get at me. I’m not loose with my body, Wisdom. And I’m in a relationship so I would never talk to another man or disrespect—”

  “Your body is sacred and it’s mine and I don’t want you showcasing it anymore. Am I clear? Because if we gonna go forward I have to know that right now.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Wisdom…”

  He let my hands go. “Is that the kind of man you want?”

  I raised my eyebrows. “Huh?”

  “Why would you want a man who’s okay with you parading your body around a strip club? Even with the renovations it’s not worthy of you.” He placed his hand on his chest, directly over his heart. “You did what you felt you needed to in the beginning and I fully respect that, but you’re in a relationship now and your man is asking.” He grabbed one of my hands. “Begging, that you give this thing up.”

  I knew he was right but the type of woman he wanted me to be I wasn’t sure if I could handle. If he had it his way I would stay home, barefoot with a spatula while he brought home the money. I love Wisdom, more than anything, but I’m afraid of being totally dependent on anybody. That’s partially the reason I didn’t tell him about the fifty grand I had saved in a private account.

  “Okay…”

  “Okay what?” he asked.

  “Okay I won’t dance again.”

  He hugged me and kissed me deeply, reminding me in seconds that for me there was nobody else. “You won’t be sorry, Carlita. I promise you.” He stood up, walked behind the bar and fussed with the cash register again. “You told her already right? Because it’s only a matter of time before we move.”

  I was ashamed. “No…”

  “Bay, why not?” he paused. “We had a plan and now you’re changing it.”