by Glenn, Roy
“All we did was talk on the phone a few times. He was one of my cousin’s friends. That’s how I met him. He used to come by with my cousin all the time, but he used to sit outside. So, one day I told my cousin to invite him in, you know, ’cause it wasn’t polite to have him waiting outside. After that he just started callin’ me. I talked to him a few times, more not to be rude than anything else, and from that he thought we were going together. Finally, I had to tell him that it wasn’t like that, and that’s when it started. He would come by the house and my moms would tell him that I wasn’t home, so he would sit outside for hours before he’d get tired and leave. At first it was funny, you know, but then I started getting worried. I told my cousin that he needed to talk to his friend, but that didn’t do any good. My father threatened him, but he wouldn’t stop.”
“How did you get him to stop? Or is he still at it?”
“No, silly. I finally had to call the cops. They told him he was goin’ to jail if they had to come out there again. You ever been stalked?”
“No, not like that. I’ve had some people that didn’t take the fact that it was over too well. I’ve had to call the cops a couple of times. Had a broken window or two, but not a sustained stalker.”
“Big as you are, you had to call the cops on some woman?”
“Damn right. If I did anything, I mean looked at her hard and she called the police, she could say anything and they’d lock my dumb ass up. Black man ain’t got no win in court. Especially a big black man. No, Nina, I’ll call the cops at the drop of a dime.”
By the third drink we were both pretty comfortable with one another and were enjoying each other’s company. I was really feeling Victor—or maybe it was my anger with Cedric. I don’t know. We ordered another round of drinks and I said, “Let me run something by you.”
“What’s that?”
“I wanna spend the night with you. I know you said you got stuff you need to do, so if you can’t, I’ll understand.”
“But you’re not used to men telling you no.”
I smiled. “No, I’m not.”
“I see this.”
Eleven
“I just need to stop by my house to pick up a few things. I won’t be but a minute,” I said. “You got any thing to drink at your house?”
“Sure. I always keep a little something around the house.”
“You smoke weed?”
“Yes.”
“Got any?” I asked with a smile.
“No, but that’s no problem. I always know where to find something to smoke.”
“I get my drink on and smoke a blunt, and it’s on. I may even dance for you.”
We drove back to my apartment, then we swung by this spot, picked up a couple of dimes, a few blunts, and continued on to his house. I rolled a fat blunt and we smoked most of it along the way. By the time we got there, I was pretty fucked up. He told me to make myself comfortable and that he wouldn’t be gone long.
When he got back to the house, The Best of Sade was playing. I had his living room lit with candles and had changed into a sheer, black robe with a black teddy underneath. I had rolled another blunt, had two glasses and the bottle waiting. I was asleep on the couch and didn’t hear him when he came in.
Like Prince Charming, he kissed me softly on the cheek and I woke up. We talked for a while and then “No Ordinary Love” started to play. I smiled and said, “Let me show you something.” I stood up and began to dance for him. My movements were slow and seductive, and I could tell he was loving every minute of it. I ran my fingers through my hair and down my body. I pulled down my teddy just enough to reveal a hint of nipple. I danced my way close to him—close enough for him to touch. As he reached for me, I turned around and bent over.
He stood and started to move in unison with me. I stopped and turned to face him. “No, baby. You sit down and relax. This is my show.”
He gladly obeyed my instructions and sat quietly, watching each movement of my body in anticipation of what was to come. I smiled and eased the robe off my shoulders, then began to tease him with it. I leaned forward and gently ran it along the back of his neck and between his legs. One of the straps on my teddy fell off my shoulder. He quickly ran his tongue over my nipple. Just as quickly, I moved out of reach. I continued to dance, each movement more seductive than the last, and I knew I was making him want me even more.
When the song ended, I took a sip of my drink and lit the blunt. When “Kiss of Life” came on, I started to move again in perfect time with the music. I danced; a drink and a blunt in either hand.
“You’ve done this before, haven’t you?” he said and poured himself another drink.
“Maybe once or twice,” I said as I slowly allowed my teddy to drop to the floor. I moved toward him again, and this time I allowed him to touch me. He ran his hands along my skin while I moved. My arms, my legs, and my stomach were fair game, but like any good seductress, I always moved slightly out of reach each time his touches approached the more sensitive areas.
“Please Send Me Someone to Love” caused me to glide like wind toward him again. I stood before him and eased his back against the couch. My head began to spin, and I felt myself getting caught up in the erotic excitement of it all. Or maybe it was just the cognac and weed; I didn’t seem to care. I eased myself down on him and my eyes opened wide. I had never felt anything so hard, so long, and so fat. It felt like he was contoured to fill me up. I ground my hips into his. I pinned his shoulders against the couch and stared in his eyes.
I felt paralyzed; eyes wide open in disbelief at the sensations he was creating with each subtle movement of his body.
I got up, finished my drink, and poured us both another glass. When I went into the kitchen to get some ice, he took his shirt off and followed me. I got up on the counter and he came to me. I tasted his tongue. It glided slowly and smoothly over mine. I broke our embrace and he spread my legs. He kissed my inner thighs; then tasted the wetness between them. I held his head in place while his tongue slithered along my lips and made circles around my clit. My grip grew tighter, my thighs twitched, my stomach muscles locked, and my head drifted back in quiet ecstasy.
After awhile, he said his knees got weak and we headed for the bedroom. We got as far as the hallway before we were doing it on the floor. Once we finally made it to the bed, he smiled and touched my face. I smiled at him and rolled over. He ran his hand over my shoulder and down my arm. He moved closer and his hands continued to glide along my body. He kissed my back. I began to move in response. I rolled into his arms and he kissed my lips. It wasn’t just the quick exchange of tongues we had experienced earlier. He kissed me delicately and methodically, pressing his lips against mine. His lips were soft.
I drew him closer to feel his skin against mine. I opened my eyes and he kissed my cheeks, down to my neck, then up to my earlobes. I closed my eyes and he guided his tongue along my eyebrows; then kissed my eyelids. When he flicked my lashes, I opened my eyes. I put my hand on his chest and gently pushed him on his back.
He laid spread-eagle across the bed and I crawled across to him. I looked at his manhood again—gawked at it actually—and contemplated going down on him. I had broken all the rest of the rules, so why not that one too? I thought as I straddled his torso. I grabbed hold and guided him inside me. He smiled and placed his hands on my ass. My hands dropped to his chest. He spread my cheeks and slowly moved me up and down, inching deeper and deeper inside me. The deeper he got, the wetter I got. Soon, I was sliding up and down on him effortlessly. He didn’t move at first; he seemed very content to allow me to work at my own pace. My pace was slow and steady. There was a true rhythm to my movement, almost musical.
I closed my eyes, enjoying the feeling of his stiffness inside me. The thickness of him filled me, the warmth of him inside me—long and stiff—excited me. My hips shook. I began to quiver from the inside. I stopped moving, tried to slow my roll, but I couldn’t. My entire body was quivering uncontrollably. For
a second, maybe two or three, I felt like I was outside of myself. My excitement only proved to intensify the motion of my hips. He held me tighter; began to move with me. When I felt him throbbing inside me, I was no longer able to control myself. “Yes, oh yes!” I screamed as we thrust our bodies against one another. I could hear him moaning quietly, his face twisted and contoured. He throbbed and I felt him expand. My fingers dug into his chest. His body became rigid; I pumped harder. His mouth was open; his eyes were locked on mine now. I knew I had him.
Twelve
We were both pretty exhausted after that, and our drinks were pretty watered down. He went back to the living room to get the bottle and the remainder of the blunt. On the way, he stopped to put the CD player on random, then returned to the room. As he handed me a drink and the blunt, I glanced at the clock. It was a little after midnight. “Thank you,” I said and lit the blunt with one of the candles I had set out earlier.
I wondered, what do you say to a naked man you met on the phone the night before? Up until now, we hadn’t had any problem talking to one another. Now, there was an uncomfortable apprehension that slid in between us. We smoked the blunt and drank our drinks in silence. That is until my cell phone rang.
Thinking that it was Cedric calling again, I answered it with fury. “Hello!”
“What the fuck is your problem?” Teena asked.
“Nothing. I thought you were Cedric.”
“Cedric? Now there’s a name I ain’t heard in a minute. How did he work his way back in the picture?”
“He didn’t, but for some reason he’s been callin’ and bothering me all night, that’s all. What’s up?”
“You busy?”
I looked at Victor. “Yes, very busy.”
“Then you shouldn’t have answered the phone, bitch.” Teena laughed. “Come make this money.”
“What money?”
“This five thousand I got sittin’ in front of me. And before you ask, no, I don’t have enough product to handle it, and no, it can’t wait until tomorrow. So, get your greedy ass up and come make this money.”
I looked at Victor again. Normally, I wouldn’t have had to think twice. Five grand? Shit, I would jump and run for a grand. This was five grand sitting and waiting for me to come get it. I was greedy, but what I was more, was satisfied and looking forward to getting some more. Still, I had to be practical. “Where you at? I’m on my way.”
After Teena told me where to meet her, I apologized to Victor about having to run out on him in the middle of the night, not to mention in the middle of great sex. I got dressed to meet Teena. Victor looked at me strangely while I got dressed. He had never asked me again what product I sold, and I never volunteered the fact that I was a drug dealer, so he was probably wondering what somebody could say to make me jump up and run out after having such great sex. I walked up to him in bed, kissed him, and apologized again. “Victor, I’m real sorry about havin’ to leave you like this.”
“It’s okay. Really, Nina, I understand that you gotta go do . . .”—Victor said and paused—“whatever it is that you gotta go do.”
“Do you?”
“Yes, Nina. I understand.”
“Good,” I said and started to leave the room. I grabbed my purse. “Get up and walk me to the door, Victor,” I said, smiling when he got out of bed. “Damn,” I said with my eyes focused. “You make a sistah wanna strip down and get back in the bed.”
“If that’s the case, then why don’t you come back after you do—whatever it is that you gotta go do?”
I smiled. “Can I?”
“Of course. Just call when you’re on your way.”
I started out of the bedroom and Victor followed behind me. “Ain’t you gonna put nothin’ on?”
“No. This is my house.”
“You always walk around here naked?” I asked.
“Yeah, this is my house.”
I rolled by my apartment to pick up some product and then to Jimmy’s to meet Teena. On the way, I gave some thought to why Teena wanted to meet me there. I hoped that she wasn’t doing business with none of those guys who hung out down there. We had talked about this time and time again. Leon’s words kept ringing in my mind. You don’t know which ones the cops got their hooks in . . . The ones that are still on the street are the ones who gave the cops something to stay out.
But at this point, it didn’t matter. I just wanted to handle my business with Teena as quickly as possible and get back to Victor.
When I walked into Jimmy’s bar, I started to make my way through the crowd. I passed by these two women who seemed to be staring at me. Probably just a couple of lesbians that wanna get with me, I thought and continued to where Teena was waiting for me. Even though it had been a minute since I’d been there, the faces were still the same, and even though it had been a minute, I still looked at them the same way. These were the people who sold out Lorenzo, or at best, gave up something or somebody to stay on the street.
I still commanded some respect in there, so just about everybody spoke. Only difference was, now it wasn’t just ’cause I was the bitch Lorenzo used to fuck. I had become a respectable player in my own right, and it felt good.
“What took you so long?” Teena asked, staring at me as I sat down.
“What are you staring at?” I asked.
“You,” Teena said with this look on her face.
“What about me?”
“Well, you got your hair pulled back in that fucked-up-ass ponytail, and you ain’t got on no lipstick. You been fuckin’?”
I just looked at her without answering.
“I’m sorry . . . I pulled you off some dick to come here.”
“That’s all right. Let’s just do this quickly so I can get back to him.”
“I was gonna say that I hope he can keep it up longer than Cedric, but I can tell that he did.”
“Yeah, yeah, I’ll tell you all about it in the morning,” I said, and noticed that the same two women had moved and were staring at me again. “Teena, you know those two bitches?”
“Never seen them before in my life. But you know you have that type of affect on women.”
“Yeah, whatever. The product is under the front passenger seat,” I said and pushed the keys to my car in front of her. “I hope that you’re not doin’ business in here.”
“Oh, hell no,” Teena said and pushed her keys to me. “I was just in here hangin’ out, when Jay rolled up on me all frantic and shit. Black Thunderbird,” she said and got up. “Call me tomorrow. I wanna hear all about this nigga you in such a rush to get back to.”
“Money in it?”
“No doubt. It’s in a bag in the trunk.”
“Go on, get out of here,” I said and watched her walk out the door. Then I saw Jay. He waved and smiled at me as he followed Teena out the door.
I sat there for a minute and looked around for the two women who were watching me. Not seeing them, I got up and made my way out of the bar. I wandered around the parking lot looking for the black Thunderbird that I now had the keys to. As I walked, I gave some thought to whose car it was that I was gonna be driving. I saw it parked two rows over. I weaved through the cars and was about to unlock the car, when I heard a familiar voice. “I’m surprised to see you here, Nina.”
“What are you doin’ here, Cedric?”
“I come here all the time. I hear that you think you’re too good to hang out in a place like this.”
“I’m here to handle my business and get outta here, Cedric. And I don’t care what people think.”
“So, you finished your date?”
“Cedric, that’s none of your business.”
“Yes, it is my business, Nina. I wanna know where you were at tonight and who you were with?”
“You’re crazy, you know that? How many times I gotta tell you it ain’t like that between us? Why can’t you understand that? You are not my man. I don’t love you. I can’t even stand to be around you!” I yelled, and that w
as when he hit me. Cedric hit me so hard that I saw bright lights flash; then I hit the ground hard.
“Who were you with?” Cedric yelled.
I saw a bottle on the ground near me. I picked it up and threw it at him. It hit him in the face and he grabbed it. I got up off the ground and ran back in Jimmy’s as fast as I could. Once I told everyone what happened, half the bar ran outside to look for Cedric, but he was gone.
Thirteen
No man had ever hit me. Not even my father. He always left that task to my mother, who turned it into an art form. Now I wondered what was gonna happen next. I mean, I never imagined that anything like this would ever happen to me, not even with Cedric. But maybe I should have seen it coming.
After about an hour, I left Jimmy’s. I started to go straight back to Victor’s house, but decided to go home first. I didn’t want to go there with this money. It would only take a minute, and Victor didn’t live that far away. I parked the car, got the money out of the trunk and put it in my purse. I walked in my building thinking about the way I’d been living lately. You know, how my recent sexual decisions had contributed to my current situation.
I took out my keys and had just unlocked my door when, out of the corner of my eye, I saw the two of them coming. Before I reacted, they had their guns to my head. One took my purse and the keys from me, and the other one pushed me inside. They quickly gagged me, ripped the phone cord from the wall, and hog-tied my hands and feet with it.
Although neither one of them ever said anything, it didn’t take long for me to realize that they were women. They were the same two women who had been watching me at Jimmy’s.
I was sure of it.
I watched them while they searched the apartment, looking for my stash. It didn’t take them long to find what they were looking for and bounce. It took awhile, but I was able to work the gag loose. I lay there for a while trying to get my hands and feet loose, but they had me tied tight. This wasn’t the first time these chicks had tied somebody up and robbed them, but that wasn’t important now. What was important was how I was going to get out of this.