Suspicions

by Sasha Campbell

  Brandy was talking about going back to school to get her GED when I spotted Tiffany stepping into the club with that fine-ass, Hispanic-looking friend of hers—Candace. They were both wearing slamming dresses, but Candace stood in a class of her own. The gold dress hugged her hips and plunged low in the front. I loved a woman with a small waist, big breasts, and a round ass, and Candace definitely fit the bill. Her hair was short and cute with gold highlights that showcased her golden brown skin. Ever since she rolled up in the salon earlier this week, I’d been thinking about her. With those succulent hips of hers, I couldn’t help but wonder if she was good in bed. Hey, that’s what men do. Even now I thought about wrapping her legs around my waist and sliding deep inside her. Damn! Just thinking about it made my dick hard, and that was the last thing I needed right now.

  She moved across the room with this smile that seemed to light up the entire club. Bet you every brotha in the club turned his head when they stepped inside. I wasn’t having it. If Candace was going to get cozy on the dance floor with anyone, it was going to be me. I didn’t even say good-bye to Brandy. I just walked off and caught the two lovely ladies as they were heading my way.

  “Whassup, Tiffany?” I said, although my eyes were on Candace.

  She stopped, struck a pose, and grinned. “Hey, Chauncey. You remember my girl, Candy?”

  “Yes, I do.” Damn! Up close and personal, she was prettier than I remembered. Just like a lollipop, she looked good enough to suck. “How are you?”

  Candace glanced around the room and looked unimpressed as she spoke. “Fine. Tiffany, it’s too packed in here. Let’s go somewhere else ’cause I’m not going to be standing all night.”

  This was my chance. “Hey, me and my boys, we got plenty of room at our table. Y’all are more than welcome to join us.”

  Candace frowned at my suggestion, but thank goodness Tiffany was all over it. “That’s whassup! Show us to your table.”

  I signaled for them to follow me over to where Dirk and Cecil were sitting and laughing like a bunch of hyenas. As soon as they saw me coming back with two beautiful women, their mouths dropped. “Yo, this here is Tiffany and Candace.”

  Everyone exchanged hellos. Candace was moving to the chair beside Cecil. There was no way in hell I was having that. I jumped in and offered mine. “Here, sit here so your back isn’t to the dance floor.” Cecil didn’t look at all pleased. In fact, by the expression on his face, I could tell he thought I was hating. Nah. I was just protecting what was going to be mine. I was preparing to take the seat beside her when I felt a tap at the shoulder. I swung around. Damn! I had forgotten about Brandy.

  “Boo-boo, you forgot your beer,” she purred.

  “Uh . . . thanks.”

  I took the bottle and turned my back to her. You would have thought she would have gotten the hint and left, seeing that there were two females sitting at the table who weren’t there before. But, no, instead she continued to stand there beside me like I was about to finish where we left off. The fact that I left both her and the drink behind should have been enough of a hint.

  I took my seat beside Candace and Brandy sat in the only other chair, which happened to be beside me. I frowned at her presumptuous behavior. She just didn’t get it. Damn. It was my fault for offering to buy her a drink. And my boys, especially Cecil, weren’t even trying to bail me out. Instead, they left me hanging.

  Dirk leaned across the table and zeroed in on Tiffany. “What your man doing letting you out on a Saturday night?”

  “He don’t own me. I’m a grown woman.”

  “Yes, you are,” he replied as he looked down at her breasts.

  I was laughing under my breath because I give Tiffany three more minutes before she cusses him out and I was going to enjoy the show. The waitress came by and I ordered drinks for the ladies and don’t you know Brandy had the nerve to order another? Cecil and Dirk, too. I was feeling too good to complain and reached into my wallet and pulled out enough to cover a round for everyone. Thank goodness tips at the salon had been good this week.

  For the next hour we all sat there drinking. I watched Candace as she laughed and talked with everyone at the table. The chick got sexier by the minute. When the music slowed down, I saw it as my opportunity to finally get some time alone with Candace. “Come. Dance with me.”

  She looked from me to Brandy all cockeyed like she was my girl or something. I guess she must have noticed Brandy reaching under the table trying to cop a feel. First thing I planned to do when I got her alone was straighten that shit out.

  “Candy, go on,” Tiffany encouraged. “You know that’s your song.”

  She gave Tiffany an I’m-gonna-get-you-later look.

  “Chauncey, I’ll dance with you,” Brandy replied, then had the nerve to rise from her chair and grab my arm.

  I glared in her direction. “I’m talking to this sexy lady here.”

  She had the nerve to have attitude and was seconds away from saying something before Cecil cut her off. “Come on, little mama. Let’s dance.” He didn’t even give her a chance to say no before he grabbed Brandy’s arm and dragged her out onto the floor.

  I returned my attention to Candace. “You don’t wanna miss your song, do you?” I gave her my irresistible grin, then stood up and pulled out her chair. For a moment I thought Candace was going to say no before she got up and followed me out to the dance floor. I didn’t waste any time wrapping my arms around her and pulling her sexy ass close.

  Candace pushed against my chest trying to keep a little distance. “I don’t have time for your chick to be tripping with me.”

  I pulled back so she could see me as I spoke. “That’s not my girl. Just someone who asked me to buy her a drink.”

  “Yeah, whatever,” she mumbled.

  “Do you really think I would disrespect my woman like that?” I didn’t wait for her to answer. “My mother raised me that if I can’t be anything, the least I can be is respectful.” I was through pleading my case. I held her close again as we swayed to Robin Thicke’s new baby-making music. Candace rested her head on my chest and she felt good in my arms. I don’t know what type of perfume she was wearing, but it was definitely meant for her. I glanced over at Brandy and Cecil, liplocking and feeling each other up. That chick was no longer my problem. The way they were dancing, I was certain the second the club closed the two of them were heading to the nearest motel.

  “You’re a pretty good dancer.”

  “Hey, got to be if I want an excuse to hold a sexy female in my arms,” I added with a grin that I hoped she found irresistible.

  Candace pulled back and raised an eyebrow. “Obviously you have an answer for everything.”

  “Nah, I just know what I want and am willing to do whatever it takes to get it.”

  I could tell she was trying to keep a straight face. “I guess I need to add cocky to that list as well.”

  “I’d rather call myself confident.” I chuckled and decided to leave well enough alone for now. I didn’t want to lay it on too thick before I had a chance to get to know her. We danced one more song; then I took her hand and led her back to our seats.

  The rest of the night I caught her looking at me when she didn’t think I noticed. She was feeling a brotha. That much was a given, even if she was trying to play hard. But I liked that in a woman; nothing turned me off more than a female who threw herself at me. I like a challenge, and Candace came across as a strong possibility. In fact, I was feeling her so much, when she got up to leave, I couldn’t come up with an excuse to keep the evening from ending.

  “Night, Chauncey,” she said, never breaking her sexy stroll toward the door. Her sultry purr vibrated through me. Cecil and Brandy had plans. Dirk was saying something about stopping through at some new strip club, but I wasn’t listening. If he wanted to spend the night fantasizing about some hands-off pussy, then that’s on him. I had my sights on getting the real thing. I pushed through the crowd and hurried out the door. It took me
a second before I spotted Candace and Tiffany, heading to the parking lot across the street.

  “Yo, Candace, hold up!”

  She glanced over her shoulder, gave me a smile, but didn’t stop. I caught up with her just as she reached Tiffany’s car.

  “Chauncey, what you want?” Tiffany was trying her best not to grin. She knew I was feeling her girl.

  “I wanna holla at Candy for a second.” I moved in front of Candace and smiled. I was sure I was showing all my teeth.

  Tiffany stuck her finger in her mouth and pretended to gag. “Y’all gonna have to talk over there in front of her car. I got something my man’s waiting on.”

  “I know it ain’t no coochie, ’cause everybody knows yo ass ain’t fucking!” Candace called over her shoulder.

  Tiffany stuck up her middle finger and laughed. “Good night and don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!”

  “Damn, a girl’s gotta have some fun!”

  The way they joked with one another, I knew they had to be close. Any other chick would have been ready to throw down in the middle of the street.

  Candace signaled for me to follow her over to a cute white Pontiac GT. She hit the button on her alarm before she turned around and leaned against the car, poking her big breasts out. Even with a bra on, I could tell her nipples were hard and erect. I didn’t waste any time. “I had a good time with you tonight.”

  She gave me a look that said she wasn’t all that impressed. “You rushed out here to tell me that?”

  “Who rushed?”

  She laughed. “You. You’re breathing all hard and shit.”

  Damn. I tried to slow my breathing and she started laughing. Tiffany pulled off and we both waved.“I’m trying to understand as fine as you are why you don’t have a man.”

  She sighed, adding dramatic effect. “Too much drama.”

  I looked her in the eyes. “Not all of us.”

  “Maybe not, but I’ve had quite a few in my lifetime that I realized it ain’t worth the drama.”

  “Men are just like a barrel of apples. There are always a few bad ones, but if you look through the barrel long enough, you’re bound to find one that is close to perfect.”

  She gave a playful pout. “Perfect, huh?”

  “Close to. Yo . . . nobody’s perfect. All we can do is try to be the best that we can. Trust me. There are still a few good men out there.”

  “There is?” Candace glanced around the parking lot. “Where they at?” she asked.

  “I see you got jokes.”

  She gave me a girlish grin, showing off white teeth. “What’s your tattoos say?”

  I held out my arms so she could see the words that started on the front of my left arm and finished on the right. “Hated by many . . . loved by few.”

  “Is that true?”

  “What can I say? The world is full of haters. We can count on one hand the number of people that truly love us.”

  Candace smiled at the thought. “That’s true.”

  I shrugged. “This was something I did when I was young and trying to prove that I was no longer a kid.”

  “I guess you think you’re a man now, huh?” she added with a playful punch to my chest.

  I licked my lips shamelessly before answering, “One hundred percent man.”

  She laughed and I joined in with her. Candace took a seat on the hood and we sat out in the parking lot, talking long after everyone had climbed in their cars and left. Candace was easy to talk to. She was staring down in my mouth and I was staring directly in her eyes. She was sexy as hell and I was captivated by her looks, her low sultry voice, and her personality. She knew how to have fun and I liked that about her. I listened while she told me about her daughter’s deadbeat daddy and how she fell on her head with that one. She talked about a few more jokesters she’d encountered, and I have to admit I understand why the sistah had a wall up. However, I was determined to change her mind.

  The manager was locking up the club when Candace finally flicked her wrist and glanced down at her watch. “It was nice talking to you, but I gotta get home.”

  “How can I see you again?” We sat there talking all that time and there was no way I was letting her walk out my life. I was feeling her. She was sexy and beautiful. Something about the way she carried herself said she was fire in the bedroom; but more than that, she seemed to have her head together. She was going to college, trying to make something of herself and raising her daughter on her own. I have to say . . . I likes that in her.

  She was silent and gave me a look like she wasn’t sure if giving me her number was a good idea. No wasn’t an option. “Listen, Candace, I know you were feeling me tonight just like I’m feeling you. Let me have your number so I can call you. I’d like to take you to dinner or something.”

  “Uh . . . I don’t know.”

  I didn’t want to sound like I was begging, but I had to get her to see what she had right in front of her face. “How about I give you my number and if you’re interested, then you holla at yo boy?”

  She laughed. “I guess.”

  “You guess? Don’t try to act like you don’t wanna see me again.”

  “I didn’t say that.”

  “Then what? You a virgin like yo girl?”

  Candace huffed and laughed at the same time. “Nah, I likes to get mine.” She licked her lips and made my dick throb.

  “You do?” I teased coyly.

  “Yep. It’s just when I get mines, I make sure I’m careful not to get something else that takes a shot in my ass to get rid of.”

  I was nodding and laughing at the same time. “True that.”

  She pulled out her phone and I rattled off my number. I thought she simply was just going to save it and call me when she got good and ready. Instead, she hit Send and dialed my phone. I looked down and spotted a new number and nodded. The ball was back in my corner.

  “Use it,” she said.

  “Most definitely.” There was no way in hell I was passing up an opportunity to see her again. I helped Candace into her car, then leaned over into the window, staring down at her. She looked up at me and for the longest time we just stared. “I’ll call you,” I finally said.

  Candace nodded and before I could kiss her, she pulled off.

  9

  Candace

  “Hooker, quit stalling! I want to know what you think about Chauncey.”

  I sipped my margarita and tried to play it as cool as I could, but inside I was ready to burst. “I really like him. We stood in the parking lot talking forever. When I finally left, he called to make sure I made it home safely.”

  “That was nice.”

  I nodded because I never had a dude do anything like that for me before. Mainly because they were too busy trying to get inside my panties, and when I shot them down they moved on to the next suspect. “We stayed on the phone until almost four in the morning, talking.”

  Tiffany leaned back on the couch and smiled. “Damn, girl! I’m glad that the two of you hit it off.”

  “So am I. I would have never guessed that we would have had so much in common. After Tyree, I was through with thugs; but I must say with Chauncey I realized you can’t judge a man by what’s on the outside.”

  “Girl, puhleeze! It’s what’s on the outside that attracted you to him in the first place. Chauncey is fine,” she said, rolling her neck as she spoke.

  “Yes, he is.” It had been a couple of days since we met and I looked forward to his calls. I felt like Miasha acted when I took her to Toys “R” Us. It was crazy and new and I know I was just caught up in the moment, but somehow I felt that things were different this time. Not once had Chauncey talked about getting him some. We talked about work, our dreams, and for once a man listened.

  “You better keep him if you want him because there are dozens of them hoochies at the salon who would do anything to be you right about now,” Tiffany warned, then shook her head.“Chauncey has already made a name for himself. His calendar is booked w
eeks in advance.”

  I jealously listened to her piece of advice. I don’t know why, but I already felt like he was mine and definitely didn’t want anyone else getting her claws in him.

  “I can see why. He is definitely something to look at, especially with those long pretty locks, and the way he handled my feet with his gentle hands, guuurrrrl, I was about to come in my panties.”

  “You nasty,” she giggled.

  I was laughing and trying to keep a straight face at the same time. “I’m serious! It’s the way he looks at me with those sexy eyes of his while he licks them juicy lips. Tiffany, girl, I am truly feeling his ass!” And I was certain he was feeling me, too.

  Sex was going to be hard to resist with a man that damn handsome, especially when his voice over the phone had the power to make the space between my thighs moist. All day I’d been dying to call and hear his voice, but I wanted him to do the chasing, no matter how tempted I was.

  “I’m happy for you. When y’all getting together again?”

  I shrugged my shoulders like it was no big deal. “He asked, but I told him I’d think about it.”

  Tiffany looked at me like I had lost my mind.” What? Think about it? What is there to think about?”

  How quickly Tiffany forgets. “I’m going out with Deon tonight, remember?”

  She sucked her teeth and rolled her eyes in my direction. “You better than me, because after he stood me up once, I would have called it a wrap.”

  Tiffany talks a lot of shit for someone who doesn’t know shit about relationships. “He had to work.”

  “And he didn’t find that out until he had you waiting one . . . two hours? Yeah . . . right,” she said between sips.