Kayla went on. “Some days are good, but other days are bad. And like Trina said, this has very little to do with you. Yes, I’m still a little bitter about what you did, but I also know that Cedric used you. He saw a broken woman with an unfortunate past, and he took advantage of your vulnerabilities. It had nothing to do with his love for you, and I know that now.”
“Then why do I feel as if you still hate me?” Evelyn said tearfully. “I know you, Kayla, and things are not the same as they used to be. The way you look at me says it all. Given how you speak to me, I can tell you’re still angry. I don’t want to be here if you don’t want me here. But the truth is, I love you and Trina. I just don’t know how to show the two of you how sorry I am for everything that I did.”
“The first thing you can do is stop apologizing,” I said. “We hear you loud and clear. It’s just that we got our own problems too. And when we tend to think about all our problems, we may focus too much on where those problems originated from. Kayla can’t think about her failed marriage without putting you into the equation. You played a big part in that, even though Cedric had been messing around with numerous other women, as well. What Kayla has to do is come to grips with it being over. She needs to celebrate her departure from him and realize that it really is a good thing. That may take some time, but during the process, it will take time for her to have that trusting and loving friendship with you again.”
“I couldn’t have said it better,” Kayla said with a nod. “Just give me more time. I’m almost there, and the truth is, I’m on a downward spiral because of something that is bothering me about Jacoby and Cedric. If I tell the two of you about it, y’all probably won’t believe me. I’m so worried about my son, and I don’t know what Cedric will do if he ever finds out the real deal behind him being shot.”
Kayla sat down on the bed, in tears, and then told us about Jacoby’s plot to have Cedric killed. He was the one who had gone to Paula Daniels and had asked her to do the dirty work. She was paid a substantial amount of money, but when Jacoby went back to her to call off the deal, Paula moved forward. She wanted Cedric dead, and there was no changing her mind. Kayla had no idea why Paula hadn’t said anything about it to anyone yet, but she knew that Paula had been trying to get Cedric to come see her in jail. Kayla truly felt that if he found out the truth, Cedric would contact the police and have Jacoby arrested. And to her, that could happen any day.
“I’m just so worried,” Kayla said, barely able to catch her breath as she cried. “I want to tell Cedric, but I can’t go behind my baby’s back and do that. What if he goes to jail? He would never make it in there, and I do not want to lose my only child.”
Evelyn and I sat down on the bed and embraced Kayla.
“You’re not going to lose him,” Evelyn said. “We’ll think of something, and we need to do it fast, especially if Paula is trying to reach out to Cedric.”
“I agree,” Kayla said. “It’s just a matter of time before Cedric changes his mind about going to see her. I know that she’s been writing him, but he never opens her letters to read them. What if he decides to open them? What if she writes to him and tells him exactly how things went down?”
“I guess I must have too much faith in Cedric,” I said. “I don’t believe that he would contact the police and have Jacoby arrested. After all, he does consider Jacoby his son. He loves him, and would never do anything like that to destroy him.”
Kayla and Evelyn snapped their heads to the side and looked at me as if I were crazy.
“You don’t know Cedric,” they said in unison.
“He would put his mama behind bars if he thought she’d betrayed him,” Kayla said. “I’m well aware of the man I was married to, and ever since he got shot, Cedric has been a changed man. I can see it in his eyes. In my heart, I truly believe that he’s up to something.”
We all sat silent for a while. I then tried to convince them that Cedric wouldn’t harm Jacoby, but then I got to the point where I was trying to convince myself. This was one big mess. Now I understood why Kayla had been doing so much drinking. We discussed her new habit, and she said that it was under control. I didn’t believe her, and Evelyn and I promised to check on her every single day.
6
Kayla
I felt a little better. Trina and Evelyn left a few hours later, and right after they left, I called Jacoby to find out where he was. The two of us needed to talk, and the first thing I needed to do was apologize to him for the way I’d been acting. I knew that seeing me drunk all the time was affecting him. I just couldn’t stop causing my son harm, and that made me feel horrible. I told him that as I spoke to him over the phone, and I asked him to come home soon.
“I don’t like to see you that way, but stop worrying so much about me,” he said. “And if you don’t mind, I won’t be home until later. Some of the fellas and me are going to hang out at the mall. After that, Adrianne’s mom wants me to help her paint their kitchen. I told her that I would.”
“Okay. Have a good time, and please know that I can’t help worrying about you. You definitely know why. Have you spoken to Cedric again?”
“I have. I told him I’ll try to catch up with him next weekend. Maybe I do need to start doing some things with him again. That way he’ll get off my back.”
“That may be a good idea. It makes him suspicious when you distance yourself. He continues to ask me what is wrong with you, and it makes me feel awkward when I have to keep telling him that I don’t know.”
“Well, whatever you do, don’t tell him anything. I’m thinking that maybe I should say something to him myself. If he hears it from me, maybe he’ll understand.”
“No. He would never understand, and I would never want you in a situation where you’re alone with him, talking about what you did. I don’t trust Cedric. He’s a vicious man when he wants to be, and you already know that.”
Jacoby said that he wouldn’t say anything to Cedric, but he also could have said that just to get off the phone and get back to his friends. His social life was much better than mine was. I couldn’t believe how much I had been cooped up inside since my divorce. I had had so much fun with Evelyn and Trina the other night. I needed to get out more, so I decided to put on some clothes and go have a few drinks. Many of the bars downtown were open because of the baseball game. It was the perfect time to meet people and watch the game somewhere near Ballpark Village. I’d thought about asking Trina if she wanted to go, but she had already taken enough time away from her day to see about me.
So within the hour, I was dressed in my Cardinals’ T-shirt and skinny jeans. My hair had a shine to it, and with a little makeup on, I felt good. It was almost time for me to have my long lashes redone, but tonight they worked for me. I climbed in my car and headed in the direction of Ballpark Village. I spotted a bar and grill less than two blocks from the stadium and Ballpark Village. From the street, the small joint looked very crowded, as people sat outside at tables that had umbrellas. I parked and went in.
On the inside, the place was packed. Several big-screen TVs were on the walls, and the place was so noisy that I could barely hear the game. Many people sat at tables, and some were at the bar. I saw a few empty chairs at the end of the bar, so I made my way to it and sat right in front of four African American women who looked to be having a good time. They spoke to me as I took a seat and waited for the bartender. I spoke back, but my attention was focused on the bartender, who was spending way too much time waiting on someone else. I was eager to get a drink.
Almost ten minutes later, he came over to my side of the bar. He laid a napkin in front of me, then asked what I wanted to drink.
“Vodka and cranberry juice, no ice. A double shot, if you don’t mind.”
As the bartender made my drink, my eyes scanned the crowded place. There was a diverse group of people there, but the majority were white. I spotted a few brothas sitting in the far corner, by the restroom, and another group sat by a jukebox. Most people, ho
wever, were tuned in to the game, and plenty of drinks, wings, and burgers were being served.
“Here you are,” the bartender said. “Your drink has already been taken care of by the gentleman over there.”
The waiter pointed to a white man who was standing at the other end of the bar. He lifted his glass, then nodded with a smile. I didn’t hesitate to smile back. After all, he was very handsome. A little young for my taste, but he had the looks of Adam Levine written all over him. His jet-black hair was spiked on top, and his beautiful light brown eyes hooked me right away. I blushed as he continued to look at me, and within a matter of minutes, there he was, standing right before me.
“Tell me,” he said, “what modeling agency do you work for?”
“Oh, I wish I could tell you. There was a time when I wanted to be a model, but then life happened, and those dreams went right out the window.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. But you are stunning. I hope you don’t mind me buying you a drink. It’s the least I can do for such a beautiful woman.”
Yes, he was putting it on pretty darn thick, but I didn’t care. I loved every bit of it. It was so refreshing to sit next to a man who filled my head with compliments and who had on some smell-good cologne. The black V-neck T-shirt he rocked melted on his muscles, and I could see how cut his abs were through his shirt. He was rather thin, though, but his jeans seemed to fit him in all the right places.
“I don’t mind you buying me a drink, but the next one is on me. Thank you, and I do appreciate your compliments.”
“Then I’ll keep them coming. But before I do, my name is Justin. Justin McIntosh.”
“I’m Kayla. I don’t give out my last name unless I really know a person. That has always been one of my rules.”
He pulled back the chair next to me, then took a seat. “I get that. Truly I do, but I’m hoping that when all is said and done, you’ll get to know me much better. And if you have any more rules, I certainly want to know all about them.”
We both laughed, and for the next hour or so, we indulged in an interesting conversation that revealed much more about him. He was only twenty-nine years old, he lived in an apartment complex that was less than fifteen minutes away from where I lived, and he had a degree in computer science. He had a four-year-old daughter, and he’d never been married. I gave him the scoop on me, and I told him that I had recently divorced.
“You don’t have to go into the details about why that happened, but he had to be a fool to lose a woman as sexy as you.”
“Well, being sexy doesn’t keep a man at home and faithful these days. Not that it ever did.”
“No, it doesn’t. But there seems to be something real special about you. I haven’t put my finger on it yet, but when I do, I’ll tell you what I’m referring to.”
No doubt, he was saying all the right things to me, stuff that I needed to hear, but trust me when I say I was no fool. He wanted something from me. I also wanted something from him. And after we had shared several more drinks and more laughter, I was ready to put it all on the line.
“Justin, why don’t we get out of this noisy place and finish this conversation in a more private setting? Do you have a problem with that?”
He lifted his glass, then tossed the remainder of the alcohol down his throat. “I don’t have a problem with that, and I thought you’d never ask. My question to you is, my place or yours?”
“Neither. Let’s go somewhere and get a room.”
Justin was all for it. We broke out of the restaurant like two bats coming from hell. Several hotels were close by the stadium, and when we entered the lobby of one of them, Justin went right to the counter and paid for a room. Things got a little heated in the elevator when he swung in front of me and planted a soft kiss on my lips. My breasts rose against his chest, and after staring into his eyes, I opened my mouth wide and sucked his thin lips with mine. The juicy kiss left me as horny as ever, and when the elevator opened, I followed his sexy self to the room.
He used the key card to open the door, and the moment we entered the room, there was a rush to remove our clothes. We didn’t get far before Justin pinned me against the door while he kissed my face and neck. He ground hard against me, and as I attempted to unzip his jeans, he pulled at my shirt, ripping it open. My breasts popped out, giving him a clear invitation to suck them.
“Mmm,” he moaned while licking my nipples. By now I had his jeans lowered, and my hands were pressed into his tight and muscular ass. I couldn’t believe what I was about to do with this young man, and I doubted that Trina or Evelyn would believe me. I wasn’t exactly drunk, either—tipsy for sure, but definitely not drunk. He was, though. But he was absolutely in control.
He pulled his mouth away from my breasts, then took a few steps back to look at me as I stood there with my back still against the door. Not only did my shirt hang off my shoulders, revealing both breasts, but now my jeans were unbuttoned, showing my purple lace panties.
“I know your pussy is going to be good,” he said. “How in the hell did I get so lucky?”
When he kicked off his jeans and pulled his shirt over his head, I wondered the same thing. His package was mouthwatering. I couldn’t believe the thickness of that thing, and the width of it made me a little nervous. I watched as he eased on a condom, and then he reached forward to secure my waist. He pulled me on the bed with him, and the first thing I did was give him a ride. I could feel my coochie being stretched far apart as I slowly guided myself up and down on him.
“And . . . and you have the nerve to rave about me,” I said. “This dick is so worthy of my time.”
“Then take as much time as you need. It’s yours.”
I did as I was told and used my time wisely. Justin and I screwed around for hours. He twisted my body in every position he could think of, and my favorite had to be when he tackled the goodies from behind. One of his feet was on the floor; the other on the bed. I was bent over and could feel every inch of him working me over.
“I could do this with you every day for the rest of my life,” he strained to say. “Your pussy is so warm and tight, just how I like it.”
I liked the way he felt too, but this was not something that was going to happen every day. It was a one-night stand for me, and I truly didn’t believe that he would have a problem with that. Meanwhile, I wasn’t about to run from this feeling. Apparently, neither was he. We were both caught up in the moment.
With his dick still resting inside of me, he lifted me from the bed. My entire backside was against him, and my legs were straddled wide. He used his strength to hold me up. His fingers brushed against my clit, and he took several soft bites on the side of my neck. I was seconds away from coming again, and this time, he released his energy with me.
“Fuck!” he shouted while thrusting faster inside of me. “Where in the hell did you come from?”
I should have asked him the same thing too, but I was too busy biting down on my lip to calm the feeling. I felt my juices flow all over him. His dick thumped inside of me, and just so we wouldn’t hit the floor, we both crashed on the bed. I could feel Justin’s heart beating fast against my back. His rock-solid body was covered in sweat, which dripped on me as I lay underneath him. I had been sweating too, and when he suggested a shower, we found ourselves doing the nasty in there too. He had me up in the air, with my back pinned against the wall. My legs straddled his waist, and for whatever reason, I just couldn’t get enough.
“Damn you, Justin,” I whispered. “I’m not supposed to be doing this with you. I don’t do this kind of stuff, but it sure in the hell makes me regret that I didn’t step out of the box sooner.”
“I believe you about not doing this with anybody. I’m just glad you decided to do this with me.”
Enough said, enough done. We wrapped up our sex session almost an hour later. Justin was beat, and he fell asleep. I quietly crawled out of bed, looked for my clothes. After giving him a sweet little kiss on his cheek, I jetted.
>
I left the hotel on a serious high. I couldn’t wait to tell Trina and Evelyn about my little adventurous night with Justin, and I wanted to let them know that there was still some hope for me. Trina didn’t answer her phone, and when I drove by her house, it was pitch black inside. I didn’t want to wake her and Keith, so I made my way to Evelyn’s place. To my surprise, when I swerved into a parking spot, I saw a car that I knew all too well. It was Cedric’s car. Why in the hell would he be parked outside of her complex if he wasn’t inside with Evelyn? My heart dropped to my stomach. I started to feel ill. I knew that trusting that hoochie again had been the wrong thing to do. And even though I felt so much hurt inside, I refused to go to the door and confront them. I just wasn’t going there again, and at this point, I thought, To hell with them both. They could have each other, and they deserved to be together.
The second I got home, I did the norm and went straight to the liquor cabinet. Almost a whole bottle of vodka was there, and you’d better believe that I tore into it. I didn’t want Jacoby to see me, so I made my way down the hallway and into my bedroom. I plopped on the bed, turned the bottle up to my lips, and thoroughly enjoyed my new fix.
7
Evelyn
Cedric and I were to the point where all we did was argue. I wholeheartedly regretted having had sex with him again, and after being at Kayla’s house and seeing how torn she was, I wasn’t about to go through with telling Cedric anything. Yes, the information about Jacoby was damaging. Cedric needed to know, but he damn sure wasn’t going to get any info from me. I was done with him. I continued to tell him that Kayla hadn’t said a thing to me about Jacoby or him.
“Stop lying, Evelyn,” he said while sitting comfortably in my living room. He was casually dressed in tan slacks and a peach shirt. His loafers had a shine, and so did his chocolate skin. It was late, so I was dressed in a pink, see-through pajama top that cut right at my thighs.
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