by Tamara Black
“Are you one of the entertainers they hired?”
“Maybe. What do you mean?”
“Don’t play stupid with me, bitch. You know what I mean.”
“You mean escorts? Prostitutes?”
An evil grin slid over his face as he nodded.
“Only good way to get pussy in this world.”
What a fucking pig! I thought but smiled as if his words turned me on.
“You seemed like the guy in charge here tonight,” I said.
He laughed. “Oh yeah? Why’s that?”
I reached across the table and put my hand on his arm.
“I can just tell.”
Actually, Andre had let me know who to target, but I couldn’t tell him that.
“You think you’re smart, huh?”
I nodded. “Yeah, I am.”
“No, you’re not. You’re selling your body for hundreds of dollars to people who are making millions.”
“You make millions, huh? I don’t believe it.”
He smiled and reached under the table, pulling out a duffel bag.
“Just look in here, sweetie,” he said, dropping it in front of me.
I sensually unzipped it, not taking my eyes off of him. He was transfixed as I licked my upper lip.
“That’s a lot of money,” I exclaimed.
“That ain’t shit, bitch,” he bragged. “I just brought that for the party tonight to pay women like you.”
“How do you make that kind of money?” I asked, trying to get him to say something incriminating.
“You’re pushy, aren’t you?” he said, leering at me.
I leaned forward, showing him a bit of cleavage while getting the camera closer.
“You like strong, dominant women, do you?” I asked in my best ghetto-voice.
He howled with laughter, waving to a waitress. A moment later, two large beers and six shots sat on the table in front of us.
“You ready to have some fun?”
Trying to hide my disgust, I watched while he tossed a pile of hundred dollar bills to the table.
“You ever see that kind of money in one place before?” he asked.
“Naw,” I said, eyes wide. “That sure is a lot of money.”
“This ain’t shit,” he said. “Stick with me tonight, and you can have some of the crumbs.”
I swallowed a lump in my throat, suddenly nervous. He leaned forward.
“As long as you make me happy. Are we clear, dear?”
“Yeah, baby, I’m down to party. I love money.”
“Good, you’re going to love me then.”
He picked up a shot glass and raised it into the air.
“I can’t drink,” I said, “But you go ahead, sugar daddy.”
“Just call me Daddy,” he said with an evil grin.
Fucking pervert, I thought, trying to smile and look amused.
“Now pick up a fucking shot and take it with me.”
Knowing it was all being streamed live slipped from my mind for a moment as I picked up a shot glass.
I clinked it against his. We both downed the whiskey. My eyes and throat burned as the liquid went down.
“Now that’s a drink,” he said, slamming the shot glass down on the table before picking up a beer.
He tipped that up and drank half the glass in one long drink. I need to get him drunker, I thought.
“You not a big drinker, are you?” I said, hoping he took the bait.
“What do you mean, missy? I’ll drink you under the table.”
I smiled inside as he took another two shots one after another, washing them down with the half glass of beer.
“Wow, you must be thirsty.”
He belched. Disgusting!
I looked away, pretending not to notice.
“Hey,” he slurred, reaching across the table.
When his fat, meaty hand grabbed my breasts, I’d had enough.
I stood up. “Watch it, you fat fuck.”
“Calm down and get over here,” he said.
“I only roll with gangsters and drug dealers,” I said, coming up with a last minute effort to get him to talk.
“Yeah? You’re looking at one of the biggest drug dealers in the whole country right now, bitch. So sit the fuck down and chill. We’re going to go outside so you can suck my cock dry with those dick-sucking lips of yours.”
Before I could think, I lunged forward and slapped him across the face. His eyes widened and his breathing came in snorts as he stood up and stumbled toward me.
Shit, I thought, stepping back. Several of the other men in attendance had noticed and were standing up and looking in our direction.
I crept toward the kitchen, hoping to duck out of sight and slip out the back door as planned. Before I made it, two younger men grabbed me by the arms.
“Hey, what’s going on?” I asked.
“You didn’t pay for your drinks,” one said as they pulled me back toward the corner.
“I didn’t have no drinks, but I’ll pay for them.”
“You’ll pay for them alright,” he said, both of them laughing. “You’re gonna blow all of us!”
Cheers erupted from the other crooks in the room. I struggled, but this only caused them to clap and hoot louder.
The fat man I’d slapped sat on a stool, undoing his pants as I approached. I fought even harder to get away.
I struggled as they forced me to my knees in front of him. A tiny dicklet poked out of his pants. He rubbed it aggressively while the other two pushed me toward him.
A gunshot rang out inside the bar, instantly causing chaos. My two captors let go of me. I crawled toward a wall, trying to make sense of everything. Emotions overwhelmed me as I thought about the real possibility of dying.
“I love you, Tony,” I said, hoping he would hear it on the video later. “I love you so much, baby.”
Tears streamed down my face as I hid under a table, watching legs and feet pass me by as everyone scrambled to find the source of the gunshot.
“Tanesha!”
I sat up as I heard Tony calling my name.
“Tanesha!”
Carefully, I crawled forward, poking my head out from under the table. Tony saw me and rushed over, bumping into others who were still scattering and figuring out what to do.
“Let’s go,” he said, holding out his hand.
I took it. He pulled me up and led me across the bar toward the back.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
“I’m fine now,” I answered, meaning it.
“Good. Let’s get out of here.”
♥ ♥ ♥
As soon as Tony and I left through the back door, Andre pulled up in a sedan. He opened the back door, and I got in.
“Let’s go,” he called to the front as he climbed in behind me.
Andre stepped on the gas. The tires squealed, and the car lurched forward. I grabbed onto Tony tightly. Two shots rang out behind us.
“Get down!” my brother yelled, turning as soon as he made the main street.
The car spun before the tires gripped the cement and we sped forward again.
“What the hell happened in there?” he asked, looking back at us briefly before turning his eyes to the road.
“Just get us out of here,” Tony said. “We got what we need.”
He turned to me. “Are you okay? Did he…?”
“No,” I said, shaking my head. “He was about to, but you came in.”
“What the hell happened?” Andre repeated.
“Just drive,” I yelled.
We drove down some broken down Cleveland road headed to who knew where, but I didn’t care. I’d finished what I set out to do, and Tony and I could return and start our life together. I squeezed his arm tightly, never wanting to let go. He looked into my eyes and calmed me down with just his gaze.
At the hotel room Andre had rented for us, we waited for the fallout from our undercover operation.
THIRTY-ONE
> Tanesha
I waved to Tony. He saw me on the other side of the room and came over.
“We’re happy to hear from you, Mr. Mayor,” I said. “It means a lot. Can I put you on speaker phone? Okay, great.” I tapped the screen on Andre’s phone. “Hello? Can you hear us?”
“I can,” he said. “Who else is there with you?”
“Tony. He’s my fiancé.”
“Hello, Tony. Thanks for all you’ve gone through to bust these guys.”
“No problem, Mr. Mayor,” he said, all smiles. “I didn’t do it all alone.”
“Yes, you’re a very lucky man from what I’ve heard.”
“I am, sir. Thanks for calling.”
“I just wanted to let you two know the city is going to give you a reward for what you’ve done. It took a lot of courage to stand up to corrupt officials.”
“Thank you, sir,” I said, taking Tony’s hand and squeezing it.
“My office will be in touch. Please stop by my office when you get a chance.”
“We will,” I said. “Goodbye.”
“Goodbye.”
I disconnected the call and looked up at Tony.
“I know he’s just the Mayor of Cleveland, but still…”
He nodded. “I know what you mean. This is all so surreal. Just a few days ago we were at our lowest, and now our fortunes have changed.”
“I’m just glad I have you,” I said, hugging him tightly. “I love saying fiancé.”
“As long as you don’t start calling me hubby.”
“If you don’t call me wifey.”
“Deal,” he said, squeezing me.
The phone rang again. I answered with a “Hello?”
A female reporter from the Plain Dealer introduced herself and asked me questions. She was just one of a dozen media from all over the country who had called. The Huffington Post and TMZ were some of the bigger names I knew really well. I felt like a celebrity.
Tony walked back across the room and talked to Andre while I fielded most of the calls from the press. By the end of the night, someone had set up a GoFundMe page to help us raise money for all we’d been through. I couldn’t believe the outpouring of goodwill sent our way.
♥ ♥ ♥
Tony stood next to me in the Mayor’s office, holding my hand. A herd of reporters stood massed on one side of the room. Mr. Lowenski smiled, happy at all the good publicity we’d thrown his way after busting one of the biggest and longest running corruption cases in history.
“I believe we’re ready to start,” he said.
The members of the press all turned their attention to us. Michael stood at my side, so cute dressed up in a suit. I held Destiny in my arms, so glad to have her back.
“I’ve called you here today to publicly acknowledge the work done by these two young people in shining a light on one of the biggest scandals in recent history. I am officially presenting them with a key to the city.”
He handed Tony an oversized key. Michael rushed over and took it.
“I got it, Dad,” he said without any prompting from me.
Tony looked over at me, and I swore he was about to cry. I smiled as joy overwhelmed me.
“Along with the key, I have a check to help them on their way home back to Colorado to get a fresh start.” The Mayor raised a check into the air, making sure Tony got it instead of Michael. The reporters and everyone else in the room laughed. “They have a GoFundMe page set up too, so make sure you take a chance to help them out if you can. I hear they’re getting married and plan to open a pizza shop. Is that right?”
Tony nodded. “Yes, we’ll be starting our family and Slices in the coming months.”
He raised his hand in the air. I reached over and grabbed his hand.
“We’ll take a few questions,” the Mayor said, pointing at a lady in front.
“Mr. Mayor. Any comment on your cousin George being involved?”
“We’ll have a statement. These two heroes need some rest, so if you’ll excuse us. Thank you. Good night.”
Two members of his staff rushed forward. After the reporters were shepherded out of his office, Mr. Lowenski turned to us.
“I’d love for you two to stay here in Cleveland. We’re really making a turn-around, and I could use two people like you with a good reputation.”
“No offense, Mayor, but we would like to get back to Colorado.”
He smiled and clapped his hands at the same time, a true politician.
“We did try to legalize marijuana last year.”
“Yeah, but you did it in a way that would have allowed only ten people to get super rich. Pot smokers aren’t dumb, sir,” Tony said.
I loved him so much. Our wedding and life together were within reach. After so many struggles and problems since we had met, things were finally going our way.
The Mayor smiled, patting Tony on the back. “Very well, son. Again, good job.”
We left City Hall as a family, something I’d dreamed about for many years. Michael looked absolutely adorable carrying the giant key. Tony took Destiny for me so I could get a little rest. She didn’t want to leave either of us.
“He called you Dad,” I said quietly.
Tony nodded. “I’m okay with it.”
He reached out and held my hand in his.
“Don’t run too far ahead, Michael,” I called.
“I’m looking for a giant door, mom,” he yelled.
Tony and I laughed as we headed toward the Town Car waiting for us outside.
THIRTY-TWO
Tanesha
Six months later, I stood next to Tony in our very own pizza shop called Slices. We opened up in downtown Denver after using the reward money and extra donations we got by setting up a GoFundMe page online. Once people heard our story – and our plans to make pizzas with pot – the money poured in.
I rolled a dough ball in my hand and smiled.
“What?” he asked.
“I’m just happy. I remembered when you first taught me how to do this.”
“That seems so long ago,” he said, placing a finished dough ball on a metal tray.
“Yeah, this is definitely different.” He looked at me. “In a good way,” I added.
“I can’t believe the Mayor is showing up to our Grand Opening.”
“Yeah, it’s kind of crazy.”
“Although he’s probably going to get elected again even if he had nothing to do with cleaning up the police force here and throughout the Midwest.”
“I’m just happy both of our dreams have come true.”
“We’ll get married in a month or two,” he said.
“I wasn’t complaining, baby.”
“I still feel bad we’re chasing my dream first.”
“Your dream is my dream and my dream is your dream.”
“That’s a lot of dreams,” he teased.
“After so many nightmares, we deserve them.”
He nodded and picked up a tray. I watched as he walked it over to the cooler and propped it against his hips while he opened the door to the walk-in cooler. Tears of joy overwhelmed me as he disappeared inside. Not only did I have my children back with me, I had a man would be a real husband to me and father to them.
“You okay?” he asked, walking over after he came out.
“I’m fine. Just emotional.”
“Me too believe it or not.”
“You’re so rock solid,” I said.
“Time to cut the cheese.”
I laughed. “That still cracks me up.”
“I love to see you laugh. It’s beautiful.”
“You’re just trying to get out of working,” I said.
“You know me well.”
He winked at me before helping me clean out the Hobart mixer to shred the cheese for our Grand Opening. Half of Denver had tried to reserve a spot. Ms. Brown, our Mayor, was scheduled to attend. I had teased Tony that we should try to make it a goal to meet Mayors of all the major cities in the Unite
d States.
After we finished all the prep work, we retired to the office while the other employees showed up and got ready to open. We didn’t have to do the food prep on our own, but we wanted to on the first day to remind ourselves of how we met.
“I still remember that first day you walked in here,” he said.
“Love at first sight, huh?” I asked suspiciously.
“You know it.”
He kissed me.
“Better watch out, the owner might catch us.”
“I hear they’re pretty cool,” he said.
I laughed. “You’re so silly.”
We owned Slices free and clear. It had taken all the reward and GoFundMe money, but I’d never felt as confident about something as I did about us starting our own pizza shop together. Everything that had happened to us only worked to bring us closer together.
I had a lot to work on with my gambling problem. He had his fair share of rough spots too. Together, though, we made an unstoppable team.
“Okay, back to work,” I said, breaking away. “We can’t slack. Not now.”
“Sure thing, boss,” he teased.
I gave him a tap on the ass before we opened the door and went out to work with our employees on their first shift.
♥ ♥ ♥
“I need two large pot pies on the fly,” Tony yelled to the crew making pizzas.
I turned and took another pizza out of our brand new oven. The smell of dough, sauce and weed radiated through the store. After setting it down on the cutting table, I picked up the pizza cutter and quickly divided the pie into eight perfectly equal slices.
“THC slices up,” I called, setting the tray on the warming rack between me and the front counter.
Samantha smiled at me as she took it. “Thanks, Tanesha.”
I nodded my head at her then turned to get the next pie coming out. People filled the lobby, standing around, waiting for their slice. At five dollars per piece, we were going to be super successful and make piles of money. I wasn’t greedy, but taking care of our family meant a lot, especially with one more on the way.