by Rukyyah
Terrell took out his pen and pad, and let his thoughts spill on to the pages. He told Cassidy that he was sorry for what happened to his wife, but he thought she stole from him when it really was a friend of hers. He made sure to include that she wore an engagement ring on a necklace and that she had long, blonde hair. He knew that her name was Lexxxie, but Stew found out there was one at all the clubs that he checked. Some had blonde hair, and some wore different wigs to match their outfit. When Stew went to Tasty Ladies, Lexxxie wore a short, red wig to match her outfit and he was looking for blonde hair.
Terrell said so much hateful stuff in the letter and at the end, he told Cassidy to get in contact with Stew and Stew would take care of everything. Terrell was so excited that his dick was hard. He had a grin like the Grinch from The Grinch That Stole Christmas.
The following day, he was sure to mail the letter and couldn’t wait to see how his idea would play out. He knew Alexandria was about to pay for her actions. He wanted her to know that you couldn’t take people’s shit without paying the consequences.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Cassidy had slipped into a great depression after his wife was taken from him. He had to be a strong man for their daughter, but on the inside he was torn apart. For the first month since Juicy’s death, he cried himself to sleep and barely talked to anybody. His finances were far from his mind, and since Juicy had saved a lot of money, when he checked her savings account, he knew him and his daughter would be okay. She even had a nice size insurance policy that left him with a lot of money. He would rather have his wife back over the money any day.
Cassidy received the letter from Terrell and when he saw it, he almost threw it away since he knew who Terrell was because he was present the day he was sentenced to jail.
He stared at the letter, and said out loud, “Fuck you, you son of a bitch!” He tried to throw the letter in the trash, but missed. It slid across the kitchen floor, and he walked over to it and picked it up. He stared at it once again. “What in the hell does this asshole want?”
Cassidy finally opened the letter and didn’t feel any remorse when Terrell apologized. He was angry all over again and wondered why he even wrote him. Half way down the page, Cassidy was in rage and wanted to rip the letter into small pieces. He wondered how much of the letter was true, so when it was time for the club to open, he was there. He waited for Alexandria inside and when she walked in his direction to get to the dressing room, he pulled her aside. He shoved the letter into her face and she was quickly frightened. She didn’t want Cassidy to know the truth, so she thought fast as she lied.
“Look, Cassidy. I don’t know why that fool is lying to you like that, but he is lying.”
“He’s lying? None of that shit is true?” He pointed to the letter.
“It’s not. I would have told you if any of that was true. Yes, I went to the party with Juicy, but Juicy already told him that we didn’t have anything to do with his money. There were a group of niggas there, so any of them could have taken it.” Alexandria sounded sincere.
Cassidy believed her. He leaned in and cried on her shoulder. “I need some answers. I can’t take not knowing what went on. But, I’m not going to give up.” He cried more.
“Don’t give up. If you need any more help, you know where I am.”
“Okay.” Cassidy finally dried his eyes and left out of the club.
After he left, Alexandria went into the ladies room and cried. She couldn’t believe that Terrell was fucking with her even from behind bars. She feared for her life once again and felt so bad for lying about Juicy to Cassidy. She knew deep down inside, it was all her fault.
When Cassidy returned home that evening, Stew waited for him in his car. When Cassidy pulled up with his daughter, she looked over at the car, and then at her father.
“Daddy, we have a visitor.” She smiled.
“Yes, I see. I’ll find out who it is, okay? Stay right here.”
Cassidy stepped out of the car while leaving his daughter inside. He was nervous because since his wife passed, he made sure there were no visitors and he even installed a new security system. He had no idea what the stranger wanted. Cassidy gathered his coat since the cold January’s air attacked him as soon as he stepped out of the car. The wind lifted his wool coat and he lost the fight of keeping it down. When he got close to the car, Stew stepped out in a leather coat, hat, gloves, and a Burberry scarf.
“What’s up, my nigga? I’m Stew. I’m sure you know why I’m here since Terrell told you I’d be in contact with you.” Stew reached out to shake his hand, but Cassidy didn’t shake it.
“I don’t know what you are doing here and I don’t want you here. Get back in your shit and leave now!”
“Look, man. I’m sorry about that shit that happened to your wife. Shit didn’t have to happen like that and I really want to help you out. Just tell me where this Lexxxie bitch be at and I can take care of her for you.”
“I don’t want anything to do with this craziness. I want to know what happened to my wife, but I don’t want innocent people getting hurt in the process.”
“Lexxxie is not innocent. Don’t protect her.” Stew sounded as if he was begging.
“Like I said before, please leave and don’t come back.”
“I’ll prove it to you. Just remember, I’m on your side. I had nothing to do with your wife, but I want to help you.”
Cassidy didn’t respond, and he turned his back toward Stew. Stew got back into his car and drove off while shaking his head. Once he was out of sight, Cassidy got his daughter out of the car. He rushed to take her in the house and almost wanted to move since Terrell and his goons knew where he lived. Then, he calmed down when he realized that Terrell wanted Lexxxie dead, not him.
When Terrell got word that Cassidy didn’t help him out, he was heated. He thought his letter was enough ammo for Cassidy to give Stew the info they needed on Lexxxie. The more he thought about the situation, he wanted her dealt with A-SAP.
$$$$$$
It was the first week of February and Alexandria was at Tasty Ladies. Diamond gave her time to dance before the next dancer. Most of the strippers were new there and their motto was if you weren’t there when they got there, they took your stage time. So, before she got off the pole, Alexandria joined her on the stage. They danced together for the remaining of the song and when it went off, a new song started and Alexandria stripped.
Alexandria never thought that after two years of stripping at Tasty Ladies, she’d be tired of it all. The new crew of bitches was on some other shit, so it was hard making money like when she first started. Alexandria was one of the best strippers there so her tips were large, but she barely made a thousand a night. To an average person, that wouldn’t be a complaint, but Alexandria was used to making way more, especially with her private parties.
She and her son didn’t have a care in the world and were well taken care of. So, on Valentine’s Day, Sam asked Alexandria to give up stripping. He asked her to move in once again and she felt bad that he was willing to take care of her with so many secrets in her closet. She knew that all men weren’t supposed to know all of your past, but some of the stuff was necessary to share to see if he still felt the same way.
When they had their Valentine’s dinner date, once their plates were empty she shared what she wanted him to know. She first told him about being engaged and her fiancé passing. She told him about how the lifestyle that he provided her made it hard for her to work a normal nine to five, so that’s why she started stripping. Then, she topped it off by telling him about Juicy and how the man that had her killed wanted her dead too.
The look on Sam’s face was priceless when he heard Alexandria say that she stole from someone and they wanted her dead. He couldn’t believe that someone so beautiful could be involved in something so horrendous.
He sat back in his seat staring at her with regret in his eyes. He didn’t know if Alexandria was the woman he had fallen in love with. H
e thought back to when his friends laughed at him when he first told them they he was feeling her. They all laughed and called him T-Pain for being in love with a stripper. He often defended his feelings for Alexandria and once his friends realized their love was real, they accepted her. He wondered if it was all wrong. He wondered if she would steal from him. His brain raced as he pondered over what was put on the table.
“Say something, please. You look like you hate me.” Alexandria feared that by telling Sam about her past, it would ruin her future.
Sam took a deep breath and looked her into her eyes. “Alexandria, you know I love you, but…”
“Please, don’t say but. I love you so much and I never thought I’d love anybody else.”
“I’m not saying that I’m walking away from you, but you can’t tell me all of this shit and think it will be cool. We got a lot of shit to talk about.”
“I know you’re mad because you’re cursing. How about we go back to your place and we talk about this a little more.”
“No, I want to be alone. I have to gather my thoughts.” Sam went into his pocket, peeled off a hundred dollar bill, and sat it on the table. “I’ll call you when I’m ready to talk.”
Sam stood up from the table. He didn’t excuse himself or pull out Alexandria’s chair. He was out of the door before she stood to her feet. She had tears in her eyes and was embarrassed by how he left her sitting alone. She couldn’t believe that her night would end like that, but she needed to tell him before they went any further. At that moment, she was happy that she drove to the restaurant and didn’t have to worry about Sam driving her home with the anger that he had in his eyes. She knew it would be nothing but tension.
Once at home, she sat by the phone waiting for Sam to call, but he never did. She wondered if after he thought about everything he wouldn’t want to deal with her anymore. She figured if it was over between them, she would find another strip club where she could make more money and focus on stacking money like how she used to do.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
March had arrived and Mya, Terrell’s wife, was at the jail to visit with him. She visited often and when she saw him, she knew something was on his mind. He was distant and she almost felt that he wasn’t happy to see her.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?” she asked in a whisper.
“What you mean?”
“You are barely looking at me. What’s going on?”
He looked at Mya with worry on his face. “Look, you might as well know. The reason why I had the girl dealt with was because she was with another stripper at our house that stole from me. Took my fucking money, ma. I haven’t been able to find her. I want her ass dealt with!”
“You mean the two hoes that were in our room and changed into those scandalous ass outfits?”
“How did you know about that shit?”
“Look nigga, I know all that you do. You think just because you send me away from home with our daughter that I don’t know what the fuck is going on at my house? I got cameras all over because you are scandalous. I was tired of bitches telling me they were fucking you. So, like I told your ass, if I found out you were fucking somebody else I’d be on a for real pay back with you.”
“Hold up, you got cameras in our shit? I can’t believe you don’t trust me and shit.”
“You gave me plenty of reasons not to.”
“So, why you never told me about the shit with the strippers?”
“Because once I watched the tape and saw that you ain’t fuck ‘em, I let it go. I’m sure you be in strip clubs, so I ain’t care if you had bitches strip for your party.”
“Do you know what this means? You probably go that shit on tape with that bitch stealing my shit.”
“I don’t know, baby, but I can check it out when I get home.”
Terrell walked over to Mya, and then picked her up. He spun her around and gave her a big hug and a kiss. She giggled the whole time.
“I love you, ma!”
“I love you, too, baby.”
A guard approached them. “No contact. Put her down now!”
Terrell put Mya down and they sat on the opposite sides of the table. For the rest of her visit, Terrell had a big smile on his face. He couldn’t believe that a trust issue would bring him what he needed. Then, on top of that, he was glad that he didn’t have any bitches in the house fucking while his wife was gone. He never thought she would have his ass taped, but he figured once Cassidy saw the tape of Lexxxie stealing his shit he would help Stew set her ass up.
When Mya got home, she searched for the tape and when she found it, she fast forwarded through the part where Juicy and Lexxxie were getting changed into their outfits. She screwed her face up while wondering why men found strippers so fascinating.
A big smile spread across Mya’s face when she saw Juicy walk into the bathroom and left Alexandria there to get dressed. She watched her bend over and pulled open the bottom drawer on the nightstand. She watched Alexandria’s eyes widened when she noticed there was money in the nightstand and quickly stuck a fistful into her duffle bag.
“Oh, you bitch! You fucked up now!” she said out loud. She pressed rewind to watch it once more and shook her head. “They gon’ fuck you up!” she said to the image on the T.V. screen.
$$$$$$
Alexandria and Sam worked through the issues in her past. He really loved her and couldn’t see himself waking away from something she did when they weren’t together. The last week of March, she had settled everything with her lease and gave them enough notice that she wouldn’t renew. She was to be out by the thirty-first, so Sam made that happen by hiring movers. She didn’t have to pack or move a thing and she loved that. She gave George a two week notice and was nervous. She figured if things didn’t work out for her financially, she could always pick up stripping again.
When Alexandria told Diamond that she was quitting to work a nine to five, she thought she had lost her mind. Diamond couldn’t picture Alexandria not balling.
“Bitch, you for real gon’ walk away?”
“Yes. It’s time. I’ll be twenty-one in May and I need to do better shit with my life.”
“Wow, that’s crazy. I can’t imagine this shit without you.”
“I know. You’ll be all good. I’ll retire my g-string so you can make your money without me sharing your stage time. I still can’t get over how many bitches George got working here. It’s way too many.”
“Well he’s the boss, he don’t give a fuck what none of us got to say. So, you’re moving in with your dude? That’s crazy too.”
“Bitch, you do shit like that for love.”
“Yeah, I know. I just never pictured your mean ass loving somebody.”
“Bitch!” Alexandria threw a high heel at Diamond. “I ain’t fucking mean! I’ve loved before. I was just cool on not dealing with another nigga at that time. I’m glad I changed my mind.” She smiled hard, showing off her bright teeth.
“Awe, bitch.” Diamond walked over to her and gave her a hug. “I’m so happy for you.”
She hugged her back. “Thank you, Diamond. Keep in touch with me, okay? By the way, you can call me Alexandria and I’ll call you Kailee since we won’t work together anymore.”
“No doubt.”
After dancing her last dance on the stage, she was nervous about starting a new beginning and happy to put an end to stripping. That night, she went to her parents’ house to pick up her son and talked with her mother. She told her about leaving the strip club and working for Sam at the company he owned. Erica was pleased and glad that God finally came through and answered that prayer. Erica adored Sam because he was mature, loved her daughter, and grandson unconditionally. Robert thought he had something up his sleeves. He wondered why a man thirty-five wanted a twenty year old. He figured it was for sexual reasons and warned Alexandria to protect her heart. When he heard she was leaving the stripping behind he was happy, but still mad at Alexandria for stripping in the first place
.
Robert knew far too well how men acted when it came to beautiful young women. He fought the urge often dealing with a lot of young women at the church throwing themselves at him. He once was weak and regretted his actions, but his family and the church forgave him of his sins and they all got past it, except for Alexandria. She and Robert had a strange relationship since his scandal was revealed. They never got their closeness back and he missed the way things used to be. But, he hurt Alexandria and she hurt him from being involved with a drug dealer and stripping for money.
Alexandria had a tiring day, so when she got home she had plans to just relax. As soon as she walked through the door, Sam jumped up from the couch and greeted her with a hug and a kiss. He picked Timmy Jr. up and gave him a hug as well. Sam felt good having them in his life and he would be sure to keep them both happy.
A month prior, Sam purchased a single family home in Baltimore County and since his condo didn’t sell right away, he leased it to his friend and his girlfriend. They were happy with the price and the view of the city. Sam was happy as well because he made a profit every month.
“This is officially our home,” Sam said while putting Timmy Jr. down.
“Yes, it is. I’m so happy that you did all of this for us.” Alexandria jumped into Sam’s arms and gave him a deep, passionate kiss.
After putting her son to sleep, she walked into their bedroom as he was putting a robe over his sexy, naked body. When he saw her, he let his dick show for a quick second as he showed off his sexy smile.
“I know you like that, huh?”
“Of course, I do.”
“I bet.” Sam laughed a little. “Get your robe on. I got the Jacuzzi running.”
She dropped her dress to the floor and exposed her naked body underneath. Her nipples hardened from the breeze that came in through the window. Sam’s dick grew hard as he walked over to her and ran his thick fingers over her naked body.