“I want my stuff, bitch!” Kentee screamed at me.
“What stuff? You emptied the house when you left, you cheating bastard!” I shouted right back, despite all the ears that turned to hear my conversation.
“Leah, I’m not playing with you!”
“Fuck, and I’m not playing with you! I don’t have anything else left to give you! I filed a restraining order, so you better watch your ass!”
“That’s my damn house!” he screamed, causing me to move the phone away, and I knocked some things to the floor in the process.
“Correction, mother fucker. Our home. You left it, and me! If you don’t believe that I got a restraining order, come by again. I had the house fingerprinted, so I hope your stupid ass wore gloves when you broke in again today!”
My response was met with silence. I didn’t have anything else to say to him, so I kept quiet too.
“It ain’t over,” he finally said and hung up the phone. I angrily gathered up the remains of our meals and threw them in the trash.
“Malik and Kayla, it’s time to go.” I urged them on. All of a sudden I felt like I was being watched, and the feeling unnerved me. We raced to the car as if we were playing a game of cat and mouse, but for me it wasn’t a game.
On the ride to Momma’s house, I tried to think of a way to get Kentee to leave me alone. I was moving forward with my life, so I didn’t need him lurking in the background. On impulse, I dialed Kentee’s mother’s house. She answered on the first ring. I had heard rumors that she had given up the crack but I had yet to see for myself.
“Hello,” she said, sounding sweet and motherly, but I knew her differently.
“Ms. Simmons, this is Leah. I need some help.”
“What are you calling me for?” she demanded, destroying the picture of genteel motherhood.
“Kentee is really scaring me, and I was wondering if you could talk to him,” I replied.
“I guess he is scaring you after you put him out and won’t allow him to see my grandbabies!”
“Ms. Simmons, I didn’t put Kentee out; he left me! He bought another house in southwest Atlanta and he’s living there with another woman! This week was the first time I’ve heard from him in months.”
“He said you were going to try to lie to get me in your corner, but it won’t work,” she snapped back.
“I swear on my mother’s life that everything I told you is the truth,” I said, shaking my head at Kentee’s cowardice. “He wants everyone to think he’s the victim, but that isn’t the case. The house we’re living in is about to be foreclosed on, and your grandbabies and I are going to be put out in the street.”
“Well, you aren’t welcome here. Kentee said you spent all the money, and it’s your fault that he never has anything left to help out his own mother!”
“That’s not true. I paid the bills with the money that we had in the checking accounts, but I rarely spent any money on myself! Plus, he drained those accounts when he left. If anyone is to blame, it’s your son.” I tried to contain my temper. This was useless. “I can see that I’m beating a dead horse, so I’ll give up. If you love your son, you’d better advise him to stay away from me. The police are looking for him, and I won’t be the one trying to bail him out if he gets himself in trouble!” I disconnected the call after I said my peace. I didn’t want to hear any more of her silliness. Kentee had his family believing that I was the bad one. I would find no help in that camp.
I walked inside Momma’s house trying to put up a brave front, but I sagged in defeat when I saw her smiling face. I was so tired of pretending that everything would be okay, I just couldn’t do it anymore.
“What’s wrong, baby?”
“Someone broke into my house and peed on my bed. I know it was Kentee, but when I called his mother she said that I took all of our savings and kicked Kentee out,” I wailed.
“The whole lot of them is crazy, if you ask me,” Mom said as she placed her arms around me.
I could not agree with her more, but the pain was still there. I told her about the destruction in my house and my inability to go home.
“I’m staying at Coy’s tonight, but I don’t have any toiletries. Do you have an extra toothbrush and paste and maybe some deodorant?”
“Sure, honey. Check the bathroom for whatever you need.”
I went in the bathroom and gathered a care package that included soap, toothpaste, clips to pin up my hair, and some lotion.
Noticing the lotion in my hand, Momma said, “Baby, you don’t want that cheap stuff. That stuff is sticky. What you need is this!”
She brought her hands from behind her back. She held up all these different products from Victoria’s Secret from bath gels to lotions, and a small bottle of perfume. I looked at her and shook my head. She never ceased to amaze me. She put her bounty in a bag and threw in something black that I did not inspect. I gave her Coy’s home number; in case she needed to get in contact with me. Kissing her and the kids, I left.
SAMMIE
I rushed back into Althea’s house; expecting the worst. I thought that Jasmine would have jacked her up for all the years of pain and frustration Althea had caused her and her mother, but what I saw truly amazed me. Jasmine was holding my mother in her arms, and both were crying. In all my years, I had never seen my mother cry, and I was outdone.
“Yes, he stayed with my mother, but when I think back on it, he was never happy. My mother used me to keep him, but I think that you always had his heart,” Jasmine said.
“He so wanted a child, and I so wanted to give it to him. When I found out that I was pregnant, I was the happiest woman in the world. We planned to announce our intentions the following week, until your mother announced she was also pregnant,” Althea cried.
“Oh, now this is making sense,” Jasmine said. “You blamed Sammie, an innocent victim, for my father’s refusal to leave my mother. You never showed Sammie all the love you had for my father. Do you ever wonder why Sammie is the way she is? Can’t you see that she’s searching for love in all the wrong places because you’ve never given her a foundation to find it?”
The room got so quiet, you could hear a pin drop. I was holding my breath, waiting to hear the answer to the question that had plagued me all my life.
After a very long pause, Althea said, “No, I couldn’t see anything beyond my pain. Don’t get me wrong. My husband was a good man, but I wasn’t in love with him. Your father was the only man I ever loved.”
Her shoulders shook as fresh tears mixed with the older ones. She clung to Jasmine as she had never clung to me, and that hurt. Envy rose in my heart, and I had to shake it away or I might have turned against Jasmine as well.
“You’re so much like your father,” Althea said.
Clearly interested, Jasmine asked, “In what way?”
“He had a fire in him that my husband didn’t. He never backed down when he thought he was right and we spent more time arguing and making up than agreeing. I loved that about him,” she said, dissolving in tears again as Jasmine continued to rock her.
I had just witnessed another revelation. It was quite possible that Althea had never loved me because I had never fought back. I had always accepted whatever was handed to me. I was deep in thought, nearly forgetting that they were in the room until pieces of their conversation drifted back to me. I struggled to pay attention.
Soothing her, Jasmine shook her head. “So you would have him leave my mother, who has never done anything wrong, just so you could be happy? Don’t you think that’s selfish?”
Part of me wanted to go back outside, but the other part needed to hear this conversation firsthand. Neither of them had yet to acknowledge that I had come back into the room.
“I was young, and the only person who was important to me was him! In hindsight I can see where I was wrong, but back then, no, you and your family didn’t matter.”
“Not much has changed, has it?” I asked, finally ending the silence that I had main
tained for most of my life. My words shocked us all. Until that night, I had never really stood toe-to-toe with Althea.
She started to draw back her shoulders—like she was getting ready to fight with me—but they slumped down again in defeat. I was right and she knew it. This gave me the courage to continue.
“All it’s ever been about is you! You had a good man who worshiped the ground you walked on, and you stomped right over him. You had me constantly fighting for your love and attention, yet you ignored my attempts. You deprived me of the love that I could’ve received from my sister and the knowledge of my real father. If that wasn’t bad enough, you concealed the death of the only father I’d ever known for six months! How could you be such a bitter and hateful woman?” I cried, shaking with wrath as tears flowed down my cheeks.
“Sammie, it’s all a moot point now,” Jasmine said, still stroking Momma’s shoulders.
“Don’t you dare defend her!” I yelled at Jasmine. “You don’t know the hell my life has been.”
I felt betrayed. Jasmine was trying to be the peacemaker when I wanted to fight. Althea remained silent as Jasmine drove her points home.
“Sammie, I’m not defending her. I’m just being realistic. We can’t change the past. It’s done. From this point on, we have to decide how we’re going to interact with each other. Althea, you can’t cause my mother, Sammie or me any more pain. Daddy’s gone, and Sammie and I have found each other. The way I see it, you can either wallow in self-pity and hatred for the rest of your miserable life, or try to pick up the pieces with the only family member you have left. The choice is yours.” Jasmine turned to me and said, “I’m ready to go.”
Heading toward the door, Jasmine stopped. “And while you’re thinking about it, Althea, know that my mother and I have Sammie’s back. I won’t be deprived of a sister again.” She slammed the door as she left.
“Jasmine does have my back,” I said out loud, laughing at this revelation.
I followed Jasmine, heading toward the door. I glanced back over my shoulder at my mother, but she did not lift her head as I closed the door firmly behind me. I probably should have said something, but my sister had said it all. Vindicated, I got into her car to ride home.
LEAH
Nervous was not the word I would use to describe my state of mind. Petrified was more on point. I had not visited a strange man’s house in several years and, judging from the sweat dripping off my brow, it showed.
It took every ounce of courage in my body to will myself from the car. His house was banging! Whoever said that police officers are overworked and underpaid obviously hasn’t swung by Coy’s crib, ’cause he has to have bank to be rolling like this. I hope he isn’t taking some of the drug money he collects! I double-checked the address to make sure I was in the right place, and unless he had written down the wrong street, I was where I was supposed to be.
His house was set back about forty-five feet from the curb, and I had to maneuver through his extensive garden before I made it to the front door. It was simply beautiful. I didn’t recognize half of the flowers. Momma would have been in heaven over there; running around trying to get cuttings for her own garden.
“What in the hell have I gotten myself into?” I spoke out loud as I approached the ornate double doors. It was the type of property that should have been guarded by two pit bulls. I waited for a minute to see if they would come rushing from the backyard.
My palms were sweating as I raised my hand to press the bell; praying that he was home. As I waited, I peeked at the other homes on the block; noticing that Coy’s lawn was the best. I rang the bell again.
I began to second-guess what I was really doing there at Coy’s house. Chances were that Kentee had come and gone and was no longer even thinking about me. Girl, be honest; you came to get your freak on. Why else would you bring Momma’s best lotion? Laughing, I looked around to see if anyone was watching me.
Sadly, Coy didn’t answer the door. I dug deep into my purse; searching for the key. My hands continued to find the same objects so I had to take a seat on one of his porch chairs and dump my purse out. “Finally!” I exclaimed when I spotted his key. I hastily stuffed my belongings back into my purse. I tried to fit the round key in the square hole as I prayed his neighbors were not watching me with high-powered binoculars during my botched entrance into his home.
After several tries, I finally got the door open. His alarm system screeched at me and I repeatedly tried to enter my code into his alarm system. It took a few tries before I remembered that I wasn’t in my own home. Luckily I got it right before the alarm alerted the company and they sent the police. How stupid can you get, I thought to myself. After I turned off the alarm, I took a few minutes to wander around his home. The silence was deafening.
His taste in furnishings was flawless. I was stunned because he could have easily had his house featured in Better Homes & Gardens. He had several pieces of African art that had to be originals, and he showcased them on pedestals. I could not help but to run my fingers along the exquisite curves.
I followed the hallway into his living room. His sofas were creamy white leather, and the plush carpet was creamy white as well. It was so thick and rich, I had to take off my shoes and enjoy it. The fireplace was to die for. It was one of those electric ones that produced the heat and appeared to be real but never used wood. Opposite that was a huge plasma television mounted to the wall. The electronic gadgets in this room were enough to make my head spin.
“Unh, unh, unh,” I said to the empty room.
I walked into his kitchen and stopped dead in my tracks. It would have made any woman want to be Betty Crocker. There was a large island in the center of the room and over it hung a wrought iron rack that held various sized copper pots and pans. I always wanted pans such as these, but I didn’t want to have to keep up the maintenance of polishing and cleaning them.
The stove was one of those state-of-the-art models that didn’t have any burners on them and you turned it on with the touch of a button.
“Brotherman must be able to waltz in the kitchen,” I said with a nervous giggle. I draped my body over the island, pretending that Coy was naked; cooking me breakfast as I watched. He was placing delectable items all around my pussy and I was the main course. I was so caught up in my fantasy that I didn’t hear Coy come in.
He laughed. “Dang, if I didn’t know better, I’d think that you’re happy to see me!”
I practically rolled right off the island. Good thing I didn’t because his white-tiled floor did not look as comfortable as his creamy rich carpet in the living room.
“Sweet Jesus! You scared the crap out of me!” I said, righting myself and acting like I wasn’t smack dab in the middle of a fantasy when he caught me.
His hearty voice vibrated against the walls as he laughed at me. He began unloading all of the tools of his trade on the kitchen table; his gun, radio, beeper, handcuffs, and cell phone. Stripped of his gadgets, he came toward me, making my knees quiver.
“Uh, I was merely visualizing you in the kitchen making breakfast for me in the nude!”
“Breakfast? It’s seven at night. Can I make you dinner?” he asked seductively.
“I already ate with the kids,” I replied.
“Then can I have dessert?”
Without waiting for a reply, Coy started to unbutton my shirt. He pushed aside the cookbooks he had stacked on the island and gently scooped me up; placing me on top. The polished surface felt cool against my bare back.
“Coy, stop. I want to take a shower first.” I felt like I had rolled in the mud; after the day that I’d had.
“No, I wanna taste it all.” Coy unzipped my pants and rolled them off my hips. He unfastened my bra in less than two seconds. When he was finished, I was only wearing a recently purchased pink thong.
He eyed me with his bedroom eyes, sending a tingle up my spine and down to my coochie! He licked his thick lips, and I creamed the thin layer of fabric that hid my wom
anhood from his eyes. I lay there on my elbows and watched him as he slowly undressed. The low light filtering in through the blinds enhanced the muscle tone of his body. His arms practically glistened as he took off his shirt and allowed it to drop to the floor.
My breath caught when his fingers traveled to his belt buckle. He made a big production of swirling his hips as he unleashed the beast and allowed his pants to hit the floor. He stepped out of the puddle they had made on the floor and moved closer to me. I had no idea what he had in mind, but I really didn’t care. Two steps before he reached me, he swung to the right and opened the refrigerator.
By this time, my twat was twitching in ecstasy. He showed me his magnificent ass as he bent into the fridge, taking his time with his selections. Part of me wanted to run for cover, and the other part wanted to bitch-slap him for taking so long.
Coy gathered his items and placed them on a side table. He pulled the high stool up in front of the island and started to gently knead my skin. I felt like he had pulled his chair up to the buffet and was about to chow down. He did not disappoint. It was such a deep massage that I allowed my eyes to close. My earlier goosebumps were quickly dissolving.
Homeboy was serving me up. He poured a liberal amount of pineapple juice on my toes, and the shit was cold, but he sucked them dry and left them feeling warm and toasty. I was so glad that I had used the money to get my toes done earlier in the week.
Changing bottles, he moved on, spreading liquid chocolate on my legs. He moved it around the front of each leg and licked every inch of it off. The chocolate was warm, and I could smell it as he licked it up. I wanted to kiss him; savoring the flavor of me in his mouth.
“Lawd Jesus!” I moaned out loud, trying to pull him close enough to stick his dick inside of me, but he would not cooperate. Next, from the fridge he pulled out chopped walnuts, which he spread on top of my vagina. Teasing me, he rubbed a few against my clit and I thought I would lose my mind. He placed a few inside my lips and I waited in anticipation for what was going to happen next.
Lawd, Mo' Drama Page 13