by Deja King
When the Limo pulled up in front of the Four Seasons Hotel, Talisa had already fallen asleep. Genesis didn't want to wake her because she seemed as content as a newborn baby wrapped in her mother's arms. He still couldn't believe that in less than twenty four hours he went from imagining what it would be like to know her at the airport to now holding her in his arms in front of his hotel. "Talisa, were here," he said softly in her ear. "Oh, I got so comfortable I forgot where I was." "No problem. Get your purse. I'll take you up to the room. And CoCo, I'll hit you up tomorrow so we can handle that." Deuce got out first, and Genesis held the door open so Talisa could get out. "By the way, Talisa, don't forget to call Arnez. I'm sure he'll be waiting to hear from you," CoCo reminded her. Talisa seemed to ignore CoCo's comment and let the door shut behind her. CoCo was tempted to call Arnez and let him know Talisa's whereabouts, but knew that it would only cause problems for Genesis. And since they were doing business together she didn't want to bring drama in his path. "You worried about the two of them aren't you?" Chanel asked, reading her sister's mind. "And I have reason to be. Did you catch how they were looking at each other? I noticed that shit in the club but let it slide. Now Genesis un' saved that chick's life and they're going into a hotel together. This seems like some shit straight out of a romance movie. But this ain't Hollywood and those motherfuckers ain't acting." "So what you gon' do?" "What the fuck can I do? They grown. Hopefully Talisa values her life and Genesis will come to the conclusion that fucking with her would be more trouble than what it's worth. I'm staying out the shit. I have a lot of love for Arnez, but one thing I've learned is that when it comes to relationships of the heart, the messenger is the one that always catches it hard. Shit, that's Arnez calling me now." CoCo held up her phone showing Chanel his name on the screen. "You not gonna answer it?" "And tell him what? That I just dropped off his woman at the hotel with the guy I'm about to make some serious paper with? I think not. Chanel, I don't even have to school you on how the game go. We all out here trying to get the same thing-money. I ain't about to let some pussy get in the way of that. Arnez will try to shut down my dealings with Genesis before they even have a chance to begin if he thinks he's breathing in his girl's direction. Where would that leave me? He ain't gonna step in and lace my pockets with that paper. If anything, he'll probably blame me for having Genesis around his girl. Nah, I'm keeping my hands clean on this one. The only person I'm loyal to is you. That's because we got the same blood, and if I go down, you go down too. But everybody else, it's strictly business." "I feel you. That's real talk. You see how I handled them motherfuckers in that club tonight? I wasn't about to let that shit go down." "Yeah, you did your thing, ma. I held my tongue around Genesis and Deuce, but that shit got me bothered. I believe them shooters were aiming specifically for me. And whoever let them in knew that, so they co-signed. I need to know who was in charge of door security. I know it was Arnez's party, but I doubt he has a clue who was handling that. That's something the club would take care of. I don't want to go around asking too many questions and bring unnecessary heat on me or let the person or people behind it know that I'm hip to what's going on." "That's smart." "Umm hum, they should've prayed that I got taken out on the first try, because when I get to the bottom of this bullshit there's going to be a lot of slow singing and flower bringing."
When Genesis and Talisa entered his suite, he was relieved that he put in a late night request for the maid to clean his room before leaving for the club. He had done it originally because he figured he would meet some young lady at the party and bring her back to the hotel and twist her out, but making a good impression on Talisa far exceeded that. "I'm gonna get a few of my things and then head over to Deuce's room. Do you need anything before I go?" "Do you have to leave? Honestly, I don't want to be alone. I felt so secure when you held me in the car and I need for you to let me fall asleep in your arms." Genesis stared at Talisa, not saying a word. "Forget it. I guess you're thinking I should've gone home with Arnez because it's not your responsibility to take care of me. I understand. I'll try to be gone first thing in the morning." Talisa started messing with the blanket and pillows on the bed, feeling stupid for asking Genesis to stay with her and taking his silence as rejection. "I would love to stay with you." "You mean that? But you were speechless when I asked you." "Being surprised by something does that to me. There's no place I would rather be than holding you as you fall asleep. That's the truth." "I appreciate you saying that. Do you have a T-shirt I can sleep in?" "Yeah." "Thanks. I'm going to take a shower so you can leave it in the bathroom." Talisa let the hot water drench her body as she tried to figure out what she was doing. Arnez was her boyfriend, but yet she was falling for another man that she barely knew, but being with Genesis felt so right to her. With him there wasn't this sense of pressure. That was in contrast to how she felt being with Arnez. Talisa reminisced about the first day she met Arnez. She was leaving the campus at NYU after finishing one of her classes. She was rushing across the street trying to get to the cleaners before they closed because she was going to a party later that night and wanted to wear her favorite red dress. When she got to the middle of the street she noticed a SUV zooming towards her, trying to catch the light before it turned red. All she remembered hearing was this loud screeching noise as the driver pushed down on his breaks. She began apologizing profusely because the signal said "Do Not Walk in" big ass white letters, which she ignored. But the driver was a complete gentleman. He pulled his car over to the side of the block to make sure she was okay. "A pretty young lady like you has to be more careful. If I wasn't paying attention I could've ran you over." "I know. I'm in a rush and I wasn't thinking straight." "Where are you going? I can give you a ride." "Thanks, but no thanks. You're a stranger. I don't even know your name." "My name is Arnez Douglas. It's a pleasure to meet you." He extended his hand and Talisa couldn't help but be blinded by the huge, flawless diamond ring adorning his pinky finger. "And your name is?" "Talisa Washington." "So now can I give you that ride?" "I don't think so. I really have to be going. The cleaners is going to be closing any minute. Again, sorry for the mishap." Talisa turned and sprinted down the block, but Arnez wasn't going to let her get away that easily. He got in his SUV and slowly drove down the block she was on until he saw her banging on the front door of the cleaners. He rolled down the passenger window and blew his horn, determined to get Talisa's attention. "I guess they're closed," Amez said, stating the obvious. "They literally closed five minutes ago. Somebody has to still be there." "Let's make a deal. If I can get them to open the door and give you your clothes, you'll go out to dinner with me tonight." "How in the hell are you going to do that?" "That's not your concern. Do we have a deal or not?" "I can't go out to dinner with you tonight. I'm going to a party." "I won't take more than an hour of your time. We'll have a quick bite and then I'll drop you off at your party. If you don't enjoy my company then we can go our separate ways and call it a done deal. What do you say?" "Fine, but I'm only agreeing because I'm curious as to how you're going to get my clothes." Arnez put on his hazard lights and stepped out his truck. "You stay here, I'll be right back." He disappeared into the convenient store adjoining the cleaners and then came out five minutes later smiling. "So what happened?" Talisa then heard the familiar bell ringing and turned her head to see the door to the cleaners opening. She threw her hands up in confusion. "What did you do?" "Get your clothes and I'll tell you about it over dinner." That night, Talisa did enjoy her dinner with Arnez, but no matter how many times she asked, he wouldn't reveal how he got someone to open the front door to the cleaners. After going out on a few more dates, it became clear to Talisa that that was how Arnez operated. He never wanted her or anyone else to know how he got things done, whether big or small. He got off on having a shroud of mystery surrounding him, and everyone around him trying to figure out his moves. It was also another way of Arnez keeping control of all situations. If he was the only one that had the inside blueprint on getting something done, no one s
tood a chance of beating him to the punch. At first the tenacity inArnez's personality drew Talisa in, but over time it was starting to become a turn-off. Because she lived in New York and he spent the majority of his time in Atlanta, it took a while for her to get a complete inside view of some of his less than stellar traits. But with school being out and spending a great deal more time with him, the last couple of months were a real eye opener. Every move he made seemed to be a game to him, and the people and things in his life were like possessions he used in his games. More and more Talisa was becoming fed up with being another prize he had added to his collection. Enough about Arnez. If only for this one night I want to fall asleep not worrying about what Arnez wants or how he would feel, Talisa said to herself as she dried off. She put on the wife beater Genesis left in the bathroom for her, and part of her wished that he was her man. When she came out the bathroom, Genesis was already in the bed and looked to be sleep. She observed him for a moment, studying his chiseled bone structure and caramel skin that looked as if it would melt on your fingertip with the slightest touch. After, Talisa turned off the light on the nightstand and laid beside Genesis. He reached over and wrapped his arm around her waist as if he'd been waiting to invite her in.
"Hello," CoCo answered halfway sleep. "I've been calling you all night. Where is Talisa at?" "Arnez, is that you?" CoCo knew he would be the only person calling her looking for Talisa, but she needed the extra time to get her lie situated in her head. She regretted even answering the phone, but because he caught her offguard and she wasn't fully alert, her natural instant was to answer her cell. Normally, any call this early in the morning pertained to business. "Of course it's me. Now where is Talisa? Did she spend the night with you?" "No, she said she was getting a room." "So what hotel is she at?" "I don't have a clue. The driver dropped me and Chanel off first and then took her wherever she wanted to go." "Well give me the number to the driver. I'll call him." CoCo had to sit up in bed and concentrate on her word usage because Arnez was on his game. "Damn, Arnez! I don't have that information. I don't even have a clue what car service that was because some people I was rolling with got the Limo. I was merely a passenger. I'm sure Talisa will be calling you soon. She's probably sleep. Don't stress yourself. But um... on another note, what happened at your party? It's like a war broke out in there." "Who you telling? I got my people on it. Whoever's responsible for that bullshit ruined my fuckin' birthday party, and they will pay." "Well, if you find out anything let me know." "No doubt." CoCo decided to call Genesis and wake him up to discuss business, hoping it would speed up the process of getting Talisa out of his hotel room. CoCo had to call his phone three different times before he finally answered. "Yo," Genesis answered, looking at the clock to see what time it was. "Genesis, it's nine o'clock. You need to get up so we handle the rest of our business." "I thought we weren't meeting up until this afternoon." "Some shit changed up at the last minute and we need to handle this earlier than originally planned." "So what time you looking at? "Now. I can meet you in front of the hotel in an hour." "Damn, that soon?" Genesis looked over his shoulder and Talisa was sleeping so peacefully. "I need two." "Two what?" "Two hours." "Alright, I'll see you at eleven." When CoCo hung up the phone she knew the reason Genesis needed more time was because Talisa was lying right beside him. "That nigga do not know what he is getting himself into," CoCo said, shaking her head.
Genesis's dick was rock hard staring at Talisa's body while she slept. The thin material of the wife beater was exposing her perfectly round breasts and erect nipples. Her succulent thighs were spread slightly apart, and Genesis wanted to slide his hand up her smooth skin and enter her sugar walls, but knew he had no right. Instead he got out of bed and took a cold shower. After getting dressed he went next door to Deuce's room to wake him up. When Deuce answered he was still in his boxer shorts, rubbing his eyes. "Man, what you doing over here so early? You supposed to be snuggled up with Miss High Class." "CoCo woke me up saying that we needed to meet earlier. So get dressed. She'll be here in an hour." "That's cool. But let's get to the good shit. Don't think I forgot you were supposed to stay in my room last night. But yo' slick ass never came back. So how did it go? Was the pussy as good as you imagined or was it overrated?" "Deuce, two things: First, nothing went down between me and Talisa last night. She didn't want to be alone so I stayed with her. Two, when and if I take it to that level with her, I won't be discussing it with you. You've used up your one time to ask me some disrespectful shit about her because you've been warned." "A'ight, I get the message. You feeling homegirl and she's off limits. `Nuff said." "Cool. I'll see you downstairs at eleven." When Genesis got back to his room, Talisa was still sleep. He decided not to wake her up and ordered room service. He sat in the chair by the window watching Talisa sleep while he waited for his breakfast. It seemed like yesterday he walked out of the juvenile detention facility, and now eight years later he was chilling in the Four Seasons Hotel with the most exquisite woman lying in his bed.
When Genesis turned eighteen and got released from the joint, he had no idea what would become of him. He returned to Philly with no family to go home to. He hadn't heard from his mother in years and didn't know if she and his sister were dead or alive. His father's side of the family didn't want anything to do with him and his grandmother on his mother's side hadn't heard from her daughter either. It was as if she disappeared without a trace. For the first few months after Genesis came home his grandmother let him live with her, but soon he grew annoyed with the arrangement. Even though Genesis was extremely intelligent and got his high school diploma while locked down, he couldn't find a decent j ob. Now that he was out and away from the bad influences while in juvenile detention, part of him wanted to take some college courses and work towards getting a Bachelors Degree. But his grandmother wasn't having it. She demanded he get a job and help with the household bills if he wanted to live under her roof. He eventually landed a job doing some construction work, and for the next couple of years he worked a few different gigs but hated the long hours with minimum pay. One afternoon while on a lunch break he ran into his childhood friend, Deuce. He convinced him, which wasn't hard to do under the circumstances, to leave that job making peanuts and come hustle with him on the streets. A few weeks later he moved out of his grandmother's house and shacked up with Deuce. For Deuce, hustling on the streets was an easy way to afford nice clothes, a semi-fly whip, trick on pussy, pay some bills and keep money in his pockets. His ambition in the game never exceeded that. But for Genesis it was an opportunity to live another life. His goal was to take over and dominate the streets of Philly. Deuce would just laugh every time Genesis would express those dreams. He didn't understand why Genesis felt the need to achieve so much. But being left alone with no mother, no father and never knowing his sister made Genesis feel that he had something to prove. He wanted everyone that abandoned him or told him he would never have shit to regret turning their backs on him. So while most of the young hustler's in the streets were either at the mall, running up in pussy or flossing in the club, Genesis stayed on the block trying to stack paper. It was difficult to make his mark because the game had cliques, which kept him on the low-level of the playing field. After many years of taking a few loses and having to start all over from scratch, Genesis had found his flow and was on his way to making some real coins; that was until the robbing crew made him their next target. But in the end it all worked out, and now he was closer than ever to being one of Philly's untouchables.
Genesis checked his Audemars Piquet watch and realized it was time for him to meet CoCo. Talisa hadn't yet awoken from her deep sleep so he wrote her a quick note with his phone number on it. After grabbing his wallet and heading to the door, he paused and walked back over to the bed. He couldn't resist placing a gentle kiss on her lips before leaving.
When Deuce came out the lobby, he couldn't believe he was the first one there. Normally Genesis was early for all business dealings. Damn, that chick must got him open, he thought
to himself. A few seconds later he noticed Chanel pulling up in a navy blue Range Rover with CoCo in the passenger side. CoCo rolled her window down, and the first thing she said was, "Where's Genesis? He isn't with you?" "He'll be down in a minute." "Is he up there with Talisa?" "Damn, ma, you just came right out with it. I don't be following dude's movements like that. You gonna have to ask him." "I'll take that as a `yes' then." "You can take it however you like. But shit, it ain't my pussy and it ain't yours, so why you even give a fuck?" "Because we got business to take care of and I don't like waiting." "Then take yo' ass upstairs and get him. He in room 1106. But it'll be a waste because by the time you get there he'll be down here. So fall back and relax. It's only 11:05." CoCo rolled her eyes and he peeped Chanel giving him a dirty look. "My fault," he said, raising his hands up and continued jokingly, "I don't want to piss off the treacherous twins. CoCo, please don't sick Chanel on me. I saw firsthand how she handles her business." "Whatever, nigga. Ain't nobody thinking about you. I do know Genesis need to hurry up." "Here he comes now." Chanel was the first one to see him coming out the door. "It's about time!" CoCo snapped. "My fault. I lost track of time." "Yeah, that's what happens when you sniffing after pussy." "Yo, CoCo, you outta line with that. We here to do some business, so stay clear of my personal dealings. That means keep those salty comments to yourself." "Ain't nothing salty about it. But that is my man's girl and I don't want to get caught in the middle of no drama. As a matter of fact, I'm trying to look out for your best interest." "I'm good. But the less questions you ask, the less you know. That's how you keep yourself from being caught in the middle." "I hear you. But because I believe we can make a lot of money together I'm going to give you fair warning. Arnez is not to be fucked with. So I don't care how pretty the face or tempting the pussy, no bitch is worth your life, and that's what your playing with if you get caught up with Talisa. So don't say I didn't tell you from jump. Now I'm done." If CoCo was trying to aggravate Genesis she had accomplished it, but what she didn't accomplish was placing enough fear in him to stay away from Talisa. No matter what obstacles and hardships Genesis had been through in life, he believed he could get whatever he desired if he was willing to put in the work. And when it came to Talisa, he had already made up his mind that she was worth the work. "I appreciate the warning, CoCo. I'll keep it close to my heart." CoCo couldn't tell if he was being serious or sarcastic, but opted to let it go. "Good. Now ya ready to go?" "Yep, the valet is pulling the car around now. We'll follow you to the spot. Let's go, Deuce." "Yo, homegirl is a trip," Deuce said once they were out of listening distance. "She act like Arnez is some brutal top five most wanted list type nigga." "I don't give a fuck if he is. That nigga bleed just like you and me. His time move at the same pace as mine, so it is what it is." "You right about that, but I know you're feeling Talisa, and if homeboy is a little psycho then maybe you need to back off." "If I back off, it won't be because of Arnez, it'll be because that's what Talisa wants. Man, I'm just going with the flow. I'm going to follow her lead."