by Pinky Dior
“Yeah, I can tell.” Chino chuckled as he made his way over to the table which contained a silver platter. He slowly removed the lid and the steam escaped the platter as he brought the food over to Mercedes.
“Mhmm breakfast in bed, I must be doing something good.” She joked as she sat up in bed and placed her back against the head board. She wrapped the sheets around her chest.
“Yeah, you’re special.” He informed her, “I never did this for any other female.” He assured her as he placed the tray on the bed. It had pancakes, scrambled eggs with cheese, sausage and a glass of cold pulp-free orange juice. Her eyes lit up and her mouth watered as the steam entered her nose. Mercedes dug into her food; within minutes she consumed it all.
“Damn Ma, you were hungry.” Chino was amazed that she cleaned the entire plate as he placed it on the counter.
“Yeah Baby, thanks for the food.” Mercedes licked her lips as she got up from the bed. The sheets dropped down to the ground and Chino gazed at her body. He shook his head.
“Damn Ma, you look better with no clothes on.” Chino smirked as Mercedes looked back at him with a sexy grin.
“I gotta get home. Its 11:30 and my mom is expecting me back by noon.” Mercedes rushed to put her clothes on, she wished that she could take a shower before she went home. However, she didn’t want to be late getting home.
“Alright Ma,” Chino sat on the bed still in his towel. As he dropped the towel to the ground, Mercedes paused and eyed his butt. It was so firm and perfect. She giggled as she continued getting dressed.
“What’s so funny?” Chino asked, he turned around as he slid on his pants.
“Nada, hurry I have to go Babes.” Mercedes whined.
“Alright Ma I’m coming, I just need to put on my kicks.” He threw his shirt on his head and slipped into his Timbs. He grabbed his keys and they were on their way. As they sat in the car bumping to some Jim Jones, Mercedes replayed last night in her mind. The images of Chino making love to her sent chills down her spine.
“Last night was beautiful.” Mercedes said as she relaxed in the car as Chino drove her home. She turned to look at him.
“Yes it was beautiful, like music to my soul.” Chino smirked as he continued down 116h street. He was special to her, he was her first and she wanted him to be her last. She hoped that Chino felt the same way; she never wanted to leave him. More importantly, she didn’t want him to ever leave her.
Mercedes looked around as she unlocked the door to her home. She noticed that no one was around. She could hear her father in his office talking on the phone. She crept down the hall and passed his office. She slowly walked up the spiral stairs and went into her room. She plopped her bag down on her queen size bed and quickly came out of her clothes and threw them in the hamper.
Mercedes entered her bathroom, turned on the water and hopped in. Flashbacks of her and Chino making love made her feel so special inside. She washed her hair and her body with one of her favorite scents from Victoria’s Secret, Dream.
She hopped out of the shower, dried off her body and slipped on some blue jeans with a plain white shirt. She slid into a pair of white Nike flip flops. She stood in front of her mirror and removed the damp towel from her dripping hair. She dried her hair with the towel, and applied some mousse. She then headed downstairs. Just as she was doing so, she heard her father call out to her “Mercedes?” Don yelled.
“Yes Daddy.”
“Come downstairs now.” He demanded. Mercedes was scared shitless, her father sounded mad and she hoped he didn’t find out about her and Chino. When she got down to the bottom of the stairs, she saw her father and a young man she had never seen before. He was about 5’8,” he had a mocha skin color and his head was filled with curls. He had hazel eyes and his jaw structure was very masculine. He had a medium build, but his chest poked out of his shirt. He rocked a diamond earring in one of his ears. He was a plane Jane, but still cute though.
“I didn’t even notice you walk by my office.”
“That’s because you were on the phone Daddy, and I didn’t want to interrupt you.” Mercedes smirked; she knew how to have her way with her father.
“Neither did I.” Maria emerged from the kitchen and removed the apron from her waist. “When did you get in?” she asked.
“I got in about a half an hour ago; I was upstairs fixing my hair.”
“How was your night at Candy’s?”
“It was great; we watched movies and ate popcorn.” Mercedes smiled as she lied through her teeth about where she was and what she had been up to. She hated lying to her parents, but she had no choice this time. She couldn’t let them know she spent the night with Chino.
“Well, I cooked breakfast.”
“I already ate.”
“Oh okay.” Maria smiled. “Well I’m going to go upstairs and take a little nap, I’m tired.” Maria smiled as she kissed her husband on the cheek. “It was nice meeting you.” She smiled as she shook the guy’s hand.
“Mercedes I want to introduce you to one of my new worker’s, Emilio. Emilio this is my daughter Mercedes Carter.” He introduced them, “He’s from Cuba and he’ll be working for me.”
“It’s nice to meet you Emilio.” Mercedes extended her hand, but he got on one knee and kissed her hand. Mercedes was impressed. He stood up and gazed into her eyes, he never looked away.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you too Mercedes.” He had a weird smile on his face and a devious look in his eyes. Mercedes had never seen a look like his before. He was sexy and mesmerizing, yet frightening at the same time.
“You’ve raised a very beautiful young lady.” He looked at her father and smiled before licking his lips and staring at Mercedes.
“Isn’t she the most gorgeous girl?” Don said while pinching her cheeks.
“Daddy!” Mercedes barked as she kept her eyes on Emilio. “So how long have you been staying in New York?” She asked him.
“I just moved up here not too long ago, I have a place not too far from here on Long Island.
“Oh really, what made you move up here?”
“Well my family lives up here, I was visiting and I liked it. I decided to stay. New York is very beautiful.”
“So what do you do for a living?” Mercedes was getting extra personal.
“Alright, Mercedes,” Don chuckled. “That’s enough questions.” He placed his hand on her shoulder and gave her the eye.
“I’m just making sure that he’s on our Carter level.” Mercedes smirked at him before turning and heading back up the stairs. She looked over her shoulder and he winked at her with a wide smile on his face. Mercedes knew there was something different about him, but she didn’t know what it was. She was attracted to him a little bit, but her faithfulness to Chino wouldn’t let her stray. She did want to know more about this Emilio. He was very different and they had a clear attraction.
Later on while upstairs, Mercedes called Candy to tell her about her evening with Chino.
“Girl you lying like a motherfucker.” Candy couldn’t believe the news she was telling her. She was also on three-way with Hazel and Chamari.
“I ain’t lying.” Mercedes said cheesing ear to ear. “Last night, he made sweet passionate love to me. That shit hurt like hell, but that nigga got me open.”
“Damn girl, okay then you down with us now.” Hazel chuckled.
“What you mean?” she eagerly asked. “Not a virgin click.” They all burst into laughter. Their conversation was soon interrupted by a knock on Mercedes’ bedroom door.
“Hold on you guys,” she informed them as she placed the phone on her chest.
“Hello?” she sang.
“It’s Daddy.” He spoke loudly, “Can I have a few minutes?”
“Yes.” Mercedes said as she placed the phone back up to her ear, “I’m going to talk to you girls later. My father wants to talk to me.”
“Oooh you bouta get that ass beat.” Chamari added in.
“Whatever ya
’ll, bye.” Mercedes hung up and Don came in and took a seat next to her.
“So, what’s new in your life?” he inquired. Mercedes knew her father was trying to get at something, specifically Chino.
“What do you mean?”
“Any new friends, new male friends, you know any boyfriends?” They both chuckled.
“Well yeah, this boy named Chino the one you saw at the hospital that day.” Mercedes informed him.
“Oh really, where’s he from?”
“He’s from Harlem.”
“Oh word,” he nodded his head up and down.
“So when am I gonna meet him? Like really meet him, formally?”
“What?” Mercedes had a surprised look on her face.
“Well, I mean I want to know what type of dude I’m dealing with here. Especially when it comes down to my daughter, I need to see where his head is at. I’m not a perfect man Mercedes, but I want the best for you. I want more for you than this life.”
“Daddy, I know that.”
“I want you to finish school…go to college get a nice job and not have to depend on any nigga.”
He smiled as he shook his head, “Mercedes what I’m trying to say is I want the best for you, that’s all.” He playfully slapped her on the knee. “I want to meet this dude.”
“What about Friday night, that’s when mom cooks dinner.”
“Alright.” he stood up and stretched. “I have to see if I approve of you talking to this dude or not.” He seriously said.
“Come on Daddy.”
Mercedes watched him as he disappeared in the hallway and wondered what would happen at dinner. She was in love with Chino, and she loved her father to death. To choose one over the other could cause dire consequences.
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Friday night came sooner than Mercedes hoped. She helped her mother set up the kitchen table. Their maid Claudia was off, so her mom made dinner. Spanish yellow rice, baked seasoned chicken, vegetables and some plantains. Claudia was off, but insisted to stay and help set the table. Their thoughts were soon interrupted by the doorbell. Mercedes quickly stopped in her tracks and looked at her mother.
“He’s here,” she mumbled assume
ng it was Chino, “I’ll be back Ma.” “While I go to the bathroom and check how I look, can you open the door?” She quickly placed the napkins down on the table and rushed to the bathroom to check her make up.
“You look fine Honey.” Maria yelled out as Mercedes made her way down the hall. She looked over at Claudia and they both chuckled. Mercedes stood in the mirror and made sure everything was straight from her head to her feet. When she was done, she found Chino sitting in the kitchen and greeted him with a kiss on the cheek.
“Hey Chino.” She said as she blushed. The way he looked at her made her feel so special.
“Whassup?” he stared her down, “You look beautiful.”
“Thank you.” Mercedes saw that dinner was already served and quickly took her seat next to her man.
“I see ya’ll already started eating dinner without me.”
“No Mercedes, we were waiting for you to check yourself out in the mirror and all that good stuff.” Her mother smirked.
“Whatever Ma, you know I just went to use the bathroom real quick.”
“Where’s Daddy?” Mercedes asked as she looked at her mother.
“He had to handle some business. He said he’ll be here in a little while.”
As soon as that was said, she could hear her father coming through the front door. Don walked in and took off his jacket and tossed it across the couch. He walked into the kitchen and rolled up his sleeves.
“Hey Baby,” he walked over and bent down and kissed Maria on the cheek.
“Hey Honey.” Maria returned the kiss, “How was your day?”
“It was alright.” Don sighed.
“Hello sir, how are you doing?” Chino asked as he extended his hand, but Don completely ignored him.
“Daddy this is Chino, and Chino this is my father Don.” Mercedes introduced them and her father pulled out his chair and took a seat.
“It’s nice to meet you Don.” Chino said.
“It’s Mr. Carter to you.” Don shot back with his nose flared up.
“Alright, it’s nice to meet you Mr. Carter.” Mercedes gulped hard as she looked over at Chino and noticed he was biting his tongue. He didn’t let his pride take over him.
“This food is delicious Mrs. Carter.” Chino nodded his head, savoring the taste.
“Thank you,” Maria smiled, “I’m glad you like it.”
“So, you like my daughter?” Don asked bluntly after clearing his throat. Chino looked up and was cut off guard by his question.
“Yes, I find your daughter to be a highly intelligent and a very beautiful girl.”
“What do you want from her?”
“Excuse me?” Chino’s cocked his head back as he looked at Don with a perplexed look on his face.
“What are you intentions with my daughter?” Don asked again more aggressively.
“I don’t want anything from her sir. I like your daughter a lot. Matter of fact, I’m in love with her.” Chino admitted.
Mercedes almost choked on her chicken as she heard him tell her father that he was in love with her. She quickly soothed her dry throat with a drink to calm her nerves. Don quietly eyed Chino to see how genuine he was with his response. He took another bite of food as Maria changed the subject and hopefully the vibe. Tension surrounded the table and it was thick.
“So Chino, what do you plan on doing after high school?” Maria inquired.
“Well I mean I want to go to college for business and open up a few businesses of my own you know.” Chino smiled at the idea.
“What kind of business?” Mercedes chimed in, eager to know.
“Probably a nice clothing store, a book store, and maybe even own my own sneaker spot.”
“That’s really good, at least you’re going somewhere with your life.”
“Is it going to be a legitimate business or a drug front?” Don chimed in again, as he kept asking straight forward, blunt questions. Chino was really starting to get fed up with his smart ass questions.
“Legitimate.” Chino bit into his chicken and softly chewed, trying to remain as humble as possible. His jaw clenched and you could see the anger swelling in his face.
“So what is it that you do for a living?” Don asked Chino staring icily into his face. He was playing judge, jury and executioner and depending what Chino answered would seal his fate.
“Seriously am I the target here?” Chino questioned as he looked around the table. He couldn’t take it any more, he got up and said, “I’m sorry Mrs. Carter but I’m excusing myself from the table. Thanks for the dinner tonight.” he walked over and kissed her and Mercedes on the cheek.
“So how do make your money?” Don asked his question in a different way, seeing he didn’t answer his question. He stopped eating as he looked over at Chino and stared him in the eyes, waiting for a response. “I know your pretty ass don’t work at Mc Donald’s on 125th.”
“Don Carter!” Maria raised her voice. She never raised her voice at her husband and was angry that he was showing a bad first impression.
“You don’t have to answer that babe.” Mercedes said to Chino. Her eyes began to water in embarrassment and shame at her father’s behavior.
Chino squared his shoulders and took a deep breath knowing he wasn’t going to win this fight.
“I get by, just like you do. I sell drugs like you and my father. I provide for my mother, just like you do your daughter.” Chino’s eyes burned and his nose flared up at the interrogation.
“We don’t live in a fancy ass estate like this! We used to until my pops was murdered. The cops came in and took everything from us. They took everything we ever owned. They took my last pair of sneakers. I needed them because I didn’t have any other shoes. I asked them why they were taking my sneakers.” Chino l
aughed out of frustration. “They said they were brought with illegal money. So as a man, I have to do what I have to do to pay my mother’s bills and for anything else she wants. I’m a drug dealer, a gangsta from the streets. I’m from Harlem, born and raised.” Chino pounded on his chest as Mercedes watched her boyfriend carefully; she noticed the tears forming in his eyes. He wouldn’t let them fall. He was too strong for that.
He stormed out of the door in anger and didn’t look back. Mercedes quickly hopped up and tried to chase after him, but she couldn’t catch him.
“Chino?” Mercedes yelled, but he was already gone and the tires of his car echoed. Mercedes displayed the anger on her face without saying a word.
“How could you?” Mercedes spat as she plopped down in her chair. Her mother held her close to comfort her as she glared at her father.
“He’s a drug dealer Mercedes, you heard the boy.” He continued eating his food.
“He’s just like you Daddy.” Mercedes cried. “Just like you, a regular person who has to do what he has to do to get by.”
“I don’t want you seeing him anymore.” Don demanded.
“What? Why?” Mercedes questioned as tears streamed down her face.
“Because I’m your father and I said so.”
Mercedes picked up a glass and threw it against a wall shattering it into pieces. She ran up the stairs to her room in a rage.
She put on some soft soothing music, but it only reminded her of Chino and how much she loved him. Listening to love songs from Keyshia Cole and other artists definitely didn’t help. Mercedes sat up with her knees up to her chest and rocked back and forth. She heard loud footsteps walking up the stairs. Then she could hear her mother and father talking in front of her door.
“No Don, you aren’t right.” Maria sighed. “I mean she’s young and she’s in love with him don’t you see that?”
“She’s too young for love. She doesn’t know what the hell love is. She’s still fucking growing up, she’s still a baby.” Don barked.
“Wow, you’re so naïve.” Maria shook her head as she smirked.
“Naïve? I’m not naïve. I’m just looking out for my daughter. I don’t want her fucking with no buster ass drug dealing niggas. What can he do for my daughter? Get her caught up in the trap life? Make her end up pregnant?”