by Will Brown
T-Bird just shook her head while getting a plate. “You know something, I’m not going to fight with you tonight, but don’t push me.” You would have thought she and Q were married as much as they argued with each other, but when it came to Q, he needed someone like T-Bird to stay on his ass to chill him out because he was so arrogant.
She made the group complete because they appreciated her views as a female, which kept them from going over the edge and being too chauvinistic. She would also school them on which women were trying to scheme on them whenever they were together. You could feel how intimidated women felt by her finesse, which sometimes prevented them from trying to talk to any of the guys. But as they say, confidence is a powerful thing. They just didn’t realize it was open game and regardless, Q was always going to get his fair share of women around him.
JJ leaned over to T-Bird.
“So T, what’s on the agenda now that you’re finally divorced from Shaun?” he asked.
“I don’t know. I just want to get my life back on track and move on. Wait a minute, how did this become the topic of discussion?” she asked.
“Well, I just figured I’d ask, you know?” JJ said. “I mean Shaun and I go way back and I introduced you guys to one another. I just want us all to remain friends.”
“Friends you say? Well I’ll let you worry about that. Not after what I’ve been through,” T-Bird replied.
Everyone quieted. No one dared to say a word knowing how dirty Shaun had wronged her while handling their money during their marriage. It was T-Bird’s cross to bear because Shaun had been her husband before things had turned bad and he still loved her. But his actions just couldn’t be overlooked and he knew he fucked up big time as her husband and manager and lost her because of it. Nevertheless, JJ still believed in him.
Besides, everyone had their moments of being opinionated about each other’s relationships over the years and most of the time they were right. Trey knew nobody cared a fuck about Octavia, but they never showed her any disrespect and he loved them for that. They somehow found the strength to accept everyone’s demons and decisions and hope for the best. The moment they heard that he was finally letting go of Octavia, though, they were willing to celebrate.
Trey decided to announce it one night while they were all together in New York and while T-Bird was hosting a showcase. Somehow they knew it would only be a matter of time and T-Bird always told Trey, Octavio wasn’t the one for him and didn’t like her because she was ghetto. He just couldn’t get out of his mind the way she used to wrap her long legs around his back while fucking her in that 45-inch wide ass. He knew Q believed he was in denial about being attracted by her ghetto fabulous style—wearing those large diamond studded hoop earrings and her tattoo of a cobra on her thigh and butterflies on each ankle.
Sitting at the table with a smile on his face, Trey remembered the first time they’d met in this very club. He remembered asking her for a dance as she stood next to him. Her hair had been pinned up and she was wearing a skintight dress that exposed her stomach.
After a few drinks and some conversation, it was on and poppin' as they went back to her apartment. He shook his head and smiled. His mama had always said that where you met a woman determined what you got. And in the end, Octavia was just what he got from being out in the streets. She certainly wasn’t worth introducing to his mother.
Q asked JJ, “So JJ, how will you handle Vivian stealing money from the foundation’s trust account? I mean T-Bird is holding another check for $50,000.”
JJ answered, “Let me reassure everybody that my wife doesn’t have any further access to the foundation’s money or any other accounts! I’ve prevented anything like this from happening again by having counter signatures from at least one of us. Okay? I don’t think you understand how painful this is for me and to know it was my own wife who deceived me. It’s tearing me apart. I’ve already replaced that $50,000 she took. We have almost a million dollars in the account. This is our humanitarian contribution to our community to help these people get trade skills and education. For so many years growing up here we’ve watched the struggles of people not getting the assistance needed to make it. Now we can make a difference. This is T-Bird’s baby and after all the hard work she’s put in, she deserves to have the opportunity to make this work and that’s what’s got me messed up more than anything. Vivian—she didn’t even grow up here but we did.”
No one could deny that JJ was right and they nodded. They had influence and were willing to help raise funds however they could by sponsoring concerts, books signings with other entrepreneurs, and other diverse networks to help the foundation be successful and help their community. They shared JJ’s disappointment about how Vivian had been too proud to ask for their help to keep her brother Gerald out of jail—why she’d embezzled funds. Needless to say, they agreed that business was business and since the money had been replaced there were no hard feelings.
In other situations, a scenario like that could have destroyed friendships and even spilled blood. After all they came from the streets and know what it means when it comes to street justice. But they’d vowed that money would never create discord between them.
Right in the middle of the conversation, Vivian walked in and over to the table. By the look on her face everyone immediately sensed her guilt over what she’d done. She attempted to sit down, a fake smile on her face. She tried to say hello but broke down and began to cry.
“I’m so sorry everyone. Please forgive me. I was going to put the money back when Gerald came back. I didn’t know he was going to do something stupid and get caught before giving it back to me.” Once again there was only silence. T-Bird reached over to embrace her as she continued to cry. “JJ, go ahead and take your wife home. She needs you now. We’ll take care of the club until you get back,” Q said. Everyone tried to pull their emotions together while Q escorted JJ and Vivian to the door.
Standing in the doorway, Q just shook his head as he reminded himself, that it was the very reason he didn’t want to be in a relationship and certainly not married. He vowed that he was not going to go through the changes his boy was facing with his woman. The person who was supposed to have his back and who he should be able to trust had betrayed him and everyone else too. Still standing in the doorway, T-Bird and Trey walked over to him. “So what’s on your mind bruh?” Trey asked.
“Man do you really want to know? I think it’s fucked up! Vivian is supposed to be our accountant but she stole from us, or should I rephrase that, she ‘borrowed’ the money instead of asking us first.”
“You know Q, no one is perfect,” T-Bird said. “Sometimes things just happen. I don’t think she meant any harm. Now I agree she should have asked, but she didn’t. I mean I still have a lot of love for Vivian. She’s still my girl, you know?” T-Bird said.
“Bullshit," Q responded. "If I can’t trust my woman, then who do I turn to?” T-Bird and Trey turned simultaneously and looked at him.
“Well, you have more than one so don’t worry about it,” T-Bird said. The timing was perfect as they all began to laugh.
T-Bird’s cell phone began to ring. It was Desiree, her first cousin from Atlanta and a secret admirer of Q. She was calling to remind her about her arrival to Atlanta. Desiree was setting T-Bird up with interviews all around the states at the hottest radio stations along with some additional contacts to ensure she’d be taken care of once her tour began. Desiree was doing everything she could to keep Q’s name in T-Bird’s ear after realizing they were close friends and begging for a chance to get them together.
While continuing to listen to her pleading her heart out, T-Bird reluctantly contemplated the idea and recommended calling her later to continue the conversation. She had a lot of concerns. First of all, she didn't want Q treating her cousin like throw away trash as he has done with all the other women in his life. It was challenging enough knowing Desiree was family and Q one of her best friends- and now the possibility of the two hooking
up too? As far as T-Bird was concerned, it was out of the question. A bad idea.
It was after 11pm and the crowd grew larger. Most were showing up for the poetry reading, as the DJ played a super mix of classic hip hop and soul hits. Hearing the music, the people went wild and filled the dance floor. The DJ played another super mix before finally slowing down the groove in an effort to start the show. Before the song could end, JJ walked through the door with only minutes left to regain his composure in time to introduce the first act coming to the stage. Afterwards he walked over to thank Trey, Q and T-Bird for holding things together until he returned.
It was the midpoint of the summer and there were still plans to be discussed. It seemed as if more poets were coming in each week, expressing their creativity on the mic.
The Tea Pot was in a class by itself. It was where everyone who thought they were someone wanted to be. It was a melting pot for meeting extraordinary people. When celebrities came to town, you could always find them at The Tea Pot. And JJ constantly came up with new ideas and theme nights with a variety of entertainment on each level. He had three bouncers just in case incidents arose, but it was always a good night. He was ‘the man’ and well respected all over town. No one was going to ruin the best place around. Even the D-boys would leave their guns and drugs outside of the club in order to have a good time.
Back in the VIP booth, everyone was chilling out and continuing to have a good time when a very attractive Italian woman walked by and winked at T-Bird and waited for her response. Even though embarrassed, she smiled back and replied back to her.
“Sorry baby. I’m strictly dickly. Okay?” as she went into her purse to pull out her lipstick and began applying it across her lips.
The woman looked at her again and smiled before answering.
“Are you talking about the one in my purse or the one you’re used to? Don’t knock what you’ve never tried honey. You just might climb over to the other side.”
T-Bird’s green eyes widened as she folded her arms in front of her.
“I don’t think so baby, but thanks for the invitation anyway.” T-Bird turned back to the guys and continued her conversation, watching the woman walk away into the crowd. Everyone began to laugh hysterically until tears were rolling down their faces and almost falling out of their chairs, mimicking her response about being strictly “dickly.”
T-Bird had a since of humor and finesse. The average woman would have been ready to put a fist in the woman’s mouth and kick that ass.
“Well after that I definitely need another drink,” Q said while everyone attempted to recover. “Don’t even play like that girl.”
“We all need a drink after that one,” JJ responded.
“T-Bird, you are something else,” Trey said.
They attempted to forecast the next meeting in order to prepare for T-Bird’s press party and new single release. She’d worked hard and deserved it.
As the music began to wind down, three women stopped by the table on their way to the escalator to go to the cigar cafe. They listened in amazement as Trey, Q, and JJ started to sing. Their harmony was so tight that the girls started freaking out and wanted to hear more, so they agreed to sing a song T-Bird had written a few years back. Soon a group had gathered around the table listening to them. After they finished the crowd gave them a round of applause. Someone in the crowd put an old, top hat in the middle of the floor and everyone began to put dollar bills inside of it.
By the time JJ counted it all, there was over $400.00 in it. JJ gave it to the women who had asked them to continue singing after realizing they were from out of town. The evening came to a close and everyone said good night.
Trey arrived at the office at 8 a.m., barely able to keep his eyes open after being at the club so late. He was grateful for coffee and having a great secretary like India. He knew he could depend on her keeping him up to date. She managed his contracts from his meeting in Los Angeles beautifully. After a 3rd cup of coffee he tried to pull himself together.
India walked into his office.
“Mr. Edwards, here are the quarterly reports you were waiting on and also you received these documents from Apco, the company out in Chicago that was interested in possibly doing a merger.”
“Let me see those papers,” he said with excitement. Looking through them he knew it was going to be a success, merging with the cellular company because they were having financial difficulties and were almost bankrupt. His own company, Mobile Net, was pacing in the right direction, acquiring new markets and was strong on the stock market.
He then rushed down to the legal department to have his attorneys review the contracts to start the necessary process. Immediately afterwards he attempted to call JJ to tell him the good news but didn’t get an answer. Next he looked at India.
“India, would you please summon the entire staff to report to the annex for a town hall meeting? I’d like to inform every one of the progress we’re making.”
The meeting lasted almost forty-five minutes bringing everyone up to date and discussing new bonuses, before finally scheduling an employee appreciation week filled with festivities. As he walked out with his executives he felt very positive about the direction the business was moving towards and attempted to contact JJ again.
Reassured that his affairs were in order, he left the building to face the scorching heat which had peaked to the high 90s as he got in his car and headed to the other side of town. Everything was going right even though Octavia was still leaving messages and trying to find any way she could to persuade him to make time for her.
For the first time, he resisted picking up the phone, realizing she would only be up to her same old tricks again trying to get his money. Finally he had resisted the temptation to sleep with her knowing she possessed the ability to be his own demise. Trey was a successful millionaire and had everything he wanted.
Nevertheless his life was nothing short of chaos. He could be with any of the most influential and beautiful women anywhere yet he fell for a woman that served him nothing less than heartache. Finally he was able to remove the chains that were wrapped around his ankles, making him a slave to Octavia, as much as she was to his money. It was now time to redeem his courage and step up his game to find the right woman who would complement his life and secure with herself.
He laughed, thinking about the last woman he’d taken on a business trip after attempting to sever ties with Octavia. She’d made a scene from the room to the hallway because she thought it was all about getting her freak on, instead of enjoying a free trip and the amenities until he finished taking care of his business affairs.
In another situation, a business executive tried to throw in a perk by sending a cover girl to his room in the middle of the night in order to influence a deal with him. What he didn’t understand was that Trey wasn’t about to derail his business and all he’d acquired being a leader in the industry, by being set up with a cover girl. He was a black man who had to stay two steps ahead of the game to avoid all the business rhetoric in the corporate game. Even after all the pondering through his thoughts, it was still a beautiful day to admire the women walking around the city showing off their swagger on their lunch hour. Minutes later, he received a text reminder for a mall visit to find a pair of cuff links to go with a shirt for a dinner party.
To his surprise, suddenly a sports car pulled up beside him. It was one of his hip hop clients who was an engineer with 10 phone lines in his account. With three women inside, the music bounced from the stereo of the car filling the street, his client yelled out to him.
“Well, well, if it isn’t Trey Anderson. My man. What’s going one with you my brother?” he asked. Trey immediately gravitated to his streets smarts to reply.
“Jaybou — you know what it is. Trying to enjoy the moment. Everything good with you?”
“For sure my brother. I’m headed to the studio now help your girl T-bird with that new joint she’s about to release.”
“That’s good to hear” Trey replied. “That’s great. Keep holding it down. I’m looking forward to hearing it when you’re finished. I’m on the run, so I’ll holla..”
As the traffic light changed the car sped off. Minutes later arrived and entered a shop selling cologne. As he approached the counter, all the women working there all tried to be the first to get his attention. After all—he was as dark as coal, stood over six feet tall, and was an immaculate dresser.
“Is there anything I can help you with?” one of the young ladies asked, while giving him a smile. She wore a dress cut low in the front, exposing her cleavage.
“Yes, I’d like a bottle of that cologne. The one from the lower shelf please,” he said, pointing down at the case.
“Excellent choice, if I had a man this would definitely be the fragrance I’d want him to wear.”
“Really?” he responded, as he held the bottle up to his nose. “Well thank you for the compliment.”
“Is there anything else I can get for you?” the woman asked as she leaned even closer to him, allowing him to look even closer at her cleavage. Not even attempting to resist, Trey stared right down her dress while reaching for his bag. After all, it was what she wanted. He then watched the expression on the faces of the other women behind the counter as they waited to see if he was going to submit to the invitation being flirted at him. The woman placed a card with her phone number inside of his bag along with some new samples fragrances.
Walking out of the shop with a smile on his face, his ego enlarged, he went off to find cuff links for his shirt. On the way down the escalator, he could hear music from a jazz band that was performing in the middle of the atrium.
Eagerly, he made his way in their direction, as people gathered around, grooving to the songs they played. He took a seat at a table. Tapping his feet to the music with his bags next to him, he was captured by the beauty of a woman approaching him. All the men also seemed to notice her as she walked across the atrium in his direction. Judging from the look on their faces, there was absolutely no way he was going show that he was just as stunned as they were over her beauty. They attempted to get her attention as she continued walk through the crowd like a silhouette. She stood there with her long jet-black hair draping over her shoulders that shined deeper than satin, her skin appeared to glow like the color of honey or caramel.