The mess was Mama slept with her sister’s husband. I’d share that information with Hasaan later.
“So, I’ve met your little brother. Your folks still living?” she asked Hasaan.
“Yes, ma’am. They’ve been married nearly forty years,” he replied.
“It’s just you and your brother? No other kids?”
“Yes, ma’am, just me and Rafiq.”
“Hmm, y’all sure do look alike, except that boy is high yellow.”
Hasaan chuckled. “Yes, he is.”
“A lot of years between y’all?”
“Yes, ma’am. Thirteen.”
“Lawd! You was about grown when your mama had that boy!”
“Yes, ma’am.”
He started playing with his food and I wished Mama would move on, because I knew Rafiq was a sensitive subject for him, especially since they still weren’t talking.
But Mama just dug in deeper. “I haven’t seen him around much lately, though. What’s he been up to?”
“Mama, what is this in these beans? Smoked turkey?” I asked.
“Hell, no!” she shouted. “You know I don’t put that bullshit in my beans and greens! That’s pork! Smoked neck bones!”
“You put turkey in your peas, though, right?” I asked.
She stared at me like I had three heads. “Denise, have you lost your damn mind asking me some shit like that?”
“Well, what’d you make the cornbread with?” I questioned. “Jiffy mix?”
That really pissed her off. I knew it would, and of course she started cursing me out, but at least the spotlight was off of Hasaan.
Later that night while we lay in Hasaan’s bed, he said, “Your mama is a trip. And Friend? She got him whipped!”
I laughed. “Got to be. Why else would he hang around her crazy ass?”
“I know the feeling,” he said, squeezing me tighter to him.
“I got you whipped, baby?”
“Like you don’t know. I hit my own brother over you.”
I sat up in the bed. “What?! When?”
He sighed.
“H, you can’t tell me something like that and think I’ma let it drop. Tell me, baby.”
“It happened the day I talked to him about calling late at night and stuff. We were at the shop and I told you he said some disrespectful shit about you, and I just lost it. Jumped over the desk and punched him in the nose. After he hit me back, we both realized what we were doing and stopped. I left, and so did he. You know I haven’t seen or talked to him since.”
I reached over and rested my hand on his cheek. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. Are you…are you okay?”
He shrugged as he reached up and placed his hand over mine. “My parents are pissed about us getting into it, but I got you. I got friends. That’s all I need.”
“H…your parents are mad at you, too? I…”
“Don’t worry about that. They’re always mad at me about something. I can never do anything right as far as they’re concerned.”
“Really, baby?”
“Yeah, but look, I’m good. I got you; my business is making money. I’m happy, baby. I got all I need. I accepted a long time ago that I wasn’t gonna be able to please them. That’s why you haven’t met them. I don’t want to expose you to their bullshit.”
“I’m a big girl. I can hold my own, baby.”
“Yeah, I know. Hey, come here.”
I rested in his arms again.
“I love you, Denise.”
“I love you, too, H.”
29
I was sitting on Hasaan’s desk, my legs hanging over the side as he stood between them kissing me. My hands were on the sides of his face, rubbing the coarse stubble. His hands were sliding up and down my back. Noise from the front of his shop tore us apart, and Hasaan smiled down at me, and said, “Thanks for the ride to work this morning, baby.”
“Mm-hmm, it’s your turn tomorrow,” I replied.
He leaned in and kissed my neck, while sliding his hand down to my butt and grabbing a handful. “I know.”
“H, stop. We both need to be working.”
“Shit, I’m tryna put in some work right now.”
“H! Your client is here!” Lola called through the closed office door.
“Damn,” he muttered, his mouth covering mine. “See you at lunch?”
“Yep, and don’t forget about our date tonight.”
“I won’t.”
As we stepped into Trudeau’s Jazz Club that evening, I smiled. We looked good, him in a pair of khakis and a white dress shirt, me in a short, white empire-waisted dress that showcased my girls and flowed over my wide butt and hips. A pair of tan, strappy sandal heels completed my look.
We settled at a table, ordered drinks, and just enjoyed the ambiance of the place—intimate, atmospheric, warm. There was an awesome saxophonist onstage, blessing the crowd with his version of Kenny G’s Songbird. I was feeling so good and so proud to be sitting across from this fine man. He was so different from any man I’d ever known. Strong, but kind. Hard, but gentle. And I had no doubt that if need be, he’d take anyone out to defend me. He was my protector, my hero, and I loved him so much for that.
A woman approached our table, spoke to both of us, and then mentioned having been in Elite Ink before with a friend. She said something about scheduling an appointment with Hasaan, and although her thirst was clearly evident, I didn’t let it bother me. I didn’t let the fact that three other hounds approached him bother me, either. Shit, I was the one at the table. I was the one he spent his nights with. I was the woman he loved, and he made sure I was aware of that each and every day.
“What are you smiling about?” Hasaan asked, as he reached across the table and grasped my hand.
“I’m smiling, because never in a million years did I ever think I’d be sharing my bed, my life, and my heart with the best man in the world.”
He grinned. “Aw, baby...thank you. Never did I think I’d be with someone as perfect as you.”
“Hmm, well, if I’m so perfect, why don’t you kiss me?”
He stretched his body across the table and laid a lingering, smoldering kiss on me.
Take that, thirsty heifers.
*****
“Baby, come on! The next episode’s about to start! What are you doing?” I shouted from my spot on the sofa.
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll be there in a minute. You don’t need me in there, anyway,” he replied from my bedroom.
“H, what are you talking about?”
“I’m talking about how your ass be drooling when you watch that show. I don’t know who you’re thirstier for, Luke Cage or Cottonmouth.”
“How you gonna say I’m thirsty for them when I got your fine ass right here with me, putting it on me every night?”
“I do be putting it on you, don’t I?”
I rolled my eyes. “I’m not gonna keep having this conversation with you in another room. Come here,” I whined.
“No! Not until you find something else to watch.”
“But I wanna see this.”
“You done watched the whole season six or seven times.”
“So.”
“You know what? I’ma be in there in a minute and I’ma give your ass something to watch.”
“Whatever. Hurry.”
My phone began to vibrate against the coffee table, and when I checked the screen and saw that it was Derek calling me, I panicked. He never called me. Was something going on with Greer or little Kennedy? “Hello?” I answered.
“Hey, Denise? It’s Derek. How’ve you been?”
“Great. You?”
“Better than great. Hey, I don’t have long. I’m in the bathroom so Greer won’t hear me, so let me get straight to the point.”
“Uh, okay...”
“The Neo Soul Festival is coming up. You know that’s where Greer and I first met, and we haven’t been back since. I want to surprise her by taking her back there this year,
but to make it extra special, I want you and Trevia to be there. She’s always talking about how she wishes you guys could travel with us sometimes.”
“Wow, Derek, that would be awesome! I’d love to go. I can start making plans now. What are the dates?”
“The weekend of August eighteenth through the twentieth. I’ve already talked to her parents about coming here and keeping Kennedy for us. I’ve also talked to Trevia, and she and Nyles will definitely be there because he’s set to perform that Saturday afternoon. So, they’ll meet us there. If he’s free, Hasaan is invited, too. Greer and I can pick you two up in one of our jets. I’ve already rented a really nice four-bedroom house in the area so we can all bunk together. I’ve also got VIP tickets for all of us, and I’ll take care of the ground transportation. All you guys have to do is pack a bag and be at the airport for us to scoop you up.”
“Okay, let me check with Hasaan real quick. Hold on.” I hopped up from the sofa and headed to my bedroom to find it empty. Seeing the bathroom door closed, I tried the knob; it was locked. “You in there funking up my toilet?” I asked.
“What you want, woman?” he asked through the door. I relayed the details of Derek’s invitation to him, finishing with, “You think your schedule will allow us to go? I don’t wanna go without you.”
He cracked the door open and stuck his head out. “Baby, I don’t give a damn if I got Barack And Michelle scheduled that weekend, I’ma reschedule their asses, because we’re going!”
I was grinning too hard when I told Derek we were in.
“Great! Don’t forget it’s a surprise, so keep it on the hush, okay?”
“Got it.”
“I’ll call you later with more details.”
“Okay, thanks, Derek.”
Ending the call with him, I grabbed the remote and started episode five of Luke Cage. My Roku was one of the first things I purchased after I got that money from Kevin—one of the first and few things. I was still sitting on that money like it was a recliner, but I made up my mind to splurge a little at the festival. Plus, I was gonna need some new clothes and to get my hair done. Maybe I’d get some braids.
I had just taken a sip of my soda when he stepped into the room and quickly made his way to stand in front of the TV, butt ass naked and oiled down like a fitness model. I damn near choked on my drink when I let my eyes drop down to see that he was aroused.
He raised an eyebrow at me, and said, “I told you I’d give you something to look at.”
“Damn, you’re fine. Shit, I think you get finer by the hour,” I said, staring at him like he was a blockbuster movie. “Come here.”
“Nah, I thought you wanted to watch Luke Cage’s fine ass,” he said, mocking my voice when he uttered the last part.
“H, come here and stop playing.”
“Nah, I thought Cottonmouth looked so damn hot in them suits.”
“Baby, are you jealous of some dudes on a show that I’ll never meet?”
“Hell, yeah!”
“As fine as you are, you don’t have nothing to worry about.”
“I can’t tell.”
“Come here, and I’ll prove it.”
He finally walked over and sat next to me, pulling me into his lap, sliding his hand into my panties, and stroking me while kissing me deeply. Then he nodded toward the TV. “Turn that shit off and watch Big Daddy go to work.”
I fumbled for the remote. “Yes, sir.”
*****
“You excited about this trip coming up?” Hasaan asked, as I packed my bag. It was still a couple of weeks before we headed to Virginia for the Neo Soul Festival, but I wanted to get everything together in plenty of time.
I nodded as I folded a black teddy and placed it at the bottom of the suitcase. “Yeah, I’m excited about spending some time with my girls, but more than that, I’m excited about taking a trip with you for the first time.”
He grinned as he lay on his side in my bed, watching me. “Denise, move in with me.”
I looked up at him and frowned. “Baby, we already basically live together.”
“No, we take turns sleeping over at each other’s apartments. I mean, I want us to live together in one place.”
I stopped packing and gave him my full attention. “You’re serious?”
“Yeah…why wouldn’t I be? I love you, you love me, and well, it would make things easier if we lived together. You couldn’t start packing until you gathered all your stuff from my place. I got stuff over here…it just would make more sense if we moved in together.”
I sat on the bed and placed a hand on his leg. “Okay.”
He sat up, a surprised look on his face. “Really?”
“Yeah…but why I gotta give up my place?”
“Actually, I was thinking we could both give up our places and we could get another one together.”
I thought about it for a second. As much as I loved my little place, we could use more room. Both of our places were tiny. So, I said, “Okay.”
“Damn, really?”
I nodded. “Yeah, really.”
He scooted closer to me, grabbed my arm, and pulled me to him, kissing me. When our lips parted, he said, “I’ma make you so happy.”
“You already do.”
30
Evidently, rich people see things differently from regular people, because what Derek called a house was in actuality a mansion. Shit, I was rich, wasn’t I? I still wasn’t used to that. Anyway, the place was huge, and each of the four bedrooms had its own bathroom. The enormous kitchen was fully stocked with food. The bar in the living room was fully stocked, too. This weekend was going to be lit as hell!
By the time me, Hasaan, Derek, and a giddy Greer made it to the house in a limo, Trevia and Nyles were sitting in the driveway in another limo waiting for us. All three of us chicks hugged and laughed like a bunch of lunatics once inside the house. We were all so excited and in love and shit, neither of us knew what to do. It had literally been months since we’d all seen each other. Of course, we kept in touch via phone, but Nyles’ tour had kept Trevia out of Texas, and sister girl looked good! But then, she’d always been gorgeous.
As the men carried our bags to our bedrooms, we three sat in the living room and caught up. We gushed over how good we all looked, and Greer showed me and Trevia pictures of Kennedy, and we oh’d and ah’d over the tall toddler. While she had apparently inherited her father’s height and thick hair, she’d inherited Greer’s everything else. She was such a cutie, and she’d grown so much in the months since I’d last seen her.
“I’ve got to get to Houston more often to see her,” I said.
“Me, too!” Trevia chimed in. “One more month and this tour will be over. I can’t wait to get back to Texas and be still for a while. I miss my boutique.”
“How’s it doing without you?” Greer asked.
“Girl, business is booming. It’s doing better than ever without me being there.”
“Wow,” I said.
“How’s your business going, Denise?” Greer questioned.
“Really well. Keeping me busy,” I said.
“Humph, that ain’t all that’s keeping you busy. Y’all found a place yet?” Trevia probed.
I shook my head. “No, we’re still looking. Can’t find anything we both like.”
“Well, at least money isn’t an issue.”
I dropped by eyes. “Yeah, well, Hasaan doesn’t know that.”
“Oh, shit,” Greer said.
Trevia’s mouth dropped open. “All these months y’all been together and you haven’t told him?”
“No, I haven’t told anyone but you two. Y’all didn’t tell anyone, did you? Not Even Nyles or Derek?” I asked, panicking just a little.
“No!” they said in unison.
“But you ain’t sleeping with our men,” Greer added. “You’re sleeping with Hasaan. I mean, shouldn’t he know?”
“No,” I answered.
Before either of them could utter a
nother word, our men returned, all three eager to show us to our rooms. I knew Hasaan wanted to get into something, too. I was pretty sure the other men had the same plans for Greer and Trevia.
*****
On the first night of the festival, I dressed in a red skater dress with little white polka dots, and red sandals. The dress showed enough cleavage to keep Hasaan glancing at my chest and was short enough to give him a full view of his favorite parts of my body, my legs and thighs. The headliner for the evening was Kindred the Family Soul. All six of us drank and danced and attempted to sing along with the dynamic, married singing duo. A good time was had by all of us, and once the limo dropped us off at the house, we all climbed the winding staircase to our respective rooms to rest up for day two of the festival, anticipating Nyles’ performance the next afternoon.
While Hasaan was in the shower, I sat and thought about our relationship and how much I loved him. Yes, I was afraid to tell anyone about my money, but I was especially afraid to tell Hasaan. I didn’t want it to change things between us, because I knew money had a way of bringing out the worst in people, whether it was a lack of it or an abundance of it. Money issues could easily fuck a good thing up. But Hasaan was a good man. He was a hard worker, and in the time we’d been together, had done nothing but take care of me. If we went out, he paid. If we ordered in, he paid. I made the mistake of offering to pay once, and he quickly told me that would never happen as long as he was my man. He’d even made it clear that he’d be paying the rent when we found another place, too. So, he wasn’t a money hungry man. But still, I knew he deserved to know. I decided I would tell him once he came out of the shower before I lost my nerve.
I was sitting on the side of the bed waiting for him when he stepped into the huge, beautifully-decorated bedroom dripping wet with his exceptional manhood stiff. Well, shit, I couldn’t waste a good hard penis, now could I? So, the whole money confession thing would have to wait.
He smiled at me, and said, “See what happened when I was in the shower?” while nodding his head toward my favorite part of his anatomy.
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