Читать книгу Don't Even Go There - Brenda Hampton - Страница 6

For two weeks straight, Korey and I stayed on the phone for hours. That was possible for us to do because he and Claudette hadn’t moved in with each other. Surprisingly, he was a welcoming person to talk to, and had opened up a lot about his relationship with Claudette. According to him, he loved her, but there was something missing. He couldn’t really explain what, other than saying that she was the kind of woman his mother always wanted him to have. He was thirty years old, worked with his father selling cars, and had a college degree from the University of Missouri, St. Louis. He kept inviting me to go on a date with him, but I wanted to take my time with this. I started to feel a bit guilty about talking to Claudette’s man, but I hadn’t expected to indulge myself with the many conversations that we’d had. My intention was to only have sex with him, but I had never been the kind of person to up the goods so soon. There was only one occasion where I had a one-night stand, and the only reason that had happened was because I got blissfully drunk that night. I hadn’t been that way since, and even though I remembered the brotha was packing some thick meat, I couldn’t remember his name or number. So much for that, but I at least had myself an okay time.

I sat on the bed with the phone pressed up to my ear, holding it with my shoulder. Soft music was playing in the background, and I kept looking at the TV in front of me that showed women from my favorite reality show clowning. The fragrance from a lit vanilla candle stirred around my room that was neat as a pin. Everything from the silk pillows and cream sheets on my queen bed to the soft lavender color on my walls decked it out as if Martha Stewart had come over and done it herself. While carefully polishing my toenails, I talked to Korey over the phone.

“Why are you playing games with me, Chase? I know you want to see me.”

“I do, but give me a little more time. I told you I just got out of a bad relationship, and with you and Claudette being engaged, I don’t know if this is the right move for me.” I knew, I was just playing around with him. Us getting together would happen, but it would happen on my time.

“See, there you go bringing up Claudette again. It is what it is, but if the ring ain’t on my finger yet, I really don’t see what’s the big deal.”

Ring on his finger or not, the result would be the same. I didn’t say so, but I sure as hell felt it. Before I could respond, I heard hard banging on my door. I pretty much had an idea who it was, as Drake had been trying to get at me for days. He told me he was coming by, and even though I’d gotten my restraining order, he didn’t wish to play by the rules.

“Korey, let me call you back. Someone is at my door.”

“Why you got that other brotha coming over there to entertain you? That’s why you’re playing me shady, ain’t it?”

“No. Now, I gotta go. Later, all right?”

Korey hung up, with an attitude, too. What nerve? I could tell I would have to be careful how I played my cards with him. The banging continued, and as I got off the bed, the wet polish on my toenails touched my plush tan carpet.

“Darn it,” I said, looking at the stain on my carpet.

“Chase!” I heard Drake yell. “I know you’re in there. Open the door!”

I tightened my silk flowered robe, and waddled to the door with my toes flipped in the air so they wouldn’t touch my carpet. I knew the day would come when I would have to confront Drake, so I guessed that today was my lucky day. I pulled open the door, and stood with no expression on my face. From the look of Drake’s cold, red, and glassy eyes, I could tell he’d been drinking. He was a borderline alcoholic, but I dealt with that issue. The fact that he was handsome as ever and put me in the mindset of Idris Elba, that kept me attached too. Sex between us was spectacular, but a cheating man I would not tolerate.

Since I’d opened the door, he tore into me. “I hope you have a good explanation for setting my house on fire. There are thousands of dollars of damage, and I expect you to pay me for the damages.”

“I hope your insurance premiums were paid up, because I’m not giving you one single penny. Besides, I don’t know what you’re talking about, and if you came over here to argue with me, please don’t waste my time. I’ve set you free, so let’s be done with it.”

Drake bumped my shoulder and swaggered his way inside. He wore a leather coat, blue jeans, and black dress shoes. His low-cut fade was neatly lined, and his goatee suited his chin well. No, his looks couldn’t be ignored, but seeing him made me think about the woman’s legs thrown over his shoulders.

“You are lucky that my insurance premiums were paid up, but for the next month or so, my house is not livable. I have to stay with my brother. Do you have any idea how much you’ve inconvenienced me?”

I wasn’t sure if Drake had a tape recorder, so I wasn’t going to admit to any thing. I closed my door and stood in the living room with him. “I’ll say it again, Drake, I have no idea what you’re talking about. Don’t blame me if you got caught with your pants down, and one of your other women got upset with you. That’s what you get for trying to be a player.”

Without being offered a seat, he took one on my beige sectional. “I wasn’t trying to be no player. I dated that chick a long time ago, and when she stopped by to see me, one thing led to another. She knew about you and that was the first time, during our relationship, that something like that happened.”

“Save it for your chickenheads, okay? You got busted, and no matter what you say, I’m never going to take you back. I in no way believe that was the first time something like that happened, and at the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter.”

Drake sat silent for a moment, then stared at me as I continued to stand close by the door. “Okay, Chase, I fucked up. Sorry. We’re not going to let three years go down the drain, just like that, are we?”

Drake couldn’t be serious, could he? I tried to burn this fool up in his house, didn’t I? Why was he apologizing to me? This had to be a joke. I moved closer to the door and touched the knob. “Maybe when you’re sober, you’ll realize how serious all of this is. Three years, four, or ten, baby, you got busted. What we had is o-v-e-r, and there is nothing left to be said. I’m deeply sorry about your house, but you should have known that there are consequences for men who backslide on their women. When you find out who the woman was who burned your house, let me know. I’d like to send her a thank-you card because she did me a favor.”

Drake stood and walked up to me by the door. “Quit playing,” he said. “I’ll give you some time to think about all of this, okay? You act like you ain’t have no damn love for me, and it’s not cool that you don’t want to work this shit out. I’ll get at you in a couple of weeks. By then, maybe you’ll have come to your senses.”

I said not one more word, and opened the door. Drake could see in my eyes that I wasn’t playing with him, and, eventually, he’d have to accept the fact that there would be no reconciliation. He left and I happily slammed the door after him.

That night, I was asleep in my two-bedroom apartment, dreaming about Drake and another woman. When the telephone rang, I jumped from my sleep and reached over to see who it was. It was Korey calling, and I couldn’t believe that it was almost 2:30 A.M. How dare he call me at this time in the morning? When I didn’t answer, he had the nerve to call right back.

“Hello,” I snapped.

“I didn’t mean to call you so late, but I couldn’t sleep. Do you still have company, or did he already leave?”

Korey was starting to irritate me. Who I had at my place was none of his business. “I’ll call you tomorrow,” I whispered. “I haven’t gotten much sleep tonight and I have to get up for work in a few hours.”

He pushed again. “Are you alone?”

“No,” I lied. “As a matter of fact, I’m being rude right now. We’ll talk tomorrow.”

I hung up, and it was official. Korey was scratched from my to-do list, simply because he was already becoming a pain in the ass. All we were was phone buddies, and he was trying to keep tabs on me when he already had a woman. That in no way made sense to me.

I was running late for work, and now I couldn’t find my keys. Why was I running late? Because I couldn’t get back to sleep after Korey’s phone call. I was up thinking about my past relationship with Drake, too, and had started to feel disappointed about the three years I’d wasted with him. What a setback.

I finally found my keys, and as I left my apartment, I bumped into my neighbor, Lance, who was leaving his apartment too. He seemed to be running late as well, and we met up on the steps.

“Good morning,” he said, extending his hand for me to go down the steps in front of him. “Ladies first.”

“Thanks, Lance.” I hurried down the steps in my high heels and thick winter coat. The light snow had been falling for a few hours, and when Lance and I reached our cars, they were covered with snow.

He looked at his watch. “I guess there’s no need to hurry because I’m already late.”

“Me too,” I laughed.

He brushed the snow off his car with a snow scraper and offered to do mine. I had a towel that I’d gotten from my trunk and it really wasn’t doing much. I accepted Lance’s offer and stood shivering as I watched him clean both of our cars. Lance was just an okaylooking brotha. He looked to be in his late thirties, had a shiny bald head, and wore a trimmed mustache. I could never tell if his body was hooked up or not, because his clothes were always too big and, quite frankly, too slouchy. I had seen several different women at his apartment; I guess it really didn’t matter how a man looked, as his collection was always more than one. Besides that, he drove an older model Ford Expedition that needed some work. He was always outside trying to fix it, and had asked me for a jump at least twice. I wasn’t trying to judge; after all, Lance seemed like a really nice person.

“You’re good to go, Chase,” he said, stepping away from my car. “Be careful on the roads and have a good day.”

“You too, Lance. Thanks.”

I got into my clean burgundy car, quickly turning it on so it could heat up. Lance waved again before pulling away. I followed him, making my way to work.

I was twenty minutes late, and the only person who had made it there before me was my other coworker, Veronica. Her cubicle was behind mine, and instead of peering over it like she always does, she came around it to talk to me. I hung my coat on the coat rack, and her eyes were checking me out.

“You always look so nice in your suits. How many of them do you have? I swear I’ve never seen you wear the same thing twice.”

I was a clothes and shoe fanatic, but I knew how to coordinate my outfits to make them look different. The gray pantsuit I wore today was accented with a silk pink blouse and silver and pink accessories. My sleek ponytail was flipped on the ends and my makeup was a work of art. I understood why Veronica seemed jealous.

“You know how much I love clothes, but you look cute too,” I lied. The flowered skirt was not working for her and she looked like a blooming fat petunia. The hip-length sweater she wore was too tight, and if Veronica would have glanced in the mirror a little longer this morning, she would have seen what I did. Aside from that, she did have a pretty, round face, and her natural hair was full of tight curls.

“Thanks for the compliment, Chase. I guess we’ll have to wait for Liz to get here. She already called and said she’d be about thirty minutes to an hour late. I got an early start, so traffic wasn’t a problem for me.”

“Well, it was for me.” I nudged my head toward Claudette’s cubicle. “Did she call in yet?”

“No, not yet. I’m sure she’ll be showing up soon. She hasn’t missed one day of work.”

As Veronica spoke, I got a closer look at her. I noticed a small bruise close by her eye, and squinted before questioning her. “What’s that underneath your eye?”

Instead of saying anything, she walked over to her cubicle and pulled out a compact mirror from her purse. She touched the bruise with her finger, then pulled out a tube of foundation to dab the spot underneath her eye. “Stupid me,” she said. “I bumped into my door yesterday and hit my eye. I didn’t know it had gotten that bad and I tried to cover it up.”

I knew what Veronica said was a lie, and this wasn’t the first time I’d noticed a bruise on her face. I couldn’t help but confront her about my suspicions. “Veronica, you don’t have to lie to me, all right? I suspect that your boyfriend has something to do with those bruises that I keep seeing on you. You really need to leave him alone, especially if he’s putting his hands on you. If there is anything that I can do to help, let me know.”

Veronica’s eyes had already started to water. I reached out to give her a hug, and gave her a Kleenex that was on her desk. She dabbed her eyes. “We get into it all the time over stupid stuff. I try to keep my mouth shut, but he always calling me names and saying things that hurt my feelings. I do fight his butt back, but there’s no doubt that he always gets the best of me.”

I shook my head with disgust. I had seen and heard about that kind of foolishness too many times. Veronica didn’t even realize how she was keeping herself in a situation that could easily turn tragic. She had a cute little girl, too, and I wondered what she was going through at home. Her situation kind of reminded me of mine when I was little. My parents argued all the time and I would sit in my room, crying my butt off. My hands covered my ears to drown out the noise, but it was never enough. I was so glad when my mother left him, and it led to us having a peaceful home. My mother never brought any charges against him, but later in life she told me she regretted that she hadn’t. She encouraged me never to put up with an abusive, cheating, or lazy man, and her encouragement was enough for me to know when I was in the wrong kind of relationship. I put my thoughts to the back of my head, and got back to my conversation with Veronica.

“Why don’t you just leave him alone, Veronica? There are other men out there, and plenty of men who won’t put their hands on you.”

“I know. But we’ve been together for six years and it ain’t all that bad. We have our good times, too, and I know when enough is enough. I’ll be okay.”

There wasn’t any thing left to be said. I could talk until I was blue in the face, but Veronica had to wake up in her own time. Hopefully, it wouldn’t be too late for her.

I returned to my cubicle, and before I sat down, Claudette came from around the corner with a bright smile on her face. She was always so bubbly, and that kind of fakeness really worked my nerves.

“Good morning,” she said, rushing to take off her coat. “It’s cold as Alaska out there, isn’t it?”

Veronica and I both went over to Claudette’s cubicle. Of course, we had to do the morning check, compare what we were wearing. Claudette had on a gray pantsuit too, but to me, the suit looked cheap. She wore a canary yellow shirt underneath and threw in a hint of red to make herself look colorful. Her style in no way worked for me, but I guessed it worked for her, or so she thought. She checked out me and Veronica, and we already knew what was coming next.

“Don’t y’all look cute today,” she squealed. “Is Liz here yet? I want to take an early lunch and I hope she doesn’t mind. I made an appointment to go look at some flowers for my wedding and no other day or time was available.”

“I’m sure she wouldn’t mind,” I said. “Just let her know.”

“Let me know what?” Liz said, coming around the corner with a cup of Starbucks Frappuccino in her hand. Now, none of us could come close to the class Liz had. That still didn’t stop her from checking me out, and she knew that I too had a style and sexiness about me that couldn’t be duplicated. She was a Saks Fifth Avenue kind of woman. I think she may have even had a stylist help her get ready in the morning, because her attire was always so perfect and coordinated with the most exquisite accessories. She was definitely a woman I looked up to and all of us respected her to the fullest.

Claudette followed Liz into her office that was to the left of my cubicle. “I wanted to ask if I could take an early lunch. I’m supposed to meet with a lady who’s going to help me pick out flowers for my wedding and I’m running out of time.”

“I don’t see that being a problem,” Liz said, dropping back to her seat. “Just make sure that you get those invoices out to our customers today.”

“I’ll get started on the rest of them this morning. I mailed out some yesterday, but will make sure the rest are prepared and mailed today. Veronica is doublechecking my data entry, and after she unloads her batch, I’ll be able to get those out too.”

“Sounds good,” Liz said. “Chase, will you start getting our invitations together for the Christmas party? I have many executives from the refrigeration company I want to invite, and I’ll need to put together some personal invites as well. Come sit in here this morning so we can get started.”

I sat in Liz’s perfumed office with her for at least two hours, putting together the itinerary for the Christmas party that was three weeks away. Liz asked if I would be bringing anyone with me, and I told her that I wasn’t planning to. I was a very private person, and unlike everyone else, I didn’t care to bring boyfriends to the workplace and flaunt them. We continued to go over specifics for the party, and when there was a light knock on Liz’s door, I turned to see who it was. It was Claudette, and I was surprised to see Korey standing next to her, holding her hand.

“I just wanted to let you know that I’m leaving,” she said to Liz. The expression on Korey’s face was frozen, and he finally blinked his eyes, looking in another direction.

Liz, of course, invited them into her office.

“How are you, Korey?” she asked. “Congratulations on the engagement. You have Claudette so excited.”

“Yeah.” He smiled. “We’re both pretty excited.”

I couldn’t tell, especially after all the crap he’d said to me. Claudette looked at me. “Honey, this is Chase Jenkins. She’s Liz’s secretary and I don’t think you met her before. She’s only been here for five months, but we love her to death.”

I smiled from the bullshit Claudette had said, and stood to extend my hand. “Hi, Korey. Nice meeting you.”

He gripped my hand. “You too,” he quickly said, then waved his hand in the air. “See you later, Liz. Good seeing you again, but we need to get going so we don’t be late.”

Liz said good-bye and they left. She was all smiles. “They make such a cute couple,” she said. “Remind me so much of my husband and me when we were engaged. I truly hope everything works out for them.”

I wanted to choke. I hoped there were no resemblances between her and Claudette, because there was madness stirring behind the scenes. I was so sure Korey would be calling me tonight, and as handsome as he looked, I had already changed my mind about scratching him from my to-do list. That brotha was fine.

Work was long, and awfully busy. Liz kept me on my feet today, and when I got home, I fell back on my bed, so glad to be home. Before I did anything, I went into the bathroom to turn on the shower. I then sat back on my bed, and took my heels off my aching feet. The message light on my phone was blinking, so I tapped the message button to listen. As expected, Drake was calling with his mess. I deleted his messages with a quickness and moved on to the next. There were a few bill collectors calling, particularly one from the student loans that I’d gotten and had never paid back. I had to contact them about deferring my loan, simply because I had no money to pay it. I was already living paycheck to paycheck, and the money I made was in no way enough. I somewhat lived beyond my means, but that consisted of me spending too much money on trying to look good. I had my ponytail done weekly, my nails and toes had to be done, and the money I spent at the M.A.C counter cost me a fortune. Clothes and shoes were high expenses for me, too. I couldn’t help that I liked to look good, and my appearance was very important to me. My car payment was almost thirty days late, so I made a mental note to pay it online once I got out of the shower.

My shower was relaxing and long. When I got out, I threw a quick Healthy Choice meal in the microwave, and cut a slice of angel food cake that I had gotten at the grocery store a few days ago. I intended to shut it down early tonight, only because of the lack of sleep I’d gotten the night before. I ate my dinner in no time, and afterward, I turned down the lights in my compact kitchen that was adjacent to my living room. I took a seat on my sectional and turned on the fortysix-inch plasma TV that sat on my black TV stand. It was almost 7:00 P.M., and as Wheel of Fortune came to an end, I turned the TV to one of my favorite reality shows. My eyes were slowly fading, but I snapped out of it when the phone rang. The caller ID revealed Korey’s cell phone number.

“Can I come see you?” he immediately asked.

“My day was fine, Korey. How was yours?”

“Great. Now, can I come over?”

“Glad that you had a great day. And, what made your day so great?”

“I got a chance to see this chick who’s been driving me nuts. She told me that she didn’t know who my fiancée was, but I found out today that she lied to me. Why’d you lie to me about not knowing Claudette?”

“I told you that it didn’t matter. Obviously, if you want to come see me, the fact that we know each other doesn’t matter to you either.”

“I want to come see you because I like your style. You seem like a cool person and I want to get to know you better. If you weren’t interested, Chase, then it made no sense for you to ask for my number. And if you say that Claudette doesn’t matter, then stop playing these games. What’s the big deal?”

“The big deal is I’m trying to spare you the grief you may find in the near future. If you think this is going to be one of those slam-bam, thank-you-ma’am deals, you’re wrong. I don’t mind hooking up with you, but it has to be on my terms. I won’t be pressured by a man who is engaged to be married, and if you can play by my rules, I have no problem moving this forward.”

“I don’t mind playing by your rules, but I can’t play by them if you won’t even give me your address.”

Korey had no idea what he was getting himself into, but I gave him my address so he could come over. I figured it would be a pretty long night, especially since my sexual encounters with Drake had come to an abrupt end. I couldn’t believe how horny I was, and I had to get these urges and cravings I had for Korey out of my system. I gave him my address, and before he came, I leaned over to get a quick nap.

When the doorbell rang, I was in a deep sleep. I sat up, squeezing my eyes together while rubbing my hair back with my hand. I wanted to make sure my hair was in place, and as far as I knew, it was. I dropped my silk robe off my shoulders and laid it back on the couch. I stood naked as a jaybird, and very proud of my shapely figure that I worked so hard to get. I made my way to the door.

“Who is it?” I asked.

“Who do you think?” Korey’s smart ass answered.

I opened the door, and Korey stood on the other side with his mouth hanging open. Surprisingly, my neighbor across the hall, Lance, was coming up the steps and even he had to take a double…triple look. Korey hurried inside, closing the door behind him. He was still in awe, and his eyes were about to fall out of their sockets.

“What… Why you—”

I turned, giving him an opportunity to examine my backside. I’m sure it was to his liking. I wasn’t in the mood to answer any of his stupid questions, so I quickly cut to the chase.

“Did you bring your condoms?” I asked.

“Yeah, but you gotta be walking around all naked like that?”

I put my hand on my hip. “Grow up, Korey, okay? Haven’t you seen a naked woman’s body before? You were anxious to come over here for sex, weren’t you? And since I have a spark between my legs that needs to be cooled down, I thought we’d have some fun. Get undressed, or would you like me to do that for you as well?”

I couldn’t believe he was still standing there in awe. “You’re playing, right? As soon as I take off my clothes, you’re going to tell me you’re playing.”

Yet again, he was working my nerves. I walked up to him, and removed his jacket. I tossed it onto the couch, then pulled his muscle-hugging black T-shirt over his head. The look on his face was serious, and he was stunned by my aggressiveness. Once the shirt was gone, I unzipped his jeans and squatted to lower them to his ankles. His package was poked in my direction, and when I stood up, I leaned into his ear. I touched his hardness, massaging it to get his attention.

“Now, does this look anything like I’m playing? Finish up with your shoes and hurry to meet me in my bedroom before I change my mind.”

I swayed my hands along Korey’s carved chest, and he eased his arm around my waist. He squeezed my nakedness next to his and inched forward for a kiss. I moved my head back to reject it.

“The bedroom,” I repeated. “Meet me in the bedroom.”

As Korey stepped out of his pants and shoes, I went to my bathroom next to my bedroom and quickly gargled with mouthwash. I had just woken up, so I wanted my breath to be right. Korey wasted no time coming into my bedroom, and I watched as he stood in the doorway, placing a condom on his dick. From what I could see, he was packaged up pretty good. The thickness of his dick made my mouth water, and as it expanded, I was so sure I’d enjoy the next hour or so.

I walked up to Korey, resting my arms on his shoulders. This time, my eyes lowered to his lips, sending him a message that I was now ready for our kiss. He entered my lips tongue first and, as slippery and soft as his lips were, I sure didn’t mind. I rubbed the back of his head, and as the kissing became more intense, we backed our way up to the bed. I could feel Korey’s hardness poking at my midsection, and that made me more anxious to feel him.

As he held himself up over me, he lowered his head to tease my nipples with the tip of his tongue. They were hard as ever and my tingling had already started. Giving Korey a hint, I widened my legs and placed his hand on the warmth between my legs. His fingers entered me, and with ease, he made several rotations. It wasn’t long before his fingers had gotten sticky and I could feel the wetness dripping between my butt cheeks. Korey sucked his fingers while gazing at me with his sexy eyes.

“Can I taste you more?” he politely asked.

“Do you have to ask? I grant you permission to do as you please, so have it your way.”

Korey smiled, and dropped his head between my legs. He separated my sticky slit with his fingers and dove in with his curled tongue. My body arched from the vibrations on his mouth and within a few minutes he was tasting the sweetness from my explosive orgasm I had burst into his mouth. It was a good one, too, causing me to claw the sheets and lick the saliva that was dripping from the corners of my mouth. Right behind that followed the entrance of his dick. It tore me wide open and pumped into me with a rhythmic stroke. I was so pleased with the feeling, but so was Korey. His eyes were closed, and when he lifted my legs higher on his shoulders, I gyrated my hips in a circular motion.

“Ahh,” he said with relief. “That feels good. Work that pussy, baby. I love a woman who knows how to put herself to work.”

My motions had caused Korey to slow down. I knew he was trying to focus so he wouldn’t come, but I was anxious to keep the show on the road. I figured a ride from me would send him overboard, so I dropped my legs from his shoulders and turned to lay on my stomach. He kneeled behind me, and with my butt hiked in the air, his hardness entered my slippery hole. The forming juices sounded off in the room, and I gasped for air each time Korey pushed me forward. He had my butts cheeks pulled far apart and his hands gripped them.

“Fuck me harder,” I suggested. “Go faster, baby, I want to come again.”

“Me too,” he said, picking up his pace. His thighs slapped against my backside and I could feel my juices boiling over.

“Ohh, shit,” I said, quickly moving back and forth. I couldn’t contain myself and cut loose again. He appreciated how wet I was, and it wasn’t long before he collapsed behind me. He rolled onto his back, taking deep breaths and touching his chest. “Damn, baby,” he said, still out of breath. “You almost gave me a heart attack. That shit was good, and why are you so moist like that? Has it been awhile for you? Because your energy level was extremely high.”

“It’s been a minute,” I said, thinking about the last time Drake and I had sex, which was a little over a month ago. “You did your thing tonight too, and thanks for taking care of that itch for me.”

He laughed and looked down at his dripping wet condom. “Anytime,” he said, taking it off. “There are plenty of these in my wallet.”

I bet there were, and poor Claudette had no idea what her man was doing behind the scenes. I was so sure that I wasn’t the first person Korey had been with on the side, and as he lay in bed next to me that night, I asked him if he’d ever cheated on Claudette before.

“Twice,” he admitted. “Claudette and I have been together for a long time and I’ve done something like this two times before. It was with the same person, but I cut it off with her because she wanted to make it more than what it was.”

“So, like you and me, it was only a sex thing, right? When you say more, you mean the woman you were creeping with wanted a relationship?”

“Exactly. She knew I was with Claudette and I wasn’t trying to end my relationship with her. I just wanted something different, and when she reached out to me about hooking up, I was down with it.”

“Just like me, huh? You could’ve backed away from me, but you didn’t. And knowing that Claudette and I work right next to each other, why do you trust me not to say anything to her?”

Korey’s arms were around my shoulders and he looked me straight in the eyes. “Honestly, I don’t care if you say anything to her. She won’t believe you and I’ll deny it. I can almost guarantee you that she’ll believe me over you.”

I couldn’t agree with him more, so there was nothing to dispute. I rested my head on Korey’s shoulder, calling it a good night.

Korey got up around 5:00 in the morning, and so did I. Before he left, we tackled another round of sex in the shower and laughed as we lathered and tickled each other’s naked bodies. This time, I sat on his lap as he sat on the seat in the shower. My back faced him, and I gave him the ride that I’d failed to give him last night. The water sprayed on our bodies to cool us down, but not by much. I sent him out the door with a true smile on his face, and when I got to work, I couldn’t stop reminiscing about the night. Veronica, Claudette, and I sat in the break room eating lunch. When Veronica snapped her fingers in my face, that’s when I came out of my trance.

“What did you say?” I asked while nibbling on my sandwich. “Sorry, I was thinking about something.”

“What’s his name?” Claudette teased. “I know you have a man, Chase, and it’s time for you to come clean. Besides, we’re going to meet him at the Christmas party, aren’t we?”

“As a matter of fact, I was thinking about my father.” I wanted to tell her so badly that I was thinking about how tender my pussy felt from fucking her man. As Korey had said, though, she wouldn’t believe me. “And as for the Christmas party, no, I’ll be attending it alone.”

“Well, mostly everyone will have a date and I think you should try to bring someone,” Claudette suggested. “You know my boo is coming with me and he is so excited about Christmas this year. We are planning to go on another trip before the wedding, and I’m going to see if Liz will give me a few days off next week.”

“Where are the two of you going?” Veronica inquired.

Claudette snapped her fingers and wiggled her neck. “To Vegas,” she bragged. “I’ve never been to Vegas, and you know what they say: what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. Don’t be surprised if we just up and get married.”

I doubted that, and Claudette was such a fool. Korey had two sides to him, and I could never understand why a woman could never figure that mess out. As she continued to go on and on about her boo, I bit into my sandwich again, tuning her out. Veronica had done the same. I guess she was just as tired as I was about listening to Claudette ramble on about her so-called perfect relationship with Korey. She loved it when the other people at our job talked about how handsome he was, and mentioned what a cute couple they made. I had made my comments too, and a part of me understood why Claudette was so hooked. Korey was dynamite in bed, and the way he licked between my legs couldn’t be forgotten. I got back to thinking about his tongue working its magic, but when my cell phone vibrated, I looked to see who it was. Funny timing, as it was Korey. Claudette had taken a breath from talking to eat her food.

“Yes,” I said.

“Can you talk?”

“I have a mouth, don’t I?”

He laughed. “You know what I mean. Is Claudette near you?”

I looked right at her. “Nope. And for a man who doesn’t seem to care either way, why are you asking?”

“I just want to be sure. You know I don’t want to go around breaking any hearts,” he joked.

“Oh, I understand. So, what’s up?”

“Are you thinking about me?”

“Maybe.”

“Well, I’m thinking about you. Can I come over tonight, or would you prefer that we go out to dinner tonight? It’s Friday and I know you ain’t staying cooped up in your apartment.”

Claudette had mentioned earlier that they were going to the movies. I guess he was willing to cancel their plans. “You don’t have any other plans? I thought you did.”

“Plans to be with you. Are you game or what?”

“Not tonight,” I whispered. Claudette and Veronica were taking in every word I’d said. They were some nosy-ass bitches, I swear. “Maybe next week.”

“You got plans with somebody else tonight?”

I disliked Korey’s insecurities and they really had no place in the kind of relationship we were beginning to have. “His name is Drake. Like you, I have something on the side and we have to be patient with each other’s circumstances. Next week, I promise.”

“Fuck Drake. I want to see you tonight. Put that fool on the calendar for next week, not me.”

“Good-bye, playboy, this is really a bad time. Elephant ears are around me, so call me later.”

“No, I’ll see you later. If you slam the door in my face, too bad.”

I shut my phone and looked at Veronica and Claudette. Their eyes were bugged and lips were pursed. “I told you she be lying,” Veronica said. “And, yes, these elephant ears were listening. Who is Drake?”

“None of your business,” I said. “He’s not worth me discussing and neither is that phone call.”

“Sounds like you got yourself a stalker,” Claudette laughed.

That’s right, trick, and he just happens to be your man, I thought. Korey had better not show up tonight. And if he did, well, all I was going to do was…put him to good use.