If it Aint One Thing it's Another Page 2

  Petie checked his phone and was surprised to see that wifey didn’t call. That was strange. He pulled up to his building, shut the system off and hopped out of the truck. The regular cats were out front, waiting for the heads to come through. That’s how it was in the hood—always on the paper chase. Family gotta eat, bills gotta be paid and muthafuckas don’t want to hire convicted felons.... Get that money; it’s yours for the taking.

  Petie put the key in the door, hoping that wifey would be asleep. But something told him she’d be up waiting for him with a million questions. He walked into his sons’ bedroom and looked in on them. They were fast asleep...his little men. He loved them to death. That’s what kept him coming home every night.

  Petie took off his coat and went to the bedroom to see if his wife, Renee, was awake. She was. She gave him a ‘Where you been?’ look. He pulled off his G-Units and lined them up with the other twenty-six pairs of kicks he had. Petie had different footwear for every day of the month. You name it, he had it, and he made sure his little men had it too.

  Petie kissed Renee on the cheek, and she began with the million questions. ”Where you been? Why didn’t you call? Why you look like that? Why you always gotta go out at night? What took you so long? Who was you with? Was you with a bitch? Why you lyin’?” Damn, she’s nosy. He wanted to be rid of her ass, but he wouldn’t do that to his sons. Renee was a good mother. He couldn’t take that away from her. She had homemaker skills. She took care of the house and devoted all of her time to their sons. He couldn’t break up his happy home.

  Petie remembered growing up and watching his mother struggle and work two jobs to make ends meet. She had a hard life, and he always wondered as a boy why his father just upped and left the way he did. He thought his pops didn’t love him. Petie remembered how unwanted and neglected he felt as a child without his father...all the other kids doing things with their dads and his was nowhere around. He had abandoned him and left him to grow up without him. He hated him for that, and he vowed that he would never cause his little men that kind of pain—never; so if it meant that he was stuck with Renee for life, then so be it. He was determined to have his sons grow up with both of their parents. He lived for them since they were born. They were all that mattered...his little men. But here he was being interrogated again, as usual. It was a no-win situation.

  Petie snatched off his clothes down to his boxers and got in the bed. He took the remote control and turned on some porno. He had to watch the porno channel just to get in the mood to be with Renee. It just wasn’t the same anymore; she no longer excited him, so he would watch the chicks on the screen and imagine that he was hitting them instead.... Damn, one chick looked like Desiree...yeah, Des. Petie was thinking about going to check her tomorrow. She was a head nurse fa sho. After taking the boys to school, he’d spin past her crib so she could polish his gun. But in the meantime, he was in bed with wifey who didn’t even make him brick anymore.... She wouldn’t even wear thongs; she wore briefs. He couldn’t understand why she had become so boring. There was no chemistry between them anymore. Petie reached over and put his hand on her thigh. ”Petie, I’m not in the mood,” she said. She kissed him on the cheek and rolled over. ”Goodnight,” she added.

  ”Goodnight, ma. I love you,” Petie replied.

  ”Yeah, I love you, too.”

  Petie lay there for a few moments and cut off the TV. No problem; he could go to bed brick tonight. He wasn’t in the mood for her anyway. No sweat off his back. He would go see Des in the morning and then go and check Alexis. He had it all planned. Yeah, I need my sleep anyway, he thought looking over at Renee.

  Chapter Three

  Share rubbed baby oil on her legs after taking a hot shower. She hated when Petie had to go; she wanted them to wake up and cook breakfast, kick back and watch the morning news together.

  She couldn’t wait until Renee went to Pennsylvania to see her mother; every month she’d go for a weekend to spend time with her. Petie would then take his sons to their aunt’s house, and that would be he and Share’s weekend together. Renee had already visited her mother this month, so Share knew that weekends with Petie were out until next month. No problem; Petie would be back the night after tomorrow. He always came through every other night.

  Share wasn’t sure if she loved Petie, but she knew her feelings were stronger for him than the others. However, she knew she could have any man she wanted. She looked good, was self employed, had her own dough and no kids. She only needed a man for sexual pleasures.

  When her father passed away she was the only benefactor on his insurance. She took that money and invested it, and with the profit she invested more. After two years of saving, she bought a brownstone and rented it out. All three floors were rented within two months. She only rented to Africans because she knew they worked two and three jobs and their rent would always be on time. She did-n’t want to have to be dragging anybody to court. Her tenants were hard workers, trying to make better lives for themselves. And she didn’t have to worry about any drugs being on her property because she chose her tenants wisely; she ran background and credit checks before she even thought about leasing any of her apartments.

  Share owned four brownstones altogether, and she lived in one of them. She was also the owner of two McDonald’s restaurants, which were doing very well in sales, as well as a getaway co-op on Seventy-Fourth Street and West End Avenue. She was paid.

  Share examined herself in her full length mirror. “Gotta start doing crunches again, girl,” she said out loud. Share had a nice shape; she was thick with round hips, a small waistline, nice breasts and no stretch marks. She kept her hair at shoulder length, even though it could grow almost to the middle of her back. She wasn’t impressed with hair; the longer it was the more work she had to put in it, she felt. Share wasn’t like her mother, whose hair was almost down to her butt. She hadn’t cut it in over ten years. She was definitely a hair freak.

  Share unwrapped her doobie and went into the den to do some work on her computer. She checked her e-mail and saw that Venus had sent her two messages, notifying her that all of her money transfers went through fine and that she would see her tomorrow for dinner. She made a mental note to call Venus to see where they would be dining and what they were going to wear. Until then it was time to get some sleep. She was tired and would have a long day tomorrow.

  Will was pissed at Share; he hadn’t seen her in over a week and he was hungry. She was like food to him. He actually had a crush on her before becoming manager of her McDonald’s on 125th Street and Fordham Road. He had just come home from Upstate and was on shock parole. Those parole officers didn’t play. He had to find a job quick or they would violate him. He had just barely graduated from the Shock Program, so when his P.O. said, “Get a job and find one quick,” he did. He went to the McDonald’s on 125th and was hired on the spot. He was grateful.

  Will mopped floors and wiped tables before finally being trained to work the grill. Share would come through and look over the books, and she would tell Abdul, the manager, what needed to be changed and what could stay the same. He thought that she was probably a district manager. Whatever she was, Will thought she was definitely a chocolate cutie—about thirty-two, thirty-three, somewhere around there. She didn’t wear a wedding ring and she always made extended eye contact with him. It didn’t make a difference to him that he was only twenty-two; if she kept giving him that look, she could get it.

  The idea of being with a woman in her thirties made Will’s gun jump. He was experienced with females, and he had chicks in all flavors—mostly young girls around seventeen or eighteen. One was sixteen, a Dominican chick. But he had never been with an older woman. His older brother was twenty-five, and his girl was thirty-six. He said older women were more mature and established, and they liked younger men. That’s all good. Maybe I’ll start looking for an older shorty, Will had begun to think.

  It was closing time, and Will was mopping the back area. ”Make sure the grill
s are turned off; Miss Jacobs is here,” he heard Abdul say. Share came through and spoke to everyone. She walked past Will and touched his shoulder from behind. She said, ”Excuse me. I’m sorry to walk on your floor, but I gotta get to the office.”

  ”No problem, ma’am,” Will replied.

  ”Call me Share; I’m only thirty-three, so I’m too young to be called ma’am,” Share said giving him a seductive smile.

  ”Oh, no doubt. I’ll call you whatever you want me to,” Will said turning slightly, looking at her out of the corner of his eye now. Share knew what time it was. She walked to Abdul’s office as Will finished mopping the floor. He dropped the mop in the bucket and put everything else in its place. He wanted to be ready to leave when Share left. He threw on his hoodie and doo-rag and waited for Abdul to unlock his office door. After ending her meeting with him, Share stepped out the front door of the restaurant with Will right behind her. ”Getting kind of chilly out here, huh? Winter is definitely coming,” he said.

  ”Yeah, that’s what it feels like. Where do you live?” Share said zipping up her jacket. The question threw Will off; he wasn’t expecting that so soon. He was about to lay his mack down, and here she was laying down hers.

  ”Who? Me? Oh yeah, of course me. I’m sorry; my bad. I live on Convent at 134th Street.” Share started walking away, and Will didn’t know if he should follow her. ”Come on, dick, I’ll give you a ride,” she finally said. Dick...oh, she mad ghetto, he thought.

  They talked all the way to Will’s house, and he was surprised to find out that she owned the McDonald’s and had property. He remembered his brother saying that older women were more mature, established and liked younger men. Share definitely fit that description. Will talked about his parole and how he was just beginning to adjust to being home and in the world again. She asked him personal questions about his life, if he had kids or a girlfriend, who he lived with and what he got arrested for. Will was honest about everything, except when she asked him about a shorty. ”Nah, I’m not feeling nobody right now,” he lied. ”I’ve been home for like three weeks, and most of these young chicks are immature. I’m just staying solo for now.” He could tell by the way she smiled that she liked the answer.

  Will and Share sat in front of his building and talked some more until she had to go. He thanked her and got out, closing the door gently. In his eyes she had it all, plus she was thick with bedroom eyes.

  About a week later Share asked Will if he knew how to paint; she needed her bathroom done. She told him she would pay him for the job in cash, and not to worry about his shift at McDonald’s; she’d call Abdul and let him know he wouldn’t be in. Will agreed to come and do her bathroom, and he thought about doing her in the bedroom—if she was with it.

  Share’s place was hot, like something out of a magazine. She showed Will the bathroom, supplied the paint, paid him $750.00 and went to the den to get some paperwork done.

  Share was scheming. She liked this little boy. That was how she referred to all the young cats. She was actually in the den looking over Will’s application. She knew he lived with his mother and that his salary wasn’t much. But he looked like a young Petie—chocolate and muscle bound. The only difference was that Will was bow-legged. And so what if he was only twenty-two; he was experienced. Share was sure of that. Venus had told her about this young cat she used to deal with. Yeah, they knew what to do behind closed doors, even though some of them were possessive and could go into flip mode. Share didn’t think Will would ever get like that...she would soon find out.

  Will finished in the bathroom and walked into the den. He had taken off his shirt and was now showing off a nicely cut upper body along with a six-pack. Share turned away so he wouldn’t see her blush. She thanked him and called him a cab. They were in bed together by that weekend. And just a few months later, he was managing the Fordham Road restaurant along with Abdul, and he was living in one of her brownstones on 146th and Riverside.

  Will was now tight with Share because when he had called her earlier, some cat answered her phone and said she was busy. When he called back the phone just kept ringing—no answering machine, no nothing. He decided to call her again before sliding over. He didn’t want to just pop up on her, not knowing what was what. He wanted to know who this cat was answering her phone. Since he and Share had started their affair, he’d been faithful to her. He had cut off all the young girls. They couldn’t be compared to Share; they couldn’t even stand next to her as far as he was concerned. Now she had some nigga answering her phone. This was total disrespect. She trying to play the kid, Will thought. Nah, won’t be none of that. He finally called her again, and after the fourth ring she answered. She told him she was lying down. “Who answered your phone when I hollered at you earlier?” Will asked her.

  ”Oh, that was nobody. My ex came by to get some of his things. Why didn’t you call back?” she asked. Then she remembered Petie unhooking the phone, and she realized that if he had called back, she wouldn’t have heard the phone ringing anyway.

  ”I did call back, but nobody picked up,” Will said with attitude.

  ”Oh, you must have called when I walked him downstairs to let him out. That’s probably what happened. Anyway, what’s good? I’m hungry, ma. I wanna come and eat,” Will said, already feeling himself swelling up.

  Share thought about it for a minute. “Well, get here then,” she said.

  ”I’m leaving now,” Will said grabbing his coat. He snatched his keys off the hook, went outside and caught a cab. Share only lived on 142nd Street between Convent and Amsterdam. He could walk there, but he wanted to get there as soon as he could, and he called her on his cell to let her know he’d be outside in two minutes. He hurriedly paid the driver after the cab pulled up in front of Share’s brownstone and waited for her to come downstairs.

  Share was happy to see Will; he could finish where Petie left off. Petie never liked to do it in the kitty cat; he always wanted that booty shot. Either way she still had an orgasm, but she didn’t just want it in the ass. And Will was only rough when she asked him to be. He took his time and did it the way she wanted him to. Will would put her to sleep easy and wake up in the middle of the night to go another round. He would massage her back and her feet, and when she woke up in the morning he would have French toast with turkey bacon waiting for her. He was so sweet, and she now wondered if he had another side that she just hadn’t seen yet. She knew those young cats could spazz out quick, according to Venus, but she never gave him reason to.

  Will’s eyes began to dart about when they got upstairs, to see if anything appeared out of place. He was looking to see if any man’s stuff was lying around that wasn’t there before. He knew that some cat had been there, and now he wanted to know who it was. ”So, your ex took all of his stuff out of here, huh?” he asked.

  ”Yeah, I called him and told him to come get his shit before I threw it out,” Share lied.

  ”So he ain’t got no reason to come back through here then, right?” It was more of a statement than a question.

  ”No, Will. He will not be coming through anymore. All right, honey?” Share said, hoping that would end the conversation. ”Did you eat, baby?”

  ”Yeah, I went to my mom’s house and had some roast beef, rice and spinach,” Will replied. Share told him to get undressed and come lay down. He missed her, and it seemed as if he hadn’t seen her in months. He wanted to get inside of her. He felt at home when he was inside Share, and everything felt so right when he was with her. They were a perfect fit.

  He lay down and cuddled up next to her. He gently rubbed her neck and turned her over onto her stomach. He went to the dresser, got the baby oil and dripped some down her back. He gently started massaging the oil into her back and over her butt cheeks. He squeezed her cheeks and spread them, running his fingers down the center of her ass. Will liked Share’s ass. He wondered if one day she’d let him slide in there. He didn’t think she was a freak like that, but one day he might just snif
f her and catch her by surprise. However, tonight he just wanted to make love to her.

  He turned her over onto her back and entered her slowly, savoring the feeling; she fit perfectly around him. She lightly moaned and wrapped her legs around his back as they moved in rhythm with one another. Will always made love to Share; those young chicks, he boned them. Plus he thought that some of them had a foul smell down there. Share always smelled fresh, and it seemed like she got tighter and tighter each time they were together. He stroked her until she begged him to stop. He could do that easily, and he could keep himself from busting off for as long as he wanted. No matter how tightly Share’s muscles gripped him, he knew how to hold out.

  Share was biting his chest and had her nails in his back. Will was hungry, and he wasn’t giving her any mercy. He placed his hands underneath her and spread her cheeks while moving in and out of her. He arched his back, thrusting his full self inside her. Nah, she gets no mercy, he thought. He ran his hands through her hair and kissed her passionately until he could feel her begin to orgasm. He could no longer hold back now. He put her legs over his shoulders and went as deep as he could until he finally exploded. They lay there for a few minutes to catch their breath and then kissed.

  ”How you feel, ma?” Will asked.

  ”Like I need a cigarette,” Share said, still a little out of breath. She really was thinking about smoking a cigarette, but she didn’t want to give in to the temptation. She had been nicotine free for almost a month and she wanted to keep up her efforts.

  Share used up a lot of her energy with Will, but she didn’t mind because he always made her feel good. She got up, went to the bathroom and took a quick shower. When she came back to bed, Will was on the phone talking to one of the employees at the Fordham restaurant. He was a good manager, and she never worried about anything. Abdul had trained him well at the 125th Street location. He always checked on things, even on his day off. She liked the fact that he was not only a good lover, but he was responsible.