by Natavia
“Next time call me when you think you’re gonna be late,” he said.
I didn’t get a good morning or nothing from that asshole.
“Sure. It won’t happen again.”
Governor went to the back of the office and I heard the finger scanner. While he was in the back, I was trying to figure out a way to ask him if I’d done something wrong. I was willing to accept us just being friends, but I needed to work in a peaceful environment without the tension. Once I concluded having a talk with Governor, I got up and headed to the back of the office. Down the end of the hall was a metal door. When I reached the end of the hall, I knocked on the door, but I noticed it wasn’t closed all the way, so I pushed it open.
What in the fuck!
Governor was standing in the middle of the room stacking bricks of cocaine and placing them inside of cans of paint. For the life of me I couldn’t understand why we had two supply rooms, but the staff could only go in one. On the table next to him were stacks of money. It was like I was in a narcotic house—Governor had everything! I tried to back out, but I bumped into someone. When I turned around it was Mayor grilling me.
“The fuck is you doin’ back here?” Mayor barked.
“Bruh, you know this broad is snoopin’ around back here?” Mayor asked Governor. Governor was at a loss for words the same as I was because I figured him out. I’d heard speculations about Governor dealing drugs a few years back, but I didn’t think he was still doing it. He had a lot of positivity going on so I didn’t understand why would he risk it all. I should’ve known something was up because they were always carrying duffel bags or backpacks to or from the back. It also made me think about the night at the gas station. Governor went to the back to take care of business and the guys came in to rob them. Everything was coming to light. I was fucking a drug dealer.
“Yo, Essa. I told you not to come back here! Why in the fuck are you bein’ nosey in my shit?” Governor yelled.
“Now she might get us jammed up. See, this is why you should’ve hired Rochelle. At least the bitch wasn’t new to this,” Mayor said to Governor.
“Watch your fuckin’ mouth! This was your idea to store the shit here! The fuck is you sayin’, bruh?” Governor asked Mayor in a tone I’d never heard before. I was sleeping with someone I barely knew.
“I’m sayin’ you should’ve never hired her!” Mayor said.
“And I’m sayin’ turn your voice down when talkin’ to me! Nigga, I was supposed to be out until your bitch-ass begged me to help you and now look. Niggas that cop from us is gettin’ robbed every fuckin’ week! Round this shit up and move it!” Governor spat. Mayor cursed underneath his breath while he grabbed a few cans of paint to pack. I rushed out of the room and headed for the bathroom. The thought of police barging into his business and locking me up scared the hell out of me. Governor put me in a situation where I could be put in prison for a very long time then I’d lose my son for good. The door opened, and Governor stepped in. I had beads of sweat on my forehead because of how afraid I was to go back to jail.
“I’m so mad at you I want to punch you in the throat!”
“Yo, I told you not to go back there!”
“I wanted to talk to you and the door wasn’t shut all the way. How was I supposed to know you had a warehouse of illegal shit inside a work place? That was the last thing on my mind!” I replied. Governor sat on the toilet seat and rubbed his temples.
“Listen, shorty. I got a lot goin’ on and I apologize for puttin’ you around this. It was selfish, but I didn’t think it would be here this long after you started workin’ here. I didn’t want you to find out like this. Last night, one of my niggas got robbed with a lot of my product, that’s why I didn’t call or text you back. I didn’t want to be frustrated while talkin’ to you,” he said.
“I need to get out of here and away from you and that disrespectful bitch-ass brother of yours.”
Governor stood up and towered over me. He lifted my chin and kissed my lips. Damn him for getting aroused in the middle of a crime. I pushed him away from me.
“This is wrong.”
“I’m still the same nigga,” he said.
“You’re a drug dealer.”
“That doesn’t define who I am, just what I do. My touch, conversation and the way I stroke your pussy will still be the same, shorty. How about we finish this conversation at my house? My mother will come and get you and take you there. My house is clean,” he said.
“Noooo, I’m goin’ home.”
“No, the fuck you ain’t! Yo, stop playin’ like you dislike me or sumthin. What you thought I was perfect?” he asked with an attitude. I rolled my eyes and he grabbed my face, forcing me to look at him.
“You think we’re done when we didn’t even start yet? Give me time and we can work on this situation, but in the meantime, I need you to understand this isn’t over,” he said.
“What makes you think I want to continue?”
“Cause we need each other,” he said. He opened the door, so I could exit out of the bathroom.
“My mother will be here in thirty minutes. I’ll be in the back packin’,” he said. He kissed my lips again before he walked off. I went back to my desk thinking I’d get a little work done but my mind was still elsewhere. My response to the emails I was sending had many errors and it took me ten minutes to get it right. The door opened, and Leray walked in.
“Good morning, Essa. How is everything?” he asked.
“Great,” I said dryly.
“Don’t let me hold you up. I’ll see myself to the back,” he said.
I bet his suit-wearing ass is an undercover drug dealer, too.
I was surrounded by legit criminals, but it didn’t change the way I felt about Governor although I was still mad at him. Governor’s mother pulled up to the front of the building while I was sending my last email. I grabbed my purse and the laptop. Governor came from out the back wiping sweat off his forehead.
“I’ll be there shortly, so don’t leave, Essa. I don’t want nobody to have my address, not even an Uber or cab driver,” he said.
“Okay, I get it!”
“Lose that fucked-up ass attitude, too,” he said, and I smacked my teeth.
Governor’s mother was listening to Nas when I got into her Infiniti truck. She had a silk scarf tied into a knot on her head, but it was stylish because it matched her sweat suit.
“Good morning, and put your seat belt on,” she said while pulling off.
Bossy just like her damn son!
“Good morning.”
“Are you hungry? I can cook you sumthin when we get to the house,” she said.
“Thanks, I can help.”
Me and Kendra made small talk on our way to Governor’s house. She had me cracking me up when she talked about men. Apparently after Governor’s father got locked up and left her with nothing for her sons, she started messing around with women and hadn’t dated a man since. Malorie was standing in front of Governor’s house with two grocery bags when we pulled up through the gate. I wasn’t in the mood to deal with that bitch. Every time she came around it was always something negative and she always found a way to remind me of Rochelle. We got out of the truck and Kendra used her fingerprint to unlock the door. Once we stepped inside, she turned off the alarm. Malorie didn’t speak to me and I didn’t speak to her neither. Governor texted my phone and told me he’d be home in an hour. While me and Kendra were prepping the food to cook, Malorie was sitting at the island drinking wine with her nose frowned. I caught her rolling her eyes at me and giving me stank faces.
I had enough of this bitch!
“Bitch is there a problem?” I asked Malorie.
“Matter of fact, there is. What do you want with my stepson? You’re tryin’ to trap him or sumthin? Do you even know him like that to be standin’ up in this kitchen cookin’ wit’ his mama?” Malorie said.
“He will be your stepson but he damn sure ain’t you man. Why are you triggered
if his mother doesn’t care about me comin’ around? You wanna move some furniture or sumthin?”
“Are you threatenin’ me?”
“Yeah, I am. What’s up?”
“Y’all are not fightin’ in my son’s house. Malorie, you need to mind your fuckin’ business! We aren’t married yet and I’m about tired of you bein’ a bully. I’m not helpin’ you if she punches you in the throat. I’m too old to be breakin’ up fights,” Kendra said.
“See, you never take my side! You act like I’m not here every time that overweight bitch comes around. She’s usin’ Governor! She’s not even his type,” Malorie said.
“How do you know my son’s type if never brought a woman home? Let me tell you sumthin. I’ve known Governor for twenty-nine years! Nobody on this Earth can tell me anything about my son that I don’t know. So, how in the hell do you know about his type?” Kendra asked Malorie.
“That’s what I want to know because from what he shows me, I’m every bit of his type plus more. I like him so I’m not goin’ anywhere right now,” I said.
“I’m goin’ home,” Malorie said and left out of the kitchen.
“This is why I’m doubtin’ marriage now. These young girls seem to be more into my sons than into me,” Kendra laughed but I heard the hurt in her voice. I couldn’t imagine being in love with someone, but they were lusting after someone close to me.
For brunch, we made crab cakes on English muffins with eggs and hollandaise sauce. We also cooked steaks, fried potatoes, asparagus, ham and cheese omelets with spicy shrimp and grits.
“Damn, this looks amazing. You cook like this all the time?” Kendra asked while setting the table.
“I used to when I was with my son’s father. Me and my cousins had to learn how to cook at a young age because our fathers couldn’t. They had to work.”
“What happened to your mothers?” she asked.
“Well, me and my cousin, Tinka’s mothers are dead. My other cousin, Kitty’s mother is in jail because she killed them in a car accident while she had drugs in the car. They were all best friends and dated stairstep brothers. It’s a long story but we were babies when it happened. I still can’t believe they were pregnant around the same time.”
“What was your mother’s name?” Kendra asked.
“Christy.”
“I knew her. She was very quiet. It’s a shame what happened to her. Kitty’s mother was a transporter for Governor’s father. She was involved in a high-speed chase with police and crashed head-on into a light pole. Wow, small world. Angela was into the streets and I was surprised she dated Henry because him and his brothers were into church and stayed out of trouble. I knew sumthin was familiar about you, but I didn’t want to come out and ask,” Kendra said. The front door opened, and I caught butterflies. Governor walked into the kitchen with a calm look on his face which was better than earlier. He kissed his mother on the cheek then me on the lips.
“Ummmm hmmmm,” Kendra said, sipping her mimosa.
“Umm hmmm what, Ma?” Governor asked.
“Oh, nothing but keep it up. It makes you look more mature,” she said and winked at me. She was hinting at Governor finally settling down but that wasn’t on the agenda for us.
“Mannnn, this shit looks good,” Governor said, eyeing the food.
“I was just gonna make crab cakes and a few other things but Essa took over. I’m gonna take my plate to go,” Kendra said.
“Why? You can eat wit’ us,” Governor replied.
“Ohhh noooo, honey. You two can relax while I go to the hair salon. I was tryin’ to get my day started until you called me,” she said. Kendra made a few plates before leaving out. Me and Governor sat at the kitchen table with a buffet in front of us. I closed my eyes to say a silent prayer before eating. When I opened them, Governor was fixing a plate for me.
“I’m closing the office for a week, but can you work from home? My guys still goin’ to be workin’ but we just not usin’ the office,” he said.
“Is someone after you?”
“Naw, I think they’re after my brother. I’m always out and about and if a nigga wanted to touch me he could but me and Mayor move differently. That nigga stays roaming the streets,” he replied. Hell, the cat was out of the bag so there was no need to lie to me even though he was still holding a lot of information back.
“It amazes me how different you two are.”
“That’s cause Mayor was more sheltered. He got older and started wildin’ but that’s my lil’ brother and I will do what I gotta do to make sure he’s straight,” he replied.
“Do you have to shut down all your other businesses, too?”
“Hell no, I have people working for me. Brooks Brothers A1 enterprises is the only business we have together. I’m there a lot to make sure he keeps it together. It’s crazy how excited I was to do business with my brother outside the streets, but we don’t have the same goals, you feel me? I’m a business man, Essa. I’m tired of wearin’ bullet proof vests and drivin’ around with two guns in the whip in case a nigga tryin’ to rob me or merk me off. We’re all my mother has so I’m tryna make sure she doesn’t have to bury one of us or visit us in jail,” Governor said. The stress in his voice pained me. He looked out for everyone and all people did was take from him.
“Would you have opened up to me like this if I didn’t see what I saw today?”
“I would’ve eventually but not this soon. But I knew for a while now I could trust you, which is why I brought you to my crib. In the meantime, hold off on gettin’ a lawyer,” he said.
“I don’t understand.”
“Trust me, shorty. It’ll be worth it. I won’t steer you wrong but let me handle that,” he said.
“You can’t fight my battles.”
“I can do what I want. What you gonna do about it?” he asked, leaning forward with a cocky grin. I threw a napkin at Governor and he chuckled.
“I’m gonna trust you since you trust me, so we have a deal.”
“You ain’t got much choices wit’ me, shorty,” he said.
What I’ve learned by dealing with Governor was that good men come in disguises because what they did to make money overshadowed their character. I thank God Governor was leaving it behind, so he could blossom—so we could both blossom. Governor brought the plates to the kitchen, so I could wash them. While I was at the sink, he wrapped his arms around me and kissed the side of my neck.
“Get away from me. You’re on probation.”
“For what?” he asked.
“What you think? Nigga, we ain’t fuckin’ for a while.”
“Aight, cool,” he said and backed away.
I turned around and he was eyeing me. That fool knew what he was doing by looking at me like that. I saw the print of his dick poking through his pants and my walls screamed for me to let him in.
“Ewwww, why you lookin’ at me like that?”
“Cause, my dick hard. I can look as long as I don’t touch, right?” he asked.
“You’re nasty.”
“Naw, that’s you. You turned me out by havin’ me finger fuck you underneath tables and shit. What about last week when we were in the movie theatre?” he smirked. He was referring to the time where I gave him head.
“I don’t remember. Maybe that was one of your other hoes.”
“Yo, stop playin’ wit’ me. My dick only entertains one pussy. But go ahead wit’ da jokes. I got sumthin for you lata,” he said, and I smacked my teeth.
“My homeboy invited us out to a comedy show in Baltimore. You tryin’ to go tonight?” he asked.
“Okay, what time?”
“Seven thirty,” he said.
“Okay, I’ll go.”
Governor kissed the side of my face then headed up the stairs.
Can people fall in love in three months? No, wait. I don’t love him. I just like him a lot—too much. Okay, maybe I love him a little bit…
*************
Governor pulled his black BMW
i8 into a parking spot in the garage closest to Baltimore Comedy Factory. He got out of his car and opened the door for me. Governor was wearing jeans, Timbs and a long-sleeve shirt that showed his physique without fitting tight. The only jewelry he had on was a diamond Cuban link with a diamond watch. His dark skin was so smooth it had a natural sheen. His cologne was intoxicating. I didn’t look bad myself. My outfit was cute and simple. I was wearing stretch jeans with a white V-neck stretch shirt and on my feet were a pair of Steve Madden leopard print pumps Kitty gifted me; she also bought me the matching clutch. But knowing Kitty she probably bought it from Baby Head Poo who more than likely stole the items. My hair was styled into an up-do with a bushy curly bang stopping above the eyes. The only accessories I had on were gold hoop earrings and bangles.
