Three Is A Crowd

by Chenell Parker

  “Just let me know whatever it is that you need me to do,” Jersi said.

  “For starters, you can come up out of them clothes,” Memphis replied, making her smile.

  Having Jersi there just felt right. His wife and son would always hold a special place in his heart but it was time for him to make some new memories. He would forever cherish the ones that he made with Layla but he couldn’t keep holding on to the past. It wasn’t healthy and so many people had been telling him that. He’d thought about telling Jersi about his family a long time ago, but the timing never seemed right. Now that he did, he was ready to move forward with her by his side. He was sure that a few people wouldn’t be happy about it but he really didn’t give a fuck.

  “N o baby, I can’t see it. That’s too girly for me,” Memphis said as he talked to Jersi via Facetime.

  She was out shopping with her brother and she showed him some things that she wanted to get for his house. Memphis gave her his credit card and she wasn’t afraid to use it. After three weeks, Memphis had finally sold Layla’s old car and donated all of her clothes to the salvation army. Erin had a friend who was pregnant with a boy and he gave her everything out of his son’s room. He hired someone to paint a few of the rooms and he was ready to decorate.

  “What’s wrong with it? I think it’ll go perfect in one of your spare bedrooms,” Jersi replied.

  “Just get whatever you want but don’t break me,” Memphis joked.

  “You’ll never be broke as long as you got me. I’ll see you later boo,” Jersi said as she blew him a kiss before hanging up.

  Memphis didn’t even have to look up to know that his mother wasn’t too pleased. Valerie had never met Jersi but she decided that she didn’t like her. He checked Lila about trying to cause confusion in his relationship and Jersi cursed her out when she saw her. He wasn’t even surprised that Lila ran back and told his mother. It also didn’t help that Valerie went there to clean one day and saw all the changes that he was making. He stayed the night by Jersi but his mother called him going off. She swore that Jersi was changing him and making him forget about his wife and son. Valerie was always telling him to move on but she had a problem when he finally decided to do it.

  “I know my poor daughter-in-law is probably rolling over in her grave,” Valerie fussed as she moved around her kitchen.

  Memphis had only gone over there to hook up a shelf that she got for her bathroom. He wasn’t in the mood for all the extras. JJ was supposed to be doing it but he flaked just like always.

  “You be doing too much,” Memphis laughed.

  “I don’t find nothing funny about some random harlot coming around and spending up all of Layla’s money,” Valerie argued.

  “Layla’s money?” Memphis questioned incredulously.

  “That’s what I said. That’s who the majority of the money belonged to,” Valerie replied.

  “Layla was my wife. Whatever was hers was equally mine. Jersi doesn’t know anything about the money and trust me, she doesn’t need it,” Memphis noted.

  Layla and Lila’s mother had a malpractice lawsuit against the hospital before she died. Paula was a diabetic and one of her legs had to get amputated. No one knew how it happened, but the hospital ended up cutting off the wrong leg. A few days later, she had to go right back under the knife to get the other one cut off but a blood clot had formed by then. Every lawyer, near and far, wanted the case and she chose one of the best to represent her.

  Unfortunately, Paula died of a massive heart attack before she could ever see any of the money. The case hadn’t even made it court. Her kids were young but they became the sole heirs of whatever she was going to receive. The lawsuit took forever. It was years of back and forth with the courts and the hospital before any of it was paid out. Her daughters ended up settling for four million dollars and it took a while before they got that. Memphis and Layla had been looking for a house and that was the first thing they got when her money came. She also got her car and helped Memphis with a few business ventures. She and Lila paid Valerie’s house off and got her a car too.

  Lila went crazy with her money and she really didn’t have much to show for it. She got her a nice house and a car and Juan got some of it out of her too. She was broke in no time and working as a cashier in a local grocery store. Layla was much smarter with hers though. With the money that Memphis had saved up during his college years, their savings account was sitting pretty. Sadly, she died before she could really enjoy any of it. Memphis always said that the lawsuit money was cursed, so he didn’t touch a dime of it after his wife died. Paula and Layla both died before they could spend it and he swore that the same thing would happen to him. He left the money in his savings account and hadn’t messed with it since he buried his wife and son.

  “She probably ain’t nothing but a gold digger,” Valerie said, pulling Memphis away from his thoughts.

  “Would you like to meet her ma?” Memphis asked.

  “Hell no, I don’t,” Valerie snapped.

  “Cool, well keep your opinions to yourself,” Memphis replied.

  “Why should I? You never kept yours to yourself. Y’all want to pick and choose who I can be with and love but y’all want me to keep quiet,” Valerie fumed.

  “Besides my deadbeat ass daddy, who else did we have a problem with?” Memphis asked.

  Valerie continued to stir her pot without responding. Memphis was happy that he was almost done because he didn’t have time for her crazy attitude.

  “You and JJ are always trying to run my life,” Valerie mumbled, angering her son.

  “How are we trying to run your life ma? You in your feelings because we threatened to cut you off if you took our daddy back. I’m not understanding why you were even thinking about being with that nigga again after how he did us. I remember taking showers by candlelight because he refused to help pay the light bill. His bitch was walking around wearing thousand dollar shoes while we used gray tape to hold our shit together. You went to bed hungry some nights because you didn’t have enough food for yourself after you fed all of us. I wish the fuck I would have paid a bill to let that nigga live comfortably. He basically said fuck us when he left and the feelings were mutual,” Memphis yelled angrily.

  He grabbed the shelf that he’d just put together and took it to the bathroom. Memphis held on to the wall in an attempt to calm himself down. He felt bad as fuck for going off on his mama but she was on some other shit. He could never understand why his mother would even entertain the thought of giving his father another chance. Valerie cried herself to sleep some nights behind his bullshit. To him, that was unforgivable. Still, Memphis shouldn’t have snapped on her the way he did and he felt bad about it. After a few minutes, he walked back into the kitchen and hugged her from behind.

  “I love you ma and I’m sorry. I was upset but I was wrong for disrespecting you. My feelings remain the same but I should have said it better,” Memphis said.

  “I understand baby and I know how you feel. I just can’t help that I still love a no good man. But you’re right, he doesn’t deserve anything that he didn’t give. But my feelings remain the same too. I don’t like this new girl that you’re with,” Valerie replied.

  “You can’t dislike somebody that you don’t know,” Memphis noted.

  “Yes I can after the way Lila said she talked to her. And you were no better,” Valerie scolded.

  “Stop believing everything that Lila tells you. I can guarantee that she didn’t tell you her part in everything though,” Memphis said.

  “Her feelings are hurt Memphis. In her mind, she always thought that y’all would get together,” Valerie replied.

  “That’s never happening ma. I was married to her sister and she dated my cousin. Besides all that, I’m just not attracted to Lila like that. I’ve never looked at her that way and I never will. I don’t see how you’re even okay with something like that.”

  “It happened all the time back in my day,” Valerie pointed ou
t.

  “Maybe so, but it’s not happening with me. You were the main one telling me to stop being a hoe and settle down. I took your advice and I’m happy now. After what I went through when Layla died, I thought you would be happy for me too,” Memphis said.

  “Maybe I would be if it was somebody else,” Valerie frowned.

  “You don’t even know her. I can bring her by so you can meet her though,” Memphis offered.

  “Absolutely not!” Valerie yelled.

  “Well, she ain’t going nowhere, so that’s your loss,” Memphis replied before he kissed her cheek and left.

  He needed to sign some paperwork that Vance had for him and then he was going back home to wait for Jersi. It took about ten minutes for Memphis to get to the car wash, but he went straight to his brother’s office when he did.

  “I got everything ready for you,” Vance said as he handed Memphis some paperwork.

  Memphis was big on reading anything before he signed it. He took a seat and read over the paperwork before he signed his name at the bottom. Jersi sent him a text and he was all smiles when he read it. He took a minute to reply and Vance stared at him the entire time.

  “The fuck you looking at a nigga so hard for?” Memphis asked.

  “Of all the words in the English language, you still manage to use the worst ones,” Vance said while shaking his head.

  “Stop staring at me then nigga,” Memphis replied.

  “No harm bro. It’s just been a while since I’ve seen you like this,” Vance noted.

  “Like what?” Memphis asked.

  “Happy,” Vance replied.

  “What? I’m always happy,” Memphis laughed.

  “No, you’re always smiling. There’s a difference,” Vance pointed out.

  “Damn,” Memphis mumbled.

  His brother was right. He kept a smile on his face but he didn’t always feel like smiling. Some days, he didn’t even feel like leaving out of the house. Lately, his views on a lot of things had changed and he knew that it was because of Jersi. Memphis had never been interested in getting into a serious relationship with anyone before she came along. As long as his sexual needs were met, he was good.

  “I guess we have Jersi to thank for that. She got good energy,” Vance said.

  “Here you go with that energy and good vibes shit. I’m out of here,” Memphis laughed as he stood up and prepared to leave.

  “My wife saw it too and we haven’t been wrong yet,” Vance yelled after him.

  Memphis was laughing but he was praying that Vance was right. He needed all the good vibes he could gets and he was praying that Jersi didn’t disappoint.

  “A whole month and this is all that we’ve managed to accomplish,” Memphis said as he looked around his spacious living room.

  Jersi and her brother had done their thing and had it looking nice. The color scheme was brown and some kind of funny green color but he liked it. They had pictures on the walls and a huge rug on the floor. Memphis had his tv on a cheap stand from Walmart at first but it was now mounted on the wall. He never had tables or anything else but it looked amazing now.

  “Who is we? You didn’t do nothing,” Jersi replied as she looked up from her papers.

  She was studying to take the senior accountant test but she was nervous. The test was in three weeks and she didn’t think she was prepared. Memphis quizzed her every day and he was confident that she was.

  “You and Dray did good though. I like it,” he smiled as he looked around.

  “I knew you would,” Jersi replied as she threw her papers to the side.

  “You done studying?” Memphis asked her.

  “Yeah, for now at least. I’m just ready to get it over with,” Jersi replied.

  “You got that baby; I can feel it,” Memphis encouraged as he pulled her in for a kiss.

  “I hope you’re right,” Jersi said as she snuggled up with him in the sofa.

  “I know I am. I’m just sorry that the test is on the same day as the wedding. I’m trying to show you off,” Memphis replied.

  One of his frat brothers was getting married and they never missed each other’s events. Memphis and his friends always had a good time together and he was looking forward to it. He wanted Jersi to be there but he understood that her priorities came first. Memphis hadn’t been in a relationship in a while and he was ready to introduce her to his crew.

  “I might miss the wedding but I can come to the reception,” Jersi noted.

  “Yeah, come through there and shut shit down,” Memphis said as he grabbed a hand full of her ass.

  “I’ll try my best,” Jersi giggled.

  “You don’t have to try too hard. It just comes natural,” Memphis said making her blush.

  Jersi leaned down and parted his lips with her tongue. They engaged in a deep kiss before she broke it and started kissing down his body. She pulled his erection out of his boxers and licked her lips. Memphis put his hands behind his head as Jersi grabbed the base of his dick and eased it down her throat. Something about his piercings excited her and she loved the way it felt in her mouth. Memphis hissed as she stroked and sucked him. Jersi was nasty with it as she pulled him out of her mouth and spit on it. Memphis grabbed one of the pillows from the sofa and gripped it tightly. After a while, he grabbed the sides of her face and pounded inside of her mouth.

  “Mmmm,” Jersi hummed as she continued to suck, sending him over the edge.

  He tapped Jersi’s arm after a while, letting her know that he was about to cum. Jersi didn’t swallow but she didn’t care if he shot it in her face. She joked about it saying that he was helping to keep her skin blemish free. She was on some other shit now and she hadn’t moved yet. Memphis tapped her arm again and again, Jersi didn’t budge. She was looking up at him, almost daring him to release in her mouth.

  “Shit Jersi. You must be trying to swallow,” Memphis moaned, making her nod her head in confirmation.

  Jersi had never swallowed before but she wasn’t opposed to trying something new. Memphis was all for it, so he let her do her thing.

  “Ummm,” Jersi hummed and that was it for him.

  Within seconds, Memphis exploded in her mouth and shit went left from there. Jersi started choking and grabbing her throat. Memphis was still cumming and trying to help her at the same time. Jersi had the white sticky substance all over her face and neck as she jumped up and ran to the bathroom. Memphis pulled his boxers up and ran after her.

  “Shit! Are you alright baby?” he asked while grabbing some towels from the shelf.

  Jersi was leaned over the sink with the water on full blast. She was still coughing and he felt bad as fuck. She knew she didn’t know how to swallow and he didn’t know why she even tried.

  “Hell no I’m not alright. I feel like I’m dying,” she said when she finally came up for air.

  She looked like she’d been in a fight with her hair all over her head and his babies sliding down her face.

  “The fuck you did that for Jersi? You had me scared as fuck,” Memphis replied as he cleaned her up.

  “Oh God,” Jersi said as she splashed some cold water on her face.

  “That’s what you get for trying to be grown,” Memphis laughed.

  “I am grown nigga. I didn’t know you were gonna shoot out a damn gallon,” Jersi fussed, making him laugh harder.

  Once she cleaned herself up, she pointed her middle finger at him and walked out of the bathroom. Memphis was weak but she didn’t find anything funny. After passing out during oral sex, Jersi was over being embarrassed in front of him. Thankfully, she was used to him now and she didn’t get lightheaded when he went down on her anymore.

  “Get off me,” she pouted as she pushed him away when he tried to hug her.

  “Don’t be like that baby. I was genuinely concerned. I thought I lost you,” Memphis said as he continued to smirk.

  “You lucky I didn’t bring my car over here. I would leave your ass and go home,” Jersi frowned. She and Me
mphis had gone out to dinner the night before and he picked her up. Since she had clothes at his house, that’s where she went once they were done.

  “I’m sorry love. Let me make it up to you,” Memphis said.

  He snatched Jersi’s boy shorts off and pulled her to the edge of the sofa. She gripped his muscular arms and held on right before he dipped his head in between her legs.

  “Shit Memphis!” Jersi squealed as he stiffened his tongue and slid it up and down her wet bottom lips.

  He was making smacking noises while wildly moving his head from side to side. The vibrating sensation was like double pleasure for Jersi. She alternated between grabbing the back of his head and holding on to his arms. Her bottom half was hanging off the sofa but Memphis was holding her tight. When his tongue picked up speed, Jersi’s entire body shook and her eyes rolled up to the heavens. She thought she was falling when Memphis picked her up. She held on tight as he stood up with her in his arms, never breaking their connection. He laid down on the sofa and positioned Jersi on his face.