“Please, it’s not just you. It’s anyone who stands in her way.”
“She’s more likely to do it with me because of a certain person.”
“Don't worry about her. She has her own skeletons that she doesn't want coming out.”
I nodded. Hopefully, they would be revealed; that's the only way my plan would work.
Mark
After my dad had his meeting with Avery, he called me into the office. I was going in as Avery walked out. He looked at me with a smirk.
“What?” I asked.
“You know, I never really liked you.”
“The feeling's mutual. And if I hear one more female employee talk about how you’re harassing her, I will personally knock you out in front of everyone. You got that?”
Avery stepped up to me, and I did the same. I wasn’t going to let him bully me; he’s always been a punk. If I did take over the business, he'd be the first to go.
“I wish you would so your daddy can boot you out of here; but you’ll probably do something more stupid that'll have you gone. You always do. Fucking loser,” he spat.
I was about to put my hands on him when the door opened. My dad looked between us.
“What’s going on?”
“Nothing important,” Avery said. He purposely bumped into me as he walked down the hall. I was about to go after him, but my dad gave me a look reading, “don't even think about it.”
“You saw that, didn’t you?”
“Yes, I did, but don't stoop down to his level, Mateo.”
“Why is he still here, Papa? The man only cares about getting with the next female who works here or a customer. He’s bad for business.”
“I have heard some rumors about him, but you can't deny that he’s a good businessman.”
I laughed. “You’re kidding me, right? He skimps on the soap. People think their cars are only being sprayed with water. The machine is always broken, and the air conditioner is always off, making the lobby a sauna.”
“But he brings in the biggest clients. Out of all of the stores, he has the highest profit. Which is why I decided to give him the company.”
I looked taken aback and immediately sat in a chair in front of the desk. “Wait, what?”
“I asked if you could take over, and I still haven’t received a response. Avery is willing to take over, and he has the proposal and money needed to do it.”
“You haven't even given me a chance to think it over!”
“I’m not finished, Mateo! I haven’t agreed to his proposal. I told him that I’m waiting on you to decide if you want to take over, but I need to know, if you do, will you be committed to doing it?”
I stared at him as he leaned back in his seat. “I've heard that you went into business with Victor. A restaurant, Mateo?!”
“So what? It’s what I wanted to do.”
“And you couldn’t tell me this.”
“Why would I? You would have said it wouldn’t last and that I’ll fail.”
“Is that why you don’t want to take over the business?”
“There are a lot of reasons why I don’t want to.”
“If this is about your mama –”
“This business is what killed her, Papa. Honestly, I never wanted a part of it.”
My dad looked hurt as he took a deep breath. “You know your mama had a lot of issues –”
I interrupted him. “Yeah, which were caused by you. She loved you so much, yet you didn’t love her enough.”
He looked through a few files before looking back at me. “You know I never meant to hurt her.”
“Yet, you kept doing it. I will never forgive you for that; she didn't deserve what you put her through.”
“There are things you don't know about, Mateo.”
“I know enough.”
“That’s why I think it's best that I turn the business over to Avery. He’s more focused than you are, and you let other things cloud your judgment.”
“I should be upset with you because you only asked me to take over after you asked everyone else. Do you know how that made me feel?! And even after you realized the reason why I didn't really want to, you still see me as a loser.”
“Did I say that?”
“You didn’t have to. It’s written all over your face.”
"I'm proud that you want to start your business. I just wish you would have come to me for advice and to ask about your business partner. He’s not a good fit, son.”
“I admit that Victor has made some mistakes in the past, but he’s been there for me, unlike you, Dad.”
My dad ignored my last comment and continued, “At least you’re thinking about your future. I just wish you would have told me instead of me having to hear about it at the car wash.”
I sighed. I knew I should have told him, but when has he ever cared about anything I’ve done? When I’ve mentioned my plans in the past, he shot them down, so I figured it would be a waste this time, too. Even though I didn’t want to take over, I couldn’t allow Avery to have it and run it to the ground.
“Just give me some more time to figure things out before you give it to Avery.”
“I've given you enough time.”
“Give me more time. It’s the least you can do,” I insisted then stood and up.
Even though this wasn't a part of my plan, I wouldn't allow this company and the family’s name to go down in flames.
“I thought you didn’t care about this company,” my dad pointed out.
“I’m a Fernandez, so it means something.”
I went to the door and opened it. I turned around and looked in my dad's eyes. “Two weeks. After that, I’ll have my decision.”
“That’s all I’m allowing. If you don’t want it, the entire company will be Avery’s.”
The hell it will, I thought walking out the door. Whatever issues I had with Suds would have to be left at the door. I couldn't let the company go to some jackass who'll use it like a dating site. I had to get the twins on board to keep this business in the family.
Vanessa
After the hectic day we'd had, it was finally closing time. Most of the employees had left, leaving me, Simone, and Avery to close the lobby. I shut down the wash tracking system as Simone printed out the close-out report.
“So we’ll meet back at the house and go to the club, and I guess I’ll drop you off at the convenience store near Tropicana so Mark can pick you up.”
“That’s fine. I really appreciate you doing this.”
“No problem. Like I said, I still have my doubts about the two of you, but who am I to judge?”
“I texted Mark so he knows where to meet.”
“Okay. Well, I'm done here, so I’m going to head out. Avery already signed everything, so just put all of the forms into the drawer.”
“Okay. See you at the house.”
Simone clocked out and flashed a smile before leaving.
I had one more form to print, but for some reason, it wouldn't. I checked the ink and the paper levels before picking up the phone to call Simone. She wasn’t answering, so I went to the office. The building was too quiet and was giving off an eerie vibe. I looked behind me, wondering if Avery should lock the front door before I left. I proceed to the office, then knocked on the door, but after the second knock, I realized he wasn’t in there. I headed to the back, but forgot that door was locked, so I went back to the front to head outside.
I noticed him near the break room, handling some 'business' with a female, so I went to the back. His face was serious, and his hand roughly grabbed the woman's hair. Her face was hidden behind her chestnut hair, and his other hand gripped her waist. He grunted as she moaned loudly. I froze for a second, not knowing what to do; then, an idea popped into my head. This is the opportunity I was waiting for! I could finally expose Avery for the scum he is.
I quickly pulled out my phone and hit record, watching him sex some random on Suds’ property. That definitely would send his ass p
acking.
The female’s face was finally revealed as she looked up. Her eyes were closed as she began bouncing on Avery. I almost dropped my phone when I saw it was Maya. She was clearly enjoying what Avery was doing because her face was etched with pleasure. I literally thought I was going to throw up.
Once they finished, he pulled her to him and kissed her. I quickly stopped recording and left before they saw me. When I walked back into the lobby, I saw that the report I needed was finally printed. I got all the papers together, set them in the drawer, clocked out, then quickly grabbed my things. I didn’t need them to know I was still here. Now, I have a way to expose Avery for the jerk he is.
***
I arrived to Simone’s 15 minutes later to start getting ready. She was in the kitchen when she noticed me walking in.
“Where have you been? You should have left Suds right after I did.”
“The close-out form wouldn’t print, so I had to wait on that.”
“Oh, that report always takes the longest to print. What’s with the face, though? You look like you just saw a ghost.”
I didn't know whether I should tell her about what I saw, but she was one of the people who told me there could be something going on between Avery and Maya.
“I saw something while I was still there,” I admitted.
“Saw what?”
I pulled out my phone and showed her the video. She was clearly shocked as she put her hand over her mouth.
“Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! I was joking when I said those two were hooking up. I didn’t think it was true!”
“Well, I just saw it with my own two eyes. It was a bit disturbing.”
“I can imagine. That man will literally sleep with anyone.”
“Now I have the evidence I need to expose him and possibly have him and maybe even Maya booted.”
“I can understand Avery, but why Maya?”
“She’s caught in the crossfire; what other choice would Enrique and Rosario have but to fire her if this comes out?”
“You saw what happened with Dominic: He was only given a month's suspension, and he’s worse than Avery with all the women he’s banged.”
“That’s true, and he should have been given a harsher punishment, but I’m sure Avery has been harassing women for years. I’m sure most of the employees aren’t consenting to him touching them.”
“But how will you prove that? That video will only show him having consensual sex with an employee. Enrique isn’t going to look at his number one manager and the top cashier going at it. Do you really think they'll be fired over this? I don’t.”
I looked at Simone who shrugged and continued, “The only thing that's is going to happen is that Maya will be moved to another location, and Avery will still be doing the same crap.”
“So, what good is the policy if that's what will happen?”
“Let me give you the facts: The policy does apply but only to certain employees, mainly the newer ones. Enrique does what he can, but when he sees the money coming in, he kind of turns a blind eye. Case in point: Avery. And even Dominic gets preferential treatment in spite of all the stuff he has caused. He just got a slap on the wrist. Rosario also gets her way to a certain extent. Whether you like it or not, that’s how things work at Suds.”
“Basically, you're saying those three are untouchable?”
“Rosario probably isn't, but when it comes to Enrique’s moneymakers, you’re going to need a lot more than a video to expose them, especially Avery.”
I sighed, and Simone patted me on the back. “Good try, though. Now, let’s get ready to party.”
I watched her walk off, noting her attitude towards Avery. Something definitely wasn’t right about it, especially the fact that she was defending him. There’s more to what Simone's telling me, and I’m going to find out what it is.
Vanessa
I looked at myself in the dresser mirror, taking in the black minidress I wore. I turned around to check myself out from the back and saw that the dress was riding up; my ass was slowly trying to peek out. I needed a dress with more material, so I went into my closet to see what else I had.
“Damn, are you trying to give Mark a heart attack? That dress is hot!” Simone exclaimed, walking in.
“I’m not going to wear it,” I replied, pulling out another black dress.
“Vanessa, you’re going out with your man; you might as well show off what you've got.”
“Yeah, I’ll be showing him and everyone else. I’ll save this one for another day,” I insisted, changing into the other dress. This one was still sexy, but it stretched past my knees.
“That one is hot, too. But we'd better go if we don’t want to be late.”
“Okay, but before we do, I need to know if everything’s okay.”
“What do you mean?”
“You seemed kind of off when we were talking about Avery and Maya. It seems like you were actually defending him.”
“I wasn’t defending him; I was just telling the truth. I just kind of know how Enrique’s mind works. I've seen a lot, so there was nothing behind it.”
She picked up the dress I'd just put on the bed and changed the subject, “Can I borrow this? I have a hot date coming up.”
“How soon, and who is it?”
“Just a guy I met. But can I?”
“Nope. I have the perfect date to wear this on. Mark promised to make me dinner at his place next week, so that’s when I’ll wear it.”
“He’s going to cook for you? I heard he’s a beast in the kitchen, but he stopped cooking when his mom passed. That’s why I’m kind of surprised he’s about to own a restaurant.”
“He said he's doing it for his friend, Victor.”
“Which is nice and all, but I think opening it will motivate him to get back into the kitchen. His mom taught him everything he knows; that’s probably why it’s so hard for him to step into it again.”
“How do you know all of this?”
Simone smiled. "Remember, I’ve seen and heard things. And his friend, Xavier, told me that bit of information. He’s been trying to get with me for years, but he’s too goofy for me, though.”
“I thought that’s how you like your men,” I teased.
Simone laughed. “Not on a daily basis.”
I fluffed my hair then grabbed my dressy crossbody bag. I looked at Simone and asked, “Ready to hit up the club?”
“Of course. Let’s see how it’s done at Tropicana.”
I grabbed my overnight bag and headed out the door. This was going to be an interesting night.
Mark
I was heading to Tropicana with Victor and Xavier, looking forward to what the night would bring. Not only would Vanessa and Simone be there but Maya, and three other co-workers, Jose, Max, and Wilson, would be there, too. There were two things I was worried about: If V and I would be too obvious about our relationship, and whether I’d have to baby sit Victor. It’s my duty to make sure he doesn't get drunk, because he can’t crash at my place tonight.
As soon as I pulled into the parking lot and in a space, I saw it was already packed with a swarm of club goers waiting to get in. I noticed Simone’s Dodge Challenger parking next to me, then she and Vanessa got out. I think my heart skipped a beat when I saw Vanessa. She looked beautiful as she waited for me to get out.
“Wow, your girl is looking good tonight,” Xavier complimented.
I smiled. “She does.”
I stepped out of the truck as she walked over. I brought my hands to her waist, and she gave a sexy smile.
“Careful; I don’t want anyone to get the wrong idea,” she whispered.
“No one from the job is here yet, so I have time to do this,” I said before my lips touched hers. I held her a little longer, knowing I couldn’t do this later on, especially with Maya around.
“Just know that once we’re alone, you’re all mine,” I whispered.
“I’m counting on it,” She replied.
“Hi, Van
essa,” Xavier greeted and waved to her.
“Hi, Xavier. And you must be Victor. Congrats on your new business. If you need any help, I’ll be glad to give you business advice,” Vanessa offered with a dazzling smile.
“That’d be great. Thank you for the offer. Mark mentioned that you worked in management, so I'm sure your advice will really help.”
Into You Page 11
