A Gangster's Dream 2

by Charmanie Saquea

  “What you need is a woman,” Summer said, causing Carmelo to snatch his eyes away from his phone and look at her like she was crazy. “Not just any woman though, you need a nice, wholesome woman. A Summer-approved woman, of course, because nobody is allowed to walk through those doors unless I say so.”

  Carmelo had to laugh. “Is that right?” he asked his niece.

  “Definitely. I'm the only woman in your life besides Granny, so if I say no, I'm pretty sure she will feel the same way.”

  “So what you trynna say?”

  “I'm saying, let's get you a woman! I'm not getting any younger and I would love to have a brother or sister slash cousin sometime soon!” exclaimed Summer.

  “Okay, I'm about to go because you're just talking crazy now.” Carmelo shook his head as he left out the kitchen.

  One thing he loved and respected about Summer was that she always told you how she felt, whether it was something you wanted to hear or not. While Summer was in the kitchen cooking, Carmelo went to his office in his house to strategize. He had to put a plan in order to put his business back on top.

  Since he had been out of the hospital, he hadn't hit Shondrell yet. Carmelo wanted him to think that he was going to bow down to him and let him getaway what he had did, but in reality that would never happen. He was going to put a solid, foolproof plan together that nobody would see coming. Thankfully, Nigel, the connect, was very fond of Carmelo and knew he would get his money and product back.

  He sat back in his chair and rubbed his chin, in deep thought. He knew he had to be careful about who he let in on his plan because he still had some apprehensions about trusting Shaq. Even though they had been boys since forever, there was still something off about him and something in the back of his head was yelling at him, telling him not to trust him.

  Carmelo came to the conclusion that he was going to feed him with a long handled spoon. He was going to keep him around just for the reason that he was second in command and knew Carmelo’s operation too well. If shit started to get thrown off or didn't seem right, he knew exactly who to point the finger at. He would hate to have to bring heat to the person that was supposed to be his best friend, but he knew long ago that this business could turn your so-called friends into foes.

  Chapter Four

  Carmelo was spending time with Summer at the mall one day after he picked her up from school. Just like most teenage girls, she was eager to spend money and he no problem with being her own personal ATM today. Like always, Carmelo found joy being around and spending time with his niece. She was an old soul and way before her time, but she was smart. Not just book smart, but a little street smart also. Even though Carmelo liked to keep her away from the streets and anything that has to do with them, he didn't want her to be dumb to them. He would always school her on certain things he felt she should know.

  “What do you do if you feel like you're being followed?” Carmelo asked. The question may have come across as random to Summer, but since Melo had been home and moving about, he been having the feeling that someone had been watching his every move. He had the ability to handle himself in case a situation arose. He wanted to make sure that Summer knew what to do if she found herself in that kind of predicament.

  “I stay where people can see me and call either you or Daddy,” answered Summer.

  “What if you can't reach us?”

  “I should never have to worry about that because you will always answer, but if it happens, call someone else in the unit,” she said.

  “That's my girl.”

  “So, Uncle Melo, when are you going to take me shopping in Midtown?” questioned Summer as she gave her uncle a look.

  “Let's see, maybe when you get some shopping on Fifth Avenue money.” Carmelo looked over at Summer and laughed at the look on her face. He could tell that wasn't the answer she was going for.

  “Really? That's how you do me?”

  Carmelo just shook his head. Sometimes he hated the fact that he had her so spoiled because he didn't want to give her the idea that she needed to depend on a man to give her things. He wanted to her to be independent and work for her own things so that she wouldn't have to depend on anybody, especially a nigga. But at the same time, he wanted to set some standards on what she should look for in a man. If he treated her like a princess and didn't mind doing for her, he thought she would feel that way in a relationship. She would expect for a nigga to treat her like a princess, or rather a queen, and nothing short of it.

  He was snatched out of his thoughts when he accidentally bumped into somebody. “I'm sorry,” he said as he bent down and helped the lady pick up her bags. When he looked up to hand her the bag, that's when he got a good look at her and he was intrigued. She was beautiful, to say the least.

  “You're fine, I should have been watching where I'm going,” the lady spoke.

  Summer saw how her uncle was looking at the lady and rolled her eyes. She knew that even though she might have told her uncle that it was time to settle down, that didn't mean he had to fawn over the first female he laid eyes on.

  When Carmelo was helping her pick up her things, he ran across a business card.

  "Christina Jones. I take it that's you. You’re a lawyer?" he asked.

  "Not yet, I'm a paralegal." Christina smiled.

  "Carmelo," he introduced himself as he reached his hand out.

  "Christina, as you already know."

  Summer rolled her eyes again and walked away. She was not about to stand here and entertain the foolishness.

  "So, Miss Christina, do you mind if I use this number to call you?" asked Carmelo.

  Christina could tell that Carmelo was a bad boy just by looking at him, but she was never one to judge a book by its cover. She smiled and wrote her cellphone number on the back of the card.

  "You can reach me better at that number,"

  "Bet." Carmelo smiled. "I'll be calling you." He winked before walking away.

  When he caught up with Summer, he through her in a playful headlock. "Why you leave me?"

  "She doesn't make the cut. I can tell you that right now," Summer said.

  "How would you know?" asked Carmelo. “You didn't even stay and talk to her.”

  “I didn't need to, I can just tell by looking at her, but anyways. Let's talk about this Fifth Avenue shopping trip.”

  “Whatever, Summer,” Carmelo laughed.

  The two of them enjoyed the rest of the day shopping together before Carmelo decided it was time to drop her home so he could tend to business.

  Chapter Five

  Getting things in order after coming out of a coma was proving to be harder than Carmelo anticipated. He had a lot to catch up on, and when you had niggas on your team who thought it was cool to be lazy, shit became that much harder. Not only was he now doing work that he normally sent his lower niggas out to do, he had to constantly be on the lookout for niggas in his own crew who were trying to snake it. That was a full time job in itself. All of that on top of the fact that no one had come forward with information on Shondrell or anyone from his team was enough to cause Carmelo a coronary.

  His meeting shorty at the mall that day with Summer had proving to be one of the best things that happened to him since he awoke from his coma. Christina was cool as hell, she didn’t stress him out and she kept him distracted from the other shit that was going on around him. Even though he had a bad chick on call, he couldn’t help to think about the girl he dreamt about; his Dream. What bothered him most about that was that he really didn’t have any one to talk to about it. Niggas would think he was crazy. Summer understood, or at least she pretended to, for the sake of her uncle. But how would a grown ass man look running to a sixteen year to discuss his problems. Melo had made the decision to continue kicking it with Christina until something forced him not to. He couldn’t dwell on a dream, no matter how bad he wanted that woman to be real. He had to move forward.

  <><><><>

  It was a cold and wet night. The t
hunderstorms that were currently terrorizing New York caused the power to go out. Christina went all around the house lighting candles that she rarely used, but tonight she definitely was. Not just because of the storm, but because of the fine specimen of a man she had in her room.

  She slowly walked into her room to find Carmelo stretched out on the bed with his legs crossed at the ankles and his cell phone pressed against his ear. At the first sound of the thunder crackling, Carmelo called his baby. Ever since Summer was a little girl, she has been afraid of thunder and lightning. Now that she was a little older, it wasn't that bad, but she was still afraid.

  “Just try to take your mind off of it, Sum. It will be over before you know it,” Carmelo coached his niece.

  “Ughh, I hate this. Why out of all the times it possibly could have stormed, it picked tonight? We have no power, my phone is on twenty percent, and you're not here,” Summer huffed.

  Summer was irritated and wasn't trying to hide it. Usually she would have her dad and her uncle to comfort her, but her uncle was too busy doing his own thing with someone she didn't care for and her dad was sleeping peacefully like it wasn't ugly outside. She was mad at herself for even being scared of thunderstorms at her age.

  “Think about something else. It’s really not that bad,” Carmelo said as he watched Christina climbed in the bed.

  “Or how about you leave that trick where she's at and come over here.” Summer rolled her eyes.

  “Yo, watch your mouth,” he said as Christina straddled him.

  “I'm saying though.”

  “And I'm saying, if I was at home, you know I would have been there. But I'm not, so you just have to be brave like I know you are.”

  “Bye, Uncle Melo,” Summer said with an attitude before hanging up.

  It wasn't that she was mad at her uncle, but she was pissed that he was with Christina. She kept trying to tell him that Christina wasn't the one for him. Summer got a funny vibe from her and hated the fact that Carmelo chose to indulge time with her. She even went as far as to try to take up all of her uncle’s free time so that he wouldn't have any time to spend with her.

  Carmelo looked at his phone for about a minute, trying to figure out what happened because he knew damn well that Summer didn't hang up on him. Nah, her battery died. She didn't hang up on me, he told himself to keep from calling her back and setting her straight. Growing agitated that she wasn't getting any attention, Christina rolled her eyes and sucked her teeth.

  “The hell wrong with you?” Melo asked. He now had an attitude because Summer had one.

  “Every time we’re together, your attention is always on Summer.”

  Carmelo shrugged his shoulders. “And?”

  “And you know she doesn't like me. She does everything in her power to keep you from me, and you act like you don't notice it,” said Christina.

  “Nah, I notice it but I chose not to speak on it or correct it because for the past sixteen years, she has been the only female in my life besides my mom. I'm basically her second dad and she doesn't take too kindly to the fact that she has to share me. Just because I start messing with somebody doesn't mean I'm going to ignore her or put her on the back burner.”

  “So what are you saying?”

  “I'm saying, know your place,” Carmelo said.

  Christina wasn't about to deny the fact that she was a little hurt. She could see herself being with Carmelo long term, but that wasn't about to happen as long as his precious Summer had a say so. She knew all she had to do was divert his attention so that it would be on her and no one else.

  She scooted down Carmelo's body and released his member from his boxers. He really wasn't in the mood right now, but he would be a damn fool to turn down some head. If Christina wasn't good for anything else, she was good for sucking a good nut out of a dick. She slowly licked around the head and Carmelo hissed like a snake.

  "Sssss." Instantly, his right hand traveled to the back of her head as he pushed her down further on his dick.

  Being the pro that she was, Christina took all of him into her mouth without gagging. She let Carmelo's dick hit the back of her throat and slowly came back up. Carmelo let his head fall back and his eyes roll back. Christina looked up at him and smiled. She was confident in her skills and knew this was the exact thing that was needed to help Carmelo get his mind right.

  For some unknown reason, Carmelo's mind drifted off to Dream. He imagined that she was the one with her mouth wrapped around his member. Visions of the not-so-real sexual encounters that they shared came through so vividly. He felt himself about to explode and tried to push Christina off of him but it was like her jaws were locked.

  "Damn, Dream," he said with his eyes closed as he released his seeds.

  Christina paused and looked at him sideways. She knew damn well that Carmelo was not thinking about another woman while she was giving him oral sex. Still not even realizing that he called out the wrong name, Carmelo slowly opened his eyes.

  "What?" he asked.

  "You just called me another bitch name, that's what," Christina said as she snaked her neck around.

  "Man, get the fuck out of here." Carmelo waved her off as he realized what he had done.

  "Fuck that, Carmelo! I'm so sick of this shit. Not only do I have to come second to your niece, but I also have to some second to a bitch that you think you know."

  "Chill the fuck out man. I don't wanna hear that shit."

  Christina chuckled. "And you think I wanna hear you calling out somebody else name while I'm the one sucking your dick?"

  Not wanting to hear this shit, Carmelo threw his pants, shoes and hoodie back on. He didn't care about a damn thunder storm. He was out.

  "Where are you going?" Christina asked.

  Not bothering to answer her, Carmelo grabbed his keys and headed for the door. Christina was left standing in her bedroom with her mouth open. She was completely confused. How the hell did he just call her another female’s name but he was the one with an attitude and leaving?

  <><><><>

  ​ Shondrell had been staying out the way lately. He knew how Carmelo was, so he knew he was somewhere sitting back and plotting. Carmelo wasn't the type to bow down at all, so Shondrell knew he had to get out of dodge for a little. He wasn't running, but he was going to let things die down for a few.

  He knew he had fucked up when he took Carmelo’s stuff, but at the same time, he really couldn't give a fuck. He felt like the shit was rightfully his in the first place. In his eyes, niggas like Carmelo get hood rich and let the shit go to their heads.

  “Yo, Maino!” Shondrell called out to his friend.

  “What's up?”

  “I need you to find out what's the next flight out of here for me,” Shondrell said.

  “Where you going?” Maino asked.

  “Away, nigga,” Shondrell said.

  Maino looked at him like he was crazy. “Are you serious right now, dog? Business is booming and you wanna get away?”

  Ignoring him, Shondrell decided to roll a blunt. He was a grown ass man and wasn't about to explain himself to anybody.

  “Let me find out you running because you know Melo coming for your head,” Maino said.

  “You know what? Sometimes you make me want to put a bullet in your fucking head. Then again, you're not even worth the bullet. Get the fuck out of my face and do what the fuck I told you to do!” Shondrell yelled.

  Not wanting to get into it, Maino went ahead and left the room. Shondrell was pissed. He was tired of people trying test him or play him. What the fuck would he need to run from Carmelo for? That nigga bleed just like I do, he thought as he lit his blunt. Hours later, Shondrell was on a flight out of New York. He didn't have one piece of luggage with him. He would get whatever he needed when he reached his destination. It felt good to be getting away from his city for a while, but he also knew it would be some bullshit waiting for him when he got back. Carmelo would be looking for him but wouldn't be able to find him. Once
again, he felt like he had one up on Carmelo Love.

  Chapter Six

  Even after the little argument they had at her crib, Christina and Carmelo continued to kick it for a few weeks. However, between dealing with what was going on in the streets he rarely had time for her. Well, it wasn't that he didn't have the time for her. He just wasn't really putting in the effort. You know they say, “When you really want to see someone, you will make time for them.” Carmelo wasn't on it like that. He was feeling Chrissy, but not like that. He couldn't understand why he was keeping her so far out of reach. She was a cool chick, had goals, ambition, and wasn't kicking it with him for his bread because she had her own. Christina was kind of just right for him. Melo didn't think so, though. Part of him was holding on to every memory of his…

  “Ya’ll are a mess,” a female voice said before laughing and letting out a snort.

  “Dream,” Carmelo whispered.

  “Are you seriously calling me Dream again, Carmelo? Like come on. Who the hell is she? Maybe you should be having dinner with her instead since she's all you seem to fantasize about. How many times are you going to disrespect me like that?” Christina asked, clearly upset.

  Melo shook his head no. “Nah, Chrissy. I wasn't calling you Dream, ma. My bad.”

  “Okay, so why were you saying her name? I'm confused,” she spat.

  Carmelo was stuck because he didn't have an answer to her question. It was that voice, that snort, it was too distinctive. He could never forget it, no matter how he tried. His didn't know if he really heard what he thought he heard or if he was bugging, but he surely was going to find out.

  His eyes scanned the restaurant in search of a familiar face. He started growing frustrated because he was coming up short. Not one of the female patrons closely resembled his Dream. Something told Carmelo to turn around and when he did, their eyes met.

  “Carmelo, I’m speaking to you,” Christina said.

  Melo heard her, but he didn't. His focus was on the brown skin beauty before him. Something was different about her. He didn't care that he was staring at another woman while having dinner with his girl. It was his Dream. Everything was as he remembered. She was busy smiling at the two ladies who were sitting with her and showed the deep dimples on both of her cheeks. Her slanted eyes were just as alluring as he remembered, the narrow nose, and plush lips. She was perfect. Something still seemed off, well, different. “Her hair,” Carmelo thought to himself, remembering that his Dream had auburn colored hair and the one before him hair was jet black. It was her though; it was his Dream.