by Weber, Carl
I ran to the bedroom and what I saw made my heart drop. The closet door was open and Avery’s side was totally empty. Every dresser drawer was hanging out, and there was nothing in them. All of Avery’s clothes were gone. This fool was serious!
I threw on a robe and bolted out of the apartment, down the stairway, calling out, “Avery! Avery, come back!”
Outside on the stoop, I looked frantically up and down the street. There was no sign of Avery or his car. Tears welled up in my eyes again, but this time there was no rage. It was pure sadness.
What have I done? How could I let my man walk out of my life? I’ve got to get him back.
“Connie?”
I turned around to see Daryl standing there, looking very concerned.
“Everything all right?” he asked. “I heard you yelling.”
All the tension of the night caught up with me, and I suddenly felt exhausted. I pulled my robe tighter around me and sat down on the stoop. “Have you seen my husband?” I asked pitifully.
“Yeah, I met him about an hour ago when he was going in your apartment.” He sat down beside me. “Is everything okay?”
I couldn’t help it. I broke down and let the tears flow. “He left me,” I blubbered. “Avery wants a divorce. I can’t believe my life has come to this.”
“Shhh. Don’t worry, Connie. These things have a way of working themselves out. I promise.” He put his arm around me and rocked me as I cried on his shoulder.
That little bit of kindness meant more to me than he could ever know.
Krystal
14
“Damn, Daryl, why are you doing this to me?” I moaned, hitting my fist against the wall in frustration. Was it possible to want someone and hate him all at the same time? I’d been feeling this way ever since Daryl called to tell me he wasn’t coming to see me this morning, basically ruining my day. Call me spoiled, but after a week of steady visits, I’d become accustomed to him slipping into my bed to soothe the fire burning inside of me each morning. Today that fire was burning hotter than ever, which is why I was really pissed that he’d blown me off because his neighbor had a slight emergency.
Well, hello! Earth to Daryl: me being horny is an emergency too. A big-time emergency! You don’t just fuck a girl silly every morning for a week, then cut her off cold turkey, especially not when she’s admittedly addicted to the dick. My ass was so horny I was about to climb the walls. Yep, I needed a fix.
I’d tried to convince Daryl to leave his friend and come take care of me, but that wasn’t his style to abandon someone in need. On the outside, he had that sexy thug swagger, but on the inside, he had the heart of a Boy Scout. It was one of the things about him that I had fallen in love with when we first met.
My sexual frustration was what had brought me to the shower to cool off in the first place, but even with the lukewarm water flowing down my body, I still couldn’t put out the yearning between my legs. As I directed the spray from the showerhead between my breasts, lustful memories filled my head: Daryl on his knees in that very same shower, his head between my legs, doing what he did oh, so well. I’d always been a sucker for some good head, but nothing could compare to the way he worked his tongue.
Cut it out, Krystal, I scolded myself. Fantasizing about oral sex wasn’t exactly a good way to get Daryl off my mind, and I definitely needed to get him off my mind—not just because he wasn’t there to satisfy me, but because it was time to break things off with him. I was starting to get too attached. I only had a week left on my rental, and then it would be time to go home to reality, to my life without Daryl—the life I was afraid I was starting to forget.
Unable to take my mind off lustful thoughts, I positioned the showerhead lower and leaned against the wall. The water spraying against my coochie felt so damn good that there would be no stopping me now until I had an orgasm. I closed my eyes and imagined the stream of water to be Daryl’s silky tongue lapping against me. I slid my hand down to massage my clit, imagining it was his touch.
“Mmm,” I moaned as I pleasured myself with soft, gentle strokes. Within moments, I was almost there… until I was interrupted by the sound of the front door opening. I was sure it was Daryl keeping his date with me after all. Sure, he was a little later than we’d originally planned, but he was still right on time as far as I was concerned. As long as he got into the shower and helped me finish this orgasm, everything was good.
I heard his footsteps nearing the bathroom. I got wet, or should I say wetter, when I heard him enter the bathroom. He didn’t say anything, which was actually kind of sexy, like he wanted to do a little role-playing. Fine, I’d play along and be the unsuspecting woman who gets surprised by a stranger in the shower. Hell, I’d even make it a little more interesting. I’d pretend that the stranger caught me in the act of playing with myself.
I heard the sound of his zipper and then his pants falling to the floor. I leaned against the wall and resumed the stroking of my clit. The thing is, I was so turned on at this point that I actually came after just a few strokes. With one long, low moan, I exploded, my clit throbbing and my legs nearly giving out.
“Damn, baby, what kind of shower you got going on in here?”
I got the shock of my life when the shower curtain opened and I saw not Daryl, but Slim. He was standing in front of me butt naked with his member at full attention.
Okay, call me a hypocrite if you want. I’d jumped in Monica’s shit for cheating on her fiancé, and now here I was doing the same thing to Slim, my affectionate, kind, and caring boyfriend who would do anything in the world for me. That’s why I’d been trying to force myself to forget about Daryl. Okay, maybe I wasn’t trying so hard, but what’s a girl to do when she’s getting some of the best dick she’s ever had?
“Oh my God, Slim. What are you doing here? Aren’t you still supposed to be working in Virginia?” I asked, suddenly feeling very embarrassed and a little guilty about the orgasm I’d had while thinking about another man—one who could show up on my doorstep at any minute.
Slim laughed. “A better question is what are you doing in here?” He stepped in the shower and planted a deep kiss on my lips. “Never mind. I know exactly what’s going on. I guess somebody missed me. Two weeks is a long time to go without.” His hands roamed up and down my naked body. “I couldn’t take it either, so I had to come home and get some. I missed you, baby, and the way you make me feel.”
He moved his hand to where mine had been minutes earlier. After only a few strokes, he lifted me up by my ass and pressed me against the wall, sliding his manhood into me as deep as it would go. At first, I wasn’t into it. My mind and my body had been set on Daryl’s long, thick dick; but I was so sexually charged from masturbating that I got into what Slim was doing pretty quickly.
“Oh, Slim,” I moaned. “Fuck me, baby. Fuck me until I come all over you.”
“That’s right. Didn’t I tell you Daddy would take care of you? You know he always has what you need.”
He went in and out of me like a piston, and within a few more strokes, I felt myself nearing another orgasm. Unfortunately, after only two more pumps, I felt him begin to jerk inside of me.
No, not yet, I thought as I began throwing my hips back at him, trying to quicken my climax. I’m almost there. Not yet…
“Come on, baby, keep it up,” I encouraged. “Momma’s almost there.”
“Damn, baby. Shit, yeah. Ohhh. Krystal, baby. Ahhh. I love you, boo.”
I opened my eyes and stared at his face. His expression of ecstasy was exactly what I needed to send me over the edge. We came together and shared the moment with our lips locked.
Slim pulled me away from the wall and slid me back down until I was on my feet. He kissed me one last time and said, “Do you have any idea how good you make me feel?”
As bad as it sounds, I couldn’t bring myself to say, “You make me feel good too,” because I was busy thinking about the fact that if Daryl had been in the shower, I probably would h
ave had three or four more orgasms by now. Instead I said, “I think so.”
“I love you, Kris,” he said, opening the shower curtain and reaching for a towel.
“I love you too.” That one I could manage to say, and I meant it too. Slim wasn’t Daryl in the bedroom; he couldn’t make me come rapid fire without breaking a sweat, but then again nobody but Daryl had ever done that. What Slim could do—and had done—for the past five years was take very good care of me. We met not long after Daryl walked out, and ever since, Slim had given me everything I needed, both materially and emotionally. That’s probably why I was feeling so bad all of a sudden as I realized how far I’d let myself stray. I’d only planned on seeing Daryl for a one-night fling, and now I was craving him the way an addict craves her next high.
Slim picked up his clothes and went into the bedroom while I rinsed myself off and then followed him inside. “I thought you weren’t coming back until next week,” I said as I entered the bedroom.
“I finished up my business a little early,” he replied, taking me into his arms. “Besides, I missed you, baby.”
“Did you bring me something back?” I asked eagerly. Whenever he went away, I could always expect him to bring me a package.
“Of course I did,” he said with a sexy grin. He picked up his pants, which he’d thrown across the dresser, and pulled out a familiar small, light-blue box. “You know I always got what you need.”
I happily took the box from him. This was definitely not the first time he’d brought me a blue box, and I always loved what was inside, but this time the surprise was even better. “Slim? Is this what I think it is?” I squealed when I opened the box.
“That’s right, baby. That’s exactly what it is.” He wrapped his arms around me. “You like it?”
I lifted the ring out of the box and slid it on my finger. “Oh, Slim, it’s beautiful,” I cried. “Does this mean…?”
Slim nodded and held my hand in his. “We’ve been together for quite a few years, and I know you’ve wanted to get married, so I figured it’s about time I made you a legitimate woman. It’s a carat and a half.”
“Slim… I…” I was at a loss for words, that’s what I was. I was not expecting this at all. I’d been trying to get Slim to commit for the past two years, and I was starting to think this would never happen. Well, now it had happened, and his timing couldn’t have been worse. I mean, I’d been so damn strung out on Daryl this past week that I’d practically forgotten I was supposed to be in love with Slim.
Thankfully, Slim didn’t seem bothered by the fact that I could barely speak. I guess he figured I was too mesmerized by the bling. So he filled the silence for me. “I went over to the furniture store and spoke to your pops,” he said. “I asked him for your hand in marriage and all that jazz, like you said you wanted.”
Now that was a sign that Slim was serious. He and my father got along, but Slim never went out of his way to talk to my dad.
“What did he say?” My father wasn’t much of a talker. It wasn’t that he didn’t like Slim; he’d become more withdrawn in general ever since he lost his job and had to start selling cheap furniture.
“He said the decision is up to you, but if you said yes, he’d be proud to have me as a son-in-law.” Slim put his hands on my waist and looked into my eyes. “What do you think? Krystal Mack, will you marry me? I love you. You know I’ll always have what you need, baby.”
Slim was right. Everything I needed and had wanted for the past five years was right in that pale blue box—at least until Daryl came back into my life a week ago. I glanced at the box, then looked up at Slim, who was waiting expectantly for my answer.
After waiting so long for this proposal, I didn’t know what the hell to say now that it had happened. I actually considered trying to stall him, buy myself maybe another week or two so I could enjoy a little more time with Daryl before ending it completely. I wanted to quit my habit gradually, not have to do it cold turkey. There was only one problem with that. If I said no or even asked for a little more time, Slim was not the kind of man who would put the offer on the table ever again.
As Slim stood there waiting, I quickly weighed the pros and the cons in my mind. Both men were good providers. Daryl was a much better lover, but it’s not like Slim was a slouch in the bedroom either. Plus, Slim was easier to talk to than Daryl, who used to get a little moody and withdrawn. Then there was the religion thing. Daryl was an Israelite, and he’d always made it very clear that if we ever got married, he expected me to convert.
I looked down at the blue box in my hand and thought about the many similar packages Slim had brought me over the years. That’s when I realized the most important distinction between them. Daryl had been a little too controlling in our relationship, always telling me what he thought I should or shouldn’t be doing, what was good for me and what was bad. Slim, on the other hand, always brought me what I wanted, no questions asked. Like his favorite line, he always had what I needed.
Aside from a few good orgasms, there was no question in my mind about what my answer should be.
“Yes, Slim. Yes, I’ll marry you.”
Avery
15
I walked confidently through the doors of Cheap Sam’s with my head held high and my chest stuck out like I owned the damn place. Granted, it might not have been my name hanging on the sign outside, but once I had my meeting with Dave and he made my promotion to manager official, everyone who worked there was going to know that I was the new HNIC (Head Nigger in Charge).
Like my man Cain said, it was time to live like I was dying. In the past week, I’d given Connie’s fat ass the boot, moved temporarily into a room at my parents’ house, and was about to seize the promotion I’d been coveting for two years. I was feeling alive again and had a newfound confidence to go along with my generally good mood. Cain’s advice—along with the young, tight pussy he’d provided at his house—had given me a whole new outlook.
I must have been radiating confidence because even Jerri, the store’s fine-ass bookkeeper, was giving me the time of day again. I’d been trying to get with her for a while, but things had cooled off ever since she decided she didn’t do married men. At least that’s what she claimed, but lately it seemed like she was always around, smiling up in my face, like all I had to do was ask and she’d give up the pussy.
She was sitting behind the counter, waving at me when I walked in. I strolled over to her, and the closer I got, the prettier she got. Damn, I wanted to fuck this woman.
I leaned on the counter like I was John Shaft. “Hey there, Jerri. What’s cooking, good looking?” I said cockily, eyeing her up and down.
“Hey, Avery. How you doing?” She batted her false eyelashes.
“I’m good.” I smoothed over my mustache.
“You know, Avery, there’s something different about you lately,” she remarked, raising an eyebrow.
“Yeah, well, I’ve been thinking a lot about you. Maybe that’s it.”
Jerri smiled, clearly loving the attention. “What you been thinking about?”
“How you and me need to go out to dinner and see a show.”
Her face lit up. “I would love to go out to dinner…”
“Cool,” I said, but she put the brakes on a little.
“But are you sure your wife won’t mind?”
I chuckled at her attempt at playing hard to get. “You don’t have to worry about that. Me and my wife just separated. I’m a single man now.”
Her smile became even wider. “So, do you have your own place and everything?”
“Well, not exactly. I’m kinda staying with my parents right now, but I’m working on some things.” In my mind, that was a minor technicality. It was only a matter of time before I had a place of my own again, but to Jerri it was obviously more of a hurdle.
“Oh,” she said kind of under her breath with a frown. “Well, I’ll be honest with you. I’m looking for a man who’s a little more stable. I ain’t got
time to be taking care of nobody.”
I took a step back. “Well, damn, woman. There’s no shame in your game, huh?”
“Avery, I’m a high-maintenance woman. I need a man who has a future, and well, you’re just a salesman who lives with his momma.” She frowned.
Ouch. If any other woman had said it, I would have flipped out on her ass, but the thing is, I was so hot for Jerri that I was willing to let it slide. “Not for long,” I told her. “I guess you ain’t heard that I’m about to be the manager of this place.”
Her eyes lit up again, probably because as the bookkeeper she knew everyone’s salaries. “Is that why Sam and his son are here?”
“I suspect so. I’ve got a meeting with Dave now. Guess Sam and his son are going to sit in.”
“Well, don’t let me stop you, Big Daddy,” Jerri said as I took a step toward the door marked MANAGER. “Oh, and Avery?”
With my hand on the knob, I turned around to get one last look at her. “Yeah?”
“If what you say is true and you get the promotion, I’ll be open to going out with you and celebrating anytime you’re ready.”
“Now that’s what I’m talking about!” I grinned, adjusted my tie, then turned around and walked into Dave’s office.
Dave was sitting at his desk. Across from him was Sam, who kind of reminded me of Colonel Sanders. Next to Sam was a young, freckle-faced kid in his twenties, whom I suspected was the owner’s son.
“Avery, my man, glad you could make it. Have a seat.” Dave stood, gesturing toward the chair to the right of his desk.
“Thanks. Glad to be here.” I shook everyone’s hands before I took my seat next to the kid.
Dave started the conversation. “Well, Avery, as you know, I’m going to be headed to the main office to become general manager.”
I nodded, anxious to get the formalities over with so they could offer me Dave’s job.
“So,” Dave continued, “Sam here wanted me to talk to you about the future of this store and the transfer of one management team to another.”
