A Pimp In Pumps (23 page)

              “I took some time to think about it and I do trust you Serg.”

              “Really?” He asked looking all ecstatic.

              “Really,” I assured him.

              He looked like he was about to burst with happiness.

              “Good. I’m glad. Now open your gifts.”

              “What’s the occasion?” I asked playfully as I stood there butt naked.

              “Lovin’ you,” he said giving me a sexy look.

              “You don’t have to buy me things Serg. I have my own money.”

              “And I do too, so I can do what I want wit’ it.” His voice was stern.

              “Well, a’ight then. Forgive me.”

              He grabbed me around the waist with his big, strong hands and pulled me down onto his lap.

              “As long as we both are breathin’, I’m gon’ spoil you. That’s just how it’s gon’ be. If you don’t like it, then oh the fuck well.”

              I leaned over and kissed him. “What did I do to deserve you.”

              He grinned and then kissed the tip of my nose. “All you had to do was be you babe. It was bound to happen.”

              We basked in that sweet moment for a while and then he said something that really got my attention.

              “I’m just glad I got your trust without you even gettin’ the truth.”

              “Huh?” I asked.

              “Guess who I ran into today?” He kissed my cheek.

              “Uh, who?”

              “Travis.”

              “Jordan’s ex?”

              “Yup, she reached out to him.”

              I was really shocked as I waited to hear what he’d say next.

              “She told him how unhappy she is wit’ Kamal and how she regrets what she did to you. I recorded our entire conversation.”

              He pressed play and I listened intently.

              “Jordan told me all about how he fucked you over and shit. I guess he felt he could do whatever he wanted ‘cause Cherie’s cool wit’ Sasha. I just couldn’t believe that nigga was willin’ to let you fuck Sash to pay off his debt. He even told me that shit that night at the party. I always thought Sasha would see through that nigga and break up with him before they made it to the alter. Part of me wanted to let her know how that nigga really was, but out of loyalty to him and Jordan I didn’t. It’s fucked up, but now they both gettin’ their karma. He wants her back and Jordan wants me back.”

              “Are they married?” Serg asked.

              “Yeah, she married that nigga like a fool. She said she was pregnant at the time, but she miscarried. It was the second one. She’s stressed out because neither of them is making the money that they’re used to. She even said he’s been beatin’ on her and shit. All I could do was tell her to leave him, which she claimed she was going to do. I don’t want to be with her though. Hell nah. Not after that shit.”

              I looked up at Serg and shook my head as I took in what I was hearing.

              “So, you know where they are?”

              He nodded. “Yup. They’re in Austin, Texas. Jordan sent him her address beggin’ him to come see her when Kamal was out of town. If you want your revenge, I got you ma. We can go whenever you’re ready.”

              It didn’t take me long to say, “You know what babe. They’re gettin’ theirs. I don’t need revenge. All I need is you.”

              His eyes widened. I think he wanted to get Kamal back more than me. “You sure?”

              “Yes.”

              Next thing I knew, his hot mouth was on my nipples. “So, you gon’ open your gifts or what?”

              “Oh, okay.” I stood up and exhaled.

              At least I knew the truth now. Kamal had been a fraud and Serg was the real thing, just like I thought. Proving my love and trust for him was only going to make our relationship stronger, so I was glad that I was able to let him know how I felt before he even played that conversation.

              The bags were full of expensive clothes, shoes and jewelry of course. Then there was a huge box that sat at the foot of the bed. I looked up at him.

              “Open it.”

              It was crazy, because I was standing there butt naked and so was he. After being together for so long, it seemed like second nature. We were caught up in the thought of being back together and in a good space. At the time, sex wasn’t even the priority.

              I opened the box and there was another box inside.              

              “Really Serg?” I smirked at him and opened the second box.

              It contained another box and I couldn’t help but laugh. So, we were playing that game. All Serg did was grin slyly as he watched me. By the fifth box, it wasn’t even funny anymore. When I finally got to the smallest box, I had a feeling I knew what was going on. My heart beat picked up and I felt butterflies in the pit of my stomach.

              When I opened it, I couldn’t contain my tears. It was an emerald cut diamond in a platinum setting. My eyes met Serg’s and he nodded as he got down on his knees.

              “You in my life ma, it’s not just a want, but it’s a need. I would never force your heart. I knew you’d willingly give it to me if I showed you how deservin’ you are to be loved. I love you more than anything else in the world. I ain’t askin’ you ma. I’m tellin’ you that you gon’ be my wife. All I need you to do is wear this ring. You down wit’ that?”

              I smiled down at him. “Hell yeah nigga.”

              It was a hood ass proposal, but it was so real. Damn, I felt so loved, but it just didn’t feel right that Cherie and I still wasn’t talking.

              “Now, meet me out on the terrace. We ‘bout to eat something.”

              “Uh, let me put on some clothes.”

              Serg gave me a look. “What you need to put on clothes for? I want you in your most natural state ma.”

              I laughed and walked out on the terrace in my birthday suit. He had it set up all romantic like with flowers, candles and a silver platter with a top over it. When he lifted the top there was grilled salmon, wild rice and asparagus. It was still steaming and it smelled so damn good.

              “Mmm babe, this looks so good. I love you man.”

              We kissed again and everything that I was stressed about melted away. Then I thought about Cherie again. It was like he read my mind.

              “She’ll come around by the time we have the wedding baby. Don’t worry ‘bout Cherie. Let’s just enjoy this night. Okay.”

              I nodded as he fixed my plate. We sat there feeding each other food and certain body parts. By the end of the night I was dessert and my future husband had my body tingling and trembling with undeniable pleasure.

*  *  *

              A few days later, I decided to go to my house to get some of my things. The plan was to put it up for sale soon and move in with Serg. When I pulled up, I noticed that there were at least ten police cars on my lawn. They had got through my gate and everything. How they’d done that shit, I just didn’t know.

              My heart was beating fast in my chest as I backed up and turned around. When the sound of sirens blared behind me, I wanted to hit the gas and give chase, but I decided against it. Damn, what the fuck? When I pulled over, I felt defeated. Had the whistle been blown on my prostitution ring and if so who the fuck was the whistle blower?

*  *  *

              “So, what happened next? Who snitched?”

              The young woman beside me was looking at me with anxious eyes as I told her my story. It was like I felt the need to just tell a stranger everything. It was like I wanted to purge my soul. She was in there for murder and she had no family that was there for her. Her name was Kariah, and she admitted to killing her boyfriend. He was abusive and she said that she had got tired of it.

              “I’d rather be in here than out there with nothing and nobody,” she’d confided in me.

              I’d just had my bail hearing and was still sitting there waiting. After three days I was sitting in the same cell wearing an orange jump suit. Apparently Cuba’s body had been found floating in Lake Lanier by two fisher men and somebody had told the cops that I killed him. Who that person was, I didn’t know.

              “I wish I knew who the snitch was. I’ll find out when I get outta here.”

              “Did you get bail?” Kariah asked. “I know you had your bail hearing today. How did you plead?”

              “I pled not guilty of course. They ain’t got shit on me, but somebody else’s word. No weapon, no eyewitnesses. Nothing.”

              “Who do you think it was?”

              Shrugging my shoulders, I said, “I’on know.”

              I had been interrogated for hours, but I still didn’t give up any information about Cuba. Obviously the cops didn’t know anything about Sweet Nectar Entertainment and I wanted to keep it that way. As far as they knew, I had no motive to kill Cuba. Still, I wondered how they had connected me to his murder.

              “We got an anonymous witness who said you told them you killed him,” one of the detectives had told me.

              That made me think. The only person I’d told was Brielle. During my bail hearing all I could think about was getting out and blowing her fucking brains out. What if she was the one who had ratted on me? I was worried about Cuba’s crew coming after me, not the cops. If only I’d thought about that. What if she had set me up? She was the one who put me on to Caramel in the first place.

              “Montgomery, you made bail, let’s go!”  A tall, lanky male guard yelled out as he stood in front of the bars.

              I sighed with relief. “I got you,” I told Kariah.

              She looked at me and nodded. “What you mean?”

              “I know you ain’t got no family. How much is your bail?”

              “Shit, five hundred stacks.”

              “As long as you keep your mouth shut ‘bout what I told you, I got you.”

              “Shit, I’d be crazy to repeat what you told me,” she agreed.

              My bail had been set at a million dollars because the DA swore I was a flight risk. I had accounts overseas that they didn’t even know about, so the judge did grant me bail. I just wondered who had posted it for me. Serg wanted to, but the challenge was proving income.

              When the bars opened and I walked out, it felt good as hell. All I could think about was taking a hot shower and getting some loving from my man. I just knew that he was going to be the one waiting for me. When the CO led me out, I didn’t expect to see Cherie standing there.

              About an hour later I was free to go home until my trial started, or the charges were dropped like I wanted them to be. I was nervous though, because I didn’t know what to say to Cherie.

              “Come on girl. Your man’s waitin’ for you,” she told me like we had been speaking to each other the past few months.

              “Thanks Cherie.”

              “Thank Serg,” she said without even looking at me.

              “Cherie, look, I’m sorry about lying to you about me and Serg. C’mon, I miss you.”

              Being in jail was humbling as hell and I needed to let my friend know how I felt.

              She sighed. “He told me about your engagement and I’m okay with it.” Suddenly there was a smile on her face and she hugged me. “You’re forgiven. Now let’s go.”

              We hurried and got in her car before she finally told me what was going on.

              “It’s a good thing I married Leon’s straight and narrow ass. We started a business together. It’s nutrition and personal training. Well, I used it as proof of employment to get your ass outta there. You got a flight to catch in four hours.”

              “Huh?” Of course I was dumb founded.

              “Bitch, you cannot risk going to trial and spending the rest of your life in prison. My brother’s takin’ your ass away from here.”

              I had to process everything. Damn, I had wanted to leave Atlanta, but not because my freedom was in jeopardy.

              “But they ain’t really got nothing on me Cherie. If I go to trial, I might…”

              “Get life in prison bitch. Please stop.”

              I sighed. “Okay. I just need to make a few stops first. You know I gotta see my pops and my Aunt Mo.”

              “Of course,” she agreed with a nod.

              All I wanted was to get to the bottom of what was going on and I only had a few hours to do it.