Life After a Balla (2 page)

Skye forced a smile even though she was still concerned.

“I gotta go piss. I hope I see that punk ass flight attendant who still hasn’t bought you the drink I asked for.” Cruze unbuckled his seat beat and headed towards the back of the plane.

Skye didn’t even have time to be with her own thoughts before realizing the older lady sitting in the aisle across from her was staring a little too hard.

“That’s why I always take me a sip or two before I fly to calm my nerves. Just pray and ask God to get rid of those demons in your dreams. I’ve been watching you, and trust me when I tell you this, God has a plan for you,” the woman advised.

Skye smiled at the lady, who was dressed in an expensive suit and also had an old vintage Chanel bag clinched tightly in her lap. She missed buying all the new designer bags before they hit the stores. But she could only reminisce about shopping now. Her days of going to the rack and grabbing what she wanted without even looking at the price tag was now replaced with looking for the rack with the bright red sale or clearance sign on it.

But, I did what I needed to do to have a better life for my family, so I’m not going to get emotional over material things
, she thought.

Skye was determined that nothing or no one was ever going to send her back to that dark place she’d come out of just eight months ago. She was deeply depressed from the betrayal of her ex-boyfriend, Justice Mitchell, the man she thought really loved her. Not only did she find out he was married, but the fact that he led Sandino to her apartment that dreadful night was even worse. Thinking back to the horrible incident once again, Skye still couldn’t believe that Justice had been killed. She trusted him, but felt as though he’d gotten what he deserved after leading Sandino to her just for the money.

She remembered how her, Cruze and Kareem frantically ran around the apartment getting rid of the evidence that night after Justice and Sandino got shot. They were shocked when Jordan, who was over at the neighbor’s house came running inside the apartment. He was frightened and yelling that he’d called 911 after looking out the window and seeing his father in the parking lot. At that moment they realized they didn’t have time to get rid of Sandino’s body. That’s when they decided to come up with the plan that Sandino came over in a rage threatening to kill himself. Cruze then fled the scene to get rid of Justice’s body just in the nick of time.

After she was continuously interrogated by the police and harassed by the press who posted up outside her home hours later, Skye and the kids eventually moved from Marietta to another small town outside of Atlanta called Lawrenceville. She could no longer stay in that apartment where everything had taken place. She also cut herself off from the world refusing to deal with anybody or take any phone calls. At the time, it was just too much for her to bear. She became distant from her own kids, stayed in her room for days and just cried. She even tried to get a job shortly after the shootings to get her mind off of things, but she couldn’t focus and eventually got fired. Thank God Cruze stayed around to help out and paid the rent so her kids could continue to have a roof over their heads.

After Skye got herself together and things calmed down, Cruze confessed his love for her. It took a while for him to win her over though because she didn’t trust men anymore. She was very hesitant about going into another relationship, but the whole ordeal with Sandino that night made Skye and Cruze form a bond. After all, he wasn’t a stranger. He’d been Sandino’s best friend for years, and always wanted her to be happy.

Skye had to admit, she’d always been attracted to Cruze, but knew Sandino would’ve killed her if he ever found out. After two months of Cruze confessing his love for her and the kids, Skye finally gave in, but told him that before they could even talk about being together he had to give up the streets. She didn’t want to deal with the drama or risk him getting locked up or even killed. He agreed, and although money was tight for once in her life she was truly happy.

Skye stopped reminiscing when she saw Cruze coming back down the aisle with a Sprite in his hand. When he sat down, she immediately popped her two pills and tried to relax. She definitely felt uneasy about this trip back to Miami, and hoped that whatever the meeting was about didn’t get her even more upset.

Once they landed an hour later, Skye didn’t waste anytime grabbing her purse and heading towards the front of the plane. When they passed the gay flight attendant, he was standing in the doorway with his arms folded and his nose turned up. While Cruze laughed, Skye didn’t pay the homosexual man any attention. She was too nervous about the meeting to be worried about some gay dude with an attitude.

While walking though the busy Miami International Airport, as soon as Skye saw the sign for the La Caireta Restaurant in Terminal D, it immediately bought back memories of her and Asia. Stopping to get a bite to eat at that restaurant was their ritual before taking the trips she used to sneak with Asia while Sandino was away at training camp. Anger suddenly came over her when she thought of her once best friend.

To think I trusted her, and she disappeared with all my money. She better hope I never see her again. I definitely have something in mind for that bitch if I do. Now, I have to go deal with this damn lawyer. I hope he don’t piss me off because I will turn that muthafucking office out if I have to
.

CHAPTER 2

Skye squinted her eyes from the bright Miami sun as they headed outside and flagged down a cab. After reaching in her purse and pulling out a new pair of knock off Gucci sunglasses, she watched as several expensive cars rode by. When Skye spotted a silver Aston Martin Roadster with twenty-two inch Forgiato rims pull up to the curb, she thought,
Yeah, I’m definitely back in MIA
. In the town she lived in now, two-hundred thousand dollar cars were non-existent. Looking at all the rich, tanned people, it made Skye somewhat envious. She had to admit, she missed the sun.

When the cab pulled up a few seconds later both she and Cruze hopped inside. They had a few hours to spare before Skye had to go to meet Sandino’s lawyer.

“11 Washington Avenue Miami Beach,” Cruze instructed the driver.

Skye looked over at him with a huge grin on her face, she immediately recognized the street. “Don’t tell me we’re going to my favorite spot?”

“Yep. I know how much you love Joe’s Stone Crab. Besides, you can’t go into a meeting on an empty stomach. You barely ate breakfast before we left Georgia.”

“You always know exactly what to do to make me smile,” Skye said, kissing Cruze on his lips. “Can you afford this though? I know it’s been a while since you sold a car, and you just bought me that Michelle watch. With our bills…”

“Sssssh. Don’t worry about that. I told you I got you, babe,” he interrupted.

Even though Cruze had promised to stay out the streets, he lied. Skye assumed the little bit of money he had coming in was from his job as a car salesman at some mom and pop car lot. Instead, Cruze was back in the streets selling drugs again. Even though he knew it was wrong, and wanted to abide by Skye’s rules, in his mind he had to make some real money in order to provide Skye with the lifestyle she was accustomed to. He knew Skye didn’t want anything from him, but he wanted to spoil her by giving her nice things. Plus, what she didn’t know was that Cruze just wasn’t a nine to five type of guy. He was married to the streets.

As they laughed and talked all the way to the restaurant, Skye thought this was the perfect opportunity to finally tell Cruze her good news. She reached inside her purse and pulled out some paperwork and handed it to him.

“I did this a few weeks after the incident,” she advised.

After looking at the paper, it only took a few seconds before a huge smile appeared across his face. It was Skye’s divorce papers.

“Since I’m going to see Sandino’s lawyer, I might as well hand him the papers so they can deliver them to his crazy ass.”

Cruze was so excited, he was glad she was finally closing that chapter of her life. He clapped his hands together and looked up towards the sky like he was saying a prayer. “Damn, you had a nigga speechless for a minute. I almost stuck my head out the window and yelled to the top of my lungs with that news. All this time I’ve been preaching to you about moving on with your life and you’d already filed for divorce. Now that’s what I’m talking bout baby,” he said, leaning over and kissing her cheek.

“Yeah, I’ve been waiting for this moment for a while.”

“Shit, me, too,” he co-signed.

“Maybe when the divorce is final I can finally get some damn alimony or even some child support.”

Cruze looked at her sideways. “Is that one of the reasons why you finally filed? We don’t need his money.”

The last thing Skye wanted was to make him upset. “No, that’s not one of the reasons why I filed. I filed because I need to finally be rid of him. But don’t you think I deserve to still live a good life after all he put me and my kids through? Plus, you wouldn’t have to work as hard.”

“Well, that’s what I’m here for, to take care of you guys.”

Cruze’s overprotective ways was one of the main reasons why Skye had fallen for him.

“You always know just what to say,” Skye beamed.

Twenty minutes later, they pulled up in front of the restaurant. As Skye looked up at the sign, memories of how her family use to frequent the establishment before Sandino lost his mind flooded her thoughts. She also remembered that a lot of the Miami Dolphin players and their families used to eat there as well.

I hope I don’t run into any of them, I’m not in the mood for no fake conversation
, she thought.

After making their way inside, several men almost broke their necks looking at Skye. Although she’d picked up a little weight and was wearing a conservative black suit, she still seemed to mesmerize men with her beauty as they waited to be seated.

Cruze glared back at the staring men. He then walked behind Skye and began massaging her shoulders.

“Ahhh, that feels good,” she moaned.

“I want you to relax and enjoy lunch before the meeting. No stressing,” he advised.

“Okay, no stressing.”

A few minutes later the hostess came and led them to a table. Once they were seated, Skye began to look over the menu.

“I sure don’t wanna meet the lawyer smelling like seafood, but I’m about to get my grub on,” she informed. “It’s been so long since I’ve had Joe’s.”

“Do your thing, baby. That’s what we’re here for,” Cruze said with a slight grin.

At that moment, the waitress walked over to the table. “Hello, welcome to Joe’s Stone Crab. My name is Natalie and I’ll be your server. Can I start you two off with something to drink?” she looked back and forth from Skye to Cruze.

“Actually, I’m ready to order,” Skye responded.

The waitress smiled and pulled out her pad. “I guess someone’s hungry. Go ahead.”

“I’ll have the Maine Lobster Tail with crab cake stuffing,” Skye spoke.

“And I’ll have the Jumbo Lumb crab cakes with green tomatoes,” Cruze added.

“Would either of you like anything from the bar?” the waitress asked.

“I’ll have a Hennessey and Coke,” Cruze responded.

“Just a Coke for me,” Skye said.

“Okay, I’ll be right back,” the waitress said, walking away.

Skye looked around. The place looked different. The ambiance was very romantic. There were white candles and crisp white table cloths. They even had fresh cut roses as center pieces on each table.

A few minutes later, the waitress bought their drinks.

“Here’s to a new life with no more worries,” Cruze said, raising his glass for a toast.

Skye grabbed her glass and smiled as they clinked their glasses together. “I’ll definitely drink to that,” Skye said, taking a sip of her coke and gazing into Cruze’s eyes as they sparkled mischievously. Something serious, yet erotic always seemed to be going on in his eyes when he looked at her.

Their gazes caught and held for a few minutes. While Skye bit down on her lip and started twirling her hair, Cruze stuck out his huge tongue, moving it in a circular motion along his lips. Their chemistry was crazy and they loved having sex with each other.

“Damn, I wanna fuck the shit out of you right now,” Cruze said.

Skye looked around the restaurant then towards the restrooms. “You know you can get it right here baby.”

Cruze displayed a massive smile. “Are you serious?”

As soon as she gave him the signal, they both got up and headed to the restroom area. Skye looked over her shoulder before entering the men’s bathroom to make sure nobody was watching. When the coast was clear she walked behind Cruze into the stall closing the door behind them.

They immediately started kissing while he unzipped her pants pulling them to her knees. Skye could feel the passion building inside of her. Cruze quickly pulled down his pants and turned her around so she was facing the stall door.

“This is just a quickie baby, but tonight I want to taste my pussy and you already know I’m going to make you cum all night,” he whispered in a raw and sexy tone in her ear.

Skye knew he was telling the truth, his head game was something she’d never experienced in her life. The multiple orgasms from his huge, thick tongue were priceless. Her pussy was getting wet just thinking about it.

This man is trying to drive me crazy
, Skye thought to herself.

As Cruze slid his thickness inside her from behind she bent over and arched her back. He adjusted himself and started thrusting strong and deep. He started out with a slow rhythm, but it quickly turned into a faster more satisfying thrust sending sensations and fire throughout her body.

“Baby, you feel so good,” she said, as he rode her ass deep and hard.

“You feel good, too. Don’t ever take this pussy away from me,” he moaned.

Their pulsating rhythm and the way Skye stuck her ass out throwing the pussy and giving him full access drove Cruze insane. Seconds later, he felt himself about to cum as he rode her ass pounding it repeatedly.