Chapter Nine

 

Over the next several weeks, Reds and me became inseparable and so did me and Stone. All the while I had managed to keep my lie a secret from Jarvis. I even managed to hold onto my job.

I was getting ready for work when my phone rang.

“Come.” The call ended and I knew what it meant. Stone had taught me codes over the weeks we’d worked together to throw people off.

I snatched up my work shit and my purse, headed out my apartment and sprinted down the steps. The black double R was waiting. I jumped in and Stone floated that beauty out of the Heights.

“Hey, Princess. Give me some.” I leaned over and kissed him on the lips.

“That’s what I’m talkin’ ‘bout. Ah, why you going to work? I have someting for you to do.”

“My king, you know I can’t just quit my job. Jarvis will get suspicious. I’ll stop when I get enough saved. But even then, the money won’t last forever, Stone.”

“Listen, don’t talk to me ‘bout Jarvis. In me eyes, him nawt real man. If he was, he wouldn’t have his woman working.”

“I know, but we’re still together.”

“For now, Princess. For now.”

Stone and I drove to our spot to make love. After we were dressed, I was sitting on the side of the bed waiting for Stone to finish the conversation he was having with someone on the phone.

Stone was furious about something and every other word that fell from his mouth was a curse word either in Patois (foreign language) or English. In any language, whoever it was, was getting cursed the fuck out. I looked at my watch and saw I only had thirty minutes to get to work or I would be late. I caught Stone’s attention and pointed to my watch. He turned his back on me and continued to rant and rave on his Blackberry. I grabbed my shit and headed for the door. In one swift movement, Stone grabbed my arm and pulled me back in inside.

“Bumbleclot! Where are you going? Don’t open no doors here!”

“Stone, I’ve gotta get to work.”

“Hold on!” he told the person on the phone. He faced me, “Why ya not say so? Give me a minute, den I take you! Stop trying to be the man in this here ting,” he said pointing at him and then me, “cause with us, there’s only one…me! Now…wait in the truck!”

I opened up the door and went outside and got in the truck. I was going to have to put some distance between Stone and me. We had been seeing each other for several weeks now and he could act a little crazy when it came to me and business. As much as he didn’t want to admit it, I knew Stone was catching feelings. And I had already caught mine for him. After ten minutes, the driver’s side door opened and he got in. He put the key in the ignition and then turned to me to touch my face.

“I didn’t mean to vex out on you. Got some shit I gotta handle that a mutherfucka was supposed to do and didn’t. You cool?” He asked as he ran his soft hands along my cheek.

“Yes.” He threw a stack of cash in my lap and I picked it up examining its thickness. I hadn’t had this much money in all my life.

I looked at Stone’s handsome face and said, “Thank You”. He pulled me into him for a passionate kiss. When we let go, we both stared at one another.

“Your mine.” He said.

“I know.” I replied not knowing if it were totally true.

“Don’t make me prove it to the world.”

I didn’t know what that meant, but it sounded like a threat. We drove in silence and when I made it through the door to work, I punched in two minutes after my scheduled time.

I went to my locker and put my stuff in it and then leaned against it to count the number of bills that Stone gave to me. I counted fifteen hundred dollars. Suddenly when I looked around my job, I was starting to hate it. Look at how much paper I was making. I’d stay with the gig for now but for real, I couldn’t make any promises.

Stone put me on a few more runs with Reds but most of the time she made the drops and pickups by herself. When she made over thirty-five hundred, she laced me up with five hundred of it. I was stashing money from left to right.

When Jarvis asked me where all the money was coming from, I told him that Reds had me look out for her while she made runs from time to time. He bought it and as he had lately, he seemed to not care.

I put the money in my new Dolce and Gabbana wallet and secured the door to my locker. It was time for me to do my regular work when all I really wanted to do was say, “Fuck this job!”