Payback With Ya Life (20 page)

“Who is she, Briggen?” She didn’t pick up the pen but was glaring at him.

He picked up the pen for her, opened the folder and calmly pointed to the red Post-it arrow. “Sign right here.” He held out the pen.

“Who is she?”

“Who is who?”

“The bitch you got pregnant, that’s who, Briggen.”

She signed her name and made an attempt to read his facial expression as he flipped to another page and pointed.

“Where you getting this information from?” He kept on his game face as he watched her sign and then turned to another page.

“So you’re saying that you don’t have a baby on the way?”

He flipped to another page. “Last one. What if I do, Sharia? What? You want to give Daddy a baby?” He had a cocky grin on his face.

She was speechless as she signed for the last time.
Give him a baby?
She looked at him to see if he was being funny or if he was being for real. Unable to figure him out, she swallowed hard and decided to look over the document, wanting to know what business he was putting into her name. She was making a killing off the club and was living lovely. She straightened up the folder and went to the first page. He leaned over and gently took it out of her hands.

“Don’t I have a right to see what you’re putting in my name?”

“You didn’t answer me. You want to have my baby?”

“Briggen, what is this all about?”

She could now tell that something was up and it wasn’t to her benefit. “What are you putting into my name?”

“Is he going to put something in your name?” He had this smug smirk on his face.

“W-what?”

“Did you think about that? You didn’t even weigh your options before you fucked him? Did you?” He popped the top off the bottled water and took a huge swig. He watched as the color drained out of her beautiful caramel-colored skin. She reminded him of the actress Meagan Good.

She finally caught her bearings and sat upright. She was busted. “I know you ain’t mad at me.”

He shrugged. “Naw, I ain’t mad, just hurt.”

“Hurt, huh? I’m sure you heard that what’s good for the goose is good for the gander?”

“Don’t even try it. You know what the deal was from day one. But you chose to play.”

“Oh well,
Payback is a Mutha
, ain’t it?”

He laughed. “You killin’ me with the cliché’s, but you know what?” He pulled out his wallet and set two one-dollar bills on the coffee table.

“What?” she snapped, feelin’ herself.

“I got the final payback. You just signed over a six-figure-a-year business to a nigga for just two dollars. I’m out.”

CHAPTER TWENTY

B
oy, you better stop playing with me. You already on my bad side,” Janay snapped.

“Hold up, how did I get on your bad side?” Skye was playing dumb.

“For standing me up the other night.”

“Aww, man, I know you ain’t gonna hold a nigga to that. My bad, baby girl. Tell Daddy how I can make it up to you.”

“Daddy? Please, spare me. Just give me ole boy’s address and I might let you make it up to me.”

“All right, I’ll give it to you, but I’m ridin’ with you. You just can’t roll up on dude tryin’ to check him. He’ll probably smack you again.”

“Nah, nigga. I ain’t gonna check him, but Ms. Pearl is.”

“Who is Ms. Pearl?”

“My .380.”

“I’m sure you nice with the hardware but even the best of ’em roll with somebody. You’ll be a fool to roll dolo.”

Janay released an exasperated sigh. All she wanted was the fuckin’ address of the nigga who slapped her at the car wash. Her pride would not allow her to let him get away with it. Didn’t he know who the fuck she was? If he didn’t, he and everyone else would know by the time she finished with him. “Okay, Robin. You can go.” She finally gave in.

“Who do you think you are? Batman?” Skye asked her.

“Yup, and you’re my trusty sidekick. Ha. Ha. Ha.”

“You want me to come scoop you up?”

“Naw, nigga, you know the routine. Meet me at our spot.”

“Oh, how cute. We have a spot,” he teased. “But seriously, we ridin’ together. We can’t ride up on these niggas in two cars.”

“Don’t underestimate me because I’m a girl,” she scoffed.

“You think you are so damn tough. Show me what you workin’ with.”

“I’ll see you later.”

“Aiight then, it’s on.”

Shan and Briggen were in the driveway fogging up the windows of his truck. The driver’s seat was pulled all the way back and Shan was straddling his lap, maneuvering so that all nine and a half inches were buried deep inside her. If any of their new neighbors were peeking out of their windows and saw the fog and the bouncing up and down of the truck, it wouldn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what was taking place.

“Mmmmm,” Briggen groaned as he palmed both of her ass cheeks and thrust his hips upward, causing his dick to hit that back wall.

“Ooooh,” she purred, and shuddered at the same time. She wanted to tell him to make that move again but nothing escaped but moans. She felt as if she were floating. Her pussy and hips were winding in a slow rhythm, causing her clit to get all the friction that she could handle. She could feel her pussy driving him crazy as the tight small muscles gripped and grazed up and down the length of his dick.

“I-I-I’m done, baby, ah shit, I’m done.” Briggen shut his eyes tight and gritted his teeth, and his dick swelled and his balls were ready to burst with semen.

“B-babeee,” she squealed, tossing her head back, as his dick game drew out stream after stream of her juices. She jerked and twisted while he held her with all of his strength, wanting her to take all he had to give, until he fell limp. She lay motionless on top of him as they both enjoyed the aftershocks of that mind-blowing orgasm.

He ran his fingers through her hair.

“You tryna kill a nigga or what?”

A lazy grin spread across her lips. “Of course I’m not trying to kill you. I just want to remind you of what you’re leaving here in Detroit each time you go back to Memphis.”

“Aww that’s cold. Especially since you know I’ma always come back to my baby. You know that, right?” His eyes locked intensely with hers.

“Yeah, I know that. But that doesn’t stop me from missing you. Then on top of that you rush in and rush out.”

“No I don’t.”

“Yes you do, Briggen. Look at us! We fuckin’ in your car when we got all of them bedrooms up there.”

“We already fucked in the bedroom. We wouldn’t be fuckin’ out here if you hadn’t followed me out of the house.”

“I couldn’t help it. I don’t want you to leave,” she whined. “We barely even talk anymore,” she whispered as she made circles on his chest with her fingers.

“Baby, what do you want to talk about? If something is on your mind, you know I’m only a phone call away.”

“It’s not the same, Briggen,” she pouted.

“What made you start calling me Briggen? Especially since you were so adamant about calling me Calvin.”

“See how long it took you to notice that? Just goes to show how you are in and right out.”

“Don’t even try it. I been noticed it. I just didn’t mention it. So tell me, why am I Briggen all of a sudden?”

“When you step back and become the man I first met. That man was Calvin, and then I’ll start back calling you him again,” she stated with conviction.

“Oh, so it’s like that?”

She shook her head yes. “Briggen?”

“Oh, so now you tryna be funny?”

“No. I want you to tell me a secret.”

“A secret?”

“Yes, a secret.” Her gaze was challenging him. He let out a groan. “Briggen, stop being stubborn. Share a secret with me.”

He chuckled. “Me stubborn? Not Briggen. Calvin maybe. But not Briggen.” She punched him in his arm. “All right, all right. A secret. I have one but you can’t tell anybody. And don’t be judgmental.”

“Stop playin’, Briggen. And judgmental? I hope you’re not getting ready to tell me you’re gay.” Her heart sank to her feet.

“Hell naw. Don’t even try to play a nigga like that. It’s my peeps. My peeps fuckin’ around on me. I caught the shit on tape. I saw it with my own eyes.”

They each needed a few minutes to see how the other one would respond to that piece of information.

Shan was the first to break the silence. “So . . . what are you going to do?”

He shrugged. “It ain’t shit. I just thought I had some loyal muthafuckas around me. I’ma chalk that shit up. It’s all a part of the game.”

“Mmmhmmm. Easier said than done.” She made sure to slip that in.

“Check it. These streets is like a jungle. I come across all types of breeds. Especially snakes and rats. You know snakes eat rats, and hawks eat snakes. And since I stay aboveground circling my prey, I have to honestly say that I saw it comin’. But being the cocky nigga that I am, I ignored it. But if you stay ready you’ll never have to get prepared.”

“Mmmm, that’s deep.” She ran what he had just said over again in her mind as he lit up a blunt.

“You ready to hear my secret?” Shan asked him.

“Spill it.”

“Okay.” She took a deep breath. “My secret is . . . my brother wants me to leave you alone.”

“Umph,” was all Briggen said as they lay there staring out into the night. “Sooo . . . what are you going to do? I hope you’re gonna stay with me. I don’t want you to leave me.”

“Who is that talking?”

He was playing with her locks. “Calvin and Briggen. They both want you to stay. So tell me. What are you going to do?” Briggen threw her question right back at her.

“I’ma do me. Peanut is my brother, not my father. I know he is looking out for me, but my decision will be based upon how you play your cards.”

“Shit, then charge it to the game.”

Janay beeped the horn at Skye. He jumped out of his truck and jogged over to her.

“We goin’ in my ride.” When she looked at him as if he were crazy he said, “How you gonna do dirt in your own ride? C’mon, girl. I know where he at but I don’t know how long he gonna be there.”

Janay parked her ride and followed him to his car. It was a rusty Toyota Camry. She frowned, turning up her top lip. “Let’s ride, gangsta,” Skye teased.

They took off with Melky a few car lengths behind them. Janay didn’t even know it. The only sound was when she checked Ms. Pearl for bullets. Skye was impressed. To him this was a gangsta broad for real. Skye blasted Dr. Dre’s “Ain’t Nuthin’ but a G Thang” as they headed for the basketball court.

“Showtime,” Skye sang as he pulled his hoodie over his head. Janay pulled her baseball cap down low. He slowed down as he looked for Freckles. “There yo’ man go with the purple Nike T-shirt on.”

“I see that punk.” She pulled out some loot wrapped in a rubber band. She rolled her window down and stuck her head out. “Hey, cutie! You with the freckles, I know you got that strawberry.” She waved her wad of cash at him. There was a ball game going on strong and Freckles was standing there watching, while nursing a forty and obviously trying to get his mack on with the bowlegged chick sportin’ the hip-hugging jeans.

“Who dat?” he slurred.

“It’s me, my nigga, Nay.” She waved the loot once more. “You got dat strawberry or you gonna send me to who do got it?” Janay snapped as her other hand caressed the .380 sitting in her lap. He finally took the bait and began walking toward the rusty Camry. When he got close she took off her shades.

“What you workin’ with, shawdy.” He had no clue who she was.

“I wanna be workin’ with an ounce of that strawberry,” she said as she began counting her cash. When he got close enough and saw the burner in her lap she smiled at him.

“Why you strapped up, shawdy?”

In an instant she dropped the dough in her lap and had the .380 at his neck and a grip on his T-shirt. “Why? Why am I strapped? Because of bitch-ass niggas like you who think they can put their hands on me. Remember when you smacked me at the detail shop? And you called me a bitch! So I gotta teach you a lesson.”

“What? Wait! H-hold up. I know—” he stammered.

It was too late.
Block . . . Block
. She had pushed him back and since he was bent over when she let the .380 spit, the bullets hit him on the top of his head, literally splitting his wig. The Camry skidded off, and she let loose another one and it hit him in his stomach.

Skye was stunned. He looked over at her, and she was staring straight ahead. Beads of sweat were forming on her nose and top lip and light splashes of blood were decorating her face.

Damn, this bitch is gangsta all day long and she fuckin’ strong. How she hold on to that nigga like that?
He did the speed limit back to her car. He pulled up next to her ride. “You want me to get rid of that burner for you?”

“No, I got it.” She stuffed it in her bag. “Thanks.” She got out, jumped into her whip and pulled off. He watched as Melky pulled off after her.

Wise was from Brooklyn, New York, and a cousin of Skye’s and Melky’s. They sent for him every now and then when they needed an extra man. Wise was ridin’ shotgun as Melky pushed his truck. Skye was in his truck following them.

“Once we get there, we gonna hit this nigga up on his celly in exactly twenty?” Wise was going over the first part of the plan once more.

“Exactly twenty, then it’s on from there,” Melky confirmed.

“Aiight, cool.”

They parked several doors down and Skye pulled up in the driveway and parked. He swooped up the bottle of Krüg and the box of chocolates and got out of the car. He confidently swaggered up her steps and rang the bell. The house was dark but there was a glare from the television. He saw the curtain move, then swing back into place. He smiled as he heard the locks turn and the door pop open.

“How did you find out where I lived?” Janay stood there with both hands on her hips. The screen door was separating them.

“Nowadays, you can find out anything you need to know. Just like I found out where ole dude hung, I just as easily found out where you rest yo’ head.”

“Oh, so you are planning on holding that over my head forever?”

“Nah. I ain’t even cut like that. You seemed pretty shaken up earlier. I couldn’t stop thinking about you so I decided to check up on you.”

“You could have done that over the phone.”

“It’s not the same. I needed to see you face-to-face to be sure that you were all right. But excuse me, Miss Lady, I apologize for wanting to look out for you.”

“Apology accepted.” Janay didn’t change the expression on her face.

They stood face-to-face. Skye looking her up and down, wanting to get under her silk short set, but reminding himself that this was actually business. She was eyeing the box of chocolates, the bottle of Krüg in his arm and the bag hanging off his shoulders. She deliberated on whether to let him in or not.

As if he could read her thoughts he said, “Throw on a jacket and bring a couple of glasses and we’ll sit out here on the porch.”

She was still undecided. “So . . . are the streets talking or what?”

“You know how the hood do. That was
one
of the highlights of the day,” Skye said, causing Janay to smile. “Well you’re smiling so I guess my work here is done. Check it. At least take this.” He held out the Krüg and the chocolates. That got her.

She unlocked the screen door and motioned for him to come in. Melky and Wise, who had their eyes glued to the porch, blew out a sigh of relief. He was taking too long to execute Plan A.

“Have a seat,” she said as she turned on a lamp.

She then disappeared and came back with two glasses. “So what’s in that bag?” Janay craned her neck as he leaned over and zipped it open just enough to pull out an ounce of weed.