Bad as in Good (34 page)

She clawed at me as I craved more of her. As she licked the side of my face, I sucked her neck and left my mark on her skin. She
was mine, and I wanted the world to know that her body belonged to me. Her body shook again. Her juices rained down on my dick like a tsunami, and I accepted the outpour. I dug deep inside her as she begged me to continue. I obeyed. I couldn't stop if I wanted to. Her skin was too plush, and her pussy too hot. She received every inch of me, and when I bulged, cum released from me like a volcano. I let go. I filled her with all that I could as I kissed her lips and rubbed her skin. I wanted more. I kept goin', and even though my body wanted to go limp, I stroked until I did.

I laid my body on top of her as we caught our breaths. She enclosed me in her arms as we exhaled in unison. I stopped breathing when I heard a phone vibrate. I looked up and searched for it. Erin sat up and grabbed her phone from the floor. Once she shut it off, my mind eased. I sat up and put my clothes back on. Erin sat up and stared at me. “That was…”

“I missed you,” I said.

She blushed—rosy cheeks that I yearned to kiss. “I missed you too.” She looked around my condo again and sighed. “Are you goin' tell me what happened here yet?”

I shook my head. “I ain't tryna get into all that.”

“I thought we were gettin' to know each other.”

She smiled and let those dimples shine through. I had to smile back. I didn't want to relive the pain, but I was becoming a sucker for that smile. “A bunch of bullshit wit' everythin', I guess.”

“Does it involve your wife?”

I paused. I looked around, finally noticing the damage I did for the first time. I sighed and nodded. “She won't be my wife for long, though. That's fo' damn sho'.”

She rubbed my back. I liked when she put her hands on me. I pulled her close to me again and kissed her. I was regaining my
strength. I wanted to go for round two, hold her in my arms, and pretend that shit wasn't as bad as it seemed. Suddenly, we heard the door swing open. We both looked at the door and watched as a nigga stood in the doorway. At that moment, I remembered how my distress had caused me to forget to lock the door after Damien left. Erin and I sat on my couch with her leg between my legs and her panties on the floor. Her hair was a mess, and the smell of sex was strong. The dude stood in my doorway, shoulder-length dreads, hands balled into fists as he stared at us, not saying anything.

I stood up and protected the woman I wanted to call my own. Unsure if this was a home invasion, I wasn't goin' let a nigga stand in my spot like he owned the damn place. I tried to shake the feelin' that I saw him before. I wanted answers, and somebody was goin' give 'em to me.

“Louis.”

Erin put her panties back on and tied up her hair. Taking another good look at the dark-skinned, dreaded intruder, I realized who the man I was staring at was. Louis, her old man. The man she was supposed to be separated from. For a man she was supposed to be separated from, he looked pretty damn pissed. Erin stood up but didn't move past me. They stared at each other for five seconds. I wasn't in the mood to deal with another man's drama. I stepped aside, leaving Erin vulnerable.

“I thought he was only a friend,” Louis said. He showed no feeling. His hands rolled into fists as he turned his attention toward me. I wasn't the one he needed to be looking at. I had more rage built up in me than a bull, and I was looking to charge. I couldn't beat up on the woman that betrayed me time and time again, but I could rip apart the nigga trespassing on my property.

“Who the fuck do you think you are barging into my place like this?”

“What are you doing here, Louis?” Erin's voice was quiet like a whisper and scared like a child.

He didn't even acknowledge me as he stepped closer. He was the cocky zebra, and I was the king of the jungle he thought wouldn't pounce. He stormed into my territory and pranced around my spot like I would let him walk out in one piece. I took a deep breath and tried not to react, but he kept his eyes on me, challenging me. His stance was asking me to prove who the dominant being was in this matchup. He, the zebra, and I, the lion, with a score to settle. “I should be asking you that, Erin. What the fuck are you doing here?”

“Y'all goin' have to take this shit out my place. Right now, this ain't what you want.” A thick vein throbbed in the middle of his forehead. He squeezed his fists tighter. He was out for blood, but I was out for guts and glory. I wanted his guts spilt across my floors and the glory of knowing that I could still triumph.

“How the fuck would you know what I want?”

“Louis, I…”

“You in here fuckin'
my
girl.” He cut Erin off without a second thought. He took another step in my direction. He was pulling me into a fight, and I let him. “You think you know what the fuck I want?”

“Your girl?”
Erin's head was down. She couldn't confirm what had already been confirmed. She was his woman, and he caught her in my living room with her panties on the floor. I shook my head and walked closer to him. “Last I checked, y'all were done. If she's your girl, why the fuck is she in my bed every other night?”

My confession stumped him. He turned his attention back to
the woman who deserved it. She rubbed her hands nervously as she cowered a few feet away from me. This wasn't the place for her to confront her wrongdoings. She stood behind me, avoiding eye contact with her and me…Louis. “That's a good fuckin' question.”

“How'd you even know I was here?”

He exhaled. He waited on her to speak before he could breathe. He moved a little closer to me. I held my stance, preparing for the expected. “I saw your car.”

“That still doesn't explain how you found me here. How'd you know to find me here, Louis?”

“Does it fuckin' matter? You're here, ain't you?”

“Are you following me?”

Louis squeezed his fists tighter. He turned his attention back to me, glancing me up and down. His shoulders were drooped forward, like he had no backbone. His body was tense with fear and confusion. I could use his confusion to my advantage. From his hesitation, I knew he wouldn't do anything. He wanted to attack. When he smelled his woman all over my skin, I could see his eyes play out the frustration in him. He wanted to react, but he was out of his element. Either way, I wanted it. I wanted him to do something. I moved closer to him. He instinctively stepped back, and upon realizing what he'd done, he moved a big step forward. We were but a few feet away, dancing a jig I wanted out of. “Look, bruh, you really need to get out of my living room before—”

“Before what?”

I glided in his direction. His pussyfooting demeanor called me toward him as he challenged me again. He was askin' for it. “Before I make you leave.”

He laughed. Louis was in my condo, the same condo I took my rage out on. He stood two feet away from me and laughed as if
my threats were empty. In his mind, he was the dominant one in this matchup, and he was doing me a favor by not reacting. He stepped back as if he wanted to walk away, but then he cocked his arm back, anchored by his balled fist. Before his punch could lock, I swung a right. He dropped the arm he cocked back to grab his jaw. Then, I swung a left. He stumbled backward, surprised by my barrage of punches. He threw his hands up to block, and I jabbed his guts. Crouching forward, I uppercut him. He fell to my floor, broken glass scratching his skin. Seeing the wounded zebra sprawled out on my floor, I stomped into his chest, stomach, legs and face. When he tried to get up, I kicked again. For a brief second, I froze when I heard someone screaming.

“Stop!” Erin ran between us and used her body as a barrier between her man and me. Louis quivered beneath her as he recovered. I kicked the back of his leg anyway. Erin threw her hands up. “Tariq, you're gonna kill him. Stop it.”

Louis stared up at my ceiling, dazed. He realized that he had no chance of winning this fight. If my condo didn't stand a chance against me, how could he? He pushed Erin away from him and stood up. I lunged at him, hungry for more, but Erin held me back. “You can have this bitch!” Louis cried out. “She ain't worth this shit.” Louis stormed out like a tornado.

After ten seconds, I calmed down. I pulled away from Erin. “What the fuck was that?” she asked.

I walked to the front door and looked out into the hallway to make sure I couldn't get in one last blow. I sighed when it finally registered that Louis got away. Slamming the door shut, I locked my front door and then turned to face Erin. “I should be asking you that! Why is yo' nigga following you here?”

“How should I know?”

“I thought y'all weren't together.” She prepared a response, but nothing came out. She dropped her shoulders and walked back to my couch. When I stared at her, I was disappointed. She got me into the same situations I tried to avoid. She was no different than the others. “You gotta go.”

“Tariq…”

“Erin, I ain't got time to deal wit' yo' bullshit. I don't need random niggas busting into my place lookin' for you. You need to get the fuck out.”

“It's not what you think, Tariq.”

“Why the fuck are you still here?” I opened the door that led to the other side of my life. I wanted her out of my face and back into the arms of the punk-ass nigga who thought he was the king of my jungle. “I ain't tryna hear shit you gotta say. Apparently, it's a bunch of bullshit anyway.”

“That's not fair, Tariq.”

“Are you deaf?”

She gave me a blank stare, twirled her neck, and snatched her things up from the floor. Without another word, she stomped her feet toward the exit, bumped past me, and turned the corner down the hallway. I slammed her out of my life and punched another hole into my defenseless wall. I was in a fucked-up situation, and I was losing it.

I
went to see Louis. I stood outside his door. Tariq's stench was still embedded in my skin. I held my hand up to knock a couple times, but I couldn't work up the courage. I had to tell Louis something. He was attacked by my lover, not long after I confessed my love for him. My confession was certainly impulsive, but it was said. I owed Louis an explanation. My hair had been tousled by Tariq's loving. My face was dry from the sweat beads that dripped from Tariq's passionate sexing. It was disrespectful of me to be there after what had happened. Louis needed to calm down, as did I. I turned around right before I heard his front door unlock. I had to face my demons. Taking a deep breath, I turned around.

“What are you doing here?” Teona folded her arms over her chest and shifted her weight to her left leg. She eyed me from my open sandals to my disheveled ponytail. Staring back at me in one of Louis's old sweatshirts and no pants, she smiled. “Can I help you wit' somethin'?”

“Where's Louis?”

“Can I help you with somethin'?”

I pulled my lips in. I had words to exchange, but I held my tongue. Louis came to the door. His eye was swollen, lip split, and cheeks bruised. His face was a rainbow of colors—from his purple eye, blistered lips and pink cheeks. He moved Teona to the side and
stepped outside. When he closed the door, leaving Teona inside, I was the one with my arms folded over my chest. “What is she doing here, Louis?”

“I'm not fucking her. You sneaking around fucking other guys doesn't mean I'm as trifling as you.”

His words stung. I dropped my arms to my side and licked my lips. I tried to caress his disfigured face, but he moved back and grunted. “If that's the case, what is she doing here?”

“Did you come here to explain yourself?”

I stared at the hallway floor. I didn't want him to catch me staring at his bruises. “Why's Teona here? I thought you said there was nothin' goin' on wit' you and her.”

“I thought Tariq was married with a family.”

“Don't change the subject, Louis.”

Louis cocked his head back. He strode backward, unable to be too close to me. His chest rose and fell from irritation. “Don't come here like you have the right to question me. I wasn't fuckin' anybody else but you when we were together.” He was speaking in the past tense. He already had ended our relationship, and I had no say.

“You coulda fooled me. First sign of trouble, and she's already half-dressed inside your apartment.”

He closed his eyes and shook his head. “I can't believe you, Erin.” Opening his eyes, he stared at me as if this were his first time noticing me. He scoured my body, trying to recognize the woman that stood before him. “Teona told me about you…and him.”

“Teona? How the fuck would she know about—?”

“I guess when you were leaving his condo or somethin', she saw you.”

“While she was prolly screwin' another random stranger, she's out spying on me?”

“I don't give a fuck what she was doin'! She's not my woman! You were! She saw my woman leaving some man's house late at night and told me. I had to see for myself.”

“It's not…”

“It's not what? It's not what it seems? You weren't the ho I caught wit' her panties off at some friend's condo.”

I moved back. “Don't talk to me like that, Louis.”

“Why? You disrespected me first.”

“Goodbye, Louis.” I turned on my heel and Louis circled around me to stop me in my tracks. “I'm not gonna stand here and let you talk to me any kind of way. I'm sorry, Louis. I'm sorry you found out about Tariq—”

“How long have you been fuckin' him?”

I glared at him. This wasn't the avenue to discuss this. I tried to walk past him, but he blocked me. I stood back and folded my arms again. “I'm not discussin' this with you.”

“How long? Did you two
just
finish fuckin' when I caught you two alone in your apartment that night? Is he why you couldn't tell me that you loved me for so damn long? You were too busy fuckin' him?”