Married Men (10 page)
Authors: Carl Weber
“So, Allen, I’m probably gonna need you to be a character witness if we go to trial.” Kyle waited for an answer. “Allen, Allen, you listenin’ to me, man?”
“Yeah, I hear ya,” I told him distractedly. “Look, can we talk ‘bout the lawsuit later? I got somethin’ important I need to tell y’all.”
“You better not have quit your job again, Allen,” Jay slurred.
“Nah, I got some good news,” I assured them.
I gestured to Wil to hang up his phone so I could share my news.
“Look, Hun, I’ll call you back in a few minutes. Allen’s got some mystery he’s about to reveal.” Wil said goodbye to his wife and gave me his attention.
“I’m about to join the club,” I told them with a big grin.
“What club?” Jay asked.
I reached into my pocket and pulled out the box that contained Granny’s ring.
“Oh, shit!” Kyle shouted. There wasn’t any reaction from Jay and Wil until I opened the box to display the three-carat engagement ring.
“Look at the size of that rock,” Wil said, his eyes bulging.
“Don’t tell me you’re getting engaged?” Kyle’s voice sounded a little disappointed.
“That’s right.” I said, trying to figure out Kyle’s reaction. “It’s about time I made Rose an honest woman, don’t you think?”
Kyle gave Jay a look, then shook his head. A look that told me that both of them thought I was crazy. Both Kyle and Jay had been telling me for years how hard marriage was. They said it was worth it, but both of them had days they wished they were single.
“Congratulations, Al.” Wil grabbed my hand and pulled me into an embrace.
“Yeah, congratulations.” Kyle shook my hand, but his heart was obviously not in it. “You sure you wanna do this? Rose is a nice girl, but why buy the cow when you gettin’ the milk for free? Marriage ain’t easy, bro.”
“I know. But she’s waited five years for this,” I reasoned, giving them the same argument Rose had given me countless times before.
“I hope you know what you’re doin’, man.” Kyle spoke like someone had just died.
I glanced at Jay, who was still staring at the ring. He hadn’t said a word, which was probably a good thing. When Jay was drunk, he spoke his mind and somebody usually ended up pissed off.
“Is this shit real?” Jay slurred. “I know your cheap ass didn’t buy no rock this big.”
“Yeah, that is a pretty big rock, Allen. How many carats is it?” Wil took the ring from Jay.
“Three carats, and the color and clarity are almost perfect. It was my grandmother’s ring.”
“See, Kyle, that’s what I mean. Brothers like Allen always fuck up shit for the rest of us,” Wil said with an attitude.
“What did I do?” I was expecting a little bit more support from Wil.
Wil’s stern face softened.
“Why couldn’t you be like the rest of us and get a half carat? When Diane hears Rose got a rock like this, I won’t be able to go home.” Wil laughed. We all laughed.
“You would think Rose would like it, wouldn’t you?” I asked.
“No doubt,” Wil replied.
“She hated it. She told me if I was gonna marry her, I need to buy her a new ring. ’Cause she wasn’t gonna wear no secondhand shit.”
“Ohhh shit!” Kyle was shocked.
“So what you gonna do?” Wil asked.
“I went and got her another ring,” I said flatly. “She’s the one who has to wear it. Not me.”
“You really gonna marry her after that?” Kyle looked puzzled, and he sounded mad.
“Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha!” Jay laughed. It was a sarcastic laugh, like he was laughing at me, not with me.
“What’s so funny?” I turned my head toward him.
“You are,” Jay replied, sitting forward about a foot from my face. I could smell the beer he was drinking.
“Why am I funny?”
“ ’Cause you’re the only fool I know who’d marry that freckle-faced bitch.” Jay sat back in his chair and started laughing again.
“Jay!” Wil said sternly.
“Nah, Wil, let him get whatever’s on his chest off. His jealous bullshit don’t mean shit.” For once I was gonna stand up to Jay and his BS.
“Jealous?” Jay sat up and was in my face again. “Look, Allen, you know I love you, but I’ma be straight up with you...”
“Yo, Jay, let me talk to you a sec.” Kyle frantically grabbed Jay’s arm, trying to pull him away from the table. Jay shoved him off and continued his drunken speech.
“Fuck that shit, Kyle. You and Wil know Rose ain’t nothin’ but some pussy.”
“That’s right. My pussy, Jay. Remember that,” I said with attitude.
“If you only knew.” His vicious laugh was back.
“Jay, what you and Rose had was a long time ago: Why don’t you get over it? She’s my girl now, and I’m gonna marry her, whether you like it or not.” I was pissed.
I knew this day would come, but I hadn’t looked forward to it at all. Jay and Rose had dated a little during college. Both of them said it wasn’t really a big deal, but I still hated the way Jay flirted whenever she was around. And to be honest, I think Rose encouraged it. I wasn’t worried about them sleeping with each other. Jay would never do that to me. At least I didn’t think he would. But the idea that my best friend had slept with my girl wasn’t a pleasant one.
“I’m sorry, Al, but you can’t marry Rose ’til you know the whole truth.” Jay never took his eyes off me.
“What? The truth according to Jay?” I demanded.
“I know you wanna get married and have a few crumb snatchers, Allen, but Rose ain’t the one. Brotha, you can do ten times better than her.” I couldn’t tell if Jay was attacking me or trying to protect me.
Jay looked at Wil, then at Kyle. “Can I tell him?”
Wil nodded. Kyle sat there with a blank expression before he spoke.
“I don’t know, Jay. I thought we was gonna go to the grave with this shit.” Kyle lowered his head.
“The mothafucker’s gonna marry her, Kyle. We’re damn near at his funeral now.”
“Fuck that! Y‘all supposed to be my boys. Tell me what the fuck’s goin’ on,” I demanded.
“Aw‘ight,” Kyle shrugged, “But Jay, man, let me be the one to tell him. It might sound a little better than comin’ from your drunk ass.”
“That’s cool with me.” Jay sat back and crossed his arms across his chest.
“Allen, do you really wanna marry a woman who has slept with all three of us?” Kyle asked me without even blinking.
“What the hell you talkin’ about, Kyle?” I sat back in my chair trying to grasp what I had just heard.
“We all fucked her!” Jay screamed, making everyone in the bar turn to look at us. “Shit, me and Kyle had a three-some with her.”
I was in shock. I’d known about Jay, but Wil and Kyle? That was another story. I could feel my stomach start to churn like I was gonna throw up. I turned to Wil. I wanted to hear him say it.
“That true, Wil?”
“Yeah, Al, it is.” He couldn’t even make eye contact with me.
I slumped down in my chair. I couldn’t believe my girl was doing
all
three of my boys.
all
three of my boys.
“Look, Allen, it’s better you find out now than later.” Jay sounded like he was trying to be gentle all of a sudden.
“Fuck you, Jay.” I stood up. ready to punch him in the mouth. I knew I would get my ass kicked, but it would’ve been worth it. If I could just get one good shot in. I took a step closer, but Kyle grabbed me from behind.
“Come on, Allen, let’s take a walk.” Kyle led me out the door.
When we got outside, Kyle let go of me and I spun around, fists clenched. “How could you do this to me, man? How could you sleep with Rose? What kinda fucking friend are you?” I had tears in my eyes.
“Hold up, Allen. That shit was a long time ago, man. You seem to forget I was the one who introduced her to you.” Kyle was pleading with me to understand, but there was just no way. My whole world had just been turned upside down.
“I didn’t forget shit. But you musta forgot to tell me you was bonin’ her.” I threw a punch that landed right on the side of his face, knocking him down. I regretted it right after it happened.
“What the fuck you hit me for?” He scrambled to his feet, rubbing his jaw where the punch had connected. He threw a verbal blow back at me. “Shit, everyone was fuckin’ her ass back then! She was a ho!”
“So that’s why you introduced her to me?” I asked in disbelief.
“Look, man, you was all depressed when Cinnamon left town. I figured you needed to loosen up, have a little fun. So I talked to Rose about giving you some. How the fuck was I supposed to know you was gonna fall in love with her?” Kyle had stopped breathing hard, and genuinely sounded sorry for the whole mess.
At that point I broke down. I couldn’t take it anymore. Tears were running down my face like a river. I slumped down against a car and sat on the cold ground.
I looked up at Kyle. I felt as if I was shrinking right in front of him. The things he was saying were incredible. I’d always thought I had seduced Rose, not vice versa. Suddenly I understood why she never wanted to go out with my friends as a couple.
“I’m sorry, Al. I shoulda told you a long time ago, but you were so happy. And Rose has honestly changed for the better since.” Kyle sat down next to me.
“We’re supposed to be boys, Kyle.” I bit my lip.
“I know, man. I fucked up.”
“Yeah, you did, but that doesn’t change the fact that I still love her.” I had no idea what I was supposed to do with the news my boys had just given me.
“If it helps, I’m sure she loves you too,” Kyle told me.
“I know,” I said quietly.
“You still wanna marry her?”
I thought about what Kyle was asking me for a second. I had just found out Rose was a slut before we met, and I already knew she was materialistic. But none of that changed the fact that I loved her. After my high school sweetheart Cinnamon left town, I was so depressed that I just couldn’t get my shit together. I had about fifty grand saved from a life insurance policy from my pop’s death, so money wasn’t a problem. Plus I lived with my ma, so I didn’t have to pay rent. For almost a year I just kinda drifted, living off that inheritance. I didn’t put any effort into finding a job or finishing my degree. That is, until I met Rose. She made me feel so good about myself again and sexually she just blew my mind. The only problem was Rose was high maintenance and my little savings were only gonna last so long. By the time I realized I was in love with her, I had spent almost half of it. I didn’t wanna lose her, so I did what I had to do to finish my degree as fast as possible. I worked two jobs to buy her the things she wanted. Until she helped me land my present job. She might have been looking out for her own interests, but she did help me get back on my feet during a pretty rough time.
“Yeah, Kyle, I still wanna marry her.”
He looked at me in disbelief.
“So you gonna tell her you know about us sleeping with her?” Kyle asked a question I didn’t want to think about, but I knew it would have to be dealt with sooner or later.
I shook my head. “Not yet, anyway. It’s not gonna help anything. We’d just end up in a fight, and I don’t wanna fight with her now.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Kyle sighed. “Okay, if that’s what you want. I’m with you.”
He wrapped his arm around my shoulder as we sat there on the cold ground. “I just hope you know what your doin’,” he sighed.
“So do I, Kyle. So do I.”
7
Jay
I pulled in front of Thomasina’s catering hall on Linden Boulevard in St. Alban’s, wishing I didn’t have to be there. I didn’t wanna go to Allen and Rose’s engagement party, because I didn’t approve of the engagement. But Kenya had forced me to go.
I handed the valet my keys as I stepped out of the car, walking around to open the door for my wife. Kenya was looking good as shit in her tight-fitting red cocktail dress. If you passed her on the street, you’d never know she was five months pregnant.
I chuckled to myself when I caught the valet nonchalantly checking out her perfectly round behind and shapely legs. I gave him a wink and smiled, letting him know it was all right. Hell, if I were him, I’d check her out too. Kenya had a gorgeous figure and it made me feel good when another brother checked out my woman. Kyle and Wil always got mad when they caught guys staring at Lisa and Diane, but when brothers looked at Kenya, I took it as a compliment. I patted her on the ass and gave the valet another wink.
“You’re looking good tonight, baby.” I stared into her beautiful, light brown eyes and kissed her full, soft lips.
“You look pretty good yourself. Good enough to eat.” She returned the compliment. She gave me a deep kiss and brushed her hand against my groin.
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