How Can I Be Down? Read online

  I reached for another towel and wet it with warm water too. Then I went into the bedroom and lay on the bed next to her. She opened her legs as I washed her down with the towel. When she rolled over on her stomach, I could tell she was in the mood to fuck again, but I wasn’t up for this “fuck me, fight me” bullshit tonight. We’d played that shit too many times before, so I left well enough alone and continued wiping her down with the towel.

  By five-thirty in the morning, tired, Jada and me were trying to finish watching a Tyler Perry movie on DVD. But when we heard a car door slam and laughter outside, I flipped the TV on to the outside cameras to see who it was. It was Donovan coming into the house with his arms wrapped around this chick’s shoulders. She was looking pretty damn good from what the monitor viewed, so Jada took the remote from me and turned it back on the movie. I was wondering where Kareem was at, so when I heard Donovan passing by my room, I yelled his name. He tapped two times on the door, then opened it.

  “What’s up, playa?” he asked, leaning in the doorway with a pack of beauty on his side hugging him around the waist.

  I couldn’t help staring. “Where, uh . . .”

  “Kareem?” Donovan quickly said, grinning.

  I grinned back. “Yeah, I’m trippin’. Where Kareem at?”

  “He told me to drop him off at Felicia’s house in Ladue.”

  I shook my head. “Bad news, man. I don’t like that broad. You should have brought his ass home.”

  “Please. You know how Kareem is, especially when it comes to older women.”

  “I know, but, uh, don’t be rude. Aren’t you going to introduce me—I mean, us—to your friend?”

  “Aw, yeah,” Donovan said, looking at his woman. “Candi, this is Kiley and Jada. Y’all, this is Candi.”

  Jada didn’t speak. I waved and said hello, then Candi smiled and said hello back. Before Donovan closed the door, I gave him a thumbs-up and he nodded his head. As soon as he closed the door, Jada turned and slapped me on my face as hard as she could. My cheek burned and I squeezed my eyes to ease the pain from the blow.

  “What in the fuck is wrong with you?” I yelled.

  “You don’t be flirting with that bitch right in front of me!” she yelled. “Don’t you have any damn respect for me?” She snatched up her cover and pillow, heading for the door.

  “Jada, I’m warning you,” I said through gritted teeth. “Your time is just about up, baby. Keep on with the bullshit if you want to—”

  “Fuck you! I can’t wait to leave this goddamn house,” she yelled, then slammed the door.

  I turned the TV off and sank myself down in my satin sheets. Jada in bed with me or not, I was taking my ass to sleep. It was obvious the bitch was crazy. One minute she wanted me to fuck her; then she wanted me to fight with her. Either way, I was running out of patience.

  Question was, was I really happy? I lay there thinking about how I almost fucked Ginger for the first time in years, then I got excited listening to Donovan work his Miss Pretty Young Thang in the other room. His headboard was banging hard against the wall and I could hear her soft, sexy moans. And when I heard her come, I felt like it was me she was releasing herself on. Out of all the women who came into this house, I’d never looked at any of them in that manner. With the exception of Quincy’s gal, Veronica, from the bank. Now, she was a sight for sore eyes too. Considering the hundreds of females who had been in and out, my attraction to just two of them wasn’t bad. Thing was, I wasn’t sure if it was my disappointment with Jada’s attitude, or if it was really something else.

  CHAPTER 3

  I chilled in bed until one o’clock Sunday afternoon, doing nothing. Jada came in, showered, changed clothes, and said she’d be back. I didn’t even ask where she was going because that’s what she wanted me to do. I told her to be careful and pretended to be occupied cleaning my gun.

  Feeling a slight bit hungry, I went to the upstairs kitchen to get a bite to eat. There was some leftover pizza from the other night so I warmed it up in the microwave. Quincy came strutting upstairs with no shirt on, blue jeans hanging down so you could see his boxers, and his wet hair was slicked back like he had just gotten out of the shower. When he put his hand on his forehead and plopped down on the couch, I knew it was a hangover day for him.

  “This is a bad-ass feeling,” he mumbled, turning on the TV.

  “Yeah, I know.” I walked over to the couch and set my plate of pizza on the table in front of me. “Weed and wine don’t mix well.”

  “So, where’s . . .” Quincy took his fist and punched it against his other hand. “Jada?”

  “You crazy, fool. She’s probably out at Frontenac Plaza buying her ass a new Gucci purse or something. I don’t know, didn’t ask.”

  “Did y’all make up?”

  “Yeah, we fucked. If you call that making up, then I guess we did.”

  Quincy eased down a bit on the couch and grabbed his thang. “Man, I’m tired of fucking. My shit wo’e out. Going forward, all I need is a good blow job, that’s it.”

  “That’s it? And how long is this idea supposed to last? You brothas get mo’ ass than I do and I got a woman living in the crib with me.”

  “For a while, I anticipate. I had sex about”—Quincy lifted his hands up and started counting on his fingers—“eleven times last week. Nigga don’t need that much twat.”

  “Some muh-fuckers do. I bet Kareem’s ass was double that number. He’s been out there bad. Every time I look up somebody new running through this damn house with him. And as much as he stay in the streets, I know he getting his mix on out there.”

  “Yeah, you’re right about that shit. Where he at anyway? Did he come in yet?”

  “Yeah, he here. That trick Felicia dropped him off not too long ago. His bedroom door closed so I take it he’s sleeping.”

  “Well, I was hoping to talk to him about what went down yesterday.”

  “Give that fool ’til eight or nine o’clock. If he ain’t up by then, wake his ass up and call him on his shit.”

  “Will do, my brotha. Most certainly will do.”

  Quincy went over to the kitchen and warmed up a slice of pizza too. As he was coming back over to the couch to sit down, Donovan was coming up the steps holding hands with Candi. Quincy glanced at them, looked at me, then looked at the TV. When Donovan and Candi sat down on the couch, Quincy’s eyes stayed focused on the TV.

  Noticing Candi constantly staring at me, I kicked up a quick conversation. “Hey, Don, I didn’t know y’all was still here.”

  “Yeah, dog. Crashed the fuck out.” Donovan leaned his midnight black ass back on the couch and put his arms around Candi. What she saw in him, I couldn’t figure out. Had to be his body, just had to be. I couldn’t hate ’cause I had to give credit to a brotha who worked out hard every day to keep himself buff. Not that my body was in bad shape, ’cause I still had some ridges left over from boxing and taking karate for over twelve years.

  “Yeah, I just got up my damn self,” I said. “Bed was so comfortable, I couldn’t pull myself away.”

  “Even comfortable without Jada, huh? She was hot, wasn’t she? I mean, we heard the slap and all. Didn’t we, baby?” Donovan said, looking at Candi.

  “Yes, we did,” she answered, smiling at me, while slowly rubbing Donovan’s waves back with her hand.

  My eyes stayed focused on Donovan, since Candi wouldn’t stop staring. “She claimed I was flirting with your woman. How she ever got that idea, I don’t know. I mean, don’t get me wrong,” I said, observing Candi. “You’re a very attractive young woman but . . .”

  “But what?” she said.

  “But, he already got a woman he loves more than life itself,” Donovan interrupted.

  “True that, my man,” I said, pointing my finger at him. “True that. Most definitely love my woman.”

  Candi shrugged and addressed Donovan. “Are you ready to go?”

  “Are you?”

  “No, but I think I’d better.
Besides, I got a few things I need to take care of today.”

  “Well, let’s go,” Donovan said, standing and stretching.

  When Candi stood up, Quincy took a quick peek at her curvy well-shaped ass. It was squeezed into some black silk stretch pants that hung down over her thick-heeled black shoes. Her thin, long black hair was parted through the middle and draped down both sides of her shoulders. And the red and black striped half shirt with oversized sleeves set her pretty ass off. Donovan definitely had himself something to work with and probably didn’t even know it. She was dark but not as black as him. Her plush, arched eyebrows, buttered brown lips, and round dark brown eyes put her into a category all by herself. Fucking fabulous.

  “Bye,” she said, waving at Quincy and me.

  We waved back, and as soon as they were down the steps, Quincy cocked his head back. “How in the hell did he pull that shit off?”

  “Man, that’s what I’ve been asking myself all damn morning.”

  “She like yo’ ass though, man, I’m telling you.”

  “Nigga, please. What in the fuck gives you that idea?”

  “When she came up here, I could tell. Did you see how fast I turned away?”

  “Yeah, but what’s that got to do with it?”

  “I was watching her ass from the corner of my eye. She had this . . . this ‘Ooo, I could just tear that brotha up’ look.”

  I laughed. “You are crazy, fool. And even if she did, Donovan my boy. I don’t go out like that.”

  “Shiiit, I would,” Quincy said.

  We turned our heads as Kareem came up the steps fussing about the noise. He stretched his arms out wide, while standing behind the couch in his Ralph Lauren boxers. “What’s up with all the noise? That’s why I don’t come home anymore. You niggas make too much noise for me.”

  “I’ll tell you what all the noise about,” Quincy said, turning the TV to the outside camera. “Check this out.” He pointed to Candi walking to the car with Donovan.

  Kareem slowly walked around the couch and sat down with bugged eyes. “Damn! Was she up in here and I didn’t know nothing about it?”

  “Yep,” Quincy said. “All damn night. With Donovan.”

  “Get the fuck out of here. I mean, he ain’t bad looking but that’s some shit I can pull. Did he fuck her?”

  Kareem and Quincy looked at me. “What? Why y’all looking at me?”

  “Aw, you know. His damn room right next to yours, nigga, don’t play stupid.”

  I smiled. “I ain’t gon’ be telling y’all that man’s business. If he wants you fellas to know, he’ll tell y’all.”

  “Come on, Kiley,” Kareem said. “Tell us, man, did he?”

  I hesitated for a moment. “Yeah, he did. And from what I could hear, pretty damn well, too.”

  “Damn, that’s messed up,” Kareem said. “Some fools have all the luck.”

  “I wouldn’t exactly call it luck,” Quincy said. “Donovan’s lucky she didn’t creep into Kiley’s room this morning and fuck his brains out.”

  “Whaaaat?” Kareem said. “She digging on you, man?”

  “Hell naw,” I said quickly. “Quincy been smoking too much herb. Shit got ’em trippin’.”

  “Bullshit and you know it. Go pull that tape out of that camera on the wall right now, rewind it, and let’s watch it. You brothas will see what the fuck I saw.”

  Kareem hopped up to get the tape.

  “You two are crazy,” I said, watching Kareem take the tape out of the camera. “Man, don’t do that.”

  Kareem ignored me, put the tape in the VCR, and rewound it. When he pushed play we watched all kinds of shit on the tape. Even a brief moment of Quincy getting down with this chick in this room. Kareem let it play for a minute and then Quincy snatched the remote.

  “Don’t be trying to learn my tricks of the trade,” Quincy said.

  “Now why would you do that in this room knowing there’s a camera in here?” I asked. “I hope she knew about it because that could mean trouble for yo’ ass.”

  “Come on, Kiley. She knew. I told her and afterward we watched it together. It’s not like I gathered y’all up in here with some popcorn and said let’s watch it.”

  “All right, just checking. I thought our bedrooms were for privacy.”

  “New subject,” Quincy said ignoring me, fast-forwarding the tape. When he saw Candi and Donovan coming up the steps on the tape, he stopped it. “Okay, Kareem, check her out.”

  Kareem and Quincy sat on the edge of the couch looking attentively at the TV, then turning their heads a couple of times and looking at me.

  When it was over, Kareem turned his body around and faced me. “Now, that was a bad bitch right there. And if you couldn’t tell after watching that tape, she was begging you for a fuck you out of commission. That piece of ass was calling you underneath her breath.”

  I nodded, knowing what was up. “Okay, so what? That’s Donovan’s gal. Besides, y’all know how I feel about Jada.”

  “I know how you feel about Jada,” Kareem said, placing his hand on his heart, smiling. “But, if you don’t want to have the pleasure of adding those panties to your collection, I will do it for you.” He and Quincy slammed their hands together, giving each other five.

  “So, Donovan’s gal and all, you brothas would step like that?”

  “Hell, yeah,” Quincy said. “Pussy ain’t got no name on it. When I start pulling the panties off and seeing a brothas name engraved across it, then I’ll step. Besides, you act like we ain’t never got down like that before. Donovan had yo’ shit before, my shit, and Kareem shit. Vice versa so why trip now?”

  “You got a point,” I said. “But I’m not interested in Candi. I got some deep-down funky flava feelings for Veronica.”

  “Who?” Quincy turned his head, looking around the room. “My Veronica?”

  “Yes, Quincy. Your Veronica.”

  “Veronica who I was with last night?”

  “Yes. Veronica who you were with last night.”

  He shrugged. “All right, cool. Have at it.”

  “So, you wouldn’t care?”

  “Kiley, please.” He leaned his head back and rested it on the couch. “I ain’t in love with nobody. Unless I tell you I’m in love, feel free, she’s fair game.”

  I nodded; then I looked at Quincy again. “Are you sure?”

  Quincy stood up and grabbed a piece of paper and pen from on top of the TV. He wrote her number down on the paper and gave it to me. “Here, call her. Invite her to go out. I wouldn’t care. I’m telling you the truth.”

  I took the paper out of his hand and looked at it. Then I put it in the pocket of my robe. “Y’all never cease to amaze me. Don’t y’all have love for anybody?”

  “Love for you, big brother,” Kareem said, placing his hand on his heart again. “That’s about it, other than these two other knucklehead niggas I got to bust upside the head every once in a while.” He looked at Quincy.

  “Yeah, sorry about that shit yesterday,” Quincy said. He and Kareem gave each other five again.

  “Me too but you know I don’t mean no harm with that ‘white boy’ shit, don’t you?”

  “Yeah, you do. You prejudice, man. Racist like a muh-fucker. Thing is, I ain’t white though. I ain’t black either. I’m just fucking colored. So, whenever you refer to me, refer to me as a colored man.”

  “Okay you colored freak with green eyes and straight black shiny hair,” Kareem said.

  We all laughed, but when Jada came up the steps with bags of shit from Frontenac Plaza, Kareem and Quincy stopped laughing, looked at me, and smirked.

  “Don’t stop talking on my account,” she said with her sassy-ass voice.

  “Say, Jada,” Kareem said, clearing his throat. “Sorry about calling you a fat bitch yesterday. That wasn’t cool and I just wanted to apologize.”

  She threw her hand back. “Whatever. Save that shit for one of your bitches. I’m sure your brother had to coax you into apolog
izing to me so forget it.”

  Kareem was getting ready to go off, but Quincy interrupted before I did. “Yo, Kareem, let’s go outside and hoop for a while. I got this slam dunk I want to put on your ass.”

  Kareem stood up and yawned. “Please, white men can’t jump, fool.”

  “You’re right. They can’t, but a colored man can, so let’s go.”

  Before they left, Quincy looked at me, punched his fist in his hand again, and nudged his head toward Jada. I tossed a pillow at him and they left.

  Jada was busy pulling all the shit she bought from the Plaza out of the bags. She ran up and down the steps, putting things up, and before she emptied the last bag, she came over to the couch and sat down next to me.

  “Here, I bought you something,” she said, putting the bag on my lap.

  I reached in the bag and pulled out a gray cashmere sweater. “Thanks,” I said, looking at it, then put it back into the bag.

  “Thanks? Is that all I get, a lousy-ass thanks?”

  “Damn, Jada. What in the hell do you want me to do? Strike a fucking match, stamp my feet, and jump for joy over a sweater.”

  “No, I didn’t say that. You could have at least kissed me for thinking about your selfish-ass.”

  “Selfish? You out here spending my goddamn money and I’m the one who’s selfish. You have got to be out of your rabbit mind calling me selfish, and if you think I’m going to get excited about a sweater that my money bought you’re crazy!”

  I got up to go downstairs to get away from Jada. As I was leaving, she called me a “stupid motherfucker.” Not that selfish wasn’t bad enough, but stupid? And, the bitch was spending my money? No doubt about it, she had to be taught a lesson.

  I backslapped her ass so hard it sent her flying almost to the other side of the couch. She held her face and started to whimper. I warned her several times about her actions, and there had to be repercussions for a woman who didn’t know her place. I tightened my robe and walked my ass right downstairs to my bedroom to change clothes. I knew she would come charging, so I hurried, because I didn’t want to hit her again. Once I was dressed, I slid my gun down inside my pants and grabbed my keys off the dresser. And as soon as I opened the door, she was on her way down the steps with a knife in her hand. I rushed her and pinned her up against the wall, taking the knife out of her hand.