A Gangsta Twist Saga (7 page)

“Anywhere, just as long as I'm out of Oklahoma.”

Laughing, he said, “I know that's right. But check this out. I need to know what that couple is drinking over there at that table,” he said as he pointed toward Sacha and Clifford's table.

Mikki smiled and said, “The female is drinking an apple martini, and the guy has a white wine.”

“Do me a favor and take them another round of drinks for me. Make sure it's after they're back and seated. Let the female know that they're from me,” he said as he gave Mikki a hundred-dollar bill.

“Taz, why you got to be giving me this big-ass bill? You know Winky's gon' be whining when he sees this.”

“Don't trip, Mikki. Keep the change for yourself. Maybe that can help out a li'l.”

Smiling brightly, Mikki said, “Thank you Taz! You're so sweet!” She gave him a quick kiss on his cheek and hurried to go do what he'd told her to.

Taz watched as Sacha and Clifford finished dancing. He smiled when he saw Mikki go to their table and give them their drinks. When she pointed toward Taz at the bar, Sacha smiled and raised her drink in thanks. Clifford, on the other hand, frowned and turned his attention back toward Sacha. Taz laughed and said, “Old boy, you're way out of your league on this one.”

To say Clifford was agitated would be putting it way too mildly. He was pissed off. “How dare that clown send you a drink over here! I should go over there and have a word with his ass!”

Sacha smiled and said, “Come on, Cliff. He bought the both of us a drink. Why are you tripping?”

“Why am I tripping? I'm tripping because he has blatantly disrespected me. He's trying to get at you on the cool.”

“By buying us a drink, he's trying to get at me? Cliff, that's absurd. And even if he is, so what? I'm here with
you!
You should take his gesture as a compliment and stop hating.”

That comment irked the hell out of Clifford; he was ready to leave now. “Sacha, it's getting late. Maybe we should leave now.”

“Leave? I'm not ready to leave. We haven't been here an hour yet. Come on, don't let that guy ruin our evening. The night's still young, and we have plenty more of it to enjoy. So relax.”

Shaking his head no, Clifford said, “Nah, for real, I'm ready to go, Sacha.”

Sacha didn't like the tone of his voice, so she said, “Well, I'm not, Cliff. I came out to enjoy myself, and that's exactly what I plan on doing.”

“Let's not go through this, Sacha. I said I'm ready to go!”

“And I said I'm not!”

“Don't make me do something I know I'll regret!”

She laughed and said, “Cliff, you're a grown-ass man. You can do whatever you want to. Whether you'll regret it or not is solely on you. I'm a big girl, so if you want to leave, then leave. I'm quite sure I won't have a problem finding a way back home.” She turned and shot a seductive smile toward Taz to add emphasis to her statement. That statement hit Clifford right where she figured it would . . . his pride.

“I'm sure you wouldn't! Maybe that thug you seem to be so fascinated by would love to take you home! Wait! I didn't mean that, Sacha. Can't we just leave? I'm no longer enjoying this place.”

She couldn't believe how much Clifford sounded like a child
. And to think I was just about to give the li'l baby some ass! Whoa!
she thought. “Cliff, if you want to leave, then I think you should. Like I've already told you, I'm a big girl. I'll be fine.” She sipped her drink and said, “As a matter of fact, I think you
should
leave. I'm no longer enjoying your company.”

“What? Come on, Sacha. It's not that serious.”

“Yes, Cliff, it is. You're trying to ruin a perfectly good evening, and I refuse to let you. So, why don't you just leave?”

“Don't push me, Sacha, 'cause I won't have a problem bouncing up out of this place without you.”

She started laughing so hard that she thought she was going to pee on herself. Once she regained her composure, she said, “Have a nice evening, Cliff!” She stood and left him sitting at the table by himself. She put an extra sway in her walk as she passed Taz on her way toward the restroom.

Taz watched and smiled when he saw Clifford storm out of the club
. The first part of my mission has now been completed. Now on to phase two. Taz, do you, boy! Do you!
He turned toward Winky and ordered himself another glass of XO.

By the time Sacha came out of the bathroom, she saw that Clifford had gone, and that sexy-ass, thug-looking guy was boldly sitting at her table.
So, you think you got it like that, huh, Mr. Smooth? Let me see what you're really working with.
She went back to her table. Once she was standing in front of Taz, she said, “Excuse me, but this is my table.”

“I know. Since your date shook you, I thought I'd come keep you company.”

“Shook me? What makes you think that he shook me?” she asked as she sat down in her seat.

“Come on, sexy. Ain't no need for game playin'. I saw how he got heated behind the drinks I sent y'all. I didn't mean to interrupt your evening with that squ—uh—guy.”

“Is that right? So, what were your intentions when you sent those drinks over to us?”

Staring directly into her sexy brown eyes, he said, “I wanted to get your attention.”

“And why is that? You did notice I was with someone, didn't you?”

Taz laughed and said, “Of course! I sent him a drink, too, didn't I?”

Sacha couldn't help herself from laughing.
This cutie is something else,
she thought as she took a sip of her drink. “Well, since you've run my date away, can I at least know your name?”

“My name is Taz.”

“Taz . . . hmm . . . I like that. My name is Sacha, Taz.”

“Sacha . . . hmm . . . I like that too. Now that the introductions are out of the way, I have a question for you, Sacha.”

“What's that, Taz?”

“Will you let me take you back out on that dance floor so we can get our groove on a li'l?”

Smiling, Sacha said, “I don't have a problem with that.” Taz stood up, took one of Sacha's small hands in his, and led her onto the dance floor.

Keno was talking to Bob when he noticed Taz slow dancing with Sacha. “Look, nigga! Taz is back in the game, dog!”

Bob turned and stared in disbelief at what he was seeing and said, “Now ain't that a bitch! What's gotten into that nigga?”

Keno smiled and said, “Fool, if you can't see that he done cracked a bad bitch, then you're one blind muthafucka!”

Out on the dance floor, Taz couldn't believe that he was actually dancing with this sexy-ass woman. She felt so good in his arms that he wanted to hold her like this all night long.
Slow down, nigga! You don't even know this broad!
he thought to himself as she held on tightly to his broad shoulders.

Sacha, on the other hand, was just as mesmerized by Taz as he was by her.
I know he's some sort of thug, but he sure as hell smells good,
she thought as she inhaled deeply and savored the smell of his Vera Wang for men.

The slow song came to an end and the DJ switched to some “Laffy Taffy” by D4L, and they started shaking all around the dance floor together, having a real good time.

Paquita and Katrina couldn't believe what they were seeing. “Bitch, Taz don't dance! How the fuck did that stuck-uplooking bitch get him out there?” yelled Paquita.

“I don't know, girl, but look at him! I've never seen Taz smile like that. He's digging that bitch.”

“I hate that ho! Where the fuck did she come from any fuckin' way?”

“I don't know, girl, but it looks like he's finally chosen someone.”

“That's fucked up!”

“Bitch, why you trippin'?”

“'Cause he didn't choose me!” Paquita said with a hurt expression on her face.

“That's the way the game is, girl. Come on. Let's go get a drink,” Katrina said as she led her homegirl toward the bar.

After five or six songs, Taz and Sacha were sweating and tired. He led her back to her table and signaled Mikki to bring them some more drinks. After Mikki had brought their orders and left, he said, “I can't remember the last time I've actually been out on a dance floor. That shit was kinda fun.”

“You're kidding, right? You dance too damn good for that.”

“I'm serious. I'm not really into this club scene shit.”

“So, why do you come to the club then?”

“My homies like to come and unwind here. They're into it more than I am. Usually, I just get me a drink and chill in front of the bar.”

“I noticed that the last time I was here. You had a real serious look on your face. You were looking as if you didn't want to be bothered by anyone.”

“Yeah, I'm like that at times.”

Smiling, she said, “Well, you're sure not like that tonight. What changed?”

Taz sipped his XO and simply said, “You.”

By the time the club started letting out, Taz had found out through their conversation what Sacha did for a living, as well as confirmed that this was definitely a woman that he wanted to get to know better. “I hope that you'll let me take you to go get some breakfast or something,” he asked.

“Or something?” Sacha asked with a raised eyebrow.

Smiling sheepishly, Taz said, “Come on, you know what I mean. I'm really feeling you, and I kinda don't want this night to end right now. Let's go get some Denny's or something.”

“I'd prefer IHOP.”

“I ain't trippin'. Whatever you want is fine with me.”

Before he could continue, Keno, Bo-Pete, Wild Bill, Bob, and Red came to their table. Keno smiled and said, “You ready to shake this spot, gee?”

“Nah, I'm good. Look, Red, take Keno back to my spot so he can get his truck. I'm about to go have breakfast with this lovely lady.”

Red laughed and said, “Well, it's about time, dog.”

“Whatever! Excuse my rudeness, Sacha. These are my homeboys, Red, Bob, Bo-Pete, Wild Bill, and this clown right here is Keno.”

Sacha smiled at the crew and said, “Hello, gentlemen.”

They all said their hellos and smiled, but Bob just couldn't help himself. He had to say something slick. “So, you're the one who has finally been able to get this old fuddy-duddy interested in someone, huh?”

She smiled at Bob and said, “If you say so.”

Before their conversation could get any deeper, Taz said, “All right, clowns. Y'all can bounce.”

“You sure, gee?” asked Keno.

“Yeah, I'm good. I'll get with y'all at the gym in the morning.”

Keno smiled and said, “Yeah, we'll see you at the gym in the morning.” Keno and the rest of the crew all started laughing as they left the club.

Taz waited until they were out of the club and said, “Come on, let's go get our eat on.”

Sacha smiled as she stood up from the table. She liked what she had seen so far in Taz.
Be careful, girl! You know he's into something illegal,
she warned herself as they were headed toward the exit.

Once they made it outside of the club, Taz led her toward his all-black Denali and pulled out his keys. He hit a button and his alarm chirped twice and the doors to his truck made a “whoosh” sound and opened vertically. Sacha smiled and said, “Men and their toys!”

After Taz made sure that Sacha was safely inside the truck, he went around the other side and climbed in himself. He started the truck and said, “Yeah, you know how it is. We have to have all the go-go gadgets and whatnot. Life wouldn't be that much fun if men couldn't play with their toys.”

“Uh-hmm, whatever! I know you have a sound system in this toy of yours. Would you turn on some music, please?”

Taz smiled and said, “Anything to please a lady.” He then said, “What would you like to listen to?”

“What do you have?”

“Whatever you want to listen to, I have it.”

“Is that right?”

“Yep, that's right.”

I got something for this slickster!
she told herself. “Okay, I'd like to listen to that new single by Alicia Keys, ‘Unbreakable'.”

“Yeah, I like that one too,” Taz said with his smile still in place. Then he focused as he pulled his truck out of the club parking lot.

I knew he was just fronting. That's a shame. I really didn't think he was the fake type. Oh, well, at least I'll get me some breakfast out of his ass. Then I'll call Gwen and have her come pick me up from IHOP. I'm not letting this thug know where I live,
Sacha thought to herself as she relaxed back in her seat.

Once Taz had slid his truck into traffic, he said, “CD number three, track number one, volume level four, mids three, and highs four, please.”

Sacha stared at him as if he'd lost his mind.

A second later, the song “Unbreakable” by Alicia Keys started playing on Taz's sound system. He turned toward Sacha, shrugged his shoulders slightly, and said, “More toys, huh?”

Sacha started laughing and said, “Oh, my God! How much did you pay for something like that?”

“A li'l bit of nothin'. I let Keno talk me into getting that voice-activated system. It's pretty cool, huh?”

“It sure is. Play another song for me, Taz.”

“What do you wanna hear?”

“Anything. I just want to see you do that again.”

He smiled and said, “So, you
are
impressed by my toys. I guess that's a good thing.” His cell phone started ringing and he said, “Excuse me for one minute, Sacha.” He flipped opened his cell and said, “What up, Red?”

“Nothin' much, my nigga. Just wanted to make sure that your new girlfriend was treating you all right.”

“Fuck you!”

“Aw-w-w, come on, dog. Don't be like that. Tell me, will she be at the gym with you in the morning? I mean, the gym is at your house and all.”

Before Taz could reply, he heard Bob in the background telling Red to ask Taz if she had a friend. Taz shook his head and said, “Tell that nigga I said I'll find out for him after I finish eating. Now, can I go please? I am on a date!”

Red started laughing and said, “You know we love this shit, gee. It's been way too long since you really enjoyed yourself. I hope she's the one, my nigga. I really do.”

Taz turned toward Sacha and told Red, “I do too, homey. Out!” After he closed his phone, he said, “My homey Bob wants to know if you have a friend.”

“Bob was the darker one with the lump on his head, right?”

Taz started laughing and said, “Yeah, that's him.”

“Hmm . . . I might. My girl Gwen loves her men dark skinned. Hey, what happened to my other request?”

“Oh, I forgot. Here you go. CD number seven, track six, volume level seven, mids two, and highs three please.” It was quiet inside of the truck as his automated sound system changed CDs as it was told to. Then, all of a sudden, Fifty Cent's “Just a Li'l Bit” started playing.

Sacha started laughing and said, “I like it! I like it!”

Taz smiled as he drove on toward IHOP.

By the time they arrived at the restaurant, Sacha had made him play six different songs. She was really impressed with his voice command system.

They entered the restaurant hand in hand, and Taz noticed several people in the crowded restaurant take notice of them.
I hate this part of the game. All of these clowns are going to try and be all up in my business,
Taz thought as he walked straight toward a waitress and said, “Table for two, please.”

The waitress stared at Taz as if he was crazy and said, “Sir, there's about a twenty-minute wait. Please give me your name and I'll call you when your turn has come up.”

Taz grinned and said, “Tell your manager that Taz said he needs a table for two.” He then turned and winked at Sacha.

Sacha stared at him and said, “So you got it like that, huh?”

“I guess we're about to find out.”

The waitress Taz had spoken with came back, followed by the manager. When the manager saw Taz, he smiled and said, “Right this way, Taz. I thought Sheila was playing with me when she said your name. How have you been? It's been a while.”

“The same ol', same ol'. Staying busy and stuff,” Taz replied as they followed the manager as he led them to the back of the restaurant. Once they were seated, Taz said, “Thanks, Donald. I know how busy you are at this time of the morning.”

“No problem, Taz. Anything for you, you know that. I'll have another waitress come take your orders in a few minutes.”

“That's cool.” Taz waited until the manager was out of earshot and asked, “Did that impress you?”

Sacha laughed and turned her small right hand from side to side, saying, “Just a li'l bit.”

“Well, I see that you're hard to impress, so I'm going to have to step up my game.”

“Don't do that, Taz. Just be yourself. I'm quite sure that will impress me more than enough,” she said as she opened up her menu.

I can't believe that I'm actually having breakfast with a broad like this. Shit, what the fuck am I doing?
Taz asked himself as he stared at Sacha.

Sacha saw him staring, put down her menu, and asked, “So, tell me something about you that I'd never believe.”

“What?”

Smiling, she said, “Tell me something interesting about yourself, Taz.”

“Interesting? To be honest, there's really nothing interesting about me. I'm your average businessman. I work out a lot to try and stay in shape, and tend to my businesses the best I can.”

“What exactly are some of your businesses?”

“I do a li'l bit of this and a li'l bit of that.”

“Uh-uh, slick. That's too evasive. Have you forgotten that I told you I'm an attorney? You've got to come better than that.”

Laughing, he said, “A'ight, but can I ask you a question first?”

“Go ahead.”

“What kind of businesses do you think I have?”

“To be completely honest with you, you look like a very successful drug dealer to me.”

Taz laughed and said, “Well, at least you said ‘successful.' But why a brother have to sell drugs?”

“Look at yourself. You got the nice expensive clothing, the high-priced diamonds in your ears. Your grille looks more expensive than that rapper guy, Baby. Your truck has the big, big chrome rims, and the extra loud automated sound system. And, on top of everything else, you got the mean-looking macho crew. Everything about you screams drugs.”

With his smile still in place Taz shook his head slowly and said, “First of all, I've never sold drugs in my life. And to tell you the truth, I despise the people who do. I'm a successful businessman, and my crew, as you called them, are my closest friends. We've been together for a very long time. Thugs, yeah, maybe, but it is what it is. We've never forgotten our beginnings and we never will. Just because we made it financially doesn't mean that we have to dress and act all goody-goody. Or do we have to maintain a certain look for certain people?”

“Not really, but—”

“But what? We work for ourselves. Therefore, we don't have to answer to anyone but us.”

“Okay, okay, dang! So, what kind of businesses are you all involved in?”

“You're nosy, aren't ya?”

“I'm just trying to get to know the man I'm having breakfast with,” she said with a smile on her face.

“Real estate and small food chains.”

Sacha started laughing so hard that she almost choked. “Come on, handsome! You got to come better than that! Don't forget, you're talking to an attorney.”

Slightly irritated yet amused, Taz said, “So, you're calling me a liar? Let me tell you something, boo. I'm not the type to go around bragging about my accomplishments. That's just not my style. But, as you obviously noticed, I'm a li'l on the flashy side. I'm a thirty-six-year-old man who is set financially for the rest of my life. All I have is a high school diploma from John Marshall, but I've been blessed with enough business sense to make all of the right moves with my money. So have my homies. Answer this for me, do you think we were able to get this table without a wait just because I'm the big kingpin of the town?”

Smiling, she said, “Maybe. You know the ballers get special treatment wherever they roll.”

“True.” Staring directly into Sacha's lovely eyes, Taz said, “I like what I see in you so far, Sacha, and I hope you will give me the opportunity to get to know you better. But before I go any further, it is a must that you believe me, as well as in me. I am not a drug dealer. I've never dealt with drugs in my life, and neither have any of my homeboys.”

The tone in his voice made her feel that his words were honest, but what really convinced her was the look in his brown eyes. “The eyes never lie.... Well, most times they don't,” she said. She raised her glass of water to her lips, sipped, and said, “I believe you, Taz. You can't blame me for asking, can you?”

“Nah, I don't. I just want that understood before we go any further.”

“What makes you think we'll go any further than this breakfast?”

Smiling, he said, “Like you said, the eyes never lie.”

“What's that supposed to mean?”

“You're diggin' me just as much as I'm diggin' you. I can see it in your eyes.” Before she could respond, Donald, the manager of IHOP, came back to their table and said, “Sorry about the wait, Taz, but you know how it is after the club lets out. Sheila's running around like crazy back there. Let me take you guys' order.”

“That's cool, Donald. What are you having, Sacha?”

“I'll have the Denver omelet and hash browns.”

“That sounds good. I'll have the same, Donald. Add a side of bacon and sausage for me also. Will orange juice be cool, boo?”

Blushing slightly, she said, “Yes, that'll be fine.”

“A carafe of orange juice, too, Donald.”

“Coming right up, Taz.”

Before Donald left to go fill their order, Taz stopped him and asked, “Donald, how do this month's profits look? Better than last months, I hope.”

Smiling brightly, Donald said, “Everything's great, Taz. I think we're having our best month this year. I sure hope you don't open up another place and cause me more competition.”

Taz smiled at Donald and said, “Now, you know that might just be a good idea, Don. I bet that'll keep you on your toes.”

“Ah, Taz, you're killin' me!” They both laughed as Donald left to go fill their orders.

Sacha had a smirk on her face as she said, “Show-off!”

“What?”

“You know what, slick! I told you I believed you, Taz!”

“I had to make sure. Like you said, you are an attorney.”