One Taste (12 page)

Regina touched Cochise’s stiffened manhood and took in a sharp breath. She was briefly paralyzed by the shock of his immense size, then Regina’s eyes widened in amazement. Cochise’s phallus was alarmingly large, much larger than her battery-operated gizmo. Regina couldn’t begin to imagine how many inches the man possessed; he was absolutely, unbelievably humongous.

“It’s aiight, baby. I know I’m not built like the average man. It’s gonna take a lot of time and patience before I can make love to you the way I want to.”

“Uh, I…um…” she stammered idiotically. She could feel her
face flush. She felt awkward and foolish. She’d never performed fellatio. And judging by the girth and length of Cochise’s throbbing manhood, she doubted she could accomplish the task without choking to death, and she strongly doubted such a massive member could fit inside her vagina. Having sexual intercourse with this hugely endowed man just didn’t seem remotely possible.

“It’s aiight,” Cochise repeated, as if reading her mind. “What I did—” He paused as he involuntarily licked the lingering taste of her juices from his lips. “I did that for you. I’m cool.”

The way his penis quivered and throbbed, the way the veins became pronounced and seemed to pulsate with a surge of yearning, Cochise seemed anything but cool.

Mesmerized by the size and shape of his full throbbing erection, Regina was drawn to it like a magnet. Driven by lust, she lowered her head and allowed her instincts to take over. Her tongue flicked against the smooth, mushroom-capped head. She licked the tip, tasted the salty secretions that oozed out.

“Baby? You sure?” he whispered, and then groaned in defeat when her tongue twirled around the outer edges of his large but perfect cap. Regina covered his shaft with her moist tongue, licking it up and down and moaning as if his sex organ were a large, delicious treat.

She parted her lips, inviting him into her warm, virgin mouth. Cochise slowly eased the head and a few inches of length into Regina’s mouth. For a split second, she was shocked by the sensation of having his rigid shaft invade her mouth, but wanting to please Cochise as he’d pleased her, she determinedly sucked on the portion of aroused flesh he’d slid inside her mouth. Surprisingly, she began to enjoy the feeling of his throbbing hardness sliding across her tongue, caressing her gums, hitting the soft insides of her jaws, slipping to the back of her throat, teasing her tonsils.

It was intoxicating—his masculine taste and smell, the husky moans that escaped his lips. When his thrusting movement quickened, Regina braced herself.

“I’m cummin’, baby,” Cochise uttered, his voice simultaneously breathy and rough. When Regina felt him trying to ease out of her mouth, she began to slurp hungrily, pulling him in and pushing him out in a steady, tantalizing rhythm. His muscles twitched. “I said I’m cummin’,” he repeated, urgently fighting against the urge to explode.

Regina held him in place until a gush of passion filled her mouth. It was tangy in taste and had the texture of a milkshake. She swallowed without coercion and then licked her lips, content and certain that she had a newfound acquired taste for Cochise’s big dick and his erupting fountain of pleasure.

O
nika and the cab driver had watched the brawl between Matt and Nazier in astonishment. After Matt peeled away in his van, Onika ordered the driver, “Pull off!”

“Who’s gonna pay me?”

“Pull the fuck off,” she shrieked as she saw Nazier stomping toward the car.

By the time the driver finally realized that Onika was in jeopardy, it was too late. Nazier yanked open the passenger door and swung at Onika’s head.

“Help!” Onika screamed.

A look of fascination mixed with sympathy filled the driver’s eyes as he witnessed Nazier pummeling Onika with violent blows. Fearful of his own safety, he didn’t attempt to make a move to rescue Onika from the brutal assault..

“Where that sucka go with my shit?” Nazier demanded, his eyes filled with rage.

“I don’t know.”

“What the fuck you mean you don’t know? That mufucka drove off with my gun and all my shit.” Nazier smacked her across the face.

“Stop fuckin’ hitting me, Naz. I said I don’t know where he went.”

“What’s his name!”

“Matt Wheeler,” she responded before Naz decided to swing on her again. “We live together. He probably went back to the crib.” Onika figured if she could get close to home, she could somehow ditch Naz and lock herself inside the safety of her apartment.

“Where at?”

“Uh, we got a place at, um…” She was trying to think of a street close enough to her apartment where she could bail out and not have to run too far, but her mind went blank.

“Oh, now you don’t know where you live?”

“I’m trying to think. Damn, I just moved in.”

“Yo, where did you pick her up at?” Nazier asked the driver.

“Twenty-Fourth Street,” the driver replied without hesitation.

Naz yanked Onika out of the passenger seat, pulled open the back door, pushed her inside, and joined her in the backseat of the cab. “How much she owe you?” he asked while tussling with Onika.

“Thirty dollars,” the driver said, craning his neck and staring at the struggling couple in disbelief.

“Aiight, I gotchu.” Nazier reached inside one of his pockets and gave the driver a twenty and a ten. “Take us back to her crib and I’ll give you ten more when we get there.”

The driver nodded. Following Nazier’s instructions, he put the car in gear and whizzed down Third Street.

“Ain’t you gon’ call the cops or something?” Onika shouted to the driver.

The driver steered the cab in silence.

Along with the money, Nazier had also pulled out a pocketknife. “Shut the fuck up,” he warned Onika as he poked her in the side with the sharp end of the knife.

Onika stood at knifepoint outside her apartment door. Her keys clanged as she fumbled to unlock the apartment door. Hopefully, Puddin would be her saving grace. If her friend came out of her drugged haze, Onika figured they could probably overpower and whip Nazier’s ass together.

“Puddin!” Onika shrieked the minute she and Naz entered her apartment.

“You callin’ that nigga?”

“No, Puddin’s a friend of mine. She’s ’sleep in the bedroom. Matt must not be home. I didn’t see his van parked in the lot.”

“Ain’t nobody stupid, Onika. Dude probably hidin’ in the closet somewhere.” Nazier grabbed Onika and put her in a chokehold.

“I ain’t lyin’,” Onika croaked.

With his arm locked around her neck, Nazier walked Onika around the small apartment, checking all the closets and finally, the bedroom. Sure enough, Puddin was passed out on the air mattress, practically comatose from a megadose of Oxy. Puddin’s tongue lolled outside her mouth and slobber dribbled down both sides of her face, dashing Onika’s hopes of having assistance in conquering Naz.

“Looks like she’s out for the count,” he informed Onika with a malicious chuckle. “But she can be dealt with too, if she wakes up looking for trouble.” He loosened his grip around her neck and gave Onika a rough shove toward the living room.

“What time is that mufucka gon’ get here?”

“Aiight, look. I wasn’t being honest with you because I was scared. Real talk, Naz. I ain’t bullshitting, Mr. Wheeler don’t really live here.”

“What?” Nazier reared back, his face set in a murderous scowl.

“He lives somewhere in Philly.”

“Where in Philly?”

Onika shrugged.

“Bitch, you was driving that nigga’s van, so I know you got a phone number or some kind of way to reach out.”

“His number’s in my cell phone.”

“Call him.”

“Can’t. I sold my phone.”

Nazier pulled out his phone and handed it to her.

“I don’t know that man’s number by heart,” Onika said in a shrill voice.

“Man, this is fucked up.” Naz sighed and shook his head in despair. Onika felt hopeful that he would finally give up and take his ass on out of the crib. But instead of going on about his business, Nazier stood with his arms folded, his gaze shifting around anxiously. When his focus landed on the clutter left by the painters, his eyes gleamed with excitement.

“Aiight, then.” He dragged the metal folding chair into the kitchen. “Have a seat,” he ordered Onika.

“What for?” she asked apprehensively.

Nazier bent down and picked up the cylinder of duct tape.

Instinctively, Onika jerked around and tried to flee the kitchen, but Nazier was quick. He caught her and gripped her by the arm. “Keep fucking with me and I’m gon’ yank your arm right out of the socket. Now, sit the fuck down.” He slammed her down hard on the chair. “Now, let’s see if I can help to refresh your memory,” he said as he unraveled the tape.

“Come on, Naz. Don’t do me like this. I didn’t burn you. I don’t even know that old head like that. I just mess with him when I need something. He only comes through the crib every now and then.” Onika talked fast and pleadingly, her eyes bulging
in fear as Nazier began taping her to the metal chair. She’d had heard stories about people being “duct taped” and had always listened with morbid interest to the harrowing tales of drug deals gone bad, never imagining for a moment that she’d end up in such an unfortunate position. What were her chances of getting out of this alive? Onika searched her memory, trying to recall if any of the duct-taped victims had survived.

Nazier methodically continued taping Onika to the chair. He didn’t stop until he’d stripped the last piece of tape from the cylinder. By that time, Onika was cinched so tightly, she could hardly breathe. Through sputtering, choked gasps, she begged for her life. “Please…Naz…don’t…kill me.”

“Kill you! Fuck outta here. I ain’t tryna get charged with murder.” Offended, he grimaced. “But if you don’t tell me where you and that nigga got my shit stashed, you gon’ wish you was dead.”

“Puddin!” Onika croaked. “Wake up! Naz is in here trying to kill me!” She stretched open her mouth and screamed at the top of her lungs.

Nazier drew back his fist and bashed Onika in the mouth. She felt an explosion of pain; her lips swelled up instantly.

“Yo! Why you put me on blast like that?” Naz demanded.

Onika tried to scream but fear locked the sound inside her throat.

“I hope you’re happy…putting me through all this bullshit.”

Confused, Onika blinked and nodded dumbly.

“Oh, you’re admitting you’re happy about how that old head played me? That shit’s real funny, huh?” Nazier glared at Onika.

Onika quickly shook her head.

“Those packs wasn’t cheap, yo. They gotta be replaced. We talkin’ big money, yo.” He waved his blade in her face.

Blinking rapidly, she shrank back in fear. “I know how you can get your shit back,” Onika blurted.

“How?”

“Call my cell,” she said thickly. “Tell the dude who bought it off me to look up Mr. Wheeler’s number. When you get the number, I can call Mr. Wheeler and tell him to come over—”

“Man,” Naz said, dragging out the word in disgust. “You sound like a straight nut. Ain’t nobody stupid enough to answer a phone they just bought off a crackhead for five dollars.”

Ten,
she thought with tremendous regret. If she still had her phone, she’d find a way to push some buttons and scream for help. Onika licked her swollen lips. “Can you take some of this tape from around my arms?” she asked, appealing to Nazier’s sense of compassion. “And can you get me some ice from out of the freezer? I gotta put something on my lips,” she whined.

Nazier became quiet and thoughtful. “Oh, aiight. I got something for your lips.” He stepped behind Onika and moved toward the stove. Turning on a burner, he waved the knife over the flame until the blade was red hot.

“Whatcu doin’, Naz?” She turned her head sharply and then hopped up and down, trying to turn the chair around to see what Nazier was up to. She didn’t have to wonder long. A few moments later, Naz presented the hot, smoking knife.

The urge to scream was overpowering, but she resisted, knowing a loud outburst would incite Nazier to unspeakable violence. Recoiling, she mumbled in fear, making horrible little sounds of terror.

Nazier brought the smoldering blade close to her face. “Get it together, bitch! Start talkin’.”

“I don’t know his number. I don’t know where he went,” she said in a panic, her words muffled by painfully swollen, balloon-like lips.

Nazier swiftly pressed the hot metal against the center of Onika’s
puffed-out lips and held it there for several agonizing seconds. Too shocked to scream, Onika gasped and shivered violently.

He removed the knife, pulling away a layer of shriveled flesh. Dazed, Onika’s eyes rolled into the back of her head.

Nazier slapped her. “Don’t pass out on me. Wake up, bitch.”

Ghastly moans and garbled words escaped through lips that were so badly burned, the remaining skin stuck together, making her lips appear to be sealed shut. “He went home,” she murmured, barely coherent.

“Where your man live at?”

“I don’t know.”

Using a pant leg, Naz wiped the charred skin off the knife and heated it up again.” Aiight…you ain’t talkin’?” he asked as he once again brought the burning blade so close to her lips, she could feel the pulsing heat. “Guess I gotta help refresh your memory.”

Fear twisted through her. Onika moaned loudly, trying to awaken Puddin. She screamed for her friend as best she could, but could only manage a hissing sound that slipped through an opening at the corner of her mouth. Nazier set the scorching metal at that spot, burning and sealing off the area where the sound had escaped. He repeated the torturous burning at the other side of her mouth. “Ready to talk?” he asked the semiconscious woman. When he didn’t get a response, Nazier slapped her again, but she remained unresponsive. Frustrated and furious, he kicked the chair, sending it crashing to the floor.

T
he next morning Regina woke up with a smile on her face. Gazing at her still-sleeping young lover, her smile widened at the memory of the passion and tenderness they’d shared. As she watched the bright sunlight shining on his handsome, chiseled face, Regina accepted last night without regret.

However, the difference in their ages, their life experiences, and the disparity in her and Cochise’s financial situations reminded her that it wouldn’t be wise to put too much of an emotional investment in this young man’s affection.

As if sensing Regina staring at him, Cochise opened his eyes and greeted her with a lazy smile. “Hey, sexy,” he said and gave her a flirtatious wink.

She felt at once sensual, beautiful, and young. When was the last time she’d felt like that? Too long ago to remember. After twenty mostly loveless years with Matt, Cochise was just what the doctor had ordered. It wasn’t as if she were shopping for another husband.

“What time is it, baby?” Cochise asked.

Baby!
Oh, she loved the way he called her baby. Regina sat up. “It’s six-thirty,” she replied in a casual tone, though her heart was pumping with delight. “I’ve been awake for a half hour, trying to
decide if I should go to work or come back home after I drive you to Chester.”

Cochise frowned. “You don’t have to take me all the way to Chester. Buses should be rolling by now. Just drop me off at the bus stop on the way to work, aiight?”

“No, I’ll drive you. It’s not a problem.” She patted the top of Cochise’s hand. “I doubt if I’d be able to concentrate at work, so I’m going to take the day off. With Matt locked up until Lord knows when, I’m going to need a few days off to go over his business records.” Regina sighed. “I have to talk to an attorney and…you know…I just need some time off to gather my thoughts.” A crease of worry formed in the area between Regina’s eyes. She gazed off into space, trying to prioritize her to-do list, but quickly became overwhelmed. She decided to play it by ear. One step at a time.

“I’d offer to cook you breakfast, but I know you’re anxious to give the men their vouchers.”

Cochise nodded. “Thanks, I’m straight, though. I don’t need breakfast,” he said pleasantly. The man was fine as hell and unbelievably well-endowed. He was easy-going and accommodating, he didn’t seem conceited or high-maintenance at all.

He hadn’t budged from bed, and gave no indication of how soon he needed to get back to Chester. To be honest, Regina wasn’t mentally prepared to begin tackling the job of separating her and Matt’s finances. Not yet, anyway. What she wanted to do was play hooky from work and spend the entire day in bed with Cochise. She couldn’t think of a better time to start getting her walls stretched. She presumed she could take the head and perhaps an inch of shaft. Mmm, the very thought of him pumping his length inside her gave Regina shivers of excitement.

But she couldn’t tell him what she was thinking. He’d think
she was a nympho. Regina frowned. Was she? No, she was a late bloomer—a thirty-eight-year-old woman who’d finally experienced a sexual awakening. Hit with the raging hormones of a teenager. The downside to feeling young and sexy was being in a constant state of horniness—having a libido that demanded constant attention. She cut an eye at Cochise and imagined fucking him in every room in her house and in every imaginable position. Her lips curved into a slight smile.

“What’s so funny?” Cochise asked, bringing Regina out of her sexual fantasy.

Feigning innocence, she lifted a brow.

“You were deep in thought. Whatever you were thinking about made you smile.”

Giving Cochise an honest answer could make her appear too eager—too needy. Realizing the truth could possibly drive him away, Regina responded with the first thought that popped in her mind. “I was smiling as I imagined myself trying to run a business I know nothing about. I have an investment in Matt’s business and if I expect to protect my assets, I need to know how the cleaning business works.” Regina shook her head. “Maybe you can help me. Matt told me more than once that you were his best worker, and in my current position I sure could use your expertise.”

Interested, Cochise sat up. The man was gorgeous. Regina had to drop her gaze for a moment and mentally shake her head. It made no sense for him to look that appealing first thing in the morning. His dark eyes were squinted in curiosity.
Mmm, you better stop looking at me like that.
His jet-black hair was wild and loose. It flowed past his broad shoulders and down to his well-developed chest.
Want some pussy? Say the word and it’s yours. I’m willing to deal with the pain.
Aroused, Regina could hardly pull
her eyes away from him and assume a business-like persona. “I don’t want to lose any of the contracts Matt has,” Regina continued, forcing herself to push away all thoughts of sex. “I assume his van’s been impounded. That heavy equipment is expensive. I hope nothing happens to it.”

Cochise shook his head. “We didn’t load anything. Mr. Wheeler never came back with the van. Most of the heavy stuff is still inside the building on Germantown Avenue.”

Regina breathed a sigh of relief.

Cochise gave her another serious look. “Like I told you last night, I didn’t have the keys, so I couldn’t lock up. Everything’s probably cool, but I think we should swing by the job to make sure. You’re gonna have to get that equipment out of there. You can’t hold the company responsible if something turns up missing.”

“Move it? How? It won’t fit in my car.”

Cochise was quiet, pondering. Then he leaned forward. “I have an idea. Can you rent a truck?”

“Sure.”

“There you go,” Cochise said, nodding. “We’ll pick up a van and I’ll move everything for you. Where do you store the equipment?”

“Matt keeps some of it in the garage, and some things are kept in the shed at the back of the house.”

“Do you have a list of the inventory? You know, the equipment, cleaning products…”

“No, but I’m sure I can find a list. Matt is very meticulous with paperwork.”

“Okay, but before you think about trying to run the business, don’t you think you should get in touch with the clients and let them know that you’ll be handling things temporarily or…you know…until he gets out?”

“You’re absolutely right. I hadn’t thought abut contacting the clients. Or checking the inventory.”

“With both Mr. Faison and Onika out of commission, it might be a good idea for you to cancel the cleaning jobs until you get more help and get things organized.”

Regina flinched when Cochise mentioned Onika’s name. She wondered if Onika had been arrested with Matt.

“Tell you what. Take me to Chester so I can submit the vouchers and check on Mr. Faison. Oh yeah, I have to let the house manager know what’s going on.”

Regina frowned. “Do you have to tell him exactly what happened? Can’t you just tell him that I’m taking over for Matt? I don’t know if I can show my face if everyone knows the whole sordid story. My husband’s predicament—his affair with the girl who worked for him is embarrassing.”

“I won’t give up every detail, but the fact that the boss got arrested is bound to come out sooner or later, especially with Onika involved. I gotta let the men know that it’s a strong possibility that we all might be out of work for a while.”

“I guess you’re right,” Regina said wearily.

“The main concern right now is to get the equipment. Mr. Wheeler might get out a lot sooner than you think. If that happens, let him handle his own damage control.” Cochise cradled his chin with his thumb and forefinger. “Aiight? So, we’re gonna drop off the vouchers, rent the truck, and pick up the equipment. And after that, I guess it would be a good idea to go through his books and find out what’s what.”

Gratitude tugged at the corners of Regina’s mouth, pulling it into a wide grin. Thank God for Cochise. How would she have managed without him?