Primal: Part One (5 page)

“If your Allysons are taking such good care of you, why do you want to take it any further?  Sounds like you got a good thing going.”

“I went to Vegas.”

She brought a hand up to smother her laughter.

His eyes twinkled.  “I love to see you laugh.  I miss that.  I miss you.”

Her face heated.  “I miss you too, Jovan – even though you’re a lot different now.”

“I’ve changed for the better,” he assured her.

“We’ll see.  Tell me what happened in Vegas.”

He raised one eyebrow.  It was a small, sexy gesture.  “Now, you know they say:  What happens in Vegas–”

“Bullshit.  Don’t get shy on me now.”

He studied her soft features, wondering why she never gave it up in high school.  Back then, Monica was not like the others.  But if he’d given it his all…

He said, “I met a lot of prostitutes in Vegas.  They were… inspirational.”

CHAPTER FIVE

LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON

Flesh of my flesh

Bone of my bone

God gave me a rib

So why should I roam?

Why should I disappear

And not answer the phone

And forget I have children?

Like a dog with a bone

Sniffing for some new tail

Gotta have it

I’m gone

The trip to Vegas was to celebrate Morris Glover’s upcoming nuptials.  Jovan had known Morris since the sixth grade.  They grew up in the same neighborhood and attended school together until Jovan graduated two years ahead of him.  Jovan’s younger brother Luke was Morris’ age, so they were closer childhood friends.  As adults the threesome was as thick as thieves.  For the Vegas trip, Morris invited another homey, Jesse, who was a friend from work.

The guys gave Morris a hard time about willingly giving up his player card and agreeing to have sex with only one woman for the rest of his life, but it was all in good fun.  Jovan knew Morris’ fiancé personally, and he thought his buddy had made an excellent pick.

Vivian was smart and focused; a homicide detective for Overbrook Meadows PD.  Not only could she cook a mean casserole, but she could hold her own in a room full of surly men.  Plus she had given Morris two sweet, baby girls; one of which was about to start Pre-K.  Stepping up to the plate and marrying her was not only Morris’ best move, but it was long overdue.

But that didn’t stop his buddies from giving him a hard time as they sat near the bar at the extravagant Palazzo Hotel.   It was after midnight on a warm, moonlit night.  The sights and sounds from the casino were electrifying.  Morris’ crew was liquored-up and boisterous.  Friday was the first of two nights they’d be in town.  They all looked forward to his official bachelor party on Saturday.

“Tell me you’re gonna get some ass while we’re down here,” Luke said.

“Man, you tripping,” Morris replied.  He was a tall man with an okay build.  Anyone who saw his gut could tell that he had a woman at home taking care of him.

“Naw, for real, though,” Luke pressed.  “We in Vegas now, where anything goes.  It wouldn’t even be considered cheating.”

Jovan’s brother was nearly as handsome as he was and almost as buff.  When Jovan made weight training a priority in college, his little brother was his favorite and most reliable workout buddy.  Luke was able to achieve a well-toned, muscular physique, but he was five inches shorter than Jovan and couldn’t reach his brother’s massive size.  In his heyday, Jovan tipped the scale at 240 pounds of mostly hulkish muscles, while his brother felt more comfortable at 210.

“Just because we’re in Vegas don’t mean I got a green light to cheat,” Morris told him.  “Viv was cool enough to let me come.  I don’t wanna do anything to ruin it when I get back.”

“Did she tell you specifically
not to
cheat?” Luke wondered.

Morris shook his head.  “She told me not to do anything that would make it hard for me to look her in the eyes when I get back.”

“Shit, sounds like a green light to me!”  Luke laughed and reached for Jovan to cosign on that.

Jovan didn’t agree, but he didn’t want to leave his brother hanging.  He gave him a high-five.

“Fuck that,” Jesse stated.  He took a swig of his beer and leaned back, shaking his head.  “Viv has a closet full of guns.  I wouldn’t fuck around on her.  Might end up catching something worse than an STD – and yeah, I’m talking about a
bullet
!”

Everyone at the table laughed at that, except Jovan.  For him, the comment hit a little close to home.

“Well, I don’t know about y’all, but I’m trying to get my dick wet before we head home,” Luke reported.

That was news to his brother.  “Man, get out of here,” Jovan replied.

“Nah, for real.”  Luke was animated.  “We in Vegas, baby!  Everything’s legal over here.”

“It may be legal, but it won’t save you from getting a divorce,” Morris informed him.  “I know Cathy didn’t give your ass a green light.  It’s not even your bachelor party!”

“I don’t need a green light,” Luke told them.  “I’m careful with mines.”  He rubbed his hands together.  “The only way Cathy will find out what happened here is if one of
you
motherfuckers tells her.  And I know I ain’t hanging with no snitches.”

Luke looked around the table, waiting for someone to contradict him.  But his statement was correct.  Jovan wouldn’t rat on his brother, and Morris had been their friend for more than 25 years.  He wouldn’t break his confidence, either.  The only person at the table Luke didn’t know very well was Jesse.  But that was fine, because Jesse didn’t know his wife.

“Nigga, you tripping,” Jovan said, as he always did when his brother spoke on his adulterous fantasies.  Jovan loved his sister-in-law dearly.  He never wanted to see Cathy’s world ripped apart simply because his little brother wanted to take a dip in some
new-new
.

“Nah, man,” Luke said.  “I been wanting to get out here for a minute. 
Legal prostitution
.  I gotta see what that looks like.”

Jovan’s brow furrowed as he watched him.  He hoped he would let it go, but it sounded like Luke was serious.

“You wanna see what legal prostitution looks like?” Morris asked.  “Hell, man, just look around.  It looks exactly like what you see.  Damned near half the women in here are hookers.”

Luke’s eyes widened.  “No shit?”

“The fine ones are,” Morris told him.  “Anybody you see under the age of thirty, showing off half their ass, is probably a hoe.  If you got the cash, they’ll follow you up to your room.”

“Don’t tell him that,” Jovan said, but he was too late.  Luke was looking around the room with wolfish eyes.

“You don’t say…”

“Let’s take a walk,” Jovan suggested, rising to his feet.  “We can look together.”

“That’s what I’m talking about,” Luke said as he rose from his seat.

“We’ll be back in a minute,” Jovan told the others.

Morris shrugged.  “Take your time.  We’re probably gonna check out the casino...”

● ● ● ● ● ●

Jovan tried to hold his tongue as he and his brother strolled through the hotel lobby.  For them, this was supposed to be a pleasant vacation.  They were there to support and celebrate with Morris.  Jovan didn’t want to argue, but he felt he had to intervene before Luke made another boneheaded decision.

“You’re not gonna cheat on Cathy while we’re down here.”

Luke took a break from looking for his next conquest and met his brother’s eyes.

“Why it sound like you’re giving me an order?”

“You’re a grown man,” Jovan stated.  “I’m not giving you an order.  This is sound advice.”

“We’re in the land of tits and ass, and you’re telling me to keep my pants on?”  He snorted.  “But you get to have all the fun you want, huh?”

“I’m not the one who got married,” Jovan reminded him.  “You think the grass is greener on my side, but sometimes I think you got it better.  You got three kids, man.  You got a wife to wake up to and go to bed with at night.  Ain’t no bitch in this state worth losing all that.”

“I don’t wanna give up my life,” Luke retorted.  “Never said that.  Why you gotta take it there?  What’s wrong with me getting some skins while we’re here and continuing my so-called perfect life when we get home?”

Jovan shrugged.  “Nothing.  Dad thought it wasn’t nothing wrong with it, either.”

“Man,
goddamn
,” Luke said with a sneer.  “Why you gotta bring that shit up?”

“Jesse the one brought it up.  He said Morris might catch a bullet, if Viv caught him fucking around.”

“He was just talking, Jovan.  But you’re serious.  I don’t want you jinxing me.”

Jovan had to laugh at that.  “You think I’m jinxing you?”

“Yeah, man.  That’s like, I’m fixing to get in the car, and you say, ‘
I hope you don’t get in a wreck and die
.’  You don’t do that shit.  Ain’t cool, man.”

Jovan put an arm around his neck.  “I don’t wanna jinx you, bro.  Just trying to keep you straight.”

Luke continued to sulk, while Jovan wondered why he needed a reminder about their father.  Lamar Crist was a good man, overall, but like anyone he had his share of flaws.  Adultery was the one he struggled with the most, and it was also the cause of his death fifteen years ago.

After three years of living as his side-chick, Lamar’s mistress suffered a great bout of depression.  Lamar didn’t realize how far she’d declined mentally until it was too late.  She shot him while he slept and then turned the gun on herself.  Jovan’s mother didn’t know about the affair until the police gave her the grisly details.

After losing their father in such a cruel manner and watching their mother cope with the betrayal, Jovan developed a renewed respect for the holiest of unions.  He thought his brother was on the same page, but less than two years after Luke’s marriage, his eyes began to wander.

Jovan wished he could say his brother was merely window-shopping, but he knew Luke had taken the full plunge more than a few times.  Thankfully, Cathy was still unaware of his infidelities.

“Hey, boys!  Y’all looking for some company?”

They turned and saw two voluptuous vixens standing shoulder to shoulder; one white, one black.  Jovan thought the white girl was cuter, while her friend had a better figure.  Either way, they couldn’t have showed up at a worse time.

“Shit, hell yeah!”  Luke’s smile was ear to ear, his eyes as big as quarters.

He was a tall man with light brown skin, strong facial features and a remarkable resemblance to his big brother.  Luke chose to keep his hair cut short, whereas Jovan wore his long.

“What are y’all getting into?” the blonde asked.  She wore a halter top and mini-skirt.  The only thing missing was a sash across her chest with the word “
HOOKER
” printed on it.

“Y’all got a room here?” her ebony friend inquired.  She was dressed more conservatively in black, stretch pants, but her occupational status was clear as well.  She had enough cleavage exposed to lose a whole wallet in it.

Jovan thought they were both delectable, but chocolate had always been his favorite.

“Yeah, we got a room upstairs,” Luke announced.  “Y’all wanna see it?”

Jovan chuckled inwardly.  He knew where this was going, but Luke seemed oblivious.

“Yeah, we wanna go with you, daddy,” the black girl said.  “You want both of us, or you wanna pick?”

Luke couldn’t stop himself from salivating.  He had hit the jackpot.

“Man, both of y’all can come!  We can have a party.”

The girls smiled flirtatiously, and then the blonde dropped the bomb.  “You can have us all night for two thousand.”

Luke’s eyes grew even larger, while Jovan stifled a chuckle.

“
Two thousand
?  Are you serious?”

“It’ll be half that, if you just want me,” the black girl said.

“Or just me,” her friend threw in.

Neither of them looked disappointed about Luke’s initial reaction.

“A thousand dollars?” he scoffed.  “That’s crazy.”

“I can spend an hour with you for five hundred,” the blonde offered.

“Me, too,” her friend said.

Luke continued to shake his head.  “Nah, that’s alright.  I think we’ll keep looking.”

“You’re not gonna find anything better,” the black girl scoffed.  “Come find us when you change your mind.”

They turned, and the men stared at their asses as they walked away.

“
A thousand dollars
,” Luke grumbled when they got moving again.  “You knew they charged that much?”

“I knew they were expensive, but I didn’t figure that,” Jovan told him.  “I thought you’d jump on that five hundred for an hour.”

His brother gave him a look.  “Nigga, is you crazy?  You know how much they selling ass for in Overbrook Meadows?”

“I have no idea.  I hope you don’t, either.”

“Sixty, seventy dollars,” Luke stated.  “You can get a bitch for less than that, especially if they on crack.”

Jovan was disgusted.  “Who the hell would want some nasty-ass crackhead?  I know you not getting down like that.”

“Nah, I never have.”

“Well how you know how much they charge?”

“They be on Backpage,” Luke told him.  “You see the price right on their home page.”

“What the hell is
Backpage
?”  Jovan was genuinely perplexed.

“It’s like Craigslist,” Luke told him, “except they got
everything
on there, like escorts and stuff.”

Jovan shook his head in frustration.  “Yo, man, when we get home, we gotta have a serious talk.”