Still Wifey Material (12 page)

Rachael could not wait to open up her big-ass mouth. “What in the hell was her beef? I mean, because she was going off on you.”

“Yeah, she was, but she stopped in her damn tracks! Trust me, she ain’t trying to run up on me, for real! She’s just upset because that nigga of hers done fucked her and played her dumb ass!”

Rachael looked around nervously. “You better not say that too loud, because you know she’s got ears all over the place.”

“Rachael, I wouldn’t give a damn what she’s got. This is my shop! I know one thing, though. She’d better not ever walk up on me and disrespect me, or any of my clients again, because the next time I’m not going to be so civil. And after I whip her ass, I’m gonna have the paramedics escort her dumb ass out of here on a stretcher.”

Rachael and Kimberlie both burst into laughter. “Damn, that would be a sight to see,” Kimberlie said.

“You ain’t lying about that,” Rachael agreed.

The other clients chuckled and nodded their heads in agreement. Two hours of nonstop services to my clients passed before I was able to put my last client under the dryer and take a break. “I’m going out for a bite to eat. Does anybody want anything while I’m out?” I asked while I was getting my handbag and car keys.

“Where are you going?” Rachael wanted to know.

“Probably to the Chinese restaurant around the corner.”

“Well, bring me four spring rolls and a lot of duck sauce.”

“All right,” I replied and left.

While I walked to my car I noticed Nikki standing beside her car, talking to Sophie’s husband. She was smiling her ass off too. If I had to guess what they were talking about, it would be that he was trying to convince her to go out with him and possibly give him some pussy afterward. Judging from how fast she jumped in bed with that other African nigga Bintu, it wouldn’t surprise me if she sneaked off and went to a hotel with Sophie’s husband that night. That was just how trifling she’d gotten lately. All I could do was shake my head, because she needed some help with her self-esteem issues. Not only that, I knew that if Sophie decided to walk out of her shop and saw her husband grinning all up in Nikki’s face, she would go upside both of their fucking heads. It wouldn’t be shit Nikki could do to stop her either, because Sophie was a big bitch! The ho looked like she could fuck up her husband with those big-ass hands and feet she had, so Nikki better watch out because I knew she was not trying to get her Anna Sui halter dress ripped from her body. That would be a sight to see, though, and I would laugh my ass off.

I made a couple more wisecracks about them to myself, got in my car, and got the hell out of Dodge. I figured if a fight did cap off while I was gone, Rachael would fill me in and perhaps record it on her cell phone so I could see it later. I knew that sounded really bad on my part, but, hey, what could I say, other than Nikki was gonna get everything she deserved because God don’t like ugly.

I
t had been a total of five days since I had last seen or talked to Bintu, and I hadn’t spoken to that cat named Neeko until today. I started not to answer my phone when it initially rang, but when I looked down at the CallerID, I was really eager to find out what rock his ass climbed up from under. “What happened to you?” I asked instead of saying hello. “I thought you fell off the face of the earth.”

“Ahhh, baby,” he began to say, “I am so sorry, but a lot of shit went down after I got off the phone with you that night. Me and my peoples had to straighten some niggas who were bringing heat to our spot.”

“Join the club. Because a lot of shit went down with me too.”

“Trust me, your shit could not have been no worse than mine.”

“If you didn’t have cats pointing guns in your face and robbing you for all your shit, then you are absolutely wrong on this one.”

Shocked, Neeko said, “What the fuck? Wait a minute,” he continued, like he was trying to gather his thoughts, “you got robbed?”

“Yeah.”

“When?”

“Right after I got off the phone with you the other night. A couple of cats walked up in me and my cousin’s shop and robbed me and my two stylists for all our dough and our jewelry.”

“You got to be bullshitting me!”

“No, I’m not. And what was so fucked up about it was that we couldn’t even tell the police how the niggas looked.”

“You didn’t get to see how they looked?”

“How could we when they were wearing masks?”

“Come on now, I know they had something distinctive about them that you could’ve told the police.”

“Neeko, whoever those niggas were, they had their shit mapped out to a T. I mean, they were covered from head to toe and they never slipped up and said either one of their names. So we had nothing to go with, and I’m frustrated like hell because I want my shit back.”

“What did they take?”

“They took my seven-thousand-dollar diamond necklace, my Rolex watch, and a pair of diamond studded earrings I had just got. But my girl Carmen had the most shit of us all. That forty-thousand-dollar diamond chain she had around her neck belonged to her fiancé, so he was pissed, and then on top of that they took her five-carat diamond engagement ring he had just given her.”

“Word!” he said as if he couldn’t believe what he had heard.

“Neeko, you just don’t know what I’ve been through. But what’s even worse is that I ain’t gonna be able to do anything about it.”

“I’m sorry to hear that, baby. I mean, I wish there was something I could do to get your shit back.”

“I wish you could do something too. But since you can’t just keep your ears to the street and let me know if you hear something. That way if you find out who was behind it I can plug Carmen’s fiancé X with the information so he can make those niggas pay.”

“Are you talking about Xavier from Lincoln Park on the Northeast side?”

“I’m not sure where he’s from.”

“How does he look?”

“He’s an average looking big guy with a bald head. Why, you know him or something?”

Neeko hesitated for a second and then he said, “I don’t know him personally. But I’ve seen him around the way. It’s a small world, huh?”

“If that’s the way you want to look at it,” I replied nonchalantly, so he switched the subject.

“So, what’s up with me and you? When we gon’ hang out?”

“It’s up to you. You’re the one with the woman and a hectic schedule.”

Neeko laughed. “It ain’t like that for real.”

“Well, I guess you can answer that question yourself.”

“I’m free any day of the week.”

“What about tonight? You trying to go out and get a bite to eat?”

“Yeah, we can do that. But what time are you talking about?”

“Let’s meet up about seven-thirty.”

“A’ight. But where we gon’ meet at?”

“Do you remember where I told you my shop was?”

“Yeah.”

“Well, meet me there.”

“A’ight,” he said and then we hung up.

A while later Neeko called my cell phone and told me he was parked outside, so I grabbed my handbag and hauled ass outside. Rachael was the only one left in the shop servicing her last client, so I mentioned that I was about to leave right after I got my phone call.

“Whatcha’ doing tonight? Going home to relax?”

I smiled. “No ma’am, I am about to go on a hot date with my new friend waiting for me outside.”

“Who is he? And when did you meet him?”

“His name is Neeko and I met him about a week ago while I was getting me some lunch from Quiznos.”

“Is he cute?”

“Hell yeah!”

“What does he drive?”

“A Yukon Denali.”

“Wow! Sounds like you got a winner.”

“Too soon to tell, but I shall find out,” I said and then I grabbed the doorknob and let myself out.

“Be careful,” I heard her yell before the door closed.

On my way to Neeko’s truck I noticed that he was yelling at someone on the other end of his cell phone, so I took about six steps toward the passenger side door and then I turned my back to him so he could have some privacy. I acted like I was looking inside the bakery shop next to the salon, but I was really ear-hustling my ass off. Whoever he was talking to, he was chewing his ass out.

“Nigga, do you know who the fuck I am? I will kill you and your whole fucking family!” I heard him say and then he got quiet as if he was giving the caller a chance to speak. “Well, nigga, if you think you got enough fighting power, bring that shit to me!” I heard him scream and then he abruptly ended the call.

Now I couldn’t tell you who the hell he was beefing with or what it was about, but I did know that Neeko was furious, and if anybody tried to cross him right then, I was sure he’d take care of their ass real good, and I sure wouldn’t want to be nowhere around to witness it.

Several seconds later he honked his horn and gestured for me to hop into his whip, so I did. Immediately after I sat in the seat next to him he smiled and said, “Nice to finally see you after all this time.”

I cracked a cute little smile. “It’s your fault.”

“Yeah, I know. That’s why I’m going to make it up to you.” He pulled off and headed northwest.

“Where we going?” I asked.

“I gotta make a quick run to pick up some dough, and then we can go get something to eat.”

“Where you want to get something to eat at?”

“It’s up to you.”

I pulled out my Blackberry to make a quick call. “Good,” I said, “because I’ve been dying to get a bite to eat at Benihana this entire week.”

“You like their food?”

“Oh my God! I love it! Why, you don’t like it?”

“I’ve only been there one time and it was a’ight.”

“Which one did you go to?”

“The one on Louisiana Street.”

“That’s the one I go to. Their food is always fresh. I love it and I’m getting ready to call there right now and make us a reservation.”

“Damn, you got them on speed dial, huh?”

I chuckled. “I sure do,” I said, and then I started speaking into the phone.

After I made the reservation, I sat back in the seat and made small talk with Neeko while he made his way to his destination. Everything was going according to plan. He was looking good and being a gentleman. He also threw out a few jokes every now and again to make me laugh, and I was truly enjoying his company.

About ten minutes into the drive his cell phone started ringing again, so he looked at the CallerID to see who it was. When he didn’t recognize the number, he said, “Who the fuck is this?”

I looked at him, but said nothing. He kept staring at it, hesitating to answer it. Then at the last minute, he decided to see who it was. “Hello,” he finally said.

“Where you at?” I heard a woman’s voice yell through the receiver.

Irritated by her tone, he said, “I’m taking care of business. Where you at? And whose phone you calling me from?”

From the looks of his conversation, I knew it had to be his woman. I didn’t care, though, because I was with him at the moment and I had big plans to spend some of that money he was about to pick up.

“Look, I ain’t trying to argue with you right now, so I’ma holler at you when I come to the crib,” he told her and then hung up.

I cracked another smile at him and said, “Trouble at home?”

He sighed and said, “She’s always bitching at me about something. She ain’t never satisfied about shit! She lucky she got my son, because I would’ve left her ass a long time ago.”

Now I saw that he was dealing with one of those baby mama drama issues, I made it my business not to make one comment. Instead, I said, “Lighten up! It’s not that bad!”

Before he could say one word, his phone rang again. Without looking at the CallerID this time, he just answered it. “What?!” he lashed out.

Caught off guard by whatever the caller had just said, his mouth fell wide open and his eyeballs nearly popped out of his head. Then in slow motion, he turned around to his left. I turned with him and saw an old, beat up Chevy Impala riding side by side with him with two men pointing machine guns directly at him. Immediately both men started ripping Neeko’s truck to shreds with their artillery.

Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!
Bullets were flying through doors and shattering the windows and all I could do was scream and duck for cover. After Neeko got hit, he dropped his phone to the floor and let out a loud grunt. His facial expression was that of a man who was in excruciating pain and I wanted no part of it. My first reaction was to help him get us the hell away from these guys before we were both dead. I couldn’t see where we were going since I was crouched down on the floor, and at this point it didn’t matter since he and I had one common goal, and that was to get the hell out of Dodge. I figured since he had his hands on the wheel and his eyes on the road all I needed to do was give him some help with the accelerator since he wasn’t going fast enough for me.

I reached over and pressed my hand down on his right foot as hard as I could until I felt his truck move faster. I could feel the truck swerving like crazy, and the only thought that crossed my mind was that we were about to lose our lives and I couldn’t let that happen. I had a lot to live for, and besides, I had just met this nigga. He and I had no history together and we hadn’t even fucked each other, so I was not about to go out on a limb with him.

My heart was racing like crazy while the bullets continued to find their way through the left side of Neeko’s truck. All I could hear was popping sounds and Neeko screaming like a bitch, yelling at the people in front of him to get out of the way. I ain’t gon’ lie, I was screaming my ass off too. Shit, I wanted to get the hell away from those psycho-ass niggas, but the way things were looking, Neeko acted like he couldn’t shake them for nothing in the world. He was racing down the highway going at a speed of about 120 miles per hour, dipping in and out of lanes, but those niggas were still gunning at him real hard.

“Ahhh shit! These niggas are busting shots at my gas tank. They trying to blow us the fuck up!” Neeko said, panicking.

“Go! Go! Go!” I yelled and immediately forced my arm through the small space where the accelerator was and pressed down on it as hard as I could. The engine revved and I knew Neeko’s adrenaline must have been pumping. But it seemed like we couldn’t shake those niggas for nothing in this world.