Page 4 of Divine

It wasn’t that I never let the women I dealt with spend the night or stay over at my house. I just knew better than to give Ming that kind of privilege. It didn’t take much for her to start reading into things. She wasn’t the type of woman I wanted to have more than a sexual relationship with. I didn’t really have a type, but I knew what it wasn’t.

Ming was beautiful as hell with the best body that money could buy. If my memory was correct, she told me that her mom was from Vietnam, but her dad was some black guy from around the way that she hardly even knew. She was equally beautiful and insecure. Her insecurity made her so clingy that I could only stand to be around her for short periods of time.

Ming was not my breed of woman, not just because she was a stripper either. However a woman chose to make her living was on her as long as she respected herself. I’d heard a few things in passing that I didn’t particularly like. She wasn’t my woman, so I couldn’t even say shit. Hell, I tricked off on her, so why didn’t I expect the next nigga to do the same?

I would be out of the house from seven until around one in the morning. There was no way I was leaving her ass at my house while I was gone. She didn’t even spend the night while I was here, so I had no idea where she got the bright idea about staying over tonight. She wasn’tthatdamn tired. That post dick power nap was all the parlaying she would be doing up in my space.

I leaned against the frame of my bedroom door keeping my eyes on her as she sashayed past me without bothering to say another word. I shook my head when she slammed the door rattling the pictures on the wall.

I had no idea why she insisted on acting like that every time she had to leave. Moving from the door, I walked over and picked my phone up from the counter. I opened my money transfer app and sent her the money she’d asked for to pay her light bill before shoving my phone in my pocket and heading out myself.

I locked up and hopped in my car. With my Stevie Wonder playlist to mellow me out for the night, the short drive seemed to breeze by even quicker. Before I knew it, I was pulling into the parking lot designated for employees.

I made it to the convention center with about twenty minutes to spare. There was some kind of comedy show going on that night, and doors were set to open soon. I went to the room where we usually met up for debriefing before a show and found most of the team already there.

“You’re just in time,” my coworker, Kevin, whispered as I planted myself in the seat next to him.

“In time for what?” I asked, never taking my eyes off Carl, the current supervisor.

“The owner is here to announce the name of the new supervisor.”

I scanned the small crowd before my eyes landed on the company owner. I didn’t particularly care for Jack. He had a nasty attitude, and you couldn’t tell me that he wasn’t racist. That was neither here nor there. I didn’t have to like him to do my job efficiently. For the past few weeks, his son Justin had been working with us, training in different positions.

For someone who had no idea what he was doing, he had a smart-ass mouth just like his daddy. At least his dad had earned his stripes by opening and scaling his business. The kid didn’t have anything to show for his attitude and entitlement other than a trust fund. I couldn’t wait for somebody to beat his ass. I just hoped it didn’t have to be me.

I was proud of myself for not slapping the taste out of his mouth to show him how to control it. He was a spoiled, rich brat. Since he was the owner’s son, I tried to show him some grace. Grace only extended so far, so I was hoping that somebody else would check him before I had to do it. For the time being, I was staying out of his way as much as possible.

Our current supervisor gave his usual preshow speech before giving the floor to the company owner. I never really got nervous, but my chest tightened as Jack stood to address the fifty or so people in the room.

“As you all know, I’m Jack Walsh, the owner of Safety Pros. I wanted to come out tonight and speak with you guys in person. In just under thirty days we are losing a true gem in the company. Carl has been with us for over twenty years. Although he will be missed, I wish him nothing but the best in his retirement.”

After that statement, he paused for a round of lackluster applause from us. I rocked with Carl, but I was eager to hear the announcement of his replacement.

“With that being said, I want to ask my son Justin to come up. A few of you guys have had the pleasure of working with Justin over the past few weeks. He recently completed his coursework for his degree in business administration and will be enrolling in a master’s program this coming fall. I want him to learn the ins and outs of the company before he steps into my role in a few years. In order to gain the necessary experience, Justin will be training with Carl over the next couple of weeks to step into the supervisory role.”

The applause following that bullshit speech was completely contrived. This was some nepotism for your ass if I ever saw it. Everyone in the room knew that boy wasn’t qualified for the job. Some of us had given our blood, sweat, and tears to the company, learning different positions and working overtime just for the company owner to bring in his son when it was time for a promotion to be handed out.

I almost jumped up and stormed out, but I decided against it. There was no use in getting emotional. It never got you anywhere. I learned a long time ago to keep my feelings tucked so people couldn’t assume that I had a weakness and use it against me.

Besides, the promotion was out of my hands. I couldn’t make anyone give me something that they didn’t think I deserved. Keeping the same position only meant less stress. The only thing that was changing was the person in charge. Jack opened the floor to questions and addressed a few people once his son gave his formal introduction. I really wasn’t listening because I had already heard enough.

“What’s your name, son?” Jack asked.

I’d zoned out, so I didn’t even realize Jack was addressing me until Kevin elbowed me in my side. When I looked over at him, he used his head to motion toward the front of the room. I followed his eyes to where Jack and his unqualified, smart-mouthed son were standing.

“If you were paying attention, you would have heard what was said,” Jack spat.

“He said what is your name, son?” Justin repeated just in case I was hard of hearing.

“With all due respect, I’m not your fucking son. That ditzy muthafucka that don’t know how to watch his mouth is your son.”

“Excuse me?” Jack asked, stretching his eyes as he took a few steps in my direction.

Who the hell is he rolling up on?

“I would suggest you stop where you are. I’m easily agitated,” I warned him.

“Who gives a damn about how easy you get agitated, boy? Do you know who the hell you’re talking to?”

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