Page 55 of Deep Throat Diva

“Okay, if you say so.”

“You lookin’ fly as usual,” he says, running his eyes all over my body. The way he dips his voice and gazes at me when he says this causes me to nervously shift my weight from one foot to another.

I playfully roll my eyes. “Whatever. Flattery will get you no-where. What brings you by so early in the morning?”

“I was hopin’ I could holla at you for a minute.”

I glance at my watch, raising my eye, then placing a hand on my hip. “At eight-thirty in the morning? Stax please. You could have called.”

“I was over this way anyway. My gym’s not

too far from here so I decided to swing by. I saw Felecia’s whip and stopped in. I know you’re usually here early. Plus Jasp wanted me to come through to make sure everything was aiight here.”

I suck my teeth, shaking my head. “I should have known. You can tell my husband-to-be that everything’s okay here.” I grab my things from off the counter. “C’mon to my office so we can talk.” I glance over at Felecia, narrowing my eyes. She shakes her head, shrugging. I walk off with Stax following behind me. The whole way to the office I can practically feel his eyes on my ass. I unlock the door, then walk in. He shuts the door behind him.

I plop my things on the sofa, then take a seat at my desk. “So what’s up?”

“My girl wanted me to holla at you to see if you could put her on.”

I raise my brow. “Put her on how?” Braiding hair here, he tells me. “Which girl?” I tease.

He grins, playfully rolling his eyes up in his head. “Oh, you got jokes, I see. Mariah; my baby’s mother. Who else?”

I shrug. “I don’t know. I thought maybe you were talking about one of your jump offs.”

“Nah, that’s not how I do mine,” he says, eyeing me.

“That’s good to know. Umm, wait a minute. Isn’t your girl about ready to drop soon?”

“Oh, nah,” he says nonchalantly, “she lost it.” He doesn’t seem fazed by the loss. Then, again, I guess he wouldn’t be since he wasn’t beat to have another baby with her, anyway.

“I’m sorry to hear that. Is she alright?”

“Yeah, she’s good.” And knowing her, she’ll be trying to get pregnant again real soon.

I’ve never really cared for Mariah. Not that I know her personally. I might have seen her three, maybe four, times—and have seen Stax out in public with her once or twice—since I’ve known him. Now I will say this about her, she’s a cute chick, and she wears some of the fliest shit. Other than that, she’s loud and obnoxious. And ghetto as hell when she’s set off, cursing and fighting. Hell, I don’t think she’s ever held down a job longer than a month or two before she’s knocking somebody in the head. Shit, I can see her now, smacking up Shuwanda for trying to come at her sideways. And the way Shuwanda runs her mouth, she’d definitely try her. “I don’t know, Stax. Your girl is a bit on the wild side, if you know what I mean.”

“Yeah, tell me about it. That’s always been one of our problems, her ass not wanting to work, or keep a job when she gets it.”

Although my first mind tells me to say hell fucking no, I’m a businesswoman. And the fact that Mariah can braid the fuck out of some hair would definitely be a nice touch around here. The bitch can do all types of exclusive braid designs. This could definitely be a good look for the salon; especially since I’m now looking to bring on a barber-stylist as well. Shit, niggas like to keep their heads tight, too. And if there’s money to be made, I need to be getting it. “Does she have her papers?” I ask, pondering the possibilities.

“Nah, she doesn’t. I keep telling her to take her ass back to school to get them shits. But she’s always on some ’I ain’t beat’ type shit.”

“Well, tell her as soon as she gets her papers straight, she can definitely come on board. I’d love to have her. But until then, sorry, I run a licensed salon, and everyone who works here must have all their credentials in order.”

“I feel you,” he says, fanning his legs open and shut. I try to keep myself from looking in his crotch. I’ve never, ever, looked at Stax sexually. But, I can’t front. His body is fucking ridiculous. I had no idea he was chiseled up the way he is. OhmyGod, I’m embarrassed to say this shit. But this nigga, sitting here all buffed up and sweaty, is making me horny. “Pash, on some real shit, I wish she was more like…” His voice starts to trail off as I glance at the veins running along his forearms. Without thinking, I pick up a stack of mail that’s been sitting on my desk for the last few days and start shuffling through it. “…I swear she’s so unmotivated. All she wants to do is hangout with her girls ’n shit.”

The minute I see the manila envelope addressed to me with no return address I know what it is and who it’s from without having to open it. I slump my shoulders. Everything in my body goes numb. I will my hands steady.

“Yo, Pash, you okay? Pash?”

I bring my attention back to Stax. “Unh, what’d you say?”

“I asked if you were aiight. I was talkin’ and you went somewhere else on me. Is e’erything aiight?”

“Oh yeah,” I say, getting up to walk toward the shredder. I decide that whatever is in this envelope I don’t need to see it. Stax watches me as I stick it in the slot. When the whirring stops and it’s completely shredded, I walk back over to my desk. Force a smile on my face. “I’m good. Actually, I haven’t felt better.”

He tightly presses his legs together, causing me to catch a quick glimpse of the thick lump in his sweats. I shift my eyes as he stands up. “Aiight, then. I guess I betta go.”

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