Page 35 of All The Smoke

“Look,” she growled. “I only inconvenienced myself and came here to offer you this.” She went into the backseat of her car and produced a duffle bag full of money.

I was really confused now because why the hell did she show up to my job with money and how the hell did she know where to come?

“Um, what is this for?”

“For an abortion and for you to stay away from my son,” she answered. “It’s fifty thou—” I didn’t even allow her to get the rest of her sentence out of her mouth before throwing the bag back in her direction. “What in the world?!” she screeched. “What is wrong with you?!”

“No ma’am, you’re the one that something is wrong with! Are you insane?” I snapped. “I’m not getting an abortion! And I don’t need that measly fifty thousand dollars.”

She scoffed. “Fifty thousand dollars is hardly measly, especially for a dental assistant.”

“Dentist, hoe,” I corrected, stretching the truth just a little, but I had already completed my classes.

All that was left was graduation. “See you should have done your research on me before coming here. You don’t know anything about me at all, especially assuming that I’ll accept any amount of money to get rid of my child. ”

She sighed. “Just take the money. No matter who you are and what your occupation may or may not be, you don’t have this kind of money lying around and you cannot afford to take care of that child how it needs to be.”

I was over her and the conversation. In order to keep from decking her ass in the mouth like I wanted and to refrain from getting more disrespectful than I already had, I moved to get in my car but she just had to keep going.

“Listen, ma’am, please get your hands off of me and get away from my car,” I warned. “I’ve been more than patient with you but you are really pushing it here.”

“I just want you to?—”

Knowing I couldn’t do her how I wanted because of who she was, I pulled my trump card when I cut her off.

“You know who Ice and K-Dot are?” Her eyes grew to the size of golf balls. I knew even she had heard their names, especially with my grandmother attending their church. “Ask around about who their daughter is.”

I knew full well she couldn’t ask just anyone and get that answer but she would if she asked the right people. I was done talking and listening, so I loaded into my car, started it, and backed out, not caring if her ass had gotten out of the way. She had me fucked up.

Zooming out of the parking lot, I sped all the way to Solomon. He told me he was at his trap spot when I texted him earlier so he was in Crescent Pointe.

Pulling into the driveway, I noticed him standing on the porch smoking a blunt.

Only that wasn’t all he was doing. He was there engaged in conversation with a barely-clothed bitch showing all thirty two of his teeth.

His ass didn’t flinch seeing me pull up.

Wasting no time, I threw my car in park, killed the engine, and rushed onto the porch where I bumped the girl he was talking to on purpose.

“Man, what you on?” He grinned, clearly high as a kite.

“No, what are you on?” I countered, getting up on my tiptoes and puckering up for a kiss, which he gave.

“You ate and shit?”

“Lunch,” I answered, turning to face the girl still standing there. “Do you need something?”

“Oh, um, we were just talking.”

“About what?”

“Smoke and I went to school together.”

“What, ten, fifteen years ago?”

Her brows dipped. “Well, yeah.”

“Oh, okay, well, conversation over.”

He chuckled and wrapped me in his arms, kissing my temple. “Chill, man.”

“I’m chilling. We need to talk and she needs to leave.”

“I’ll just go,” she said.

“Oh, funny, I just said that.” I smiled. “Well, bye.”

She looked between the two of us, obviously wanting Solomon to say something back, but I hoped for both of their sake they didn’t play with me because I was already on one.

Solomon finally spoke. “Mercedes, gon’ head. You know how to reach me if y’all need more.”

We didn’t wait for her to respond before I took him by the hand and led him inside, closing the door behind us.

He was wrapped around me the entire walk back to the room that belonged to him, kissing on my face and neck as he caressed my belly.

He swore there was a bump now, but my stomach was still flat in my opinion.

Maybe no longer washboard abs, but flat, nonetheless.

“Why you pushing up over here pressing my sales?” he asked once I plopped down on the bed.

“Why are you having frivolous conversation?”

“I’m not.” He grinned, placing both hands on each side of me, getting extremely close to my face. I could smell the mint on his breath from the gum in his mouth. “She was telling me some shit Scoot had done and it sparked a little small talk. Completely innocent.”

“Completely unnecessary.” I rolled my eyes. “But anyways, what have you been doing?”

“Making money and shit so I can afford to take you on a date.”

“Negro, please.” I smiled, accepting the kiss he was trying to place on my lips. “I can definitely go for a steak, so maybe Diablo’s soon. On me.”

“Diablo’s sounds like a go, and I want you to get fine as fuck when we go too. So I can show you off and shit, make the other mothafuckas in there jealous.”

“You think I’m that pretty, huh?” I blushed, lying back on the bed since he was pushing me.

The butterflies swimming in my belly were going ballistic.

They always did when I was with him. I liked him so much that it scared me.

I was afraid to really tell him how much because I didn’t want to scare him away thinking I was moving too fast, but I couldn’t help it sometimes.

He made it impossible not to fall for his sexy ass.

“Beautiful as fuck,” he replied, kissing my lips and chin then my lips again. “Most beautiful girl in the world for real.”

“Stop, baby.” I simpered.

“Can’t stop. I love to watch you unfolding under me and shit, even when I’m not buried in them guts.”

I was still in my scrubs and the top was a little loose fitting so it was easy for him to push it up quickly and grip one of my breasts while he sucked and licked all over my neck.

The seat of my panties was soaked the moment I pulled in the driveway and saw his fine ass standing there smoking, but feeling his body and lips on me entangled with his scent had them ruined. I was for sure going to have to take them and my scrubs bottoms off. He had me that turned on.

“Solomon,” I whimpered when he gently bit a place on my neck then began to suck softly.

“Missed you today,” he mumbled into my neck.

I missed him too. I always missed him when we weren’t together which was why when I wasn’t working or in school I was always in his face. I couldn’t stay away from him even if someone paid me to.

Shit! His mother! She tried to pay me!

“Bae,” I called out, trying to push him off, but he was insatiable and not letting up. “Babe.”

“Just feed me then I’ll take you to get food, mama,” he suggested as he began to kiss down my neck and chest. Because my shirt was bunched at the top he had to pull back to get to my stomach, so I used that as an opportunity to say my piece.

“I met your mother today.”

His motions froze and he looked up at me. “My mama?”

I nodded. “She came to my job right before I came here.”

“My mama?” he repeated. “You telling me Brenda Tate came to see you? How?”

I shrugged. “She was parked next to my car when came out of work today.”

“What she say?” he asked and for some reason I shelled up. I didn’t care for her ass at all, but I didn’t want to make a difficult situation worse. She was his mother and though their relationship was estranged right now, I still didn’t want to mess things up more than what they were.

“We just had a conversation.”

“About what?”

“Nothing important,” I lied. What she asked me to do was very serious actually, but he would blow a fuse if I told him.

“What’s nothing important, Kaori?” I could hear the irritation in his voice. “I know my mama, and I know her ass ain’t just pull up all gung hoe and shit, asking how the weather was.”

“No she wasn’t but…”

“Baby,” he sighed, taking a seat on the bed beside me. “I know we’re still in the get to know each other stage so you don’t know how short my patience really is. When I be asking you shit, I want you to answer the shit right then and there, you feel me?”

“I know, babe, but…”

“KK,” he cut in and I sighed.

“She offered me money to leave you alone and to…” I hesitated. Even though I had just gone off on her, I didn’t want him to blow a fuse.

His eyes narrowed into slits. “And to what?”

I waited a few moments before taking a deep breath then answering, “To get an abortion.”

His eyes danced all around my face before he smiled, but the smile didn’t meet his eyes. It was actually a little scary.

“Yeah right. Ain’t no way in hell she did no shit like that.”

“She did. It was fifty thousand dollars and…” My sentence trailed off when he hopped up off of the bed, grabbing his keys from the dresser on the way out. “Solomon!” I called after him but he kept going. “Solomon, wait!”

“Go back inside, baby.”

“No, where are you going?”

“I got a move to make.”

“I’m going with you,” I said, heading for the passenger side.

“No you not, Kaori.” He frowned. “Go back inside ’til I get back.”

“Nope.” I responded, popping the P.

“Kaori, I’m deadass serious right now.”

“Me too.”

“Bruh,” he sighed in frustration.

“Are you getting irritated with me?”

“A little,” he replied. “You don’t listen.”

I shrugged. “I’m not a lil baby that’s gon’ listen.”

“Bro.” He chuckled, rounding the car to my side where he pressed me against the car and kissed me. “You work my nerves.”

Circling my arms around his waist, I hugged him closer with my face pressed into his chest, inhaling the woodsy scent of his cologne.

“Then I’m doing my job.”

“What all she say to you?”