Chapter 11
Tania
That nigga Steve was snoring in my fucking ear like something was wrong with him, and I was beyond ready to go home. I got tired of waiting for him to finally wake up, so I eased out of the bed and crept into the bathroom.
Coming here was a waste of my time. I already knew I could have left with Proctor if I wanted with the way he talked to me in Cyn’s penthouse after Ari left.
Did I want to entertain him if he entertained me, yes, but was I actually going to?
Probably not. I would have to get super drunk to get over the girl code we established.
The only real reason I went home with Mr. Steve Rice was because he told me he plays for the Las Vegas Raiders.
The moment he said that I was locked in with him right there in the middle of the club.
He had a nice body. Face wasn’t all that, but I could work with the body, and the money, of course, was a bonus.
I Googled his net worth before he even finished telling me his full name, and he had a cool fourteen million dollars from endorsements and game day checks.
Now, it wasn’t as much money as I’d prefer a man to have, but it was damn sure enough to want him in my life.
Or so I thought, because after actually sleeping with him, I wasn’t so sure money alone could do it for me.
What’s the point of all the money in the world if you go home every night and get fucked like a jackrabbit by a dick that’s underwhelming?
Once I washed my face up, I grabbed my purse and my shoes and slid past Steve without saying a word.
His whole entourage was sprawled out in the living room with the girls they brought back home last night from the club.
That was another thing I didn’t like. I wanted a grown man who would send his niggas home when it was time to actually get to know a woman.
Not a little boy who needs a million people around him just to feel like he was having fun.
One night with Steve showed me a lot. My future man had to have Proctor’s qualities: dominant, fine, built right, rich, and generous with his pockets. Not just one, and a couple of the others.
I headed downstairs and decided to grab breakfast from one of the cafes in the dining court before going home. My stomach was growling something serious since I hadn't eaten since earlier yesterday.
“What can I get for you today, ma’am?” The waitress asked after I seated myself.
“I’ll try the Colorado Omelette combo, and can I substitute the waffle for a pancake?”
“Of course. Chocolate chip?”
“No, way too sweet. Just a regular pancake will be fine.”
“Okay, got it. Your order will be right out, ma'am.”
While I waited, I scrolled through my phone and checked Ari’s location.
When I told her I was leaving with Steve last night, she didn't pass judgment because she knew where she wanted to go. So of course, I'm sure she is now at Proctor’s condo, exactly where I figured she would be when I left her at the club with him last night. I smacked my lips because she always claimed she kept it real, but she hid the parts that didn’t make her look so real.
When my phone rang, I saw it was Steve Rice, and I hesitated before answering because I did sneak out without a proper goodbye.
“Hello?” I answered with an attitude.
“Damn, shorty,” he yawned. “You bounced before I could even say good morning to your ass. Why you leave like that?”
“I had somewhere to be. You weren’t waking up anytime soon anyway.”
“Well, I’m up now, but look, I was calling you because you left before I could give you a Plan B pill.”
“A Plan B? For what? We used protection, didn’t we?”
“We started with it, and then I asked you if I could take it off, and you said yeah. So, I did my thing, and you did yours, which had a nigga busting like crazy.”
He sounded like he was reminiscing about an experience he and I definitely did not share.
“Why didn’t you pull out?”
“I’m not good at pulling out. The only thing I pull out of efficiently is a driveway.”
“Wow.”
“Don't trip, I keep a Plan B pill in my suitcases for that very reason. So come back and get one, or I can send you the money to just grab one from the store.”
“No, you don’t have to do any of that. I’ll handle it myself. You've done enough.”
I hung up in his face, pissed as hell. I was sitting there staring at the table when the thought hit me.
If he actually did get me pregnant, then I might’ve just hit the jackpot.
I wouldn’t have to be with his ass to get his riches.
All I’d have to do is push out a baby with some super-athletic genes and reap the benefits of child support without ever having to deal with that weak-ass dick again.
At the end of the day, I still had until tonight to take a Plan B and really think about it, but right now I was starting to feel like my trip over there really hadn’t been that bad after all.
A rich baby daddy is better than a rich boyfriend any day.
My food came out hot and fresh, and it was actually good, so I tore it up quickly, though I had a lot of shit on my mind.
After I scraped my plate and paid, I called an Uber, and by the time I got to the pickup spot, he was already waiting outside.
I couldn’t even lie; the ride went by fast as hell because I nodded off a few times on the way back to our hotel suite. It wasn't until I heard,
“Ma’am, ma’am, you’re at your spot,” that I woke up with drool coming out the side of my mouth.
When I stepped out of the Uber, I walked inside with a scowl on my face. It was too bright and too early for people to be walking around having full conversations like it was the middle of the day. I was ready to be knocked out again as soon as I got upstairs to Cyn’s place.
“Excuse me, ma’am.”
I kept walking.
“Ma’am.”
Nope.
“Excuse me, ma’am, stop for a minute.”
Something about his tone made me turn around, and I saw that the men calling for my attention didn’t look like regular Vegas tourists.
“Are you fuckin cops?” I asked, noticing the badges hanging from their necks.
“Yes, we are,” one of them said.
“Can we talk to you for a minute?”
“Talk to me about what? Look, I didn’t steal anything from that nigga. I just got up and left, so I don’t know what he told y’all.”
“Ma’am, we’re not talking about any theft. We wanted to speak with you about something we were told during a homicide investigation.”
“About a homicide? Who told you what?”
“Would you be willing to come down to the precinct and talk to us there?”
“Hell no,” I said flatly. This can't be about the homicide that I caused yesterday. God, please don't let it be.
“I’m not going anywhere except to get some sleep. If you have questions, ask them now while I’m giving you my time.”
They looked at each other in silence, then back at me.
“We were told that you were with Harrison Proctor at some point in time Yesterday.”
I swallowed hard.
“Yeah, I was with him. So what?”
“So, we need an approximate time frame of when you two were together and what happened while you were with him.”
I looked both of them in the eye and thought back to the days when lying saved my ass before.
I wasn’t just a good liar back then; I was great at it.
Playing crazy and sounding confident had gotten me out of a lot of shit in my teenage years.
I just needed to channel that now, even though I was nervous as hell.
“Proctor and I went out to eat at about 1:00, and we stayed at the restaurant for a few hours, just talking and chopping it up before we left.”
“Where did you go to eat?”
“It was a soul-food spot. Run-down, but good as hell. You should try it. They have daily specials and everything.”
I crossed my arms, giving them an attitude to match my confidence.
“So, you’re saying you were with him from approximately what time?”
“I don’t know exactly, but it was a long time. Probably from like 1:00 until almost nightfall. What homicide is this about?” I asked, my stomach bubbling.
“Well, actually, four homicides took place yesterday.”
“Well, I don’t know anything about four murders, and I’m sure Proctor doesn’t either. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to get some rest. I’ve been getting whack dick all night, and I’d like to forget it ever happened with a nap and a stiff drink.”
I batted my eyelashes, and they didn’t even know how to respond. They just nodded, turned around, and walked away. I grabbed my phone and texted Proctor as soon as I could.
Me: I need to talk to you ASAP. The police just asked me about what happened. What am I supposed to say?
The message was delivered, but there was no reply, because, of course, he was probably still laid up, asleep next to my friend, while I was out here lying to the police about him possibly murdering four people.
What kind of man was he? And what kind of shit had Ari and I gotten ourselves into by being involved with him?
I rushed up to Cyn’s penthouse, and I typed in the code they’d given me. Once I came through the door, I went straight to the guest room, and the moment I closed the door, it felt like all the air rushed out of my body.
I couldn’t breathe, and my thoughts spiraled.
What would my future look like if this shit came back on me somehow?
Would I go to jail like the man who was supposed to be my father, the one who I hadn’t seen in years because he’d ended up locked away because of something stupid, just like this?
My father didn’t point out people to be murdered, but instead, he was the lookout man on a robbery gone wrong.
In D.C., the look-out man is just as guilty as the person who pulled the trigger, and he got fifty years for that.
Could that be my fate because I wanted to be under a man I didn’t even know?
The panic hit so hard I started hyperventilating, my chest tightening until my legs gave out and I collapsed onto the floor.
“Calm down, Tania. Calm down. Just calm down,”