Chapter 15
Solana Thomas
Truly I had no idea how Marlo kept his shop up and running for so long in this chaos that lay before me.
Schedules came out inconsistently, time clocks weren’t properly being tracked properly, and certain employees were milking the clock.
Customers weren’t being serviced at the time because no one was keeping up with the appointments and that was the biggest complaint people had at B customers were reacting well to a more structured establishment.
The goal was to get all the shops running as smoothly as the main shop.
The problem was there was only one me. Training the other secretaries would take a minimum of a week, maybe more just depending on the person.
“She gone come here?” Marlo asked me with a perplexed expression as he sat in his office chair slightly leaned back.
“Well, I thought it might be easier if I did the mornings there and finished the evening here.”
“Nah, she can come here.” Marlo rejected my idea and that annoyed the hell out of me.
Blowing out an aggravated breath I pushed myself off the door frame of his office where I had been standing against. “Whatever you say boss.” I sarcastically replied getting ready to leave to get Sunshyne off the bus.
Marlo had been getting on my last fucking nerves all day long.
Since last week when him and Fallon decided to be disgusting ass humans and fuck like they were the only people in the building, I haven’t been feeling him.
I can be the first to admit I kind of lived in a fantasy world and Marlo was the forbidden fruit that looked so delectable that you were tempted to try a piece because it was worth everything that came with it.
I had this grand picture in my head that made Marlo like he couldn’t do any wrong but hearing him fucking Fallon ruined that image in my head.
The fact he would even stick his dick inside of her was a turn off that made me not want to be around him.
While we were at work I kept things strictly work related.
When Marlo would try to joke around like we usually did I gave him dry one word responses.
I declined his lunch invites, that really pissed him off.
He tried to ask a few times what was wrong, but I told him I was fine.
I could tell Marlo was sick of my stale attitude, but I couldn’t help how I felt towards him right now.
Besides, it was in my best interest to put space between the two of us.
I was getting to attached to a nigga that wasn’t mine.
I was literally setting myself up for failure going down the path I was going.
Marlo may have complained about Fallon, but it was clear he wasn’t leaving her trifling ass and I wanted no parts of that foolishness.
You had to be careful when you listened to someone vent because what they say might not add up to their actions.
Marlo made it seem like Fallon wasn’t shit yet he was eager to stick his dick in her.
I didn’t see the appeal in fucking a person you didn’t want to be with.
Whatever floated his boat, I couldn’t care less.
I’m sure it was a matter of time before Fallon influenced him to fire me.
She wasn’t happy to see me working here and had been making her presence known more since she found out.
Fallon called three to four times a day just to talk ask for Marlo like she didn’t have the nigga’s cellphone number.
She’d try to pick with me saying little slick stuff, but I ignored her.
I was going to bid my time and stack my money up.
I refused to be a sitting duck waiting for the other shoe to drop.
I might not have been able to accomplish my original goals, but I was gonna modify them to fit my current circumstances.
If life hadn’t taught me anything, it taught me not to rely on nobody for too long.
Niceness always ended eventually, it was just a matter of when.
“What’s ya fuckin’ issue Solana?” Marlo’s baritone voice echoed as he followed me through the shop, stopping me before I could get to the front door.
I rolled my eyes groaning internally then I slowly turned around to face Marlo. I tried to have a neutral expression on my face. “I’m fine Marlo, just ready to be off.”
“That’s another thing you been leaving an hour early every day.”
“Okay?” I shrugged my shoulders, not understanding the big deal. I got all my work done there was no reason for me to stay longer.
“But if you scheduled to stay until five-thirty you need to be here until then.” Marlo replied in a condescending tone. He was being petty as hell right now.
The real reason Marlo was being an ass hole was before the last hour of me working would actually be us goofing off in the office.
Since I hadn’t been wanting to deal with Marlo on a personal level, leaving early made sense to me.
I was drawing my lines in the sand. I didn’t want to blur anymore lines between us.
Marlo was my employer and I was his employee, period.
Laughing I folded my arms across my chest. “Okay,” I smartly replied, glaring at him.
“After you get Sunshyne I expect you back in here.”
“Is that all?” I sassily asked him, trying to refrain myself from snaking my neck.
“Lose ya fuckin’ attitude. I ain’t did shit for you to be actin’ like you ain’t my nigga.”
“I don’t have an attitude,”
“So why we ain’t been to lunch in a week?”
“Ain’t been hungry,” I quickly said looking at the clock on my phone to make sure I didn’t miss Sunshyne’s bus.
“Oh shit,” I said thinking my phone was slipping from my hand, but I realized Marlo had snatched my phone.
“Gimmie my phone!” I squealed attempting to get my phone back.
Marlo easily slipped my phone in his pants.
“And those short ass responses ain’t it either. I miss my friend.”
“I didn’t know niggas with fiancé were allowed to have female friends.” I sarcastically said with my head tilted to the side and my lips pressed together.
“Fallon ain’t my finance and she don’t have a say so who I kick it with. I know she ain't the reason you been trippin’?” Marlo asked, growing at me like I was wrong for feeling how I felt.
“For one I’m not tripping about anything. You're my boss and I’m making sure I treat you as such. All that other stuff was inappropriate.”
Marlo scoffed at me, slightly throwing his head back. “The fuck is you even saying right now?”
“Nothing,” I sighed, rolling my eyes for what felt like the thousandth time today. “Can I have my phone back I gotta get Sunshyne.”
“Go get her. You don’t need ya phone to get her off the bus.”
“See, this is crossing lines.” I huffed out feeling myself getting madder the more he refused to give me my phone back.
Why the hell was Mylo making this so damn difficult?
There was nothing wrong with what I was saying.
Could I chill out on the attitude sure, that wasn’t a problem.
However, I wasn’t backing down from us not being friends.
“Say that shit to me again. Cause I ain’t crossed no fuckin’ boundaries but I can show you what a crossed boundaries is,” Marlo said as he squared his shoulder and collapsed his hands together in front of himself.
“I dare you.” His eyes said he was challenging me.
He really wanted me to repeat myself. “You been big and bad Solana. Gon’ head,” He taunted me as his eyes menacingly roamed my face.
Then his heated gaze slowly dropped down, taking my full body in.
My thigh length brown, collard, short sleeved, button down dress, with a tie that wrapped around my waist into a bow.
I went heelless today and wore gold strappy sandals and gold accessories to finish off my outfit.
This dress was nothing special, I’ve had it for years.
But the way Marlo was looking at me I felt like I was standing in front of him in a thong.
“Alright you win Marlo, I’ll be nice or whatever it is that you want me to be.” I wasn’t going to be the one to test the waters. I had no clue what Marlo was gonna do if I tried him.
“Nah, I don’t believe you.” He said, bringing his hand to stroke his bread as if he was thinking. “Give me a hug,” He said with a playful grin and stretching his arms out for me to hug.
“Can I have my phone back if I hug you?”
“Yeah,”
I pretended I didn’t want to hug him as I walked into his arms, wrapping my arms under his.
Marlo engulfed me in his embrace, and I regretted hugging him because I didn’t want him to let me go.
I felt safe in his arms and my body was reacting to being so close to a fine ass nigga like Marlo.
I wasn’t ready, I clenched my legs as my pussy tingled the tighter he squeezed me.
For a moment in time, I didn’t want him to let me go.
He was holding me like he didn’t want to let me go.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
The sounds of the bus blowing the horn startled us making me pull back from him. Nervously I looked into his eyes and there was that look in his eyes again and it scared me.
“Uh, I gotta get Sunshyne. But is it okay if I leave early one more time? I promised Sunshyne we could have a girl’s day. Watch a bunch of movies and do other girly stuff together.”’
“Yeah, that’s cool.”
I didn’t have it in me to say bye to Marlo; I darted out the door to Sunshyne’s school bus. Still burning hot from that hug. If this wasn’t a sign I had to stay away from Marlo I don’t know what else would be. His fine ass was too much of a temptation for me. But damn if a girl can’t dream.