Rhythm's Blues

Chapter Nine

Rhythm Monique had gone back to South Carolina three days ago to finish packing up her apartment for her move. We’d spent four days together in her new place, with her doing everything in her power to keep my mind off Raheem’s ass. We’d gone shopping for the apartment, had a few movie nights, and I’d taken her around the city to show her more of the hot spots.

I was so happy that she’d soon be here on a permanent basis. Our goodbyes at the airport were bittersweet. I knew once we parted ways, I’d be knee deep in my feelings with a bottle of wine. Sure as shit, when I got back to the empty apartment, I broke down.

Raheem had been calling and texting her nonstop, trying to reach me. The day I left, he’d watched me on the camera taking my shit out. He was supposed to be away for a gig, yet he called her three times, telling her to tell me I’d better be at the house when he got back.

Fuck that and fuck him.

I knew he’d never leave his gig to come home and deal with me. Monique and I worked quickly to pack my shit into my G-Wagon and dipped. For the last three days, I’d been lying in my new bed on my sad girl shit.

Since I took some personal time from work, my days consisted of junk food, sad ass music, chick flicks, and scrolling through social media. I knew I should have stayed off Raheem’s page, and I did. It was the blogs that kept popping up on my timeline.

He and Lady Lingo were seen out and about all over the place. Rumors of them dating were hitting harder than ever, even though they both kept denying it. The shit pissed me off. Why deny it and still continue doing shit to feed the narrative?

Fuck Raheem.

If he could move the way he wanted to, then so could I.

Today, I decided I was done being sad. I got out of bed and cleaned my room. I did a load of laundry and ordered enough groceries to stock the fridge, freezer, and pantry for a few weeks. With all of that done, I decided to step out tonight and enjoy myself. I deserved to have a little fun.

Standing in front of my full-length mirror, I smoothed my hand over the form-fitting white knee-length dress I wore. It was strapless and had a split that exposed my entire right thigh. On my feet were a pair of chunky white heels. My hair was blown out and feather curled, framing my face with a middle part. I’d forgone a full face of makeup, opting for only mascara, a little eyeshadow, and some lip gloss.

I thought I looked great for someone who’d been crying for three days. Giving my hair a final fluff, I grabbed my clutch and ensured my essentials were inside. With everything I needed, I locked up the apartment and headed downstairs to where my driver for this evening was waiting.

L.A. traffic was horrible, and any time I didn’t have to drive, I wouldn’t. The driver greeted me with a smile.

“Good evening, Ms. Baker,” he said with a bow.

“Good evening.”

“My name is Charles. It’s a pleasure to serve you.”

He opened the door and extended his hand to help me in. I smiled and accepted. Seated comfortably in the back seat, we headed toward the downtown area. I had a VIP reservation at The Caviar Club, which was an upscale lounge. I planned to have a good meal, listen to good music, and just feel the vibe.

It had been a long time since I’d gone out by myself. That wasn’t the smartest thing to do out here. I was putting myself in a vulnerable position by going out alone, but I desperately needed to get out of the apartment.

I sighed as we pulled up in front of the building. The driver got out and rounded the passenger side to let me out.

“Shoot me a text when you’re ready to leave, Ms. Baker,” he said, handing me a card.

“Sure thing. Thank you.”

I stepped off the curb and walked up to the red rope separating me from the entrance. The security guard licked his lips as I approached.

“Good evening, beautiful,” he said, his eyes shamelessly trailing me from head to toe.

“Good evening.”

“Go on and hold your arms out for me, baby.”

I did as he requested as he grabbed the handheld metal detector to check me for contraband. I could feel his eyes burning a hole in my ass, causing me to smirk. I knew I looked good as a muthafucka, and so did he.

“You’re clear,” he said with a smile as he removed the rope. “You wearing the fuck outta this white. Looking like a fucking angel, baby.”

I giggled. “Thank you.”

“Go on in.”

I strutted past him and into the lounge. After giving my name to the hostess, she led me to my section. Eyes bore into me as I followed behind her.

I was greeted with a plethora of reactions, ranging from lustful stares to eye rolls. I brushed them all off. I was never cocky, but I knew I was a beautiful woman, and a hating ass bitch could never make me feel otherwise.

The bottle of wine I requested was waiting on the table for me. After thanking the hostess, I took a seat and poured myself a glass.

Crossing my legs, I sat back and enjoyed the relaxing vibe. My server eventually came over to take my food and drink order.

As she was walking away, my phone rang in my clutch. Pulling it out, I saw that it was Monique calling me via FaceTime.

“Hey, boo,” I answered.

“Hey my—oooo, bitch! You look the fuck good! Let me see this ’fit.”

I angled the camera so she could see my entire look.

“All right, now! You got the thigh meat out. Titties sitting up. The face card is super valid. Where are you, and who are you with?”

I giggled. “Thank you, Nique. I’m at The Caviar Club, and I’m by myself. I needed a little pick me up.”

“Well, bitch, you look like somebody is gonna pick you up, all right.”

I rolled my eyes. “I’m not trying to be on that type of time, girl. I just needed to step out and remind myself that I’m a bad bitch and a prize.”

“Period. Point fucking blank. Shit on them L.A. hos. Damn, I can’t wait to get back! We are painting the streets red when I pull up. Well, give me a few days. That drive is going to be murder on me. Something told me I should have just packed my clothes and essentials and started over. I didn’t realize how much shit I had until it was time to pack up.”

I laughed. “Don’t I know it? I didn’t even take everything I wanted to take from Raheem’s. Is he still on your line?”

“No. I blocked him.”

“Good. I’m just not in the mood to deal with him, Nique. He’s still moving funny, and I don’t have anything to say to him right now.”

“I’ve seen the blogs. He’s not helping his case at all.”

I nodded as though she could see me. “It’s cool, Nique. I now know what type of nigga I’m fucking with. I’m just gonna act accordingly.”

She sighed. “Well, have some fun, girl. I’m not gonna hold you up. Send me your location. I can’t get there, but I can at least keep track of you.”

“I will. I love you, girl.”

“I love you too.”

We disconnected the call, and I took a long sip of my wine. Brushing all thoughts of Raheem Cole from my head, I focused back on the atmosphere.

I was determined to have a good night. I’d been in The Caviar Club for about an hour now. It was starting to get a little lit in here.

I’d declined so many invitations to have random men join me. At least five drinks had been sent to my table, and I sent them all back.

There was this one man that kept looking at me from across the room. He was beginning to make me uncomfortable. Just as the feeling set in, he made it worse by finally making his way over to me and inviting himself into my section.

“How you doing, beautiful?” he asked, sliding next to me.

I scooted away from him. “I’m fine.”

“Damn right you are. What’s a beautiful lady like yourself doing here alone?”

“Who said I was alone?”

He chuckled. “I don’t see no nigga around. You been here for a minute, and I see you breaking hearts left and right.”

“I didn’t come here to entertain anybody.”

“So, you got a man or nah?”

I frowned. “What’s it to you?”

“I’m trying to get to know you, love…” He slid a hand across my thigh. “You so fucking sexy.”

I slapped his hand away. “Thanks, but no thanks. I’m not interested.”

“What I gotta do to make you interested?”

He reached into his pocket and pulled out a wad of cash as though it was supposed to impress me.

“Name your price.”

I scoffed. “I don’t have a price because I ain’t one of those cheap ass hos.”

He laughed. “Cheap ho. High class ho. All of you bitches have a price.”

“Bitches? Who you calling a bitch?”

“I ain’t mean no disrespect, ma—”

“You didn’t mean any disrespect, yet you’ve been nothing but disrespectful since you sat your dusty ass down next to me, uninvited by the way. Why don’t you and your hundred-dollar bill wrapped around a wad of ones go on about your business. Ain’t shit poppin’ over here tonight.”

He grabbed my arm. “You think you better than me, bitch?”

“Get your fucking hands off of me!” I snapped.

“Let me tell you something—”

Before he could finish his sentence, he was being snatched up by a tall figure. I looked up to see Channing.

“Nigga, the fuck is wrong with you?” he asked, practically lifting ol’ boy from the ground. “I know damn well I didn’t see you put your hands on her.”

“That’s your bitch or something?” the guy asked, struggling to free himself.

“If it is or ain’t, it don’t make a fucking difference. It’s niggas like you that give good niggas a bad name. The woman ain’t interested, as she stated. Take your funky ass on somewhere. Let me catch you over here again and I’m breaking yo’ fucking jaw.”

“A’ight, nigga, damn!”

Channing glared at him before turning to me. “Apologize to the lady.”

The guy frowned. “What?”

“Apologize, muthafucka. I didn’t stutter.”

“I ain’t apologizing to that bi—”

Before he could finish the sentence, Channing had him in a death grip of a headlock. He struggled to breathe as he clawed at his arm.

“You not gon’ do what?” Channing asked the man.

“I’m… I’m sorry!” he choked out.

“That’s what the fuck I thought.”

He released the man by tossing him aside. The guy gasped for air as he rubbed his neck. His gaze shifted from me to Channing as he struggled to his feet and walked away. Channing turned back to me.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

I nodded. “I’m fine. Thank you for stepping in.”

“I wasn’t trying to get in your business, but I saw that shit coming the minute he walked over here. I apologize.”

“No need to apologize. You did more than enough.”

He nodded. “You be safe. L.A. is too dangerous for beautiful women to be alone out here.”

He turned to walk away. I was a little taken aback that he was just gonna leave after saving me from that creep. The times I’d seen him before, he flirted and whatnot, but tonight, he seemed to be over it.

“Can I at least buy you a drink to say thank you?” I asked, causing him to stop in his tracks.

He turned back, eyeing me skeptically. “Nah. I’ll buy you one though.”

I motioned for him to sit and called our server over.

“Let me get Hennessy on the rocks,” Channing said. “And whatever the lady wants.”

“I’ll have a Lemon Drop.”

“Coming right up.”

She left us alone, and my eyes settled on the handsome specimen. I hadn’t been remotely attracted to another man since Raheem and I had been together. Tunnel vision was real. I felt foolish now for putting my all into one man. Now that I was single, single, maybe it was time to have a little fun.

“Are you here alone?” I asked, crossing my legs.

His eyes drifted briefly to the thickness of my thighs before finding my face.

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Isn’t that dangerous for you too?”

He chuckled as he leaned forward on his elbows. “I’m more than capable of protecting myself. I’m an army of one, baby.”

Baby.

The word sent chills up my spine. I wasn’t sure if it was the deepness of his voice or the confidence laced in his tone. Maybe it was because he was just so damn fine. Every time I saw this man, he made my body heat up. I didn’t know what the fuck was wrong with me. My nipples hardened as he licked his lips and smiled. God, what a smile!

“I hear you,” I said as the waitress brought over our drinks.

We both took a sip before placing them on the table.

“You aren’t from here, are you?” he asked. “You have a little southern twang. I heard it the last time I saw you, but I can’t place it.”

I giggled. “I’m not. I’m from South Carolina.”

“What the hell are you doing all the way in Cali?”

I rolled my eyes. “Following a damn man. Before you judge me, I knew him way before.”

He raised his hands in mock surrender. “No judgment. Love makes you do crazy shit.”

“Stupid shit.” I sighed. “Cheers to that being over.”

He tipped his glass at me. “Is that what you’re celebrating tonight?”

“I guess you could say that. He’s moving funny, so it’s fuck him. You single?”

He smirked. “Very.”

“Lucky me.”

“Why’s that?”

“I don’t know. I guess by the end of the night, we’ll see.”

I grabbed my drink and took a sip of it. Tonight, I was throwing caution to the wind. I was a single woman. I’d allowed Raheem to play in my face for far too long.

I was young, beautiful, and I had options too. If he didn’t know what he had when he had me, he’d just have to learn to miss his water when his well ran dry.