Smooth Operator (2 page)

“That’s him, huh?” Charlene murmured,
covering her comment by raising the glass to her mouth.

Scotty didn’t glance at him, but kept his
back to the man and his voice low. “Mr. Slick. I told him I’d point
you out. Got me a fifty for doing it, too.”

“You backstabber,” Charmaine quipped and
managed not to laugh.

“Enjoy your drink, Charmaine, and don’t stay
away so long next time,” Scotty said in a normal volume and smiled
at her.

Then Scotty moved to a table a few feet away
and quietly chatted up more customers. Scotty didn’t look in her
direction again. He seemed very relaxed as he played the role of
the good business owner. Charmaine made a mental note to suggest he
take up acting. Then she switched her attention back to the
man.

She guessed he was about six feet one. He
sat down at the bar and pretended to finally notice Charmaine was
staring at him. He took the glass the bartender put on bar in front
of him and lifted it in salute to her. Charmaine matched his
gesture. He got up and walked to her.

“Good evening. I...”

“Yes, you most certainly can join me,”
Charmaine broke in. She brushed her shoulder length hair with her
fingers.

“I’m Lorenzo,” he said and sat down. His
gaze covered Charmaine from head to toe. “Very nice to meet
you.”

“Same here.” Charmaine gave him an
appraising glance in turn. She moistened her lips and smiled at him
as though appreciating the view. “If you’ve been hanging out at the
club lately, then Scotty is right. I have been away too long.”

“Well, let’s not regret the past. We’re here
now,” Lorenzo replied smoothly. His dark eyebrows framed cocoa
brown eyes perfectly. His lips curved up in a handsome smile.

Lorenzo Thomas, afro-Latino, age
thirty-five; three years older than Charmaine. Scotty had filled
Charmaine in on him a few days earlier. Lorenzo Thomas was a
private investigator of the shady variety. Scotty had easily dug up
the background on him when Charmaine asked him to track down the
scoop on Keisha. But Scotty hadn’t mentioned that he looked like a
male supermodel and oozed sex appeal. Charmaine’s libido set her
body humming again. Playing with him was an added bonus. The
alluring smile she flashed at Lorenzo was totally genuine.

“I agree, Lorenzo. Ahh, that name rolls off
the tongue,” Charmaine said softly.

“I’m half Puerto Rican,” he replied and
sipped more of his drink.

“And the other half?” Charmaine leaned
forward as though eager to hear his every word.

“Pure Houston ninja from the Fifth Ward,
baby,” he replied and grinned at her. “And you?”

Charmaine shrugged. “New Orleans East.”

“Alright then. I use to visit friends that
way. To what NO used to be, the good and the bad,” Lorenzo said and
tapped her glass against hers.

“Co-sign,” Charmaine said and they both took
deep pulls from their drinks.

For the next two hours they exchanged small
talk about their favorite hip hop artists from back in the day,
movies and more. When the band started they followed the music and
danced a few times. As the night grew older, the band played slower
tunes. Charmaine pressed her body to Lorenzo and didn’t object when
his wide hands moved lower on her body. By the fourth song he
gently cupped her buttocks, rubbing his hands over the soft fabric
of her red leggings.

“You look damn good, Charmaine,” Lorenzo
breathed in her ear. “I’m in pain because of you, girl.”

“Then let’s make this party private.
Scotty’s hotel is right next door; a classy place,” Charmaine
whispered, her lips brushing his ear lobe. She did a bump and grind
against his pelvis that made him moan.

“Let’s go,” he croaked.

Lorenzo swiped perspiration from his
forehead and led them down a softly lit hallway leading to the
hotel lobby. In a few minutes the efficient registration clerk had
them checked into a room on the fourth floor. They went to the
elevator, got in and immediately started kissing and groping each
other. Charmaine giggled as the strong man pressed her against the
wall.

“Slow down, baby. We don’t want to finish up
before we get started,” Charmaine said.

“No worries, girl. I’m an all night man,
just like that bunny with those batteries. I can keep going,”
Lorenzo bragged. He licked her neck and rubbed her breast
roughly.

“Well alright then,” Charmaine replied with
enthusiasm.

The elevator bumped to a stop and the doors
slid open. Another couple brushed past them into the elevator, the
man with his face averted. The man didn’t have to worry. Lorenzo
barely noticed him. He was too intent on pulling Charmaine to Room
407. He mumbled a few curse words when they had to walk farther
down the hall than he’d expected. Lorenzo shoved the key card into
the lock.

“We’re in the House of Pleasure, girl. Now
come here.” Lorenzo pulled Charmaine against his body with one long
arm and shoved the door shut with the other.

“Take charge,” Charmaine whispered as he
lifted her from the floor.

She wrapped her legs around him and kissed
him hard. Lorenzo moaned, breathing hard in between trying to pull
open her top with his teeth. He let her slide to the floor and
Charmaine pushed away from him. She dropped her small purse on the
dresser against one wall. Then she undid the tie of the sheer
cardigan she wore over a black camisole. Lorenzo pulled at his
clothes without taking his gaze from Charmaine’s striptease
performance. She went to the night stand and hit the button on a
clock radio. A thumping R&B tune poured through the compact,
but excellent speakers. Then she resumed her dance. Charmaine took
off her cami and leggings. She swayed to the music wearing only
panties and a bra the color of Louisiana hot sauce.

“You know how to move,” Lorenzo said. With
quick movements he draped his clothes over the chair next to the
small desk in the room. He’d stripped down and wore only silky
black underwear.

Charmaine gazed at the impressive bump
straining against the fabric of his briefs. “You know how to
impress.”

“You ain’t seen nothin’ yet, girl,” Lorenzo
growled.

“Then bring it,” Charmaine replied.

In a flash his long legs brought him across
the short space between them. Lorenzo yanked open the front hooks
of her bra. Charmaine flinched at the rough treatment, but only
briefly. She shrugged to allow the straps to fall from her
shoulders as her breasts bounced free. Lorenzo groaned and sank to
his knees. Charmaine cradled his head in both her hands and looked
into his eyes. She murmured softly to him, a string of commands
mixed in with lusty bedroom talk. Before long, the big man was
under her control. He told her what she wanted to know.

After thirty minutes of questioning,
Charmaine started to fill his mind with false erotic memories. Then
she stepped away to examine him again.

“Since we’re here and you’re so awesomely
equipped, why don’t I see if you told the truth,” Charmaine said
softly. “I’m gonna have you prove you’re an all night man.”

****

The next morning Charmaine went to the
housing development in New Orleans East. Built by a famous actor
after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, the houses had brought
a least this part of the city back to life. Jessi’s friend Diamond
lived in one of the neat garden homes with her youngest kid, a two
year old baby girl named Indyah. Diamond tried several times to get
out of the street life, but minimum wage jobs hadn’t been her
style. She and Jessi were careful to keep business at a different
location. Charmaine parked in the narrow driveway and got out. The
cheerful pale yellow paint of the house gleamed in the sunshine.
Charmaine had to step over a tiny tricycle left on the sidewalk.
She rang the doorbell and Diamond answered.

Dressed in leopard print leggings and a big
sweatshirt, Diamond grinned at her. “Hey you, c’mon in.” She kissed
Charmaine on the cheek and motioned her inside.

“How’re you doin’ and how is Indyah?”
Charmaine said and glanced around. She dropped her purse on the
coffee table. The house looked neat enough.

“I’m fine. The baby is doing great. She’s
with her grandmamma today.” Diamond led the way into her small
living room. “Jessi, well, she’s gettin’ better. That jail scared
her. They got a lot of crazy people in there, girl. Damn, I’m glad
we pulled together the money for her bail. It wasn’t all her fault
this time, Charmaine.

Jessi came down the stairs wearing a silky
floral robe and fuzzy bunny slippers. She kissed Charmaine on the
cheek and padded into the kitchen. “Don’t bother tryin’ ta convince
her, girl. Big sister is going to say it was my crazy ass fault no
matter what you say. You want some coffee?”

Charmaine followed Jessi to the kitchen and
sat on one of two stools at the small breakfast bar. “Yes, and I
want to know if you’re okay.”

“I’m fine,” Jessi said, and waved a hand
without looking at Charmaine.

Despite her words, Jessi’s hand shook as she
picked up two ceramic mugs. Charmaine saw the tremors. When Jessi
turned to pick up the glass coffee pot, her swollen right cheek was
visible. Charmaine swallowed hard and fought the urge to rush over
to her. Jessi didn’t respond well to being babied. Too many years
of having to tough out what life threw at her had made her immune
to it.

“How’d that happen to your face?” Charmaine
asked.

“Some fool started ranting and raving, swung
on me before I could react. I got her back good though, you can
believe that.” Jessi dumped three teaspoons of sugar in her own mug
and a generous helping of real cream. She pushed the mug of hot
black coffee across the counter to Charmaine.

“That place is more like a psycho ward than
a jail,” Diamond added. She sat on a second stool. She accepted a
mug from Jessi and sipped.

“So tell me about this incident that got you
arrested, Jessi.” Charmaine squinted at her.

“I was working the massage house down off
Carrollton. Strictly legit, Charmaine and don’t roll your eyes at
me,” Jessi added. “Anyway, this foreign fool starts trying to
negotiate. I tells him ‘Bitch, this ain’t the discount store and we
don’t run sales’. Then he gets up in my face and tries to lay his
hands on me. I don’t know who called the police.”

“And that’s another thing, Miss Susie has
private security. These little disagreements gets handled on the
spot, no cops.” Diamond shook her head.

“Maybe his buddy that came with him got
scared. Betcha one thing, that dude knows how we do business in New
Orleans now.” Jessi grunted and sipped coffee. She looked at
Charmaine. “Let’s save time. I know all your lectures by heart, so
save your breath.”

“No more lectures,” Charmaine said. She
frowned and thought about Jessi’s account. Something about the
details nagged at her for a few seconds before Jessi’s voice broke
into her thoughts.

“Look, I’m doing okay. I’m going to pay you
back for the bail cause I know you ain’t got disposable income to
be spending on me. Besides, I got savings.” Jessi pulled out a wad
of bills and came around the counter.

“Don’t worry about…” Charmaine shook her
head.

Jessi grabbed Charmaine’s purse off the
coffee table and carefully stuffed the money into a pocket. She
snapped it shut. “Don’t flash that around.”

“Jessi, I don’t need your money,” Charmaine
said.

“Quit lyin’, Char. How’d you know so quick
about me being arrested anyway? I told Diamond not to call you.”
Jessi glanced at her friend.

“Wasn’t me,” Diamond said quickly.

“Never mind. Just be extra careful for the
next few days, okay?” Charmaine said. “You, too, Diamond.”

Jessi gazed at Charmaine for several
seconds. “What’s going on?”

Jessi had psychic ability like Charmaine.
She heard voices. It started when she was seven. Diagnosed as
schizophrenic, Jessi had been in and out of psychiatric hospitals
most of her childhood. Charmaine finally figured out that Jessi
could hear the dead. Those who were unsettled wanted to tell their
stories. One more reason Jessi started smoking pot and doing drugs
when she was thirteen, to make the voices go away. The sisters were
more than close. At times they could sense, see and hear one
another no matter the distance. But the connection wasn’t
consistent, more like a spotty cell phone signal. Silence stretched
between them.

“
I’ll tell you later. I
promise. You don’t need to know right now,” Charmaine replied
finally.

You be careful,” Jessi said and walked close
to Charmaine. Her voice shook as she crossed her arms tightly
against her slender body.

“Scotty is helping me,” Charmaine said.

Diamond got up and stood between them, her
arms on both their shoulders. The three women exchanged hugs.

****

Five days later Keisha sat in the same chair
in Charmaine’s home office. But unlike the last time she wasn’t
alone. Lorenzo sat next to her. His gaze darted around every few
minutes to check his surroundings. Keisha had changed her look. The
bright red hair was now a more subdued auburn color. Her rust
colored designer sleeveless dress complimented her new hair color
and skin. Lorenzo wore a light gray knit cotton shirt tucked into a
pair of navy blue slacks. His well shined leather loafers had to be
worth at least two hundred dollars. Charmaine was wondering if
Keisha had paid for them when he cleared his throat as if to get
her attention. Charmaine had allowed Keisha to do most of the
talking for the last ten minutes.

“So you’ve had a chance to check out what I
told you. Congrats on getting your sister out of jail. But she’ll
be back in if you don’t cooperate,” Keisha said in a crisp,
business-like tone.

Charmaine smiled at Lorenzo, and he grinned
back. “I’m a little distracted, with everything going on you
understand.”