The Company We Keep. Mary Monroe

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СКАЧАТЬ so uppity, she would make him work his ass off to get more of her attention tonight. He would have to compete with all the other men at the party. “Excuse me,” she said bluntly, attempting to leave. He grabbed her wrist and held her in place. “Please don’t do that,” she ordered, removing his hand. Her attitude didn’t even faze him, though. He was glad to see that she was still a challenge. But he wanted what he wanted and he wanted it now.

      Unlike Teri, Harrison had not been spending his days and nights alone. His bed and his arms were rarely empty. He and Teri had the same biological needs, but for different reasons. Knowing what a firecracker she was in the bedroom, he had assumed that she’d kept herself busy in that location, too. He would have been horrified and amused to hear that Teri had been on a self-imposed “pleasure strike” since their breakup.

      Harrison Starr had never denied himself the pleasures of nature. As long as he could get it, he would. But he had high standards when it came to women. He wouldn’t fuck just anybody. Beauty was one of the main requirements that he looked for in a woman. That shit about looks not being important was hogwash and had to be something that an ugly person had come up with. In his position he couldn’t afford to be seen in public with a woman who looked like a frog princess. But even having all the physical requirements was not enough. He had to like the woman, not enough to take home to Mother or to give her his name, but just enough to keep the flame going until it burned itself out.

      “Do you want to talk to me tonight or not?” he demanded, his impatience showing.

      “Maybe later,” Teri replied, pulling away with a smug smile on her lips. A disappointed look slid across Harrison’s face. Teri Stewart had been and still was his biggest challenge. He offered her a smile and another nod. Even though he had not been with a woman in two days, he could wait another two days, or two weeks, for Teri.

      One of the many things that Teri didn’t like to do was rush. And the unfinished business that she had with Harrison Starr was something that she wanted to resume in her own time. After all, it had been six months since she’d been with the man. Another six months wouldn’t kill her.

      CHAPTER 7

      Teri latched onto Nicole’s arm and guided her to a long table in the center of the living room. There was something on that table for everybody, from crispy, golden fried chicken wings and fried okra to bite-size quiche and caviar. Teri and Nicole ignored the feast on the table. But they each snatched a flute of champagne off a passing waiter’s tray.

      “What was up with that?” Nicole wanted to know, an amused look on her face.

      “What do you mean?” Teri took a long swallow of her champagne, then wiped her lips with the back of her hand.

      “You know damn well what I mean, girl. That was Harrison Starr. He was looking and acting like he wanted to lick you up one side and down the other,” Nicole said with a leer and a hand on her hip. She wanted to do that “neck rolling” thing that black women had made so famous. But she didn’t because judging from all the gum chewing, blond-weave-wearing, loud-talking, scantily dressed sistahs already on the scene, the ghetto was being represented enough tonight.

      Teri didn’t respond for a few moments. But a mysterious smile crossed her face. Her mind was on the thought of Harrison’s tongue on her body.

      “Well?” Nicole yelled, jabbing the side of Teri’s arm.

      “Well what?” The smile was still on Teri’s face as she adjusted the shawl on her shoulders and drank some more champagne.

      “What’s up with you and Harrison? Tell me all the details,” Nicole demanded.

      “It’s a long story,” Teri said with a mysterious look on her face. She glanced over her shoulder to see that Harrison’s eyes were still on her. She smiled at him but quickly returned her attention to Nicole.

      “I like long stories. I’ve seen Roots eight times,” Nicole told her. “Start talking.”

      “Well, like I said, it is a long story. But I will give you the short version. It’s, uh, all history now, but Harrison and I were very close once upon a time. It lasted only a few weeks. That was about six months ago.”

      Nicole stared at Teri for a few seconds. “Hmm. With those powerful-looking thighs, I bet he had your ass flipping and flopping all over the damn bed,” she said with lust on her face.

      Teri gave Nicole an exasperated look. “We enjoyed a lot of other things, too.”

      “I bet you did,” Nicole added with a wink and an obscene gesture with her tongue. “If I remember correctly, you were walking mighty bowlegged around that time.”

      “Girl, you are hopeless,” Teri insisted with a sharp wave of her hand. “There was more to our relationship than my body.”

      “Tell me about it. Your body was just one of the props. Now I know why I stumbled across all those sex toys in your condo in the cabinet beneath the sink in your bathroom…about six months ago.”

      Teri glared at Nicole. “Why you nosy heifer,” she snarled. “Now I know why you looked at me with such a bug’s eye and a shark’s grin.” She was used to Nicole’s loose attitude when it came to talking about sex. And it pleased her to know that she was one of the few people that Nicole felt comfortable enough with to talk the way she did. “Anyway, Harrison and I enjoyed each other’s company. We parted on fairly good terms and I’d like to keep it that way. It was a good business move.”

      “A good move in what way? Other than the obvious, what else can he do for you now? Even I can tell that he’s happy to see you up in here tonight. Either that or that big bulge on the side of his thigh is one big-ass gun.” Nicole fanned her face with a napkin and sipped her drink. “And while we are on the subject, I’m beginning to feel a little horny myself around all this testosterone.”

      Teri gave her friend an exasperated look. “Now don’t you even go there. Like I said, remaining somewhat friendly with him was a good business move. And not just for me, but for everybody at Eclectic Records.”

      “Well, that everybody includes me and unless you tell me, I don’t have a damn clue what a good business move it was for you to stay on good terms with Harrison Starr.” Nicole was talking trash, but she was also serious. The solemn expression on her face told Teri that.

      “For your information, he is the lead DJ at one of the few radio stations that will play our music cuts frequently. As a matter of fact, every hour on the hour. They are one of our strongest support systems. That’s a relationship I can’t afford to lose.”

      “Uh-huh. Well, I guess that is as good a reason as any for you to keep him happy.”

      Nicole and Teri blended into the crowd, smiling and air kissing a few people they knew. Another one of the more interesting guests was a wildly popular basketball player named Dwight Davis. Teri had not expected to see him at the party, and when she did, she stumbled. She was glad that Nicole didn’t notice her reaction. She was not in the mood to tell her that she and Dwight also had a “history” and that he was also in her slush pile.

      The fact was that she and Dwight had had a brief but very hot affair before Harrison entered the picture. But unlike her situation with Harrison, a relationship that was only on an extended pause (she’d realized that as soon as she saw him tonight), the intimate part of her association with Dwight was over as far as she was concerned.

      There СКАЧАТЬ