Thugs are for Fun 3 The Final Chapter Book Excerpt Urban Fiction


*Thugs are for Fun Part 3* by J.Gail Copyright Ó 2008 J.Gail. All rights reserved. Excerpt Chapter 1 It’s All Good… “Okay, push it in now!” Jacy screamed. Rich gave one last shove and the couch finally slid all the way through the front door, giving Jacy instant relief. She had been holding the couch up a certain way while Rich used his power to squeeze it all the way through the too-small doorway. They were both hot and sweaty already, and pissed because one of the delivery guys had copped an attitude with Rich. Dude had been five seconds from getting his head smashed in when he and his partner suddenly got into their truck and drove off with the couch still sitting on the front lawn. Rich and Jacy were forced to move the couch in the house themselves, even though it was nine in the morning and they were just getting up from the bed. “I’m just gonna call and curse their boss out,” Jacy said when the couch was finally in place. She dotted her face with a napkin and then started looking for the delivery receipt. “And when I finish bitching at him, he will bitch at them.” “Naw, don’t even bother,” Rich said calmly as he pulled his shirt up and rubbed the sweat off of his face. He seemed cool now, but was thinking treacherous thoughts—he’d seen that delivery guy before. He must not have recognized Rich’s face. Rich knew where he lived (with his mama) and where he liked to have a beer after work. Rich would have to fight the urge to go to his mama’s house and catch him by surprise with one good jab in the throat. Rich chuckled devilishly at the thought. He was finding it harder and harder to resist those old feelings. A good old fashioned ass whooping was how he used to handle things when he was running the streets. Ever since Jacy and Rich had gotten married a little over four months before, Rich had kept his promise to leave the street life alone. He spent most of his free time at his sporting goods store—it was his respite whenever he was tempted to go down to his old stomping grounds. He had rented out the house on Ruby Street to his cousin Cochese, who had already been living there anyway. Rich's younger brother Rasheed had moved down south shortly after the wedding to be with his other cousin, who had a job for him there. Rasheed couldn't stand the idea of not living with Rich anymore—he had literally grown up under his protection, so the way he and Rich parted ways wasn’t too good. Rich couldn’t let his family hold him back from his happiness though. Cochese, on the other hand, was loving it. Ever since Rich left the house, Cochese's coochie-meter had gone off the charts. The way the women came in and out of that house, people on the block were starting to think he was running a brothel. Cochese had even tried to move a couple of his girlfriends into the house, but Rich had to end that situation real quick; it was still his house and he wasn't about to have it torn up by some ignorant ass chickenheads. “Oh baby, I broke one of my fucking nails!” Jacy complained as she fingered her nail. She knew she was being annoying, but she couldn’t stop herself. It didn’t take much to get her going those days. “Dammit! Just let me cuss him one good time!” “I said don't worrry about it Jacy!” Rich said, raising his voice a notch, but he wasn't really mad at her. He went over to where she was standing, pouting, looking like a doll that had just been doused with a bucket of water. He lifted both of her hands and looked at the nail that was broken. He reached down and kissed it. “Look at these pretty hands. Even if you didn’t have no nails attached to the skin they would still be beautiful,” Rich commented. Jacy rolled her eyes. “Oh, you trying to play me now? That’s what I get for bein’ nice,” Rich laughed. “Yea right. You are so full of it,” Jacy chuckled in response. “If I wasn't the type of girl that had my nails done every week you wouldn’t have looked twice at me back when I met you.” Rich stared at Jacy, scanning the lovely laugh lines around her mouth, the foundation that was starting to bead up on her face from her sweating, and the diamond studs in her ears. He wondered why she had woken up and applied makeup just to meet the delivery men at the door. “You don't really believe that right?” Jacy's smirk turned into a tight-lipped frown. She had to admit, since she had married Rich, and seen all of the progress that he had made as a legitimate businessman, she had become a little intimidated. He got the second look from everybody, not just girls from down the way anymore. Whenever they went downtown to shop or have drinks, Jacy found herself constantly on the defensive against professional women in business suits eyeing Rich down shamelessly. Once when they were having lunch at McCormick's as they usually did on a free weekday, Jacy left to go to the bathroom and some light skinned chick who was having lunch with her co-workers was bold enough to actually sit across from Rich at their table. Rich did everything he could to tell the woman to keep it moving without being rude, but Jacy came back before the woman could slide her slimy ass back over to her own table and all hell broke loose. She kept her bathroom stay short in the first place because she had seen the same women oogling at Rich when they first walked in. Jacy was ready to bust her in the mouth when she saw her sitting in her seat. “Excuse me, can I help you with something?” Jacy asked the woman as calmly as she could while clutching her purse tightly. Jacy was still standing, feet firmly planted, in front of the table, ready for war. She was so sick of this shit. Rich quickly diffused the situation. “Baby, this is Toni, she works down at the Centre Square building on Market Street. She was just about to leave. Matter of fact, she left her number, so you can call her later if you want to learn more about her,” Rich said with a smirk as he passed Jacy the woman's card. The card contained the woman's work number, cellphone number, and job address. He knew of no better way of showing Jacy that he wasn’t interested in this broad in the least. “Oh! Really!” Jacy said with a nod as she scanned the information and chuckled, letting some of the steam subside. The lady got up and tried to snatch her card back, but Jacy was too quick. “Didn't your Mama ever teach you not to snatch from people!?” Jacy's went from zero to ghetto in three seconds flat and her voice trembled with anger as she got up in the woman’s face. “Just give me back my card!” the woman demanded and held out her hand. Rich got up and grabbed Jacy around her waist just as she was about to slap the woman silly. “Come on baby, we out,” he said with a dismissive finality as he pulled Jacy away from the scene. “Here give me that.” He paused and took the card from Jacy's hand so that he could flick it to the floor at the woman's feet. “You ain't on her level,” he insulted the woman before they left. Jacy’s chest puffed out on that one. This was only one of many situations where desperate yet attractive women were trying to take Jacy's man away. She was starting to become insecure about her chances of holding onto Rich. It was all in the way he was still so gangster even though he now hustled in slacks and Kenneth Cole shoes. Rich was brown-skinned with a nicely groomed mustache and chin beard. He stood at 5’10 with a nice, solid muscular stature and strong, veiny arms decorated with various intricate tattoos. He kept his hair trimmed into a clean hustler cut. He had perfect white teeth and slightly slitted brown eyes. His lips were plump and suckable and stayed wet. He wore a baseball cap with just about anything and it always fit him just right. He was 100% Philly. No matter how legit he went, he could never get rid of that edginess that came off of him—the way he smiled crooked, the way he cut his eyes when he thought something was up, the scar reaching from chin to neck, and the way his nose flared when he was pissed. It was just something about Rich. His store had grossed over $150,000 the year before and was predicted to double that figure in the new year. Women were going nuts over Rich because he had every trait they desired—he was rough around the edges, but still had good intentions and a profitable, legal business. But the way he dealt with the attention bothered Jacy to no end. He was so flippant and indifferent as if it was all some big joke. Jacy took it all very seriously—her womanhood was being challenged at every turn. It had come to the point where she had been doing everything possible to stay on top of her game physically. What if by chance Rich met another smart, young, college-educated woman who he found to be more attractive than Jacy? Especially with all of the new social circles they ran in. The thought made her lose sleep at night. “Jacy? Answer my question. You really believe that?” Rich asked her again, trying to get her attention and bring her back to the present. She was drifting off to other places a lot more lately. “Did you hear me?” “I don't know Rich,” Jacy said and tried to pull away. “Let me go ahead and take a shower.” “Jacy, seriously. I don't know what's up wit you lately,” Rich said, pulling her back into his arms. “I don't give a fuck if your nails are done! I love you for who you are and what you’re about, not all that superficial shit.” Jacy tried to release herself from his grip, but he wouldn't let go just yet. “Yea right Rich. One thing I do know about you Philly brothers is that y’all are too superficial. It's all about the sneakers, the shoes, the hair, the nails, the clothes…” Rich sighed and let her go. He walked over to the new couch, still covered in plastic, and sat down, remembering why he and Jacy had chosen it in the first place. He picked up the remote and switched on the television. “That ain't me no more Jacy. I ain't about all that mess. Now would you stop stressin' and come relax with me for a minute? You know I got a long ass day today.” “I don't know Rich, I got some work to do too. So why don't you just go get started,” Jacy said as she headed upstairs. “We can hang out later.” In the bathroom, Jacy stripped down to her birthday suit in ten seconds flat. She turned on the water and waited for it to get steaming hot. She glanced around her huge bathroom, fully equipped with both a shower and a Jacuzzi tub. It was one of the features that made her and Rich choose their new marital home in Upper Darby. It wasn't big, and it wasn't small—it was cozy. Jacy had wanted to move farther away from Philly, but knew that Rich had his daughter Chellie to consider. Rich was currently involved in a lawsuit to get joint custody of Chellie, and eventually full custody if he and Jacy became comfortable with the arrangement. Rich didn't want to impose on his new wife by trying to make her into insta-mom, but Jacy and Chellie got along so well that even she couldn't resist the idea. She was just glad that Rich only had one child. She had been with men that had up to six heads to worry about, and their life was nothing but drama. Jacy's insecurities about Rich and other women had begun before they were married. She couldn't even escape the catty female vultures on her own wedding day. The wedding was a small yet beautiful affair held at a waterfront villa in New Jersey. Only 50 of Jacy and Rich's closest friends and family were invited, including Jacy’s parents, who had reluctantly warmed to Rich after a few visits, Rich’s aunts, a couple of siblings, his cousins, and Timbo. Jacy and Rich were dressed classically—Rich in a sleek black tux, and Jacy in a sleeveless snow white satin dress that hugged her curves nicely and ended with a three foot long train. Tammy was her maid of honor, and Rachelle and Amanda made up the rest of her bridesmaids. Rich had gone and got his daughter, but apparently there was a leak about the location of the wedding. There were at least 20 uninvited guests that showed up at the small reception, including Rich's baby's mother LaTisha, her bosom buddy Neecey, and five other women from Rich's old neighborhood. They needed to see this whole wedding thing go down for themselves. LaTisha and Neecey “the Knob” were still up to their old tricks, plotting on how to ruin Jacy's wedding day. They finally came up with a plan for LaTisha to corner Rich in the bathroom where he went alone—or so they thought—and wait for someone to come in and see him and LaTisha together. That would definitely get back to Jacy before the end of the night. As they inched towards the bathroom, they heard some sounds coming from inside. Neecey was the lookout as LaTisha went to push open the door, but something was blocking it. After a few more unsuccessful attempts to push her way in, she gave it one good shove at the same moment that Rich removed the chair he had propped against it. Tisha went flying into the stall near the door and bumped her head. When she looked up, there stood Jacy and Rich looking down at her like she was retarded. Neecey slid off down the hall and out of sight. “LaTisha, what the hell you doin'?” Rich stared at his baby's mother, looking amused and restraining a laugh. Jacy looked at Rich and then back at LaTisha. “Uh, nuffin. I was just trying to pee,” LaTisha played it off. “Ain't this the bathroom?” “Tish, this the men's bathroom. Why you tryin' to get in here?” Rich asked, always quick-witted. He already knew that Tisha would try something, and here she was. He and Jacy had made plans to sneak off separately to the bathroom for a quickie, but had gotten caught themselves now. “Neecey told me this was the men's room! Neecey, why you tell me that?” she said to no one at all. Neecey was long gone. “Girl, git yo ass up,” Rich offered her a hand and she took it, still rubbing her head. Tisha and Neecey tried a few more times that night to get Rich's attention or annoy Jacy in some way, but it wasn't working, especially now that everybody knew what they were up to. They became the laughingstock of the reception. Everybody got drunk and talked about them, right in their faces, until they finally left with their friend Connie. But Jacy soon came to realize that this was not going to be a one-time thing. As Rich's new wife, she constantly had to deal with challenges to her role in Rich's life. Jacy heard the door to the bathroom open and she looked up from her seat on the side of the Jacuzzi bathtub just in time to see Rich come inside butt naked. She had been so deep in thought that she forgot why she was even in the bathroom in the first place. Now her only thoughts were on how good Rich looked at that moment. His body looked like someone had sliced him hundreds of times with a sharp knife and he had just healed that way—an Adonis with a broad chest, tatted arms, tight stomach from doing 50 sit-ups and push-ups a day, and that big, thick, swinging… “Jacy, what…” Rich stopped talking mid-sentence and grabbed his toothbrush. Jacy just sat there watching him as he brushed his teeth. “Never mind.” His large penis shook and swayed as he brushed vigorously. “I don't know why you don't just get an electronic brush like me,” Jacy tried, unsuccessfully, to get her mind off of sex as she continued to watch him. “You know I don't fuck with all that technology. Good old toothbrush, it's worked for me for 28 years. Ain't broke don't fix it,” he said with a wink in Jacy's direction, and then spit out his paste in the sink. “They work even better though. With those old brushes you leave plaque behind,” Jacy continued bullshitting. Rich turned and looked down at her, sitting there like she didn't know what to do with herself. “Girl, what are you doing over there? I thought you was taking a shower.” “Yea, I am,” Jacy chuckled as she got up from the Jacuzzi and went to turn the water on. As she walked over to the tub, now Rich was watching. He never missed an opportunity to watch Jacy walk around naked. Her body was always so smooth; an uninterrupted cocoa brown. Her stomach was still as flat as an ironing board, and her dark brown hair reached even farther down her back now. He let his eyes fall down further to that round, juicy ass—the second thing that had caught his attention when they first met years back. He noticed her putting a little extra something on her usual switch to the shower. That immediately had his nature rising. Before Jacy had a chance to even take a step inside the shower stall, Rich was on her. He knew she loved it when he just “took” it. All he needed was a slight cue from her that she was interested, and it was on. He pushed her into the shower stall and shut it closed behind them. He knew that she was going to be pissed about getting her hair wet, but she would get over it after one good bang-out. He bent her over towards the back of the stall and told her to grab the ledge. She protested weakly, but did as she was told. He grabbed her ass tightly and rammed himself inside. Jacy shouted out, loud enough for the neighbors to hear if they were home. It usually took a few strokes for him to get all the way in. Rich pumped her full of his manhood for what seemed like an eternity for Jacy in that position just like she liked it—fast and hard. She shouted in pain for a few moments, but was soon in ecstasy once her muscles relaxed and he found her spot. It was all good. She felt herself about to come, a phenomenon that had only started happening after they wed. Maybe it was the fact that she knew that she was in love with this man, and they had made it official—whatever it was Rich was rocking her world in the bedroom. He might have gone legit business-wise, but he was still all thug when it came to getting it in. “Rich baby, I'm about to come. Oh yes baby, get that pussy!” Jacy talked dirty to him, making him weak. When Rich felt her shaking and breaking out in fits of involuntary compulsions, he knew that she had come and went in as far as he could go before letting loose himself. He groaned in pleasure as he felt the contractions hitting him in waves. “Oooo. Yes,” Rich exclaimed after they both became limp. He still held her up and stayed inside of her for as long as she would allow. He was desperate to get Jacy pregnant, even though he knew she was doubling up on birth control and never missed a day. She had even resisted letting go of condoms until he had to level with her. “Okay Rich, come on, let me up,” Jacy finally said upon recovering from the wonderful feeling that had just shot through her limbs. “I know what you are trying to do, sucka. You ain’t foolin’ nobody.” “What?” Rich played stupid as he let her up. Jacy turned around and came face to face with a devilish smirk. She pecked him on the lips. “You know what. Rich, I'm not trying to get pregnant man,” Jacy said as she walked around him and started showering. “Give me like two years before thinking about that stuff.” “Two years! Oh hell no,” Rich protested. “I want a baby this year.” Jacy just ignored him and kept showering. She changed the subject instead. “Look at what you did, now I have to take another two hours to dry my hair,” Jacy said playfully. “Awww, don't be complaining now. Here let me get your back.” When Rich left the house after trying two more times to get another round in, Jacy sat down at her desk and waited for her hair to dry so that she could flat iron it. It was a good thing she had just had a fresh relaxer, or else she would have really been in trouble that day. Muffy sauntered up to where she was seated at her desk and meowed quietly to say that she wanted some love too. Jacy moved back a little and let her beloved cat jump up on her lap for a petting session. She let Muffy stay there while she worked. “Let's see. I got an appointment at 12…I can push that back to one…” she spoke to herself, trying to get prepared for her day. “Oh crap, I forgot to call Jim back…” She picked up the phone hoping to get in touch with Jim, her new part-time partner. They went in on larger real estate deals in the Philadelphia area. She helped find the financing while he found the buyer and oversaw any contractor work. They had already overseen about seven successful closings, so she didn't hesitate to jump on an opportunity when he called. He had left a message for her the evening before concerning a property in the Northern Liberties that was selling for dirt cheap considering the area. They would need to have it fixed up with an investment of about $7,500. That was definitely doable. By that time Jacy was wheeling and dealing in Philly real estate. She made modest profits off of each deal that left her with a yearly salary of about $65,000—almost twice what she was making at her old job at Summit Financial. Rich saw what she was doing, and was planning on making an investment in her business that year that would double her profits. If she kept rolling with Jim she would surely see at least a 25% increase in her bottomline. Jim wasn't answering, so she just left him a message. Jacy was surprised that Rich didn't have a problem with the 31-year-old Jim working with his woman, but she guessed it was because Jim wasn't attractive in the least. He was skinny and crackish looking with bad blotchy brown skin, despite the fact that he ate well and made plenty of money. He was super smart and had a great eye for a money-making property. Rich had met Jim, spoke with him man to man, and let him know without even having to say a word that he had better stay in his place with Jacy. Jim kept all of his conversations with Jacy 100% professional after that, without so much as a “what a nice day it is!” when they spoke. Jacy called and moved back her 12 o'clock appointment with a real estate agent looking to unload a “fixer-upper,” then updated her pipeline. She decided that after her one o'clock meeting she would go check on the progress of a property down in South Philly that she was working on solo. She had finally assembled a fix-up team that she could depend on a majority of the time. They showed up at the properties to work when they said they would, maybe an hour or so late, but they showed nonetheless, and they did decent work. They never gave her any surprises on her invoices unless it was something that absolutely couldn't be avoided, such as a wall buckling, and they would give her the respect of a phone call before doing anything about it. Recently, Jacy had been getting industry information that there were potential problems in the real estate industry that could cause a problem for investors like herself. She was putting her money up for a rainy day, and looking into other investments. The money Rich made from his store at that point was enough to cover all of their bills and then some. She wasn't worried—just very thankful that she had gained a partner in life to deal with any hard times that could come. She had never had that type of security or a fallback plan before. Jacy went to find her ceramic flat iron to fix her hair before leaving the house, and set out a nice casual outfit of peddle pusher jeans, a long, light-blue blouse, and high-heeled sandals for the day. Jacy always wore a long shirt to cover her behind on a day she was going to see her contractors. They were still men after all. When she stepped outside she breathed in the warm, clean air of Upper Darby and chirped her car. The good old Mitsubishi Eclipse was still right there. Rich had tried to get her to trade it in for a bigger and “better” model—like the new Navigator Rich had bought for himself—but Jacy refused. She just fixed her baby up and made it run like it just came off the assembly line. That car had been down with her since her college days—she wasn't about to abandon it for some strange new car and a new bill. Just as she settled into the driver's seat her cellphone started going off and she hoped it was Jim. She wanted to get this next deal with him started right away. “Hey Jim!” she sang, happy that she could get one thing off of her list for the day. “Hey what's up Jacy, I just got your message. I got a big one on my list of things to do, and I wanted to see if you want to get in on it,” he said, sounding clear as day. Jacy figured that he must have been in his office. “You know I do, tell me about it,” Jacy said as she pulled out of her driveway one-handed. “Well, it's down on 7^th and Brown. Prime location. You know with the gentrification going on down there. They're asking 100K, but I'm telling you, we fix it up and this property could go for 200 easy.” “What? Why are they selling it so cheap then? It's got to be something really wrong with it?” “Not really. Like I said, I saw about seven or ten thousand in repairs. It's probably just the area, it's still changing. Still a pretty rough area but there a lot of new people moving in. We may have to hold onto it for a few months.” “Okay. Well, when can I come see it?” Jacy wanted to know. Her ears had perked at the possibility of a 100K profit. She usually didn't see deals with that kind of profit potential. “Today. Can you meet me down there at like 5?” “Uhhh. Yea, I guess. I have a lot going on today. I have my self-defense class at seven. I will call you when I'm nearby.” “Great. I'll see you then.” Jacy started dancing in her seat when she hung up the phone. She saw dollar signs that could allow her to relax for months before jumping on another deal. She was finally rolling along, doing what she always wanted to do: be her own boss. Life was good.

Thugs are for Fun Part 3 by J.Gail

Excerpt

Chapter 1

It’s All Good…

“Okay, push it in now!” Jacy screamed.

Rich gave one last shove and the couch finally slid all the way through the front door, giving Jacy instant relief. She had been holding the couch up a certain way while Rich used his power to squeeze it all the way through the too-small doorway.

They were both hot and sweaty already, and pissed because one of the delivery guys had copped an attitude with Rich. Dude had been five seconds from getting his head smashed in when he and his partner suddenly got into their truck and drove off with the couch still sitting on the front lawn. Rich and Jacy were forced to move the couch in the house themselves, even though it was nine in the morning and they were just getting up from the bed.

“I’m just gonna call and curse their boss out,” Jacy said when the couch was finally in place. She dotted her face with a napkin and then started looking for the delivery receipt. “And when I finish bitching at him, he will bitch at them.”

“Naw, don’t even bother,” Rich said calmly as he pulled his shirt up and rubbed the sweat off of his face. He seemed cool now, but was thinking treacherous thoughts—he’d seen that delivery guy before. He must not have recognized Rich’s face. Rich knew where he lived (with his mama) and where he liked to have a beer after work. Rich would have to fight the urge to go to his mama’s house and catch him by surprise with one good jab in the throat. Rich chuckled devilishly at the thought.

He was finding it harder and harder to resist those old feelings. A good old fashioned ass whooping was how he used to handle things when he was running the streets.

Ever since Jacy and Rich had gotten married a little over four months before, Rich had kept his promise to leave the street life alone. He spent most of his free time at his sporting goods store—it was his respite whenever he was tempted to go down to his old stomping grounds.

He had rented out the house on Ruby Street to his cousin Cochese, who had already been living there anyway. Rich's younger brother Rasheed had moved down south shortly after the wedding to be with his other cousin, who had a job for him there. Rasheed couldn't stand the idea of not living with Rich anymore—he had literally grown up under his protection, so the way he and Rich parted ways wasn’t too good. Rich couldn’t let his family hold him back from his happiness though.

Cochese, on the other hand, was loving it. Ever since Rich left the house, Cochese's coochie-meter had gone off the charts. The way the women came in and out of that house, people on the block were starting to think he was running a brothel. Cochese had even tried to move a couple of his girlfriends into the house, but Rich had to end that situation real quick; it was still his house and he wasn't about to have it torn up by some ignorant ass chickenheads.

“Oh baby, I broke one of my fucking nails!” Jacy complained as she fingered her nail. She knew she was being annoying, but she couldn’t stop herself. It didn’t take much to get her going those days. “Dammit! Just let me cuss him one good time!”

“I said don't worrry about it Jacy!” Rich said, raising his voice a notch, but he wasn't really mad at her. He went over to where she was standing, pouting, looking like a doll that had just been doused with a bucket of water. He lifted both of her hands and looked at the nail that was broken. He reached down and kissed it.

“Look at these pretty hands. Even if you didn’t have no nails attached to the skin they would still be beautiful,” Rich commented. Jacy rolled her eyes.

“Oh, you trying to play me now? That’s what I get for bein’ nice,” Rich laughed.

“Yea right. You are so full of it,” Jacy chuckled in response. “If I wasn't the type of girl that had my nails done every week you wouldn’t have looked twice at me back when I met you.”

Rich stared at Jacy, scanning the lovely laugh lines around her mouth, the foundation that was starting to bead up on her face from her sweating, and the diamond studs in her ears. He wondered why she had woken up and applied makeup just to meet the delivery men at the door. “You don't really believe that right?”

Jacy's smirk turned into a tight-lipped frown. She had to admit, since she had married Rich, and seen all of the progress that he had made as a legitimate businessman, she had become a little intimidated. He got the second look from everybody, not just girls from down the way anymore. Whenever they went downtown to shop or have drinks, Jacy found herself constantly on the defensive against professional women in business suits eyeing Rich down shamelessly. Once when they were having lunch at McCormick's as they usually did on a free weekday, Jacy left to go to the bathroom and some light skinned chick who was having lunch with her co-workers was bold enough to actually sit across from Rich at their table. Rich did everything he could to tell the woman to keep it moving without being rude, but Jacy came back before the woman could slide her slimy ass back over to her own table and all hell broke loose. She kept her bathroom stay short in the first place because she had seen the same women oogling at Rich when they first walked in. Jacy was ready to bust her in the mouth when she saw her sitting in her seat.

“Excuse me, can I help you with something?” Jacy asked the woman as calmly as she could while clutching her purse tightly. Jacy was still standing, feet firmly planted, in front of the table, ready for war. She was so sick of this shit. Rich quickly diffused the situation.

“Baby, this is Toni, she works down at the Centre Square building on Market Street. She was just about to leave. Matter of fact, she left her number, so you can call her later if you want to learn more about her,” Rich said with a smirk as he passed Jacy the woman's card. The card contained the woman's work number, cellphone number, and job address. He knew of no better way of showing Jacy that he wasn’t interested in this broad in the least.

“Oh! Really!” Jacy said with a nod as she scanned the information and chuckled, letting some of the steam subside. The lady got up and tried to snatch her card back, but Jacy was too quick.

“Didn't your Mama ever teach you not to snatch from people!?” Jacy's went from zero to ghetto in three seconds flat and her voice trembled with anger as she got up in the woman’s face.

“Just give me back my card!” the woman demanded and held out her hand.

Rich got up and grabbed Jacy around her waist just as she was about to slap the woman silly.

“Come on baby, we out,” he said with a dismissive finality as he pulled Jacy away from the scene. “Here give me that.”

He paused and took the card from Jacy's hand so that he could flick it to the floor at the woman's feet. “You ain't on her level,” he insulted the woman before they left. Jacy’s chest puffed out on that one.

This was only one of many situations where desperate yet attractive women were trying to take Jacy's man away. She was starting to become insecure about her chances of holding onto Rich. It was all in the way he was still so gangster even though he now hustled in slacks and Kenneth Cole shoes. Rich was brown-skinned with a nicely groomed mustache and chin beard. He stood at 5’10 with a nice, solid muscular stature and strong, veiny arms decorated with various intricate tattoos. He kept his hair trimmed into a clean hustler cut. He had perfect white teeth and slightly slitted brown eyes. His lips were plump and suckable and stayed wet. He wore a baseball cap with just about anything and it always fit him just right. He was 100% Philly. No matter how legit he went, he could never get rid of that edginess that came off of him—the way he smiled crooked, the way he cut his eyes when he thought something was up, the scar reaching from chin to neck, and the way his nose flared when he was pissed. It was just something about Rich.

His store had grossed over $150,000 the year before and was predicted to double that figure in the new year. Women were going nuts over Rich because he had every trait they desired—he was rough around the edges, but still had good intentions and a profitable, legal business. But the way he dealt with the attention bothered Jacy to no end. He was so flippant and indifferent as if it was all some big joke. Jacy took it all very seriously—her womanhood was being challenged at every turn. It had come to the point where she had been doing everything possible to stay on top of her game physically. What if by chance Rich met another smart, young, college-educated woman who he found to be more attractive than Jacy? Especially with all of the new social circles they ran in. The thought made her lose sleep at night.

“Jacy? Answer my question. You really believe that?” Rich asked her again, trying to get her attention and bring her back to the present. She was drifting off to other places a lot more lately. “Did you hear me?”

“I don't know Rich,” Jacy said and tried to pull away. “Let me go ahead and take a shower.”

“Jacy, seriously. I don't know what's up wit you lately,” Rich said, pulling her back into his arms. “I don't give a fuck if your nails are done! I love you for who you are and what you’re about, not all that superficial shit.”

Jacy tried to release herself from his grip, but he wouldn't let go just yet. “Yea right Rich. One thing I do know about you Philly brothers is that y’all are too superficial. It's all about the sneakers, the shoes, the hair, the nails, the clothes…”

Rich sighed and let her go. He walked over to the new couch, still covered in plastic, and sat down, remembering why he and Jacy had chosen it in the first place. He picked up the remote and switched on the television. “That ain't me no more Jacy. I ain't about all that mess. Now would you stop stressin' and come relax with me for a minute? You know I got a long ass day today.”

“I don't know Rich, I got some work to do too. So why don't you just go get started,” Jacy said as she headed upstairs. “We can hang out later.”

In the bathroom, Jacy stripped down to her birthday suit in ten seconds flat. She turned on the water and waited for it to get steaming hot. She glanced around her huge bathroom, fully equipped with both a shower and a Jacuzzi tub. It was one of the features that made her and Rich choose their new marital home in Upper Darby. It wasn't big, and it wasn't small—it was cozy. Jacy had wanted to move farther away from Philly, but knew that Rich had his daughter Chellie to consider. Rich was currently involved in a lawsuit to get joint custody of Chellie, and eventually full custody if he and Jacy became comfortable with the arrangement. Rich didn't want to impose on his new wife by trying to make her into insta-mom, but Jacy and Chellie got along so well that even she couldn't resist the idea. She was just glad that Rich only had one child. She had been with men that had up to six heads to worry about, and their life was nothing but drama.

Jacy's insecurities about Rich and other women had begun before they were married. She couldn't even escape the catty female vultures on her own wedding day.

The wedding was a small yet beautiful affair held at a waterfront villa in New Jersey. Only 50 of Jacy and Rich's closest friends and family were invited, including Jacy’s parents, who had reluctantly warmed to Rich after a few visits, Rich’s aunts, a couple of siblings, his cousins, and Timbo. Jacy and Rich were dressed classically—Rich in a sleek black tux, and Jacy in a sleeveless snow white satin dress that hugged her curves nicely and ended with a three foot long train. Tammy was her maid of honor, and Rachelle and Amanda made up the rest of her bridesmaids.

Rich had gone and got his daughter, but apparently there was a leak about the location of the wedding. There were at least 20 uninvited guests that showed up at the small reception, including Rich's baby's mother LaTisha, her bosom buddy Neecey, and five other women from Rich's old neighborhood. They needed to see this whole wedding thing go down for themselves.

LaTisha and Neecey “the Knob” were still up to their old tricks, plotting on how to ruin Jacy's wedding day. They finally came up with a plan for LaTisha to corner Rich in the bathroom where he went alone—or so they thought—and wait for someone to come in and see him and LaTisha together. That would definitely get back to Jacy before the end of the night.

As they inched towards the bathroom, they heard some sounds coming from inside. Neecey was the lookout as LaTisha went to push open the door, but something was blocking it. After a few more unsuccessful attempts to push her way in, she gave it one good shove at the same moment that Rich removed the chair he had propped against it. Tisha went flying into the stall near the door and bumped her head. When she looked up, there stood Jacy and Rich looking down at her like she was retarded. Neecey slid off down the hall and out of sight.

“LaTisha, what the hell you doin'?” Rich stared at his baby's mother, looking amused and restraining a laugh. Jacy looked at Rich and then back at LaTisha.

“Uh, nuffin. I was just trying to pee,” LaTisha played it off. “Ain't this the bathroom?”

“Tish, this the men's bathroom. Why you tryin' to get in here?” Rich asked, always quick-witted. He already knew that Tisha would try something, and here she was. He and Jacy had made plans to sneak off separately to the bathroom for a quickie, but had gotten caught themselves now.

“Neecey told me this was the men's room! Neecey, why you tell me that?” she said to no one at all. Neecey was long gone.

“Girl, git yo ass up,” Rich offered her a hand and she took it, still rubbing her head.

Tisha and Neecey tried a few more times that night to get Rich's attention or annoy Jacy in some way, but it wasn't working, especially now that everybody knew what they were up to. They became the laughingstock of the reception. Everybody got drunk and talked about them, right in their faces, until they finally left with their friend Connie.

But Jacy soon came to realize that this was not going to be a one-time thing. As Rich's new wife, she constantly had to deal with challenges to her role in Rich's life.

Jacy heard the door to the bathroom open and she looked up from her seat on the side of the Jacuzzi bathtub just in time to see Rich come inside butt naked. She had been so deep in thought that she forgot why she was even in the bathroom in the first place. Now her only thoughts were on how good Rich looked at that moment. His body looked like someone had sliced him hundreds of times with a sharp knife and he had just healed that way—an Adonis with a broad chest, tatted arms, tight stomach from doing 50 sit-ups and push-ups a day, and that big, thick, swinging…

“Jacy, what…” Rich stopped talking mid-sentence and grabbed his toothbrush. Jacy just sat there watching him as he brushed his teeth. “Never mind.”

His large penis shook and swayed as he brushed vigorously.

“I don't know why you don't just get an electronic brush like me,” Jacy tried, unsuccessfully, to get her mind off of sex as she continued to watch him.

“You know I don't fuck with all that technology. Good old toothbrush, it's worked for me for 28 years. Ain't broke don't fix it,” he said with a wink in Jacy's direction, and then spit out his paste in the sink.

“They work even better though. With those old brushes you leave plaque behind,” Jacy continued bullshitting.

Rich turned and looked down at her, sitting there like she didn't know what to do with herself. “Girl, what are you doing over there? I thought you was taking a shower.”

“Yea, I am,” Jacy chuckled as she got up from the Jacuzzi and went to turn the water on. As she walked over to the tub, now Rich was watching. He never missed an opportunity to watch Jacy walk around naked. Her body was always so smooth; an uninterrupted cocoa brown. Her stomach was still as flat as an ironing board, and her dark brown hair reached even farther down her back now. He let his eyes fall down further to that round, juicy ass—the second thing that had caught his attention when they first met years back. He noticed her putting a little extra something on her usual switch to the shower. That immediately had his nature rising.

Before Jacy had a chance to even take a step inside the shower stall, Rich was on her. He knew she loved it when he just “took” it. All he needed was a slight cue from her that she was interested, and it was on. He pushed her into the shower stall and shut it closed behind them. He knew that she was going to be pissed about getting her hair wet, but she would get over it after one good bang-out. He bent her over towards the back of the stall and told her to grab the ledge. She protested weakly, but did as she was told. He grabbed her ass tightly and rammed himself inside. Jacy shouted out, loud enough for the neighbors to hear if they were home. It usually took a few strokes for him to get all the way in. Rich pumped her full of his manhood for what seemed like an eternity for Jacy in that position just like she liked it—fast and hard. She shouted in pain for a few moments, but was soon in ecstasy once her muscles relaxed and he found her spot. It was all good. She felt herself about to come, a phenomenon that had only started happening after they wed. Maybe it was the fact that she knew that she was in love with this man, and they had made it official—whatever it was Rich was rocking her world in the bedroom. He might have gone legit business-wise, but he was still all thug when it came to getting it in.

“Rich baby, I'm about to come. Oh yes baby, get that pussy!” Jacy talked dirty to him, making him weak.

When Rich felt her shaking and breaking out in fits of involuntary compulsions, he knew that she had come and went in as far as he could go before letting loose himself. He groaned in pleasure as he felt the contractions hitting him in waves.

“Oooo. Yes,” Rich exclaimed after they both became limp. He still held her up and stayed inside of her for as long as she would allow. He was desperate to get Jacy pregnant, even though he knew she was doubling up on birth control and never missed a day. She had even resisted letting go of condoms until he had to level with her.

“Okay Rich, come on, let me up,” Jacy finally said upon recovering from the wonderful feeling that had just shot through her limbs. “I know what you are trying to do, sucka. You ain’t foolin’ nobody.”

“What?” Rich played stupid as he let her up. Jacy turned around and came face to face with a devilish smirk. She pecked him on the lips.

“You know what. Rich, I'm not trying to get pregnant man,” Jacy said as she walked around him and started showering. “Give me like two years before thinking about that stuff.”

“Two years! Oh hell no,” Rich protested. “I want a baby this year.”

Jacy just ignored him and kept showering. She changed the subject instead.

“Look at what you did, now I have to take another two hours to dry my hair,” Jacy said playfully.

“Awww, don't be complaining now. Here let me get your back.”

When Rich left the house after trying two more times to get another round in, Jacy sat down at her desk and waited for her hair to dry so that she could flat iron it. It was a good thing she had just had a fresh relaxer, or else she would have really been in trouble that day. Muffy sauntered up to where she was seated at her desk and meowed quietly to say that she wanted some love too. Jacy moved back a little and let her beloved cat jump up on her lap for a petting session. She let Muffy stay there while she worked.

“Let's see. I got an appointment at 12…I can push that back to one…” she spoke to herself, trying to get prepared for her day. “Oh crap, I forgot to call Jim back…”

She picked up the phone hoping to get in touch with Jim, her new part-time partner. They went in on larger real estate deals in the Philadelphia area. She helped find the financing while he found the buyer and oversaw any contractor work. They had already overseen about seven successful closings, so she didn't hesitate to jump on an opportunity when he called. He had left a message for her the evening before concerning a property in the Northern Liberties that was selling for dirt cheap considering the area. They would need to have it fixed up with an investment of about $7,500. That was definitely doable.

By that time Jacy was wheeling and dealing in Philly real estate. She made modest profits off of each deal that left her with a yearly salary of about $65,000—almost twice what she was making at her old job at Summit Financial. Rich saw what she was doing, and was planning on making an investment in her business that year that would double her profits. If she kept rolling with Jim she would surely see at least a 25% increase in her bottomline.

Jim wasn't answering, so she just left him a message. Jacy was surprised that Rich didn't have a problem with the 31-year-old Jim working with his woman, but she guessed it was because Jim wasn't attractive in the least. He was skinny and crackish looking with bad blotchy brown skin, despite the fact that he ate well and made plenty of money. He was super smart and had a great eye for a money-making property. Rich had met Jim, spoke with him man to man, and let him know without even having to say a word that he had better stay in his place with Jacy. Jim kept all of his conversations with Jacy 100% professional after that, without so much as a “what a nice day it is!” when they spoke.

Jacy called and moved back her 12 o'clock appointment with a real estate agent looking to unload a “fixer-upper,” then updated her pipeline. She decided that after her one o'clock meeting she would go check on the progress of a property down in South Philly that she was working on solo. She had finally assembled a fix-up team that she could depend on a majority of the time. They showed up at the properties to work when they said they would, maybe an hour or so late, but they showed nonetheless, and they did decent work. They never gave her any surprises on her invoices unless it was something that absolutely couldn't be avoided, such as a wall buckling, and they would give her the respect of a phone call before doing anything about it.

Recently, Jacy had been getting industry information that there were potential problems in the real estate industry that could cause a problem for investors like herself. She was putting her money up for a rainy day, and looking into other investments. The money Rich made from his store at that point was enough to cover all of their bills and then some. She wasn't worried—just very thankful that she had gained a partner in life to deal with any hard times that could come. She had never had that type of security or a fallback plan before.

Jacy went to find her ceramic flat iron to fix her hair before leaving the house, and set out a nice casual outfit of peddle pusher jeans, a long, light-blue blouse, and high-heeled sandals for the day. Jacy always wore a long shirt to cover her behind on a day she was going to see her contractors. They were still men after all.

When she stepped outside she breathed in the warm, clean air of Upper Darby and chirped her car. The good old Mitsubishi Eclipse was still right there. Rich had tried to get her to trade it in for a bigger and “better” model—like the new Navigator Rich had bought for himself—but Jacy refused. She just fixed her baby up and made it run like it just came off the assembly line. That car had been down with her since her college days—she wasn't about to abandon it for some strange new car and a new bill.

Just as she settled into the driver's seat her cellphone started going off and she hoped it was Jim. She wanted to get this next deal with him started right away.

“Hey Jim!” she sang, happy that she could get one thing off of her list for the day.

“Hey what's up Jacy, I just got your message. I got a big one on my list of things to do, and I wanted to see if you want to get in on it,” he said, sounding clear as day. Jacy figured that he must have been in his office.

“You know I do, tell me about it,” Jacy said as she pulled out of her driveway one-handed.

“Well, it's down on 7^th and Brown. Prime location. You know with the gentrification going on down there. They're asking 100K, but I'm telling you, we fix it up and this property could go for 200 easy.”

“What? Why are they selling it so cheap then? It's got to be something really wrong with it?”

“Not really. Like I said, I saw about seven or ten thousand in repairs. It's probably just the area, it's still changing. Still a pretty rough area but there a lot of new people moving in. We may have to hold onto it for a few months.”

“Okay. Well, when can I come see it?” Jacy wanted to know. Her ears had perked at the possibility of a 100K profit. She usually didn't see deals with that kind of profit potential.

“Today. Can you meet me down there at like 5?”

“Uhhh. Yea, I guess. I have a lot going on today. I have my self-defense class at seven. I will call you when I'm nearby.”

“Great. I'll see you then.”

Jacy started dancing in her seat when she hung up the phone. She saw dollar signs that could allow her to relax for months before jumping on another deal. She was finally rolling along, doing what she always wanted to do: be her own boss. Life was good.