Lickin' License Read online

  “I love you more.” He grinned.

  Vanessa kissed him again, then left the room.

  Rich went into the bathroom, brushed his teeth and took a shower. He stepped back into the bedroom, thinking of Vanessa. He had awoken to her staring at him before, but that morning the look on her face was different. He left the bedroom in search of her and found her on the terrace, gazing over Manhattan. He hugged her from behind and kissed her on the neck. “What's up, baby?” he whispered in her ear.

  She turned around. “You know I love you, right?”

  “I question a lot of things in life, but that's not one of them.”

  “I didn't get to sleep until four o'clock this morning.”

  Rich remembered turning off the lights and cuddling with Vanessa, before he fell asleep at around midnight.

  “And I woke up at five,” Vanessa continued. “I came out here to the terrace for an hour, and then watched you sleep for two hours. The whole time I was thinking about what you said last night.”

  Rich's eyebrows rose. “Refresh my memory.”

  “The other woman.”

  What other woman? Oh, I know she ain't talking about that threesome conversation. I wouldn't mind a threesome, but I was just fucking with her.

  “Is that really what you want?”

  “What?”

  “A threesome.”

  “What I want you to know first and foremost is that I love you. I'm completely satisfied with you on every level. That means mentally, physically, spiritually, sexually, emotionally, intellectually and every other thing with a L-L-Y at the end of it,” Rich said.

  Vanessa's face lit up with a smile.

  “But I want both of us to share something different. And I

  know we'll both enjoy it,” Rich said. “This ain't gotta be no permanent affair, just a one-time adventure.”

  “Only under one condition,” Vanessa said.

  Oh shit, I got her. Rich refrained from smiling. “What?”

  “I choose the woman.”

  “Now, baby, you know I'm allergic to bearillas.”

  “Bearilla?” Vanessa's face was puzzled. “What's that?”

  “A woman that looks like a bear mixed with a gorilla,” Rich said.

  Vanessa burst into laughter. “You know if I bring a woman into our bed, she’s gonna be clean, beautiful and down for whatever.”

  Rich kissed Vanessa and she walked off the terrace. He envisioned them having a ménage a trois. He had been in a few, but each with women that he hardly knew. Now he would be in a threesome with the woman he knew better than any other female. He was certain she would choose a woman who would meet the level of attractiveness he desired. He felt it would be good that he had no ties to the other woman. That would assure that he was emotionally attached to only Vanessa during their sex session. He was trying hard to be faithful, and the last thing he wanted was to become attracted to another woman.

  * * *

  Later that day, Rich parked a Lincoln Navigator in front of Chase's Harlem home on Striver's Row. He honked the horn. Seconds later, Chase came down stairs and climbed inside the SUV.

  “What's good, Rich?”

  “You tell me.”

  “We gonna have to go check the connect. The spot in the BX is damn near outta work. Shit pumpin' over there way more than usual.”

  Rich nodded. “Yo, some funny shit happened to me the other day.”

  “Holler.”

  Rich told Chase about crossing paths with Ted Stevens.

  “New York City ain't as big as people think it is.”

  “Vanessa couldn't believe that this rich-ass white dude was praising me like I was the second coming of Christ.”

  “Next level. You always say that's where we gotta take shit.”

  “We already there. That's what that situation showed me,” Rich said.

  “What you mean?”

  Rich turned to Chase. “The cards been playing my way for a long time and I got a nice stack of chips. I'm ready to cash 'em in before the Feds or one of these fools on the street stack the deck on me.”

  Chase was silent. After a few seconds, he strained his eyes to see beyond Rich's face and into his mind.

  “This ain't no poker face. I'm sitting on a full house. The game is over, but we still hanging around the table.”

  “So you actually serious about this shit?”

  “I couldn't bluff you if I tried. It's only two people in these streets that really know me, and both of ’em is sitting inside this truck.” Rich had never told Chase, but he felt he owed Chase something that he could never repay him. Killing a man to save his life and losing five years of his life in prison was priceless.

  “You sure?” Chase asked. “You really wanna leave all this behind?”

  Rich said he was certain that Chase should consider leaving the game also. He stressed that they had been on top for years, watching hustlers come and go, entering the game with ambition and leaving in caskets and handcuffs. “It's only a matter of time before karma catch up to us.”

  “We sitting on a empire that generate more paper than The New York Times. And all we do is pick up bricks from our connect, drop 'em off with the lieutenants and we done. This shit is a goldmine that run itself. Even the money get delivered to us. The whole operation is a moneymaking machine. All we do is push buttons, damn near risk-free.”

  “Damn near. That's the key word. A lot of things done happened to hustlers in the streets on them trips to drop off and pick up work.”

  “You really serious about this shit, ain't you?” Chase said.

  “Dead ass.”

  “So you comin' with me to get these bricks tonight, or what?”

  “Of course. You don't just desert your suppliers without saying good-bye after years of good business relations. But this is my last dance.”

  * * *

  Rich returned home that night after he and Chase met with the connect. He walked through the door and found Vanessa sitting Indian style on the couch. She was tapping away at her laptop. On the coffee table in front of her, were a dictionary, thesaurus and a manuscript marked with notes for revisions.

  “Hey, baby.” Vanessa puckered up and kissed Rich as he sat down.

  “You serious about this book, huh?” Rich picked up a few pages of the manuscript.

  “Best seller,” she said. “Although writing is not really about the money to me; it's about creating. But the more people who enter the world I create, the better.”

  Rich read two pages and handed them to Vanessa. “Some of this is not adding up.”

  “What?” Vanessa asked, analyzing the pages.

  “First of all, this little freak got the pastor eating her pussy and a drug dealer dicking her down.”

  “What's wrong with that?”

  “Be easy, baby.” Rich rubbed her leg. “Let me fuck this cow, you just hold the legs. Now this little freak's boyfriend is slinging dope, right?”

  “Ump humph.”

  “Well, you can't have him calling dope 'girl',”

  “Why not?”

  Rich laughed. “Because dope is called boy. Girl is coke.”

  “Oh, I see.”

  “Now you also got this drug-dealing boy loading up ten shots in a three-fifty seven revolver.” Rich shook his head. “Now, baby, this type of gun only holds five or six shots, depending on the model and brand.”

  Vanessa sighed. “Mimi was supposed to do a fact check on the street stuff, but she let all of this slide by.”

  “Mimi may be from the projects, but that don't make her no expert on the 'hood. Most cats creeping through the streets on a regular never seen the half. I know dudes who killed people, but never seen a dead body.”

  “That makes no sense, Rich.”

  “Makes plenty sense.”

  “How?” Vanessa asked.

  “You put three bullets in somebody's head in broad day, you don't need to check they pulse to see if they breathing. Before they hit the ground, you
stepping off, looking for cops, witnesses and the quickest route to a getaway. You don't got time to see what the dead body looks like.”

  “I never looked at it like that.”

  “That's a good thing. Because knowing this stuff from firsthand experience ain't nothing to be proud of. A lot of pain and regrets and bad memories come with being educated on street corners and back blocks. That's one of the reasons I walked away from it all today.”

  “What do you mean?”

  Rich explained to Vanessa that his days in the drug game were over. She had previously expressed to him that she had heard the stories of him selling drugs. But she wasn’t interested in the details, because she was confident that Rich would eventually leave the streets behind. He had told her he appreciated her attitude. Her sentiment was that a man would be a man. Part of that motto meant that she was in no predicament to dictate how a man lived.

  “What does Chase think of your decision?”

  “Doesn't matter what he thinks.” Rich held back the truth that he and Chase had an extended argument after leaving the connect. Chase felt that Rich was abandoning him. He said what made him upset most was that he felt Rich's decision to leave the game was based on Vanessa. He accused Rich of siding with a woman he had known only for a few months instead of standing firm with a comrade he’d known for years. Truth was Rich’s decision was based largely on seeing Ted Stevens again and realizing Ted’s wealth and prestige was something Rich was worthy of. Chase and Rich settled their debate before Rich left, but Rich had a bad vibe about Chase. He knew their friendship had taken a blow that had changed it permanently.

  Vanessa set her laptop and the manuscript pages on the coffee table. She turned to Rich. “I'm really proud of you, baby.” She kissed him.

  “I understand I'm not just living for me no more.”

  “We should be celebrating.”

  “I got a better idea. Put some shoes on.” Rich stood. “And bring your laptop.”

  Within minutes, Rich was driving Vanessa down Lennox Avenue in a Bentley Flying Spur. He pointed to the housing project they slowly drifted by. “That's Foster Projects. I got shot in there over a dice game when I was thirteen.” He pulled over. “Open your laptop. I'm gonna take you to school. Give you some inspiration and facts for that book.”

  “So this is a 'hood tour?” She grinned.

  “You wanna write about a hustler, the best place to learn about the game is Harlem. And I ain't talking Nicky Barnes, Frank Lucas and these other lames in the game that was getting bread but snitching to the Feds. I'm talking 'bout the Rich Porters and Fritzs.”

  Rich pulled off. He stopped at a few drug spots, old crime scenes, restaurants and gambling spots where thousands of dollars in drug money had circulated. He told Vanessa stories from his personal experience and mythic tales of street legends that were talked about everywhere from project halls, jail cells and rap songs to street DVDs and magazines. He answered Vanessa's questions as she typed away on her laptop.

  While they rode home reality set in. Rich realized he had actually given up the streets that raised him. He was feeling the bittersweet dynamic of transcending the drama that had nearly cost him his life, while the same drama had given him life. His very being had been molded by hustlers, crime, street wars and fast females.

  His actions and achievements were based on his observations. Careless drug dealers had inspired him to become an investor in an effort to avoid their downfalls. His image, molded by the streets, is what attracted Vanessa. And it was Vanessa and the day outside of her agent's office that sparked the end of the game for Rich. His life had come full circle. The factors that led him into the game had led him out of the game. And he had picked up wealth and a woman he loved in the process.

  But in the back of his mind, Rich felt he could not escape karma. He was certain that a new life came with new drama.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CANDY

  It was almost closing time at the shop. The scent of hair scorched hair was everywhere. Candy was putting the finishing touches on a weave of one of her clients. She had been getting hot all day as she stared at Vanessa's butt clenched by a pair of white spandex. She could see Vanessa’s panty line beneath the thin fabric. Vanessa was the first woman Candy had been with who made her horny while she was clothed.

  She's so small, but she sure knows how to work that body. Candy looked at her watch. Fifteen minutes 'till closing. I gotta get her home with me tonight.

  “Vanessa,” Meisha called out. “How the hell you manage to tame Rich? I been meaning to ask you that shit. I don't see no more broads in his whips. I don't even see him driving through Harlem too much no more like he own the motherfucker. What, you got him a job?”

  “His job is selling drugs and breaking hearts,” Chanel interjected.

  Vanessa rolled her eyes at Chanel. “My man always had a job. And these materialistic divas,” she cut her eyes at Chanel, “that was trying to get laid in one of the cars he drives, didn't, even know they were company cars.”

  “Must be a pharmaceuticals company,” said Chanel. “Distribution and sales or import-export.”

  “But how did you transform his ass?” Meisha said. “That's what I need to know. 'Cause I watched him chase pussy like a linebacker going at a quarterback.”

  “I just gave him what I know for a fact he couldn't get from any other woman…me.”

  Candy watched as Chanel sucked her teeth. The more Rich showed his face in the shop to pick up Vanessa, the more jealous Chanel had become. For weeks, she had been making sarcastic remarks about Rich in the presence of Vanessa. Most times, Vanessa simply ignored Chanel.

  The shop began to empty out, as closing time neared. Candy turned to Vanessa. “I need to speak to you in the office, if you got time.”

  “All right,” Vanessa said.

  Chanel was the last person leaving the shop. “Chanel,” Candy called. She caught up with her and they stepped out of the shop together.

  “What's up, Candy?”

  “You gotta be easy with Vanessa.”

  “What?” Chanel's hazel eyes squinted. “Who you? Captain Save-A-Ho?”

  “You got clients looking around at you makin' a scene. And you know I'm business over bullshit,” Candy said.

  “You got a point.” Chanel shook her head. “Shit, I thought you was takin' that heifer side over me. I been knowing you too long for that shit.”

  “Just be easy in the shop.”

  “All right,” Chanel said. She walked off to her car.

  As Candy stared at her, she thought about the years she had known Chanel and all they had been through. Chanel had been a friend after Dez was murdered and Candy became trapped in an emotional whirlwind from being disowned by her conservative Christian family. Chanel had been there for her. Now, Candy had just lied to her for a second time because of Vanessa. The first lie was about the video she made of her and Vanessa. Now, she lied about not taking Vanessa's side over Chanel's. Business was definitely a priority for Candy. But sometime between when Vanessa first made her cum and the last time Vanessa made her laugh, she had become Candy's top priority. Unlike Vera, Vanessa was someone Candy could talk to about a range of topics, and she enjoyed her presence even when they weren’t having sex. The work week at the shop had given all of the employee’s time together to bond. But what Candy and Vanessa shared was something that exceeded what the rest of the women shared with Candy.

  Candy left Chanel and walked inside of her office then locked the door. Her first sight was Vanessa's butt. She was bending down lacing her sneakers. Candy's nipples instantly got hard. She stepped over to Vanessa and hugged her from behind, as Vanessa rose. Her hands explored Vanessa's breasts.

  Vanessa let out a slight moan, as Candy began sucking her neck. “Feels so good,” Vanessa whispered. She began fingering herself and stimulating her clit at the same time.

  Candy's tongue rolled into Vanessa's ear. “Damn, you taste good,” Candy mumbled, as Vanessa fingered
herself quicker, moaning louder by the second. Candy slipped her hands underneath Vanessa's shirt and began gently caressing her breasts.

  “Ahhh,” Vanessa moaned with pleasure.

  Candy could feel Vanessa's body sink back, her knees buckling and her legs wobbling. She held Vanessa up, as she let out an extended moan while she came.

  Vanessa slowly turned around, finding Candy coming out of all of her clothes. She slipped her tongue into Candy's mouth. Vanessa back peddled, as Candy led her to the couch.

  “Sit down,” Candy instructed. Vanessa complied. Candy laid her back and spread her legs. She sat facing Vanessa. Slowly she inched toward Vanessa and slid one of her legs between Vanessa's.

  Vanessa moved forward until their wet pussies were touching.

  “Yeah,” Candy instinctively responded to the tingling sensation that jolted from between her legs throughout her body.

  Candy and Vanessa began grinding their pussies together. Their bodies sensually swerved together like a couple dancing to reggae music. They were panting and moaning harder and louder until they climaxed simultaneously.

  Candy laid back, her eyes closed. She had come so hard that she did not have the energy to move. She sat still until Vanessa began to sit up. “You wore me out,” she told Vanessa.

  Vanessa wiped the wetness between Candy's legs, and then reached up and began stimulating Candy's nipples.

  “Don't start me back up,” Candy warned.

  Vanessa leaned over and kissed Candy, before lying on top of her.

  Candy slowly caressed Vanessa's butt, staring into her eyes.

  “How far would you go to please me?” Vanessa asked.

  “I'll suck your pussy 'till you come right in the middle of Times Square,” Candy said, laughing.

  “Stop playing.” Vanessa kissed her, then ran her hands through Candy's hair. She gently sucked on Candy's neck for a second, before planting kisses on her neck and cheek. She gazed back into Candy's eyes while stroking her hair. “I'm serious. How far would you go to please me?”

  “You know it's no limits between us.”

  Vanessa stared at her for a few seconds. “None?”