Free Wild Cherry by K'wan

Gemstar glistening between her teeth. Reluctantly I gave her the signal, and the razor disappeared back into her mouth.
    â€œWhat’s up, girl?” Jackie ran his hands down her sides and slapped her on the ass in front of everybody. Her face turned beet-red, but she took it like a champ. “You look good than a muthafucka tonight.”
    â€œThanks, baby.” She mustered a smile, but I wasn’t fooled. Jackie was a snake, and he smelled of it.
    â€œWhat’s up, Jackie?” Randy spoke up. From the look in his eyes, I could tell he didn’t care for Mr. Jackie either.
    â€œHow are we supposed to sell liquor if there ain’t nobody manning the bar to serve the customers?” was Jackie’s reply.
    â€œSasha will be okay for a few minutes while I talk to my sister,” Randy said.
    â€œMore like gossiping,” Jackie said. “I don’t pay Sasha to run the bar—that’s your job.”
    â€œIt’s okay, Jackie. He just came over to talk to me for a few,” Gina interjected. When I saw the way he looked at her, I knew he was about to clown, so I tried to bow out before the bullshit popped.
    â€œGina, I’m about to get outta here. Are you good?” I asked her. Without even looking in his direction, I could feel Jackie’s eyes undressing me.
    â€œYeah, thanks, Princess.” Gina hugged me. When she held me, she held me close. Not like the embrace of a lover, but that of someone who really needed a hug. If you asked me, I couldn’t tell you if it was more for my benefit or hers.
    â€œAnd who is this?” Jackie asked. He didn’t even have the common decency to hide the lust in his eyes as he looked me up and down like his wife wasn’t even standing there. Slim wasn’t the most loyal nigga, but even his balls weren’t that big.
    â€œJackie, this is an old friend of mine. Princess, this is my husband, Jackie.” Gina made the introductions like the good little wife, while his mistresses eyed me with contempt. I returned their glares with equal venom, because unlike Gina, I was well skilled in disorderly conduct.
    â€œPrincess—” The way he said my name made my skin crawl, but I kept it easy for the sake of my friend. “—what’s good with you, ma?”
    â€œNot a damn thing,” I said very seriously. “Gina”—I gave Jackie my back, which probably only made it worse—“after I get dressed, I’ll come back over and give you my number. Randy—” I gave him another hug, more out of assurance that he had an ally than from necessity. “—I’ll see you in a few because I can already tell I’m gonna need a stiff drink.”
    â€œWe’ve got the stiffest in town.” Jackie tried to get fly.
    I peeped Tashee about to say something crazy, so I cut it short. “It was nice meeting you, Jackie,” I said, leading Tashee by the hand into the club. As an afterthought, I looked back at the girls Jackie had come in with, who were still staring at us, and capped, “Bum-ass bitches.”
    *   *   *
    By the time I’d donned my heels and thong, the place had started to fill up. The part-time hustlers had pretty much ran through their paper, making way for the cats that were a little more ’bout it, but there still wasn’t a Willy in sight except for Jackie, and he was off-limits. I did a lot of foul shit in my day, but Gina was like family.
    I watched my long-lost homegirl for a good part of the night while she put up the farce of the happy housewife/business partner. She greeted the guests with smiles and settled disputes between the girls before they could escalate. For all outward appearances, she seemed focused, but I knew that inside, her heart was crumbling. I could never grasp why men never cherished the good women in their lives, but Jackie was twice as stupid as the rest of them. From what I remembered of