“Why? I don’t want any of them. Wanda, I love you.”
“I know that, Nick, but I just don’t understand for the life of me why you have to chat up every half-naked tramp in the club.”
Wanda knew it wouldn’t be like that if Nick took over the game. Other than a few working girls, and the occasional poker player, there wouldn’t be many women to throw themselves at him. Her only issue was that if he took over the game, he would still be out at night. That meant that she would still never see him unless she posted up there every night.
It was a quarter past nine when the hostess escorted Bobby to the table. “Thank you, honey,” Bobby said and handed the attractive hostess a twenty. “And if you don’t mind, beautiful, would you send our waiter, please,” he said as he sat down.
“I would be happy to,” the woman said and slipped the bill in her pocket.
“You’re very pretty,” Bobby said watching the hostess as she turned and walked away.
Wanda shook her head. “Aren’t you still married?”
“Pam and I have an understanding,” Bobby said and continued to watch the hostess. She waved to him when she turned and noticed that he was watching her.
“What understanding is that?”
“She understands that if she isn’t gonna give me any pussy that somebody is,” Bobby said and continued to flirt with the hostess.
“Whatever. You still don’t have to be all out in the open with it.”
“What’s the matter; you afraid that I’m a bad influence on Nick?”
Wanda looked Bobby in the eye. “Yes.”
“Nick is a grown man.”
“Excuse me,” Nick interrupted. “Nick is sitting right here and can speak for himself.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that,” Wanda said. But she meant what she said. “I just liked you better when you didn’t cheat on your wife.”
At one point, Bobby was a devoted married man and a good father to his four children. That changed when he met a dancer named Cat. It began shortly after Black left for the Bahamas with Cassandra and Freeze had taken over running the organization. Wanda thought that Freeze was running the organization into the ground and told Bobby that he needed to be more active in the business. He met Cat one night while he was at Cynt's.
She was dressed in a black cat suit with a small tail and mask to match. Bobby watched her as she approached somebody at the bar and started talking. “Who is that?” Bobby asked Freeze that night.
“That’s Cat. She just started workin’ here a couple of weeks ago. Cynt says words can’t describe the way she dances. Said it’s something you just have to experience.”
“I’d be interested to see,” Bobby said.
“I can arrange that,” Freeze said. “Yo, Cat!”
Cat excused herself from the person she was talking to and came to see what Freeze wanted. “What’s up, Freeze?”
“Cat, I want you to meet somebody. This is-”
“Bobby Ray,” Cat said as she stepped closer to Bobby. “I’ve been wantin’ to meet you for a long time.”
“Really? And why is that?” Bobby asked.
“Because powerful men turn me on,” Cat said and grabbed his hand. Freeze laughed as he watched Cat lead Bobby upstairs to the private rooms.
That’s how it began and it went on until Cat started monopolizing more of Bobby’s time and began calling Pam to boast about it. Another woman calling the house talkin’ shit to her about her husband was absolutely unacceptable to Pam, and she was forced to take steps to put an end to the affair. Ultimately, her solution caused Pam to have a nervous breakdown.
Bobby got help for her and checked her into a private clinic and then moved his children to a house close to the clinic so Pam could see their children everyday while she recovered. When Pam came home she was feeling like herself again, but she refused to have sex with Bobby.
“I thought that since she was feeling better, and since the two of you seemed to have moved past all that stuff, that you and her were-” Wanda said.
“I thought she would too, but she said she can’t. She said that she understands that I’m a man and I have needs,” Bobby laughed. “Just show her respect and keep it away from her and the kids.” Bobby picked up the menu.
“Well, if you don’t mind, put me on that list of people you keep it away from.”
Bobby turned to Nick. “Where’s Mike?”
“I thought he was coming with you?”
“Ain’t no tellin’ what time he’s gonna get here then,” Wanda added. “Why he has somebody driving for him that don’t know where anything is, is still a mystery to me.”
“We’re on 42-nd Street. How hard could this place be to find?” Nick asked.
“Kevon used to drive him around in the Bahamas and Mike trusts him. That’s good enough for me,” Bobby said.
“It oughta be, since it was your bright idea for him to have a driver,” Wanda said.
“Only question is, how long we gonna wait for him?” Nick asked. “I’m hungry.”
“You're always hungry,” Bobby said as their waiter arrived at the table.
“Are you ready to order?”
“We’re still waiting on one more person,” Wanda informed the waiter.
“Bring me a Remy Martin on the rocks,” Bobby ordered.
“I’ll have another Johnny Black,” Nick added. “I think we should go on and order.”
“Go ahead. I’ll order something for Mike,” Wanda said.
Bobby put down his menu. “What do you recommend?”
“I highly recommend the saffron-spiked lobster ravioli. The signature black truffle mac and cheese was served on season one of Bravo’s ‘Top Chef.’ It’s a tasty blend of black truffles; brandy and fontina slow-cooked with fresh thyme and oregano. The oversized scallops are doused in a buttery pool of vanilla bean cream. And our roasted salmon is served with a sweet sherry brandy glaze. All of those are excellent.”
The trio gave the waiter their orders and he left them. They talked about the business at hand while they waited for Black to get there. He arrived at the table just as the food was being served.
“Sorry I’m late. We had a run to make, and on the way here Kevon went the wrong way on the Major Deegan and then we got stuck in traffic on the Cross Bronx,” Black said and sat down. “Did you order me something?”
“I got you the smokey-rubbed filet mignon,” Wanda replied as the server placed a plate of veggie pasta in front of her. Nick had the Chilean sea bass, while Bobby opted for the hoisin amp; cider pork tenderloin.
“What's that you havin’?” Black asked Wanda.
“Veggie pasta.”
“You shoulda got me that, but this is cool.”
While they enjoyed their meal, Wanda went over the state of their business. First she went over the legitimate business, telling her partners how strong profits were and gave a very optimistic outlook for the future. However, when she went into the state of their gambling operations, the report was not as good.
“So what you’re sayin’ is money is down across the board?” Bobby asked.
“That’s exactly what I’m saying,” Wanda said and took a sip of her drink.
“What are you really sayin’, Wanda?” Black asked.
“What do you mean?”
“Stop it, Wanda,” Bobby said. “You know exactly what he’s askin’ you. If you been in his ear, like you been in mine, all I can say is I feel sorry for you, Nick.”
Wanda looked around the table, and slowly the corners of her lips curled into a smile. “What?” her smile turned to laughter.
“Go ahead and say it, Wanda. You think we need to get out,” Black said without looking at her while he cut his filet. “I mean, that is why you got us all together to tell us the same shit you’ve been tellin’ all of us individually for months. Or did you just want to go out to dinner?”
“He’s right.” Nick turned to Wanda. “You have been beatin’ us all over the head with that club.”
“Traitor. I’ll deal with you later,” Wanda whispered to Nick. “Yes, I think we should consider it seriously. Or at least we all could discuss it.”