Carl Weber Presents Full Figured 6: Plus Size Divas Read online

  “It seems like we are never under the same roof anymore, except when we are sleeping, and we haven’t made love in ages.”

  “Stop exaggerating, Erika. You are always over-dramatic. I promise I’ll make it up to you. Our anniversary is coming up in a few weeks, maybe we could leave town for a few days and stay at that bed and breakfast you love so much in Savannah.”

  “I would like that.”

  Edward took good care of me. I was never lacking in new clothes, expensive jewelry, designer purses and shoes. Edward spoiled his wife and I loved every minute of it.

  “It’s a plan then, baby.”

  I listened closely to his words and tried to determine if he was telling me the truth or trying to pacify me for the moment.

  “Are you there? Erika?”

  “Yeah, I’m here.”

  “I love you, baby, but I have to run. This won’t last forever. Be patient.”

  “I made you dinner, all your favorites. Steak, baked potato, salad.”

  “It sounds wonderful. Put a plate in the microwave and I’ll eat when I get home.”

  I knew he wouldn’t. Edward would be so tired that all he would manage to do was take a hot shower and crash. He wouldn’t have the energy to ask about my day or spend any time with me.

  “What time do you think you’ll get in?” I asked.

  The line was silent.

  “Hello. Hello, Edward.”

  All I heard was the dial tone. He had hung up; had dismissed me. I was so angry that I jumped up and dumped the entire meal in the trash can and sulked on the sofa, staring at the TV but not really watching the reality show that was on. This was the third time this had happened within the last two weeks.

  Edward’s hours appeared to get longer after a new employee started working in his office. Bella was his new assistant and I didn’t trust her with those short skirts and low-cut blouses she wore. She couldn’t fool me. She wanted my man, and who wouldn’t? Edward had it all. He was the perfect catch.

  I picked up the phone and quickly dialed my husband’s direct line and just as I thought, Bella answered with her disgustingly sweet voice. I quickly hung up the phone and threw it back down on the sofa. They were working late, together.

  I was so mad that I didn’t know what to do. Tonight I had planned to bring up the possibility of us adopting a baby. He had mentioned it before, but I wasn’t open to adoption until now. I realized if I could give him a baby boy, our marriage could get back on track and I wanted that more than anything. Edward and I had simply hit a detour in the road called life. It happened. As weeks flew by, we never really had the opportunity to discuss adoption. We came and went as strangers. Edward was always at the office; he might as well have taken his bed down there, and Bella was always at the office. My peers started to whisper and look at me with sad, pitying eyes.

  When we were together, Edward was distant. I realized it was only a matter of time before he left me for her. Edward couldn’t love two women. Believe it or not, he was loyal and noble. I couldn’t allow him to leave me. I just couldn’t. It wasn’t fair. I calculated a plan in my head and prepared to carry it out with clarity.

  I gave myself a weekend to accomplish my mission. Let’s just say it all started and ended with food. Meals laced with arsenic, basically undetectable.

  Edward did suffer, but I comforted him and nursed him through the entire ordeal. If I couldn’t have him, no one could or would. I never figured out if he realized what was happening to him, probably not. He was in too much pain, in and out of consciousness. I nursed him, played the good wife, told him how much I loved him and how happy I was with him, until recently. I believed he knew. I apologized for sometimes being nagging, controlling, and clingy. I explained how that still wasn’t a reason to run into another woman’s arms while you were married.

  As he took his last torturous breath, I realized I was finished with love and men and relationships. They were too much trouble and too much work. After I managed to cremate his body so that the coroner couldn’t examine it and discover the poison, life went on. It was curious that a few weeks after Edward’s death, Bella came into the office with a huge diamond ring and announced her engagement to a long-time boyfriend. A month later, I also received a check, the payout to the life insurance policy that Edward had taken out with me as the beneficiary. Even in death, my man was looking out for me. I was able to start over. Yet again. I was safe. I was undiscovered. My luck hadn’t run out; I had the luck of the Irish because I always seemed to land on my feet when bad circumstances occurred. Eventually, I started over with Last Chance.

  Now, I had the chance to prove to myself that I could find true and lasting love. Lance was different, I was different now and I was sure we could make it work. I was giddy with the possibilities.

  Lance Anthony

  Chapter 37

  “Man, I can’t believe you are going through with this,” my nephew, Jacob, shared.

  I stared at the phone for a few seconds as if I could see him through it.

  “Believe it,” I said firmly. “There’s no turning back now. That bitch won’t know what hit her when I’m through with her.”

  “She’s pretty sharp. I’m surprised she hasn’t suspected anything yet.”

  “Why would she? We never met before now and even if Edward mentioned me in the past, he would have referred to me as Anthony. That’s what everyone from the old neighborhood knows me by, not Lance.”

  “True dat.”

  “She’s going to get a dose of her own medicine, literally.”

  Jacob chuckled. “She has some sweet pussy though, Unc. You sure I can’t hit it one more time?”

  “You just stay put until I need you. You have plenty of jump-offs who can satisfy your needs in Chicago.”

  “You know I got your back. That’s what family and blood does. Just call and I’m there.”

  “Ms. Ericka Kane won’t know what hit her when I’m finished with her. She mistakenly thought she could murder my half brother, Edward, and get away with it.”

  “She did get away with it. Some people did believe her bogus story that he was sick with flu-like symptoms and simply passed away a few days later,” Jacob shared.

  “Yeah, she pulled the wool over a lot of people’s eyes and she’s good, too. She covered her tracks well with the cremation because she should be sitting in federal prison, but she’s going to discover that I’m smarter and much more ruthless. I’m going to enjoy this.”

  “Do you think she really offed the other two husbands because the authorities couldn’t prove it? That’s a bad bitch if she did.”

  “Who knows, and I really don’t care. I just want street justice for my brother. He didn’t deserve what she served up to him. Edward was always too weak, that’s why he had to leave Chicago and distance himself from us. He wanted to go legit. He didn’t have the stomach or the heart for our criminal lifestyle of drug trafficking and illegal gambling, but I loved him nevertheless. He was blood and I am my brother’s keeper.”

  “Erika comes across as a do-gooder, everyone says she does a lot of charitable work in the community and her local church. You would never suspect she’s a black widow, Unc.”

  “That’s her cover and she wears it well,” I said. “Living large off the blood of my brother in that big house and thriving salon with no shame. I honestly believe, in her mind, she has talked herself into believing that Edward did die from an illness. In some ways, I can’t figure her out. Psychopathic bitch.”

  “To be honest, Unc, I wasn’t so sure she would take the bait. She was cold as ice in the restaurant that first day I introduced myself to her. You should have seen how she acted like she didn’t need a man and I was beneath her. I thought maybe you had gotten it wrong, pegged her wrong, but then I stopped by a few nights later and she literally jumped my dick. Rode me like a pro. It was like she was a different person away from the prying eyes of her friends.”

  “You did well, son.”

  “I
was able to find out a little more personal info from talking with her friend, Nobia. That was a good idea to get to know her better. I guess it’s also good to know people in high places who can be paid off, because the copy of the file from the police investigation pretty much confirmed that they believed Erika had something to do with Edward’s death, but didn’t have any evidence which would stick.”

  “I know she did it and don’t need a police report to confirm it. I told you that a few months before he died, Edward reached out to me. We talked for hours, like the old days, and he told me that he was starting to wonder if there was some truth to the rumors about her previous husbands’ deaths. Evidently, Erika had been displaying irrational behavior; he felt like he didn’t know her anymore. And then he was gone.”

  “Like you said, we’ll dish out our own brand of justice,” Jacob said.

  “That we will, and as much as you’ve talked about that ass, you best believe I’m going to sample it several times before it’s all over. Don’t think I won’t have my fun, too. In fact, I’m looking forward to it. I’m going to enjoy taking my time and you know I’ve always been a very patient man.”

  “You are cold-blooded.” Jacob laughed.

  “My family is not to be played with. Vengeance is mine.”

  “Well, I’m here when you need me. I’m getting the house ready now. I’m on schedule and it’s almost secure.”

  “I know I can depend on you, Jacob. The family was disappointed when Edward decided to go in another direction because he was definitely the brain behind the family business, but I’m still my brother’s keeper. I swear to you, every time I look at that bitch I think about what she did to my brother, I want to kill her with my bare hands, but that’s too good for her. Erika has to suffer and suffer she will.”

  “Erika’s day is coming. It always does sooner or later,” Jacob said. “I can’t wait to see the expression on her face when she figures out the connection between you and Edward.”

  “Maybe I’ll reveal it to her as she is coming,” I said.

  I hung up with a smile on my face. I was looking forward to dispensing my own brand of justice on Ms. Erika Kane. She had finally met her match. Let the game begin.

  Oops! I Did It Again

  by Eric Pete

  Chapter 1

  Artemis

  I let my negligee straps fall lazily off my shoulders as I gazed down into his lustful eyes. Placing my hands on his muscled chest, I rose and plummeted with him as if he were the majestic ocean upon which I sailed. Along every inch of his I took, I made my ass clap like I’d seen in them videos, shuddering with more orgasms than a sister could count. I was enjoying myself so much that I almost had to remember to breathe.

  “Baby, are you all right?” I asked, acknowledging the sudden grimace that had crept onto Carlos’s face.

  It wasn’t a “fuck face.” I knew those all too well.

  “Yeah, Artie,” he said, using his pet name for me with just a hint of a gasp. “A little gas, s’all. Can’t eat spicy food like I used to,” he admitted with a grin lingering on his lovely full lips.

  I could kiss them all night long, but preferred when he was placing them on me.

  Crawfish were in season and earlier tonight, we’d had our fill of several pounds of the seasoned mudbugs along with corn and potatoes at Ragin Cajun on Westheimer. Our stomachs satisfied, we took our party just up the Sam Houston Tollway to City Centre to work on other cravings and desires.

  “All right. As long as you’re okay,” I said, resuming my grind atop him after his assurance. Carlos worked for HPD, particularly the division that patrolled this area of Houston. And that gave him the hookup here at Hotel Sorella, which we were enjoying tonight. With the lit candles filling our penthouse suite with traces of sweet vanilla, and Elle Varner’s melodic voice requesting a “Refillllllll,” I wasn’t about to let my nerves ruin the mood.

  Nah. Tonight was right. And here, having exquisite sex with my man, I was so right that I was wrong. Don’t make sense, huh? Well, just go with it.

  Carlos grunted, pumping me deliberately as he gripped my ample hips with his powerful fingers.

  “Mmm. More,” I ordered as firm, calloused hands felt over my body. Without warning, Carlos flipped me onto my back, startling me by his suddenness. That experience with taking down perps was paying off for me. Carlos loved a woman with some thickness and he was gladly showing me just how much, too. I was a plus-size woman, and not easy to handle, but he certainly showed and proved tonight.

  “Baby, you’re gonna make me not wanna leave. Ever,” he admitted in my ear as he smoothly worked about my middle, stemming my sweet honey tide with his dick’s steadfast hardness. As he stroked me right, I sang his name. For he gave me the refill the singer Elle Varner had been asking for again and again.

  Hate on, Elle. Hate on.

  Before long, Carlos had me begging him to stop as his pelvis bore down with steady, firm strokes.

  But when he really did stop, I wasn’t exactly thrilled with him.

  “Carlos? Wha . . .? What’s wrong, baby?” I panted as I opened my eyes.

  “My . . . my chest,” my chocolate god replied, suspended over me as he struggled to catch his breath.

  I frantically slid out from under him, then had Carlos sit up on the bed. He tried to stand while pounding his fist against his chest, but almost fell over. I caught him though and sat his ass right back down as I felt panic rising inside me.

  “Oh God! Oh God! What do you want me to do, baby? Do you need some water? Or fresh air? I knew we shouldn’t have ordered that last pound of crawfish!” I screamed more to myself while standing over him.

  His strength quickly fading, he managed to point toward the room phone on the other side of the bed and mouthed, “Call nine-one-one.”

  Before I could even grasp what Carlos was telling me, he gasped, then collapsed back onto the bed, motionless.

  “Oh shit! Oh shit! Oh shit!” I rambled as I scurried over him and got to the phone. I reached out and touched his sweaty forehead as I placed the receiver to my ear and pushed the button for the front desk. “Baby, it’s gonna be okay,” I said as calmly as I could just as somebody answered.

  “Front desk, how may I help you this evening?” the hotel operator cheerfully chimed like she’d been waiting all night for my call.

  “Please! Get an ambulance!” I pled while sobbing. “We need help! I . . . I think my boyfriend’s having a heart attack!”

  Chapter 2

  A Week Later

  “Whooo. You can do this, girl,” I said aloud as I checked myself in the rearview mirror. I’d gone shopping at Ross in Meyerland Plaza yesterday and bought this black outfit. It wasn’t snug by any means. I think it complemented my shape. But as I fidgeted in my seat, imagining flaws in my makeup, it suddenly felt tight and confining. Even though I’d done nothing wrong, all these police cars in the parking lot had me feeling like I’d stolen something. But in their eyes, maybe I had stolen something from them—their brother-in-arms.

  Y’see—Carlos suffered a massive heart attack that night we were together.

  He made it to the hospital that night, but only lasted ’til morning.

  Now, the viewing of his body was here on Reed Road in the Sunnyside neighborhood of Houston from which he hailed. I guess I was in mourning of some sort. But like everything in my life these days, this too was complicated.

  What had been sunny skies was now an overcast patchwork of gray clouds taunting me with the raindrops just beginning to pepper my windshield. I’d never live myself down if I punked out though. And if I ever had any feelings for Carlos, I had to show up and pay my respects. Debate and hand-wringing over, I got out my car and walked into the funeral home on Reed Road.

  Besides his fellow officers, other people who were obviously like family to Carlos paid their respects as well. Soft, comforting gospel music played in the background as I signed the guestbook in the lobby, trying my best to tune out the private conv
ersations and low wails escaping the mouths of family members I never got a chance to meet or know. It had only been a month since I first met Carlos, when he let me slide on a speeding ticket in exchange for my number. And with how my past marriage ended, we were kinda winging it, just being noncommittal and enjoying one another’s company. So much was left undiscovered between the two of us. In fact, one unknown turned out to be so much bigger than I expected.

  It was torture coming here under these circumstances. And I still didn’t know how I’d react when I saw him. Lord knows, the large framed portrait of Carlos in full dress uniform on display outside the viewing room had me choking up.

  Maybe if we hadn’t had sex that night. Maybe if I’d noticed his symptoms earlier. Maybe if I’d reacted quicker. But enough with beating myself up; what was done was done.

  As I took my first cautious steps inside the viewing room, two women, a mother and daughter, sprang to their feet from off a bench to my right and stormed over. Even to a complete stranger, their resemblance was uncanny. And I’d been expecting them.

  “You have some nerve coming here,” the older woman hissed as she stepped in front of me, looking ready to spit in my face.

  “I had to pay my respects,” I solemnly commented, not making eye contact so as to not go off on the mother for whom I still had respect.

  “By disrespecting me?” her daughter asked as she intentionally bumped against me. Her hands were trembling like she was thinking about doing something.

  Now her, I had no qualms about laying my hands on. “This ain’t about you, Anitra. Now excuse me,” I said, moving to gently push her aside.

  But she wasn’t having it. Despite being about forty pounds lighter, she bowed up. “But it is when that’s my man lying dead in that coffin! And you put him there, Artemis!” she growled a little too loudly, drawing everybody’s attention to us.

  Just great.

  I knew these two all too well; for they weren’t Carlos’s family.

  They were mine.