Careful of the Company You Keep by Angie Daniels Read Free Book Online Page A

getting back with him. I’ve left him messages. Dropped by his mother’s house, but he never responds to any of my advances. I know after five months it’s time for me to try and move on, but it’s hard.
    I reached in the back of my closet looking for something to wear. I hadn’t been out in months and it was definitely time for me to get out of the house. With Ron and Portia both gone, unless I was spending time with Calvin, I was usually bored and lonely. Yep, I was definitely ready to get a drink. Who knows, maybe I’ll meet someone new tonight to take Ron off my mind.
    Yeah, right.
    In a small town like Columbia, Missouri, there wasn’t anyone worth meeting because chances were they had already gone through half the skanks in town. And after my breakup with Ron, I wasn’t sure if I was ready to handle another thug just yet. Right now I needed a dependable, no-stress relationship, and that was Calvin.
    Speaking of Calvin . . . I glanced over at the clock. He was prompt and should be calling just about . . . now. I reached over and grabbed the phone before the second ring.
    â€œHello, may I please speak to Danielle?”
    I rolled my eyes. He knew good and damn well I was the only one living in the house. I didn’t know why he always tried to act all professional and shit. Sometimes it pissed me off so much.
    â€œHey, Calvin. How’s the conference?”
    â€œLong and boring.” He’s a university police officer and was in California attending a CSI training seminar. “I can’t wait to get back and hold you.”
    I smiled. “Me either.”
    â€œWhat do you have planned this weekend?”
    â€œMe and the girls are going out tonight.”
    â€œDon’t have too much fun,” he warned with laughter in his voice.
    â€œI won’t. Are you doing anything fun tonight?”
    â€œMe and a couple of the boys are going out and Regina’s tagging along.”
    I chuckled. Regina was the new administrative assistant in the department and had a mad crush on Calvin. “Maybe I need to be worried about you being in Cali with another woman,” I teased.
    â€œSweetheart, you don’t have to worry. There’s only one woman for me.” His voice sounded sexy as hell. “I can’t wait to get back on Sunday. I hope you’re ready.”
    â€œReady for what?” I asked as if I didn’t already know.
    â€œYou know what.”
    I chuckled. “I’ll be ready.”
    â€œGood. I’ll call you tomorrow, love.”
    â€œOkay.”
    Calvin was such a nice guy. And so faithful that I never had to worry about him messing around. Regina didn’t have a chance in hell of taking my man from me. Damn, if only I could love him the way he deserved. We’ve been together over six months and I’m crazy about him and the sex is good, but my feelings for him are nothing like what I felt for Ron. If I could feel like that with Calvin, I would have the perfect man. I wanted that heart-stopping, can’t-be-without-my-man feeling that I used to have. I like a man who knows the streets and doesn’t have a problem telling me what he wants in and out of bed. I’m not sure if anything other than a thug would ever do. Some people saw it as a problem. I saw it as simply having a preference.

6
    Renee
    Tonight was not at all like I had planned. Kayla didn’t want to go out because she was going to spend the evening with her fiancé, and Nadine and Jordan were too busy making baby plans. What the fuck! Couldn’t either of them put their lovers aside for just one night so that the four of us could hang out for old times’ sake, but noooo, and I had to go out with Danielle by my damn self. I knew the minute I told her the other two weren’t going what club she was going to pick.
    Athena’s.
    I can’t stand that place, but without my cheering team to back me up, it was either go with her or