Roadhouse of Love

When the bus docked in Baltimore...The Roadhouse was not what anyone expected. It was called.."The Roadhouse" Ironically enough and it was a wooden free standing restaraunt with wooden picnic like tables inside and a rough looking wooden bar on the inside.

"Hey Gus..you gotta be kiddin man...we paid sixty dollars for this." Snorted Lawyer Conrad.

"Wait til you taste the food my man..you'll see, you'll see that
the price was more than worth it."laughed Gus.

Gus looked at Kevin,Sepia, Cock Robbins and Vanessa and said -

"Don't worry, the food is good...Everybody that comes here says
the same thing..that it looks like a dump, but after they eat here,
they ask me when they can come back." laughed the old man.

Mabel, Cora Beth, Clerow ,Anita and Victoria were used to such Roadhouses..called "Juke Joints"
in Louisiana , where they were from...so there was no culture shock for them, Unlike Paris,Blake,
their girlfriends , Sean ,Sheila,Conrad and Jill and even Deacon Larry Weatherford.

Honey Brown could care less about the decor or lack of it in the roadhouse..she kept looking at how much Carlton was checking out Anita. He would sneak a look at her and then smile when she caught him.. At first she would smile back...but when Honey was around...She was always careful not to give him eye contact..She really didn't want any trouble. She didn't know how long she was going to be up north..the last thing she wanted was to get wrapped up in some guy that she might not see again. Yet he was very attractive to her and his swagger and attitude turned her on in a way that no guy had turned her on in a long while. Why were all the guys like him taken ? Worse still why were they all such rogues? She shook her head in bemusement.

As the small crowd of people ambled into the Roadhouse...Clerow told CoraBeth to get them a seat and he motioned Mabel over to the side.. Mabel told her man to get them both a seat and said that she would only be a minute.

"What you want Clerow?" said Mabel.

"Look girl, I caint keep this in much longer, I think we have unfinished business."said Clerow.

"We aint got no business Clerow..whatever business we had is long concluded." said Mabel.

"Mabel, I -I-I think about you all the time..even times when I aint supposed to..and I just can't
help myself. ,and you know, you never did give me a chance to properly apologize for what I
did..I'm so sorry I ever hurt you." said Clerow.

"Clerow..I been done forgave you..but you married to my sister now...my sister who I love more than life and I would never do nothin to hurt her...You're the father of my neice..Aren't you happy?" asked Mabel.

"Yes ,I am...I love Cora Beth, I swear I do...but I love you too...I can't deny that...and I know
you feel somethin for me too...you can't tell me that you don't." said Clerow.

"No ,Clerow..I love you cause you family now..you my brother in law..and that's as far as it goes..
I mean it." said Mabel who unknown to Clerow was on the verge of tears herself.

"Alright Mabel...but it hurts me..it hurts me just to see you sometimes." Said Clerow.

"Then don't look boo...don't look...it'll stop hurtin you after awhile.." said Mabel, who then ran inside. She was about to cry and she just could not do that in front of Clerow.

Clerow walked inside by himself , where Cora Beth had gotten them a nice seat and she said to her husband-

"Hey I got us a nice seat...You alright Clerow?"

"Yeah honey bunch...I'm just fine." he said.

Meanwhile, Carlton found a jukebox... He played "Love Lockdown" by Kanye West... He saw Anita walking towards a table..

"That's my jawn..you like Kanye ,baby?" he asked.

"I aint yo baby...an yes I like Kanye West." said Anita.

"You aint yet...but I aint started to work my magic yet" laughed Carlton.

"Magic, oh that's what you call it? Okay..." said Anita.

"Go on and laugh...I'm gone have you making me pancakes one mornin.."he said..

"Ouuuuu, you talk a lot of smack Philly boy...I might make you cry..." she smirked...

"Hurt me, hurt me baby." laughed Carlton...

"There go yo woman...you better ask her to hurt you." laughed Anita, not really wanting him to go ,but realizing he had to..She rather liked the playful banter between them.

"Why you always sniffin around that heifer?" snapped Honey Brown..

'Why you trippin? You don't own me.. You act like I'm yo man or somethin." snapped Carlton.

"You was actin like you was my man when you was in my bed, gruntin and sweatin the other night." snapped Honey Brown.

"Quiet ,people is lookin." said Carlton.

"I don't give a damn about who lookin...let em look at this .." snapped Honey Brown, who hauled off and punched Carlton in his eye..knocking him to the floor... Heads turned..Mabel, her man,
Sean, Sheila, Cock Robbins, Vanessa, Conrad, Jill, Paris, Blake and their girlfriends, Kevin, Sepia
Clerow, Cora Beth and most importantly Anita....She couldn't hold back her impulse to laugh.

Carlton was clearly embarrassed... Gus grabbed Honey Brown...

"What the hell is wrong with you? We come here to have a good time,
now don't go startin no shit.." he snapped.

"I aint gon start none Gus..I think I just finished some."
she laughed and took her seat..

Cock Robbins, Kevin and Clerow helped Carlton up...Most of the females who witnessed it were snickering...but the men weren't..They all knew that that could have happened to any one of them. Carlton's pride was hurt more than anything else...He was embarrassed that Anita had seen him get decked..He couldn't face her ever again.

(To be continued....)