When A Woman Hustles, Danielle Martin [books to read in your 20s .TXT] 📗

Chapter 6.

Reese examined herself in the full length mirror as she did a full 360 turn examining her outfit. She wore a pair of boot cut black skinny leg pants and a black turtle neck shirt that clung to her neck. She pulled her hair back in a full ponytail making sure to slick the edges back as she twirled around in the mirror a second time. Reese stopped to stare at her ridiculous outfit wondering why the hell Pumpkin requested she dress in all black tonight.  She glanced at the clock. 5:57 pm. Pumpkin should be pulling up outside at any moment. Reese nervously cracked her knuckles, suddenly becoming nervous as the time got closer. She had been exchanging text messages with Pumpkin for about an hour. One thing Reese was beginning to learn, Pumpkin was extremely discreet and cautious about releasing any information over the phone. Typically, she kept things short and still had not given any insight on the job description. Reese took a deep breath as she attempted to rid herself of this anxiety. Whatever it was Pumpkin had up her sleeve, it couldn’t have been that bad. There was no way that woman would give away $1500.00 dollars if she wasn't running a legit business. Reese made a poor attempt at convincing herself. She hoped Jayla wasn’t right. 
Reese jumped as she felt her cellphone buzz in her back pocket. Darting over, she rushed to the bedroom window and peeked out the blinds. Indeed, she examined a car parallel parked outside her driveway. She took a deep breath as she realized that this was real and Pumpkin actually showed up. Thankfully Jayla wasn’t home to question her. She was working the night shift at the hospital so she wouldn’t be here all night. Fishing her phone out her back pocket, Reese cleared her throat before she answered the line. "Hello?" 
"I'm outside." Pumpkin answered.
Reese's heart thumped out of her chest as she clutched the phone in the palm of her hand. "OK. I'm coming out now."
"Okay." The line disconnected. Reese took another deep breath. Her heart rate quickened. Reese had anxiety issues for as long as she could remember. Right now her stress level was at an all-time high. Shutting off all the lights in her bedroom, Reese headed out the door down the hallway and towards the front. There was no turning back now. She had jumped head first into the deep end without knowing if could swim. Opening the front door, Reese stuck her foot out stepping onto the porch. She locked the door behind her and trotted across the driveway towards the car. Reese hoped her anxiety wasn't obvious as she approached the vehicle. A candy apple red 2015 Infiniti Q50 Hybrid Sport sat in her driveway. She stared in awe for a moment as she stopped in front of the vehicle. The paint job glistened underneath the street light.. Reese couldn’t help but admire the rum of the V6 engine. This is my dream car. She spoke to herself inside her head. One day.

She reached for the handle to get in. Sliding in to the car, she was immediately greeted by a Burberry fragrance floating throughout the enclosed space. Reese dropped down into the passenger seat and shut the door behind her. She looked over at Pumpkin and greeted her with a nervous smile. Her smile faded as her eyes immediately fell down to Pumpkin's outfit. She was fully dressed. Her makeup was perfectly contoured and blended, her lips pressed with a chocolate brown matte lipstick. Her ginger red curls fell over her shoulder, giving her a dramatic super model look to match with her exquisite jewelry. She was stunning. But what was the occasion???

Pumpkin smiled while greeting her. "Hey girl." 
"Hi" Reese responded in a dry tone. She couldn’t help but notice the elegant black dress Pumpkin was wearing which glittered in sequin sparkles. Her diamond bracelet matched her diamond necklace and earrings. Her outfit probably cost a fortune. 
 After allowing her to settle in the passenger seat, Pumpkin pulled off and headed down the street. They drove in silence for a moment. Neither Pumpkin nor Reese spoke as they pulled out of her apartment complex. 
"Nice car." Reese broke the silence as they cruised down the street.

Pumpkin smirked while glancing over at her then looking back at the road. "Thanks. You like it?" She asked.

Reese nodded her head. "Yep. It's alright." 
Pumpkin laughed, hinting the annoyance in her voice. "I saw your Honda civic in the driveway. What is that a 1998?"
Reese rolled her eyes, hoping this girl wasn't being shady. "A 1994." she responded.
Pumpkin threw her head back and laughed, her shoulders bouncing up and down as she chuckled. Reese shot her a crazy look.  "Damn girl, that car is over 20 years old. I know it has about 300,000 miles." Pumpkin continued to rag on her as she laughed.
Reese didnt laugh. She rolled her eyes again. She hated for people to make her feel as if they were better than her. She examined Pumpkin’s outfit a second time, questioning whether or not this girl was making her look foolish on purpose. Pumpkin's outfit was stunning from head to toe while Reese on the other hand looked ridiculous. "I don’t give a shit about that car." She persisted, wanting to get off the subject.
Pumpkin chuckled again while letting down both windows. Air circulated throughout the enclosed space which is exactly what she needed right now. "Looking like that, I wouldn’t give a shit about that car either." Reaching forward, Pumpkin ran her fingertips across the leather dashboard. "A vehicle like this is one that you cherish."
Reese took a moment to think about everything Jayla said earlier. She shook her head, hoping she wasn’t making a huge mistake. "Maybe. Someday." Reese turned her head to gaze out the window, her mind falling into deep thought. The ride grew quiet once again. Pumpkin broke the silence. "You’re thinking too far ahead.” She glanced over at Reese who stared longingly out the window. "I hope you’re enjoying the ride… because this is your car now Reese."
Silence. Reese could feel her body freeze. She paused, her heart beating rapidly. She didn't make any sudden movements. What did she just say???There’s no way. No way. No way. She chanted inside her head. She’s playing a cruel joke. This is a dream. This could not be real life. She slowly looked over at Pumpkin, who continued to drive while staring straight forward. Her expression did not change. "What did you just say??" Reese asked out loud, feeling as if she breathed the wrong way it would wake her up from this dream "Please come again??" she asked for reassurance.
Pumpkin laughed. "You heard me correct Reese. I know it sounds unbelievable, but this is real honey. This is your new car." Pumpkin smiled at her. Reese felt her body tremble in anxiety as her eyes traveled around the inside of the Infinity. If this was a dream, she didn’t want to wake up from it. She jolted forward, her ass on the edge of her seat. "Pumpkin, this is not my car!" Reese was in complete denial. No one ever brought her anything yet alone done anything for her at all. She closed her eyes, hoping Pumpkin wasn’t playing with her emotions.

“You don’t want it?" Pumpkin continued to laugh, clearly amused by her shock.  

"Pumpkin." Reese repeated her name again. Her bottom lip trembled as she felt herself overcome with emotions. "Please don't do this to me. It’s not funny."  Reese felt like a fool as tears brimmed in the corner of her eyes. She used her index finger to catch a teardrop that slid down the side of her cheek... "Please don’t play with my feelings like this. My heart can’t take it." Reese sniffled as she attempted to pull herself together.
Pumpkin stopped laughing, her expression turning serious. They stopped at a red light, giving her enough time to turn and scold her. "Have I still not proven to you how serious I am? Why do you think this is a game?" she asked. 
Reese grew quiet as she mustered up a response. She couldn’t help it. Reese had grown so used to the bottom, she had no idea what it felt like to make a come up. She was in denial. Her mind wandered as she began to think about her Honda Civic which she had been driving faithfully for 9 years. She wanted to get rid of that car so bad, but never had the money to do so. She could not come to terms with a new car. This was not possible.

 "What are you going to drive?" she asked, her hands shaking in the center of her lap.

 Pumpkin shrugged her shoulders. "This car has been sitting in my garage for 6 months collecting dust. I never drive it. I have a range rover. I’m good."
Reese continued to stare with her mouth open. This is real. This is not a dream. "I can’t believe it.” She stammered.
Pumpkin continued.  "I told you I’m going to take care of you. I can’t have you riding behind me in no beat up Honda. From this point on, you’re a representation of me now."
Reese was still in shock, having an out of body experience as she nodded her head. All she could do was nod. She was at a loss for words. Everything was happening so sudden and so fast, it was surreal.
"Now that we have gotten that out the way,” Pumpkin interrupted her thoughts as she continued. “We need to talk about tonight’s job." Pumpkin finally mentioned the job that she had yet to speak anything about. Reese could feel her body stiffen as she turned to her. She was itching to know what it was she really had to do for this car. There was no way it would he handed over that easy. "I’m listening." Reese responded, fully attentive.

Pumpkin waited a few moments before responding. "I don’t need you to do much tonight. That’s why I asked you to dress very simple."
Reese already knew there was a reason behind her plain dress code but had no idea what that reason was.

"So what do you need from me?" she hesitated as she asked. Moment of truth.
Pumpkin pressed her lips together. Approaching the street, she made a right onto international drive, a very popular street in downtown Baltimore. The inner harbor. Reese didn’t know much about the area. The harbor was an upscale neighborhood. Only the rich and wealthy lingered in areas like the harbor. Reese looked around absorbing her surroundings. Large buildings decorated each corner cascading into the sky. She seldom came to this side of town and always felt out of place when she did. "Where are we going?" Reese asked, becoming curious.
Pumpkin answered calmly. "The four seasons hotel."
Reese was confused. She was a hood chick from the ghetto. She didn’t belong here. "What are we going to do at a hotel??" she asked, becoming anxious all over again. Pumpkin continued to drive towards the four seasons making Reese feel uneasy as she hesitated answering her questions. In seconds, they approached the glass-fronted building that sat right on the edge of the water. Reese had never seen the hotel up close and it was a lot bigger than the pictures. Pumpkin pulled the car into an open parking space on the side of the hotel. Reese continued to stare her down, waiting for an explanation.
"This is what I need you