So I decided to add this instead of continuing My Life Would Suck- the motivation towards that story isn't there!

Book Twelve: Sweet Georgia Honey

By: KeshBeast

Fever

"Is there anything else you want?"

"Well, since you asked I wouldn't mind seeing you out of that dress."

"Mhm, would you now? How exactly would that benefit me?"

"MERCEDES!" Ann Jones shouted. "You ought to be ashamed of yourself walking out of the house looking like that!"

Mercedes groaned. "Jesus Christ moma, I am an adult! I can dress how I want!" She shouted back before turning back and smiling sweetly at the man in front of her.

"Don't use the Lord's name in vain, take ya little fast self in that house and find something to cover your ass!" Ann spat back.

"Why on Earth would I do that when it is ten thousand degrees out here!"

"Girl, don't make me go and get your daddy. Why are you still standing here?" Ann asked, looking directly at the man flirting with her daughter.

"Ah… I wanted to take her out on a date." He answered and Mercedes rolled her eyes.

"A date? And just who might you be to think you could go on a date with my child?" She asked, stepping closer and moving Mercedes out of the way. "What's your name?"

"Anthony… Anthony Rashad."

Ann narrowed her eyes at him before shaking her head. "You're Charlotte's oldest aren't you?"

"Yes ma'am." He answered smiling before wincing when he felt a shoe go across his head.

"YOU ARE A GROWN ASS MAN! THIS IS A CHILD!" Ann shouted as she continued to hit him with her shoe.

"MOMA! I AM GROWN!" Mercedes protested.

"That man wants to sleep with you!" Ann replied, grabbing Mercedes' arm and dragging her up the driveway.

"I want him to sleep with me too but you just ruined that!"

Ann stopped and looked at her daughter like she grew two heads. "Excuse me?"

Mercedes huffed, snatching her arm away. "Hate to burst that pretty little dream you had of marrying your virginal daughter to Willie Mae's son but a virgin I am not!"

Ann threw her hands up. "My daughter's a harlot and proud of it! Lord, your father is going to have a heart attack!"

Mercedes rolled her eyes before looking over her shoulder seeing Anthony slowly walking away before looking back at her and she smirked.

"Moma, you tell daddy that and he will kill us all." Mercedes said, winking at Anthony before prancing inside.

Ann shook her head. "I asked for boys, I prayed for boys and I got three girls!" She muttered walking inside.

Mercedes was the third and last child for Ann and Malcolm Jones, she was also the one that gave them trouble from the minute she was born. She came into the world wild and unforgiving, much like her older sisters the moment puberty hit so came the countless boys sniffing around.

It's been a nonstop ride of them trying to keep their youngest on the straight and narrow path. After Lydia, their oldest got pregnant during her senior year of high school and their second child Tiffany declaring that she was a lesbian, they thought they got lucky when Mercedes hadn't so much as shown interest in anything outside of singing and reading.

They were wrong. Very, disastrously wrong. It took three months for them to find out that their youngest had been making boys pay to talk to her and if they wanted to go on dates with her they had to prove it by doing some crazy act of defiance. When the parents of the countless boys came over in a rampage about broken arms and hearts, they knew they'd have to keep her on a tight leash.

And for a short time they did… or that is until Shane Tinsely entered the picture and all hell broke loose. That poor boy didn't stand a chance and ended up transferring to a different district to recover from the damage their daughter inflicted on him.

Mercedes ran upstairs to her sister's room and threw herself onto her bed. "I swear that woman acts like the world is going to end if I show my thighs." She mumbled, making her sister laugh.

"Well to be fair, moma didn't really have that problem with us." Lydia, her older sister replied. "Me and Tiff just have big asses, you have everything."

Mercedes huffed. "And that's my fault? Moma has the same body as me and we all see how daddy is around her!"

Lydia fack gagged. "Ew, let's not talk about mommy and daddy like they're human. It's gross and besides, I think moma is more worried about the men than she is about you."

"What does that have to do with me?" Mercedes asked, hopping off of the bed and walking into her sister's closet. "Can I borrow your yellow dress?"

"No! I don't know how many times I have to tell you that we are not the same size. And it has everything to do with you because you always seem to have someone's son in the hospital!"

Mercedes giggled. "It's not my fault they can't handle me."

"Who can't handle what?" Their sister Tiffany asked, walking into the room. "We're Lucas?"

Lydia rolled her eyes. "He's with his other family because apparently I'm supposed to allow that sometimes."

Tiffany snickered. "Oh come on, you're just mad Derek is finally over chasing you, oh and Merce… moma is down there having a fit, what did you do?"

"She was flirting with Anthony Rashad." Lydia answered and Mercedes came out of the closet in her sister's yellow dress, shaking her head.

"No, no I was merely entertaining his flirtations. He stopped me and I allowed him a few minutes to try and seduce me…" Mercedes chimed in earning a look from her sisters.

Tiffany shook her head. "He's like thirty."

Mercedes shrugged. "I'm twenty two, it's fine."

"One, take my dress off and two, daddy will kill that man and he's older than me." Lydia said, checking her phone. "Alright get out, I have to join this zoom call."

Tiffany and Mercedes both smile devilishly. "We won't be loud this time!" They said in unison and Lydia shook her head.

"No! Tiffany, you flirted with my co-worker and made her question herself for a month and you… oh hell no you are banned from ever talking to anyone I work with." She replied pointing her hand at Mercedes.

"I take no responsibility for what that man did." Mercedes replied.

"HONEY! Get down here!"

"Shit… when did daddy get home?" Mercedes asked.

Tiffany shrugged. "I don't know but he called you Honey so he's pissed."

"Good, now get out!"

Tiffany grabbed Mercedes' hand and led her outside to the hall, closing the door behind them. "Go on, I'll cover for you but don't go and do something reckless. Okay?"

Mercedes smirked. "No promises." She said before going to the window and shooting her sister a wink. "I may or may not be back!"

Across Town

"Ugh, is it always this hot?"

"Well son, it's called southern heat for a reason. Now stop complaining and grab the bags, your grandmother is waiting for us." Dwight Evans said to his youngest son Stevie.

"Why can't Sam do it?" Stevie questioned and Sam chuckled.

"Because little bro, I drove and you sat in the back complaining about everything." Sam answered, earning a stern look from their father.

"Just for that smart remark, you can grab the bags while we go into the house and get the first sips of your grandma's famous sweet tea."

Stevie gladly dropped the bags and ran into the house with Dwight close behind while Sam stood there sulking. It was going to be yet another summer in Georgia, enduring the summer heat and being bored out of his mind. He looked around the familiar neighborhood his grandparents lived in and sighed, from the looks of things no one moved out and no one moved in.

He grabbed their bags and slowly trekked up the driveway already counting down the days until he was back in civilization. It was in junior year in college and somehow he got roped up in joining his father and brother on this trip even after promising himself that he wasn't going. He'd been living the city life up in New York and his parents called begging for him to come home so that he, his father and his brother could have a guys trip but those plans changed when his grandmother Meredith called saying that George was feeling ill.

So instead of spending a week fishing and hanging out then going back to his friends in New York, he would be in Georgia for three months helping his grandmother take care of his grandfather. He looked up at the sky, to the blazing sun wishing it would cool off just a tad but he knew better and he also knew he was about to spend a lot of time trying to keep his little brother entertained.

This was going to be the summer from hell.

Sam sat there listening to his grandparents talk on and on about how things were different when they were younger and how he should've found someone by now and settled down. He sighed thinking about the girl he left in New York, he planned on popping up at her studio and spending a few reckless nights with her but that was out the window.

"Do you have a girlfriend, Sammy?" Stevie asked and Sam smirked.

"Nope and I don't want one, do you have one?" He asked his little brother, noticing his blush.

"I like Lily…" He replied and Sam chuckled.

"Mike's little sister?" Stevie nodded. "Oh so have you told Lily?"

Stevie looked around making sure the adults were listening before leaning in and whispering. "We kissed before we left."

"I kissed a girl before coming home and she's waiting for me to come back." Sam replied and Stevie snickered.

"What's so funny?" Their father asked and they both just shook their heads.

"Sammy boy, care to run these to the local bar?" His grandmother asked, pointing to the several bottles of mead.

"Ma, I can take it." Dwight offered and she shook her head firmly.

"If he's gonna be here helping, he might as well learn about that place." Meredith said, nodding Sam over. "Now when you go, ask for Roz. Stop for nothing."

Sam looked at his grandmother, then his father before snickering. "Is it like some sex shop?" He asked, making Stevie laugh.

"Don't be so crass, it's a place where…"

Dwight rolled his eyes. "It's an old juke joint, there are a lot of things going there… it's also not on the best side of town so take my truck."

Sam nodded, grabbing the crate and his dad's keys after getting the address from his grandmother and promising to come right back.

Washingtons

"Honey girl, if you're in here, trouble can't be far behind. Don't be starting any mess in my place, ya here?" Roz Washington said when she spotted Mercedes sitting at the bar batting her eyes at two men.

"I'm offended, I don't cause trouble. I might spark it but I don't do anything to cause it." Mercedes replied as one of the men started to approach but was stopped by a large man.

"She'll eat you alive." He said and the man scuffed.

"Really Miguel! What is it with everyone cockblocking me!" Mercedes groaned before chugging the rest of her drink. "I'm going to sing…"

"Well that'll be a treat!" Roz shouted after her and Mercedes stopped, looking over her shoulder with a devious smirk.

Miguel, Roz's boyfriend shook his head and walked over to Roz. "She's gonna cause a riot again…"

"She's young, let her have fun." Roz replied, looking at her watch. "Have you heard anything from George?"

Miguel shook his head. "I haven't, he's usually here by now with his mead… want me to call him?"

"No, we'll give him sometime. Keep those two men away from Honey, I don't like how they're looking at her." She answered, narrowing her eyes at the men that were watching Mercedes on stage while she picked her song.

Miguel looked over at the stage, shaking his head. "I can't believe we've been letting her come in here since she was a teenager and some of the men still don't understand why we're so protective."

Roz chuckled. "That voice drives in business, it's like people know when she's going to perform."

Mercedes picked her song and looked out to see who she could torture before noticing someone she'd never seen before walk into the place and based on the look of him he was as uptight as they came.

"Hey, so this is for the blonde that just walked in." She said into the mic, keeping her eyes trained on him when he looked over at her. "Don't worry I don't bite… much."

Sam looked at the woman on stage, trying to look away but she stilled him with her gaze. This must've been why his grandmother told him to go in and speak only to Roz.

"Who the hell is that big lipped boy?" Roz wondered aloud, walking in from the back before noticing he was caught up in some stare off with Mercedes and shook her head as she walked over to him. "Can I help you?"

Sam looked at the tall woman that entered his personal space and started to say something but was compelled to look back at the woman on stage who smirked before nodding at someone.

Roz rolled her eyes, grabbing the boy by the face and turning it to look at her. "Are you looking for something? Because she ain't on the menu."

"Ah, Meredith sent me… I got the mead in my…" He started only stopping when the music began to play and the woman on the stage began to sway her hip seductively.

Mercedes gripped the mic, running her hand slowly down then and back up again. She kept her eyes on the now drooling man as she moved her body seductively.

"… Birds flying high." Mercedes sang slowly, she could feel the eyes of the men on her but her focus was solely on the blonde. "You know how I feel…"

"... You have the mead?" Sam heard who he assumed was Roz, asked but for the life of him he couldn't respond. "God damnit Honey!"

Mercedes smirked when she heard Roz. "Sun in the sky, you know how I feel…" She continued to sing wondering how long it would take for him to walk closer to the stage. "Breeeeze driftin' on by, you know how I feel."

Roz gave up trying to get anymore information out of him while Mercedes performed because she knew it was a lost cause. Mercedes had her hooks in him and there was no escaping until she was ready to let him free.

Roz met Mercedes when she was sixteen and decided to try to sneak into her club with a group of her friends so she could perform at their annual talent fest.

They begged Roz to let Mercedes sing and against her better judgment she folded. It was something about that girl that made her food every single time. She made them promise to sit beside the bar and not to talk to anyone.

That ship failed when some of the former patrons saw the young girl. One thing Roz didn't tolerate was men looking at women like meat, even if they were teenagers she respected them young women.

The blow that changed the rules of that happened when Mercedes was grabbed by one of them and Miguel had to beat his ass. The Honey Rule was implemented that day, which stated that no one was allowed to touch anyone without their permission or they would be beaten and banned for life.

All it took was hearing her sing once that made every person in their small town fall in love with her. Mercedes was a spitfire and as charismatic as they came but Roz knew her, yes she was wild but the best parts of her she held close to her.

Mercedes, though she caused many problems while she was in school, graduated early with an honors diploma allowing her to be accepted in some of the best schools but she wanted to go to New York, so she focused all her energy on getting into any and every university there.

She got accepted to every college she applied to but her parents made her take one year online. They made her promise for one year she would focus and keep her grades up before they would pay for her to go to New York.

She refused.

So her parents refused to pay for her to go and she's been angry with them ever since. Roz didn't blame her for being pissed, hell she was pissed about too and even offered to pay for her to go but she refused to accept it.

She looked over at the stage and shook her head. "All that talent…"

Sam had slowly moved closer to the stage watching, completely captivated by the woman on the stage. Her voice was so beautiful and her presence was inviting as well as sexy.

"… Dragonfly out in the suuunnn, you know what I mean, don't you know." Mercedes sang, biting her lip as the blonde slowly approached. She crooked her finger, signaling for him to come closer and smirked when he obeyed.

"Butterflies all havin' fun, you know what I mean…" She sang, slowly inching closer to him. "Sleep in peace when day is done, that's what I mean."

Mercedes used her free hand to caress his neck as she leaned in close, brushing her lips along his ear. "And this old world is a new world, And a bold world…" She pulled away slightly when he shuddered and winked at him.

"HONEY!" A man shouted causing her to stop singing.

"Shit!" She said, rolling her eyes. "Maybe next time white boy." Mercedes added, lightly tapping his nose before running off stage.

"Roz, I told you I didn't want her in here!" Malcolm said, shaking his head as his daughter tried to skate past him but he grabbed her arm.

"Daddy, stop!" Mercedes said, trying to pull away.

"I've told you a million times to stop coming here and what's this mess I hear about you and Charlotte's boy?" He asked tightening his grip but careful not to hurt her.

"I'm not a little girl anymore and you can't tell me to do anything." She snapped, looking at her father defiantly. "Now let me go!"

Malcolm shot her a look before letting her arm go and taking a step back. "Where did I go wrong with you?"

Mercedes' shoulders fell and she forced herself to look away. "Well if I'm such a disappointment then why don't you leave me alone…"

Her father sighed. "Fine, don't bother coming home since you're so grown." He replied, walking past her.

Mercedes shook her head, frowning. "Wasn't planning on it! I can't breathe in that house with the two of you breathing down my neck!" She shouted, causing him to stop.

He looked over her shoulder. "You're going to end up just like your sister, pregnant and lost. And when that happens don't you dare come looking for me or your mother because we won't be there."

Mercedes shifted. "Just because I look like her doesn't mean I will be like her, stop comparing me to your mother!"

Malcolm looked over his shoulder at his daughter. "Yet you insist on acting like a slut, like she did."

Mercedes flinched at the harshness in his tone before taking a step back, wrapping her arms around herself. "I'm not your mother." She repeated softly.

I hope you like this one! It's gonna be a fun ride!