Rook scoffed. “Don’t shrug. Don’t do that shit.” He sat up and turned toward me. “I’m not fucking joking Bishop. Don’t just throw that out there like it’s not a big statement to make. That shit ain’t funny. Don’t ever say no shit like that in front of me. You good just the way you are and fuck whoever thinks otherwise, family or not.”
I grit my jaw but didn’t argue my case.
I knew how Rook was. He didn’t tolerate anybody disrespecting me, not even me.
“Yeah alright.”
“You could fuck a nigga right here in King’s office and I’d still be the bigger family disappointment anyway.”
Rook and I stared at each other for a quick beat before we both smirked. The smiles turned to laughs and Rook shook my head.
I knew that every joke Rook cracked had a lil truth to it and I knew that his place in the family was the only thing in life he was insecure about but he hid it well… from people that weren’t me anyway.
He had a temper on him and hadn’t necessarily found his footing just yet in the grand scheme of things, but shit. He wastwenty-four. A lot of people didn’t have their shit together at that age. The difference was that he had a time ticking over his head.
I didn’t think he was behind on anything. Our family just wasn’t moving traditionally. King had taken over early. Knight was some master at crafting passports which was a big deal when it was where our family fortune came from and I’d taken over our head of security at the age of twenty-two after two years of training but shit, I was just trying to stay above water.
When I’d asked to start shadowing our current head of security at age twenty it was because the rumors about my sexuality had become more prominent and I was just trying to prove my worth to the family. I just so happen to be a natural and love the job. I loved playing an important role in protecting us. I loved knowing that I was needed and making myself an asset. Even if it was hard for me to tell my family that I loved them, I felt like I showed it to them by making sure they were always safe.
Before finding my place in all of it, I felt disposable. A part of me could understand why Rook felt that way. Another part of me, however, knew that he was good at a lot of shit that benefited the family and even if he had temper that always got him into trouble, I also knew that the same things he thought the family hated about him were the things King absolutely fucking adored. King saw himself in Rook, when he was young and running around leading shootouts and fucking other men’s wives.
King hadn’t settled down until his marriage. Whether he said it or not, Knight and I both knew he was hoping Rook getting married would settle him down too.
“You’re not the family’s disappointment, Rook,” I assured him.
“Feels like it.”
“Well.” I shrugged and climbed to my feet. “King hasn’t gotten wind of me cheating on my wife with a man just yet.”
“Nigga, what?” He snickered.
“Asante and I haven’t exactly discussed what’s going to happen once I get married, but if I don’t have to give him up, I’m not going to.” I straightened my tie. “Word is that King is switching up the way wives are chosen. He’s going to show us the top three picks made by him, Mom, and Dad and we’ll get to choose from there. If I see one of the women I know for a fact cares more about getting our last name than getting a happy marriage, I’m signing on the dotted line. I can handle a business marriage. I’ll see Asante and she’ll see whoever she sees and when it comes time to have babies, we’ll do what needs to be done.”
“That sounds fucking horrible, Bishop.”
“Yeah, well that’s life.” I pushed my glasses up with one hand and hit Rook’s shoulder with the other. “Get up. I was just supposed to tell you that it’s time to go.”
“Yeah, alright.”
Rook grabbed his questionnaire, folded it up, and tucked it into his suit jacket.
My brothers and I had been invited to an important wedding and had agreed to go together, the four of us and Xavia.
Rook and I headed to the front door where Knight and Xavia were already waiting for us.
“I was starting to think you got lost,” Xavia teased.
“King stepped out to take a phone call,” Knight offered.
“Yeah. Well I’m going to step outside and make sure the security detail is prepped,” I offered.
“How many are we taking?” Rook asked.
“Six.”
“Damn. Six?” Knight whistled.
“One for the four of us each and two for Xavia,” I explained.
