I remained silent because I didn’t give a fuck who her brother was. He didn’t own his fucking sister. I wasn’t sure what demented voice in his head suggested otherwise, but I was going to silence it as soon as I got the chance. As I looked at him standing there like a statue, it made me sick to my stomach knowing he was not raised to be such a disgrace. But what could I say? Every family had its failures.
He pulled a manila envelope from his pocket and tried to hand it to me. When I didn’t budge, he tossed it at my feet, further pissing me off. Despite that, my eyes didn’t move from their target. I saw Jah twitch where he stood when Zero did it. None of us handled disrespect well.
“Those are annulment papers I had my lawyer draw up. You have forty-eight hours to sign them before I will have to take matters into my own hands. Nuri is much too valuable to allow to slip through the cracks. My union to her will set me up for life. Not to mention, she is easy on the eyes. Maybe she’s easy in the bedroom too.”
Zero laughed with his posse like something was fucking funny. Considering I’d just experienced Nuri’s pussy for the first time, I was a little sensitive about that. I glanced at my fatherand signed that I was about to murk this nigga. He shook his head and signed back that it wasn’t the time.
My blood was boiling to the point where I was sure there was smoke coming from my pores. I swiped my nose and finally decided to speak. “Fuck you, Zero. My wife will never leave my side. I’m not signing shit, and as far as I’m concerned, we’re already at war nigga. You tried to take my woman from me, and that’s some shit I just can’t forgive.” I looked at her brother. “I’ll be seeing you, pussy.”
Rylas cracked a smile, looking as maniacal as I did. Yeah... that nigga was going to be a problem, but it was cool. As a Virgo, I was a great problem solver. It damn near had me bouncing on my toes knowing I was going to have that nigga eating dirt for eternity.
I closed the distance between us, and everyone in the room held their breath. “I’m warning you to make this your last time on Reaper territory. Next time I see you, it’s on sight.”
Zero reached for my arm as I went to walk by. I looked down at his hand on me at the same time he spoke.
“We could’ve worked together, Sekai.” His voice was softer, but when I looked in his eyes, I saw the truth. He was soulless and greedy, and I truly believed it would be his demise.
“Linkin’ with opps never crossed my mind,” I spat with venom, reciting YTB Fatt lyrics.
He chuckled. “You sure you want to do this, Sekai? Nothing is off limits.”
It was my turn to laugh. That nigga thought he could put fear in my heart. The only thing that scared me was Nuri being without me.
“It’s already done, Zero. But I’m happy you know that nothing is off limits. See you in hell.” I winked, then pushed past him and his men. Without turning around, I knew my people had all come out behind me. They would always have my back.
“Big house!” I yelled out, letting everybody know where to meet me.
It was war, and it was the kind that wasn’t to be played with. Bodies were going to drop, blood would be spilled, and mothers would lose their sons... However, one thing I knew for sure was that Nuri wouldn’t be left alone in this fucked up world. No one was touching a pretty little nappy hair on her head. I was willing to do whatever it took to keep my wife safe, and I put that on my life.
I gaspedwhen I closed the front door and turned to find a gigantic bouquet in the foyer. It had to be hundreds of red roses sitting delicately under the low chandelier light. My hand flew to my mouth as I walked closer to pick up the note.
Meet me at the lake.
-Hubby
I hugged the note to my chest, feeling my racing heart beneath my fingers. Walking to the side table, I set my purse on top along with the mail I’d pulled from the box.
Anxiety began to bubble in my belly as I made my way through the estate, headed toward the back. On the entire walk to the lake, I wondered what Kai was up to. I couldn’t lie and say I wasn’t excited to find out. Since the night at the club,something had shifted between Kai and me. It was new, but it felt right. Despite seeing the violent lengths he would go to for me, I couldn’t get enough of my grumpy and quiet husband.
Light ahead pulled me from my thoughts. I smiled at the aisle of tealight candles leading the remaining half mile to the lake. If I thought my heart was racing before, it was now sprinting. I could hardly control my breathing when the trees parted, and the clearing came into view.
Kai stood there beside a picnic set up on the grassy plot beside the still water. I closed the distance between us, barely able to contain my smile. It was the most romantic thing a man could’ve done for me, especially when I noticed my grandparents’ record player was injecting Roberta Flack’s “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” into the quiet night.
My heart warmed when he reached a hand out for me. I damn near tripped over my feet trying to get close to him to be pressed against his solid chest as he anchored me to the soil beneath my feet. His hands slid around my waist until they gripped my ass cheeks. I blushed, allowing my cheek to rest on his pecs. He slowly began to dance us around the lake. The moon was already high in the sky. I shuddered every time I caught a glimpse of its reflection on the lake’s surface. It whispered for me to believe that beautiful things could be born in the dark. Kai twirled me around before we fell back into step together, moving as one being instead of two souls.
His eyes never left mine. Goosebumps sprouted up my arm as he gave me that look that always made me weak in the knees. The yearning in the depths of his eyes tugged at my heartstrings and the strings on my panties, too. I was ready to slide these leggings off and help myself to a large helping of Sekai Walker.
“You’re so beautiful,” he whispered in awe. “I never thought I would get married.”
I rested my chin on him. “Why not?” He shook his head, looking away, but my hand on his cheek returned his focus to me. “Stop hiding from me, Sekai. Let me in,” I urged.
Kai stopped spinning us around, took my hand, and led us to the blanket. I sighed, feeling defeated because, of course, he wasn’t going to answer. When we were on the blanket, he pulled me in between his legs and enclosed me in a bear hug that I sank into. I could feel his cool breath on my cheek as he traced lyrics I couldn’t quite put together on my skin.
“I know you wonder why I don’t talk a lot...”
He began speaking, which surprised me. I just knew he was about to shut down when I asked that question. I damn near held my breath waiting for him to let me in.
“For the first four years of my life, I was severely neglected. It’s honestly a miracle I’m even here to tell the story. When I say no one gave a fuck about me, I’m not exaggerating.”
