I had gone overboard with the wine, and sitting across from the braided-haired, tatted-up, caramel-colored crime boss had my legs spread wide on my dining room table. Although Liam wasn’t the upstanding boyfriend he should have been lately, that didn’t give me the right to cheat on him. Thoughts of the ring he had stashed in the closet fromMK Diamondsshould have made me rethink letting Emery take me on a ride on his magic schoolbus. Motherfucka knew he was carrying around more than his big ass gun that he didn’t think I would notice sitting on my counter by the microwave.
My stupid ass had been trying to stop my vagina from thumping since I woke up this morning.
BM: At the Pharm. What’s wrong, babe?
Me: When do you go on break?”
BM: I’ll be taking my next one in about an hour.
Me: Okay. I need to talk to you.
BM: Okay, toots. Meet me up here around 2:30.
Me: Okay.
“What’s up with you today, Mimi?” Ezekiel asked.
I put my phone away and tuned back into the conversation with my family.
“Huh? Nothing. Just a bit tired is all.”
“I told you; you overwork yourself too much, Boopie,” my mom countered.
“I’m not overworking myself. However, I am working on a big case that has me putting a little extra time in, but I’m fine.”
“The Aldana case?” my father asked, staring at me.
“How did you know that?”
“I was a paralegal at the firm you work in, remember? I have a few lawyer friends that still work there.”
“Wait . . . The Emil and Ellis Aldana case?” Zeke asked. I nodded. “Yumi, please tell me you dropped off that case?”
“I did at first, but my boss asked me to continue. What’s the problem?” I asked, looking between my father and Zeke.
“You know what the problem is, Mimi. You’re working with the same family I warned you to stay away from.”
I frowned. “Daddy, I’m not a child anymore. This is work, and nothing else.”
“They’re dangerous, Mimi, you know that,” Zeke replied.
“What does that have to do with me defending them? I’m there to do my job, and that’s it.”
“Do you know what you’re getting yourself into? Emil is ruthless, and he has so many enemies that, with you trying to get him off, it could put you in a bad position. Please tell your boss you can’t work on that case, Yumi. It’s too risky,” Dad said.
I sat up straight in my seat and shook my head. “I’m not telling her that. This case can make me a senior partner at the firm. That means more money, a higher position, and my name on the building. I can’t drop off the case. It’s what I’ve been working so hard for.”
“But at the risk of your own life, Mimi?” my mother asked softly. I hated when she used that baby tone with me. It used to work on me as a kid. It was how she convinced me to break up with Emery in the first place. But it wouldn’t work this time.
“Mom, stop it. And you two,” I said, pointing between my dad and cousin. “You both are only saying this because you think I’m going to get back in touch with Emery.”
“You’re the one who said it. We didn’t,” Zeke said. “I’m telling you what I know to be facts. Working so closely with them can put you at risk of being harmed. I don’t want you to end up on the five o’clock news.”
“She won’t, because I’m going to see to it that she doesn’t defend them,” my father added, further pissing me off.
“Listen. This is my career at stake here. Both you and Zeke pushed me to become what I am. I’ve defended multiple people with murder and drug charges, and neither one of you ever opened your mouths to stop me from doing it. But because theseare people that you all know, it’s now become a danger to my life? Make this shit make sense.”
“Have you lost your damn mind, Yumi Alaya?” my father asked, appalled by my word of choice.
