“I want your promises as my armor. Shield me from fear, pour into parts of me that I wouldn’t dare. I want your trust in my heart. Give me loyalty, heal damaged spaces that others left in me, I want your vision as motivation. See me for me, when I dream, bring it to life, you’re the high I reach.”
He rapped the lyrics she’d sung. The smooth cadence of his voice and the raspy, late-hour, southern drawl had Samari grinning but it dropped when his eyes demanded answers.
“They’re just lyrics.” She edged away in an attempt to escape but his hands quickly moved to her hips, locking her in.
“You sang that shit like it’s your truth. You gonna tell me who needs to sleep with one eye open or would you rather I start taking muthafuckers down until a confession comes to light?”
“You making yourself my dragon slayer?”
“Isn’t that what you asked me to do when you put them words on paper?”
She pushed the unease down and forced a smile, putting her mouth on his again. Samari was already addicted to the soft warmth and possessive claim his lips had on hers.
“You don’t need to slay my dragons. This…” She paused, allowing her eyes to move around the studio before they were on him again. “Is enough.”
“This isn’t shit but it’s a start because it’s all you’re allowing yourself to want from me. I’m not gonna blow your mind with what I’m willing and capable of being in your life because you aren’t ready for all that just yet.” His large hand tattooed moved to the back of her neck, gripping firmly enough to bring her close. He pushed his tongue into her mouth, demanding a connection with hers, and when he pulled back, Asao let their foreheads touch. “Tell me when you’re ready, and until you are, I’m gonna be your armor, Mari. Not a damn thing’s touching you, not even the shit you’re conflicted with in here.” His finger pressed against her heart then tapped her temple.
He understood keeping shit close to the chest but that wasn’t going to fly when it came to the two of them. He had to know her doubts and fears in order to cover her. If she needed time to be open, she could get that, but he wasn’t a patient man. That time would be limited. Instead of pressing, he shifted the conversation.
“How do you feel about Kolby?” Asao watched her reaction, picking up on the confusion from the question.
“Um why?”
“I want to hire her but I need to know if that’s a good move or not.”
She frowned. “Why are you asking me?”
“Because you know things about her that I don’t.” He kept his expression neutral, wanting Samari to speak her truth and not just say what she assumed he wanted to hear. His gut told him that Kolby was solid. She didn’t have loyalty to Cobra but that was to be expected based on how he moved. Asao determined Kolby’s decisions weren’t a character flaw but more about giving what was received. He fucked her over so she returned the favor.
“You should hire her.”
“Why?”
“She fought for me when she didn’t have to, and even though she didn’t have the power to fix the fucked up situation I put myself in, she still fought. I didn’t have a lot of people willing to put themselves in the line of fire for me, so I appreciated that. It’s not always about the win, sometimes it’s just enough to know someone’s willing to fight.”
“Aight.” He nodded with understanding. “You cool with Niles managing you until you figure out who you want on your team?”
The question had Samari’s thoughts stumbling in her head. “I don’t need anyone managing me.”
Asao’s head bobbed while he dropped his hands to her thighs and gripped them firmly. In just the short time Samari had been in his world, he learned that she stayed in her head overthinking shit, questioning and second guessing more than necessary. She needed physical contact to keep her grounded in the moment.
“You can do that shit on your own but it’s a lot. I want your focus to be on the music. We have less than two weeks before the festival, which means press and…”
“Press? I can’t…”
“Ay, listen. I get that you don’t have a lot of faith in people because the ones you trusted didn’t deliver what they promised. I’m trying to give you space and time to trust that I’m not them. Shit is moving fast, and I get that, but if you don’t trust me, this isn’t gonna work.”
“I really want to but…”
“Nah, fuck them buts. Tell me what you want. If I give you my word that it’s gonna happen, nothing is stopping it. I’m not scared of a muthafucking thing, Mari. Especially not owning the truth. So I’m not gonna lie to you, ever. Tell me what you want.”
She stared into his eyes, accepting the permission he gave her to bring those walls down and expose the things she didn’twant to say out loud because it hurt too much. “I want my career back.”
“Done,” he said with a confidence that made her believe him.
“And I don’t want my career attached to whatever we’re doing or provisional on how things play out between us.”
His expression remained calm but Asao’s eyes blazed with offense at what she was implying. Pussy didn’t move him. He could get bitches to suck and fuck on by just looking their way. The thought that he would hang sex over her head as a condition of anything was fucked up.
