Page 8 of Love’s Decree

I looked at him with a raised eyebrow. “Men to be men, huh? That’s cute. What’s your dream business? Assuming you don’t already have it.”

I watched a wide smile spread across his face as his eyes brightened.

“My dream is to own the community center I used to go to as a child.”

He caught me off guard with that one. I didn’t know what to expect, but that wasn’t it.

“When I was in middle school, I couldn’t stay out of trouble. There wasn’t a day that went by where I wasn’t throwing hands. One day, I walked past the community center, and Mr. Jacob stopped me. He told me if I wanted to do something other than fight to come see him. Days went by before I took him up on his offer. The first time I went there, he changed my life. I never knew my father, so he became a father figure. I’ve learned a lot from him over the years. He made me promise that when he was ready to retire, I would take over. After all, he poured into me over the years. I plan to do everything in my power to honor that.”

Whatever previous reservations about him seemed judgmental. I felt myself relax a little. The way his face lit up talking about his childhood and Mr. Jacob was touching. I didn’t know what to expect when I came here, but we were off to a good start.

A server appeared with our drinks. After she left, I lifted my glass. “A toast to getting to know each other.”

Aasim’s glass met mine. We each took a sip of our drinks.

“What made you become an attorney?” he asked.

“My Uncle Al. When I was nine, they arrested him for a crime he didn’t commit. He was part of a motorcycle crew. My uncle took the fall for another member of the crew. I dreamed of becoming a criminal defense attorney and getting him free from prison. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen.”

“Why not?”

I took a moment to regulate my emotions. If I didn’t, I would cry, and I hated to cry. It was always so hard to talk about Uncle Al. Besides my mother, he was my favorite person in the world. My uncle was the only father figure I had. Someone else’s mistake took him away from me.

“He died in prison from a heart attack right before I went to college. While I couldn’t save my uncle, I can do my best to help others.”

Aasim gave me the same look everyone did whenever I told them my reason for practicing law. Sometimes, I felt guilty for sharing something so sad. I worked so hard in my career to honor my uncle. It took me years to let go of the fact that I couldn’t help him. Each victory for one of my clients was a silent victory for Uncle Al.

“Damn, sweetheart. I’m sorry to hear that.”

“I can’t believe I shared that with you,” I said as I nervously laughed.

“Now I see why you hesitated to give me your number. Your uncle sounds like a real OG who followed the code of brotherhood. You should be proud of him. He sounds like he was loyal to his crew.”

“I guess that’s one way of looking at it.” I took a sip of my drink as silence found us.

I stared at Aasim and wondered if I should let my guard down. He didn’t seem like a bad dude. Could I really involve myself with someone involved in club life? It was a loaded question because I could tell from our conversation there was more to him than I initially thought. The handsome, rugged stranger before me had me intrigued.

“Come on. I want to take you somewhere,” Aasim said as he reached for my hand. He must have sensed my hesitation because I didn’t move. “I think you’ll like it. I promise. Scout’s honor,” he said with a smile.

If I sat any longer, I probably wouldn’t go. I gave him my hand as I got up from my seat. Neither of us moved momentarily as we locked eyes. The way he looked at me sent a sensation through my body I’d never felt. Aasim winked at me as he broke our stare. The anticipation of where he was taking me slowly turned into excitement.

6

AASIM

Rory surprised the hell out of me when she showed up at the lounge. She looked even better than I remembered. The fitted dress she wore that wrapped around her small waist did her body justice. I didn’t have any real plans for the night. My approach was usually to go with the flow.

After opening up some to each other, I decided I wanted to take her somewhere. Rory’s initial hesitation let me know I had my work cut out on getting her to trust me. That was fine with me. I felt like she was worth it. I held her hand as we walked out of the lounge into the alley where I parked my bike. As we approached the bike, I walked over and passed her my helmet.

“I’m not getting on that death trap. You don’t have a car?” Rory asked.

I let out a low chuckle. “I do, but I rode my bike today. Just hold on to me tight. It’s not as scary as it seems.”

“I have on a dress and heels. I could just call a cab and meet you there.”

“Sweetheart, you gotta live a little. Sometimes, you have to just go with the flow. Why don’t you start right now?” I asked.

Rory hesitated for a moment before she took the helmet from me and put it on. I tried not to smile, but she was cute when she pouted.