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She'd survive.

I climbed into my truck and pulled away from the warehouse, letting the conversation settle in my mind as I headed back toward the city.

E was getting closer to being done with the streets, and I wasn't. Whenever that day came, I'd take the reins and keep shit moving. Until then, I had enough on my plate.

Ashlynn was moving to Westhaven, and apparently, she was bringing some woman named Jru with her.

I didn't know Jru, didn't know what she looked like, and didn't know the full story behind why she needed to leave Rosemont.

All I knew was Ashlynn vouched for her.

For now, that was enough.

Chapter 5

I woke up on the thirty-something floor of a luxury high-rise in Westhaven, wrapped in sheets I damn sure didn't pay for, staring through windows that made the entire city look like it belonged to me. Malachi had taken care of everything before I arrived, from the apartment to the furniture sitting inside it. All I had to do was show up with my bags, and naturally, I'd made sure Jru had a room of her own. My girl needed somewhere to get herself together, and I wasn't about to let her worry about rent while she was trying to start over. Now this was more my speed.

Working a nine-to-five had never been on my bingo card. I liked luxury, I liked being kept, and I liked having a man who understood that taking care of me was part of the package. And before anybody got shit twisted, I wasn't no gold digger. I knew how to make money when I needed to. I just preferred my man's money over mine. Why the hell would I struggle on purpose when somebody actually enjoyed spoiling me?

“You been up?” a familiar voice asked from the doorway.

I turned toward Jru, who stood there looking half asleep, her glasses crooked and her bonnet leaning to one side. Four days in a luxury apartment, and she still looked like she'd just rolled out of bed in Rosemont.

“Unfortunately,” I answered, stretching beneath the sheets.

She walked farther into my room, stopping near the floor-to-ceiling windows. “I still can't believe we live here,” she admitted, shaking her head at the view.

“Believe it, bitch. Welcome to the soft life.”

“Your soft life,” she corrected, dropping onto the edge of my bed. “I need a job, Ash. I can't just sit around here doing nothing.”

I rolled onto my side and propped my head against my palm. “And you got an interview tonight, so what exactly are we stressing about?”

“I'm trying not to,” she muttered, picking at the comforter.

“No, you're not. You've been walking around here scared for four days, acting like somebody's gonna knock on the door and tell you to pack your shit.”

Her eyes narrowed. “I moved my whole life in two days, Ashlynn. Excuse me if I'm still trying to figure out what the hell I'm doing.”

Okay, she had me there. Four days ago, Jru was still in Rosemont dealing with a crackhead mama, a sorry-ass boyfriend, and responsibilities that never should've belonged to her. I hated that it took Montae messing with her mama for her to finally leave, but at least she'd made it out. That was what mattered.

“Which is exactly why we're going shopping again,” I announced, reaching for my phone.

Jru turned toward me, looking completely exhausted. “How the hell did you get shopping from anything I just said?”

“Healing,” I answered with a straight face. “Retail therapy is real, bitch. Look it up.”

“With whose money?” she asked, folding her arms. “Because I know damn well you ain't talking about mine.”

I lifted my phone with a satisfied smile. “Malachi's.”

Jru burst out laughing, dropping her head into her hands. “You are so fucking ridiculous.”

“And housed,” I reminded her, gesturing toward the bedroom.

That only made her laugh harder, and I smiled as some of the tension finally left her shoulders. There was my girl. Me and Jru went way back, and although we handled life differently, we'd always balanced each other out. She carried everything, even what didn't belong to her, while I refused to carry shit I could put down. So when she finally agreed to leave Rosemont, I wasn't giving her enough time to change her mind.

If I was moving to Westhaven, my girl was coming too. Period.