by Erica Hilton
Jasmine loved Las Vegas. She had just stepped off the plane, and without even spending a dime on slot machines, she felt like she had hit the jackpot.
Seventeen
By the time Derek and Jasmine finished fucking, it was a little past four in the morning. Before Jasmine fell asleep, she was still feeling the effects of the liquor she drank, and as she lay in the bed next to Derek, she felt like calling up Agent Gosling and telling him that she was done with her role as a confidential informant.
It was hard for Jasmine to stay focused when she was lying next to Derek’s rock-hard body. Jasmine loved his tats, which pretty much covered his entire upper body and both of his arms. She cuddled next to him and continually ran her hand up and down his eight-pack abs until she put herself to sleep.
When morning came, Jasmine woke up as Derek moved about the hotel room.
“Hey,” Jasmine said in a groggy tone from underneath a white bed sheet.
“What’s up, girl?”
“You were just going to fuck me and slide out real quiet, I see. You see how y’all pro athletes do?” Jasmine joked as she sat up in the bed.
“Nah, actually I had already stepped out real quick and met my man downstairs in the lobby.”
Jasmine stretched and let out an exaggerated groan, trying to fully wake herself.
“You left and came back? I must have been knocked out. I ain’t hear nothing.” Jasmine thought to herself how good dick put her ass to sleep every time.
“Yeah, I had to get my weed,” Derek replied to Jasmine’s instant delight.
Derek sat down at the table that was diagonally across from the bed and pulled out an ounce of weed and put it on the table. “You smoke?” he asked, emptying the contents of a cigar into the trashcan.
“Do I? Did I tell you that I am loving you right now?”
Derek smiled and continued to roll the weed up. “I figured we would smoke and then go get something to eat for breakfast before I head out.”
“Okay, that’s cool,” Jasmine replied. “What is that? Haze?”
“Nah, this ain’t haze,” Derek smiled and said as he continued to roll the blunt like a skilled marijuana surgeon. “You from New York, but I know New York ain’t up on this shit. This that exotic weed.”
“What is it?” Jasmine sat down across from Derek, wearing nothing but her bra and panties, and she was as excited as a kid opening a present on Christmas morning.
“It’s strawberry ice. This shit will get you fucked up.”
Jasmine was intrigued. Within seconds Derek had put the finishing touches on the blunt, sparked it, and handed it to her.
“Wake and bake! That’s what the fuck I’m talking about,” Jasmine took a real long pull on the blunt and then handed it back to Derek.
For a good fifteen minutes Derek and Jasmine sat and smoked and got high as kites. Jasmine then went to take a shower, while Derek rolled up another blunt.
The NFL had a strict drug policy, but during the off-season, most of the players violated that drug policy. They’d clean out their system a couple of weeks prior to the start of camp so they wouldn’t jeopardize their multimillion-dollar contracts.
After Jasmine had showered and gotten dressed, she and Derek finished off the second blunt and made their way downstairs to a restaurant called Society Café. At that point Jasmine was totally enjoying herself and could have cared less about her mission of finding Nico and getting close to him.
“Table for two?” the hostess asked Derek and Jasmine.
“Yes, please,” Derek replied.
“Right this way.” The pleasant hostess showed Derek and Jasmine to their table.
As soon as Jasmine and Derek sat down, Jasmine picked up the menu and stared at it.
“Oh, my God! I am so high right now, I can’t even see the words on this menu,” Jasmine laughed and said.
“I told you, that strawberry ice will do it to you every time.”
Forgetting about the menu, Jasmine put it down and reached across the table and took hold of Derek’s hand. Derek looked into Jasmine’s eyes.
“This is exactly the type of getaway I was hoping for. I’m so glad I met you,” Jasmine remarked.
“I feel you. I’m glad we met too. But why you talking like we not going to see each other again?”
Before Jasmine could respond, an Asian waitress approached the table and introduced herself and asked if they were ready to place their order. Derek spoke up and asked Jasmine if she minded if he ordered for her.
“No, not all. You know I can’t see that menu anyway.”
Since it was getting close to noon, Derek proceeded to order drunken noodles for the both of them, Pad Thai for himself, and a Thai breakfast omelet for Jasmine.
“Okay, and can I get you anything to drink? Coffee, or orange juice maybe?”
“Yeah, you can get us two mimosas,” Derek replied.
The waitress jotted everything down. “Be right back.”
“You trying to keep me twisted, I see. As high as I am, and you ordering me a mimosa?” Jasmine smiled.
Right after Jasmine said that, she went quiet as she directed her attention toward the entrance to the restaurant, where she saw Mia and Nico enter. Mia immediately pointed in the direction of Jasmine and Derek, like she had a Jasmine radar.
“Shit,” Jasmine said under her breath.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I was just thinking about something,” Jasmine said, not wanting to alarm Derek.
The last person Jasmine wanted to see at that moment while she was with Derek was Mia.
The hostess seated them on the opposite side of the restaurant, well within Jasmine and Derek’s view and vice versa.
Jasmine decided to just ignore Mia and Nico and directed her attention straight ahead to Derek.
At that point the waitress arrived with their mimosas, and she told them that their food would be out shortly.
“Okay, thank you,” Jasmine smiled and said.
Derek was about to drink from his glass, but Jasmine stopped him.
“Wait, we have to make a toast first,” she said.
“My bad.”
Jasmine waited for him to take the lead and make the toast.
Derek finally caught on. “I know what I want to toast. I want to toast to your tight-ass chocha!”
Jasmine started to laugh, and the two of them touched glasses.
Nico looked over in Jasmine’s direction, and it was clear by his ice grill that he was heated and getting angrier by the second.
“Nico, what is she doing here? And who the hell is that she’s with?” Mia asked. “Please don’t tell me you flew her out here.”
Nico wanted to tell Mia to shut the fuck up, but he just looked at her and didn’t answer.
“Yo, chill right here. I’ll be right back,” he said to Mia. “Don’t fuckin’ move.” He got up from his seat and headed over toward Jasmine and Derek.
“Well, then I definitely gotta toast you to that quality dick you gave me and to that good-ass weed that still got me fucked up.”
They laughed as they tapped their glasses a second time, and then they both drank some of the mimosa.
Jasmine wasn’t looking in Nico’s direction, so she didn’t see him approaching.
“Honestly, Derek, I’m really glad that we met. I feel like I really want to get to know you. I just feel some kind of chemistry between us, and I’m not just saying that. I mean, I can’t really explain it,” Jasmine said as she looked into Derek’s eyes.
“That’s real talk.”
“Yo, what the fuck you doin’ here? And who the fuck is this nigga?”
Jasmine looked up at Nico, a disgusted look on her face. “Really?” she asked him, her voiced raised
and her tone sarcastic.
“Jasmine, you know how I get down. I’ll smack the shit outta you. Now, what the fuck are you doing out here?”
Derek immediately stood up. Nico took notice of his height and his muscles and his tats but quickly sized him up as soft. The only thing was, he wasn’t sure if Derek was strapped.
“My man, is there a problem?” Derek asked.
“Don’t do it to yourself, potna!” Nico gave Derek an ice grill and moved closer to him.
“Derek, it’s okay,” Jasmine stepped in and said.
“Oh, you talkin’ for this nigga too?” Nico asked. “Come here!” He then grabbed Jasmine by her arm and attempted to lead her out of the restaurant.
“Nico, get your hands off of me!” Jasmine screamed and tried to break free from his vise grip.
Other people in the restaurant began to take notice of the escalating altercation.
Mia got up from her seat and quickly joined in the melee. She pointed her index and middle fingers at Jasmine. “You a stalker bitch now?”
Jasmine shook her head. Her marijuana high had worn off, and she was seconds from losing her temper.
Nico hollered, “Mia, what the fuck did I tell you?”
At that point Derek grabbed hold of Jasmine and tried to shield her from Nico.
“I don’t care! I’m so tired of this stalker bitch! I’m about to fuck her up!” Mia said.
Nico snatched up Mia and bitch-smacked her hard two times across the face. “I told you to just chill. Now go the fuck upstairs before I fuckin’ kill you!” Nico screamed and then pushed her hard toward the exit of the restaurant.
The left side of Mia’s face was stinging, and she was shocked and embarrassed. Yeah, she was out of line and hadn’t listened to Nico, but she didn’t understand why he always seemed to side with Jasmine over her. Fed up, she stormed out of the restaurant.
Jasmine was now scared that Nico might beat Derek’s ass. She didn’t know if Nico had a gun on him, but the last thing she wanted was for Derek to get shot or to catch a beat-down on her account.
“Oh, my God! Derek, I am so sorry about this. I’ll be okay. Just leave me for now, and I’ll call you later. I am so sorry!”
“Jasmine, I’m not leaving you,” Derek replied.
Nico gestured like he was reaching for a gun in his waistband.
“Nico, no!” Jasmine screamed and then rushed Nico and grabbed him.
“Come the fuck on then!” Nico barked. “Fuck around and get both of y’all murdered!” He snatched Jasmine up by the arm and marched her out of the restaurant.
“Derek, I’ll be okay. I’ll call you in a few!” Jasmine screamed.
Nico was putting so much pressure on Jasmine’s arm, it was really hurting her.
“Nico, get off of me. You’re hurting me! Stop acting like a fuckin’ fool!”
The two of them made it out of the restaurant and to an area in the lobby where they were all alone.
“I can’t believe you,” Jasmine shouted as she marched toward the elevator, trying to make it up to her room.
Nico knew he had spazzed out, so he was trying to quickly get a grip of himself as he followed behind Jasmine. “A’ight, listen,” he said.
Jasmine paid him no mind and kept on walking toward the elevators.
“Jasmine! Jasmine, I’m fuckin’ talking to you,” Nico hollered as he continued to follow her to the elevator.
Jasmine could see herself in the mirror-lined elevator. “Look what you did to me. Look at my fuckin’ arm! Shit!” She examined the bruises on her arm.
Nico had Jasmine in solitude like he wanted her. He really wanted to find out just exactly why Jasmine was out in Las Vegas, and how she knew what hotel he was in.
“I’m asking you one more time—What the fuck are you doing out here?”
As the elevator doors opened on to Jasmine’s floor, she ignored Nico and quickly walked out of the elevator and toward her room. She desperately wanted to get to her government-issued BlackBerry so she could have Nico on tape incriminating himself.
“Leave me the fuck alone!”
Jasmine used her card key and unlocked the door to her room, and Nico pushed his way in right behind her.
“Hellloo! Leave me alone, please. I believe your bitch Mia is in another room.”
After Jasmine said that, she walked across the room and grabbed her BlackBerry. “Seriously, Nico, leave right now, or I’m calling the cops,” she said, discreetly activating the record feature.
“Call ’em.”
Jasmine sighed and sucked her teeth. “Okay, you know what? Fuck it!” She walked over to the table that had Derek’s weed sitting on top of it and sat down and pulled out a second chair for Nico.
“Since you so hard to find, and now you want to talk all of a sudden, sit down and let’s talk, Nico.”
Nico noticed the ounce of weed on the table, but he didn’t comment on it. He had other pressing questions he wanted her to answer.
Jasmine was ready. She waited for Nico to incriminate himself as the BlackBerry did its job, recording his every word.
Eighteen
Nico’s phone began to vibrate. He looked at it and saw that it was Mia, so he hit his ignore button and sent her to voice mail.
“Come on, sit down. Sit, Nico,” Jasmine said with sassy bravado, tapping the cushion with her hand.
Nico kicked the arm of the chair and knocked it over in the process.
WHACK!
He smacked Jasmine across the left side of her face. The openhanded bitch-slap was so hard that Jasmine saw stars. She had to catch her balance after almost falling out of the chair.
Although Jasmine was woozy, she was a fighter. She stood and tried to throw a punch, but Nico caught her hand and then took hold of her wrist and twisted it and bent it backwards and took her down to the ground.
“Ahhhh! That’s my sore hand!” she screamed, writhing in pain on the ground.
Nico ignored her screams and applied more pressure to her bent wrist.
Jasmine tried to get to her feet, but Nico let her wrist go, grabbed her by the throat, and slammed the back of her head to the carpeted floor. Jasmine couldn’t breathe, and she scratched at Nico’s strong muscular right arm, trying to free herself from his grip.
“Now we gonna do shit my way! You understand me, bitch?” Nico squeezed harder on Jasmine’s neck.
Jasmine felt like she was about to pass out, so she stopped resisting, and tried to nod.
Nico finally loosened his grip from her neck, and Jasmine gasped for air, coughing and grabbing her throat.
“Now tell me what the fuck you doing out here and how the fuck did you know where I was staying at? And don’t bullshit me!”
Jasmine was still coughing, trying to get air in her lungs. She knew she had to think quickly, because Nico wasn’t playing games.
“Nico, what you think I’m doing out here? I’m out here because I love you and I wanted to be with you.”
“How-the-fuck did-you-know I-was-out-here, and-how-the-fuck did-you-know where-I-was-staying-at?” Nico asked with a rhythmic cadence to his words.
Jasmine immediately started to cry, hoping her tears would divert Nico’s attention.
“Baby, I’m out here because I was scared, and you make me feel safe. Do you know what it’s like for me to almost get killed by Bebo and then not want to go home at night because I’m thinking he might come back and make sure he kills me? And all I want is to know you’ll protect me, and it’s like all you’re doing is running from me! I’m scared, baby! That’s all! I’m scared.” Jasmine started to weep.
Fortunately for Jasmine, some of her words resonated with Nico’s macho character.
“I took care of that situation! I told you I would handle it,
and I handled it. Now what the fuck you not gonna do is stand there and make me keep asking you the same shit.”
“You handled what? See, this is what I can’t take. I’m supposedly your girl, but you don’t tell me shit. I don’t know where you are at times, and it’s just like uggggghhhhh.”
Nico was quiet.
“So what did you handle?” Jasmine was trying her best to get Nico to talk.
“You know what the streets is talking about. I did that shit, it’s done, it’s over with. You can sleep at night now.”
Jasmine shook her head.
“Answer me, Jasmine.”
Jasmine knew what Nico was referring to, and thankfully she thought quickly.
“You’re going to think what you want to think so I don’t care. I knew you was out here because I called around to all of the hotels and the resorts and I was asking for Mia’s name. And as soon as I found the hotel she was at, I knew you would more than likely be side by side with her. And guess what? Looks like I was right.”
Jasmine had no idea if Mia had booked the room, so at that point her heart was pounding. If she were wrong, Nico would probably murder her right there on the spot.
Nico looked at her as she wiped her tears. “You full of shit.”
Jasmine exhaled because she knew Nico hadn’t caught her in a lie.
“Yeah, I’m full of shit. Ugggghhh! Baby, what is wrong? Like, did I do something or what? One minute everything is all good—We at Mr. Chow eating good and living it up—and then the next thing I know, the cops is at our table, I get arrested, and after that, it’s like everything just short-circuited. What is going on?” Jasmine asked, desperation in her voice.
Tears started to fall from Jasmine’s face. She picked up the chair that Nico had kicked over and sat back down.
“Nico, be straight up with me and tell me the truth. Were you the one who sent Bebo to kill me?”
“The fuck you talking about?”
“I’m serious, Nico.”
Nico plastered a smirk on his face. “What you think?”
“I think you did.”
