by B. Love
Leigh shook her head. “No. I can’t be mad at you for having a plan for your life and sticking to it.”
“What’s your plan for your life? You plan on killing niggas until you’re eighty?”
Leigh giggled as she turned onto her side. Tossing her left leg over his, she shrugged. Ransom wasted no time wrapping his arm around her and pulling her as close as he possibly could.
“Nah, but I haven’t really thought about what I want to do full time when I retire. The club pretty much runs itself. I only have to go a few times out of the month to check on things. So I don’t know. Maybe when I stop doing this, I’ll open a photography studio.”
When Leigh first graduated high school, she wanted to be a photographer. Not only did she love having her picture taken, but she loved taking pictures of others as well. There was something about the majesty of capturing a present moment in a way that would allow you to look at it in the future to remember the past that brought Leigh immense joy.
That was what she thought she would spend her life doing, but her anger and fists sent her down a different path.
“I can see that. You take amazing pictures.”
Leigh smiled as his fingers slid through her hair. “You’re just an amazing model to work with.”
“You flirting with me, woman?”
“What if I am?”
Lifting her head, Ransom stared into her eyes for a few seconds before lowering himself to her lips. The moment she felt his lips cover hers, Leigh felt branded by him — owned. Giving up control and surrendering herself to Ransom always filled her with terrifying excitement. He was the only man she’d ever given all of herself to, and though she prayed it would always remain that way… Leigh knew there was a chance that her lack of commitment would cost her him one day.
Ransom’s body covered hers effortlessly. Their comfort with each other was a kind that allowed them to lay against one another naked and it not be filled with thoughts of sex, however, the moment Leigh felt his heavy, thick dick pressed against her body… that changed.
“We don’t have to do this,” she pulled away to say, knowing if he kissed and touched her too much there would be no turning back.
“Yea, we do.” His head hung and voice lowered when he confessed, “I’m sick of denying my desire for you.”
Leigh cupped his cheeks and lifted his head. She placed a soft kiss to his lips before wrapping her legs around him fully. He lifted her arms above her head as he deepened the kiss. If it was anyone else, Leigh would have urged his lips down to her bottom set. With Ransom, just the thought of having him inside was enough to get her wet.
Releasing her lips, Ransom rested his forehead against hers.
“You love me?” she asked quietly, grabbing his dick and putting it at her opening.
“You know I fuckin’ do,” he groaned, slowly sliding all of his length inside of her. Her back arched. Mouth opened. Nails dug into his arms. “And I know you love me, too.”
The longer their eyes remained locked, the more watery hers grew. She didn’t want to cry, but her tears began to fall after she closed her eyes. Ransom kissed them away before lifting himself from her chest and stroking her deeply. Taking her right foot into his hand, Ransom licked and sucked her toes… ran his tongue down the center of her foot. Her walls began to leak as she squirmed underneath him.
His hands were all over her — choking her, caressing her breasts, gripping her waist, clawing her thighs. But when he began to speed up his strokes, Leigh took his left hand and sucked his middle finger into her mouth. Swirling her tongue around it, she sucked it just as she would his dick while massaging his balls. The connection had Ransom’s strokes hardening and speeding up more as he groaned and stared into her eyes.
Ransom circled her clit, causing her mouth to open wider as she moaned. He pulled his finger out and lowered himself back down to her. Rocking against her, Ransom snatched her breath, slowing his strokes as her body locked. She chuckled at the feel of her walls squeezing and spine-tingling.
“You can’t ever leave me,” she pleaded, jerking underneath him as her pussy pulsed.
Ransom continued to stroke her as she came, not letting up as he whispered, “Then don’t give me a reason to.”
Maria stared at her reflection in the mirror. Her eyes watered as they looked over the crimson splashed across her cocoa brown skin. None of her jobs were ever supposed to end with someone getting hurt or dying, but that was the case tonight. The tip she’d gotten was off, and there was a man in the home she hit. Maria begged him not to reach for his gun as she stood behind him, but he did, and as soon as he turned… she shot.
It was her first instinct to try and stop the bleeding, which was how she ended up with so much of it on her face, arms, hands, and clothes… but when she remembered why she was in the man’s home, she quickly entered the code to his safe, grabbed the stacks of cash, and left.
Nights like this made Maria hate what she did for a living. Yea, she had her adult arcade and game room, which brought in good money, but Maria was a thief. A scammer. And she used to be damn proud of her ability to finesse a nigga out of anything. She would always find pride in the fact that she took from the ruthless and rich in a way that wouldn’t break their banks, but the more hits she did, the less that made it okay.
Maria was able to steal anything, but cars and diamonds were her specialty. At least ten times a month, she helped someone get rid of a car they could no longer drive or afford. She didn’t do robberies — taking money or valuables off a person — and she hated doing home burglaries where she took money or jewels out of the home. But when Rico told her how much she could make, Maria couldn’t refuse. As she cut the warm water on, she wished she would have.
A shaky breath fell from her lips as she watched the blood flow down the drain. Picking up her soap, she washed it off her arms, neck, and face as tears threatened to fall from her eyes. It took a lot to get Maria emotional. In fact, she remembered the last time she cried. It was almost five years ago. But every time she closed her eyes and saw the man’s body flying backwards from the impact of her bullets, tears threatened to pour.
Not wanting them to fall, Maria quickly cut the water off and headed to her living room. There, she started her fireplace and stripped down, burning every piece of clothing she had on for the night. She watched as her clothing turned into ashes, then headed back to the bathroom to shower. As she stood under the showerhead, Maria allowed the water to completely drench her hair and body.
Pushing her hair out of her face, Maria swallowed hard as the taste of vomit began to fill her mouth. Leigh was the killer; Maria wanted no bodies. Opening her eyes, Maria cursed under her breath as she stepped back to grab the soap and wash herself.
Once her shower was over, Maria headed to the kitchen to make herself a cup of coffee. Unlike most people, she didn’t drink it when she wanted to stay awake; she drunk it when she wanted to relax or go to sleep. She added a couple of shots of whisky before heading back to the bathroom to wrap her hair up in a towel and moisturize her skin. Maria grabbed her phone to start her Tory Lanez playlist, realizing she had two missed calls from Christian.
Releasing a sigh, Maria returned her sister’s call.
“Hello?”
“You call?”
“Yea. Nash told me about tonight. You good?”
Maria smiled softly. It didn’t surprise her that Nash had told Christian. He was almost always with her when she did jobs, especially if he wasn’t the plug on them. Tonight, he didn’t go in with her since it was Rico’s main hit, but as soon as he heard the shots he was coming to her aid. She tried to stress to Nash that she was okay, but he obviously didn’t believe her, and she appreciated him more for his concern.
“Yea, I’m good. That shit rattled me a little, but I’m good.”
“You sure? I can come over…”
“I’m good, sis. I just want to chill and relax my mind so I can get to sleep. Might stop by for some edibles if I
can’t get to sleep, though.”
“You know I got you. I love you.”
“I love you too. One love.”
“One love.”
Maria disconnected the call then started her playlist. She spent the next few hours playing Call of Duty until it no longer entertained her. If she planned on getting any sleep, she would need something to settle her mind. Considering getting drunk, Maria changed her mind. She would end up sleeping until the liquor wore off just to be sitting up looking crazy in the middle of the night.
As she contemplated going to her arcade and chilling in one of the gaming rooms, she got a text from Nash asking if she was okay. Instead of texting him back, Maria decided to call him and see what he was up to.
“Yo,” he answered.
“Where you at?”
“’Bout to pull up to Leigh’s club. Come through.”
“Aight.”
Disconnecting the call, Maria stood and headed to her closet to find something to wear. She didn’t mind going to her sister’s strip club, mainly because she knew she’d be fucked up by the time she left. Not in the mood to dress up, Maria put on her signature look — a white baby tee, form-fitting jeans, and a pair of Los Angeles Lakers high top Converse.
Looking herself over in the bathroom mirror, Maria smiled softly at her reflection. That was progress from the shame she felt when she first made it home. Her features were strong, striking, and beautiful just like her sisters. As she looked into her almond-shaped hazel eyes, Maria ran her hand down the Malibu tattoo on the side of her neck. If she allowed her mind to travel there… to him… she would never leave her house.
She made sure there was no crust around her nose ring and applied some clear lip gloss to her bowtie-shaped, full lips, then sprayed herself with Yves Saint Laurent’s Black Opium and headed out. As she drove to Leigh’s club in her money green Rolls-Royce Cullinan, Maria considered what her next move would be. Even when a job had her regretting her decision to scheme and scam, her mind never stopped for too long.
This wasn’t what she wanted to do her entire life, but she could see herself doing it for another eight or nine years. Her twenty-third birthday was less than a month away, and she had a few major jobs that she wanted to execute before she retired such as a multi-million-dollar diamond heist and a bank hit. But Maria didn’t see herself trying to do either of those any time soon.
Pulling up to the entrance of the club, Maria handed her key to the valet and headed inside. She made her way directly to Nash’s VIP table, eyes rolling at the sight of Jax. He wasn’t the only man with Nash, but he was the first her eyes landed on. As soon as Jax saw Maria heading in their direction, a wide grin covered his face. Clenching her jaw, she mugged him, getting a chuckle out of him.
There wasn’t one thing in particular that Maria could put her hand on that made her dislike him. Honestly, he was a likable and handsome guy. There was nothing typical about his appearance or style. True enough, he was a hood nigga from Mississippi, but he dressed and carried himself like he’d been dropped down to earth from another planet.
Jax’s aura was not only alluring and magnetic, but it was gangsta and sexy as fuck, too.
Maybe that’s why she couldn’t stand his ass. All these other niggas stood no chance… but Jax had a way about him that made him hard to ignore.
“Marrrriiiaaaaa,” was screamed off to the side of her, and Maria didn’t have to look to see who it was. She would recognize Exotic’s voice anytime and anywhere. Stopping mid-step, Maria turned to the left, smile spreading at the sight of Exotic running over to her in her six-inch heels. All eyes were on Exotic, whose real name was Anna, as her titties and ass bounced.
As soon as she was within reach, Maria pulled Exotic into her arms for a tight hug.
“My baby,” Maria almost sang as Exotic placed kisses to her cheek.
“I been waiting for you to come through!”
“Jesus Christ,” was heard behind them. “You know how much I’d pay to see the two of you fuck?”
With a slight chuckle, Maria released Exotic as she turned to face the man that had intruded on their reunion. “You know how little it would cost for me to have you fucked up?”
He snarled before calling her a bitch under his breath. Maria winked at him and blew him a kiss as Exotic laughed and took her into her arms again. They were best friends in high school, but they lost touch when Maria went through her depressed phase over losing Malibu. When they saw each other now, they were able to pick up like they’d never lost touch. But for quite some time, Maria didn’t want to talk to and be around Exotic or anyone else for that matter.
“What you been up to? Leigh told me you come through once a week so I’ve been waiting for you.”
“Shit working. She told me you started dancing here last month. I’ve been meaning to come through so I could see you, but my schedule has been crazy at night.”
Exotic nodded her understanding before squealing and taking Maria into her arms again. “I’m so happy to see you, Maria. You know I light my candle for you and pray for you every night. How are you, baby?”
Maria sighed as Exotic released her. It didn’t matter how Exotic looked, how she made her money, or how she was perceived, she had a heart of gold. You wouldn’t expect her to be as spiritual as she was, but Exotic would fast, pray, affirm, and meditate with some of the best of them. It didn’t matter what was bothering Maria in the past… Exotic would do whatever it took to help her get her soul right.
When Maria needed that healing most, she pulled away from Exotic most. A part of her felt like she needed to feel that pain to feel closer to Malibu… even though she knew that was something he didn’t want.
“I be feeling it, and I appreciate that, E. For real. But I’ve been good. Tonight was a little rough. I’m happy I came, though. Just your hug got me right.”
Exotic grinned as she wrapped her arm around Maria’s shoulders and led her over to the bar. “You know my hugs got magic and healing in them. How’s the rest of the family?”
Maria chuckled. “Do you really care, or are you only interested in Pressure?”
Exotic rolled her eyes as they took their seats at the bar. Against her will, Maria’s eyes went to Nash’s VIP, and sure enough… Jax’s eyes were on her. He licked his lips and bit down on the bottom one as he winked at her and made her growl under her breath as she looked away.
“I am not concerned with Pressure’s mean ass. Last I heard, he had a baby on the way, and three or four women chasing after him.”
Maria shrugged as Ronica, the bartender, walked over to them. “I haven’t heard about a baby, but the rest sounds about right.”
Exotic chuckled as Ronica asked them what they wanted to drink. Maria asked for a Long Island Iced Tea with a splash of pineapple juice while Exotic asked for a shot of something brown.
“See, no. I could never.”
“But you want him, though.”
“Mmmm not anymore. I think I’m at a point now where I’m finally over him.”
Maria nodded, happy if that was actually true. All of her friends growing up had crushes on her brother’s but Exotic’s infatuation with Pressure was on a whole other level. When they first met, the age difference kept Pressure from even looking at her. By the time Exotic was eighteen, Pressure’s way of handling women had turned Exotic off. They flirted and entertained each other when they were in the same space, but it never went beyond that.
“That’s good. Monique is bussing heads over that mane for whatever reason, and I’d hate to have to knock her ass out over you.”
Exotic downed her shot as her name was being called by the DJ. “I see ain’t nothin’ changed, huh?”
Maria stood as she smiled. “And it never will.”
They embraced, then headed in separate directions. As Exotic walked to the stage, Maria finally headed over to Nash’s section. Nash stood and made his way to the bottom step, waiting to take her into his arms. Maria rested her head in the cent
er of his chest, allowing his warmth to further soothe her. He waited until he took her cheeks into the palms of his hands to ask, “You good?” She nodded and gave him a smile. “You sure?”
“I’m good, bro.”
“Aight, cool. Come get fucked up then.”
Maria’s smile widened as Nash took her hand and led her to the empty seat that was next to him — between him and Jax. She started to ask Nash to switch seats with her but decided against it instead. As soon as she sat down, Jax sat up in his seat. His cologne was masculine, fresh, and fruity. She found herself leaning more to the left to get a better whiff of it.
“You ain’t gon’ speak?” Jax asked, and Maria had to force herself not to look at him or react.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw him scanning as much of her body as he possibly could.
Tilting her head further in Nash’s direction, she asked, “What you even doing here? You look bored as hell.”
“You gon’ act like you don’t hear me talking to you, Maria?”
Her eyes closed the moment his calm, raspy voice said her name.
“Hello,” she offered, making Nash chuckle and shake his head.
“I’m bored as fuck, but I ain’t wanna be cooped up at the crib,” Nash answered.
“Why didn’t you go see Chris? You know that’s where you want to be anyway.”
Nash smiled, not even bothering to deny what she said. While others may have been unaware of his desire for her sister, Maria knew about it well. They spent so much time together that they’d talked about literally everything under the sun over the years — including how his love for her went beyond that of best friends.
“I would, but she be on that bullshit after she spends time with Tyrell.”
“I’ll be glad when you take her from him. Sick of his ass.”
Nash chuckled before pouring himself a glass of Ace of Spades. “She ain’t ready, and probably never will be.”
“So what, you’re never going to try?”
Nash handed her the bottle, and she realized why when she grabbed it. There was probably a glass left, and she would end up taking the bottle to the head.
