by Jade Jones
“Cameron, hasn’t been giving me as many hours lately,” Elyse told Flint. “I guess she finally decided to be a mother again,” she said bitterly. “You know how hard I’ve been working to try to get my own spot.”
“Cameron?!” Flint repeated. He barely heard anything else Elyse had just said. “Cameron, who?” This was his first time hearing her mention the name of her employer. Elyse kept her business pretty confidential, as Flint did with her.
“Baby, you know I can’t go giving you last names—”
“This wouldn’t happen to be the same Cameron married to Jude, is it?”
Elyse became stone-faced after realizing she’d said way too much. The number one rule in her profession was confidentiality. “Flint, I don’t know what kinda stuff you’re in—with what happened a few weeks ago—but I don’t wanna be put in the middle. This is my job—”
Elyse’s sentence was cut short when Flint pulled out his gun and placed it against her head. His heartless action instantly caught Elyse off guard. Squirming in the passenger seat, she said a silent prayer that he didn’t pull the trigger.
“I got love for you, Elyse. I really do…but trust me. You do not wanna see the dangerous side to me,” Flint warned. “Now if you don’t want me to hurt you or ya peoples, I suggest you do what I tell yo’ ass.”
***
“Did you enjoy your night overall?” Jag asked after he and Cam entered her home.
Cameron kicked her heels off in the foyer and turned to Jag. “Yeah. I really did. Thanks for chaperoning me,” she smiled.
At that moment, something unexplainable came over Jag. No longer able to control himself, he walked over to Cameron and softly pulled her close. He didn’t care that her babysitter Elyse was there, and could walk in on them at any moment.
“Jag…what are you doing?” Cameron asked after he kissed on her the forehead. She wanted to pull away but it felt so good being held.
“I really care about you, Cam,” Jag whispered. “And not just ‘cuz it’s my job…”
“Jag—”
“You wanna live a regular life…I do too—but we’re the furthest thing from normalcy.” Jag ran his fingertips along Cameron’s spine. His simple gesture caused her to get chills. “In an alternative world, I’d be the one to give you that. Your son would be our son. I’d be the one makin’ you happy…’cuz you deserve that, Cam.” He kissed the bridge of her slender nose. “And I know this picture I painted in my head ain’t real…but the way I feel about you is for damn sure real…”
Cameron grabbed a fistful of his t-shirt and inhaled his Jaïpur Homme cologne. “You can’t be talking to me like this,” she whispered. “You can’t be touching me like this.”
“I’ve spent nearly every day here with you for the last month…and this shit has been amazin’, Cam,” Jag confessed. “I know you married…but I can’t help feelin’ the way I do. I know it hasn’t been that long but it’s like…I’ve known you forever…like I can trust you with you darkest secrets and shit. I…I can’t explain this. I ain’t ever felt this strongly for someone so fast,” Jag told her. “When I wake up you on my mind. When I’m sleepin’ you on my mind. When I’m talkin’ to Jude you on my mind. And when I’m here with you…I feel normal and complete, Cameron. Like I belong here…with you…”
“Jag…I’m married…”
Cameron’s reality stung Jag’s heart. Burdened by the fact that she could never be his, he pulled away from her. “The niggas that don’t deserve the good women always get ‘em. Ain’t that how it go?” he said to himself.
Cameron was confused by his statement. “What do you mean?” she asked.
“Nothing,” Jag quickly said. He’d unintentionally spoke his thoughts aloud.
Cameron stepped closer to Jag. “No…say what’s on your mind.”
Jag delicately cupped Cameron’s chin in his hand. “It’s nothing,” he said, gazing into her chestnut eyes. “I’m just…you got me goin’ crazy, Cam…”
Jag was just about to lean in and kiss her when he heard the front door unlock behind them. They quickly separated before Jude walked in.
Cameron tried her best to look normal even though her heart beat rapidly nonstop. Jag had evoked feelings that should’ve never surfaced.
Jude, ever so observant, quickly took note that something seemed suspicious. Yet he didn’t dwell on it too long because he trusted Cameron and Jag. Cameron was his loyal and devoted wife, and Jag was his young protégée whom he treated like blood.
“What’s up? What you all dressed up for?” Jude asked Cam. “You went out?”
“Yeah, just a little bar downtown,” Cam answered. “Nothing too much.” Secretly, she was still reeling from Jag’s words.
Jude turned to Jag. “Aight, I’ll get up with you tomorrow, bruh.”
After exchanging dap Jag prepared to leave. He stole one last glance at Cameron before closing the front door behind him. Cam noticed it, but luckily Jude didn’t.
What the hell have I gotten myself into, she asked herself.
20
The following morning, Cameron paid Rumor another visit. It had been a total of six weeks she’d last seen or talked to her girl. When Cam first moved to Atlanta the two women were inseparable, and now Rumor wouldn’t even pick up the phone.
When Cameron reached the front door she immediately noticed Rumor’s overflowing mailbox. Has she even been home, Cam asked herself.
Cameron raised her fist to knock on the door—
“She’s not here,” a voice said from behind her.
Cameron turned around and faced the woman from the clinic who resembled Rumor.
“I just looked in her garage window to see if her car was in there and it wasn’t,” Roxie explained. “I’m Roxie…Rumor’s sister.” There was a smug expression on her pretty chocolate face. She wasn’t all too pleased with the sight of Cameron after knowing she’d slept with her man. But then again, with O’ Zone’s track record, he’d probably screwed half of Atlanta.
“I’m—”
“Cameron,” Roxie finished for her. “I know ya name,” she said. “I heard a lil’ about you.”
Cameron assumed Roxie was referring to Rumor. She had no idea that she was speaking to O’ Zone’s girl.
“When’s the last time you saw my sister?” Roxie asked, changing the subject. “I think her cellphone’s dead. And it looks like she hasn’t been home in weeks,” Roxie continued. “I’m starting to think something’s up.”
Cameron hesitated a little. “I…uh…the last time I saw her was nearly two months ago,” she answered. Cam made sure to deliberately leave out the part that Jude was the last person she saw her with.
A look of dread swept over Roxie’s face. It wasn’t like Rumor to just up and disappear. Although, they weren’t the closest of siblings, Rumor’s recent behavior was unnatural.
“I think I might go down to the station. File a missing person’s report,” Roxie said. “I don’t know what else to do. I’ve spoken to the few family members we have here and no one’s seen her or talked to her. This shit is crazy.”
Cameron felt sympathetic towards her. She couldn’t imagine what Roxie was currently going through. In a selfless attempt to support, Cam said, “I’ll go with you if you want me to.”
***
Jag and Joaquin took in the broad Atlanta skyline from their patio. Puffing on White Widow, both brothers enjoyed the daytime breeze and afternoon commotion.
Joaquin sat barefoot in a striped chaise lounge chair. It was barely noon, and he was already on his third beer. “The other night a few of us hit the club,” he told Jag. “We were in VIP when some cocky ass motherfucker barged inside our VIP with his boys.”
Jag listened intently as he took two more pulls before handing the thick blunt to his brother. He sat in the oversized chair besides him with his feet kicked up on an ottoman. He was still sipping on his first Budweiser. “And what happened?” he asked.
Joaquin took an aggressive
pull on the blunt, and released the smoke through his slender nostrils. “Motherfucker came in there talkin’ ‘bout mergin’ with Jude. He said it would be profitable for the both of them.”
Jag was surprised to hear that since it was news to him. “Hell, nah. Sounds fishy…”
Joaquin blew out thick smoke rings. “Yeah, well, Jude must’ve thought the same ‘cuz he wasn’t with it. But the motherfucker got to talkin’ ‘bout how he’d eliminate the competition if Jude declined his offer.”
Joaquin passed the L back to his brother. “This dude has to be handled,” Jag said.
“He’s givin’ Jude two weeks to make up his mind,” Joaquin informed him. “I doubt Jude will…but when he doesn’t I know some shit is gonna pop off.”
Jag shook his head in disbelief. “Well, we gon’ be more than ready when and if it does,” he said confidently.
“That ain’t all,” Joaquin told him. “This nigga, Flint…I don’t trust his ass, bro’.”
***
From the bed, Cameron watched as Jude pulled on a pair of designer jeans. Ten minutes ago she’d returned home from the police station. Lately it seemed like every time she was coming, Jude was leaving. Truth be told, they hadn’t even been spending time like they usually did. When he wasn’t handling business he was out kicking it with his boys. Jude barely spent time with Justin like he used to. At the rate things were going, Justin would probably start confusing Jag as his father because that’s how much he saw him.
“I gotta meet with Jag and Joaquin ‘bout some shit so he won’t be here most of the day,” Jude said without looking in Cameron’s direction. He was fishing through the chest’s top drawer for a pair of socks. “If you ain’t really got nothin’ to do today, I’d like for you to stay home.”
Cameron released a sigh of frustration. She was sick of Jude treating her like a child on punishment. “Jude, you act like if I leave the house I’ma get raped or killed or something. You gotta stop being so paranoid that something’s gonna happen to me. We can’t keep living in fear. And to be honest…about Jag…”
Jude immediately looked in Cameron’s direction. Apart of him expected her to say something he wasn’t ready to hear. He wasn’t a fool. He would’ve had to have been blind to not notice the way Jag stared at Cameron.
“I don’t think you should have him watching over me and Justin like this,” Cameron told him.
“Why?” Jude asked.
“Because he has a life of his own. This is crazy, and it’s going too far—”
“Cam, you don’t know the type of mothafuckas I got at my neck, yo. They’re relentless. I got cats in my own circle waitin’ for a nigga to slip up. I can’t have nobody tryin’ to hurt you or Justin to get at me,” Jude said. “Cam, in the last year I’ve lost a brother, a cousin, and the nigga that made all this shit possible for me. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if something happened to you or my son.” Jude walked over to Cameron and lightly pulled her to her feet. He needed her to know and feel how much he cared about her. Leaning down, he pressed his lips against her forehead.
“Jude, if you feel this way then maybe you shouldn’t be doing this,” Cameron whispered.
Jag’s jaw muscle tensed. Cam was right but he couldn’t give the shit up. The money was awesome, and they’d be set for years when he finally decided to retire. “You know how passionate you are about fashion?” he asked her.
“Jude—”
“Just answer the question, Cameron.”
“Yes.”
“Cool. Well, that’s how I feel about runnin’ this shit. At first I didn’t want this life…but now I feel like I was born to do this shit—and I’m good at it. Eventually I’ma be better than the nigga that handed it down to me. I can’t give this shit up, babe. I need you to know that. You say you love me, Cam…” His voice trailed off before looking directly in her eyes. “Then ride with me regardless of where we goin’. It doesn’t matter where we headed in life or what we facin’ as long as we are together.”
Cameron buried her face in his Givenchy shirt. “But what if something happens to you, Jude?” she asked. “You want me to end up like Evelyn? A widow with a fatherless child?”
Jude sighed dejectedly. “I honestly don’t know what the future holds,” he said after a long pause. “All I can say is that’s why I’m groomin’ Jag and Joaquin. God forbid if some shit ever did happen, they’d look out for you and Justin like I do with Evelyn. Look, I know this life is gonna take some getting used to, but just know I’m doin’ this shit for us, Cam. Every mornin’ I wake up it’s for us.” He leaned down and kissed Cameron’s lips. “I love you, Hypnotic.”
Cameron laughed at him calling her stage name. Thankfully, he’d managed to lighten the mood. “I love you too.”
Jude pulled her so close to him that he could feel her heartbeat against his chest. He then poured all his passion into a mind blowing kiss that left them both winded and aroused.
Pulling him by his t-shirt, Cameron led him down onto the bed with her. The mattress creaked softly underneath their weight. It seemed like forever since they’d been intimate, and Cam wanted nothing more than to feel him inside of her.
Jude quickly eased out of his jeans. He didn’t even bother removing his tee as he slid Cam’s panties to the side and slid between her legs.
Cam whimpered upon his entrance. Breathing heavily, he rotated his hips while kissing her deeply. She tightened her legs around his waist, and dug her fingernails in his back as he hit her spot repeatedly.
At that moment nothing else mattered to Jude. Not the business, Essence, or the meeting he would soon be running late for. All that mattered to him was making Cam cum until she shivered and her toes curled.
Lifting her legs over his shoulders, Jude dug as deep as he could go. His face contorted in concentration as he focused on making her cream.
Cam’s moans bounced off the bedroom walls as she struggled to take all nine inches of his curved dick. Grabbing his right hand, she slid his index finger inside her mouth and seductively sucked on his digit.
That shit only drove Jude crazy. In the blink of an eye, he flipped Cam over onto her stomach and slid inside from the back. Wrapping his toned arm around loosely around her neck, he licked and nibbled on her earlobe.
“Ooooh, Jude!” Cameron cried out. “I’m about to cum!”
Jude filled Cameron with even strokes nonstop until he felt her gush all over his dick. He then pulled out and lapped up all her wetness. Cameron trembled as Jude’s tongue dipped in and out her slit.
“I love you so much, baby,” she whispered.
Jude kissed each of her butt cheeks before giving one a gentle bite. “Love you too, Cam.” He climbed out the bed, and pulled his jeans back on. He didn’t care that he hadn’t gotten his. All he wanted to do was make Cameron feel good, even if only for a little while. “Now come lock up behind me. These niggas prolly wonderin’ where the hell I’m at.”
“Can you pick up Justin from daycare if you have time?” Cameron asked, slipping into a silk robe.
“You got that,” Jude told her.
She trailed him downstairs to the front door. Right before he walked out, Cam stopped him. The question had been a burden to her for some time now, and she just had to know the truth.
“Jude, you didn’t,” she hesitated. “…hurt Rumor, did you?”
Jude slowly turned around and faced his wife. He looked surprised by her unexpected question. “Cam, are you for real? You know me, babe,” he said.
“You’re right,” Cameron quickly agreed. “I’m sorry. It was something stupid to say. It shouldn’t have come out my mouth.” She was disappointed that she’d even asked the question. A coldblooded killer her husband was not.
Jude walked over to Cameron and kissed her forehead. “Look, I don’t know what’s goin’ on with ole girl…but I’m sure she’ll come back around.”
***
I need to see you today.
Joaquin reread the text
he’d just sent Roxie ten minutes ago. Silently, he chastised himself for seeming so demanding, especially since she hadn’t responded.
This chick is really gonna make me work for her, Joaquin thought to himself. Although he wanted to he refrained from pushing up on her at her home. After a couple drinks he left respectfully. Fuck it. I love a change. He didn’t mind one at all, considering Roxie was well worth it.
“Yo’ ass been in that phone all day, fool.” Jag said, looking in the rearview mirror. Joaquin sat in the backseat with his eyes glued to his Samsung Galaxy S4. “You waitin’ on a special somebody to hit you up?” he asked with a sly grin. Jag already knew Joaquin was weak for Roxie.
Both brothers waited outside Infants of Dunwoody for Jude to return with his son. The brief stop afforded them time for a quick smoke break in the car.
“Nah, it ain’t shit,” Joaquin said nonchalantly. He was trying his best to play it off. Placing his phone inside his pocket, he hoped that Jag wouldn’t see that he was sweating her.
Two minutes later, Jude emerged from the daycare carrying Justin. After securing his son inside his car seat Jude climbed into the driver’s seat. “Joaquin, shoot Mike a text lettin’ him know we on our way to The Warehouse.”
“Got it,” Joaquin answered.
Before Jude hopped on the freeway, he made a quick stop at a local convenience store to grab a few six packs.
Once inside Joaquin grabbed a magazine, and began flipping through it. “Aye, bruh. I think I gotta crush on this Kerry Washington chick.”
Jag chuckled and shook his head in amusement.
“Man, you ever seen the lips on this motherfucker? The thoughts that run through my mind—”
“If you not buying, you not reading!” the African store clerk fussed out Joaquin in a thick accent.
“See, I was gon’ buy it,” Joaquin said, purposely messing with the employee. “You done fucked up that sale.”
