by Lace, Lolah
“Huh?”
“We can move them over here to my place.”
I was stunned beyond belief. Maybe I heard him wrong. Maybe I have a ton of wax built up in my ears. Bash must have read the shock plastered all over my face.
“Would you prefer to go shopping for new clothes?” His face frowned as he tried to assess my sporadic mood.
“I don’t need new clothes.”
“Well we can just pack up all your old clothes and bring them over.”
“Why would I do that?” Huh, color me confused. I just didn’t understand what he was talking about.
“Are you going to bring clothes over to my house every single day or bring all your clothes over at once?” He said it like he was talking to a third grader or maybe I just perceived it that way.
“Are you asking me to move in?”
“Sure I guess, don’t you already live here? You’re here every day.”
What the hell? “You ask me to come here. It’s not like I just show up unannounced. You tell me to meet you here.” I had to hold onto the arms of the chair just to stop myself from leaping over the damn table.
“Yes I do ask you to be here, I pretty much demand it. You know I need to see you everyday.” He grinned across the table at me and his dimples hit me right in the middle of my forehead. Oh boy I hate when he smiles at me. No, I kind of love that.
“Well Nina.”
“Well Bash.” I half rolled my eyes. He had my blood pressure up.
“Well get your shit and hang it in the closet. You can have whatever space you need for your things. Or I could just buy you a brand new wardrobe. Whatever works for you?”
“I don’t need new clothes.”
“Most people don’t need new clothes but they buy them anyway. I haven’t seen you in the same thing twice so you obviously have a lot of clothes. You can always have more. That’s if you would like new clothes.”
Bash reached in his shirt pocket and removed a money clip. There were a few crisp new one hundred dollar bills and a lone Visa credit card. He placed the credit card on the table and put the money in the clip away. He slid the Visa card across the table and stopped it right in front of me. I tried not to look at it but I did. What could the limit be on that thing?
“I haven’t had to repeat an outfit because we’ve only been seeing each other for about two months. I have lots of clothes so--” I slid his Visa back over to his side of the table. “Keep your card.
“Best two months of my life. That’s why I need you here with me.”
“You don’t think it’s too soon?”
“No I don’t.”
“Really Bash.”
“I enjoy your company.”
“I enjoy your company too but you really don’t think it’s too soon?”
“No Nina, not at all. Do you?”
“Uh yes, didn’t we skip over a few steps?”
“I don’t think so. You met Jax and Eva. You met my mother and my assistant. I’ve been to your job. You’ve been to my job. We’ve been intimate on various occasions. Are there any other steps that I’m unaware of?”
“The talking about things before we jump up and do them. That’s the first basic step.”
“Okay what do you want to talk about?”
“Us, I guess.”
“I like talking about us. I want to see you everyday. I would move into your place but my place is bigger.”
“So Funny.” I smarted off. There was no way in hell he would leave this fortress to live in my modest condo.
“Maybe I should have brought all this up while we were in bed fucking.”
Maybe but it still would have been a shock. Some random thought jumped out at me and I couldn’t help myself. “Bash.”
“Yes beautiful.”
“When did we become an exclusive couple?”
“For me, two months ago in the elevator, for you right now it seems.”
“Bash seriously?”
“Nina seriously?” He dimple-grinned me.
“Don’t mock me.”
He raised an eyebrow as if he was thinking about it. “Stop thinking like an accountant.”
“I am an accountant.” I stopped myself before I got my customary eye roll out.
“I have only been with you since the day we met. There has been no one else.”
“Why me?”
“Why you what?”
“Yes, why do you want me to move in here with you? Have there been other women that lived here with you?”
“No, the only other woman was my wife. You know this.”
“So why me?”
“You’re fun. You’re beautiful, smart, funny, independent, and feisty. You’re great in bed. Your blowjobs are fucking amazing. You tend to agree with half the things I say. You’re great in bed. Your lips fit around my cock perfectly.” He closed his eyes like forever.
“Bash.” Hearing his name snapped him back into the reality of the moment. “Can you be serious for a moment.”
“I am being serious. When I wake up and the morning and see and feel you in bed next to me, I feel like this is the way it should be forever.” My heart sunk into my feet and I silently thanked God for dropping this man in my lap.” I’m not asking you to sell your condo. I just want you here with me.”
I was seriously considering this, living with this man, my man. “For how long?”
“Forever.”
“Do you want my first born too?” The words came from my mouth without me thinking. Oh my god, did I just ask this man if he wanted a baby? I put my foot in my mouth big time but I couldn’t see a way out of my mishap. My entire body got hot as I waited for him to take back his offer.
“I’m forty-three.” He stopped talking for a second or two. “My kids are adults. Do you want a baby?”
My mouth opened but nothing came out.
“I could give you one or two if you want them.” He shrugged like it was no big deal. “You’re thirty-eight. So did you want to start now or wait a few years? I don’t know the time limit for women on that sort of thing.”
I shut my open mouth. I held it closed although it wanted to desperately fall open again and hit the table. I could only stare at him. I was falling hard for this man but sometimes he would say things that just confused me.
“Nina.”
“Yes.”
“Do you want a baby?”
“Do you want a baby?” I flipped it on him. I didn’t know what else to do.
“Only if you do. I raised Jax and Eva by myself. I did a bang up job. I would need help with another kid but I’m wiser now so I might be good at it.”
Damn! He can make dumb shit sound so good. “Jesus Bash.”
“What?”
“How did we get here?”
“I think it all started with an elevator ride.” He smiled. I wish he would stop that smiling.
“Elevator, dinner, sex, move-in, baby.”
“I love you. I think I may really love you in a way that is explicable and inexplicable at the same time. It’s just I have only loved one other woman and it was so long ago I don’t remember it properly. This feels different, ten times better. I’m not trying to disparage my wife’s memory but this time I picked you for my reasons, not for the reasons that were drilled into my head growing up.”
“You picked me?” What did he mean?
“I saw you. I picked you. I wanted you. I have you.”
He sure had me. I wanted to roll my eyes but he was so damn accurate he probably would have seen right through me. That was super damn cocky Mr. Vandervol.
“Nina honestly maybe you picked me. I don’t even care. I just want to see you everyday. Talk to you everyday. Sleep next to you everyday. I know you want the same thing.”
“Yes I do. I want the same thing.”
“I don’t care if it’s been two months or two minutes. I just want you.”
“Okay fine. I will move in.”
He slammed both his fists down on the tab
le. “Hell yes, its moving day. We need boxes and a truck and we can get you a key. I don’t remember the keyless entry code”
“You have a housekey?”
“Yes somewhere.”
“I’ve never seen you use it.”
“I live in a gated community why would I lock the doors?”
I hated when he said stupid shit and made it seem logical. No actually, I loved it. I could listen to this man’s crazy talk forever. I really love him. It would be impossible for me to love this man after only two months. Is that possible? Do I love him? I’m so messed up and jaded by love I don’t think I would know it. I do know I can’t say no to him. I’m losing at all his little mind games. I don’t even know if he’s playing games. Is he going to get me over here and start whooping my ass? He doesn’t even raise his voice at those bratty adult kids. Well Jax isn’t really a brat but Eva is on my shit list. Stop thinking stupid Nina. This feels like love.
Bash was excited about me moving in. I decided to just go with it. I feared things not working out. I feared him putting me out. You can’t be put out of your own house. I’ve always had my own. This was a new experience for me. This entire whirlwind relationship was new to me. Why should I live in fear?
CHAPTER 22
NINA
I knew something was up when I went to put my key in the door. The door just pushed open without me even turning the lock. My heart started to beat out of my chest. Someone had been in my condo. I stopped and Bash stepped right into me. He reached for my waist.
“What’s wrong?”
He couldn’t even see my face. He asked like he felt something in my body language.
“The door wasn’t locked.” I whispered.
“Maybe you forgot to lock it.”
No, white man, I’m from the South side. “No. I know I locked it.” Something in my tone made Bash twirl me behind him. He pushed the door open with his palm and walked in slowly.
“What the fuck?” He gasped. I noticed the horrid mess right after he did. He grabbed my hand and led me inside my condo but made sure I stayed behind him. We entered my living room and my couch, and chairs had been ripped. Someone took a damn knife and just cut into the fabric. My clothes were strewn about the room and they had been ripped to shreds. The place reeked of bleach. Some of my most expensive clothes had been socked in bleach and thrown all over the Brazilian cherry wood floors.
This was deliberate. I knew what asshole did this. My face would not hold back the tears. I rushed pass Bash and went into the kitchen. Every single glass, plate and breakable item had been shattered to pieces all over the floor.
Bash rushed into the kitchen behind me. I didn’t want to go to my bedroom. I was afraid to see more but I went to the bathroom first and wasn’t sure why. I think I was afraid to see my walk-in room closet. I was afraid to see my shoes, my purses, my stuff, all my damn stuff.
The bathroom mirror was shattered and one of the broken shards of glass that remained in the vanity had the word WHORE penned in red lipstick.
“Be careful. There’s glass everywhere.” I heard Bash say but ignored him and ran into my bedroom, the one converted into a dream closet.
I couldn’t believe one man could be so mean and cruel. Every single pair of heels I owed had been damaged. This man broke off the heel to every stiletto and pump I owned. He had cut up my wedges after he realized he couldn’t break off the heel. I hadn’t done anything to deserve this. The one mirror in my closet hadn’t been broken but the words written in red lip stain were harsher than anything I had even read or heard from a man’s mouth. THIS IS PAYBACK FOR BEING REPLACED SO SOON BITCH!
I could see Bash’s reflection in the mirror as he stood behind me reading the words. I broke down in a frenzy of uncontrollable tears. I was too devastated to be embarrassed.
I closed my eyes and felt Bash’s arms as they wrapped around my waist. He pulled me back into his chest. He may have been holding me up on my feet. I felt like I would drop to the floor if he released me.
“Nina.” He whispered in my ear. “It’s okay. These are just material possessions and they can all be replaced. Your boyfriend is rich, remember. I can replace, I will replace everything you lost.”
I knew I shouldn’t be but I was slightly comforted by this. David the asshole Jenkins didn’t kill my mama but I still felt violated. Bash keeping his cool and saying the right words helped. Bash always said the right things. I didn’t even know how much money he had. Maybe I should have just done an Internet search of his net worth but it seemed so stupid. I never needed a man’s money and never felt untitled to it. Yeah they paid on dates and I expected gifts on the gift giving holidays and my birthdays. But I had never been in any man’s pockets.
“Any man that would behave this way is a bitch. Don’t let him rattle you.”
What he said made sense. Fuck David! For a minute I wondered if he was outside watching us. I still could not understand why he was taking our breakup so hard. He had rejected me tens times before I rejected him. I don’t know why I was trying to make sense of it. He was just crazy as fuck. No need to try to figure this brand of crazy out.
“I have to clean up.”
“No you don’t.”
“Yeah I do. I own this place.”
“I know. I will hire someone to clean up.”
“Hire someone? Why?”
Bash chuckled. “I’m rich, I don’t clean up.”
“I’ve seen you clean up. I saw you make the bed. I saw you washing my dishes when you stayed over.”
“Nina I only did that so you wouldn’t think I was a lazy rich jerk.”
I couldn’t help my frown. “Really?”
“Yes, I was trying to impress you. I know how to clean. I prefer not to. If I cleaned up after myself Isabelle wouldn’t have a job.”
Oh yes he does have a housekeeper, the one with the adorable grandson Javi. “So you’re giving back to the community.”
“Yes.” He smiled as he touched my cheek. “What kind of rich asshole keeps all his money to himself?” Now he was frowning at me. There he was with his stupid logic. He had made me forget I was standing in the middle of a disaster zone. This man is a godsend.
“Bash this is so much drama.”
“No not really.” He looked around the room. “With brand new clothes and shoes, now you can make sure I never see you in the same outfit twice. Just make sure you buy lingerie also.” He smiled and kissed me on the lips. He held my head in between his hands. “Shake your head yes to the lingerie.”
He started shaking my head for me. “Yes yes.” He swooped me up off my feet so fast that I couldn’t even see the floor underneath me. He was holding me tight to his chest and I had my arms around his neck.
“I need to call Jax and Soung and tell them not to come.”
I forgot he solicited them to come help with the packing. “I can clean up until then.”
“No I said I would hire someone. They will inventory all your things first before they dispose of them. I’m kind of wealthy and you are wealthy by association so just get use to it. Money is not going to ever be an issue for us to fight about. So don’t ever refuse my money. I will never budge on that, ever.”
I shook my head yes. Bash walked me out of the walk-in closet. He shifted sideways to fit us both through the doorframe. He left the bedroom and was headed to the front door of my condo. His shoes crunched on broken glass all the way to my entryway. I wonder if he thought I was too heavy.
This was enough to give a woman a nervous breakdown. I’m so glad Bash was here with me.
CHAPTER 23
SEBASTIAN
Fear. It was a rejected concept in my household. I had just enough preliminary information to pull my dick out and bring a ruler. I drove my Porsche to JamRox Recording Studios. I was on the outskirts of downtown Chicago. I pulled into the lot. I parked next to the custom Black Escalade with all the flashy trimmings. I memorized the license plate and walked into the building. It was an old build
ing and nothing fancy.
The reception area was minimal. I was dressed to the nines. Tom Ford from head to toe. I needed to look like a million bucks. I knew this guy needed to be impressed to take me seriously.
There was a receptionist that looked up at me from her cell phone. Her eyes lit up from either my clothes, my height, my handsome mug or a combination of them all.
“Hello.” Her bright red lips spread as she drunk me in.
“Hello.”
She stood. I thought it was odd, to stand. “What can I help you with?”
I took in her entire body with my eyes. She was short and very shapely like Kim Kardashian. She even resembled her, dark hair, dark eyes, huge ass. The difference was she was black, maybe mixed race. She was dressed in a tight black dress that left nothing to the imagination. I found this strange for a secretary. She was overly made up in her face. Not the way women wear makeup at the office but how they wear makeup in bars and nightclubs.
“I’m here to see Mr. Jenkins.”
“Oh, do you have an appointment?”
She should know that I didn’t. I’m sure she does. “No, I’m sorry I don’t but I’m sure he would want to see me.” I smiled at her and I was sure she would melt. She did. She giggled for no apparent reason. This wasn’t my first rodeo.
“I can check and see if he’s busy.”
“Would you please. This is a very important business matter.”
“What’s your name?”
“Mr. Vandervol.”
“Okay just give me a minute.”
“I will just have a seat.” I unbuttoned my suit jacket and took a seat on the black leather couch.
“Yes, yes, just sit. I will be right back.”
The Kim K. clone went over to the door and punched in a code. I couldn’t see the code. Her body obstructed the keypad. This is a secure location. I’m not sure why they would need the security but then again I have no knowledge of the music industry.
She disappeared, leaving me alone in the waiting room. I was quite sure he wouldn’t know who I was but she would tell him about the Porsche and how I was dressed. This would buy me some time with the asshole.
