by D. Camille
“See, we understand that you like pulling guns on customers; cheating the kids out of their correct change and not giving receipts or bags to patrons,” Brandon began. “So we came to tell you that shit is about to stop.”
“I don’t want you in my store! I’m calling the police.”
Brandon smiled. “The police sent us.”
Khalil went to the door leading behind the counter. “Open the door for him,” Brandon ordered then waited for the clerk to slowly comply slowly. Khalil was the Black Panther in the bunch and he, along with his sister Khayla were well versed in firearms.
When the buzzer sounded, Khalil headed to where the clerk stood. He retrieved the AK-47 behind the counter. “AK, shotgun, 9mm.” He told the group before cataloguing the weapons.
“If one of these guns kills one person who comes in this store to purchase something, we’re coming back to use it on you,” Brandon warned. “Now bag my shit and give me a receipt.”
******
At his next location, Brandon stepped inside the building and the aroma filled his nostrils. As he stood in line, he was greeted by customers who congratulated him and promised their votes. Brandon placed his order when he got to the front of the line then stood aside to wait.
His mind went to Mackenzie and her beautiful dark brown eyes and hair. He’d released those luxurious strands from her usual pulled back style and ran his fingers through them while devouring her full, firm lips and squeezing her round, plump breasts through a dark satin bra.
Brandon had felt her strong hands on his bare chest and back before they’d both fallen to the floor in uncontrolled passion. He’d felt the firmness of her full body and the lushness of her mounds had tasted like heaven on his tongue.
His body rebelled as he recalled how she’d called everything to a halt. She’d pushed him off her then sat up and quietly said, “No…”
Mackenzie had then gone on to list a number of reasons why it couldn’t happen, but all Brandon had heard was her softly spoken rejection and the remorse behind the single word.
His number was eventually called and he grabbed the bag before exiting and heading to his next destination. He’d had three days to think about his attraction to Mackenzie and what he wanted to do about it. True his family and friends had watered the seed, but it was a seed that had been planted a long time ago. The first time he’d seen her in his father’s office, something had sparked and never fizzled out.
Mackenzie had been a young, high school girl in the middle of an uproar in the city. He’d been amazed by her strength and bravery right before he’d noticed her feelings for Rion. Although they’d both denied it, saying that it was the after effects of the situation, Brandon had decided to steer clear anyway. Later, he’d met Patrice and that was an entirely different story.
Brandon arrived at Mackenzie’s office and was immediately shown inside. He watched as she stood and came around her desk.
“Hello Brandon.”
Walking over to her, he placed two bags on her desk then stood looking into her face.
“Hello Mackenzie.”
She glanced at the bags as the smell went from her nose to her stomach. “Tell me you didn’t bring me food.”
“It’s lunchtime,” he responded.
Mac closed her eyes. “It’s Captain Jay’s isn’t it?”
“The best fried chicken in the city.”
Opening her eyes, she stared at him. “I hate you right now.”
Brandon laughed. “Why?”
“Because I want to tell you that the other night was a mistake and ask you to leave,” she looked longingly at the bag on her desk. “But you brought chicken.”
“And I brought sodas from your favorite little convenience store that likes to point guns at customers,” he informed her.
She looked back at him. “You went there?”
He nodded. “Me and the Negus.”
“How’d it go?” she asked eagerly.
“We let him know the deal. We’ll see what he does now.”
Mac smiled. “Thank you Brandon.”
“You know we’d never let you down Mackenzie.” He touched her face and the temperature started to rise.
“I can’t believe you brought me fried chicken.”
Brandon moved closer. “It’s my peace offering.”
Their eyes locked. “Are we at war?” she asked.
“I never want to be Mackenzie.”
Mac stared at his tie. “You’re not going to let this go?”
“I’ve thought about it and I don’t want to,” he answered honestly. “When I know what I want to do, I do it.”
She lifted her gaze to his. “I think Patrice suspects that something is up between us.”
Brandon traced her ear. “I don’t care.”
“The other night…” she began.
He moved his mouth to where he was toying with her ear. “The other night, I realized that I won’t wait another minute for Mackenzie Green,” he whispered before licking her outer ear and gently sucking the diamond studded lobe.
Mac’s hands went to his chest. “So you came to woo me with chicken wings?”
“Everybody loves chicken wings…” he said softly against her ear.
She tilted her neck. “Did you get the lemon pepper?” she breathed.
“Of course.”
Mac sighed. “Damn…I love those.”
“I know.”
She pulled away and looked at him. “You’re not going to make this easy for me to say no, are you?”
“I’ve heard no from these lips and I don’t ever want to hear it again.” Brandon lowered his head and slowly picked up from where he’d left off the other night, making slow love to her mouth.
When Mac heard herself moan deep in her throat, she leaned back but Brandon followed not giving her an inch to pull away.
“Mmmm…Brandon,” she murmured against his voracious mouth.
When she was back against the desk resting on her elbows, he finally gave her some space.
“Yes Mackenzie,”
Her dazed eyes held his. “We can meet up later…?” she asked.
Brandon studied her swollen lips. “I have to follow up with Derek, then I’m free.”
Mac touched his face. “You were really good today.”
“I saw you talking to Patrice. What was that about?” he asked.
She smiled. “She tried to threaten me.”
Brandon stood straight. “What?”
Mac followed and stood to her feet. “I guess she was putting me on notice that if I’m backing you, I’m fair game as well.”
Brandon looked away concerned until Mac turned his face to hers. “So if you’re certain that you want to do this, we have to be totally discrete.”
He nodded.
“Not even the Negus,” she warned.
He shrugged. “Rion already knows and they’re even betting on us getting together.”
“What? Who?”
“Rion, Tauri, Khayla and Lance.”
Mac’s eyes narrowed. “Those damn double-crossing Nigists! Wait until I see them again.”
“They all saw what we’ve been trying to hide.” Brandon kissed her softly. “Tell me this is what you want Mackenzie.”
Mac kissed him back gently. “Yes…and those chicken wings.”
Chapter 5
“Hello?” Mac glanced at the clock on her nightstand that read one in the morning.
“Hello Mackenzie, are you sleeping?” Brandon asked.
She looked at the clock again as she switched on the lamp. “Yeah, it’s one am.”
“I’m sorry for calling so late. My meeting with Derek ran much longer than I’d expected,” he apologized. “I didn’t want you to think I’d forgotten about you.”
Mac sat up on her bed. “How was your strategy session?”
“It was fine, just too damn long.” He commented. “I really wanted to see you.”
She smiled. “I wanted to see you too.”
“Are you dressed?” Brandon asked.
“I’m in bed Brandon, why would I be dressed?” she questioned.
“Can you get dressed?”
Mac laughed softly. “You want me to get dressed to do what?”
“Get dressed and see,” he taunted softly.
She laid back against the pillows. “Will I be getting undressed again?”
“I wanted to talk, but I can do that too.”
“We can talk right now. Why do I have to put clothes on?”
“Because I’m at your back door.”
Mac bolted up. “No you’re not.” She heard the loud knock and scrambled from the bed.
Grabbing a short robe to cover her nightie, she rushed downstairs to the back door. True to his word, Brandon was standing on the other side. The porch light illuminated his eyes as she undid the locks.
“Why are you at my back door?”
He stepped inside. “I didn’t want anyone to see me coming.”
Mac closed the door and fastened the locks. She turned to him and looked him over in dark jeans and jacket.
“You’re lucky you didn’t get shot creeping through my backyard. You look like a damn burglar,” she admonished.
“I am. I came to steal your sweet kisses Chief Green.” Brandon looked at her nightie and his eyes flashed as he stepped closer.
Slowly, Mac wrapped her arms around his neck. “You don’t have to steal them counselor.”
He lowered his head and their mouths began the heated duel of lips and tongues as he pulled her closer. Seconds turned into minutes while they reacquainted themselves with one another.
“What did you want to talk about?” she breathed against his mouth.
Brandon turned his head as his hands pulled her hips closer. “I have no idea right now.”
“Do you need to think about it?” she breathed as his mouth moved to her neck.
“No.”
When his hands moved up to grab her breasts, she arched into him as his mouth moved lower. Guiding him to where she wanted him to go, she held his face in her hands. When his wet mouth covered her waiting nipple, she gasped as her knees weakened.
“Upstairs…” she breathed.
He lifted sexy green eyes to hers. “Show me.”
Taking his hand, Mac led him up to her bedroom with his other hand sliding up her nightgown on the way up the stairs. At her room, she climbed on the bed then turned to look at him standing inside the doorway.
Brandon’s tall frame, covered in black made her mouth water. His eyes traveled over her body then connected with hers.
“Are you waiting for an invitation?” she asked huskily.
He smiled. “Actually, I was.”
She crooked a finger. “Come here Brandon.”
Unzipping his jacket, he shrugged out of it and dropped it to the floor. Next his black T-Shirt joined the jacket. Finally, Brandon kicked off his shoes and approached the bed.
When he joined her on the mattress, she looked over at him. “Did you leave the rest for me to finish?”
“I remembered what I wanted to talk about,” he told her.
Mac turned on her back and threw an arm over her face. “Really?”
Brandon placed an arm around her waist and turned to look down at her. “Yes, it’s important.”
Removing her arm, she met his gaze. “What is it?”
“After my meeting, I was thinking about the two of us and what I’m asking you to risk to be with me, and I wondered if it was really worth it to simply fulfil this attraction that’s always been between us,” he told her quietly.
“And what was your conclusion?”
He stroked her hip. “That I’ve chosen the worse time possible with a lot more on the line than just our feelings.”
“Can we get to the closing remarks?” she prodded.
Brandon smiled. “You don’t play, do you?”
“Never. Playing around gets people hurt,” she said sadly.
“You’re talking about Rion?” he asked and she nodded.
“I told him that I thought you two would eventually get together,” Brandon told her.
Mac frowned. “Rion is my friend and I owe him so much.”
“What happened that night wasn’t your fault Mackenzie,” he assured her.
She stared at him. “I remember you telling me that in your father’s office.”
“It was true.”
Mac shook her head. “If I’d never gone to that stupid party, Rion wouldn’t have had to go through that.”
“Rion turned out fine and I’m proud of how you stood up for yourself.”
She put her hands to her face. “I relive it over and over, thinking of how I should have done things differently.” Removing her hands, she stared at him. “I went to that party because Rion was going to be there. All the girls in the state loved baseball star Orion Shaw. He was tall, handsome and a superstar athlete. My friends knew I had a secret crush on him back then.”
She shook her head going back into the memory. “I’d told my parents I was going to a friend’s house and we drove over to Detroit. They would never have allowed me to go into the city, let alone for a party at night.”
Brandon allowed her to continue. “When we arrived, Rion was already there. My so-called friends were thin and pretty and I was tall, thick and not as pretty. They called Rion over to us, then they pushed me into him and asked if he liked fat girls.”
“I remember looking into his eyes completely mortified. I apologized to him as I started crying then I couldn’t stop. He told the girls to leave and had them put out. I’ll never forget that he put his arm around me and told me I was so much prettier than those girls because their energy was ugly.”
Mac blinked back tears. “I didn’t know what the hell he was talking about.”
“I told him they were my ride home and he offered to take me.” She smiled. “He left the party to make sure I got home safely. When we got close to my neighborhood, the police pulled us over.” She paused and closed her eyes.
“I thought they were just going to ask for ID and insurance but when they made us get out of the car, I knew immediately something was wrong. Rion kept asking why they’d stopped us and they told him to shut up. When the officer threw him against the car, I screamed.”
“I remember shouting, asking them what they were doing to him. I screamed for them to stop repeatedly and tried to go to him. The next thing I knew I felt my head hit the hood. When the officer slammed me against the car, Rion broke free and ran to help me.”
She stopped. “The officers threw him to the ground and pulled their guns, then they made both of us lie in the street.” Mac tasted the salt on her lips, the same salt she’d tasted that night.
“When the other cars came, they handcuffed us and put us in separate cars. At the station, they wouldn’t let us use the phone. Rion kept telling them that he knew his rights and they ignored us. It was hours later before we could contact anyone.”
“Rion’s parents were livid when they arrived. I’d never seen anyone that mad before. They had your father with them and he was just as angry. My parents came to the station and they were upset with me, rightfully so. I’d lied to them.”
“They were mad at Rion because they believed that he had done something to provoke the police because he was a black boy from the city. I told them that he hadn’t done anything, but they never believed me.”
She turned to Brandon. “I don’t know what I would have done if your father hadn’t taken that case on behalf of both me and Rion. I appreciate all that both of you did for me.”
Brandon wiped her damp cheek. “They had no right to even stop you that night, let alone abuse you. You and Rion did the right thing to file a suit against that department. Racial profiling and brutality can’t be tolerated. Rion was stopped simply because he was a black boy driving a nice car.”
“I studied medicine in college, but I could never forget that night and everything that
ensued. I knew I had to do something to try to make sure this didn’t happen to anyone else. When I told my parents I was joining the force, they practically disowned me, but I didn’t care,” Mac said taking a breath.
“You’re a damn good chief, Mackenzie and the city is lucky to have you,” Brandon told her softly. “I watched you move through the ranks. You’re an incredible woman.”
She smiled ruefully. “Well that was a nice trip down memory lane.” Mac wiped her face again. “I’m sure that’s not what you came here for.”
“Actually it was,”
She looked confused. “You came here to see me cry and tell a story from the past.”
Brandon shook his head. “No, I came because I was thinking about that girl I met in my father’s office and this woman lying next to me, and I said to myself that Mackenzie Michelle Green is not just a woman that I want to have sex with.”
“If that was the case, I’d have tried a long time ago,” he said holding her eyes. “This beautiful, voluptuous woman is my colleague and my friend. I admire and respect her as a professional and as a woman.”
“I won’t risk that for some mind-blowing sex,” he confirmed.
Mac lifted a brow. “Mind-blowing?”
He nodded. “Of course.”
“So what are you saying Brandon?”
He traced her lips with a long finger. “We’ve known each other too long to play games and I’m going into this as more than sex.”
“How much more?” she asked against his finger.
“A lot more than I ever have before.”
“Will you go with me?” He removed his hand.
Mac ran a hand down his bare chest. “Ask me again in the morning.”
“I’ll be here in the morning?” he asked.
She pulled his head down to hers. “Yeah, and I like my eggs scrambled with cheese,” she told him.
Brandon smiled wickedly. “I’ll provide what you like, if you do the same.”
Mac’s eyes darkened. “Oooh, that sounds naughty.”
He climbed over her. “Are you a naughty girl Mackenzie?”
Lifting her arms above her head as he settled on her body, she sighed. “I can be open to suggestions.”
“I have plenty.”
Her eyes widened. “Really? Does this have anything to do with the infamous phone that Kyros saw?”
