by Kiki Leach
"Nah... At this rate, I can't be certain the motherfucker didn't already know 'bout any of that shit prior to me showin' up this time or the first."
"What do you mean?"
"T showed up out there."
I leaned away from him and gasped. He lifted his hands and balled his fists, showcasing the blue and black bruises tucked between his knuckles. "Oh my God." I sat down next to him and took his hands inside my own, then bent forward to kiss his skin and wagged my head as tears formed inside the corners of my eyes. "How the hell was he allowed on campus?"
"Don't know." I sat back and stared into his face as he continued. "That Pugh asshole walked me into the buildin' and classroom where I was supposed to be teachin', sayin' some shit 'bout how he wanted to show me around 'fore anything got signed."
I pinched my brows and wrinkled the bridge of my nose. "Why would he do that when it isn't the norm?"
"Said the papers weren't ready for me to sign yet; somethin' 'bout his assistant not havin' 'em put together 'fore the weekend like she was supposed to do."
"I don't believe that," I told him. "It doesn't make sense."
"Nah, darlin', it doesn't." He leaned into the cushions and slinked his fingers between my own; he brought the back of my hand to his mouth and gradually shook his head. "I think this motherfucker was in on some shit with T-Bone."
My brows lifted as my lips slightly parted in confusion. "Leonard Pugh?" I questioned. "He's a pain but has also always been uptight as hell, X."
"He also enjoys underage pussy, darlin' -- don't forget that shit. And the right amount of money can loosen the fuck outta any motherfucker willin' to take it real goddamn quick. The timin' on this shit was too fuckin' perfect for somebody who had no idea what the fuck was gonna go down inside that room. He also wasn't tryin' to call the pigs on my ass when he found me beatin' the shit outta T, but was determined I get the fuck outta there while threatenin' that he could."
"I don't understand this."
"That asshole hadn't been gone from the room for five goddamn minutes to check on his assistant 'fore T-Bone's ass came walkin' right the fuck in, darlin'. He started talkin' real goddamn slick with all this shit 'bout ACE'S and Rocka -- Said they made a side deal beyond the 49% that gave him the remainin' 2 if Rocka ever fucked up in bein' a snitch."
My shoulders sank as my heart nearly dropped to my stomach. "Oh my God."
"Said he admitted goin' to Trac's house that night lookin' for the shit just like we thought, but was more anxious in havin' the side contract guaranteein' him that 2%."
"I can't believe he was never smart enough to obtain copies or keep the originals for himself with knowing that Rocka was barely stable enough to hold onto the club for as long as he did."
"Ain't nobody ever accused that asshole of havin' more than one half of a functionin' ass brain." He rolled his fingers against my palm as a pensive look crossed his face. "T's shit just kept goin'," he said. "Talked 'bout you two hookin' up, how you told him thoughts 'bout gettin' rid of my name on your back."
"That's not true." My gaze narrowed as I stared into his face with growing concern. "You know that I would never tell him something like that, Xavier -- not ever."
"Maybe you weren't in your right mind; maybe you were out of it, darlin', I mean..." He paused and deeply inhaled. "I remember you two cuttin' shit up back then, and I remember how you couldn't ever be with that motherfucker unless you were smokin' somethin' heavy."
"I only ever thought about you when I was with anyone else, X -- always."
"Yeah, darlin', I know; the same shit for me, but..." His hand tightened as I rolled my eyes from his and stared across the room. "I ain't pissed or pressed 'bout none of this shit--"
"You shouldn't be since he isn't telling the truth and I'm starting to guess why he would say what he did."
"You think the shit was to set me off?"
"Why else would you attack him to the point of nearly killing him inside a classroom on my college campus, Xavier?" I asked. He looked away from me and fell quiet. "That's exactly what I thought. How the hell did he even know that you were out there today?"
"Said some shit 'bout havin' connections; it's why I'm thinkin' a deal had to be made with that Pugh motherfucker. Maybe he was paid off to fuck with my shit and this job or given some kinda cut on the coke."
"Beyond the thrills he gets from 18 year old’s in high skirts, it still doesn't sound like Leonard Pugh," I said.
"We don't always know everybody like we think we do, darlin'; no matter how the fuck long its been."
"I know, but in this case, something about it is off. As in how would a man like Leonard Pugh, Dean of Family and Consumer Sciences on a local college campus, know anything about how to make connections with someone like T-Bone on his own? LapDog never said anything about him to you or the brothers, did he?"
"No. But maybe it's somethin' we need to beat outta his skull when I roll back out to the compound."
"Maybe not. Because given LapDog's current circumstances of being your club's bitch in the basement, is there no reason he wouldn't snitch on someone not related to the Kings? Giving up Pugh would be a start--"
"Yeah, darlin', to givin' up T-Bone and he ain't gonna do that shit."
"Well..." I fell into the cushions and shrugged. "I give up on that, but someone else knows something, X. There's another party involved that we're not seeing."
"You think a motherfucker connected Pugh to T-Bone?"
"If you think that Pugh is truly involved with this, then yes, I do. Who else has something to gain from the Kings usurping your business and club?"
"I don't fuckin' know -- that's the goddamn problem with all this shit." He paused and rattled his head. "T said some similar shit 'bout his connections wantin' to see the Devils put down more than even him and the Kings."
"And you can't think of anyone else who would want that?"
He stopped, seemingly to think, and deeply exhaled. "He mentioned the motherfucker could be in house."
"As in the clubhouse?" I said. He nodded. "Is there a brother you would suspect of turning in order to gain something for himself in the case that you crumble?"
"Nah," he answered. "But one of those motherfuckers might have a girl that would."
"Whose girl are you thinking about to say something like that?"
"Scooter." He looked over at me with a startle and flexed his jaw. "Gabi ever make any passin' mentions to you 'bout the Kings or T-Bone as of late?"
"No..." I readjusted myself and loosened my hand from his grip. "You think Gabi is the reason Pugh might've hooked up with T-Bone?"
"She's the only other person I can think of with a possible connection to both of those assholes if she ever managed to come across T's cock back in the day. Nobody else would get somethin' outta this shit--"
"She wouldn't either, X."
"You don't know that shit, darlin'. Just like we don't know the truth in why she kept Scooter in the back the night we got shot up."
"You still don't believe it being a coincidence?"
"Nah, I don't. Somebody tipped that bitch on what the fuck was goin' down and she made sure Scooter kept his ass from gettin' hit by a stray bullet."
"Do you think Scooter might know something from her either way?"
"Can't be sure of that shit either. But the motherfucker ain't been himself since takin' her back to his place that night, and you can't even get her back on the goddamn phone."
"Maybe they're too wrapped up in each other after what happened."
"Yeah, darlin', we been wrapped up in each other every goddamn night like a single fuckin' burrito since you moved in with me; the shit don't stop you from makin' phone calls to make sure she's been alright." I lowered our hands between us and became quiet in realizing that he was right. He leaned into me and pressed his mouth against my shoulder, brushing his lips across my skin. "I know she's your friend and all that, but 'til we get solid proof that she ain't fuckin' around with this shit, you ca
n't think of her in the same kinda way anymore, yeah?"
I nodded. "What about you and Wexley?" I asked. "Even if Pugh doesn't tell the police, if he's truly in on this with T-Bone, he could run his mouth about you to the dealers around campus."
"He ain't gonna do that shit."
"How can you be so sure?"
"'Cause if T-Bone's goal was to piss me off enough to fuck him up, gettin' me off campus for good was the end result he was lookin' for and nothin' else. Can't go runnin' off at the mouth 'bout my shit or have me locked up without fuckin' himself over in the process. This shit here keeps me away from the coke and it's another reason to assume Pugh was in on it with him; like I said before, the timin' was too goddamn perfect to be anything else."
I sighed and lowered my head against the couch. "Have you told Boone and the rest about what happened?"
"Not yet. Called you first and only."
"They still don't know?"
"Nope. Didn't even let Cheddar know not to come back and pick me up later since I ran down here."
"You ran?" I looked behind him and stared into the hallway. "Is that why you needed to take a shower?"
"Nah, got that asshole's blood on my clothes with all that hittin'. Didn't want you seein' me in your place like that."
"You'd rather I see you in one of my towels instead?"
He snickered. "Yeah..." He lowered his face to mine and rolled his tongue across my mouth.
I moaned and wrapped my hand behind his neck, then spun my fingers into his hair as my skin suddenly felt as if it had been set on fire. "How did you... actually get into my apartment?" I asked him. "Without a key?"
"Pickin', darlin'." He smiled against my mouth and laughed. "You think I forgot how to do that shit?"
"No..."
"I think you did." He dropped his hand to my left breast and squeezed until I cried out between his lips, then crawled his fingers past my stomach and pushed them between my legs, shoving my panties to the side and rolling his middle finger between the lips of my sex. I nearly convulsed. "Want you with me back in that shower," he muttered, swiping his tongue across the tip of my own. "Right goddamn now."
"X..."
"Right goddamn now, darlin'."
He got up from the couch and stood in front of me, reaching for my hands and pulling me to my feet as his towel unraveled from his waist and fell to the floor. I swallowed my next few breaths as my eyes lowered to his deliciously thick erection, then rested my hands on top of his shoulders, curling my fingers between his muscles as he unbuttoned and unzipped my skirt. When it fell on top of the towel with my panties, I stepped aside and kicked them to the corner of the room. He grinned again and lifted my tank over my head, then unhooked my bra and lowered the straps to my wrists with the tips of his fingers. I stared into his face as it slipped between us, as he watched my nipples harden with a hunger in his eyes that surpassed the wildest of animals, and snaked my arms around his neck, lowering his mouth back down to my lips, eager for another taste as the sweetness of his breath swirled across my tongue.
I shoved my breasts against his chest and brushed my sex against his shaft as he extended his tongue, then sank my fingers into his skin as he lifted me from the floor and sat me on top of his waist. We smiled at each other as I cradled his waist, as he slipped his other hand beneath my behind and carried me into the bathroom and shower.
I rested my back against the wall as he continued to hold me close to his chest, then dipped my head beneath the faucet as he turned on the water, surprisingly warm as it soaked my hair and skin. He wrapped his hand around my face and rolled his tongue across my breasts as tiny drops of water clung to my nipples before sliding it across my throat and jawline; then he shifted his hips and angled his dick, slipping it inside of me and bucking his hips until I felt his tip reach my stomach.
I lowered my mouth to his shoulder and sucked his skin to keep from crying out; I worked my hips against him as we built to mutual climax, nearly fainting beneath a growing wave of ecstasy and steam.
After a few more rounds that left me speechless and limp, enough that left the sting from his teeth burning across my skin, Xavier carried me into my bedroom and lowered my feet back down the floor.
"Stay in here with me," I said, recapturing his bottom lip between my own. "I want you to watch me get dressed."
He snickered and tapped his fingers across the small of my back, forcing me to shiver against him. "Darlin', I ain't the kinda motherfucker all that eager to watch you put on the same clothes I wanna see off right after."
I released his mouth and grinned. "It might be fun for you; the opposite of what I used to do at the club?"
"The only thing fun for me would be you doin' what you used to do at the club for nobody else but me this time."
"I can still do that too."
"Yeah? Prove that shit to me later with nothin' but my cut and a Devils' tee." He winked and lowered his hands to my behind, smacking each cheek with the palms of his hands. I yelped. "In the meantime, I need to call Cheddar 'bout not pickin' me up out here later."
"Are you going to tell him what happened?"
"Not over the phone. Need that shit to be in front of the table at church tonight. We can head back to Pink once I'm done."
After kissing me until I nearly fainted, he pulled the door closed and returned to the living room.
I searched my drawers for a tee and pair of jeans, but stopped as my phone rang and walked to the nightstand, bending forward and staring into the face of the caller ID as a familiar number flashed across the screen.
T-Bone.
"Shit." Calling me at home wasn't the norm, especially for the President of a high-profile MC. I swallowed hard before answering, then rolled my eyes until they closed and pressed the phone against my ear. "What the hell do you want?" I snapped.
A sharp chortle emerged from the other end. "Jesus, bitch -- that ain't the kinda greetin' I was expectin' to get from you this time around. Especially since I know you heard what the fuck went down between me and your man on campus this mornin'?"
"I heard and from what it sounds like, you deserved the beating and then some."
"Why the fuck is that?" he shot back.
"Start with me wanting to get rid of my tattoo?" I hissed. "You know that isn't the truth -- I never said something like that and sure as hell never said it to you or any other member of the Kings."
"Maybe my ass was mistaken--"
"Maybe you're a damn liar. What the hell do you want from me now, T?"
"Need to see your ass tonight about ACE'S. I'm comin' into Rocka's 2% soon..." He paused. "I know X told your ass all about that shit too -- nothin' with that motherfucker is sacred when he thinks you might be involved with it. I wanna get shit squared away about the girls we plan to bring on and keep as dancers; you're one we still wanna pull back out here."
"How do you know that you'll be coming into the 2% soon?"
"Not somethin' you need to worry about -- just get your ass down here so we can talk about this shit in person."
"I can't. The club doesn't want me seeing you again in person and after today, I don't want to see you again for myself either."
"I don't really give a flyin' fuck what the fuck your ass wants on anything, Mariah," he spat, his tone sharp enough to slice through glass. "If I wanted you down here suckin' the entire life outta my cock 'til my goddamn balls fell the fuck off and my eyes rolled the fuck outta my goddamn head, you'd need to be down here for that shit too. I ain't askin' you for it right now, but I fuckin' could."
"On what grounds?"
"The same set that could get your man locked up for nearly beatin' my ass to death on your college fuckin' campus. Cameras were all around that room, bitch -- I could have him thrown behind bars for the rest of his piss poor life in a hot fuckin' second if I need to make the shit happen. And if not the pigs, the rest of my goddamn club."
"They don't know who attacked you?"
"Not yet; motherfuckers think I
just had a spill on my bike. The shit of 'em knowin' depends on you and what the fuck comes outta those cock suckin' lips in the next five goddamn seconds."
A sharp exhale escaped me as I dropped to the edge of the bed and tightened my grip around the arm of the phone, defenseless.
"What time tonight?" I finally asked him, the lump in my throat breaking away for the start of a sob.
A smile in his voice emerged as his tone resettled. "What the fuck time can you make it out here?"
"I'm not exactly sure. I'd have to lie to Xavier in order to get away from him--"
"Do whatever the fuck needs to be done with that asshole -- incapacitate his ass -- I don't give a fuck. Just make sure you're down at the compound and in my office before midnight -- won't nobody else be here but you and me; any time after and the motherfuckers in blue or my club will be standin' on your boy's front doorstep before sunrise; maybe both -- you get me on this shit?"
I stared across the room as the whites of my eyes flushed, faintly numb as I spoke. "Yes, T. I get you on this."
"Good. And wear somethin' sexy. No panties, no goddamn bra, and put some Vaseline on those cock suckin' lips. You owe me this shit."
I hung up at the start of a dial tone and fell back to the bed. My heart raced as my eyes met the ceiling, my palms began to sweat as I rested them on top of my stomach.
When the door reopened, I feigned a smile and shifted my gaze toward Xavier. He was like a breath of fresh air remaining naked and beautiful while walking toward me; he snaked his eyes across my body and licked his lips, reminding me that I had been much of the same.
"Were you in here on the phone too, doll?" he asked. "Or just talkin' to yourself 'bout some shit while I was dealin' with Cheddar?"
"You heard me?"
"Just mufflin'." He shrugged. "Why I asked -- Wasn't too sure if it was you alone or somebody else."
