Chapter 5
The series of beeps followed by my front door slamming caused me to roll my eyes. I absolutely couldn’t stand Bobby, my other new night security guy. He got on my fucking nerves to the tenth degree. I could tell he took every single thing Syre told him to heart. Well everything except the part about keeping his eyes and hands to himself.
Bobby was in his late forties with a receding hairline and a pot belly from drinking too many beers in his downtime. Him not being attractive wasn’t the reason that I didn’t like him. He was overzealous. Though he carried a weapon while on duty, he still gave rent-a-cop. He reminded me way too much of someone who I had to ask Syre to let go of in the past. I was pretty sure that my request got him killed, so I was trying to tread lightly. I wanted to give him a fair chance, but he was annoying as hell.
“How you doing tonight, Ms. Divine?”
“I’m good.”
I knew not to give away too much. All you had to do was be friendly to certain kinds of men and they took that as a sign of being in a committed relationship.
“There’s no one here but me. You don’t have to do a full sweep.”
“Let me be the judge of that,” he quipped as he headed to the bathroom.
“Suit yourself,” I said, standing back and folding my arms over my chest.
My phone rang, causing me to walk over and retrieve it from the kitchen counter where I’d left if while I was washing dishes. It was my brother Deacon. He called about once a week to check in on me. Even though he was a detective, he wasn’t as protective as the other guys, so I made sure to answer his calls.
“Hey,” I answered after swiping the screen.
“I’ve been buried in cases, but I wanted to check in on you. I got the smoothies you sent over.”
“Good. I’m good. Are you coming to dinner this week?”
“Hell naw. I won’t have time. Tell everybody I said hey.”
“You know you don’t have to work twenty four hours a day, right? You can take a few hours off to see your family sometimes.”
Deacon felt like he was the black sheep of the family because he’d chosen to be a cop. I think that the distance between him and the rest of the guys was due to him always trying to be so sneaky and conniving. They tried to keep me out of the loop, but I was well aware of how many times he’d went behind one of them and slept with their girlfriends or just girls they brought around the house. I could never understand his jealousy when he was just as handsome and charismatic as the other guys.
“I know but I’m shooting for a promotion, sis. I’ll come by and see you one day this week.”
“You better,” I warned him.
“I’m done with my sweep, Ms. Divine. Do you need anything while I’m in here?” Bobby interrupted as he stepped out of the hallway.
“No, I’m good.”
“Well let me let you go,” Deacon stated. “I was just checking in.”
“OK, brother. I love you.”
“Love you too, sis. Be good. Don’t give the guys too much of a hard time.”
“I’m not making any promises.” I laughed.
“Later,” Deacon said, chuckling as he ended the call.
I was surprised to find that Bobby was still standing there when I looked up from my phone.
“You sure you don’t need anything? Nothing is too big or too small for you.”
“I’m positive,” I informed him, trying not to roll my eyes.
I wasn’t absolutely sure he was hitting on me, but I couldn’t say that he wasn’t. Something about him made me uncomfortable. Thankfully he hadn’t tried anything crazy. That didn’t mean he wouldn’t. I didn’t like the idea of him being able to just waltz into my house at will. We’d just changed the codes to the doors after Syre let the last crew go, and I was already ready to get it changed again. Bobby was the only one who took the liberty of letting himself in although my entire team had access. He was too familiar. It didn’t sit well with me.
“If that’s all you need, I’ll be out in the truck. You know all you have to do is call if you need me.”
“Got it.” I rolled my eyes.
* * *
I smiled and waved as Liam walked into my mom’s restaurant dressed in all white and looking like he owned the place. There was no way he didn’t command the attention of every warm-blooded woman in the room as he walked past.
It had been a couple of days since I’d seen him. I had to admit that the other guy Syre hired for my night detail was nothing like Liam. He came to the door all stiff and introduced himself and went back to his car after doing a quick sweep of the house. I didn’t have to blow him off because he knew to stay out of my way just the way I told Syre I liked it. Admittedly, I was glad that Liam was hardheaded.
“Girl, look. Doesn’t he look like Alec from Leverage, ” my friend Tremaine whispered as she leaned closer to me.
“You talking about Aldis Hodge?” Candice asked.
I looked up to find their eyes trained on Liam. I bit back a smile as he flashed a sexy grin in my direction. Damn it! Even his walk was sexy. Aldis was fine, but Liam was so much finer.
“Child, that’s Liam.” I filled my girls in, hoping they wouldn’t embarrass me.
Candice almost choked on her drink. “Your new bodyguard Liam?”
“Yeah. I told you Syre fired my team and hired four new guys.”
“That’s not the guy I saw the other night,” Tremaine mentioned.
“That was Bobby’s annoying ass. He’s as bad as Roger was,” I said, rolling my eyes.
“You buried the lead on that one, baby. He is a god!” Tremaine’s horny ass stated.
“OK! You know I like my men black as hell and bowlegged. You gotta invite me over, D. We have to catch up. Has Syre seen this man yet?” Candice asked me.
“Yes, he saw him. He hired him.” I shrugged, getting that out just in time for him to make it to our table.
“Miss Divine, I just wanted to let you know that I was here.”
“OK.” I nodded. “You should get some food while we’re here. I probably won’t be cooking tonight.”
“I’m capable of feeding myself.” He chuckled.
“The man even laughs sexy,” Tremaine mumbled, garnering yet another chuckle from Liam.
“Excuse my manners. How are you ladies doing today?” he asked, greeting my friends.
“We’re good now. You should join us,” Candice offered, pulling out the chair next to her and looking up at him.
Liam didn’t take his eyes off me. I got the feeling he was waiting for permission, so I chimed in.
“Yeah, you might as well eat with us since you’re here. We haven’t ordered yet.”
“Cool,” he said, taking the empty seat. “What do y’all suggest I order?”
Before I had the chance to part my lips, my girls were all over him.
“I love the fried pork chop plate and the oxtail pot pie, but you really can’t go wrong with anything on the menu,” Tremaine explained.
“I agree. Delilah really doesn’t miss. I’m getting chicken and dumplings today since I’m craving something warm and comforting,” Candice mentioned.
“What you ordering, Cookie?” Liam asked, lifting his eyes from the menu to look at me.
“Cookie?” my girls asked simultaneously.
“Lyon.” I rolled my eyes.
“That’s perfect for you too, girl.” Candice cackled.
“Shut up, Candice. You would think that, Boo Boo Kitty.”
“Whatever. You just mad ’cause he got your ass.”
Liam found that way too amusing as he sat back in his chair and observed our banter with a satisfied smile.
“If you’re Candice, you must be Tremaine. I’m sure Miss Divine already told you two that I’m Liam. Since she doesn’t have the decency to formally introduce us, I’ll take the liberty.”
“I normally don’t do introductions of my security team, but thank you for taking the liberty.”
“Oh, for a second, I almost forgot I was the help,” he said. There was something in his voice that I didn’t like. I hadn’t meant to offend him.
“Not like that, Liam. I’m just saying I usually don’t like them enough to bring them into my world.”
“No need to back pedal. I get it.” He shrugged.
“She’s right, Liam. I don’t know the names of any of the last guys except that James, who she couldn’t stand,” Candice explained.
“And Roger.” Tremaine rolled her eyes.
“How could we forget Roger?” I shook my head.
“What did Roger do?” Liam asked, looking between us for an answer.
“In short, he didn’t understand boundaries. I would wake up, and he would be in my bedroom claiming that he was just checking things out. He would be standing outside my bathroom door when I took a shower. Just doing all kinds of creepy shit. I told Syre I didn’t like him, but I was scared of his ass.”
“Shit, me too. You could tell he was a creep,” Candice spoke up.
“He hid it well if you ask me. I couldn’t tell he was on that type of shit. He just looked like a certified cornball to me,” Tremaine said.
“I worked with a weird ass dude named Roger. What was his last name?” Liam asked.
“Cunningham,” I said, rolling my eyes.
I couldn’t stand him and hoped that I would never run across him again. The only reason he was still alive was because I chose to downplay the way he made me so uncomfortable. I didn’t have to get the man killed to get him away from my house. All I had to do was tell Syre that he did too much and I wanted him gone. He didn’t ask many questions before replacing him the very next day.
“Wow, Liam. You’re probably the last person I expected to see here.”
I looked up to find a curvy Asian woman standing next to the table with her hands on her hips. Her brows lingered near her hairline as she waited for an explanation.
“You didn’t think I ate?” he asked, taking a sip of the water in front of him but not bothering to give her his full attention.
“Oh, I know firsthand that you do that,” she said with a smirk.
“What’s up, Ming? Is there something I can help you with?” he quizzed.
“You know I’ve never even been here before. My girl suggested we give it a try. Now, I see why God led me here. I needed to see this. I’m just wondering why when I asked about coming over tonight you said you had to work.”
“You don’t have to wonder why I said anything. When have you ever known me to lie?” he asked.
“I’m starting to wonder about that too,” she countered.
“Don’t bother. As you see, I’m trying to have dinner with these nice ladies, so please don’t make a scene,” he stated calmly. His even tone only seemed to fuel the fire dancing in her eyes.
“Oh, that’s what you’re so worried about? You worried about me making a scene in front of these nice young ladies?”
He sighed and dropped his head before addressing her. “Ming.”
“If one of these nice ladies you’re trying to hide me from is your bitch, I need her to know what her man has been up to for the past few months. You had your face in my pussy two days ago. Now, you’re out with the next bitch.”
“Let’s go.” He stood calmly and placed his hand on the small of her back.
“I know why she’s clowning like that. Look at those lips. You just know he eats the pussy down,” Tremaine commented, shaking her head.
I ignored her comment and instead watched as Liam led the woman out of the restaurant as if she wasn’t just over here clowning and accusing him of cheating on or with her. When the waitress came and took our orders, I went ahead and ordered a sweet tea for Liam and let her know that he was coming back.
By the time our food arrived, he hadn’t returned. I remember seeing his contact information on the email Syre sent about my new team. I scrolled through my emails until I found the one I was looking for. After copying Liam’s number, I pasted it in the empty box so I could send him a message. He was so eerily calm as he left the restaurant that I was worried that he might hurt the poor girl who didn’t know how to watch her mouth.
Me:
Hey, we ordered already. Did you know what you wanted?
Liam:
Lost my appetite. Go ahead without me.
Me:
Liam, just explain to your girlfriend that you work for me.
Liam:
I don’t work for you.
Me:
You know what I mean.
Liam:
She’s not my girlfriend, and she’s fine.
Me:
I’m ordering turkey wings, cabbage, and mac for you. Is that cool?
Liam:
Yeah
Ask your girl if she wants to find out. Lol.
Me:
Find out what?
Bubbles appeared on the screen as if he was going to reply, but they disappeared without a message coming through.
Me:
Find out what?
Liam:
Don’t play dumb. It doesn’t suit you, Cookie. There’s nothing wrong with my ears. Tell her let me know if she wants to find out.
“What’s got you sitting over there looking so perplexed?” Candice asked, leaning forward to look at my phone screen.
“Liam told me to ask my girl if she wants to find out,” I revealed. As soon as the words left my mouth, it dawned on me.
“Tell him hell yes I do. I want to know how it feels to want to show out on a nigga in a public place,” Tremaine stated.
“OK! That lady said he just had his face in my pussy two days ago!” Candice howled.
“He has got to be doing something right. You hear me?” Tremaine joined in on the laughter.
“I just hope she don’t jump on him out there,” I said, shaking my head but unable to hide my amusement.
“I was about two seconds from jumping on him my damn self,” Tremaine said, fanning with her hand.
“You gotta keep this one, Divine. At least give me a chance to get to him,” Candice urged.
“I know, right? Don’t make Syre run him off like you do the rest of the guys,” Tremaine added.
For some reason, I didn’t think that was going to be a problem.
Me:
Wow. Really Liam? Lol.
I added LOL just to make sure he didn’t sense the hint of jealousy. Even if he was only my bodyguard, Liam was off limits to my friends. They could look, but I would be damned if I let them touch.
Liam:
I’m just messing with you, D. Don’t ask that girl that. I just wanted you to know I heard them.
“Seriously, though, D. If Syre sees the way you look at him, you know it’s a wrap.”
“And how do I look at him?” I asked, wondering if it were that obvious I had a crush on him. It was completely innocent. I already knew what crossing the line could cost him. I didn’t want to do that to him or anyone else.
“Like he’s a hot fudge sundae on a summer day,” Tremaine teased.
“Whatever. I don’t even like fudge like that. It’s just that I’m glad to finally have a bodyguard that I can stand.”
“It doesn’t hurt that he’s sexy as fuck,” Tremaine noted.
“I mean, it helps,” I confessed with a coy smile.
“I freaking knew it!” Candice shouted.
“You didn’t know anything because there’s nothing to know. Now, hush with all that ratchet behind yelling,” I told her.