Chapter 4
Vomit climbed up my throat when I put two and two together and realized that the woman Deja went to speak with while I ran to the bathroom was Sneaux.
My mood was ruined for the rest of the night because she’d mentioned that their fathers were discussing possible marriage terms. It shocked the fuck out of me to realize she was referring to a woman, and that shock quickly turned to disbelief when I realized it was Sneaux.
I should’ve put up a harder fight when Deja announced her plans to take me to the lounge for my bachelorette party.
Instead, I put on the stupid sash and dramatic veil to not seem like a bitch after AC and Deja put forth effort to make my first weekend welcoming after the rough few days I had before arriving.
Until Sneaux took the stage, I was enjoying myself.
The atmosphere in the lounge was immaculate, and the liquor had me feeling good.
My sash and veil drew unwanted attention in the form of free drinks being sent our way.
I sat in the darkest corner of our section, praying that Sneaux wouldn’t see me when she took her position behind the DJ booth.
Sneaux curated the music for at least thirty minutes, and my eyes never left her pretty face.
She was into it. Flicking her wrist and bouncing to the beat.
I started feeling warm and fuzzy watching her do something she clearly loved.
She always loved music; her parents always put us on to the songs they loved growing up.
It was one of the things we bonded over.
My heart was full knowing that Sneaux got to live out one of her dreams and become a DJ.
And from the looks of it, she got to learn the trade from her favorite DJ.
A glint of envy shined through that happiness I felt for Sneaux because I hadn’t had the same experience since we graduated from high school.
I wasn’t able to go to college, I didn’t become a veterinarian, or live out any of my dreams for that matter.
After what felt like forever, I climbed to my feet and decided to leave the lounge to find Deja or the driver.
She hadn’t returned to the section, and I was starting to get worried.
The lounge was closing in another fifteen minutes, and we both agreed to leave thirty minutes before closing to avoid the rush exiting.
As I maneuvered through the packed space, I chastised myself for coming out here without a gun and drinking more than I probably should have, knowing I didn’t have a single person that I could reach out to if I found myself in a pickle.
I didn’t even have the driver’s number because he was waiting for me outside the airport with my name on a sign.
After a quick greeting, the driver ushered me into the truck and drove me to AC’s home.
We didn’t have any further conversation outside of that.
Deja gave him the instructions for the evening, and I prayed he had parked somewhere close like she instructed him to do.
“Good night, drive safely, beautiful,” the security guard who opened the door stated as I sauntered through it.
I headed to the side of the brick building towards the parking lot.
Although it was nearing two o’clock in the morning, the streets weren’t deserted, and the city still felt alive, so I wasn’t worried about searching for the driver alone.
Strutting across the parking lot, I turned around when I realized there was another pair of heels clacking against the pavement behind me.
Spinning around, I knew the color drained from my face, and I felt my soul leave my body.
After all of these years, Sneaux’s piercing dark eyes were more powerful than ever, with those thick lashes batting at me.
The game plan I formulated for this very scenario while sitting alone in the section went out of the window.
“Who the fuck are you supposed to be marrying?” Sneaux’s voice came out low and venomous.
I swallowed hard, unable to believe that I’d been back in Florida less than twenty-four hours and I had already crossed paths with the one person I wanted to avoid the most. Everybody else in Sand Cranes could kiss my black ass, but Sneaux was different.
Although I coached myself that Sneaux belonged in the same category as them, my mind wouldn’t believe that lie. She’d always be the one who got away.
“Over nine years, and that’s how you greet me?”
“Absolutely. I can figure everything else out after you tell me who I’m beefing with because that wedding ain’t happening,” Sneaux asserted. “So who is it?” She demanded an answer, her face contorted from frustration.
My eyes left her pretty face and trailed off to the dark, starry sky, but Sneaux wasn’t having it. She cockily flicked her hands with her eyebrows raised, gesturing for me to quickly provide an answer.
“His name is AC. He’s gearing up to take over the Clayton family. I really don’t know much else about him.”
Sneaux’s face instantly frowned up. “How the fuck did you end up engaged to AC?” She interrogated, her cold tone sent a chill down my spine.
Though her first few lines to me were short and demanding, there was warmth in her tone.
Upon hearing that I was engaged to AC, that was no longer the case.
“You’re planning to marry a whore? A nigga that’s sure to catch something and bring it home!
I had to stop Levi from shooting him earlier because he thought it was a good idea to touch me. ”
My brows heightened, and my eyes squinted at Sneaux due to the last part of her statement. Just the thought of AC touching Sneaux pissed me off. Not because I cared what AC was doing, but I probably would melt down if I saw anyone intimately touching Sneaux.
It took me back to when Sneaux had her first girlfriend during our senior year of high school.
I hated that bitch, Olly, and made it glaringly obvious to the point that she gave Sneaux the “it’s me or her” speech.
Olly thought she was bigger than the program when she tossed out that ultimatum, but Sneaux sent her ass on about her business.
That was the moment I knew I had to gather the courage to express my feelings for Sneaux.
“Plus, deep down inside, we both know you like women! What the fuck are you doing? What you got going on?” Sneaux interrupted my trip down memory lane.
“First of all, I’m bisexual. So it’s not too far-fetched for me to marry a man. And it’s too late for you to care about what’s going on in my life!”
“I’ve always given a fuck about what happened to you, Milani.
I drop a few hundred thousand dollars a year to help my geeky ass best friend create and maintain software to find missing people.
All because I was never able to find you!
You disappeared after your father died. I even attended his funeral when it was finally held, but you and your mother were absent. Where the fuck have you been?”
I took a deep breath to buy myself some time, but gunshots rang out. Providing me with even more time as we ducked behind the nearest car in the parking lot.
“It’s always some shit when I come down here,” Sneaux complained as she stood in front of me in a protective stance.
Initially, I assumed we were in the wrong place at the wrong time while some random shot at another random in the distance, but more gunshots rang out and they pierced the car we were crouched behind.
“Oh my God, it’s not random. They are shooting at us!” I badgered. “Who would be shooting at you? You are truly bad luck, Sneaux. The last time I saw you, a gunfight broke out as well.”
“If you be quiet so I can concentrate, I’ll make sure we get out of this one too,” Sneaux chastised me.
I swallowed hard and rummaged around in my purse until I found the throwing dagger.
I was able to sneak it into the lounge via the secret compartment AC had customized for me.
It wasn’t much, but it was all I had if it came to that.
My adrenaline was pumping, and I sobered up like I hadn’t taken a sip of liquor all night.
After the second round of gunshots that came our way, there was screaming and running in the distance, but we seemed to be on our own in the parking lot.
The sound of footsteps approaching had Sneaux looking beneath the car.
After a few seconds, she aimed her gun and pulled the trigger twice.
A gut curdling scream cut through the silent parking lot, and the sound of shoes scraping the pavement soon followed.
A black Suburban swerved into the parking lot and came to a screeching halt in front of us.
Sneaux stood, extending her hand in my direction to take.
I knew I should’ve resisted, but I folded and placed my hand in hers.
With my dagger grasped tightly in my hand, I ran to the Suburban.
Sneaux opened the door, and I climbed in while she went to the side of the car where the man who took two to the shins should’ve been, but I could tell by the loud fuck she groaned that he was no longer there.
She calmly rushed back over with her outfit and heels still intact, while I looked a disheveled mess.
Sneaux climbed into the seat next to me and closed the door behind her.
Her driver sped off, and she emitted a low chuckle, running her hands across my dagger.
“You really brought a knife to a gun fight?”
“Well, I am just leaving a lounge that has security at the door. I couldn’t necessarily bring a gun inside.
But I was going to do what I could with my dagger.
It’s not a knife,” I retorted, my eyes searing into Sneaux.
“I’m not the same damsel in distress I used to be.
I had to toughen up when my father died.
If it came down to it, I would’ve done all I could with this dagger,” I explained.