Chapter 4
I looked over my shoulder to glance in her direction once more. I couldn’t hold back my smile until I bumped into someone.
I turned back to focus and realized it wasn’t nobody but damn Nessa. She had a grimace on her face, her arms crossed tightly against her chest.
“My bad.” I chuckled and walked around her.
I could feel her at my back, following close behind me. I wasn’t concerned—not one bit. I wasn’t interested in any of the shit she wanted to complain about today.
“So, you gone act like you don’t see me? I guess that baldheaded bitch got you ditzy—”
I turned around quickly and gripped her jaw. Not too tight, but enough to let her know I meant business.
“Watch yo’ mouth. I’m not gone tell you that again. Oh, and keep yo’ ass from around me. I’m not for this jealous act you’re trying to put on for the women in here. You not mine, and I damn sure don’t belong to you.”
I released her jaw and turned my back to her to proceed to my office. I needed a moment to myself. Vanessa really pissed me off sometimes. Normally, I didn’t allow her antics to get to me. But something about the way she was moving felt territorial.
The moment I got up to my office, I walked over to my desk when a knock sounded at the door. I groaned inwardly. I thought I’d made myself clear with Vanessa, but clearly I hadn’t.
“Come in,” I yelled.
I frowned as the door opened wider and Rafe stepped inside. He was one of the old heads who had been here when I wasn’t in leadership of the Black Thorns.
Rafe made it his business to constantly remind me how shit used to be run before me.
If my memory served me correctly, that shit is the same reason they almost disbanded the Black Thorns. You would think the muthafucka’ would be grateful I stepped in.
But, nah, it was always the same shit with him.
“What’s up?” I asked, then stepped closer to my desk.
He strolled over towards the window that overlooked the club, then turned back to face me.
“I saw that shit that happened with Nessa man, she be tripping. I just wanted to check in on you and make sure you were alright.”
I lifted a brow before taking a seat. I knew he wasn’t in here just to check if I was straight. I kept my expression neutral.
“I’m cool. Where you been lately?” I asked.
I crossed my arms and leaned back. I watched intently as he fidgeted with his Black Thorn biker jacket. I couldn’t stand a nervous muthafucka’. You only got like that when you were into shit you didn’t have no business in.
He chuckled and looked away briefly before returning his attention back to me.
“Man, I’ve been chilling with my ole’ lady. She been complaining about how the Thorns been taking all my time. I done told her shit ain’t ran like it used to—ain’t no way my time gone as much as she says.”
I smirked and nodded. There it was, the infamous detail that shit wasn’t the same. I stayed silent. I waited for him to talk himself into some shit he might not be able to get out of.
He cleared his throat and stuffed his hands into his pockets. I knew me not saying much was making him nervous. But I’ll be damned if I cared.
“You know, I still have those connections for us to come into some good money. We don’t have to leave that part of the Thorns in the past. All we’re doing now is all this charity bullshit. You gone make folks think shit sweet around here,” he said.
I stood and chuckled while walking around my desk to take a seat against the edge.
“Fuck yo’ connections. We not on that. You wanna make some extra money, I can hook you up with a job around here.
The Thorns on some new shit—what was going on before almost made you lose your patches.
I’m starting to think you don’t respect the house no more, man.
That what you saying?” I asked, tilting my head with a deadpan glare.
His spine stiffened, his brows pinching together for a moment. I could practically see the steam coming from his ears. He was the type of person who thought every idea he came up with was a good one. A man unwilling to learn or change was useless. He would never fucking grow.
“Nah, it ain’t even like that. I’m just doing my part—making sure The Crown see we were worth saving. That we ain’t weak out here.”
I chuckled with a shake of my head.
“I’m only going to say this once. Leave that shit alone. If you need more money, it’s a position available for you here. Simple as that. If I find out you’re on some different shit, we gone have a problem. Is that clear?” I asked.
Rafe ground his teeth together, and his fist clenched tightly at his side. I was hoping and wishing on my lucky star that he gave me a reason to beat his ass. He’d been asking for this ass whooping for a while now. His only saving grace was I respected my elders and the Black Thorns.
I rocked my head from side to side, then stood, pulling my pants up slightly.
“I don’t think I heard you. We got a problem?” I asked.
He looked off and chuckled before returning his attention back to me.
“Nah, we good. I hear you loud and clear.”
“Good. If you need those shifts, let me know. I’m not the kind of man who won’t help when it’s needed,” I reiterated.
I meant that. If he needed help, he knew where to find me.
Rafe gave a subtle nod, then headed for the door without another word.
I knew without a doubt I was going to have to keep my eyes on Rafe. When I took this damn position, I must’ve missed the part where the job description said babysitting grown muthafuckas’.
Soon as he left the room, I shut the door behind him and walked over to the window overlooking the club. No one could see up here, but I had a clear view of everything below. I watched as Rafe stormed out the back door toward the exit. A few of the old heads he usually ran with trailing behind him.
I shook my head as his lips moved a mile a minute.
I’m sure he was down there talking shit, but it didn’t bother me because he was silent as fuck in here.
I continued to scan the club until my eyes fell upon Solana.
I could see her smile from here and her bad attempt at trying not to be noticed.
If only she knew she had a presence that couldn’t be ignored even if you wanted to.
She danced in her seat while Jessa moved around her, and Aubree leaned back, bobbing her head. My eyes went right back to Solana, instantly drawn to everything about her. I needed to know everything about her.
The tightness I’d felt in my chest when Rafe was in here loosened the longer I watched her. I saw her finally stand and say a few words to her girls before heading for the exit. I turned toward my desk and sent a quick text to Juelz.
Me: Aye, make sure baby in the pink get to her spot safely. Don’t make it obvious you’re watching her.
Juelz: What am I? an amateur? I got it.
I locked my phone and took a seat behind my desk to pull up my outside cameras. I watched as she smiled and exited out of the building but looked around her often. I continued to watch until I could no longer see her and then sat back in my seat. When my phone buzzed against the desktop.
Juelz: She made it inside.
Me: Cool.
Juelz: You gone tell me why you got me out here stalking this damn girl?
Me: Man, all you did was make sure she got home safe. The most I did was give you a lesson in being a damn gentleman.
Juelz: Fuck you lol
I locked my phone and returned my attention back to the cameras to see Heiress walking into the club with my dad, Colby. They were sloppy drunk already and giving my doorman a problem. I leaned forward, then turned up the sound on the cameras.
“My son owns this club. You won’t have a fucking job if you don’t let me in or if you touch me.”
Colby chuckled beside her.
I groaned and stood from behind my desk, then grabbed my phone to head out.
I locked the door behind me. I didn’t want to come back and see Nessa in my shit, thinking she was going to have my dick down her throat.
I jogged down the steps and made my way through the back of the club until I was at the entrance.
Heiress’s eyes lit up the moment she saw me.
“I told you my son runs this place! Now you’re going to be fired.”
Boss my security looked in my direction with wide eyes. I waved him off and I could tell he visibly relaxed. I stormed over to my mom and wrapped my arm around her waist, walking her and Colby away from my club.
“Where are we going? Oh, you’re taking us through the back like VIP.” she assumed.
“Nah, I’m taking y’all the fuck home. When are you going to grow out of this shit? Y’all not young no more. Ain’t no reason you should be out here this drunk and acting an ass. Now, where are your keys?” I asked.
I glanced down to see my grandad’s keys to his truck. She quickly tried to place her hands behind her back. I stood still for a moment and chuckled because this was the same shit whenever she came around. I held my hand out, refusing to play her games.
“Give me the keys. I’m tired and over this shit.”
“Who are you cursing at? I am your mother and that’s your father. Just because your grandparents looked after you sometimes doesn’t make them your parents.”
I chuckled because that’s exactly what made them my parents.
They cared for me when neither of them did.
I hated to go over this same song and dance with her.
Colby had accepted I would never see him as my pops, but Heiress would never.
I always said it was my grandparents spoiling and advocating for her every wrong that made her feel entitled to even my feelings.
“Yeah, aight.” I reached around her and took the keys from her hands.
Then made my way over towards the pickup truck. I hopped in the driver’s seat and started it up. Then looked out the window to see Colby talking to Heiress. She stood with her arms crossed against her chest, as if she had no intention of moving from that spot.
I leaned across the seats and rolled the passenger window down with the wind up handle.
“It’s taking everything within me not to disrespect y’all. Get in this damn truck, man. Now!” I yelled.
Heiress rolled her eyes and strolled over to the passenger door with Colby following close behind her. He opened the door, and she slipped in beside me onto the middle seat as he closed the door behind himself. I drove away from the front of the club, allowing my mind to run.
“I don’t even know why y’all have this fucking truck. Should be driving your own shit.” I mumbled.
It was a silent ride; I dropped Colby off first at his parent’s home then drove with Heiress back to my grandparents’ place. We only had another fifteen minutes before we made it.
“Can we talk Duke?” she asked.
I stayed silent. This was her usual whenever she got drunk. She wanted to have conversations filled with promises she would never keep. About shit that didn’t matter to me now that I was a grown man.
She could keep all of her empty promises. They would have done wonders for the five-year-old version of me.
“I know you hear me, so I’m just going to talk. I want to be better for you, but I can’t sometimes. When I’m sober, I can tell I lost you. But when I’m drunk, it doesn’t matter. You show me you love me when you protect me. I was a kid. Give me a chance to be your mom.”
I shook my head and continued to drive.
My silence was answer enough for her.
We pulled into the driveway and she snatched open the door to storm to the side. I turned the car off and followed behind her so I could let her inside.
Once we were inside, I went straight to the kitchen to grab a bottle of water and a Gatorade, then placed them on the table beside the couch she’d plopped down on.
I turned to leave and saw my grandad coming down the steps like I knew he would.
He had always been a light sleeper, so I knew he’d watch after Heiress.
I lifted my hand to show him I had his keys.
“She’s on the couch, drunk out of her mind. I’m taking the truck with me, but it will be back by the morning. I have to close my club and get someone to drive my motorcycle home for me.” I told him.
He nodded and reached out to pull me into a hug, then kissed my temple. He’d never been a man who didn’t show he loved me. He knew just how difficult this could be for me. But these days I had become numb to it. Heiress would never be different, and I’d accepted that.
“I’ll see you in the morning.” He said as he released me then walked into the living room.
I didn’t wait around to watch my grandad baby her or soothe her drunkenness. Tonight had been nothing but one thing after another, with Solana being the only light. One that I hoped one day I would be worthy enough to entertain.