Chapter Five- Dior
Buddha handed me the fake glasses, and I slipped them on. Next, I took the brown envelope with the fake documents and took a deep breath. I lifted my hand and touched the tight bun wrapped to the top of my head, making sure no strands of hair became undone.
“Now, remember, once you reach the front gate, keep your eyes open. You’ll need to remember every single person you come into contact with.
Once you’re inside, excuse yourself, asking if you could use the bathroom real quick.
Then you call me and let me know how many men we need to be worried about, and Snow and I will come in and take it from there.
You got it?” Buddha asked, reaching for my shoulders as he gently began to massage them.
I sighed softly because how did my life come to this? This situation could go left at any given moment, and I could get shot. How did I become the wife of a mafia boss’s son, about to set up a plan that’s going to get people killed?
“Yes, I get it.”
“That’s my girl.” He said before dipping his head to kiss me.
I know he meant for it to be a quick kiss, but the minute our lips touched, I melted into him.
I missed his kisses and touch. Getting shot and losing Lorenzo and Lotus really did something to him.
Shyly, I allowed my tongue to press against his lips, and he opened his mouth.
Our tongues touched in a way as if this was our first kiss.
I moaned into his mouth as our kiss deepened, as if nobody else was in the same space as us.
“Aye, y’all can fuck when we get this done; cut that shit out,” Snow’s voice interrupted our moment, and reluctantly we pulled away from each other.
“Man, shut the fuck up,” Buddha said, looking at his brother in an irritated manner. Stepping away from my husband, I walked over to Mia.
“How do I look?” I asked her, doing a little spin to show off my red knee-length skirt, red jacket, white shirt underneath, and a pair of black pumps on my feet.
“You look like a fake-ass lawyer. Don’t worry, we got this.
” Mia said, high-fiving me as we both giggled.
Getting Mia to join me at Edwardo’s house was easier than expected.
I called her last night and told her I was finally ready to explain what happened the night I disappeared at the speed-dating game.
Mia listened closely as I explained that I had no choice but to marry Buddha because of what Lewis did.
As expected, she was shocked, telling me that I was living out some sort of weird movie.
Finding out that Lewis was a really shit human being seemed to hurt Mia just as much as it hurt me.
However, after I was done explaining everything and what Buddha wanted us to do, Mia was all on board.
She agreed so quickly that I wondered if she truly understood just how dangerous this was.
“My stomach is doing some weird-ass flips, girl. I just hope nobody suspects us,” I whispered to her, while rubbing my stomach. I felt like I was about to have the bubble guts and shit on myself.
“Hey, you’ll do great. I’ll be right there with you.
Don’t worry, that fine-ass husband of yours is not about to let anything happen to you.
And when this is all over, I’mma need you to hook a sister up with his fine-ass brother Snow,” Mia said, wiggling her eyebrows around, making me laugh.
I could always count on her to lighten the mood.
“Ok, it’s time to roll out,” Buddha said, grabbing my hand so we could leave. “Mia, you good?” he asked my friend.
“Yeah, I’m straight,” she answered, but her eyes were looking at Snow. “Once I don’t get killed, you owe me dinner,” she said, pointing at Snow, who smiled at her, his eyes running over her body.
The way I was holding the steering wheel, I was surprised that shit didn’t come right out of my hands.
“You stressing has got me stressing. Will you relax, girl, damn,” Mia said, giving me an irritated look. Releasing a deep breath, I loosened my grip on the wheel and focused on the SUV in front of me that Buddha and Snow were in.
“That’s easy for you to fucking say; you get to go home after.
I have to live with these mothafuckas. Mia, you have no idea of the things I’ve seen and been through with this fucking family.
They are something else, and let me tell you, the mother, the matriarch of the family.
You’d think she’d be on some Martha Stewart-type shit, baking cookies and making floral decorations.
Nah, that bitch is worse than the fucking men.
Shit don’t make no damn sense,” I said, switching lanes.
“I just knew you were caught up in some shit; I just wasn’t expecting this.
However, from what you told me, what I can say is that, despite everything, all the fucked up shit.
Look past all that; this family has each other’s back, and they're gonna do what they're supposed to in order to protect one another. Unfortunately, that means you, too, friend.” I made a face, knowing she was right.
“I feel so bad for Buddha; I know Lorenzo’s death really rocked him.
Not to mention Lotus; Jesus, he refuses to get rid of the bed she used to sleep in.
I wish there was something I could do to get him to talk to me.
Do you think I should get him another dog?
” The idea had been floating around in my head for a minute.
Mia made a snorting noise in her throat.
“Sis, please do not, do no dumb shit like that. This is not one of those situations where you break up with a man and get under another man to get over your break-up.” I scrunched my face up at her analogy.
“What? What are you even talking about?”
“What? I didn’t say anything; it’s not like I ever did that. Anyway, my point is, do not go out and buy that man another dog. He isn’t even grieving properly; the last thing he needs right now is a substitute for Lotus.”
“Any advice on how to get that man to talk about what’s bothering him?
Maybe if he would just look at me and say, Dior, Lorenzo, and Lotus being killed really fucked me up.
Can I get a hug? Then he would feel so much better for saying that shit out loud.
He’s just keeping everything inside, and I feel like he’ll explode one day and that shit will be really fucking ugly.
” I shook my head at the thought. Buddha was really a closed-off man who didn’t share his feelings or thoughts with anyone.
“That’s really fucked up; it’s like men feel that being vulnerable makes them less manly.
Don’t they get that we love that shit? We want them to feel comfortable talking to us about what’s bothering them.
Instead, they walk around with the weight of the world on their shoulders.
” I listened to Mia and agreed with her silently as I concentrated on the road.
My stomach once again tied into three different knots as I saw the SUV Snow was driving begin to slow down.
“Shit, we’re here,” I said when I saw the vehicle pull to the side of the street and stop. I knew what that meant; I was supposed to keep driving as they stayed a few feet away from where Edwardo lived.
“You ready for this?” I asked Mia as we approached the closed gate.
“Ready as I’ll ever be,” she said, sitting upright in the passenger seat.
It’s showtime, I thought, as a man came out of the gate and walked up to the driver’s window. I rolled down the glass and adjusted my glasses on my nose. Plastering a smile on my face, I watched him as he got closer.
“Who are you?” He asked with a grim expression.
“Good morning, sir. My name is Angelina Smith, and this is my colleague Jackie Laurel. I was wondering if Mr. Edwardo Bianchi is available. I’m a lawyer, and unfortunately, we have some papers here that we need to serve him.” I recited the lines that I rehearsed all morning.
“I’ll take it to him,” the man replied, shoving his big, burly hand in my face so I could hand him the envelope on my lap.
“No, I’m afraid that’s not how this works. I need to give this to him directly; he has to sign for receiving it on behalf of my client.” I kept my voice steady and my facial expression neutral as the man narrowed his eyes as he studied me.
“Just give me one second,” he said, fishing his hand in his pocket and taking out his cellphone. Mia and I sat quietly as we watched the security make a call. His eyes never left my vehicle as he spoke on the phone. Once he ended his conversation, he walked back up to my window.
“I need to check your trunk before you can go in further.”
“Oh ok,” I said, agreeing as he asked, popping my trunk. I looked in the rearview mirror as he scanned my trunk before shutting it.
“You can go on up. Drive straight up to the main house; there will be someone waiting for you at the front door.” I thanked him with another smile before proceeding.
“Whew,” I said, blowing an exaggerated breath. “How many guards were at the front gate?” I asked Mia.
“Just two,” Mia replied.
“Ok,” I said, nodding my head, taking mental notes. As we drove toward the massive front door, there was a man standing, waiting for us. A pair of very dark sunglasses hid his eyes. Just like the man at the gate, I could tell this man was strapped.
“Let’s go, Mia,” I told her, reaching for the handle and opening the door. With the envelope in my hand, we approached the man who looked at us from head to toe.
“Hi, we're here to see Mr. Bianchi. I have some papers here for him,” I said, holding the envelope in the air. After a few seconds of uncomfortable silence, the man opened the door.