Chapter 12 #3
She stopped near Dane and Tiara, who sat poolside with their feet in the water, eating ice cream cones.
Moose told him he could invite a few of his homies over, and they asked if they could bring girls, so he told him a maximum of five people, and everybody had to be searched at the door.
He fucked with Tiara like a little sister, but Moose didn’t expect him to babysit her all day. He wanted him to have a good time too.
“You told Dane he could invite friends?” Inari sauntered over, hand resting on the strap to her Marc Jacobs bag on her shoulder.
“Yeah. I didn’t want him to be bored.” Moose licked his blunt closed, and Inari set her purse on the table.
The minute Iara spotted Coast heading their way, her little chubby legs kicked against Mozzi still standing with her. She wasn’t focused on Coast herself, more so her breasts.
“Ah shit, Rara, you just ate. Let Mama drink a little bit today, so daddy can turn her out tonight,” Mozzi joked in her ear.
“Nasty.” Inari shook her head.
“Heard Moose woke up at your spot this morning. What type of shit was y’all on last night?” Mozzi tipped his cup to his lips.
“Coast, you just be pillow talking.” Inari shook her head.
“Gahdamn right. That’s my fucking wife. She tell me everything like I tell her.”
“You trying to keep me a secret, Nari?” Moose glanced at her through his sunglasses and dried his blunt with his lighter.
“Morgan, do not start that shit.” She rolled her eyes, and he reached out and gave her ass a slap.
“Just tell everybody you love me, woman!”
“Oh, my God!”
The doorbell chimed through the house and into the backyard.
Everyone looked around because Yasmin and Desiree were busy giving directions to the staff that had arrived.
When Desiree saw that nobody was going to even attempt to play host, she waved Yasmin to go inside and answer.
The Whitakers waited on the front porch.
“The fuck is wrong with you?” Emeric sneered.
Darcy bounced Neo against her chest and stroked his back while her husband reached out to ring the doorbell to the Blackmoor home.
Gripping the car seat in one hand, Emeric was especially tense.
The night before, the two of them got into it once they got home.
He thought she was being too damn nice to Kong, while she thought he was harsh and cold.
Once she finally got Neo to sleep for a few hours, she decided to clean, like she always did when she was upset.
Emeric was bad at leaving shit everywhere, so she decided to start in his closet.
Every few weeks she had to go in there and reorganize shit because he was constantly throwing things into chaos.
He never cared because he knew she would step in like a dutiful wife and put it all back together for him again.
“Probably not a good idea to ask that right now.”
“You better fix your fucking face then before this door opens,” he growled and faced her.
Darcy had come across some paperwork buried in the back of his closet and had questions about it.
Emeric got real defensive and slammed her into a wall so hard her lower back ached this morning from the impact.
The door flung open, and they were greeted by Yasmine wearing a warm smile as Emeric swung around to face her.
“Hello, welcome to the Blackmoor estate.” She knew everyone was pretty much welcome if they got past security, so she stepped aside and allowed them to enter.
“Damn.” Emeric soaked in the high domed ceiling above them, with a sparkling gold chandelier flickering in the daylight pouring in from the many windows in the foyer.
The marble floors gleamed so brightly, you could see yourself in them.
“The seating area is through there.” Yasmine pointed to the left. “Kitchen is straight ahead, which also gives you access to the pool. The bathroom is off to the side of the kitchen. Make yourself at home. Bar is open in back.”
“Thank you.” Darcy smiled, and Emeric continued to take in their setting.
“This is some fly shit.” He admired the art and fine furniture. He was getting money, that was for sure, but this was on another level.
“Emeric, Darcy. Welcome.” Audiemar sailed into the room with Desiree not far behind him, clutching a glass of wine.
Both were casual in summer wear that probably accumulated to someone’s budget for an entire month.
“Audiemar, thank you for having us.” Emeric extended his hand and shook, setting the car seat beside an accent table in the hallway.
“And who do we have here?” Desiree smiled at Neo in Darcy’s arms.
“This is Neo.” She introduced their son and turned him around so he could face Audiemar and Desiree.
“Isn’t he beautiful,” Desiree gushed, pausing as something flickered behind the infant’s eyes. She tipped the glass of Pinot Noir to her lips anyway and sipped, but her eyes never left him and vice versa.
“Thank you.”
“How old is he?” Desiree queried.
“Almost four months,” she answered.
“Well, you sure bounced back, didn’t you.” Desiree skimmed her with scrutiny and Darcy’s eyes briefly lowered to the ground.
“Well, we adopted Neo,” she informed her. “Unfortunately, due to a traumatic incident when I was younger, I’m unable to have babies of my own.”
Emeric’s nostrils flared. She was saying too damn much, and this wasn’t what they were here for. He didn’t like getting extra personal with motherfuckers he did business with. In the long run shit like that is what made it easier to target you if shit went left.
“Baby, how about we get you a drink?” he suggested.
“Yes, please, have whatever you like. The kitchen is right through there. Most of our arrivals have migrated out around the pool.”
Audiemar and Desiree watched after the couple, but the matriarch of the family knew an abused woman when she saw one. Darcy was so meek it was scary. Emeric had her in line. One look was all it took for her to know he meant business.
“I’m going to mind the business that pays me today,” she declared, and Audiemar looked at her before releasing a chuckle.
“Yeah, I’ll pay to see that.”
“Why don’t you grab yourself a drink and entertain your guests?” Desiree voiced, falling in stride with him toward the kitchen.
She wanted to check on the chef and the rest of the staff to make sure they were handling their jobs.
The purpose of today was to take the load off the men they employed and show them that they did indeed give a damn.
Feeding them kept their organization in order, and as long as everyone was eating and getting full, there was no need for competition.
Audiemar wanted every man to know that they all played a part, big and small.
Stepping out into the warm, sunny day, he strutted to the bar and ordered himself a whiskey, neat.
He leaned against the setup and watched the different smiling faces around him.
Brim, Royal, and their kids were all seated close to Kool, Smoke, and their family as they smoked the meat, drank beer, and passed a blunt or two around.
The DJ spun early 2000s hits, and a few of the girlfriends and wives danced poolside in their swimming attire with red plastic cups of liquor.
Moose, Mozzi, and Kong took position on the opposite side of the pool at a large circle table with an umbrella to keep them all covered.
Mozzi shuffled a deck of cards with a blunt dangling from his lips, and Coast at his side, swinging Iara around and making her laugh.
Moose took a sip from a bottled water and leaned back coolly, shades covering his face, with Inari on his lap.
She draped her arms across his shoulder and laughed at something Mozzi said.
In a corner, red cup in her hand, watching the kids play in the pool, he spotted Ayla.
Dane’s friends had arrived, and they were playing Marco Polo in the pool with Kara, Kyro, Tiara, and Sailor.
With his drink in hand, maroon Tom Ford short set on his back, and a pair of slides on his feet, Audiemar strolled over to Ayla. He realized Kong had zoned out and was watching her, too, but for some reason, he hadn’t gone up to talk to her.
“It’s good to see you.” Audiemar sipped his drink, and Ayla smiled up at him, squinting at the sun in her face.
He lowered himself beside her on the lounge chair, and she glanced his way.
“Thanks. It’s good to be seen.”
“How have you been?” Audiemar queried.
“Hmm, that’s a loaded question.” Ayla tittered and looked into the cup of a strawberry margarita blend.
“I’ve been told I have a great listening ear.” Audiemar hinted.
“Yeah.” Ayla’s brows dipped together. “You do, actually. I kind of missed that. Late night snack sessions and chats with you were always enlightening.”
“So, what’s going on between you and my son?” Audiemar pried.
Ayla let go of a shaky breath and brought her cup to her lips.
“What makes you think something is going on?”
“Because he’s sitting over there looking like he’s carrying a lot, and you’re over here mirroring him,” Audiemar observed.
“I don’t know. Everything is kind of different now. I’m different. So is he.”
“Is that a bad thing?”
“I’m not sure,” Ayla whispered. “Is it possible that we both changed so much that now we don’t even know who the person is that we thought we were in love with?”
“When you saw him again for the first time, how did you feel?” Audiemar asked.
Ayla’s momentary pause and the way her eyes misted over told him everything. Her breathing changed, and he could tell her heart was probably racing too.
“I thought I was dreaming at first. But… when I realized he was real… I can’t explain how that brought me back to life.”
“I think that’s your answer.”
Ayla’s big, brown eyes drifted upward, somehow connecting with Kong's, some feet away as he leaned forward in his chair. Her middle and everything else tingled when he stared at her, half a smile on his lips, like he had something on his mind. Audiemar caught the exchange.
“Don’t give up too soon. Anything worth having means you have to work for it. Otherwise, it ain’t worth it.”