Chapter 9
Chapter
Nine
SUGAR BABY
I would have sworn I dreamed last night, but I smelled Cash’s cologne on my bed.
He’d also sent me a text letting me know he left early because he had some business to handle.
When I texted him back, he told me to expect a delivery at noon.
For the whole morning, I’d been curious about what it could be.
I went through my usual routine of journaling before having a small snack and working out.
Because of the amount of sweet treats I ate weekly, my workout routine was nonnegotiable.
I lifted four days out of the week and ran or walked anywhere from five to ten miles a day five times a week.
When I didn’t, I did something active that could count for cardio like dancing, skating, or riding my bike.
When I had a big event like the gala, I took the next three days off so me and my team could unwind. Usually I would get a massage or go shopping, but today, I didn’t want to do anything but rest. As my phone vibrated, I rolled across the bed to grab it, and I smiled at the sight of Cash’s name.
“Hey,” I answered.
“Hey. My brother is about to drop that package off. He’s the only person I trust outside of my mama to give your address to, and she would’ve asked too many questions.”
I laughed. “Okay. What is he bringing me?”
“You’ll see in a minute. I got a long day today, but I just wanted to hear your voice real quick. I’ll talk to you later, aight?”
“Okay. Have a good day and be safe. Oh! I guess he’s here.”
I was so excited I hung up the phone before Cash could give me a proper goodbye, but I didn’t care.
I figured I’d text him my thanks anyway.
When I opened the door, I was caught off guard by how attractive the man was.
I wasn’t sure if they were blood related or not because they didn’t look alike, but he was almost as fine as Cash.
Almost.
“Sugar?” he confirmed.
“Yes.”
“Here you go.” He extended the black gift back in my direction and I accepted it.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Have a good day.”
“You too uh . . .”
“Rhakeem,” he offered with a smile.
“You too, Rhakeem.”
I waved as he walked away and waited until he was in his car to close and lock the door. I almost skipped back to my room as excitement filled me, because I genuinely had no idea what was inside.
My mouth dropped and I gasped at the sight of the picture of me and Cash that was taken last night on the dancefloor.
I hated that such a beautiful moment was captured with me in my work uniform, but it was what it was.
Me and Cash looked at each other like we’d known each other for years.
Like we were a couple in love. I stared at the picture for a while longer before setting it on my bed and moving on to the next thing.
He'd included a gift card to a massage parlor, and I appreciated him remembering me saying I liked to shop and get a massage after a big event last night.
I was even more surprised by the stacks of cash that filled the rest of the bag.
Each stack had a ten thousand dollar band around it.
By the time I counted ten, tears were falling from my eyes.
There was no way I could just text this man. I had to call him.
“Suge,” was his greeting, and I heard the smile in his voice.
Sniffling, I wiped my face. “I think your brother made a mistake. Was it supposed to be just the picture and a card in here? He might’ve accidently given me someone else’s money.”
Cash chuckled. “That’s for you.”
“I don’t understand.”
“I know we had a deal, but you did a phenomenal job last night. Literally everyone in attendance loved your food. There’s no way I cannot pay you for that. Tyreek’s debt is still cleared, but that’s for you.”
My head shook adamantly as more tears fell. “Cash, I can’t take this. Even if you were to have paid me for the event in advance, it wouldn’t have been anywhere near this amount.”
“Let me pay you what I believe you’re worth, aight?” Rendered speechless, all I could do was nod as I cried. “ Aww, are you crying, Suge?” That only made me cry harder. He groaned. “You a straight up pussy cat, man. I’m finna come get you.”
“O-okay,” I sobbed, not giving a damn about the things he had to do or him laughing at me. Hell, I’d ride in the car like a passenger princess if it meant I got to be in his presence.
Several Hours Later
“I know I keep saying it, but thank you,” I said for what had to be the millionth time, and the words still didn’t seem like enough.
I’d unexpectedly spent the day with Cash while he handled his business.
Today, I learned he really was the HNIC.
I’d dealt with drug dealers before, but they were actual dealers.
Cash was a supplier. He didn’t have to touch the product, and he only sold it to dealers.
Apparently, he used his trucking company to import and export his drugs.
I respected that he refused to use his food distribution trucks to keep that business clean.
All day, we rode around, and he went from one place to the next checking on product, shipments, and teams. I wanted to see his food distribution warehouse, but he promised to take me there another day.
He did take me to see his weed farm though, and it was so interesting.
I knew this was something Tyreek would love to learn more about.
My prayer was that I could guide him into the legal side of marijuana since it was legal to sell in The Hills.
There really was no reason for him to try and sell it on the streets.
My mentality was, regardless of how much I got onto him, I knew Tyreek was going to do what he wanted to do.
If he insisted on being involved with drugs, the least I could do was try and help him do it in a safe way.
If Beethoven wasn’t the key to that, maybe Cash would be.
Hell, even if he had to scare my little cousin straight, I wanted more for him than to be a link in a chain that made a man like Cash rich.
He was too smart and had far too much potential for that.
“Stop thanking me.”
I could only chuckle at his mean ass. For the most part, he handled me as delicately as a man of his stature could, but there were also times where the grit and bite of his tone combined with what he was saying could only be so soft.
I loved the sound of his voice . . . even from the first words he spoke to me asking for his money.
He had what used to be called a whiskey voice.
Not sure if that term was still used today, but even if it wasn’t, it described Cash’s voice perfectly. It was raspy, husky, and warm.
“I can thank you,” I rebutted with a pout. “You’re downplaying what you did for me today. I feel like me saying the words aren’t enough.” I paused before asking, “What can I do to show you my gratitude?”
“You showed me the first time you said thank you, Sugar Baby. I didn’t give you that for anything in return.”
“I respect that, but I’m a woman who believes in reciprocity, not just receiving. If I don’t match your energy in some way, I’m going to feel bad.”
Cash sighed as he looked over at me. I guess the sincerity of my confession caused him to finally take me seriously. “C’mere, lil pussy cat.” I smirked as I leaned across the console of his Challenger and allowed him to kiss me. “You’ve officially reciprocated the gesture, aight?”
“With a kiss?” I confirmed through my giggle.
“Shit . . . Have you kissed you before? That’s more than enough. I’m curious about what else that mouth can do, but we got more than enough time for that.”
His compliment left me speechless, so I returned to the peaceful quiet of the ride.
I wanted to tell him he could find out what else my mouth could do right now, but I just covered my cheeks as I blushed.
I was used to men complimenting me, but there was something about Cash that made it feel different.
That made me blush. That made me feel special.
The sun had started to set, so when we pulled up to the beach, excitement surged through me.
I loved watching the sun rise and set at the beach.
That was truly the best time to come. Most times I was so busy I couldn’t even appreciate living less than thirty minutes away from the beach, so this was a nice end to the day.
He demanded I wait for him to open the door of his car for me, and I did. I took his hand into mine as if it was the most natural thing to do, and we headed down the concrete walkway with no true destination in mind.
“Do you have a thing about being out in public?” I asked when his grip on my hand tightened and pulled me closer.
“I don’t like open spaces, especially when a lot of people are around. It takes more to keep an eye on everyone, you feel me?”
“That makes sense. You’re a room with four walls and two exits kind of man?”
“Exactly, and I’ma always be seated by one of the exits.
If you gon’ be hanging with me, it’s some shit you gon’ have to start doing too.
I need to take you to the gun range and see how good your aim really is.
I ain’t saying niggas will come after you automatically because of me, but I like to be prepared for the worst case scenario.
” He looked down at me. “Still wanna be my friend? ”
I mirrored his smile. I wanted to tell him I wanted to be more than his friend. Would that have been too forward?
“Yes,” I crooned, wrapping my arm around his. “I don’t scare easily, Cassius.”
He pinched my nose. “Good.”
When we made it to Mera’s Speakeasy, I expected him to turn around because the lower level was packed. Instead, he told the bouncer, “It’s too many people in here. Clear this shit out.”
“You got it, boss man.”