Chapter 16
Chapter Sixteen
Ace walked out of the precinct with Marco following close behind.
“Ace what’s going on, man?”
Ace wished he had an answer. “I’m handling it. But from now on I need you to stop doing stupid shit. Riding around doing double the speed limit with shit in your car is stupid. That ain’t even got nothing to do with everything going on, you just made yourself an easy target.”
Marco’s bloody face screwed up at Ace’s chastisement. “A few months ago, them motherfuckas would’ve looked the other way, too afraid to cross us. I guess, you don’t strike the same fear in their hearts as Senior did.”
Ace released a humorless chuckle and stepped forward putting his hand on Marco’s shoulder. From afar, it looked like Ace was simply talking down his client. Up close, you could see Marco’s wince as Ace dug his finger into a pressure point.
“Stop fucking playing with me, Marco. They know what the fuck it is and so do you. You definitely know what the fuck it is. I always thought you were smarter than Perry but if you keep talking out the side of yo neck like that, you gon’ be stinking next to yo cousin.”
Ace snapped his fingers and stepped back like he’d had an epiphany. “That’s the problem. It’s you motherfuckas who’ve been playing like shit is sweet. I’ve been keeping it cool but maybe I need to remind y’all why they call me Menace.”
Marco’s eyes widened and at the fire in Ace’s eyes, he took an instinctual step back. “N-nah Ace. You right, I’m tripping. My bad man.”
Another unmarked SUV approached and Ace shoved Marco away from him and towards the car.
“Make sure my mans makes it home aight?” Ace spoke to the driver then turned to Marco who looked at him with contempt. “I’ll see about getting those charges dropped. In the meantime, I hope you stay out of trouble and keep your fucking mouth shut.”
“Now you think I’m a snitch?” Marco exclaimed.
“Did I say that or did I issue a reminder?”
He slammed the door then turned back to walk to his own vehicle.
Ace’s nostrils flared and his eyes blazed as he adjusted the collar of his suit jacket on his way to the car. He took his shades out of his breast pocket and slid them back on his face.
He slid in and his attention immediately turned to Joy. “Hungry?” he asked.
She nodded.
Ace looked over at her but she kept facing the window, refusing to meet his eyes. He grinned.
No need to be embarrassed my rose, he thought.
The glimpse of her thorns was subtle but enough to make him have to adjust himself in his pants after she left and ache for another peek. Something about her violence felt familiar and he wanted to see more of it.
Ace instructed Ray to take them to Sapphire and for the duration of the ride, they sat in silence.
The wheels were turning in Ace’s head as he tried to think of what he was missing.
It seemed every time he put out a fire, another one popped up and he couldn’t shake the fact that it was all happening in the span of a few weeks.
He’d yoked Marco up for saying it but truthfully, this shit shouldn’t be happening. Marco shouldn’t have happened and the raid and Blue’s subsequent arrest sure shouldn’t.
Ace knew Harris was behind this but what he didn’t know was how he had enough sway to make the people on King payroll do their jobs poorly. The only thing that made sense was that DA Young, a new player, was in on it. He made a mental note to have Remy pull a file on him.
He’d been trying to handle things like Senior but it seemed only Menace would suffice.
Ace helped Joy out of the car when they pulled up to the Sapphire Lounge. He ushered her inside with a hand on the small of her back. At mid-day, it was quiet. The soft music, blue accents and warm, low lighting were reminiscent of an old jazz club and exactly what he needed to calm his irritation.
They were immediately greeted by a hostess. “Good afternoon Mr. King. Would you like to dine on the main level or in your private suite?” She asked, her gaze flicking briefly to Joy.
“Main level is fine.”
She guided them through the dim restaurant to a booth in a corner, tucked away from the other patrons.
Ace and Joy nearly collided as they both tried to slide into the same side of the booth.
“I like to face the door,” Joy spoke first.
“So do I,” Ace retorted, not moving.
“Well…” Joy said, not moving from her spot either. She looked down at the booth and there was no way they would both fit on one side. They both had long, thick limbs stacked with muscle.
“You got ops or something, Rose?”
“Do you?”
“You know I could physically move you,” Ace said with a smirk.
“You could try, but I wouldn’t suggest it if you like your fingers.”
Smirk still in place and not looking away from Joy, Ace spoke to the waitress who still stood there looking on with confusion.
“Could you get us a booth with the entrance visible from both sides?”
The waitress looked around for a moment then led them to a booth that fit the description.
“Better?” Ace asked as they both slid into their respective sides of the booth. A slight turn of their heads to the left ensured the entrance was visible to both diners.
“Much,” Joy smirked.
“Your usual to drink Mr. King?” their hostess asked.
Ace nodded.
Joy perused the menu, looking over the food options and in barely a minute, Ace’s scotch and Joy’s water with lemon were being set on the table.
“Scotch at 12:30 in the afternoon?” Joy asked, without looking up from the menu.”
“It’s five o’clock somewhere,” Ace grunted. The waitress returned and they placed their order before being left alone again.
“Do you need me to do anything for Michael Black’s case or-,” Joy started.
“I don’t wanna talk about work shit right now,” Ace cut her off.
Joy cut her eyes at him. Ace hadn’t meant to snap at her but he wasn’t in the mood to censor himself.
He was in the mood to make some niggas bleed and as soon as he dropped Joy off at the office that’s exactly what he’d do.
For now, he was doing his best not to go cold and let Menace peek through in her presence.
Whatever Joy saw made her expression soften.
“Is there anything I can do to help?” She asked.
Ace nodded and tipped his lips up in a slight grin. “Tell me something about you.”
He leaned back, throwing one arm over the back of the booth and used his free hand to lift his glass to his lips.
He eyed her across the table, her beautiful features illuminated softly by the lit candle in the middle of the table that was much too intimate for a business lunch in the middle of the day.
“Something like what?”
Ace looked at her for a moment with a blank expression on his face.
“You know what I wanna know.”
Joy shook her head then shrugged. “My daddy taught me self defense and I have a temper,” she said, a shadow crossing her face and the fire in her eyes blazing a bit hotter.
Ace smirked and nodded his head, somewhat satisfied. “Think you can keep that temper under control or will you be assaulting my clients often?”
Joy looked down at the table, the earlier shame for losing her cool creeping back up again.
“It won’t happen again. I’m sorry I don’t-“
Ace hated the way she turned her eyes downward. The shame that she carried for defending herself. He hated whoever made her feel like her fierceness was something to be ashamed of. He liked it and wanted to see more of it.
“Don’t sweat it, Rose,” he said, putting a soothing hand over hers. “That nigga was mad disrespectful.”
Joy smiled and turned her attention back to her menu.
After they’d received their food, Ace began asking more questions, feeling there was more to the story than what Joy was offering. The fire she had in her eyes wasn’t one of a simple temper.
“Are you close with your pops?” he asked, digging for more information.
“It’s complicated.”
“What about your mother?”
“Dead. Are you close with your parents?”
Ace’s eyes twinkled and he tilted his head as if he’d find the answers to the questions he had about Joy Thibodeaux written on her skin.
Joy tried to remain stoic but he saw the way she fidgeted under the heat of his stare but didn’t look up, instead pretending to be more interested in the Caesar salad she was stabbing.
“I’m sorry for your loss,” he said.
Joy just shrugged. “Thanks. It was a long time ago.”
“You do that a lot,” Ace mused aloud.
“Do what?” She asked before spearing more chicken and lettuce onto her fork.
“Deflect when I ask you personal questions.”
“That’s because I don’t like to talk about personal shit.”
“Why not?”
“In order to tell you that, I’d have to talk about it, now wouldn’t I?” She quipped.
“You’re sneaky.” Ace said, catching her eyes.
“And you’re nosey,” Joy replied, holding his stare.
“I’m a lawyer baby. I notice shit and ask questions.”
“Yeah, well, stop Sherlock Holmes.”
Ace chuckled but acquiesced. “Aight you got it.”
Ace cut into his ribeye and for a moment, they sat in a comfortable silence with nothing but the chatter from other customers, the soft ambient music, and the clank of silverware hitting plates being heard.
“You didn’t answer my question,” Joy said, breaking the silence.
“You didn’t answer mine.”
“If I recall, I answered three. I think that deserves one.”
Ace wiped his mouth with the napkin. “What was your question, Rose?”
”Are you close with your parents?
”It’s complicated,” he said.
Joy pushed a forkful of salad past her supple lips and chewed slowly then asked, “How so?”
Ace shifted, loosening his tie a bit at the neck. “Spent most of my life preparing to follow in my father and his father’s footsteps. My mom pretty much turned over raising me to my old man and he was more of a teacher than a dad.”
Joy nodded. Their eyes held in silent understanding for a few moments.
“What about your siblings?” Joy asked. “Are you close with them?”