Chapter 2
The Present
I poked my head out of the jet, and the rays from the sun scorched my face. Alabama was hot, but it had nothing on this Las Vegas heat.
“Las Vegas!” my best friend, Imani, yelled from behind me.
I turned around, and she stood there with her champagne glass in her hand, along with her bride sash.
She’d been drinking since she stepped foot on the jet.
The only thing she should’ve been focusing on right now was getting to her room and lying down.
After getting engaged over two years ago, they were finally about to go through with the wedding.
I tried to talk her out of this nonsense.
They’d become too toxic for each other. They were fighting like cats and dogs every time I turned around.
She was always crying. The police kept getting called.
In my opinion, they didn’t need to tie themselves to each other, but she wasn’t listening to me.
If she wanted to go through with the wedding and find out the hard way, I was gon’ stand beside my girl, but she better not say a thing if shit got too out of control and I stepped in.
One thing I didn’t play about was my friends and my family. Anybody could get it behind them.
“Are you gon’ get off the plane or just stand there in the way?” Imani questioned me with a raised brow.
“Mani, that hotel isn’t going anywhere. You’re just ready to party.”
“Damn right! Ain’t that right, girls!”
The other six girls squealed as soon as she asked that. I had a feeling that this weekend trip was going to be a long one.
I exited the jet, and the truck was already parked, waiting for us. Stepping to it, I tapped on the passenger-door window, because the driver didn’t even get out to open the fucking door.
“Hey!” I yelled, knowing that I was ready to make it to my room so that I could lie down for a bit before it was time to go out with the girls. Every minute counted.
Another jet, all black, pulled into the hangar, prepared to come to a stop. Our driver got out of the truck, rounded to my side, and opened the back door just as the jet came to a halt. I went to climb inside, but he stopped me with his arm.
“What the fuck are you doing? Do you not see that I’m ready to go? Don’t piss me off.”
The jet door opened, and a guy stepped out with shades on his face. He was dressed in all black, and I just knew he was gon’ pass out in this heat.
“Mr. Corvo,” the driver said when he approached us. Though I couldn’t see his eyes behind those shades, I could feel them peeling back every layer of my skin.
“You,” was the only thing that escaped my lips as I folded my arms. He was the reason why my family hated me. I was still trying my best to get back comfortable around them, but the way they exiled me, it just didn’t feel the same.
Well, I wouldn’t exactly say it was his fault.
They just thought that I was working with him to take my brother Wicked down.
I’d never understand how they would think that was true.
I loved my family too much to place them in harm’s way.
I didn’t care what anyone said. I was a Saint-Mercier, and I didn’t take that lightly.
Savion Corvo was one of the most hated people by my family.
I think they hated him so much because after they took over what was rightfully his, he went into the shadows without a fight.
Honestly, I didn’t even think he wanted to be in the spotlight.
This man was so silent that a lot of people thought he was dead.
If you didn’t run into him in the flesh, you would think so too.
I could say one thing, though: He was damn good at what he did.
Savion removed his glasses and stared at me with his ice-cold eyes. “What the fuck do you want?”
“Excuse me?”
“You’re standing over here by my truck. What the fuck do you want?” he repeated.
I was taken aback with how he was speaking to me.
I had every right to slap that stiff-ass face of his.
I couldn’t lie. Savion was fine as hell.
Normally, I liked my men chocolate, but this caramel nigga was giving me a run for my money.
He gave off sexy nerd. Like a nigga that’d be hiding behind a computer screen all day long.
His waves were the darkest and deepest I’d seen in a while.
His tattoo-painted body was what gave off bad boy.
I’d never been attracted to a man in glasses before, but . . .
“Solei!” I heard Imani’s voice from behind me. When I turned around, I saw there were two other Tahoes parked back there by the jet, which they were loading our luggage into.
I took one final look at Savion, who was already halfway into the truck. Shaking my head, I went over to where the girls were and got inside.
“Who was that?” Imani questioned me. Hoped she wasn’t getting her hopes up.
“Nobody,” I replied.
* * *
The truck pulled up to the hotel that we were gon’ be staying at.
I already called ahead of time and booked everyone’s rooms. This trip was one of the wedding gifts that I was giving my girl.
She deserves the world. Imani has been holding me down ever since I was in middle school.
This was practically my person. She knew me better than anyone in the entire world.
Ma didn’t even know me as well. This was my diary.
My best friend. My sister. Anything her heart desired, I made it happen.
The driver opened the door for us, and I climbed out first. “I’m gonna go check us in,” I told her and strutted into the hotel.
It was gorgeous—MGM. The building was tall as hell with a big-ass water fountain in front of it.
I entered the building. People were floating through the lobby.
The desk was empty, which meant that I wouldn’t have to wait in line to check us in.
We had a total of five rooms. Imani and I had our own rooms, of course.
“Hey,” I said once I stepped to the desk. “I’m checking in. The name is Solei Saint—”
“Can I get the key to my room?” A familiar masculine voice cut me off. I turned and saw rude-ass Savion standing there like he owned the fucking place.
“Ugh. Excuse you. I was here before you. You can go stand your ass in line and wait ’til I’m done.”
He didn’t even bother to look in my direction.
He just kept staring at the woman behind the desk, who cut her eyes in my direction and then reached for a key card.
When she handed it in his direction, I snatched it.
“I was here before him. He can wait. My name is Solei Saint-Mercier.” I folded my arms over my chest and mugged her down. This bitch had me fucked up.
“Yes, ma’am,” was all she said before she got to typing on the counter.
“Are you gon’ hand me my fucking key, or do I have to take it from you?”
Shifting all my weight to my right side, I said, “I’d like to see you try.”
His jaw muscle tensed. Savion reached in my direction, and I immediately barked at him. That was right . . . I barked at his ass as if I was a fucking dog, and he jumped because I knew it caught him off guard.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?” he asked. I could feel everyone in the lobby staring at us.
“You wanted attention, and now you got it.”
“Here you go, Ms. Saint-Mercier. Sorry about that,” the receptionist said as she handed me over all my key cards. “The ones on top are the two presidential suites.”
“Now, you can help him,” I tossed over my shoulder and strutted off. Bitch.