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Instead of replying, she hearted the message and left me on read, which was cool. I didn’t really want to get close to her. I didn’t know how long this would last. Pops said he’d have our attorney email me a finalized copy of the contract in the morning, and I’d look everything over then. For tonight, I needed to sit with my thoughts and feelings so they wouldn’t consume me. At the end of the day, this was a business arrangement, and I would have to treat it as such.
8
Whiskee
I’d just finished telling Mahogany everything and her response was, “You’re joking, right?”
All I could do was shake my head. We were in her bed, and I just wanted to crawl under it and never come out. I couldn’t believe the drastic change my life had taken in such a short amount of time.
“I wish.”
“You can get out of that contract. It was drafted and signed without your consent. There’s no way they can uphold that.”
“I was thinking about that, but I don’t know, Mahogany. As much as I hate what Carlos has done, I’m not sure fighting it is wise. If this is the only way Tim will work with him, I might just have to suck it up and do it. I’m used to this lifestyle and don’t want to be the reason he and I can no longer enjoy it. Now I hate never working or taking care of myself. I feel stuck and don’t know what to do.”
“That’s not an excuse to go through with this, sis. That’s not a reason for you to be used and taken advantage of. If you don’t want to do this, don’t do it. But if you do it… I’ll support you.”
“Thanks, sis. I’ll get through it. Thankfully, Beethoven is cool. Right now at least. I got a lot of guards up with him, and I don’t see that changing, but he had my back tonight which I appreciated.”
“Is he cute?”
Her syrupy smile led to her biting down on her lip, making me laugh. Mahogany was such a horn dog. I loved how sexually free she was, though.
“He’s cute. He’s fine as hell, actually.”
“Well, there is a bright side to this.” I chuckled though she was serious. “And he was nice to you, so that’s a plus.”
“Yeah, I’ve been texting him, but I stopped. I don’t want to get attached to him and feel closer to him than I should because of the situation. At the end of the day, this is business. And as much as I hate it, maybe it’s time for me to step up.” Sighing, I looked out of her darkened window. “I’ve been taken care of my entire life. If this is what I have to do to honor my father’s memory and help my brother, I will. I just hate that they took away my choice.”
“I can’t imagine. I’m sure it would have been different if they would have talked to you about it and asked you first.”
“Right! The decision being made for me is what hurt the most. Daddy never would’ve done that.”
“Well, he’s gone, Whiskee. This is Carlos now, and that man is going to do whatever he wants to do, regardless of how you feel.”
“That’s what scares me. If this is what he’s doing now, I don’t want to see how things progress the longer he stays in control.”
“Uh oh. What does that mean?”
I didn’t answer her right away. Up until now, I was content with staying with my brother forever… or… at least until I was married. Now, I needed to get away. After watching my mother be murdered, I never wanted to be alone. I didn’t feel safe in my own home. There were some images you couldn’t get out of your head—and seeing a gun aimed at your mother’s head while you both were hog-tied was one of them.
But now, Carlos had tainted my trust in him and broken our bond. I didn’t want to be around him, and I certainly didn’t want to live with him. Maybe that would change in the future, but for right now, I had to start figuring out how to do life on my own. Even if I had to do it in fear.
“It means I need to move out and take care of myself.”
“You sure you’re ready for that, Whis? If not, you know you can always stay here with me. I know how what happened to Mama Renee has affected you. If you don’t want to be alone, you’re more than welcome to stay here.”
I appreciated her offering that without me even having to mention it. That was why Mahogany was my soulmate. My sole mate. The person God designated for me to walk through life with.
“That would be really, really great,” I said as my eyes watered. “And I won’t be here forever. Just… long enough to get on my feet and get used to the idea of living alone.”
“Oh stop. Stay here for as long as you need to. We’re a package deal. My future husband will have to get used to us always being together anyway.”
Lord knows I needed the light turn our conversation had taken as she hugged me. I wasn’t sure how this arranged marriage would work, and honestly, I didn’t want to try and figure it out tonight. Tonight, I only had enough energy to wrap my mind around what was actually happening.
“Speaking of future husbands, I guess I’ll text Beethoven back. The last thing I want is for him to think I’m rude or angry with him. We need to be allies. If I can’t trust anyone else, I need to be able to trust him.”
As I started to text out a message, he called me. I was frozen as I watched the call come through. At the sound of my gasp, Mahogany looked down at my phone.
