Page 20 of Gang of Roses: Dice

“Ritz speaking.”

“Hi, sir, we might have a lead.”

That made me stop in my tracks, but it was silent on the other end as if he wanted me to start guessing.

“Tom, I never liked Blue and his damn clues, so just spill it.”

“Okay, well, I decided to make some calls, and it looks like she made a purchase a few months ago.”

He was starting to irritate me, and he could tell due to my silence.

“Yes, sir. I came across a property under the name Global Jamerson. In Shadowstone Mountains.”

“Damn, she was close by,” I muttered under my breath.

“Sir, would you like the address?”

This dude.

“Tom, what the hell I ask you for…if you weren’t going to provide the rest of the information? Nigga, send the shit to my email.”

“Yes, sir.”

Tom was white as a sheet of paper, but he was acting ignorant as hell right now. I hated a smart dumb nigga. Tom had been with me since the beginning of my opening of the casino. Although he acted a little dense at times, he was good at what he did.

It had been two years since that girl left me with the sweetest taste on my tongue and the ride of my life. I have bedded quite a few women in my life, and hands down, G-baby was the best. Global rode me like gravity wasn’t a thing, to be a BBW. There was no rocking back and forth on my shit or nothing. Big mama gave straight feet planted on the mattress, Megan-knees-type-action. Holding her in place while I bench press that ass up and down my dick was my favorite part. She looked shocked when I scooped that weight up and held it in place without a wall in sight.

Damn, I’m getting hard.

Hard or not, though, going back in there to serve Anera was not on the menu. If the shit didn’t go down, something might come through the casino tonight that catches my eye, but if not, I was good. I had too much business to tend to today anyway.

Isat back in my office chair while the developers gave me a virtual walkthrough of Monroe Casino’s expansion into Vegas. It had taken years for this project to get off the ground. Vegas definitely had a nigga jumping through hoops just to get the licenses my contractors needed to break ground, and being Black damn sure didn’t help. We were finally at the stage where I could see my legacy moving forward.

The casino in Magnolia was beautiful, but the one in Vegas definitely sonned the hell out of my first baby.

“Toni, this looks absolutely amazing,” I said, starting the applause before the rest of the room joined in.

Toni was one of my project managers overseeing the Vegas build. Although I had my moments where I got a little reckless when it came to my money, business was where I drew the line. Around these white folks, it was suits and ties, but even they knew how far to take it with me. Them crackers earned a master’s degree in that nice-nasty shit they be pulling.

And even though college taught a hood nigga how to move professionally, I still didn’t play that shit.

While my old running crew invested in clubs, lounges, and convenience stores or stayed in the streets, I stayed focused on something bigger. They thought I was trippin’ when I enrolled in college at thirty, but I had a plan. Now, over a decade later, my second casino was gearing up for its grand opening in Vegas.

“Mr. Monroe, we’re in our final phase. If everything continues on schedule, you’ll be cutting the ribbon at High Stakes Monroe Casino very soon.”

“Good to hear. I’d like to apologize again, but unfortunately, I just couldn’t make it out there this month.”

“Sir, we understand. You’re an incredibly busy man.”

I chuckled.

“Busy is an understatement. Thank y’all for your time and patience.”

Everyone gathered their briefcases and paperwork before making their way out. Once the conference room emptied, I pulled up the email Tom had sent to my phone and stared at the address: 619 Ginger Creek Rd. This address was different from the first dead-end address that Tom pulled from the system.

Shadowstone Mountains was about two hours outside Magnolia Valley.

Why hasn’t she made her presence known?