Page 5 of Love’s Decree

“You’re doing that thing again. All work and no play makes for a boring Rory. Go have some fun with that man. Get those cobwebs out of your cooch,” she teased.

I looked at her and rolled my eyes. Ever since I told her that dating was too much work, she’d been teasing me about cobwebs in my cooch. It hadn’t been that long since that last time I had sex. When my last fling ended over six months ago, I told her I was done with dating. Instead of being a supportive friend, she told me I was going to end up a cat lady.

My last fling had so much potential until he decided he wanted a relationship. I made the rules clear from the beginning. My career came first, so there was no time for a relationship. Being in a relationship would mean considering someone else in my every move. It was a big commitment I didn’t care to partake in at the moment.

Everything about Aasim screamed trouble. He was nothing like the men I typically dated. Aasim was the total opposite of the stuffy corporate types that usually occupied my time. I couldn’t deny that the thought of seeing him excited me. He piqued my interest; that was for sure.

“It’s one night. If you aren’t interested, you never have to see him again. No harm in having a drink or even dinner with the man.”

“I don’t need a date to eat and drink with him. That’s what I have you for,” I said.

“No, ma’am. I’ve got a date tonight, so I won’t have time. I suggest you get out your head and go see that man,” she said as she turned around and left without another word.

I went back to trying to focus on work, but Aasim and the idea of seeing him stayed on my mind. The reminder of his soft lips on the back of my hand made me weak. It left me with two options. One: go meet with him and see where it goes, or don’t go meet him and sit in suspense of what could’ve happened. Being this indecisive was out of character for me. Ava’s voice telling me to go have fun replayed in my mind. I decided she was right, so I headed home to get dressed to meet Aasim.

4

AASIM

Jaxx, Gavin, and I were on our way to meet JoJo at his spot. The entire situation with the missing money had me tossing and turning all night. Rory was also heavy on my mind, and I couldn’t figure out why. I had been around plenty of beautiful women, but it was more than her looks that drew me to her. We chatted briefly earlier today. I hoped she would take me up on my invitation to meet me this evening.

I figured my cigar lounge, Empire Lounge, was neutral ground for us to get to know each other. When I got home last night, I actually did a Google search on her. I guess there was a first time for everything because I had never done that before. I saw beautiful women all the time. None of them ever stayed on my mind like this.

Rory had me wanting to know anything and everything about her. From what I could tell, she was great at her job. There were several articles highlighting some of her more high-profile cases. The firm she worked for was one of the top firms in the city. Rory Towns had every reason to want to protect her career, from what I could see.

The three of us pulled up to JoJo’s and parked our bikes side by side at the same time. I pounded fists with Jaxx first and then Gavin. We were silent as we made our way toward the spot. I knocked on the closed aluminum gate a few times before someone lifted it up.

“Yeah? What y’all want?” the young dude asked.

“Tell JoJo Brick is here,” I told the young buck.

He looked at me before closing the door and heading back inside. A minute later, he came back out and opened the gate to let us in. I walked in first with Jaxx and Gavin right behind me. As we walked, I noticed there was a long table in the middle of the floor. JoJo sat at the head, surrounded by several of his men.

“Brick, I wasn’t expecting you. Is everything cool?” JoJo asked as he stood to greet me.

We gave each other a pound once I reached him. “We just needed to rap with you about something. Are we good to talk here?”

He looked around at the men seated at the table. “Clear the room.”

One by one, each of his men got up from the table. When it was just the four of us, I got right to it. “I hate to ask, but I have to. Are you sure your count was right for the money we picked up yesterday?”

JoJo wore a puzzled expression on his face. “Of course, it was. You’ve seen my process. I’m anal as hell. I run your money through the machine multiple times myself. What’s going on?”

“The money was short a couple of thousand. I just wanted to check with you to make sure there’d been no change in your process. I hate to admit we have a thief in our crew,” I admitted.

JoJo rubbed his bald head and shook it in disbelief. “I’m sorry to hear that, dawg. I’ve got a bit of a situation myself. I’m glad you stopped by. I need to put an order in for some guns. The boys from Staten Island can’t seem to stay out my territory.”

“Say no more. I got you as soon as the shipment comes in. Look. I won’t hold you up. Thanks for letting us drop by,” I said, then gave him a pound once more.

I walked ahead of Jaxx and Gavin as we left JoJo’s spot. Deep down, I wished JoJo would have told me something changed about his process. I didn’t want to believe one of our prospects or Major took money from the club. It was a small amount compared to how much money was in front of them. The amount taken was the reason I didn’t suspect Major.

It didn’t change the fact that Major lied to all of us in the meeting. He probably didn’t want to admit it to us, but he must have left the prospects alone with the money. Major had been with us for years. He knew the laws of the club better than anyone else. I needed to decide how I wanted to handle these fools.

I walked over to my bike and grabbed my helmet. “I’ll get up with y’all later.”

Jaxx and Gavin each gave me a pound before getting on their bikes. Sometimes, club business could be too much. There was only one person who could make sure I was level-headed when I got stressed. I started the bike and rode out to see my grandmother, Yaya.

Forty-five minutes later, I hopped off my bike and knocked on her door. I would normally tell her I was stopping by, but today, I wanted to surprise her. After a couple of knocks, she came to the door.