Page 25 of Tap In

“Miss ma’am, did you forget that you got here by yourself? Feel free to text me to let me know that you got home.” These new breed females got on my nerves.

When I got into my car, I dialed my cousin. I needed some counsel before I ended up choking one of these new, stupid bitches out. I really hated this single shit for me.

“What it do, bubba?” Chance picked up the line on the fourth ring. The one thing that I loved about my cousin was that he always answered.

I wiped my hand down my face. “Man, the world is full of dumb hos. I can’t do this dating shit.”

He burst out laughing. “What happened now? You’re not dating women from the club, are you?”

“Man, hell no. Shit, at this point, I might as well. They probably have more sense than these women out here.” I finally put my gear shaft in drive to leave the parking lot of the restaurant. “How is Jacobia doing?”

I hadn’t seen her since the night of Chance and Lark’s wedding. That was a hard feat for me, but I was proud of my discipline. Every once in a while, I texted her to check on her, but the response was always six words:blessed as I hope you are.Every time those words came across the screen of my phone, I wanted to fly to Charleston to bop her ass on the head.

“Shit, I’m not really sure. I assume good. Her ass has been MIA like a muthafucka. Lark goes over to her place often. I think you broke her, man,” he said with a titter. “I think Jacobia is gonna be in Vegas the weekend after next for her dental clinic. She asked Lark to come with her, but we’re going to be in Maryland for her cousin’s wedding.”

I knew that. The weekends that she was here, I intentionally took my ass to Charleston. I knew that if I stayed in Vegas while she was here, I would more than likely be a creep by stalking her. Yeah, my restraint was A plus when she was out of sight, out of mind. To know that she was in my city would be warrant enough for me to put eyes on her. “Yeah, I’ll be in Charleston.”

I heard him chuckling. “Sure, you will be. You good out there though? I saw the numbers for the club. Looks like we got an increase in membership.”

Chance didn’t come out to the club as much since he’d been in his relationship with Lark. When he came, they came together and had their fun in his private room. We opened some more private rooms for lease. The price for those was twenty thousand a year. The price seemed steep, but it came with a lot of perks and a membership discount.

“You know I’m always good, my boy. A boy is booked and busy. I got a competition coming up, and I’m finalizing this premium liquor deal.”

I was proud of the sponsorships that were coming my way. A premium liquor brand wanted me to be an ambassador for their label. It was the only brand that I drank when I was in competitions anyway. They offered a ten-million-dollar contract for five years as an ambassador. That was an easy hell yeah. My manager negotiated that I get a case of each liquor type that they had a month for my club. It would be featured as my preferred top-shelf option.

“My boy! I’m proud of you, cuz. As far as the dating shit, why don’t you just leave it alone. Focus on your success. That served me well before I met Lark. Trust me, when you focus on you and what you got going on, it’s like God drops your forever in your lap,” Chance said with conviction.

His suggestion settled in my spirit. “I might just do that because these females out here ain’t it.” We talked until I pulled up at my house.

Chance had always been the person I went to when I needed to keep my head leveled. Although he was two years younger than me, he was wise beyond his years because of the things that his parents instilled in him. My parents were way less structured when it came to the parenting of me. I learned how to play poker from my dad who at one point had a gambling problem. I did what my father wasn’t able to do consistently… I won. I turned the game into a profitable lifestyle.

My first competition at the age of eighteen paid out at fifty thousand dollars. From there, it was up. When I turned twenty-one, I won my first million-dollar competition. By that time, I was already a millionaire because forty percent of all winnings, I invested with Washington-Smith Brokerage Firm. There was no other investment firm that could flip money like them. They gave the big banks a run for their money when it came to investments.

I decided to settle in Vegas when I was twenty-two and got into the sex club lifestyle when I was twenty-three by way of a female that I fucked with. The lessons that Morgan taught me about the lifestyle were invaluable. The main takeaway was the money that could be made from owning a club. She helped me establish my first club when I was twenty-five, and the rest was history.

My shower called me when I got into my house, and I didn’t hesitate to answer the call. The entire time in the shower, my mind drifted to Jacobia. I missed the fuck out of her. As much as I wanted to just call her on video to see her face, I knew that was not a good idea.God, help me get over this girl.

* * *

A SHORT TIME LATER…

I’d been back in Vegas from my little trip to Charleston for almost a week. The trip home was productive. I got to see my parents, check on a few of my businesses, and just chill. One thing I learned from my investment banker was to have multiple streams of income as well as contribute to the community you came from and the community around you. Every year I offered one hundred thousand dollars in college scholarships between the Charleston and Vegas community high schools. I sponsored a few homeless shelters and rehab facilities as well.

My phone buzzed on my desk. My attention went from my computer screen to my phone.Why the fuck does this girl keep calling me?Noelle had been blowing my phone up for some time now. I hadn’t talked to her ass in over three months. When I came back from my cousin’s wedding, I fucked with her lightly for a little longer before I cut her off for stealing from me.

I answered the phone on the speakerphone. “Why the hell do you keep calling me? I’m about to block your fucking number.”

“Joston, I need to talk to you. Can we meet somewhere?” There was a desperation in her voice.

I glared at the phone as if she could see me. “Nah, we can’t. We can talk now. What do you want, Noelle?”

She huffed, but didn’t push back. She knew better. “Look, your little girlfriend’s friend assaulted me. She put a gun to my head and threatened to kill me.”

My face tightened. “What the fuck are you talking about? Last I checked, I don’t have a girlfriend, so I have no idea who you’re talking about.”

“That bitch Jacobia. I ran into her on the strip last weekend. Her friend assaulted me like I said and put a fuckin’ gun to my head!”

I was confused as hell. Jacobia in Vegas was not a surprise, but this friend who assaulted her was throwing me. “Noelle, why were you close enough to Jacobia and her people to get assaulted. Did you approach her on some funny shit?”

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