Page 3 of I Heard It All Before

Chapter 1

“Boy, you got more luck than sense. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve seen your ass come in and out of this place,” the older deputy said as he escorted, Cam, an inmate who was being released, out of the correctional facility.

“I guarantee that you won’t see me again,” Cam swore as he sucked in as much fresh air as his lungs would allow.

When he got arrested that night at the club, he didn’t anticipate his stay being that long. Aside from the rare occasions where he was allowed a little recreation time on the yard, Cam hadn’t seen outside for the past eighteen months. He spent his days and nights crammed in a dingy dormitory surrounded by other men.

“You always say that, but then you turn around and come right back. Your rich daddy ain’t gon’ always be around to bail you out,” the deputy said, making Cam stop to look at him and frown.

“Man, fuck that dude! I never asked him to help me with shit. I would have done twenty years in this bitch before I begged him to do anything for me,” Camden swore.

“See, that’s the problem with y’all kids now. Just too damn ungrateful. Do you realize that you’re a fifth-time offender for drug possession? After three strikes, your ass was supposed to be benched for life or damn near close to it. You didn’t get caught with no small amount of shit. Most men don’t even get a court date until two years or more. You’re blessed and you better recognize that, with your hot-headed ass,” the deputy fussed.

“I really don’t give a fuck. I would have done life plus fifty before I asked him for anything. And I wish my mama would stop calling his ass on my behalf. Fuck him and anybody that look like him!” Cam snapped.

“I guess that includes you,” the deputy smirked, knowing that he was getting under Camden’s skin.

Camden was the youngest racist that he’d ever met in his sixty-two years on earth. He had a strong dislike for Caucasian people, even though half of him belonged to the same race. Camden’s father, Camden Blaire, was a high-powered attorney who was known worldwide for winning some of the most difficult cases near and far. He was the most sought-after attorney in New Orleans, but he only took cases that guaranteed him six figures or more. He owned The Blaire Building downtown with his father, which was also the location of The Blaire Law Firm.

Camden was the product of an affair between his African American mother who, at one point, worked as a janitor in the office. Camden was married at the time, but he and his wife never had kids. They never really had the time. That all changed for Camden when Nora, the head of the janitorial staff, became pregnant. Nora was beautiful to him, with her bronze colored skin and wild honey tinted hair. She was a hard worker, which was why he’d promoted her to supervisor over the other workers after just two months on the job. It was nothing for Nora to be the first one to arrive and the last one to leave the building. Most nights, Camden would be there late working on a case, and he and Nora often talked.

Talking was all that occurred between the two of them at first. Since he’d always found the slightly younger woman very attractive, it didn’t take long before things between the two of them escalated. They had an affair that lasted for over a year before Nora broke the news of her pregnancy to him. Camden was excited, but his wife and family were livid. Nora wasn’t his first extramarital affair, and his wife and family knew that. She was, however, the first black woman that he’d ever been with. Camden didn’t care about the color of her skin, but his wife did. She felt like he’d disgraced them and the Blaire name by getting, ‘the help’, as she called Nora, pregnant. Although Camden understood her frustrations, it was too late for her bigotry. Nora was expecting his first and only child, and he refused to ask her to get an abortion. He started her a bank account and purchased her a home in a nice subdivision in New Orleans East. She wanted to continue working, but things at the office were too hectic, being that his wife, Amy, worked there as an attorney as well. Camden made sure that Nora was well taken care of, even after Cam had grown up and moved out on his own. She never had to work another day in her life.

“I don’t look like that punk ass cracker,” Camden spat as soon as they walked up to the final exit gate before he was a free man.

Cam hated his light-colored skin and weird colored eyes. His mother called it self-hate, but that wasn’t quite how he saw it. He didn’t want to have any resemblance of a man who loved his money more than he loved his one and only child. Cam wanted no parts of the other side of him and he always made that clear.

“You need to look in the mirror more often. And make this my last time seeing you, unless it’s on the streets somewhere,” the deputy said as he opened the gate and ushered the former prisoner outside.

“I told you to come check out my work. I got a job lined up at my boy, Randy’s shop. Don’t take my word for it. Come see for yourself,” Cam replied.

Camden was a lover of all classic cars and had been that way since he was a little boy. Every time he got his hands on some money, he begged his mother to bring him to the store for more hot wheels. Every birthday and holiday, he knew what he was getting because that was all that he’d ever ask for. Randy, his best friend from middle school, was a car lover too, but not more than Cam. They both, along with their friend Kobe, went to car shows in and out of town. Cam and Kobe took their passion a step further and started doing car restoration. When Cam started selling drugs, he spent thousands of dollars buying old cars and turning them into masterpieces. He wanted to open his own business to do what he loved, but he wasn’t making legal money. When Randy came to him with the same idea, Cam wasted no time investing in both he and his best friend’s dream. Randy wasn’t good at car restoration or body work, but he hired a few men who were, including Kobe. Cam was heavy in the streets, but he still made time to help his friend out whenever he needed him to. Randy had a job lined up for him already, and Cam was ready to get to work.

“I told you that I’m gonna pass through. Don’t forget, you promised me a test drive,” the deputy reminded him.

Cam had two classic cars that he’d restored and kept for himself. They were covered in his mother’s garage, but he couldn’t wait to get behind the wheels again.

“I got you,” Cam replied as he shook his hand and walked away.

He swaggered out of the gate with a huge smile covering his handsome face when he saw his girlfriend, Asha, standing there waiting for him. She had her sexy frame leaned up against the G-wagon that he’d just purchased for himself two months before he got locked up. He never even got a chance to enjoy it, but he planned to change that. Asha had a Benz of her own, courtesy of Cam, but she decided to drive his truck to get him. It stayed parked in their condo’s two-car garage and she never drove it. It wasn’t her favorite car, so she had no desire to.

“Hey baby!” Asha squealed as she jumped into Cam’s arms and planted a sloppy kiss on his lips.

“What’s up sexy?” Cam replied, as he spun her around and squeezed her ass.

He looked over her body in appreciation while licking the taste of her strawberry-flavored gloss from his lips. Asha was a short, dark-skinned beauty with a thick but sexy frame. Cam met her through her cousin a while ago when they were incarcerated together, and things took off soon after that. He and Asha had been together for four years, with him being locked up off and on for some of them. Each time she stood by his side, and he appreciated her loyalty. Asha made the hour-long trip to visit Cam every other weekend and they talked almost daily. She made sure to keep their bills paid and put money on Cam’s books every month. It was money that he’d left when he got locked up, but Asha didn’t blow it all like some of his friends and cousins said she would. He hadn’t always been the best boyfriend, but Asha held him down anyway.

“Where’s my mama?” Cam asked as he looked behind her at the truck.

“At home, where she belongs,” Asha said with a roll of her eyes.

“The fuck is that supposed to mean?” Cam asked, getting defensive like always when Asha said anything about his mother.

“She’s at home Camden,” Asha said as she broke their connection and fixed the dress that she had on.

“I told her to ride with you to come get me. I wanted to see her,” Cam replied.

“You haven’t seen your mama in eighteen months. A few more hours won’t kill you,” Asha noted.

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