Page 72 of Love's Most Wanted
I remember my mother and father bickering often because my mama was struggling with us, and he couldn’t help. I remember wondering how we’d gone from being a happy ass family to Khari and my mama beefing, my parents beefing, Khari knocking our father on his ass, and the rest of us trying to navigate our new life. And it was all because my parents decided to come together and be in love. Or what I assumed was love.
By saying that, this shit I was starting up with Kabrina was bittersweet. But I’d rather take a risk and have her than let a fear keep me from a good woman. Fears were for bitch ass niggas anyway.
“It’s straight. How you been?” I asked, leaning back in the chair.
“I’ve been okay.” She sat down. “So a couple things; Tamira is out of town, but she emailed me to say she is figuring something out with you and AJ as far as filming. I even reached out to his agent to try to rectify the situation, but as you know, your little pop-up at his home and threats ruined that.”
“Yeah.” I stroked my beard. “My bad.” I gave a subtle smile as Audrey shook her head.
Most niggas had male agents, but I particularly wanted a woman. Women were feistier and worked harder when it came to deals and shit. I noticed men tended to fold and give up when it came to shit like that. Audrey was proof of my theory, and a plus was that she stayed on my ass even when I didn’t want her to. She was only forty years old but reminded me of my mama sometimes.
“It is your bad. So now that he has proof and exposed to the world that you and your brother Cemone aren’t that different, the show has to find a solution. Until then, the show will remain on hold.”
“Man, I should’ve beat his ass.”
“No, Unique. That is not the way.” She clicked around on her computer. “I mean it. You touch him, and I will drop you as a client. I like you, but we’re here to make money and get you to superstardom. That won’t happen if you get in your own way.
“Your brother is already an NBA superstar, and people don’t care how he acts so long as he shows up on that court. You, on the other hand, are not there yet. Once you get to the top, kick all the ass you want. Understand?”
“I got you.” I smirked, watching her light skin become flushed with a bit of annoyance.
Sighing, she said, “Alright, onto the good news. Prevail Studios got in contact with me—calm down.” She smiled when she saw me sit up with my mouth agape. “They want you for their new superhero movie seriesNight Walker. You’d be the main hero named Wraith.”
“Oh shit.” I put my fist to my mouth, eyes wide. Everybody knew once you became one of Prevail’s superheroes, you’d officially made it. And though I was excited, I knew there was a catch. I didn’t have a long ass resume, and it made me wonder why the fuck they wanted a nigga. “But why?”
“Well because you have chops, Unique. But other than that, the writer says that he saw you when he was putting the script together. He’s a big fan ofDough Boyz,and the whole movie series came to him when he saw you.”
“That’s fucking crazy.” I grinned, lacing my fingers and still in shock. “How much?”
“That’s the other thing. You’re gonna get a one-time payment of $400,000.”
“Wait, what?” I frowned. “I make $390,000 per episode ofDough Boyzand $500,000 per episode for the upcoming season. Why the fuck would I take time away from that type of money for a one-time payment when that movie is gon’ take at least a year filming time, Audrey? Make this shit make sense to me.”
“It makes a lot of sense because it’s going to put you on the map, Unique. This is just the first movie, and depending on how it does, which will be great, the pay will increase, and every film you do after that will pay you millions. I can promise you that.” She sighed when I didn’t say anything, continuously shaking my head. “Plus,Dough Boyzis on hold. You’re not getting that paycheck until you can film and the network can release the episodes.”
Fucking AJ. I was low-key itching to smoke that nigga.
“Do I have to audition?”
“Not for the Wraith role, no. But there is a new movie coming, and I want you to audition for it to keep you afloat while the show is on hold.” She handed me a packet most likely containing the script. “You get that part, get that check, and film that whileNight Walkerdoes the rest of its casting andDough Boyzfigures things out. Let me worry about your schedule. Any questions?”
“No, ma’am.” I eyed the script of the movie titledThe Players.
“If you wanna audition, let me know, and I will put it in your schedule. Let me know in forty-eight hours though.”
“Aight. Thanks, Audrey.”
“Always. Stay out of trouble, Unique.” She kept her focus on her computer as she talked.
I stood up, went to hug her, and dipped.
My mind was far from empty as I drove home, but once I got there, I pushed everything to the back so I could talk to Aurora.
I hadn’t been able to sit her ass down yet because I had a few out-of-state interviews and had been worrying about Kabrina getting a new number, planning our date, and sitting by the fucking phone wondering when filming would resume forDough Boyz.
But during that time, it became even more obvious that Aurora, just like Daisy, wasn’t the one for me. I hadn’t thought about her ass one time while busy, but Kabrina had taken up permanent residence there.
Every moment I wasn’t with her ass, I was scouring my schedule to see when I could be, resulting in random pop-ups on her. If this was the shit my brothers were feeling, it made a lot of fucking sense why they’d turned into some simps. I couldn’t get that girl off my mind for shit and could only imagine how shit would be once I got her.
