Page 6 of Dom 4
“You have something you wanna tell me O?” he asked, in a calm voice yet it still had that tone that would make people want to fold.
I blinked, smiled, then adjusted the robe’s collar a little higher like that was going to fix anything. “Depends on what you saw.”
His eyes finally slid toward me slow like a cat seizing up its next victim. “You want to try that answer again?”
I walked further in trying to play it cool, even though my soul was halfway packed and ready to move to another damn country. My secret was out, and I was completely exposed by the last person I expected. I poured myself a drink, feeling his eyes follow my every step. “You’re sitting here watching my screens like you pay rent in my office,” I said, sipping slowly. “What’s that about?”
He leaned forward with his elbows on his knees and voice even lower. “I could ask you the same thing about what Ijustwatched.”
I tried not to laugh, but it slipped out anyway. “Ohhh… so you sawthat.”
“Yeah. I sawthat.” His tone didn’t change. He furrowed his eyebrows “You wanna tell me why the mayor of Miami was in my club lookin’ like a lost puppy while you had him on a leash?”
“Correction,” I said, smirking, “inmyclub… and don’t act brand new. Men been paying women for power since the Bible days.”
Dom’s face didn’t flinch. “You got the mayor in here, O’Shynn, on some bullshit when it should be about business.”
“Mhmm, and he tips very well. That other shit you witnessed is a part of how I keep him under control as well, which also contributes to him at our beckon call whenever some shit pops off despite what you pay him. We pay him and he turns around and comes in here to live out his fantasy putting the money right back in our pockets and he doesn’t even know it.”
He ran his hand down his face, fighting a grin. “You out your damn mind.”
“Little bit,” I said, crossing my arms. “But that man is signing checks, zoning approvals, and city contracts left and right because of me. You think I’m doing this for fun?”
“You sure look like you enjoyed it. Could’ve fuckin’ fooled me.”
I smiled slow not denying it. “Doesn’t mean it’s not business.”
He looked at me like he wanted to laugh but couldn’t let himself. “If the news ever gets hold of that footage…”
“They won’t,” I cut him off. “It’s all on an encrypted drive. I don’t record to the cloud. That’s amateur hour. You should know me better than that.”
“I do,” he said. “That’s what scares me, and don’t shit scare me.”
I laughed sitting on the edge of the desk, sipping from my glass. “You really mad at me, or you mad because I didn’t tell you? You know how many politicians have done dirt in this room? The only difference is, I make sure ours pay for the privilege.”
He shook his head, looking down and then back up at me again. “You somethin’ else, O’Shynn… for real.”
“I learned from the best.”
“Don’t flatter me,” he said. “I ain’t never let nobody put me on no fuckin’ leash.”
“Oh please,” I said, raising an eyebrow. “Carmen could if she wanted to.”
That made him laugh but not too big, just a small one, deep and low. “You trying to die today?”
I laughed too, pouring him another shot and sliding it across the desk. “No, I’m trying to live rich, like we do and stay protected. The mayor’s our insurance policy.” I told him knowing underneath his demeanor he wanted to strangle my neck. Before he could respond, his phone started vibrating on the desk. Tone’s name flashed on the screen.
He snatched it up. “What’s good?”
Tone’s voice came through loud enough for me to hear it clear since he was on speaker. “Aye, I found your boy. Dique’s at Keondra’s house.”
Dom exhaled like he’d just been told a joke he already knew the punchline to. “Of course he is.”
Tone started laughing. “Yeah, bruh. He out here playin’ house, talkin’ about he cookin’ lunch and tryna fix her Wi-Fi. Got Amour on his lap, lookin’ like a whole dad in these streets.”
I choked on my drink laughing. “Not Wi-Fi!” Dique knew he had no damn business at Keondra’s house playing baby mama, baby daddy games knowing damn well how she would act if her feelings got back involved while it was all fun and games for him. He literally had women in every area code.
Dom rubbed his temple, shaking his head. “Man, I swear… Dique don’t listen for shit.”
