Hakeem & Tasia 2: A Brick City Love Story

by K. C. Mills

  The look he wore was stern, as his eyes met mine briefly and then moved past me. He made a point of not making contact with me which made things worse, because his movement made it clear to me that he was intentionally keeping his distance.

  I turned and watched him from behind, as he stepped into the closet and returned shorty after wearing a pair of joggers that hung loosely around his waist. There was no waistband exposed and I could clearly see the imprint below his waist, so I knew that was all he was wearing, but I couldn’t even enjoy the vision of his perfect body standing in front of me.

  After I sat on the foot of the bed and pulled my legs up, crossing them Indian style, Hakeem positioned himself in front of me, arms deep in his pockets leaning back against our dresser. From the mirror behind him, I could see the muscles in his back flex with the slightest movement he made, as he mindlessly looked around the room before settling on me.

  “Why didn’t you tell me?” I looked in his face and could tell that he didn’t rest well either. He looked tired and I could hear it in his voice. It was already naturally deep but now it was laced with agitation and lack of sleep.

  “I just didn’t want it to be a problem,” I answered truthfully, looking him right in the eyes. Those damn hazel eyes had my heart pounding, at the thought of them hiding doubt and the disloyalty behind them, as he stared back at me.

  Hakeem laughed under his breath before he looked around the room again, not really focusing on any one thing. I could tell that he was simply trying to avoid looking at me.

  “So you trying to avoid a problem, created a big ass problem. You know me Tay, you know me better than anybody, so understand that it’s hard for me deal with shit like this because it makes me feel like I can’t trust you. That’s fucking with me.”

  My heart felt like someone had it securely in their hands and was squeezing the life out of it. Hakeem had the same small circle of people in his life, since high school. He wasn’t big on letting people in, never had been, so him saying that was like him telling me that I betrayed him.

  “You can trust me,” I said so aggressively that it forced him to look at me, but I couldn’t read his expression.

  “Can I?” he asked looking right into my eyes. It was like he was trying to find his answer in them and I wasn’t going to back down. I loved this man with everything that I was and I needed him to know that. I slowly unfolded my legs and let them hit the floor before I stood. He was only a few feet away from me, so I took a chance and moved towards him. His eyes locked on mine even after I made contact with his body. I leaned into him and let my arms slide around his waist and my head rest on his chest. For a minute his body was rigid and unwelcoming, but second by second he began to break, and eventually his hands came out of his pockets and landed on the small of my back.

  “Don’t make me regret believing in you Tay,” Keem said as pulled me into his body and kissed the top of my head.

  “You won’t, I promise,” was all I said as we stood there without words.

  I held my head back just enough to look up at him and he still looked concerned, like his mind was still processing but he eventually let out a slight smile.

  “Why the hell you in my shit, you missed me like that?” Hakeem playfully tugged at his t-shirt that I was wearing.

  “As a matter of fact I did, and I didn’t get any sleep last night either,” I said.

  “Shit, I can’t tell. Your ass was knocked out when I got here this morning. You didn’t even hear me come in.” Hakeem looked down at me with a grin.

  “Whatever, I can’t sleep peacefully when you’re not here so when I finally drifted off, I was out.”

  “I’m tired as fuck too. Go get out of this shit and come lay down with me.”

  “I need to get to the office,” I said.

  “Nah, fuck that. You’re about to bring your ass and get in this bed, so that I can get a few good hours of sleep. My damn back is all fucked up from sleeping on that sofa in my office.”

  “If I had known you were there I would have come, but I thought you went home,” I said with a slight pout.

  “I just knew you were gonna show up. Jodie can’t keep shit from you so I thought he would’ve told you.”

  “I didn’t call; I almost did, but I changed my mind.” I stepped out of his sweatpants which easily slid down my thin body, and then tossed them onto the bed. “I’m about to take a shower real quick, so that I can get ready to leave,” I said ignoring the fact that he told me I wasn’t about to leave, while Hakeem moved to the bed, dropped his joggers and climbed in bed butt ass naked.

  “Keep playing, I’m serious as fuck Tay. Hurry up and come lay down with me.”

  After I finished my shower, I stepped back into the bedroom wearing nothing but an oversized towel that was tucked securely around my chest. Hakeem watched me as I moved from the bathroom, crossing in front of the foot of the bed until I passed it.

  “I don’t know why the fuck you’re heading to the closet. I told you I wasn’t playing.” Hakeem removed his arm from his chest and lifted the covers as if signaling for me to join him. I stood there for a minute knowing I had a full day planned, but I also knew that he wasn’t taking no for an answer, so I walked to the side of the bed lifted my phone and sent Jacob a text.

  Can you handle my morning appointments for me?

  Yes, everything okay??

  Yes, staying in this morning, see you after lunch.

  I flinched as Hakeem’s hand slid down my spine sending a chill through me. I glanced over my shoulder to find him starting right at me.

  “Put that damn phone down Tay.” I could feel his voice vibrating through my body and of course it reacted.

  I received another message from Jacob but it would have to wait. My phone went on the nightstand, my towel hit the floor and my body snugged close to Hakeem. Once my body was wrapped around his, I felt at home. He was home to me; in his arms, everything was perfect in my world.

  With my leg stretched across his thighs, my hand on his abs and my head on his chest, my body relaxed in to a peaceful state of bliss.

  “You can’t keep shit from me, Tay.” Hakeem’s voice was low and controlled but I could tell that he was slowly drifting.

  “I know that and I promise I wasn’t trying to hide anything, I just—”

  “I don’t want talk about that shit anymore, let it go, but just know you can’t keep shit from me or this won’t work.”

  Hakeem pulled his body away from mine before he positioned himself on top of me, staring into my eyes so intensely that I felt the sudden urge to look away. I was so caught up in the way that he was looking into my soul that I hadn’t even noticed that he was inside me until I felt the pressure in my stomach.

  After grabbing hold of his arms to try and brace myself, I inhaled slowly, attempting to normalize my breathing since he was damn near taking it away from me.

  “This shit is all me Tay, don’t ever make me feel like you’re giving it to another muthafucker, even for a second. You hear me?”

  I opened my mouth to answer, but he dug so deep in my body that no words would come out, so I nodded instead.

  That was all he needed before he began using his body to make a point. He handled me in a way that let me know that it belonged to him without a shadow of a doubt. I could feel the intensity of every stroke, and I could feel his emotions pouring out of his body and into mine. The more I pushed him away the harder he went, and we easily transitioned from sex to fucking. Hakeem was hitting spots that I could guarantee should have been off limits, but there wasn’t a damn thing that I could say about it. My arms were now above my head, as he held both wrists with one hand and balanced himself with his other. He was punishing me but I had no complaints; it was a pain worth having. He filled and stretched my insides in a way that allowed me to feel every stroke, so it didn’t take long for my orgasm to hit. I yelled out with so much force that it made Hakeem go harder, and within minutes he released right behind me.

>   “Fuck, Tay. I’ll kill another muthafucker if I find out they’ve been in your shit,” Hakeem said, after he relaxed a little and pulled me into his body.

  “You don’t have to worry about that,” I said as I let my head rest on his shoulder. Hakeem’s hand glided up and down my back as he stared at the ceiling.

  “You can’t fuck with my head like that Tay. There’s not much in this world that gets to me, but you make me weak. You break a nigga down in ways that I can’t even explain, so you can’t fuck with my head like that.”

  I didn’t say a word, I just lay there in his arms and before long, I could feel his breathing slow to the point where I knew he was asleep. We were both at peace, I just hoped it would last.

  -12-

  Hakeem

  “Damn nigga, this shit is the truth,” Jodie yelled attempting to talk over the music that flowed through Legendary.

  “Hell yeah it is,” Talen agreed. He fell back onto the sectional sofa in the VIP area that I had set up for us.

  “Yo Keem, this shit is on point, how much money you think we can run through here?” Jodie asked as he looked around. I followed his eyes as they landed on the VIP areas that surrounded ours. There were multiple bottles of expensive liquor on tables, in hands and being moved around by hostesses. The bar was packed, the dance floor was full and the line outside was literally wrapped around the building. I was amazed at how many people had come out for the opening.

  “Shit, I don’t know for sure, but enough. There’s a lot of money moving through here,” I said as my eyes fell back on Jodie and Talen.

  “Fuck, Keem. We need two more of these bitches. Fuck a laundromat, this shit right here can clean a mil in a week.”

  “Shit, if it’s like this every night, then it probably won’t even take a fucking week,” Talen said.

  “What’s up brother-in-law?” I felt a tiny pair of hands grab a hold to my arm and I looked down right into Brit’s eyes, who had a huge grin on her face. I pulled her into a hug before leaning forward to extend a closed fist to Jaysyn, who had stepped around her to sit down next to Jodie.

  “Where’s Tay?” Brit asked after I let her go.

  I looked around scanning the building until I laid eyes on Taisa, who just happened to be looking right at me. I winked at her and she blushed.

  After I pointed to Tay who was on the first floor surrounded by Jacob, Sky and a few of her clients, Brit walked over, kissed Jay and then left to join them.

  “Keem this shit it nice as hell,” Jaysyn said before he leaned back and looked around, observing his surroundings.

  “Preciate it bruh.” I couldn’t help but feel pleased. We were a few hours into opening, the building was packed, and there were more waiting to get in.

  “Sheena be on her shit, right?” Rasta said as he walked up and leaned against the wall next to me.

  “This shit is insane. I can’t even believe this many people showed up,” I said, still amazed at the turnout. I was a drug dealer from Newark. Who in the world would have thought that I would be the owner of one of the hottest clubs in Manhattan?

  “What’s good Rasta, Keem tells me you’re doing the damn thing over here? Your numbers looking good as hell bruh,” Jodie said as he joined us.

  “I’m thorough,” Rasta said as he looked around. Jodie and I both followed his eyes until he found his sister, and checked her for a minute as she talked to a group of people, and then focused on us again.

  Jodie on the other hand, kept his eyes on Sheena. I had to admit that she was bad as fuck, but that was just asking for trouble and I needed Jodie to stay away from her. Thank goodness Rasta had his eyes on a shorty who was in the opposite direction.

  “I made it.” I ignored the voice from behind me because it wasn’t familiar, so I assumed they weren’t talking to me until Jodie pointed over my shoulder causing me to turn. “Fuck,” I mumbled under my breath.

  “Word, that’s what’s up,” I said and faked a smile at the receptionist from Tay’s old job, who was looking like she wanted to jump on my ass right there in front of Jodie and Rasta.

  “Who’s your friend Keem?” Jodie asked sensing my irritation. He knew me so he immediately picked up on that shit.

  I shot him a quick, I’m gonna fuck you up glance. “This is…oh damn, I didn’t even get your name, baby girl.” I laid eyes on Tay before I placed my hand on the small of her old girl’s back.

  “April,” she said smiling a little too hard.

  A smile spread across Jodie’s face before he glanced over his shoulder. “Yo Talen, come holla at me for a sec bruh.” Jodie kept his eyes on Talen while April made a point of taking one step closer to me.

  The second Talen was with us, Jodie nodded towards April. “Yo, this is April. She bad as hell, right?” Jodie glanced at me with that damn devious ass smirk, before he looked over at Talen who was trying his best not to laugh. April was cute but she was skinny as fuck, the furthest thing from either of our definitions of bad.

  “Yeah she’s tight, what’s up ma?” Talen said before he let his hand run across his short spiked dreads.

  “Nothing, just came out to support Hakeem,” she said, attempting to make it clear that she was not interested in either Jodie or Talen. My niggas were not lacking in any way, but April had her mind set on me and that shit wasn’t happening.

  “Come dance with me,” Talen said, picking up on what Jodie was attempting to do.

  April looked up at me and almost frowned. I guess her ass was waiting on me to object. Fuck that. “Yeah, why don’t you do that. I’ve got to make rounds, so I’ll be sure to catch up with you later baby girl.” I gave her a slight shove towards Talen who gave me a death stare before he grabbed her hand. I chuckled under my breath as he dragged April towards the dance floor, because I knew I was about to pay for that one big time.

  When they were a safe distance away, Jodie looked at me and with curious eyes. “The fuck did you use her for?” he asked, as he nodded towards the direction April and Talen had just gone.

  I just shook my head. “She’s the one who gave me Jace’s address but I had to promise her that I’d check her out.”

  “You better hope Tay don’t see her drooling over your ass and shit. You remember how she went in on Trina. Tay plays no games when it comes to you, nigga.” Jodie folded his arms across his chest and laughed.

  “Trust me, I already know. I’m just gonna have to make sure I stay away from that shit on the real.”

  “So what’s up with that nigga anyway, you haven’t heard shit yet, have you?”

  “Nah, and you know that shit is fucking with me. I don’t like surprises and shit.”

  “So his dad’s a judge and his uncle’s a detective, did you check that shit out yet?” Jodie asked as he looked around the club.

  “Not yet, right now I’m just waiting to see what his next move is going to be.”

  “We can take care of that shit if we need to,” Jodie said as his eyes locked on mine.

  “Not yet, but if it comes to it I won’t hesitate.”

  “Well, we’ll worry about that shit tomorrow. For now, let’s get fucked up.” Jodie reached behind him and grabbed a bottle of Ace of Spades off the table and turned it up before we joined everyone else on the first floor.

  Things were going smoothly as everyone enjoyed themselves. Me and the guys kicked it while the girls danced and caught up. Tay was in a good space because she had her sister and Lisa with her. Being away from them was hard for her and I could tell that she was loving the reunion. I tried my best to avoid the attention of patrons, bloggers and reporters, but of course everyone wanted to know who was responsible for opening one of the hottest new spots in Manhattan.

  “You did it,” Tay wrapped her arms around my waist and looked up at me with a childlike grin. She was a little tipsy, which had my mind on how I was going to put that to good use when we finally made it home.

  “I didn’t do shit but spend a bunch of money,” I leaned down and kiss
ed her lips.

  “You know you did the damn thing Hakeem, don’t try to play modest,” Lisa said playfully, as she leaned back against Trey. We were all up in VIP again chilling.

  “Hell yeah, Keem. I didn’t know what to expect but looks like you’ve got some fye on your hands bruh.” Trey rested his chin on Lisa’s shoulder.

  “Hell, I didn’t really do shit. All I did was find the spot and pay for it. Honestly I owe all this to Sheena; she was on the grind getting the word out about this shit.

  “You did more than that. They love this place, they love you,” Tay said with a slight frown. Her jealous ass was hating because I was giving credit to Sheena, so I kissed her on her temple and pulled her deeper into my chest.

  I chuckled, “They don’t love me, they don’t know me Tay.”

  “You know what I mean,” she said. “Are you happy?” she asked looking around.

  “I’m good, but this shit don’t make me happy, that’s all you.” Again, my lips met hers.

  “Good, and it better stay that way. I’m going to find Jaysyn and Britt to see if they’re staying with us or heading back.” She stepped away from me and looked around.

  “Aight, be careful, I don’t wanna have to fuck up anybody in here tonight over you.”

  “They know who I belong to,” Tay said over her shoulder as she walked away. I watched until she disappeared into the crowd.

  Jodie and Talen were caught up with a few shorties down by the bar and everyone seemed to be chilling, so I decided to head to my office for a few to check on a few things. I hired a club manager who had run two other clubs before mine, since I really didn’t know shit about this type of business and they pretty much had my shit running smoothly, so other than money I didn’t really have to worry about anything. I didn’t trust anyone with my money, so I kept a close watch on what we were spending and what we would be bringing in. I sent Jodie a text to tell him to keep an eye on the girls and then headed to my office.