“I won’t tell you how you should be as long as you get here. Bring enough for the weekend. We have a lot of work to do and need a fast turnaround.”
“Highhanded,” she snapped, shoving her laptop into her backpack. She hated purses, so this was always her default, much to Lovie-Belle’s dismay, who loved nothing better than a snazzy purse.
“Assertive and smart. You forget this movie you want to make is about me. Folks have been after me for years to make a movie, do a documentary or let them follow me around for a year to see what my life is like not to mention the reality series BS. The answer has always been hell no. Only for y’all and Justice would I even considered it. I’m bringing the biggest producers in the game. I’m not trusting any studio with my reputation. I will allow nothing to impede the IPO launch or hurt my family. The concept and delivery written an executed by Lovie-Belle and you are fine. Make no mistake, Didi, I won’t have my legacy tainted. Don’t make me regret it.” Still chill, but with an undercurrent of hard, cold steel underlying his every word.
“We will do our part, FADE.”
She knew that he carefully cultivated his image. She just wasn’t so sure that when she finished doing what she needed to do for Justice, he’d be able to manage the fallout.
“Make sure you do.”
Chapter 4
Just In Case
“Why are you doing this?” Sadiq asked him as they watched from the balcony overlooking the entrance of his home as the two stunningly beautiful women emerged from the limousine.
“Beyond the obvious?” FADE laughed dismissively at his own folly. His eyes never leaving the woman who made his breath catch. He couldn’t get her out of his mind after she allowed his touch. He’d not slept without dreaming of her. How she felt. Her touch. She blew his mind. Damn if he’d let her know. She already proved to be reckless with the power she held over him. She made no bones about the fact that the only reason she was dealing with him at all was for the sake of her sister. She blamed him, FADE for — unthinkable and damn near unforgivable on so many levels for Justice’s death. That more than anything gutted him. If she thought that then nothing should have compelled her to work with him. And that was why he had to have her close. She was up to something and he need to find out what it was.
“Which one is she? The little curvy one with the hair all over the place?” Sadiq mused, releasing a low whistle showing his appreciation for the view before him.
FADE noticed then how fixated his friend was on the women as they made their way into the house. Delightful was the taller of the two, even in her vans. Lovie-Belle who had obviously caught his friend’s attention was laughing at something her sister said, tossing her voluminous curls over her shoulder. She always had trouble taming her tresses, but it only added to her allure. She couldn’t have been more beautiful, but his eyes had never been on her but her sister. Her opposite in many ways save her intellect. His sister, Flower and Justice’s two sisters had all been extremely smart. Yet, where Flower focused on business, the Howard sisters’ interests lie in their writing. A fortuitous choice that so far had earned them their Oscar. He was eager to see what they had to show him. He knew that Lovie-Belle already had an idea and direction. She was not however going to be fodder for Sadiq, who though one of his best and oldest friends was easily out of her league. He would devour her in one bite. He owed Justice too much to allow his sister to be hurt.
“Don’t even think about it, Sadiq,” he growled. His protective instinct coming forward as he turned to face his friend. “She’s not your speed at all.”
“Her sister is yours?” he smirked, lifting an aristocratic brow. Being the grandson of a king did nothing to soften his look. He was known for wielding his power and vast resources unapologetically. He answered to no one and FADE was not at all surprised that he did not like being admonished over something he desired.
“That’s different. Delightful and I have a history. I gave their brother my word that I would always look out for them. I haven’t gone back on that nor will I. Lovie-Belle is not built for how you get down, Sadiq.” FADE knew his friend understood then just how far he would go for Justice’s sisters.
“No worries, my friend. I’m here about the work.” Sadiq voice was quiet with promise. FADE knew he would keep his word. He nodded, following him down to the living room where they would meet their guests.
She knew the moment he came in the room. The air instantly became charged. That and Lovie-Belle stopped chattering about nonsense as she often did when she was nervous. Now she was as if she been robbed of speech. Delightful turned from the view of the beach and infinity pool before her and took in the men who’d just sauntered in the room. FADE was in white from head to toe. His shirt open mid-chest showing off his rip cord muscles tucked neatly into his low-slung jeans and all white Chucks. He had on the medallions he always wore a platinum arrowhead with a diamond-encrusted J inlaid. The other on the surface was a smooth arrowhead with no inscription. She’d read they were the first thing he’d bought, and he never took them off. She wondered why one was smooth. Research. Not that she’d stalked his every move through the years or anything like that. The medallion had simply intrigued her the other night. She almost rolled her eyes at herself. Damn, he looked good. Like everything you wanted but knew would make your tummy hurt or in this case pregnant.
“Delightful, Lovie-Belle, let me introduce you to Sadiq Al Rasheed. I’m sure his name precedes him.” FADE gave them a wicked smile as Lovie-Belle rushed over to give him a big ol’ kid sister hug, which he returned. Her, “I missed you” was muffled but Delightful heard it all the same and felt guilt swamp her until she pushed it down with hardened resolve. There wouldn’t be any recriminations until she knew for a fact that FADE had nothing to do with her brother’s death.
“I’m pleased to meet you.” She tore her eyes away from her hugged up sister to take in the other almost too beautiful man before her. He had tiger eyes and just as tall as FADE’s six-foot-two, maybe an inch taller. There was nothing soft about him either. All rip cord muscle bulked out a little more than FADE. Her second thought was that his eyes were cold as fuck and predatory. Ice wouldn’t melt in his mouth. A cobra couldn’t be more cold-blooded, she thought. The way he assessed her, she had the feeling that he probably thought she was just was mercenary. She was sure FADE had informed him of her play. Good. They both knew with whom they dealt. She allowed a smile to spread across her face. “Please to meet you, Sadiq.” He had the nerve to wink as he took her hand, seeming to know she didn’t mean it. “Charmed. Utterly.” He didn’t mean that either.
She laughed, watching as he then turned to FADE and Lovie-Belle. Her breath caught at the coldness of FADE’s expression. Or was it barely banked rage? It didn’t matter they were here to work. He eased Lovie-Belle away. The dynamic in the room was immediately fraught as she watched her sister’s eyes as they rounded like as she came within the thrall of Sadiq. She wanted to shout a warning like they were back to being little and she was about to run out into the street. All she could see was a slow moving wreck and her sister laying under the pile-up that Sadiq would wrought when he crushed her heart. She wanted to grab her hand and pull her away, but it was too late.
“Lovie-Belle, what a fascinating name.” Sadiq took her hand and all Delightful thought as she watched his jaw clench involuntarily was maybe he was not unaffected either.
“You seem fascinated as well, Delightful.” FADE stepped in front of her blocking her view of further interaction between the two. She watched his eyes narrow, wondering how he got the words out with his jaw clenched so hard.
“You’re getting fascination confused with concern.” She huffed, watching as Lovie-Belle and Sadiq moved across the room and began talking about the project.
“You don’t have to worry. He’s promised to keep it about work.” He assured her. His gaze was steady. “I thought for a minute…”
“Boy, please,” she laughed, swatting him on his chest. Her
breath caught when he caught her hand and kept it pressed against his chest.
“I haven’t been a boy for a long time, Didi,” he murmured, stepping into her space. “I thought I showed you that the other night. Do you need a reminder?” His tone was low for her but it held a promise.
“You’re sure about your friend?” She swallowed against his proximity and the riotous feelings that trilled through her body. The way he held her hand and pressed it against his heart made it hard to question him, hard to look at him without thinking of what he’d done to her body the last time he touched her.
“He keeps his word.” He quirked an eyebrow at her bringing her hand up to his lips. When his lips touched the back of her knuckle, kissed then gently bit her she could’ve come right then. He was a menace.
“Delightful, FADE?” Lovie-Belle called over to them from where she stood before the production board.
FADE let her hand go and walked over to her sister and his friend.
“I’ll be with you guys in a second.” She headed to the door leading to where one of the staff said the bathroom was ignoring FADE’s smug expression. There was no way she was sitting there for the next few hours feeling squishy.
“So what we really need to do is have a full timeline of events then pick where we’d like to start. A suitable place would be after Justice’s passing since that was already been seen in ‘Just Us’.” Lovie- Belle was really in her element standing before her white board and story board with her various markers and Flower was proud of her. However, having FADE’s movie start after her brother’s murder did not fit into Delightful’s plans.
“I think to get the full picture of his genius it needs to start earlier.” She chimed in, tapping her notes. “His mother said he was a performer at an earlier age. Think back to the Ray Charles movie and What’s Love Got To Do With it — both started when they were kids.”
“I agree. We need a fuller picture.” Sadiq nodded in full mogul mode. From the moment they hit the table, he had been nothing but professional. A cold, calculating professional with straightforward questions and pushing for the best result in every interaction.
“We can do that then go to some school stuff then the deal that launched me.” FADE looked up from whatever he was tapping into his phone, then just as quickly returned to the device. Rude. Disinterested. She could strangle him. She knew he was used to always being creative, but this was beyond that. He clearly wanted to control every part of the process. She was one second from telling him he needed to have his sister, Flower, there instead. She knew she shouldn’t waste her time because she knew he’d never relinquish that type of control even to someone he trusted more than life.
“Would you rather have Flower cover this part of the process? You know she will have your best interest at heart but is not so close to the story where she can’t be objective.” She hoped she sounded hopeful and not demanding.
He lifted his head and tilted it toward her slightly. She girded herself for the rage that he barely held leashed. She knew he wanted to call her out about her own actions. He glanced to the others and said instead. “I thought so too to lessen the complications with the project, however, Flower has taken some much-needed time off and is out of the country presently and is taking a sabbatical. She won’t be back for the rest of the year.”
“FADE,” Delightful digesting the fact that he’d not wanted to be part of the project and how that stung. “Okay with love, it makes no sense to skip everything with Justice and you when your whole first album was dedicated to your friendship. We had to skip around a lot in the movie. Your side of the story can only address the origin.” She knew she sounded like a schoolteacher reprimanding him but at the moment she couldn’t be made to care.
“No.” He’d not even looked up.
“The movie won’t be the same without what was clearly the key motivator.” She pointed to what Lovie-Belle had explained as the catalyst in the character arch.
“No.” She didn’t think he realized how he grabbed the medallion as he dead-eyed her and went back to tapping into his phone.
“FADE…” She raised her voice, having Sadiq and Lovie-Belle looking between the two of them.
“I thought no meant no these days.” He huffed, rising from the table. “Listen, you are going to respect my choice or this ain’t happening.”
“So you want us to lie?” Delightful challenged him.
“What lies? My past is just that — my past.” He leaned in over the table at her. His tone could not be more emphatic.
“People want your origin story. You can even say clamoring for it. You, my man are shrouded in mystery.” An unfamiliar voice chimed in from the doorway. Delightful looked up to see who must be Hasan, Sadiq’s brother. Twins. It was uncanny but where Sadiq eyes were a golden hazel Hasan’s were more greener. Other than that slight difference and Sadiq’s hair having more of a curl, they looked nearly the same.
“Brother, welcome.” Sadiq smiled, got up and walked over to his brother, kissing him on both cheeks in greeting. “As-Salaam alaikum.”
“Wa-Alaikum-Salaam,” his brother grinned before turning back to the room. “May I suggest a diversion as until cooler heads prevail?”
“Wassup?” FADE stretched and Delightful could not take her eyes from how his shirt spread revealing the hard plains of his chest.
“We have a premier tonight, so now is the prefect time for a break. We’d love for you guys to join us.” He winked at the women.
“Get out!” Lovie-Belle clapped her hands giddy with joy. The only premier they’d been to had been their own. Being indie did not get them the big invitations. This was an excellent opportunity for them. “Aww, that’s so sweet you guys but we were only coming for the weekend. We didn’t bring outfits suitable for a premier.” Lovie-Belle blushed and though brown her skin didn’t give her away, her sheepish expression certainly did.
“Never mind that, beautiful. We have that covered.” Hasan murmured, striding over to her.
“Don’t touch her,” Sadiq’s cold, clipped words stopped his brother just as he reached for Lovie-Belle’s hand, who then turned to give his twin a “Oh, it's like that?” look in return before stepping back. “So how about we get ready for this amazing event?” He rubbed his hands in glee. It seemed to Delightful that Lovie-Belle’s excitement contagious.
Delightful knew that this was all FADE. The Al Rasheed brothers didn’t know them well enough to give them this opportunity. They were FADE’s friends. They were doing this at his behest. That was the sweetest, most amazing thing anyone had done for them in this business. Part of her couldn’t believe her good fortune having her big brother’s best friend look out for them the way he had and the other part of her couldn’t trust his motive. Did he want them to be so beholden to him they would look the other way and just forget about Justice?
She couldn’t do it. Her purpose was to find out what FADE was hiding. She couldn’t hinder Lovie-Belle, though.
“I’m not going Lovie-Belle,” she said as her sister stepped out of the bathroom to get ready.
“Why not? We will be in all the entertainment news with the Al Rasheed brothers and people will clamor to know what we are working on and want to give us other opportunities.” Lovie-Belle knew and loved the industry. Delightful just wanted to write. She didn’t have her sister’s same love for all the marketing and PR part of the industry. Lovie-Belle adored it all.
“That’s why you need to go. You will knock them dead. Seeing you and FADE with the Sadiq and Hasan will blow up before you even get back here. Your phone will be ringing off the hook from the moment the first photos go viral.”
“Ugh. You’re right. Help me get ready. You owe me.” Lovie-Belle huffed. Delightful knew there was nothing that would have stopped her from going, anyway. She smiled to herself, happy that her sister was getting everything she wanted.
“Be care of Sadiq.” She kissed her sister on the cheek after she helped her with her hair. She looked lovely
with her massive curls piled high and the mauve Grecian styled gown accenting her curves. The brothers must have had their measurements down to a T. She knew the gown she’d been gifted would have fitted perfectly as well. She was so tempted she couldn’t lie. She had to put distance between them. A premier, and the close proximity in a relaxed environment spelled trouble.
“I wasn’t the one getting bit,” Lovie-Belle quipped as she headed for the door leaving her sister in the center of her bed covering her face with a startled giggle.
Chapter 5
Just Come
FADE: What are you doing?
Didi: Aren’t you supposed to be enjoying the premier? How is Lovie-Belle?
FADE: I didn’t go.
Didi:….?
FADE: Work. ALWAYS :P
Didi: What Kind?
FADE: Creative Chaos… come here
Didi: Where are you?
FADE: Sadiq’s sound studio, lower level.
Didi: 2 work?
FADE: JUST COME
Didi:…
He knew she never could resist a challenge. Even if it were her just coming down to tell him all caps was uncouth.
“Hey,” He looked up only to have his words catch in his throat. In in her pajamas, she was gorgeous. She had on a pink set with bell sleeves edged with lace butterflies. He smiled to himself, rainbows and butterflies had always been her favorite.
“Hey, yourself.” She looked around the studio, taking in the equipment and the wall of windows that looked out on the crashing surf. He loved working in this environment and had done four of his best albums here. Having her here in the space felt magical. Her eyes trained on his fingers as he manipulated the soundboard. “What are you working on?” She asked, seemingly fascinated by the way he manipulated the beat.
Rapper's Delight: The Mogul Series Book One Page 4