Hakeem & Tasia 3: A Brick City Love Story

by K. C. Mills

  “Like it or not, she’s the only one who will put up with your crazy ass, so you better make that shit work, before she finds a new papi and Angel has a stepdad.”

  Jodie’s head turned so fast, it was funny as hell. “You ‘bout to make me shoot your dumb ass. Angel isn’t gonna have shit but me. I wish she would have some nigga around my daughter. I’ll kill her dumb ass and Mona isn’t going no damn where, shit, I’m all she knows.”

  “You hear yourself, right? You my man for life, but the shit you do is foul, Jodie. Mona deserves better than that. Hell, Angel deserves better than that and you love Mona, so stop fucking around and be what she needs. I keep telling you that shit, but real talk, be what she needs or let her go.”

  “I hear you. I’ll figure it out,” Jodie said.

  “Shit, you better, or Mona’s gonna figure it out for you.”

  “If your ass don’t stop saying that shit,” Jodie said.

  “Then what nigga, just get your shit together.”

  “Fuck you, Keem.”

  I kicked it with Jodie for a little while longer and then decided to head back across the bridge. I needed to figure out what to do about Janelle and Riley, but I also had to let Tay know. I couldn’t keep it from her, no matter how much I wanted to. Hopefully, she wouldn't just walk away. I couldn’t handle that, so I wasn't letting it happen.

  -2-

  Tasia

  I had been sitting in my office with Jacob for the last hour, while we were trying to get our designs right for two of our biggest clients. We couldn’t seem to agree on the final touches, so it was time to take a break. Sometimes it was better to walk away from it for a minute and let it marinate.

  This was a big deal for us because I had Essence doing a piece on me, which meant that they would be watching my clients at every event that I styled for. It was exciting and frustrating at the same time.

  “We hitting the club tonight, love bug?” Jacob asked, but I was still in my head mentally going over some designs, so I hadn’t really heard him speaking to me.

  “Earth to Ms. Clark,” Jacob said, snapping his fingers in my face to get my attention.

  “What?” I now had my eyes on him and he was frowning at me.

  “I asked if we’re going to the club tonight. It’s supposed to be a big weekend. Some huge party or something, right?”

  “Lately it’s always a big weekend but yeah, we can do that. Plus, I already told Keem I’d go. I think Liyah and Kendrick are coming too.”

  Again, Jacob frowned at me. “So you were going to just invite the crew and not tell the most important person in your life?” His hand flew over his chest dramatically, and he leaned back in his chair as if he were about to pass out.

  “Oh my God, really Jacob? I invited you weeks ago and whether you had an invite or not, you were going to show up, so stop being over the top. You know I need you there anyway. Keem will be doing his thing and I need someone to keep me occupied.”

  “Oh, so you’re using me? Cool, I see what I mean to you.” Jacob faked another fall out.

  “Just stop it, will you. I need you and you know it, so let it go.” I rolled my eyes at Jacob before I pulled open my drawer to grab my purse. We had a much needed lunch break planned. After I shut off everything, Jacob and I made our way outside, and just as I was locking the front door, we were approached by two detectives. One of them was casually dressed in cargo pants, a Henley and Jordans, while the other was dressed traditionally in navy pants, a button up, blazer and cheap shoes. They were both equally attractive, however, one stood out more than the other.

  “Ms. Tasia Clark?”

  “Yes.”

  I looked him right in the eyes and naturally assumed that they were here about Hakeem, but he took me by surprise when he mentioned Sky.

  “I’m Detective Howard, and this is my partner Ivan Brads. I understand that Sky Livingston is employed here?”

  I looked in his handsome square-shaped face and couldn’t help but to feel some type of way about him, and from the look he gave me, we were apparently having the same thought.

  “Was,” Jacob chimed in with a little too much attitude. Detective Howard glanced at him but then focused on me again, and thank goodness for Jacob’s intrusion or I was likely going to offer up a smile that I was struggling hard to keep to myself.

  I quickly got it together enough to respond. “She was, but not anymore. What’s this about?”

  “She was attacked in her apartment and I was wondering if we could ask you a few questions.”

  “I don’t know what I can really tell you.” My eyes were on the very attractive Detective Howard, as he returned the favor and kept his eyes on me. It felt awkward because the way he looked at me was so intense, while his expression was neutral and I couldn’t really read it.

  His partner didn’t seem real interested in the conversation, which led me to believe that he was just going through the motions. Jacob picked up on the vibe bouncing off Detective Howard, so I tried my best to get my shit together, but I could still feel Jacob’s eyes on us even though my focus was on Detective Howard.

  “What about her personal life, was she dating anyone, do you know if she had issues with anyone, any males in particular?”

  “Her boyfriend’s name is Nate, if he even really exists. We’ve never seen him so good luck finding him.”

  Detective Howard and his partner both looked right at Jacob, who had a sour look on his face, hand on his hip and attitude out the ass.

  “I don’t know much about her, honestly. She worked here for a few months and we worked together at Ford, but we weren’t very close. We didn’t hang out so it was mostly just a business relationship. I don’t know anything about her personal life.” I eyed Jacob with a look that told him to chill.

  Just as I finished talking, Hakeem pulled up and jumped out of his truck. His eyes met mine as he moved towards us, and I could tell from the scowl on his face and his body language that he was already in defensive mode.

  Hakeem walked up behind me the way he always did, like he owned everything around him. His arm went around my waist, as his body molded against mine and his lips grazed the side of my face, while his eyes moved from Detective Howard to his partner.

  Brads was so focused on my statement that he didn’t pay Hakeem any attention, but I could see a slight hint of what appeared to be jealousy, in Detective Howard’s eyes.

  “What’s going on Tay?” Hakeem asked, but his focus was on Howard likely because he was closest to me.

  “They’re asking about Sky. Somebody attacked her in her apartment.”

  “So what does that have to do with you?” Hakeem asked.

  “We were just wondering if Ms. Clark could provide any leads about Ms. Livingston’s personal life. We don’t have much to go on, but based on the nature of the attack, we know that it was a male suspect.

  So you worked together for months and don’t know anything about her? That seems odd,” Brads belted out with an accusing tone.

  “How is that odd, they weren’t friends, just coworkers? They didn’t hang out, so there’s nothing odd about the fact that her personal life was just that, her personal life,” Hakeem answered for me. I could tell from his tone that he wasn’t pleased with the way that Brads addressed me.

  Brads just chuckled and turned his back to us to answer a call.

  “Is she oaky?” I asked. They hadn’t mentioned her standings. I might have wanted to beat the life out of Sky, but it didn’t mean I was okay with her being attacked. A fair fight, one on one was a whole different ball game, though.

  “She’s alive is all I can say,” Howard said, as he looked from Hakeem down to me. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a business card and with the intention of handing it to me, was quickly shut down when Hakeem grabbed it. These two alpha males were doing the most, because Howard wasn’t moved at all by Hakeem’s protective nature. He simple focused on me and began to speak.

  “If you think of anythin
g, please give me a call. Even the most insignificant detail can help, so anything at all would be helpful,” he said.

  Brads had finished his call and was already walking away, as if he was irritated about the waste of time, but Howard stood for a few minutes more with his eyes locked on mine. I could feel Hakeem’s arms tighten around my waist, and he pulled me closer to his body as if we weren't already breathing for one another.

  “Is there anything else?” Hakeem’s deep voice vibrated in my back and startled me just a little.

  “No, we’re done.” Howard glanced at Hakeem and then me again, with a smirk, before he turned to walk away. I watched as he made his way to his car, opened the door and got in.

  “See, God don’t like ugly and that hoe was downright hideous.” Jacob let the words go like they had been locked and loaded, ready for release.

  “Jacob!” I yelled.

  “What? It’s true,” he said waving me off.

  “I’ll be in the car waiting.” He spun on his heels, in typical dramatic Jacob fashion, like he didn’t have a care in the world.

  Hakeem on the other hand, was irritated.

  “Do you know him?” he asked looking down at me and then in the direction that the detective’s car had gone.

  “No, why?” I knew it had to do with the intensity in which Howard was staring at me.

  “Where you heading?” In typical fashion he ignored my question, but I knew him well enough to know that his mind was working.

  “Lunch,” I said electing to leave the topic alone.

  With his hands cupping my face and a kiss on the lips, he looked into my eyes for a few seconds. The same way he checked my expression, I surveyed his. He was irritated by what had just gone down, but I could tell that there was more to it than that. Hakeem seemed distracted.

  “Alright, I have some work to do, I’ll see you later,” he said after he released the hold he had on me.

  “I’ll come by when we get back,” I said still watching his face.

  “Nah, you’re good, I have a few things to check on, so I’ll only be around here for a minute, but I’ll catch up with you before you head home tonight. Now hurry up before Jacob brings his ass back over here and I have to cuss him out,” Hakeem smiled, which eased the mood a little and with a peck on the lips, I left him there on the sidewalk.

  *****

  We had been sitting in the restaurant and I was deep in thought, so when I head Jacob’s voice, it startled me a little.

  “What’s wrong, love bug?” Jacob asked with his eyes searching my face. It was as if he was trying to answer his question based on my expression.

  “Keem just seemed weird, I don’t know. Maybe it was just me.”

  “You might be in love but you’re not blind, Tay. That detective was hot.” Jacob started dramatically fanning himself.

  “I don’t think it had anything to do with that, he’s just been a little off lately.”

  I started going through his recent behavior in my head and something wasn’t right. He was a little distant but when I called him on it, he would work extra hard to be attentive and affectionate, but it didn’t stop the random moments where he would just drift off and get stuck in his head. His expression would be intense like he had a lot on his mind, but he kept saying that he was good, that things were good.

  “He’s a busy man lovey, and with everything going on at the club, you have to expect that things would shift a little. Add in the fact that a smoking hot detective just had a steamy, hot mental session with you, and there you have it.”

  “That detective was not having anything with me, other than frustration because I didn’t have the answers he was looking for.” I shook my head and laughed. Jacob forever had sex on the brain.

  “You did see your man’s primal instincts kick in, right? He basically walked up and marked his territory, with an arm around your waist and a kiss on the cheek. Men know when their status is being threatened, and Hottie Howard wants a piece of you love bug.” Jacob looked at me with the most devious grin, and all I could do was roll my eyes. He was doing the most; hell, he was always doing the most, but I loved him for it. Never a dull moment when he was around.

  “Just eat, so that we can get back to work. I’m freaking out about this article for Essence and we have to make sure everything is on point.”

  “You worry too much. You have more clients than you can handle, your name is buzzing on every social media outlet, and you are still the humblest person I know. Relax and enjoy it.”

  “We have more clients. I didn’t do it by myself Jacob. We made this happen.”

  Jacob flashed me his award winning smile, before his hand grazed his spiked blond hair. “I’m just a shadow to your greatness. With or without me you would still shine Taterbug, so embrace your greatness and stop freaking out.”

  I looked at Jacob and smiled. “You're the best, you know that?”

  “Of course I do. I wouldn’t be me if I didn’t, now like you said, eat so that we can get back to work.

  -3-

  Hakeem

  I sat in my office staring at the picture of my daughter, and couldn’t help but smile. She was so fucking beautiful, it just made my heart swell every time I laid eyes on her. I scrolled through the phone and found the video that Janelle also sent me of Riley playing, and watched it over and over again. I still couldn’t wrap my head around the fact that I had a kid. It just didn’t seem real.

  Tasia still didn’t know. I had plans to tell her for what seemed to be a million times, but I never could manage to get the words out. She was so happy right now and things were good. After the whole Sky situation, I had doubts about us, because even though Tay forgave me, I could still sense the distance between us from time to time, and now this whole Riley thing was about to really fuck shit up.

  She was my daughter though, I couldn’t change that even if I wanted to, and to be honest, I didn’t. I was in love with her already and had never even held her in my arms.

  Even though I could look in her face and tell she was mine, Jodie wouldn’t let up about getting her tested, so I made it happen. Janelle was pissed, but fuck it, I didn’t care. She was on some bullshit by hiding Riley from me in the first place, so she would just have to get over that shit, but sure enough, when the test came back, there was no denying it. Riley was mine.

  It was a bittersweet feeling, because I was happy about having a daughter, just all fucked up over the fact that she wasn’t mine and Tay’s.

  “Sorry, I thought you were already gone.” Mika walked in my office and stopped dead in her tracks when she noticed me sitting at my desk.

  I waved her in and she made her way over, and handed me a stack of papers. “It’s cool, I’m heading out in a few.”

  “That’s everything from last week. The numbers look good. We’re doing real good,” Mika said with a grin.

  I scanned the paperwork she handed me and then set it down in front of me. “Yeah, shit is lovely and if we keep hosting these events, it’s only going to get better. Shit, we’re booked solid for the next few months.”

  Mika smiled. She was one of my managers, along with her twin brother, Malachi. I didn’t know shit about running a club, but their father had run several in Chicago. They came up in the system, but wanted to break free from daddy’s control, so they applied, I hired them and business was lovely. They were on their shit when it came to Legendary and I couldn’t complain.

  “I know; it’s crazy how fast things took off. You are all over everywhere. Well, your name anyway,” she said with a smirk in reference to the fact that I avoided pictures and interviews. I just wasn’t with all the spotlight shit. It wasn’t my thing and with my original career path, I didn’t feel like it was a good idea to have my face everywhere.

  “You know that’s not my shit,” I said with a slight chuckle. “I hope you guys are ready for this weekend, we’ll have a lot of big names in here and I need to make sure things run smooth.”

  “Come on Keem
, you already know. Me and Ki,” she said calling her brother by his nickname, “take this serious. If you fail, we fail and that’s not happening.” The tone of her voice implied the seriousness of her words.

  Just then, my phone vibrated with a text from Janelle, telling me that she was on her way. We were meeting up for the first time so that I could officially meet Riley.

  I let out a long sigh and let my head fall back, almost forgetting that Mika was seated in front of me.

  “Bad news?” she asked nodding towards my phone.

  “Complicated news,” I said.

  “I won’t keep you then, you seem stressed,” Mika said.

  “I’m heading out. Just hit me if you need anything, but I’ll be back before we open tonight.

  “Aight boss, we’re good here.” She stood and headed towards the door, but stopped just before she walked through it.

  “Oh, I forgot, is it okay if I add a few people to the list for this weekend?”

  “Do what you want Mika, you already know you’re good with that,” I said and winked at her. She could invite the whole city for all I cared. As long as she did her job, then we were good.

  “Thanks Keem.”

  After Mika left, I locked up my office and headed to my truck. Once I was inside, I shot Janelle a text to tell her I was on my way, and then sent Tasia a text to let her know I was thinking about her. I felt guilty as shit, but it couldn’t be helped for now anyway, but I had to tell her soon. That was a must. Secrets weren’t our thing and I knew the longer I waited the worse it was going to be.

  When I made it to the café where I was meeting Janelle, I sat in my truck for a minute to get my mind right. There wasn’t really much in this world that got to me, but I was nervous as fuck about meeting Riley. I had missed two years of her life because of Janelle’s selfish ass, so we didn’t have that bond like most fathers and daughters had. I knew it was going to take some time, but either way it was happening.

  After I had my mind right, I got out and walked inside, surveyed the place, and found Janelle sitting in a corner booth. She was alone and I instantly got pissed, thinking she was on some slick shit, showing up without Riley trying to get with me, but that wasn’t going down. I didn’t want shit to do with Janelle unless it had to do with my daughter, so she could miss me with everything else.