by K. C. Mills
“I’m a call you later, and don't have your ass in the streets,” Rah said as he adjusted his clothes. He had just put a hurting on Nova’s body, but now it was time to handle business. He needed to get some information about Logic. Nova was being tight lipped about him, and he couldn't press her without being obvious. But, he did find out that he had just recently started dealing with Joy.
“Boy please, you about to leave me and be up in some other bitch’s face, so don't worry about me being in the streets. And besides, I’m about to pick Kenyan and Kenya up for school, and then head to work.”
Rah chuckled. If he hadn't seen Joy with Logic, he might have actually considered letting Nova fall into a main spot. Not on some faithful type shit, because that wasn't his thing, but in a way that gave her a regular role in his life. All that was dead though, the moment he laid eyes on Joy again. He wanted her back. Joy was wife material, and he wasn't about to let another nigga have that with her. He’d kill every single one who tried, starting with Logic.
“Play your cards right and I might have something for you,” Rah said and winked at Nova, before pulling out his ringing phone.
“Yeah.”
“Why aren't you here?” Marilyn's voice annoyed the shit out of him. He was pissed that her dumb ass broke their agreement and told Joy that they were fucking.
“Because I’m where the fuck I am,” Rah yelled and then eyed Nova, before he walked out the room and of course, he could hear Nova yelling behind him.
“See, that right there is why you don't need to be worried about me being in the streets. Trifling ass, up in my shit and entertaining another bitch.”
“Chill Nova, this ain't another bitch, this is business.”
“Mm hmm, and I’m stupid as fuck.”
Rah shook his head and focused on Marilyn.
“If you would stop fucking with those young girls that don't know how to appreciate a man like you, you wouldn't have to deal with that type of stress.”
“I ain't stressed, and your ass needs to stop acting like you mean something to me, or that you have something that I can't get somewhere else.”
“Lie to yourself if you want to, but we both know I do things to you that those young girls can't even dream of.”
Rah inhaled and let it out slow. She was right. Marilyn had a way with him, but not so much that he couldn't live without it. In fact, he planned on fucking her a few more times, but once he had Joy in his life again, he was putting an end to that. He refused to let Marilyn ruin things for him.
“Yo, is there a point to this call because I have business to handle?”
“I want to see you tonight. Lionel is out of town for two days so I want you here tonight.”
“I'll think about it,” Rah said.
Marilyn laughed. “Yeah, okay.” She hung up.
Rah couldn't worry about Marilyn right now; he had more important things to do, like hitting the block to get information on Logic and paying Joy a visit. He needed to get her alone. If he could do that, then he knew that he would be able to get under her skin in a way that would show her what she was missing. He needed to prove that he learned from his past mistakes, and was ready to be the man she begged him to be a year ago, even if it was a lie. But Rah knew one thing for sure, and that was that Logic’s family would be planning a funeral before he stepped back and let him take what was rightfully his. Joy belonged to him.
*****
“You know you wrong, right?” Nova didn't want to hear anything that Najah was saying, but she knew that Najah was right. She had no reason to be mad at Joy, because Rah’s ass was being disrespectful. Hell, she needed to check him, but his dick game was too strong and she wanted it in her life. She hated herself for being so pathetic over a man, but sometimes things just were what they were.
“I don't need you telling me that shit. I’ll make it right.” Nova rolled her eyes. She was sitting outside her job and had fifteen minutes before her shift was to start.
“Well you better. Auggie likes that girl Nova, and like it or not, she’s gonna be around.”
“Ain't nobody worried about Auggie. He can kiss my ass,” Nova said, knowing that she was just talking. One thing she knew for sure, was not to play around with her cousin. Logic meant business, and she wasn't about to get caught up on his bad side.
“Yeah aight, let him hear you say that,” Najah laughed. “But real talk boo, Joy’s alright. Hell, she jumped at your ass, so she got a backbone. She didn't seem fazed by that nigga you were with, so don't put that on her. Just a casualty of war, but you better stop messing with him or Auggie is gonna be in your shit.”
“Girl bye, I know better.” Nova squeezed her thighs still feeling the hurting that Rah had just put on her. She planned on walking away, but only after she had a few more rounds. What would that hurt?
“I’m serious, Nova. Don't get stuck in a situation that will have you fucked up in the game. You know how Auggie is. He’s got it out for that nigga and I think it's deeper than Joy.”
“I said I know better Najah, damn. Let me have this, but I have to go. My shift is about to start. I’ll call you later.”
“Aight cuz.”
Nova ended the call feeling some type of way. She was torn. The one time she found a decent guy, he had to be off limits because of some shit that didn't even involve her. She let out a frustrated sigh and then got out of her car. For now, she couldn’t worry about that. She had a building full of annoying ass customers that she knew were about to piss her off. That, unfortunately, was her current state of mind, meaning everything else would have to be dealt with later.
Rah made it back to his block with Joy on his mind. She was literally all he could think about, and it was really fucking with his head. It had been a year and he managed to stay focused and not really worry about her, as long as he was making money and had plenty of women in rotation. But seeing her changed all that.
“Yo nigga, where the fuck you been?” Moses made his way over to his brother, looking like he was mad at the world. He hated when Rah just disappeared like he had recently just done. Rah was forever letting some female cause him to lose focus. Unlike Rah, Moses was all about making money.
“Why the fuck you charging at me, like I’m one of these little niggas that work for us Moses? I had some shit to do, but it's none of your damn business.”
Rah shut his truck door and walked past his brother, making sure he made contact with him. Moses needed to calm the fuck down.
“You always on some shit Rah. Is pussy that important? We’re supposed to be handling our shit right now, but you wanna be laid up.”
“Didn't I tell you we would get this shit done?” Rah turned and pointed at his little brother, staring him down so intensely that Moses hesitated a little. There wasn't much Moses feared in his life, but he knew better than to challenge his brother. He knew that Rah wasn't playing with a full deck on most days.
“Chill Rah, I’m just saying. If we don't act now, someone else is going to claim Donte’s territory and we need that shit. It's supposed to be ours anyway.” Moses backed down just a little, not wanting to set his brother off.
“Somebody already beat us to it, but we're gonna take that shit from him so it's all good. Just calm your ass down and tell me what the numbers look like.”
Rah entered his four-bedroom house with Moses right behind him. It wasn't the biggest house, but it was nice and he had his shit laid, just the way he liked it. Problem was, Rah wanted more and he needed the territory that Logic was running to make that happen.
“What do you mean somebody already claimed it?” Moses asked, pulling out a blunt that he was mindlessly about to light up, until he heard his brother’s voice.
“Don't light that shit in my house. You know my fucking rules, take that outside Moses.”
Rah treated his home like a sanctuary. If he didn't smoke in it, no one else was going to. The crazy thing was that all that started because of Joy. She hated when he would have the ho
use filled with smoke, chilling with his boys. She complained so much that he shut all that down. He didn't bring his boys around his home, and even Rah would go outside on the porch to light up. He did it to make Joy happy, but even after she was gone, it had become a habit that he maintained even after they broke up.
“Exactly what I said, nigga. Somebody already claimed it.”
“You talking about that Logic motherfucker?”
“If you already knew, then why the fuck you asking me that shit?” Rah asked irritated. He opened the cabinet to get a bottle of Ace out.
Moses laughed. “Fuck him, Rah. He ain't no problem. That nigga writes poems and shit while serving coffee. He can't fuck with us. We’ll just take that shit.”
“Don't get it confused. He ran that shit with Donte before his brother was killed. He knows his shit from what I hear, and now that he’s back, he’s got the streets buzzing.”
Moses looked at his brother strangely. “You worried about him?”
“Hell no, the fuck I look like. I’m just saying it's not going to be as easy as you think. Donte was a bitch. He couldn't fuck with us, and that’s probably why that nigga’s not breathing now. Logic knows his shit, but trust me, I got something for his ass. We’re gonna start fucking with his people first to get under his skin, and then we’re going hard as hell to take that shit.”
Rah smiled to himself at the thought of firing on Logic. It was coming, and soon.
“That’s what I’m talking about,” Moses said.
“But check it. I have a few things to handle and then I’ll be back. After that, we can make some moves.”
Moses got irritated all over again. He knew his brother was about to go lay up in some female, but he couldn't really say shit about it. Rah did what he wanted to do, and not even Moses could change that. For now, Moses was about to hit the block to check on their people, light up his blunt and hope that his brother would be ready for business later.
“Yeah aight, don't be all night nigga.”
“Fuck you Moses, I’ll be around when I’m ready to be around. Now get the fuck out of my house so that I can shower and change.”
Rah was on his way upstairs to his bedroom, so he didn't bother looking back at his brother. Not long after, Moses was out the door and Rah was in the shower.
When Rah made it to Marilyn’s house, he keyed in the security code to let himself in. He chuckled to himself. Her husband was clueless. Rah moved around the house Lionel paid for like he owned it. The same way he fucked his wife like he owned her. Too bad this was going to be the last time. He was going to miss Marilyn a little, but Joy was more important than the occasional nut he got from Marilyn.
“I see you got your shit together and realized where you needed to be,” Marilyn said as soon as Rah entered her bedroom. Rah laughed at her horny ass because she had no idea if he was going to show, but she was naked other than the short silk robe that was wide open, exposing her body.
Rah could feel the swell in his jeans as he admired her body. Marilyn was fit as hell for her age and undeniably sexy. He loved that about her. Add in the fact that she had some bomb ass pussy and she was a certified freak, Rah was winning.
Marilyn made her way over to Rah and began unbuckling his jeans. She kept her eyes on him the entire time while Rah admired her beauty. Marilyn was truly easy on the eyes but she wasn't Joy, so when Marilyn had him free and tried to drop to her knees to please him, he stopped her.
“Nah, I don't need that.” He lifted her to her feet, pulled her back to his chest as he moved towards the wall. He used his hand to open her legs before sliding in her nice and slow, but that only lasted for a minute. He was there to fuck just one last time before he ended things.
Rah began to punish Marilyn’s body, moving in and out of her so roughly that she tried to stop him and gain control of the situation. He laughed and focused on Joy's face in his head, because he was physically with Marilyn but mentally with Joy. It didn't take long for him to nut, and Marilyn was right there with him. She liked it rough, which actually turned her on. She continuously complained about how boring her husband was, if and when they did have sex, so she used Rah as a way to release her pent up frustrations.
“That one was yours but now it’s time for me to get mine,” Marilyn said when Rah stepped away from her so she could remove her body from the wall he had her pressed against.
He laughed, “Nah, I’m good. I just needed to feel that shit one last time.”
Marilyn looked at him like she wanted to slap him. There was no way that she was about to let him walk away. “We’re not done, not tonight and not ever.”
Rah pointed at her. “You don't have a say in that.”
He looked down and began adjusting his clothes.
“Yes I do, and you know it. You don't want to leave me.”
“And you don't want me to tell your husband that you’re fucking your daughter’s ex. This cushy little lifestyle of yours means something to you, and I know it. I guarantee he’ll divorce your ass in the blink of an eye if he knew about us.”
Marilyn opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out.
“I thought so. I’m getting Joy back, trust me, and if you try to fuck that up again, I will be having a conversation with Lionel. So don't call me, don't text me and we’re good. I am gonna miss that shit though.”
Rah had a smirk on his face as he winked at Marilyn and turned towards the door. He heard Marilyn behind him but didn’t stop.
“I hate you, Rah! Fuck you! Just like I found you, I can find someone else.”
He just shook his head and laughed at her old pathetic ass, because he had more important things to do like killing Logic and then getting Joy back.
-5-
“So Rah is fucking with Nova… wow. That’s some shit Joy,” Karma said through the phone trying to process what her best friend was telling her.
“Girl, you have no idea. I thought Logic was going to shoot him right there in his mother's house, and Nova looked like she wanted to shoot me.”
“Oh hell no, cousin or not, she can get it if she's trying to step to you.” Karma got heated just thinking about anybody trying to step to Joy. That wasn't happening. Joy wasn't a pushover but Karma was the rowdier one of the two friends.
“Calm down K, I’m not worried about Nova. She’ll either get over it or she won't, but I don't care either way.” Joy had to laugh at Karma; she was always ready to go in on somebody.
“I’m just saying Joy, we can handle that if we need to,” Karma said in all seriousness.
“Nah, we’re good.”
“So what about Logic? Y'all good or what?”
Joy smiled. “I think so. We kinda had a moment, but I told him there was nothing there and he acted like he believed me. I’m actually getting dressed now to go meet him.”
“Shit, he needs to believe you. Fuck Rah and Marilyn's nasty ass. You should have let Logic handle his trifling ass.”
“Yeah well, I didn't think it was a good idea for him to be collecting bodies in his mother's living room.”
“Collecting bodies. Damn boo, you street already. You sound like you back with Rah again,” Karma laughed.
“Kiss my ass. I’m just me, K.”
“With a side order of trap queen. You fall into that role too easily boo.”
“Whatever, I’m not messing you, it’s not like that, but I have to go. I need to hop in the shower real quick.”
“Aye, do you boo. Go see your man and get that cat kissed.”
“You so damn extra,” Joy said and laughed.
“Girl, don't front. I know you ‘bout to go get your back blown out,” Karma said and then laughed at herself.
“Bye fool. I'll call you tomorrow.”
Joy ended the call and collected her things to go shower. She was ready to see Logic. She missed him every second that she was away from him and couldn’t wait to feel his body against hers.
When she made it to his place she didn't see his ca
r, so she used her key to let herself in. Joy had stopped to get dinner for the two of them, so her first stop was the kitchen. After setting the Chinese food on the counter, she made her way to his bedroom to unload her overnight bag. Logic hadn't mentioned her staying with him, but he didn't have to. She made the decision for him, assuming that he wouldn't object.
Joy dropped her purse and bag on the dresser before she kicked off her Nikes leaving them in the center of the floor, but only for a minute. Everything in his room was in its place, so seeing her shoes in the center of the floor just felt wrong. After setting them next to his dresser, Joy surveyed his room like it was her first time being in there. She was drawn to the bookshelf that lined the wall overflowing with books. Once she was within reach, she grabbed the first thing that caught her attention, a brown leather journal similar to the one she remembered Logic writing in millions of times before at Intrigued.
Once it was in her hand, she found her way to the bed. She turned it in her hands, admiring it before she thumbed through it, found a random page and then opened it. Her eyes roamed the page, bringing a smile to her face. She scanned the words, feeling each one as if it were meant just for her eyes.
She continued moving through the pages until she stopped at a section that stood out to her. Reading the words felt familiar and intimate. She knew that the piece was about her. She read each word but certain ones stuck out: lustful stare, angelic face, kissable lips. He was writing about the things he wanted to do to her, to her body. It made Joy blush while also filling her with the sensations that she was somehow closer to him by reading his intimate thoughts about her.
She was so caught up in his words that she hadn't noticed that he was leaning against his doorframe, arms folded, watching her. A smirk adorned his face as he admired the intimacy of how his words affected her. Had she been anyone else, he would have felt slighted at his private thoughts being pillaged, but they were about Joy and he felt like they belonged to her, just as much as they belonged to him.
“That’s personal,” Logic said snatching Joy's attention away from his journal, so that she focused on him.