“Better?”
Jasmine nodded.
“Come,” he said, slipping his fingers in a link with hers.
They entered the establishment that was dark and mildly smoky from the various hookahs that sat on small round red tables. With a glance at the room’s order, Jasmine noticed that the black tables in between the red ones were empty of hookahs.
“Everyone seems to love those hookahs,” she said.
A bar was built into the lining of the wall, covering the space in a complete circle. It was designed in a way that no one would have to walk to one side or another to get a drink, and tables circled the outer ring of the dance floor. Luke led Jasmine to the dance floor, and twirling her into his chest, they grooved to the soft beats of Lauryn Hill.
The rigid wave of his pectoral chest grazed against her back as their hips undulated in a circular rhythm. Luke’s hands rested on her hips, and he slid them around her waist and up her belly.
Jasmine shivered, her breathing increasing in pace when his fingers found the aroused peaks of her breasts. He let them linger there before coasting back down to her thighs; their hips wined to the beat, carrying their sway in sync. Jasmine didn’t think it was a happenstance that suddenly her skin felt on fire. It was the man that occupied her space. His every move, his touch, the embrace of his arms kept her wanting, needing to be close to him. The song switched but neither Luke or Jasmine noticed. They continued to dance to a beat only the two could understand, and when Luke’s lips slid down the curve of her ear, Jasmine inhaled a shaky breath then exhaled slowly as her bones went completely limp against him.
He held her, and they danced the night away with only each other in their eyesight. Luke never thought loving Jasmine would fill him so completely that he couldn’t imagine life without her. He’d actually tried to live that way once upon a time, but those days were long over. To think about it now made him feel an emptiness that would disturb his way of life, and it was something he never wanted to endure.
By the time they left the bar, the darkness that covered them had brought a breeze that made Jasmine quiver. It had gotten cooler and being on the Harley now felt like a roller coaster ride on a brisk winter night. They made it to The Alexandria and boarded where Luke swept Jasmine’s shivering frame in his arms and took her below. Resting her on the bed, he kissed her on her lips and hovered there as they stared at one another with warm breaths that soothed their cool faces.
“I’ll be right back,” Luke said, turning to head for the stairs.
“Wait a minute.”
He turned back to Jasmine.
“Stay with me for a second.”
She shivered again, and Luke strolled back to her and crowded her space. Getting comfortable on the bed, Jasmine buried herself in the comfort of his chest and his natural scent was still mixed comfortably with the fragrance he wore. She rested under his chin, and Luke cuddled her in a smooth embrace where Jasmine unexpectedly fell asleep. He let her rest against his collar with his fingers threading through the thick strings of her hair. Being with Jasmine over the last few days had given him a glimpse of a picturesque future. One where he and she were together for the long haul. One he could grab and hold on to for dear life. Lying there, a pregnant version of Jasmine surfaced, her spicy retorts ordering him to grab enough ingredients from the store solely for baking her favorite treats. A smile surfaced on his lips, and he turned his head to kiss her cheek and stare at her.
“I love you,” he said against her warm skin.
Jasmine’s breathing was soft as she slept, and Luke held there another spell before sliding from underneath her and heading to the bridge to put The Alexandria on course to the lakeshore house.
When they arrived, Luke docked, carried Jasmine inside, and put her in bed. He thought to remove her clothes, but if she desired it in the middle of the night, he would assist her no matter the time. However, Jasmine slept as if her day had been filled with bustling activity, and instead, Luke spooned her until she stirred the next day.
Chapter Sixteen
The warmth of Luke’s skin made her succumb to slumber, but now it was the thing that stirred her. Jasmine opened her eyes on a yawn, and her limbs unfolded from the cocoon she was wrapped in to stretch. Blinking rapidly, her thoughts retreated to the last memory she had, falling asleep in Luke’s arms on The Alexandria. She smiled contentedly, and as if her hearing was just catching up to her awakening, a news report could be heard close to her far right. Her forehead creased, and she turned toward the sound to find Luke awake with his head resting on a stacked pillow. On the nightstand, the satellite radio hummed the morning report for the city of Chicago.
Poll numbers taken early this morning revealed a rise in Incumbent Mayor Jenkins chances of renewing his term as Chicago’s next mayor. Before his press conference on Saturday morning’s incident, the city was in a frenzy, and protesters were already gathered outside the office of the Superintendent officer.
To update anyone who may have been living under a rock, the last twenty-four hours have been a nightmare for the city as Darren King, an African American twenty-three-year-old male, was beaten and forcibly dragged by handcuffs because of a 911 call that said a man matching King’s description broke into the Eagles Food Express Mart on 103rd and Avalon.
Video footage of Officer Ronald Baker using force to arrest the man before questioning him has everyone on edge. Darren King is now in Jackson Park Hospital in ICU, and though the community is demanding justice, very little hope had been given until Mayor Jenkins’ assurance that an investigation into the matter was underway, and justice would be served.
Jasmine untangled herself from Luke’s hold.
“Oh my God!”
A plethora of chills moved from the crown of her head to the soles of her feet.
“We’ve got to get out of here!”
She peeled back the covers and jumped from the soft king size bed that threatened to pull her back under. When she saw Luke blink, she paused and frowned.
“Come on, Luke, we have to go, now!”
It was then that Luke moved with the same haste as Jasmine, and for a second, she wondered why it had taken her words to push him. But in Luke’s head, it wasn’t complicated at all to know why he’d frozen. Jasmine was his heartbeat, and he knew without a shadow of a doubt that she would march down where the protesters were gathered and let her voice be heard.
That wasn’t necessarily a problem for him. It was the sensitivity of the incident. Anger had already created a boiling pot in the community, with that came not only the demand for justice but violence, and the last thing he could stomach was something happening to her, his princess. But even knowing that, no amount of talking to Jasmine would steer her in another direction. Though this was so, he couldn’t give up on seeing if she would listen to reason. Just this once, he wanted her to take heed to his words without a fight.
“Jas…”
The profound drum of his voice slowed her plight, and she looked to him with a question written across her face. Luke slowly approached her, his forehead creased as a severe mask covered his.
“I know you want to get some answers.”
“Oh, I’ve got all the answers I need,” Jasmine exclaimed boastfully. “The news reporter has said it all! What more is there to know? We’ve gotta get down there, now.”
“And do what?”
Jasmine frowned. “And fight! What are you asking? We should be in the thick of things!”
“We don’t have to fight every battle with a protest. There are other ways to fight.”
Jasmine folded her arms, her attitude already in the process of refuting his claims. “Oh yeah, how’s that, and don’t you dare say the justice system.”
Luke let out a semi-frustrated breath. “You know I wouldn’t suggest something that didn’t have a chance of working, like simply saying the justice system. You know me, don’t do that.”
Jasmine’s shoulders relaxed, and she exhaled a built-up breath
.
“I know…” she whined. “You’re always there to help me, but what could we do differently than protest? I mean protesting helps build our democracy and ensures that the people we elect hear our cry. It invites them to change what’s happening to its citizens. It demonstrates power and resounds a call to action that wouldn’t be enacted if not for the people’s voice.
“I for one will not sit back and wait for the government to do the right thing for the people. WE the people will shout until deaf ears can hear, no matter how long it takes, and I can’t see any other way bringing forth a satisfactory outcome other than this.”
Luke rested his hands on her shoulders.
“Jas, I am not asking you to stand by and wait. That’s not even close to what I was thinking. I would never want you to dampen the fuel that burns within you to fight for injustices. That’s built in your bones. It’s one of the things I love about you. It’s why we connect so well.” He paused. “Baby, I am on your side, always, but I need you to be on my side as well and hear me out.”
Jasmine gritted her teeth. “I’m listening.”
“You have lawyers in your family.”
“Luke—”
“Listen… to… me…” he eased. “Your twin sister and your brother are attorneys at Chicago’s most reputable law firm. I’m sure that Darren King needs an attorney.”
“But—”
“And…” he went on, “sometimes you have to fight the battle the way the opposing team does. Especially if they have the upper hand. Hear me out. While protesting is always a good thing because the people’s voice should be heard, the real battle will happen in a courtroom, and for there to be a court appearance, the officer needs to be charged. So, what we need to find out first is if charges have been brought against the officer, and if so, we fight alongside Jordan and Phoebe who we know will take on this case pro bono and win.” He paused. “If charges haven’t been brought—”
“Then we protest,” Jasmine concluded.
Luke nodded.
“Okay,” she said, reluctantly as she nodded and took in deep, cleansing breaths. “I’m with you.”
It had taken them two hours to get back to the main city on The Alexandria, and the entire time, Luke watched the thoughts soar through Jasmine’s head as she stared into space. When he’d spoken to her about when she would be returning to work, Jasmine didn’t answer. She’d completely tuned him out.
“Jas.”
“Huh?” She turned her eyes to him but still, she was far away.
“I asked you when you had to return to set.”
Jasmine glanced off blankly. “Oh, tomorrow morning, then I’ll be free to help you finish campaigning and keep our hands on this fight.”
He nodded. “Valentine’s Day is next week, but I’m meeting with a donor who’ll be out of town. I was wondering if you would accompany me.”
Again, she didn’t answer, and the silence continued to linger.
“Princess.”
Silence.
Luke moved from the steering wheel to stand to in front of her. Jasmine’s head snapped up.
“Huh, did you say something, babe?”
Luke sighed and stared at her beautiful brown eyes. He tightened his lips in an awkward smirk and made sure to keep the worry that threaded his blood from off his face.
“I said Valentine’s Day is next week.”
“Oh, yeah, yeah,” she said as if suddenly remembering his question. “Baby, I would love to come with you, I really would.”
“But?”
“It’s Samiyah’s baby shower weekend. I’m supposed to help with the arrangements.”
“That’s right,” he sang.
“You know I’d be there if not for that obligation,” she assured.
Luke wanted to believe her, but somehow, he felt that if she weren’t on baby shower duty, something else would be the reason, like this protest. He hated the feeling that churned in his stomach, that he would always come second to whatever cause Jasmine was determined to see through. But he shook it off. If Luke had anything to do with it, they would present a united front on any battle or obstacle that came their way.
Once they made it to port and docked, Jasmine and Luke headed for his car and rode in silence to Jasmine’s condo. Upon arrival, she opened the door and tossed a leg out when Luke’s gentle voice reeled her back inside.
“Princess.”
Jasmine turned to him. “I’m sorry,” she said, leaning over to kiss him on his warm lips. “My mind is all over the place. Forgive me.”
Luke’s thick masculine hand gently gripped hers, and he placed another scorching kiss on Jasmine’s lips, breathing in her breath as she released it.
“I’m walking you to the door. I’ll have valet pull the car up a bit so it’s not blocking the entrance.”
She smiled and nodded once then stepped out onto the sidewalk while Luke parked the car a few spaces ahead.
He opened the door and stepped out, his elongated legs carrying the fortitude of a stone structure and thick muscle her way. Seeing him march to her, Jasmine couldn’t contain that swirl of energy that seemed to rummage inside her belly. It was a constant dance that never got old. Luke was more gorgeous than some of the models that worked for her brother’s agency, and that was saying a lot since Julian was as picky as they came.
“Ready?” Luke said, slipping his hand that was three times the size as hers into her palm.”
“Ready,” she said.
The doors opened as they neared, and hand in hand, they strolled to the bank of elevators.
“I’ll be back in a few hours to pick you up, and together we’ll go to the firm.”
She smiled. “Okay.”
The doors opened, and they entered, arriving at her floor within seconds. In front of her open entryway, they kissed again, then Jasmine turned and strolled slowly inside. Luke watched her until the door shut, and he could no longer see her parting form. It was then that he released the worry in his expression as his brows knocked together, and he bit his bottom lip.
Back inside his car, Luke pulled away from the curb and headed for his townhome in North Chicago. It took him all of fifteen minutes to get to his bungalow, and as soon as he spilled through the door, he got on the phone with contacts at the Chicago police department, checked on the volunteers at his campaign office who were working vivaciously around the clock, and set up a meeting via text message with Jordan.
He cared every bit about making sure Darren King’s incident didn’t get swept under the rug like a lot of similar cases across the country that went unjustified, but he also understood that in order to play this right, he had to have all the information, and he was counting on his contacts to give those answers.
On the other side of town, Jasmine reached out to her staff to find out if they had anything on the political opponents that they’d been looking into. Though the campaign was one of her priorities, it took a little bit of a push to focus on it with the protest fighting for attention in her mind. To keep from doing something rash and wait on Luke, Jasmine busied herself, first reaching out to Morgan, the young woman she’d appointed to be in charge in her absence. But after continuously being put on hold, Jasmine informed Morgan to call her back as soon as she had the details. Blowing invisible smoke through her lips, Jasmine sauntered to her master bathroom, where she dug off her shoes with the heel of her foot to rest them on the cold beach glass tile. She strolled around the narrow walkway to the dual sink that was customized with engineered stone counters, and light stained wood. In the oval mirror, she stared at her reflection then as memory of cutting her hair returned, dialed her stylist on the phone that was still clutched in her hand.
As the phone rang, Jasmine continued staring at her image just as her mind strayed back to Darren King.
“Creative Vision Studio, this is Esmerelda.”
“Why are you answering your phone like it’s the business line?”
There was a smile in Esmerelda’s
voice. “Our phones are down today, so I have all the calls routed to my cell.”
“Oh.”
“What can I do you for, babe, did you come to a conclusion on this wild idea of yours?”
“As a matter of fact, I did.”
The phone went silent.
“Well, don’t leave me in suspense, are you cutting your hair or not?”
Esmerelda had styled the triplets since they were sixteen. It hadn’t been easy finding a stylist that could tame their natural locks, but after just one visit with Esmerelda, the three of them had fallen in love with the woman, and although Jasmine, Phoebe, and Eden were triplets, they rarely agreed simultaneously on anything.
“I think I want to test it out with a shave on one side and leave it long on the other.”
“Bold, but I like it.”
“You do?” Jasmine asked, squinting her nose.
“Yeah, especially when I get through with you, but will the producers over at Love Without Limits have anything to say about it?”
“Now you know I would never work in an environment that punished me for the way I wore my hair.”
“I had to ask, some people are not so lucky.”
“Yeah, well, those people need to get with me, and together, we’ll sue the hell out of the company and make them the boss.”
Esmerelda pealed over in laughter. “That is why I love you so much, always willing to go to bat for someone you don’t even know.”
Jasmine shrugged though Esmerelda couldn’t see her.
“It’s just the way I am, and it’s natural for me.”
“Yep, what do you think about the bullshit that happened to Darren King? Honestly, I’m surprised you’re not already in front of the mayor’s office with the second set of protesters.”
Jasmine frowned and turned on her heels and left the bathroom.
“What second set of protesters?”
“Girl, haven’t you been watching the news?”
Jasmine reached for the remote and hit the red button powering on her plasma TV. “Let’s just say I’ve been kind of tied up.”
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