It’s officially release day! I’m so excited for you to dive deep inside Lena and Romero’s love story. When I originally came up with the idea for the story, the characters were set to meet on a cruise ship, but after scrapping the first 5,000 words of the manuscript, the story went in a different direction. Thus, birthing my version of love and law enforcement.
As I worked through draft after draft, the characters forced me to add more depth to their story. The male main character, who I hope will be your new book bae, is a child of immigrant parents who migrated to America for a better life. In turn, Romero grows up and joins the DEA. The female main character was from the States and a child of a kingpin. Although her father never wanted her to follow in his footsteps, Lena is what you call a product of her environment. She is a girl boss.
Now that you have some insight about the main characters, allow me to paint the picture of what unfolds when these two bosses collide. Here’s the first chapter to get you started:
Chapter 1: At His Mercy
Lena
I opened the gate and walked into the backyard. The grill was already fired up and Syreena’s uncle was posted up with a spatula in one hand and an aluminum pan in the other. The scent of charcoal mixed with a little barbeque sauce filled the air and my stomach reacted with a loud rumble. Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea to starve myself until the cookout, but I knew what treasures awaited me. A little bit of growling never hurt anybody.
“Hey, Lena. Glad you could make it.”
“I wouldn’t miss your birthday cookout for the world.” I reached out and hugged her, careful not to put too much pressure on her growing belly.
“Come on. Let’s get you something to eat. I know you haven’t eaten all day.”
I grabbed a hold of her hand and walked over to the grill to see what good ole Uncle Clem had percolating.
“Hey there, sweet thang. What can I get for you?” he asked.
“Uncle Clem, I told you not to bother Lena today. I thought we were on the same page.”
“It’s okay, Syreena. I know how to handle your uncle. Let me have a cheeseburger, please.”
“Coming right up.”
He piled the burger on my plate and I walked off to retrieve a fresh bun. As I moved further away, he mumbled something under his breath, but my hunger pangs took precedence over his flirting.
I dressed my burger with lettuce and tomatoes and squirted some ketchup and mustard on the side.
“I see old habits die hard,” a familiar voice said from over my shoulder.
My heartbeat quickened as I inhaled his scent. So sweet, yet intoxicating. “I guess,” I said without looking up from my plate, determined to avoid his glare as long as possible.
“Haven’t seen you in a minute, L. You avoiding me?” he asked.
“Not at all, Jeremih. I’ve been busy with the store. You know how it is.”
“Yeah, yeah. It’s the same old song. I keep telling you I can help with that.”
When I reached for a bag of chips, our arms touched briefly. His skin radiated against mine and I pulled away, almost dropping my plate. Although I made a promise never to sleep with him again, it was easier to accomplish when I didn’t have to see his luscious lips or his strong arms that lifted me in the air on many occasions.
“I’m good and you already got your hands full.” I nodded in the direction of the tables, where his latest girlfriend was engulfed in conversation with his family. It was my version of a clean getaway.
I finished making my plate and headed over to join the party. Grateful to avoid his interrogation, I smiled inside knowing he wouldn’t dare cause a scene in front of his mama.
As the day turned into night, Uncle Clem shut down the grill and turned on a string of lights that illuminated the yard. The DJ played 90s R&B music and the vibe was super chill. I was on my second wine cooler when the good twin arrived with enough blunts to stimulate the whole block.
“What’s up, L?”
“Nothing much, Jacob. What have you been up to?”
“Working on my new strain.” He passed me a phat blunt. “Here. Hit this.”
I puffed it twice before coughing and handing it off to anyone close enough to take it. I cleared my throat and reached for the wine cooler, realizing too late that it was damn near empty.
“Here.” Jeremih reached over my shoulder and passed me a bottle of water. “Twin, what the fuck took you so long to get here? Ma been asking about you all day.”
“I been in the lab. I got money to make.”
“Y’all sound just alike. Always business and not enough pleasure.” He pointed at both of us while making eye contact with me.
“Whatever, nigga. I’m ‘bout to go holler at Syreena.”
Jacob fired up another blunt, passed it to me, and walked off to go find his sister. Meanwhile, Jeremih stood across from me with his arms folded, giving me a death stare. One minute he undressed me with his eyes, and the next he gritted on me. Instead of stooping to his level, I stared back with as little emotion on my face as possible. We stood there for what seemed like forever in silence, passing the blunt back and forth until it was a clip.
Just as his lips parted, my cell phone rang.
Saved by the fucking bell.
“Hey, Trina,” I said, turning my back to him. “Wow. Are you serious?”
“Is everything okay?” He asked.
I held up my hand. “Let me hit you back in a few minutes and we can figure something out.” I hung up the phone and slipped it back into my pocket. “I gotta go. Something came up.”
My business was the most important thing in my life, therefore it always came first. Although I wanted to stay and catch up with the family, I had more pressing issues to deal with at the store.
In search of my best friend, I walked inside the house and found her posted up at the kitchen table feeding her face.
“Syreena, I have to go. Trina needs me at the store.”
“Okay. Call me later and fill me in.”
I kissed the side of her forehead and rubbed on her belly. “Can’t wait to meet this little guy.”
“Or girl,” she said, in between bites.
I grabbed a few chips off her plate and headed out the front door. On my way down the sidewalk, I spotted Jeremih leaning up against my car. I inhaled a deep breath and let it out slowly.
“Where you skating off to? No goodbye or nothing.”
I held up my phone.
“Yeah, yeah. Business as usual.” He tugged at my shirt and pulled me in closer. “You’re not getting away without at least giving me a hug.”
I extended my arms and tilted my head to the side. Fighting with him was useless. One way or the other, he always found a way to get what and who he wanted.
He wrapped his toned arms around me and squeezed tight. Before he released me from his grasp, he placed a gentle kiss on my neck. “Girl, you smell so good I wanna eat you right now.”
As bad as I wanted to take him back to my place and ride his face, I had shit to do. My assistant manager, Trina, had to deal with some family issues, which meant I had to take a trip. I couldn’t trust anyone else to deliver the package to Miami.
“I can’t. I got some stuff to handle.”
“Well. That’s your loss,” he said, nibbling on my ear.
He was right. His head game was fire. It’s one of the reasons I kept dealing with him in the first place. Sure, his caramel skin, slanted eyes, and perfect abs were a bonus, but he was a thot. Jeremih couldn’t keep his hands to himself and I didn’t have the time nor the energy to be fighting over him.
“I have to go.”
He stepped aside and opened my car door. “As you wish.”
I hopped in and turned the key in the ignition.
“If you change your mind, you know the number.”
He closed the door and stepped away from the car. I drove off slowly, glancing at my side mirror. I almost put the car in reverse, but I needed to meet up with Trina and get some things squared away first.
When I pulled up in front of my store, Trina was vacuuming the floor. I killed the ignition, grabbed my purse off the backseat, and went inside the building.
“Trina. Why are you still cleaning up? It can wait til tomorrow.” I took the vacuum from her and placed it against the wall. “Come and sit down.”
She moved in slow motion across the room and when she sat down on the bench the tears started flowing from her eyes.
“What the hell happened?”
“Somebody killed my nephew over a dice game.”
I shook my head. I didn’t know what to say. As I sat across the table from her, I tried to recall all the things people said to me when my father and stepmother died. My mind drew a blank, so I did the next best thing and gave her a tight hug. We sat for a few minutes in silence as she got the tears out.
“I don’t know what I’m gonna do. My brother can’t afford a funeral,” she said.
“
Don’t worry about it. I got you.”
She sat up and wiped her face. “I can’t ask you to do that. I don’t want any handouts.”
“It’s not a handout. I gotta make the run to Miami and I need someone to take care of the store. You know the pieces from LA are coming in this week. We’d be doing each other a solid.” I pulled out my wallet and wrote her a check. “Here. One less thing for the family to worry about. Now, go home and get some rest.”
“Thanks, Lena. I’ll be here first thing in the morning. I need something to occupy my mind anyway.”
“No problem. I’ll send Syreena up here to help out while I’m gone.”
I hugged her again before she gathered her belongings and walked out to her car. Sitting back on the bench, I attempted to process everything. Trina’s nephew was like my nephew, I practically watched him grow up. The shit didn’t make any sense.
After sitting in silence and collecting my thoughts, I decided to give trusty old Jeremih a call. The phone didn’t even ring twice before he answered.
“You changed your mind, huh?”
“Maybe. Are you still at the party?”
“About to slide now. I can be at your crib in thirty minutes.”
“Make it twenty. And not a minute later.”
I hung up the phone and sent Syreena a text to update her about everything. Then I grabbed my keys off the table and locked up the store. Now that business was straight, the pleasure was calling my name.
Loud and clear.
***
When my alarm went off the next morning, I sat up in bed and wiped the sleep from my eyes. Jeremih lay stretched out with the sheet covering only his bottom half. For a moment, I just admired his frame. The man was too sexy for his own damn good.
Tracing my fingers from his chest down to his washboard abs I said, “Wake up, Jeremih.”
“I’m up.” He reached over and pulled me on top of him, running his fingers through my curls.
“When are you gonna stop playing with me?”
“What do you mean? You’re the one with the hoes, a different one every week to be exact.”
“That’s because you put your business before everything.”
“What do you expect me to do, huh? That's all I have.”
“Right. And if you continue down this road, it’s all you’ll ever have. Don’t you want a family someday?”
Laying down on his chest, I reminisced on the night when Syreena broke the news of her pregnancy. I remember the excitement that coursed through my body.
“I do, but…”
“But what? Just say the words and I’ll cut everybody off.”
“It’s not the right time.”
Speaking of time, I had about an hour to get on the road if I wanted to make it to the meeting on time. I kissed him softly and hopped out of bed.
“Damn, girl. I hate to see you go, but I love to watch you leave.”
“Are you a part of Young Money now?”
He laughed and reached for his shorts as I headed to the bathroom. As usual, he had to turn his ringer back on and check in with his hoes.
Five minutes into my shower, Jeremih joined me. Chills coursed through my body as his lips gently grazed my skin. After suckling on my breast like a baby, he dropped to his knees. A soft moan escaped my lips as his tongue made contact with my womanly secrets.
I felt like R. Kelly for a minute, with my mind telling me no, but my body telling me yes. Even though time was of the essence, Jeremih’s mouth demanded control of the situation, and I was at his mercy.
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