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Story: The Love of Priest 2

"That ain't enough." Priest shook his head, disagreeing. "This ain't the first time I did some shit like this. Even though this time around wasn't necessarily my fault to begin with, I'm still the one to blame because I thought I could do it all myself. I fucking can't," he harshly admitted to himself.

Britain reached over the center console, cupping his hand in hers while he kept his other hand on the wheel. "You get it now. It won't happen again unless you allow it. Something tells me you won’t ever allow it to."

"Damn right.”

For the rest of the ride to the ramp, the two didn't share any conversation. It was clear that he was strategizing in his head, and Britain didn't want to interrupt that. She kept to herself, keeping herself occupied on her phone.Once the car came to a smooth halt, she glanced up from her phone. She had grown used to the ramp by now, no longer in awe by the sight of all the private aircrafts. It became her new normal. With ease, she could spot Priest's jet amongst all the other jets.

Knowing that he was already on thin ice with the men, Priest was on point with his timing. He arrived just as the jet doorswere being let down.Putting the car in park, he stepped out, allowing his sneakers to hit the tarmac. He made his way around the vehicle, assisting Britain out as well. Together, the two leaned against the Range Rover, waiting for Kaymen and J'Ru to disembark the jet.

As the sun beamed down and the wind circulated a cool breeze around them, they watched as J'Ru made his way down the steps before he was followed by Kaymen. "This shit ain't that bad!" J'Ru exclaimed as he gleefully made his way over. "Got me feeling like I'm on some real mafia shit!"

Priest laughed as he met J'Ru for a brotherly hug. "Shut your dumb ass up," he told him as they slapped hands for their signature handshake.

J'Ru ventured off to greet Britain with a hug as Priest did the same with Kaymen. "Long time no see," Kaymen joked as they dapped each other up.

As Kaymen made his way over to greet Britain, Priest glanced over at the jet. He noticed someone else was stepping off the plane, which caused him to furrow his brows. With her long jet-black hair flowing in the light breeze, Jazzy descended the steps of the jet. She had her beaming and contagious smile etched on her face while she pushed her square Louis Vuitton sunglasses up to shield her orbs from the sun.

"Yo, what Jazzy doing here? This ain't no family trip," Priest questioned them as he screwed up his face. He wasn't much of a fan of surprises. He liked being prepared, and at this moment, he wasn't prepared to have his little sister in Italy.

"Loosen the fuck up," J'Ru encouraged Priest as he nudged his shoulder.

"I guess you could have went without seeing me?" Jazzy asked Priest, completely disappointed by his reaction to her being in Italy.

Smacking his lips lightly, Priest turned to Jazzy. "It ain't like that," he clarified. "This not a visit I intended you to be on. We're working," he explained while pulling her into a hug in hopes of making her feel welcome.

J'Ru and Kaymen exchanged glances with each other. They had yet to say anything to Priest about involving Jazzy in the business. Her connection with Avery saved their asses, truth be told. Despite the meeting getting derailed due to her personal issues with Avery's husband, she still managed to secure the deal they needed. That instance was enough to let J'Ru and Kaymen know Jazzy wasn't as naive and inexperienced as they assumed. All she had to do was get her feet wet. Jazzlyn had been overseeing the finances ever since. She was handling herself well, so they thought it would be okay if she came along on this visit.

"Well, I'll keep her busy," Britain cut in as she and Jazzy shared a hug.

"Who's taking care of everything back in the city if we're all here?" Priest questioned as he motioned his finger between himself, Kaymen, J'Ru and Jazzy.

An exasperated grimace etched J'Ru's face due to Priest's line of questioning. "Nigga, fall back. Do you really think me and Kay would just pick up and leave without making sure everything was good?" J'Ru turned his lip up at him. "We got Remy on standby to make sure everything running how it's supposed to."

Satisfied with Remy being left to hold everything down, Priest decided not to give anyone a hard time. Together, they made their way to the car. He assisted Britain into the car before holding the door for Jazzy as well while J'Ru and Kaymen loaded the luggage into the trunk. Once they were all on the vehicle, he peeled off the premises of the ramp, heading in the direction of the estate.

Eventually, they arrived at the gates of the estate. Jazzy had never visited Italy, and Kaymen and J'Ru had only been twice before. When they visited Priest in Italy, the estate was only an idea he had. Now, being able to see what used to be an idea come to fruition was a full circle moment.

"So, this why you were so willing to do the double life shit?" Kaymen teased Priest as he motioned his hand toward the estate.

Priest chuckled as he grabbed Jazzy's luggage for her. "I mean, I can't complain," he shrugged his broad shoulders.

Priest and Britain were able to get everyone settled into the home so they could decompress from their long flights. There wasn't much planned for today, but the following day, Kaymen and J'Ru had a sit down with the connect who wanted no dealings with Priest. Despite them making it clear that Priest was too high profile for their business, Kaymen and J'Ru were confident that if they showed up with their fresh faces, they would seal the deal. However, if they couldn't win them over, they would just have to go against Priest's demands and find something out in the city, no matter how much tension it would brew.

In the kitchen, Britain stood at the sink washing her hands before she began prepping for the meal she was cooking for their arrival. Priest initially called for the chef, but Britain made a good point about J'Ru not being into any of the full course meals the chef would have to offer. He didn't care how far Italy was. J'Ru wasn't interested in expanding his pallet.

As she dried her hands, Britain felt Priest's arms snake around her waist. He craned down, pressing his tender lips against her cheek. "Since you're in here, you might as well get put to work," she suggested, causing Priest to chuckle.

"Nah, this all you," he shook his head, declining to assist in the kitchen.

Jokingly, she smacked her lips. "You wouldn't be much help anyway."

"Glad you know, Gioia.”

He released her from his hold, allowing her to move about their grand kitchen at her leisure. He couldn't help but admire how she managed to be so graceful with everything she did. As she chopped and diced the aromatic vegetables, she felt his gaze, which caused her to look up from the cutting board. "You were going on and on about this visit turning into a disaster, and look how good it's going," Britain said to Priest, referring to Kaymen, J'Ru and now Jazzlyn.

Priest waved Britain off. "They just got here. This is the calm before the storm," he warned.

As Britain laughed at his dramatics, Jazzy came strolling into the kitchen. She had retired her Louis Vuitton sunglasses, changed her sneakers into some comfortable slippers and pulled her long jet-black tresses into a laid-back ponytail.