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Bria cackled, making him smile. “Oh, my goodness. I didn’t know I was married to an alpha man. You can hang with women. It’s not gonna make you look like a punk.”

“Nah, I’m straight. I’ll just celebrate you when it’s only me and you.”

“Whatever, when are you gonna come home?”

He glanced at the guy who groaned out of his slumber. “In a minute. Let me take care of some business, and I’ll be there. Make sure you naked.”

“Okay, Lo. I’ll see you when you get home.”

“Yep.”

He finished the call and sat in deep thought for a while.

His mood had improved drastically. The remnants from his depressing reverie had evaporated from the sound of Bria’s voice.

Her ability to soothe Lo was scary but comforting.

Depending on someone else to boost his mood made him uncomfortable.

However, she was his wife, so he would embrace it until she showed him something that he didn’t like.

“To my mothafuckin’ sister who just booked a Nike campaign! This is to you, Bria! Keep shining on these hoes and proving them wrong! Cheers!”

Bria clinked her glass with Cali and swallowed the shot in one gulp.

Her face was wretched in discomfort as the alcohol coated her throat.

Upon her sister’s insistence, they were at Crown City having a night of fun and celebrating her recent win.

The club was packed with live entertainment on stage.

This particular night, singer, Micas, sang about falling deep for a man who was dangerous.

Bria identified with the lyrics so much since Lo had been everything but a safe space for her.

“Enya gonna be mad when she find out she wasn’t invited.” Cali chuckled.

Bria snorted and rolled her eyes. Enya hadn’t been invited due to her spreading her business to her mother. It was just Bria and Cali dancing, drinking, and escaping their reality for the night.

“She’ll be alright. Let her ass go party with Mama since she wants to run her mouth.”

“I’m surprise your man let you come out. Where is he?”

Bria hadn’t seen Lo since the afternoon when he left the house. “I don’t know. I can’t keep up with him.”

“Girl, please. I be on Rio’s ass making sure he’s not doing what I’m doing.” She winked.

Bria jokingly rolled her eyes. “You really need to quit before you get caught.”

Waving her hand dismissively, Cali retorted, “I’m too slick to get caught.”

“Yeah, okay,” she shot sarcastically.

“No, but for real. Have things gotten better with you and Lo?”

Bria nodded, “Yeah, I think I’m falling for him. He’s showing me other parts of him that I really, really like.”

“See, I told you that man wasn’t going to hurt you. He may be a little off, but I think he cares about you.”

“How the hell would you know?” Bria quipped, bopping to the beat.

“Because if he wanted to do something to you, he would’ve done it. You guys actually look good together. I can’t wait to see what your babies will look like.”

“Hopefully, that won’t happen anytime soon. I got more work to do.”

“Did you get the part for Swan Lake?”

Before Bria could answer, her phone buzzed in her hand. She looked at the screen and grinned immediately.

Lo: When are u coming home?

Bria: Why? You must miss me?

Lo: Like crazy. I ain't seen u all day.

Bria: I’ll be home soon.

Lo: Send me a pic.

Bria: What kind?

Lo: Pussy.

Bria: You're so nasty LOL. I’m at the club. Did you forget that?

Lo: No, I didn’t. Now figure out a way to give me what I want.

She sighed but she was lowkey turned on. “I gotta use the bathroom.”

Cali nodded, and Bria maneuvered through the crowd toward the hallway.

Approaching a line, she waited several minutes before she was inside the bathroom.

Going into a stall, Bria lifted her tennis skirt and pulled her panties to the side.

She took two flicks of her pussy and sent them to Lo.

While waiting for a text, she was surprised when he called her.

“Hello?”

“When you coming home?”

She chortled. “Why?”

“Because you got my dick hard. I need you home.”

“It’ll be a while before I get there. Be patient.”

He sighed. “You know I’ll come up there and kidnap the shit outta you. I need a time, Bria.”

“I don’t know,” she fussed. “Around two-thirty.”

“No, be home before then.”

Huffing, she retorted, “Lo please. I’m celebrating with my sister, remember?”

There was a pause before he said, “A’ight, I’ma chill but I want that pussy wet when you get home.”

“I got you, baby.”

“Hit me when you leave.”

“Alright.”

Blushing from her call with Lo, Bria exited the stall and washed her hands. Walking down the hallway, she noticed Meco talking to a guy near the bar.

“Hey, Meco.”

He turned around and gave her a nod of acknowledgment. “What’s up, Bria? Bro know you here?”

Smacking her lips, she replied, “I don’t have to tell him my every move.”

Meco twisted his lips, causing her to laugh. “I don’t know why you cappin’. You know that nigga tracks your every move. Stop playing.”

“Okay, okay, yes, he knows I’m here so don’t report my every move to him.”

He smirked. “I got you.”

Bria resumed her seat at the bar where Cali took flicks of herself. “Okay, I’m back.”

“You had to take a shit?”

“No, it was a line, so I had to wait.”

Looking around, Bria took in the crowd. Her gaze centered near the door and when she narrowed her eyes, she spotted a familiar face.

“Oh, shit,” she whispered, slipping off the stool.

Dough entered with black shades concealing his eyes. He was dressed in all black with two men standing right beside him.

What the hell is he doing here…

With her sight still fixated on Dough, she tapped Cali.

“What?” she sassed before her line of sight followed Bria’s. “Ooh, girl. What the hell is he doing here?”

“I don’t know.” Bria watched him closely as he pointed. She turned to see what had his attention and gasped right away when she noticed it was Meco.

“Oh, no,” she whispered, shaking her head.

Dough nodded to his homeboy who then proceeded to walk through the crowd. Bria saw the plot before it came to fruition. It was like watching a scene in a movie and knowing what the outcome would be before it happened.

“Oh, shit, he’s got a gun,” Cali warned, gripping Bria’s arm.

Dough had gotten it wrong. He had boldly stepped inside the club, pointing out the wrong person.

Meco wasn’t Lo but he didn’t know that. All he saw were the same features of the culprit who had mutilated his body.

The memories had to be horrendous for him.

Being beat to scraps had to affect his manhood.

Revenge was evident but he had the wrong person, and Bria would never be able to live with herself if she sat idle and didn’t attempt to intervene.

The guy raised his gun, promoting screams to blare and chaos to ensue.

His finger was on the trigger, preparing to fire shots into Meco whose back was turned.

Bria knew she had one shot to interrupt what would be a tragedy.

Her heart pumped wildly, causing her chest to tighten.

Her arms were outstretched as the chaos played in the distance.

She lunged forward, pushing the guy with all her might.

A shot rang out, piercing her ear drum like loud music at a rock concert.

He fell to the side with her falling forward.

“Oh my God. Sis, come on!” Cali yelled.

Bria hit the floor hard. Her bones ached immediately. People ran toward the exit. Some stepping over her and then some trampling her back.

“Oooowww!” she screamed when a sharp pain radiated through her wrist.

She looked up and saw the guy who had been aiming at Meco trying to locate his gun. He scrambled on the floor until a gun was pressed to the back of his head. One shot was let off, prompting his body to go limp within a split second.

“Oh, my God,” Bria whispered as his eyes landed on her.

He was struggling with the reality of his life coming to an end.

There was panic inside his orbs. A silent plea to help him hold on to whatever life that was vanishing from his body.

Bria didn’t have time to decipher if she wanted to help because she was snatched from the floor.

When she realized it was Meco grabbing her, she breathed a sigh of relief.

“Wait up for me!” Cali yelled, following closely behind.

Meco was on a mission to get Bria far away from the scene as possible.

They made it outside with Bria holding her arm to soothe the aching sensation from her wrist. Patrons ran for dear life toward their cars while sirens rang out in the distance.

Meco turned to her, wearing the same expression Lo possessed when murder was on his mind.

“Aye, get the fuck outta here while I handle this. I’ll call Lo and tell him what happened.”

Bria knew not to question him, so she nodded.

Cali quickly held her uninjured arm and helped her to the car. Bria whimpered as she sat on the passenger side. The pain had transcended up her forearm as Cali helped her inside.

“You okay, Bria?”

She shook her head, realizing something felt wrong. There was so much on her plate. She had things to accomplish and not being able to perform, caused tears to surface in her eyes.

“It’s okay. I’m about to get you to the hospital.”

Cali closed the door and rounded the car to get inside. Bria shook her head, praying silently because she couldn’t afford to be injured.

“Aye, I heard it’s about to be a shake up with The Legacy Mafia. I heard one of the lieutenants been talking to the feds, but he don’t know the boss knows about it,” Axel said.

Lo, Devyn, and Axel were inside a warehouse talking business. Devyn wanted to send him on a mission to secure a contract with a developer that was trying to infiltrate their territory.

“I heard something about that, too,” Devyn added. “Ain’t no order over there. I heard that nigga, Noble, got some plans since he finally got in the top seat.”