Page 3 of Gaining the Heart of a Gemini (BLP Signs of Love #15)

Him.

“How are you feeling, Papi?” I asked my father as I entered his room to see one of the nurses setting up for his treatment.

Papi released a long, exasperated sigh and shrugged. “I’m making it, Hijo. You know how it is when I get my treatments. It wears on my body.”

I walked over and took the seat closest to his bed.

He held his wrinkled hand out for me to grab.

I held onto it, letting him squeeze when the nurse inserted the IV.

None of us had ever been good with needles, but we powered through for him.

To see him getting stuck every week, like clockwork, pained me.

If I could take it all away from him, I would.

“You good?”

Slowly, Papi nodded his head with his hazel eyes closed. “I’ll be fine. I’m extremely tired today, but I promised your mother I would have lunch with her afterward.”

“You know she’ll understand if you’re not up to it. Don’t push yourself.”

“I’m tired of letting her down, Klay. I’m tired of letting everyone around me down. This illness has taken over my life in the worst way. I pray things get better, but they only seem to be getting worse.”

The defeat in my father’s tone weighed heavily on me. It was tough being the oldest because he wouldn’t confide in anyone but me. I carried the weight of more than the eye could see, only because my father trusted me with it.

It wasn’t by choice but by force.

I scooted my chair closer to his bed and kissed the back of his hand.

“I’m not trying to hear that bullshit, man.

Don’t think like that. Don’t talk like that.

You know things always get worse before they get better.

The doctors told us it would be a rough journey, but they are confident you’ll beat this. ”

“I’m not sure if I believe that anymore, Klay. It’s been two years, and I can feel my body changing. I feel my body slowly shutting down on me. There’s nothing me, you, or anyone else can do about it. When it’s my time to go, it’s my time.”

My attention went to the nurse, whose eyes were watery. I waited until she was finished getting Papi hooked up to everything and left before redirecting the conversation. I hated when he got heavy on me. The heaviness would linger on me all day, and the only thing I could do was hide it.

“Grove Shadows is growing. I think it’s time we expand to keep up with the demand of everything. It doesn’t even have to be anything like Grove Shadows, honestly. We can create something new, but we gotta do it within the next few months, or we won’t be able to keep up.”

“What do you have in mind? And have you talked to Patrick about it?”

“We’re on the same page about everything. You know I don’t do shit without consulting him. He agrees, so I thought I’d talk it over with you.”

“Well, I won’t be here much longer.”

I leaned back and expelled a frustrated breath. “What I tell you about that negative shit, Papi?”

“It’s the truth. Regardless, you know I trust you and Patrick more than anyone else in life outside of your mother and sister. If y’all feel we need to make a move, make it. Don’t wait around for me. Keep building the empire, Hijo.”

“I’m not doing this forever. I want out within the next year.”

For the first time, Papi chuckled. He glanced over at me with amusement dancing in his weary eyes. “You know what the conditions are for that, and I haven’t seen you be serious about any woman. You have more time than you think.”

“How you know what I got going on? You don’t know who I’m fuckin’.”

“Exactly. You’re only fuckin’ these young girls, Klay. You’re not in a committed relationship. There’s a difference.”

“You don’t think I know that?”

“Act like you do.”

All I could do was chuckle. It felt good to hear him come back at me. The banter between us was a good sign. He may have been talking out the side of his neck, but his spirits were high. I needed him to stay that way.

The thought of losing my father to prostate cancer didn’t sit right with me.

Quite frankly, the shit pissed me off. Javier Ramirez was my best friend.

I grew up being his shadow, trying to do any and everything he did.

He never missed a beat when it came to me and my sister.

No matter what, he was there, and I strived to be a man like him.

I sat with my father for an hour, and he eventually drifted off to sleep. His treatments were for three hours, so I usually sat with him for half of it, then my mother or sister took the other half.

Just as I rose to my feet, my sister came strutting through the door with Papi’s favorite game in hand. She stopped in her tracks and pouted when she realized he was asleep.

“I thought he’d stay up today. How’s he doing?” she asked, setting her purse and the game on one of the chairs. She made her way over to me, and I greeted her with a hug and kiss to the top of her curly-covered head.

“Been talking shit, so that’s a good thing. He’s tired. You know how it is with these treatments.”

“I know. It’s hard sitting here with him, Hermano. To see him fight through the pain, knowing there isn’t anything we can do about it is agonizing. I keep a strong face for him, but I slowly die on the inside each time.”

Light sniffles escaped her lips. I pulled her in closer to me, draping my other arm around her as she buried her face into my chest. Softly, she cried. The small jerks of her body tugged at me. It was rough on all of us. Papi was the glue of the family. We were all suffering behind his illness.

“If anyone understands, it’s me.”

Karmen held me tighter. “Don’t think I don’t see how this affects you too, Klay. It’s okay to lean on me like we all do you.”

I pulled away from her and took a step back with my hands in my pockets. “I’m good.”

With a roll of her deep amber eyes which matched mine, Karmen walked over to Papi’s bed. “You’re not, and that’s totally fine. Are you about to head to the Shadows?”

“Yeah, I need to talk to Patrick and make sure shit is running good. If there aren’t any fuck-ups, I’m going to the house.

“You want company later?”

“Nah. Not really.”

“I’m not asking next time,” Karmen expressed with the corner of her full lips drawing up. “You’ll accept my love and support even when you don’t want to.”

I chuckled, rubbing my hands through my low beard. “I do accept it, Hermana. In my own way, but I do.”

“I know. Te quiero (I love you).”

“Te quiero más (I love you more).”

My gaze fell upon my father and remained there until my mind stopped going a mile a minute.

I exited out of the room and whispered a silent prayer for us all.

Since my mother wasn’t home, I headed straight outside to my truck and eased toward the end of the driveway.

After the guard let me out, I turned left to head to Grove Shadows.

I glanced in my rearview mirror to see one of the security trucks a few cars behind me. It was rare I could ride around the city alone. Not because I wasn’t equipped to. What it all boiled down to was who I was and who I was connected to.

The life of being a Ramirez was one I wished came with a warning label.

Being the firstborn son of Javier Ramirez came with a lot of responsibility.

My mother said it all started from the womb, and I believed her.

My life had never been normal. From a young age, I was taught shit I shouldn’t have been privy to until I was an adult.

All Ramirez men were groomed, and I planned on breaking that cycle.

I arrived at the casino and parked in the back. Immediately, two guards came out to escort me in. Once I was inside, I headed straight to Patrick’s office.

“What’s poppin’, Pat?” I greeted him. He was standing in front of the cameras lining his wall, intently studying a particular area of the building.

“Come. Tell me what you see.”

My legs glided me over to where he was standing.

I stood beside him as he pointed to the screen he was staring at.

With my eyes squinted, I leaned in to get a better look at the Blackjack table.

Two of our servers were standing close to the dealer.

He slipped one of them a few chips, and they slid them into their pocket.

“Fuck.” I groaned, craning my neck back and staring up at the ceiling. I lowered it back and glared at the side of Patrick’s face. “How long do you think that’s been going on?”

“I don’t think long, or we would’ve noticed. We keep a close eye on shit, but mistakes can always happen.”

“Mistakes we don’t need to fuckin’ happen. I’m about to go handle it.”

Patrick faced me and asked, “You need me to come with you?”

“Nah. I’m good. I got some pent-up emotions I need to let out.”

“How’s Javier?”

Without responding, I turned and walked out his office.

Patrick and my father were best friends.

Patrick had been in my life for as long as I could remember, so I respected him.

He was a good man who genuinely cared about my father and took care of his family.

I understood he meant no harm when he asked about my father, but it irritated me.

The two of them communicated every day, so what was the point in asking me when he knew?

I stepped on the elevator and headed to the bottom floor where the casino was. Another thing that irritated me was the way people would stop and stare whenever I entered a room. Never had I been the one to show my face often, so whenever I did, it was either good or bad. No in between.

Once I made it into the casino, I motioned for one of the security guards to follow me as I swaggered through the crowd.

The Blackjack table Patrick showed me was in the back of the room in the far left.

One of the servers was the first to notice me.

His eyes ballooned as he used the back of his hand to tap his friend.

Right then, it was the only time I enjoyed all eyes being on me.

Not wanting to be rude, I acknowledged my guests at the table. “Good evening. Thank you for being here. I hate to interrupt your game, but I need the four of you to step away for a minute. You’ll have a complimentary round on the house for the inconvenience.”

The moment the guests walked away, I straightened my posture with my hands clasped in front of me. “Empty your pockets, and don’t make me repeat myself. I’d hate to embarrass you any more than I need to.”

“My pockets are empty,” the dealer stated, staring back and forth between the servers.

“Did I fuckin’ ask you that?”

“N-no.”

“So do what the fuck I said before I do it for you.”

Each of them scrambled with their pockets until they were empty as I asked.

I watched as chips poured onto the table.

My thumb swiped across my nose as I released a low, menacing chuckle.

The fear etched on their faces was amusing.

None of them moved a muscle, and it was best they kept it that way.

My mind was in overdrive thinking of what their consequences could be.

Losing their jobs wasn’t enough. Their lives? Maybe.

Coolly, I leaned against the table and observed my nails, noting I would need a manicure after this. For minutes, I simply grilled them without speaking. When I raised my hands and clapped three times, more security appeared, including my head honcho, Razor.

“Razor.”

“Yes, boss?”

“Take these three muthafuckas downstairs. I’ll be right down,” I informed him and walked away.

For an hour, I did my rounds of every inch of Grove Shadows.

My guard was now up with everyone employed there.

To know we had some thieves amongst us didn’t sit right with me.

It made me want to fire everyone and run the shit myself.

Since I knew that wouldn’t suffice, I had some other things in mind.

When I was finally satisfied, I got on the elevator to meet Patrick before going down to the basement. On the way down, I gave him a brief rundown on everything.

“What you got in mind?” Patrick questioned as we entered the basement.

I slid my arms into the plastic suit waiting for me and hunched my shoulders. “Cut their hands off. Nothing major.”

Patrick shook his head and laughed. “I like the way you think.”