Page 50 of Search My Soul (Taylor Family Saga #3)

The DJ was playing hit after hit, and the club was packed from wall to wall. My cousins were having the time of their lives celebrating their birthday tonight, and they brought the whole city out.

“Take another shot, trick!” Peaches staggered over to me with a bottle of Don Julio in her hands. We had been drinking since we left their party, and I lost count of how many shots we had taken.

“Peaches, I’m already drunk.”

“Girl, I’m not tryna hear any excuses. Tank and Ant are our designated drivers, and you already know my brothers are not gonna let anything happen to us.

” She wasn’t lying. My cousins were known for wreaking havoc wherever they went.

Tank had just gotten out of prison six months ago, and we were praying he stayed out of trouble this time around.

“I know, but?—”

“But nothing. Open your mouth and take this shot.” My phone rang, and Peaches snatched the phone from my hands and stuffed it in her cross body purse.

“No phones. We are here to turn up and celebrate. You can worry about this phone when we leave.” Peaches was a bossy Virgo who didn’t believe in the word no, so I never bothered to argue with her. Even though I was a few years older, her and Passion used to boss us all around as kids.

“Whatever. Give me the damn shot.” The only reason I wasn’t tripping was because my man had been out of town for the last few days. He wasn’t due back until Monday, and I fully planned to shut the world out when he touched down.

“Oh, they’re playin’ our song!” Passion screamed as the DJ played “Ride It” by D-Roc and Masego. I loved both artists separately, but together, there were masterminds.

Peaches grabbed my hand, and we followed Passion onto the dance floor.

We pushed through a crowd of people until we got close to the middle.

My cousins loved to be the center of attention, so I wasn’t surprised at all.

The twins bent over and wobbled their asses to the music as the crowd around us cheered them on.

The DJ shouted them out for their birthday which only made them go harder.

I stood there hyping them up, but the minute Peaches realized I wasn’t dancing, she yanked me over to her.

“Don’t play with me, cousin. You got too much ass not to shake it. Come on.” I rolled my eyes but decided to let my hair down and live for the moment. The DJ played another one of our favorites, and I took that as a sign.

My dress was short, so I wasn’t trying to do too much.

I wore shorts underneath it, but I still wanted to be cautious.

My cousins hyped me up as I dropped down to a squat and twerked to the beat.

More people stood around as we had a battle between the three of us.

Three songs later, and I was ready to throw in the towel before they played a classic.

One of those classic songs that brought everybody to the dance floor.

I promised myself this would be the last one because I needed some water.

As I bent over, I felt someone come up behind me.

When I turned around, I saw that it was a man I went to school with.

I used to have a crush on him in middle school, but he was one of the popular guys in school, so all the girls wanted him.

Kasir White. He was cute in school, but the man in front of me was downright gorgeous now.

Not as handsome as my man, but he could have definitely been a model.

“Don’t stop now,” he encouraged. The liquor clouded my judgment, as I should have stepped away and returned to the section. Instead, I decided to keep dancing and enjoy the vibes. “I see you finally learned how to dance,” Kasir teased as he gave me those bedroom eyes.

“You’ve got jokes. I’m not the one who used to step on people’s toes at Winter Formal,” I shot back.

“Well, times have definitely changed and so have you. I mean, you’ve always been beautiful, but damn.

You are one of the prettiest women in this building.

I know you must have a man because there’s no way someone hasn’t locked you down.

” His statement sobered me up a bit as I remembered that I did in fact have a man, and a crazy one at that.

“Actually, I do have a man.”

“Are you happy? A lot of women are in relationships, but is he taking care of you the way you need to be taken care of?” The club was loud, so he was talking in my ear.

I started to feel uncomfortable as we stood there in the middle of the dance floor.

My man may not have been here physically, but I was still a reflection of him.

All it would take was one person to see me with another man and take a picture.

It might be innocent on my end, but it may not look that way to him.

“I’m happy. It was nice to see you again. You take care of yourself.” I tried to curve him the nicest way possible because men’s egos could be a dangerous thing.

“You too. If at any point your man stops being what you need, come find me.” Kasir winked then disappeared into the crowd. The man was fine as hell, but he wasn’t worth losing Soul. No man would ever be worth that.

After the dance, I decided to go back up to the section, so I could grab a bottle of water. My thighs were dripping with sweat, so I planned to make my way to the bathroom after I got some water.

“Bitch, you were out there throwing that thang!” Peaches cheered as she sipped from her own bottle of water.

“And now I’m burning up. I feel like I need to go outside to get some air or something.”

“Fuck all of that. Who was that fine ass chocolate Adonis you were dancing with? I’ve never seen him before, but I would be willing to do something strange for a few minutes with him,” Passion interjected.

“Girl, please get your life together. His name is Kasir. He’s related to Alayni and Kadeem White.”

“Oh, I remember him now. Hell, Kadeem is fine as hell too. I was heartbroken when he got married. That was supposed to be my man and my babies.” Passion pouted with her arms folded as if she was really upset.

“I love you, cousin, but get the hell away from me with that fake ass pout. Don’t you have five men on your roster right now?”

“So what? I can always make room for another one. Don’t be a hater.

” I waved her off and got ready to head to the bathroom.

When I stood up, I saw this group of men entering our section.

One of them was talking to security, and I saw him point his finger in my direction.

He looked familiar, but I wasn’t sure where I knew him from.

“Damn Huncho is fine for no damn reason,” Peaches called out.

My mind began to play his name over again in my head and it dawned on me where I knew him from.

Soul. My stomach twisted like a child who got caught doing something they weren’t supposed to.

Huncho sauntered over to us with a stone expression on his face.

Women were shaking ass and dancing all around us, but his eyes were locked on me.

“Shit,” I whispered to myself, knowing this probably wasn’t a pleasant visit.

“Neeya, right?” he asked, but it was clear he knew the answer.

“Y-Yeah, that’s me.”

“Grim is waiting for you outside.” I gulped, taking note that he called him by his street name and not his real one.

“Oh, umm, okay.” I stepped forward to head out, but he halted me.

“Get all of your things. You won’t be coming back.” The warning could be heard in his tone, and I realized that I was in trouble.

“Wait. What do you mean she isn’t coming back? Where the hell do you think you’re taking her?” Peaches stepped forward and stood in front of me. Huncho blatantly ignored her and kept his eyes on me.

“Hey, I need my phone. Soul is outside and I’m getting ready to head out.”

“Aww, come on. It’s our birthday, Nee-nee. You can lay up with your man any day of the week. This is supposed to be our time together.” She whined as she removed my phone from her purse. I noticed it was turned off which worried me even more.

“Either she comes outside, or he comes in here, and I promise if it comes to that, your birthday will be over with.” Peaches glanced between the two of us before she stepped aside.

“Call me as soon as you make it home. If that nigga tries to put his hands on you, we’ll jump him.” Huncho chuckled as he shook his head at Peaches. We were good for a tag team, but I would never go up against Soul in that way. Unless he really pissed me off.

“We are not jumping my man, but I appreciate your loyalty, cousin. I’ll call you tomorrow.

I love y’all.” I gave them both hugs then said my goodbyes to everyone.

Huncho followed behind me, and the men who were at the entrance of the section walked in front of us.

It made me feel like I had security around me, and I noticed people staring and whispering.

Once we made it outside, they walked around the side of the club.

No one spoke a word as I followed them to this dark alley on the other side of the club.

When we turned the corner, my eyes landed on Soul.

He was dressed in a black tailored suit smoking a blunt while he leaned against a car I wasn’t familiar with.

My man looked good enough to eat, but the darkness in his eyes told me now wasn’t the time.

Once we made it to where he was, he shook hands with the men before they headed to their individual cars. Huncho and another man stayed behind but walked a couple of feet away from us. My hands were behind my back as I stood in front of him. He continued to smoke his blunt, completely ignoring me.

My heart was beating so wildly, I swore I could hear it. There was something sexy yet dangerous about the man in front of me. I was aware there were two sides to Soul, but I’ve only ever encountered one. Based on his temperament, I could tell I wasn’t dealing with Soul. This was Grim.

“Where’s your phone?” His eyes never met mine, but the question was clear.