Page 58

Chapter Forty-Four

Britain laid with her back against Priest’s chest. Their attention was casted onto her laptop that was live streaming a sermon from their go-to pastor, Riva Holmes. She was young, relatable and wise beyond her years. Priest and Britain always related to her sermons simply because she didn't harp on the same issue and topic constantly. She pushed the envelope and talked about things that even Priest and Britain weren't comfortable talking about.

Over Britain's shoulders, Priest shifted his dark orbs from the laptop onto the stack of sticky notes Britain kept on hand next to her chiseled point pen. Every so often, she would jot down stuff worth remembering during the sermon. The points she really wanted to remember were marked with an asterisk.

This had become a normality for Britain. Priest enjoyed watching her take her notes. She had great penmanship. Her small details, like adding a heart above her I's and below her exclamation marks, always amused Priest. He loved how she kept her innocence when it came to little things. He was sure that her added hearts in her penmanship were something she did as a child and had carried with her into adulthood.

Reaching over her, Priest grabbed the stack of neon pink sticky notes that she inked with her black pen. " Being selfish isn't the same as putting you first ," Priest read aloud the note she jotted down.

Britain nodded, letting the statement resonate with her once more. She took ahold of the sticky notes, peeling the quote from the top. Priest laughed as she stuck it directly on his forehead. They both knew how much he struggled with putting himself first over taking care of everyone else. Priest’s biggest fear was not doing enough. He had so much to offer, and it just wouldn't have sat right with him if he was constantly thinking of himself.

"Alright. I'll take that to the chin.” His laughter settled as he plucked the sticky note off his forehead.

"It's alright, P. We're learning." She smirked as she rested her head back onto his chest. This time, she turned around to wrap her arms around him.

The two watched the remainder of the sermon in silence. Once the live stream came to an end, Priest and Britain shared a prayer before taking time to say their own in silence. It always felt revitalizing to do these types of things with Priest. He found interest in connecting with The Man Above beyond just praying when things got rough. Priest was an active believer in God. He prayed constantly. When he woke up, before he ate, before he left the house, and before he went to bed, he prayed. Everything was surrounded by prayer. Britain loved every bit of it.

"I need to talk to you about something." Priest's raspy voice came through Britain's ears, and she sat up with her back against the headboard of his bed.

Britain furrowed her brows slightly as she eyed him. "What's up?" she asked.

Instead of rendering her a verbal response, Priest rose from the bed. He waded over to the dresser where he had his jewelry straightened out. After retrieving something, he returned to the bed, handing Britain the piece of paper he had in his hand.

"What's this?" Britain asked him.

"Leonard," he stated with a heavy breath.

Britain unfolded the paper, seeing Leonard's number etched on it in pen. "He took the bait. Are you gonna call?" Britain handed the paper back to him.

Priest screwed up his face in distaste. "Fuck no," he scoffed while shaking his head.

"Why not, P?" Britain tilted her head to the side questioningly.

Priest shrugged in a dismissive manner. "I don't have shit to say to him. We not family, and he made that clear a long time ago." Britain could see how overtaken by anger Priest was just by the way he spoke of Leonard. His nose began to flare, and his jaws clenched.

"P, what if he had a change of heart?" Britain’s brow rose.

He scoffed. "Ain't shit change about that nigga. I would be a fool if I went in expecting a father out of him. He made it clear how it is and how it's gonna remain. I'm gonna keep it pushing, and he can do the same," Priest concluded. Although his decision not to follow through with reaching out to his father was already made, he felt compelled to talk about it with Britain. Priest was two steps ahead of any situation.

He knew Leonard's bull shit attempt to extend the olive branch was only because he heard how quickly and efficiently Priest's product was making its way into his brother June's territory. The fact that Leonard thought he could get one up on Priest so easily by swindling him into a father and son relationship made Priest sick. Leonard must've taken him for a fucking fool.

"P, I just think—" Britain got cut off by Priest before she could even start.

"This mothafucka take me as a fucking fool," Priest spat as he crumpled the paper with Leonard's number on it. "That shit is dead. He can go son the next dumbass nigga.” He walked the piece of paper over to the small trash bin, letting it fall and collect itself into the trash.

Britain let out a sigh. Priest's feelings toward his father could’ve been described as hatred, but Priest didn't believe in hate, so he didn't consider it as such. Priest, however, didn't think Leonard would last in his vicinity. He simply couldn't respect Leonard. The man was big shit in the streets, but in his personal life, he was a fucking coward. He couldn't think of him as anything besides that.

"Come here," Britain called him over in her soothing voice.

Instantly, Priest's tense shoulders were alleviated of the stress of his father. He let out a small breath before making his way over to her. She opened her arms to him, and Priest fell into her embrace. "He's your cycle." Britain kissed the top of his head.

"He's not worth it," he grumbled.

Britain’s hands caressed his low cut that was embedded with waves. "Then don't make him," she advised him. "He only has the control you allow. If you let him take up so much space in your heart, in your mind, he and his shortcomings will dictate your whole life."

Priest took in Britain's words. She was right. Subconsciously, he had been allowing Leonard to have him so twisted up in anger and fury. It needed to stop.He let out a deep sigh, the anger from thinking of Leonard subsiding quickly.

"Who was your cycle?" Priest shifted his dark eyes up to Britain.

Britain herself let out a deep sigh as well. Unpacking the heavy load of her cycle was hard for her, but Priest made the atmosphere open and comfortable. "My ex," Britain admitted. "You sure you wanna hear about this?"

Priest nodded, giving her the green light to proceed. "From the beginning.”

Britain let out a light chortle before tracing her memory back to when Cameron waltzed himself into her life. "It started at this party I went to back in college. It was the day after exams, so everyone was enjoying themselves without the stress of studying for tests. I literally had to drag Jadey out that night because she was so tired. We partied all night and enjoyed ourselves. Jadey, who happens to be much more responsible than I am when I'm having fun, tried dragging me out of the party, but I was too invested in getting drunk. She ended up staying for a little while until our good friend— well, we thought she was our friend, Sandra—insisted on Jadey leaving so I could just hang with her. Jadey was skeptical about leaving, but I was always so hard on her about always having me on a tight leash that I snapped on her and told her to go home. She definitely didn't want to leave without me, but Sandra seemed trusting, so she left. She was less attentive and responsible than Jadey was, so I really just spent the whole party drunk off my ass without any supervision."

A part of Priest felt as though he knew where Britain was going with this story. Things always seemed to go south when women got drunk and people they trusted as friends left them high and dry.

"I remember taking a few shots before everything just went black." Britain let out a deep breath. Like any other heart-aching trauma Britain had experienced, she felt it best if she laughed through her pain, despite how sinister it may have sounded to be in full amusement over something so scarring. "I woke up the next day naked and sore in the back seat of my own car." Her light laughter digressed before she gulped, desperately trying to encourage herself to continue with the story.

Priest felt compelled to sit up. Although he had expected where her story was leading to, it was still shocking to him. Britain had gone through the unthinkable and still managed to keep shit so put together. She really could shake anything. That was one of her strongest abilities. Priest wrapped his arms around her.

"My bad," he apologized, feeling as though his curiosity led her to rehash shit she vowed to never speak on again.

"No, it's okay. I trust you with everything." A light smile graced her face.

Priest nodded, signaling her to proceed with the story if she was able. "I blacked out, and shit happened," she shrugged. "My clothes were in the car luckily and so were all my belongings. I drove straight to Jadey and just cried. Even though I wasn't too sure what happened, it didn't take rocket science to put two and two together," she sighed. "I really thought I could put that night behind me after I got tested and checked out at the clinic and everything was okay, but things got worse. There was a video that got leaked, and it was just revolting. I was drunk, and they just took advantage of that."

" They ?" Priest asked for clarification with his jaws clenched. It was evident that he couldn't handle it as well as Britain could, yet she was the one who lived through the harsh reality.

Britain nodded her head. Britain's way of coping was to withdraw all emotions from the situation. She told every traumatic story of her life like she wasn't a part of it. In her mind, she was telling someone else's story.

"Yeah. I was an easy target. I was drunk as hell, the person who Jadey and I thought was our friend ditched me, and I'm sure I was being a social fucking butterfly that night." She shook her head. Britain still managed to blame herself for what happened to her. There were so many things she could have done to avoid the situation, but it happened anyway. She took the cards how they were dealt and played the fuck out of them.

"The video got around campus fairly quickly as soon as it hit social media. I was so embarrassed. I just couldn't wrap my head around the fact that I was the one who got violated in every way possible, and everyone still blamed me. My outfit was too revealing. I should have handled my liquor better. I was asking for it. Just all these crazy things that baffled me. It was like everyone was against me except Jadey and my family. Then I met my ex. He approached me after I stormed out of the dean’s office after I demanded the boys who violated me be expelled since the cops weren't doing anything. He could tell I was disappointed, so from then on, he helped me pin every one of those guys."

Cameron could see how hopeless Britain felt just by looking into her eyes. He sympathized with her. Although he was a toxic ass hole who put Britain through hell, he really did used to have a heart. He helped Britain get justice for what those disgusting and ignorant guys did to her. It was rape, and Cameron didn't tolerate that to any extent. He helped her get out of that bottomless pit of depression she had resorted to once everyone began to blame her for what those guys did to her body. Cameron not only helped Britain get those guys expelled and cut their chances of going to the NFL completely, but he also helped Britain get them prosecuted on multiple criminal charges of rape.

"I was hopeless and on my last bit of strength when I met him, and he turned all of that around. What made things easier was that he knew my situation before I even met him, so I didn't have to explain things to him. He knew how violated I felt and how alone I felt because no one really understood me. He took his time with me. However empty minded it may sound, I fell for him, and the feelings were reciprocated. What I didn't know was that he was really building me up to tear me back down to be weaker than I was when he found me."

Priest readjusted his arms around her, his orbs meeting with hers. "Brit, you don't have to keep—" Once again, Britain interjected. She reassured him of her strength and asserted that she was capable before continuing.

"I told you I'm okay. It's the past," she shrugged as she let out another breath. Britain cleared her throat before continuing. "We were dating. It wasn't exclusive, but I was content with it. Things happened, and I had to move back to New York. It took me a while to finally convince him to follow me here, but he did. When he got here, he painted this perfect life for us. Young college kids who were gonna stay together through anything, the ups and downs of our careers included. He acted just like you. Treated me great. Respected me. Told me how beautiful I was. He was perfect, but every good thing comes with a catch. He had one rule and one rule only: I couldn't tell anyone about us. I was content with being his little secret. In my mind, I managed to equate him keeping me a secret with him not wanting people in our business. Now I know that those are two completely different things," Britain scoffed.

"He complained a lot about New York, but eventually he found his swing around the city. Made friends, started coming home a lot later, and made use of his phone a lot more for others and less for me. Things just started changing, and so did his actions toward me. It started to feel a lot less like a relationship and more like a dictatorship. He started off by randomly giving me a gym membership after I cooked all day for him, only for him to come home late. Then he went on to tell me how he liked my hair. It began to grow comical when one day he randomly texted me the contact to an orthodontist so I could invest in braces." Britain laughed, showcasing her beautiful gap that Priest adored.

Priest couldn't even believe the shit Britain was saying. It was evident that her ex was no longer attracted to her once he dove knee deep into the fast and vast waters of New York. "I tried ignoring his suggestions, but then it got more demanding. He started complaining about how I laughed, talked, the clothes I wore, my posture, my hyperpigmentation, and a ton of other things I just couldn't control. To you, those may look like vivid red flags to run for the hills, but he was a charmer and knew how to manipulate any situation. He claimed he wanted to make me a better me. As silly as it sounds, I believed him and fell for it all. I started changing myself for him. The less he complained, the more time I would get with him. I had to be perfect/"

Priest let out a deep sigh. "C'mon, Gioia. You're better than that," he reminded her with slight disappointment.

Britain chortled lightly. "I know that now." She smiled as she cupped her hands around his face. "But before, I didn't. To me, he was still the boy who saw my potential after my entire naked body was plastered all over the internet. He made me feel strong again and didn't blame me for what those guys did to me."

"Promise me you'll never give me that much leeway," Priest said to her with deep seriousness.

Britain leaned up, applying her lips to his. "You got my word," she promised him while placing her hand over his heart. Priest smiled lightly while placing his hand over her heart. "Now, c'mon. Get up. You know the drill," she urged him.

Priest screwed up his face in confusion. "No. I don't know the drill."

Britain released a dramatic sigh. "Every time I tell you some sad, gloomy story about what I've gone through, I reward you with an impromptu date." She smiled as she gave him the run down.

Priest sat up and laughed as he grew amused by how quickly Britain made light of any and everything. "I wish I got the memo. I would have taken you out on a lot more dates."

Britain made her way over to him, standing between his legs. "Priest, quit being silly. You don't take me out on dates. You take me on adventures," she teased, causing them to share a laugh. "And I enjoy them. The Hamptons, fancy restaurants, yacht sailing, and everything else. You never really cease to amaze me."

Priest gripped her sides before his hands slid down to her rear. "I gotta keep that smile on your face."

Britain grinned as she swooned. Priest definitely knew how to keep her happy. There was never really a dull moment between the two. Even if they sat in pure silence with each other, they were still content and happy with that. "I love you, playa,” she told him while playfully extending her fist to him to initiate a fist bump.

"I love you too, playa." Priest pounded his fist with hers.

Although, Britain would have liked for her impromptu date to be a pleasant surprise for Priest, she had to go into detail just for safety precautions. Lately, Priest had been taking a lot more safety measures just to keep his loved ones out of danger. The plan that he, J'Ru and Kaymen had brewing was working in their favor. Money had been making a fast rotation around them, and expanding hadn't been a problem.

The storm was quiet now, but Priest only took that as an indication that June was plotting, and the fact that Leonard was extending an olive branch to him only proved his suspicions. It was comical to him that they really considered him weak enough to fall for some father and son bullshit. Priest wasn't caving, and he was willing to take on all the bullshit June would throw his way due to him taking over his territory.

Once dressed and ready to go, the two exited the penthouse. "I can't believe you made me tell you about our surprise date," Britain shamed him with a shake of her head.

Priest chuckled before sending a teasing smack to her rear. "I'll still act surprised when we get there."

"Don't mock me, Kanaz." She narrowed her eyes at him, which escalated his chuckle into full laughter.

Britain had convinced Priest to allow her to drive once more. He was skeptical, but her kisses and doe-like eyes had him sold. After Priest assisted her into the Bentley Bentayga, her personal favorite of all his luxurious cars, he got into the vehicle himself.

"I trust you with my life, but I can't seem to trust you with my car," Priest admitted as he eyed Britain uneasily. She was currently adjusting the seat to be closer to the steering wheel.

Britain laughed. "I'm a great driver. It's everyone else on the road who isn't.”

"Including the curbs, pedestrians, and bicyclists?" Priest continued to heckle her with a raise of his brow.

Britain scoffed. "Didn't you just get your license reinstated not too long ago?" she retorted, causing the amused look on Priest's face to grow stale. "Alright then. Not too much on me and my driving."

The drive to the destination was surprisingly smooth. Priest calmed Britain down whenever she wanted to honk erratically and curse out whoever was pissing her off in traffic.

"I would have never expected this," Priest jokingly gasped in a dramatic manner, playing shocked like he said he would.

Rolling her eyes, Britain laughed. She waited for Priest to make his way around to assist her out of the car. "You're such an ass." She handed him the keys.

Priest smirked, agreeing with her. "I appreciate this." He placed his strong hands at her sides, pulling her closer. He leaned down, brushing his lips against hers teasingly, causing a smile to plaster both of their faces.

"Stop playing and just kiss me already," she ordered him while cupping his face in her hands to stop him from taunting her. Priest gave into her desires, kissing her lips.

Hand in hand, they made their way into the bowling alley. The joint was pretty empty, but that was what Priest and Britain preferred. "I know this isn't dinner on the beach or sex on the yacht, but we can act like kids and just forget about the shit we've been through," Britain suggested as she wrapped her arms around his torso.

Priest gazed down at her, his heart swelling in love and gratitude. "Thank you for always reminding me that the small shit in life makes me a lot happier than the grand shit," he expressed before craning down to kiss the top of her head.

"You're welcome." She hugged him tighter.

Despite Priest not wanting her to contribute a single dime to the outing, she paid for their shoes so they could get access to the lanes anyway. "You ever went bowling before?" Britain asked Priest once they picked a lane, and she began inputting their names.

Priest chuckled while shaking his head. "Shit, I was hoping you would teach me."

Britain let out a laugh as she shook her head as well, confirming that she was just as lost as he was. "We’re gonna have to figure this out together."

"Sound cool to me," Priest shrugged.

"If I win, I want a massage, a long one with no complaints anytime I want this week," Britain smirked.

"And if I win, I get to fuck you anytime, anyplace, all week," Priest stated his potential reward with a smirk of his own.

Britain shrugged her shoulders dismissively at him. "Sounds like a win-win for me."

Priest chortled. "Bet, scrub," he teased, letting the trash talk begin.

Not knowing a thing about bowling, the two created their own rules for the game and their own point system. Priest, who practically excelled in everything he did, got the hang of getting all the pins down a lot sooner than Britain did.

"Gutter!" Priest exclaimed, teasing Britain as a distraction while she rolled her ball.

Just like he anticipated, her ball rolled straight into the gutter. Narrowing her eyes, she turned on her heels, glaring at him. "You have very poor sportsmanship," she scolded him in a jesting manner.

He laughed as he rose from his seat to take his turn. "We're not on the same team, airhead." He sent a heavy smack to her rear, causing Britain to flick her middle finger up at him.

"We can take it to the bathroom if you down," he let out the raunchy remark, referencing the finger she had just shot at him.

Britain couldn't help but laugh at his silliness. After losing to Priest twice, she called it quits and resorted to sitting down with comfort food to recover from the back-to-back losses she had taken. "I fuck with this bowling shit. I'm really good at it," Priest laughed.

Britain rolled her eyes as she balled up a clean napkin and threw it at him. "Shut up. Jokes on you, though. You just played for my pussy. I was gonna give it to you anyway." She stuck her tongue out at him childishly.

Once they settled down from their own amusement, they conversed while eating their food. "How you like the stay at my spot?" Priest asked her.

A light smile etched her face. "I like it. I was worried about the chef, the cleaning lady, security and it being so big, but everyone is so welcoming, and they make it feel very homey." Britain really enjoyed being at Priest's place more than she thought she would. No one made her feel out of place, and everyone treated her like she belonged, almost as if she'd always been there.

A faint smile made its way onto his lips. "I'm glad you like it. Now I can lock you in with security and clear you up some closet space," he hinted with a raised brow, waiting for her to agree.

Chuckling, Britain nodded her head. "It's our closet now." She met him halfway for a high five.

"I appreciate you kicking it with Jazzy, too. She doesn't get along with too many females. They always envious of her and shit. You know how that go." Priest shook his head.

Britain nodded. She had a fair share of envious girls in her day, and it was honestly the most annoying thing ever, especially when she was nothing but genuine and real. "Definitely. She's a nice girl. I really enjoy talking to her. She loves you a lot, P."

"That's what she say?"

"Yeah. She also told me how she thinks she robbed you of a childhood since you've always had to take care of her." Britain curled her bottom lip into a pout, sympathizing with him and Jazzy.

A sigh drifted out of him. "Yeah, that's always been a conversation with us. That's why she goes so hard to make me proud. I tell her all the time that if I had a choice to do things differently, I wouldn't change a thing. My happiest moments were while I was raising her. I invested so much of myself into her that she really can't do no wrong in my eyes," Priest expressed with deep conviction. Jazzy was his biggest accomplishment. He raised her to be everything he wasn't, her father wasn't, and their mother wasn't. Priest couldn't be any prouder of her.

Britain couldn't contain the smile on her face. Priest was just so full of love and good energy. "You're a real gem. Y'know that?"

Priest licked his lips before chuckling lightly. "Thank you. For everything. Especially for hanging in there with Jazzy's complicated ass. She's special to me." Britain basked in his gratitude before assuring him that it was no issue to her.