Authors: Jackie Chanel
“I’ll do whatever my family needs me to do. I got little sisters and brothers that have to eat. Moms can’t work anymore so it’s on me. It’s not what I wanted for my family, but it’s what I gotta do.”
“There’s no other way?”
Diesel slid his chair back abruptly and stood up. “Forget I said anything. I don’t want any sympathy from nobody. Thanks for the food. I’ll see you around.”
He started to walk towards the door and Caprice jumped up from her chair.
“Wait,” she called.
“What? I need to get out of here,” Diesel shook his head. “I’ve been here for too long as it is. You’re one of Aries’ girls. We’re brothers, but we don’t share women.”
Caprice stood in front of the door. She had no desire to see Diesel leave. For a moment, she didn’t care about Rocco, Aries, or the job that she was supposed to be doing. What she saw in front of her was a man with a big heart, who obviously liked her as much as she liked him, and she wasn’t willing to let him walk away. She didn’t want their time together to end yet.
“I’m not one of Aries’ anything,” Caprice stated. “Don’t go yet.”
“Why?”
“Because I like talking to you.”
She smiled. “And I have ice cream.”
“Really?” Diesel chuckled. “What kind?”
“Butter pecan.”
Diesel’s eyes grazed over Caprice’s bare shoulders and past the stopping point of her shorts. Trailing his hand softly over her thigh, he whispered, “Butter pecan, huh? That’s my favorite.”
Caprice boldly put her arms around his neck and leaned into him. “You don’t want to go. You know you don’t want to leave me.”
Diesel wrapped his arms around Caprice’s waist. Aries was going to be pissed, but there was something about Caprice’s dark eyes that lured him in. Something in her voice that called out to him on a level that no other woman had ever. Her velvety voice made him want to hear her speak continuously. Her body was soft and her skin warmed wherever he touched. She was the kind of woman that his mother told him about; the kind he longed for. Smart, beautiful, and doing something with her life. She didn’t bear the scars of a broken home or the pain of being hurt by another man. With him, she never would. He had to have her.
Diesel held Caprice in his arms and whispered in her ear, “I like you.”
Caprice rested her head on his shoulder and touched her lips softly against the base of his neck. His skin was warm and smooth. She inhaled. He smelled like men’s body wash mixed with a little weed. Immediately, she wanted his scent all over her body, her sheets, and her pillows.
“I like you too.”
“What are we going to do about them?”
With her head still on Diesel’s shoulder, Caprice sighed. There was nothing they could do. She still had to get Aries to talk, and Keisha was thirsting after Diesel so badly that she was liable to kick Caprice’s ass for even looking at him.
“Let’s not do anything yet. Let’s play it safe until we know they aren’t going to trip. Can you do that?”
Diesel nodded. He wasn’t in a hurry to unveil his betrayal to his best friend.
“Fake it till you make it, right?”
“In the meantime…” Caprice raised her head a few inches off of her new favorite place. “Kiss me.”
“My pleasure.”
Oh my God
! Caprice thought. Diesel’s thick lips against hers were more than she ever imagined a kiss could be. When he slid his tongue inside her mouth, she was transported to a place of pure bliss. No one had ever kissed her the way Diesel was doing. She practically melted in his arms.
She knew that wanting him went against everything she had going on. When the shit hit the fan, one or both of them was going to end up hurt. As she allowed Diesel to lead her to the couch, Caprice began planning a new strategy. She had to take down Aries without getting Diesel caught up. She had to keep him out of it, in any possible way.
Their future depended on it.
“What’s the matter with me?” Caprice yelled into her Bluetooth. “What’s the matter with you, Rocco?”
Caprice was in her car, racing through the traffic, hoping to make her nine o’clock final. She was running late and didn’t have the time or patience to deal with Rocco and his bullshit.
“You’re the one who keeps cancelling our plans!” she continued to scream. “You’re the one who always finds shit to do when I’m free. I told you I have finals every day this week. I’m not coming to Staten Island!”
“You haven’t been over here in a month. You’re taking this BDM shit way too seriously.”
“I’m just doing my job,” Caprice stated evenly. “If you and Nico had handled this shit properly in the first place, I wouldn’t be here. I could be going to Miami and sitting by my pool. Instead, I’m knee deep in some gangster’s life because you two couldn’t figure out a better fuckin’ plan. Don’t start with me, Rocco!”
“You are such a bitch!” Rocco sighed.
“Takes one to know one.”
Caprice pushed the button on her Bluetooth to end the call. She was frustrated and her interest in her Italian stallion was waning. Juggling two real relationships and a fake one, plus trying to keep all three of them a secret was starting to wear her out.
Rocco and Aries couldn’t find out about Diesel. Aries and Diesel couldn’t find out about Rocco, and Keisha’s ass couldn’t find out about any of them, especially Diesel…the one that really mattered to Caprice.
As much as she yearned to focus solely on him, she couldn’t. If she broke up with Rocco before her job was over, he would kill every member of BDM and probably get himself killed in the process. Not to mention what he would tell Domani if he found out she was screwing a BDM member that was not Aries. Technically, she wasn’t having sex with Diesel, but Rocco would never believe that.
Besides, she didn’t really want to break up with Rocco. She was dreading the moment when she would have to choose between him and Diesel. Her problem was that in her own way, she liked them both for entirely different reasons. If she could have combined them, she would have the perfect boyfriend.
Diesel was smart, caring, tough, and fun. Although they only talked on the phone and kicked it at her place, she enjoyed every minute they were together. He liked being close to her. He liked being affectionate with her. Caprice provided him with an escape from the danger he faced on the streets. With her, he could share the side of himself that he kept hidden from his crew.
They watched documentaries on The History Channel, he read books while she studied and stole kisses from time to time. Diesel was fucking Keisha, but he was falling in love with Caprice.
Rocco, on the other hand, was tough all the time. He was demanding and rough around the edges. He didn’t take any shit from her or anyone else. They didn’t snuggle on the couch and watch sappy love stories on Netflix. Rocco was more of a
Fast and the Furious
,
Mission Impossible
type of guy where dinner and movie meant just that plus a blowjob in the car.
Caprice loved them both, even though she was afraid that in the end, she probably wouldn’t be able to have either.
What she had going on with Aries wasn’t really anything to call home about. The man was careful and kept his mouth shut. She wasn’t one of the chosen that he allowed to get close to BDM. She was his eye candy. He liked to take her places and show her off when they actually went out. Caprice kept him at a distance. Doing so kept him interested. He couldn’t have her the way he had every other chick he wanted. Aries was a dog chasing tail when it came to Caprice. As long as she kept dangling the bone, he kept trying to grab it.
He returned her texts immediately. He brought food to her apartment when she was studying late. The only thing that worried her was that he wasn’t talking about anything of importance. She didn’t care about his family problems, or his baby mama. Aries wasn’t giving up the goods on his new connect or hinting at how he planned to take over the drug trade in Queens. What she learned about his business came from Diesel.
Her Bluetooth rang in her ear so she answered it as she swerved to avoid hitting a jay walker and pulled her Lexus into a parking deck.
“What are you doing up so early?” she asked when she heard Aries’ voice.
“I want to see you tonight.”
“I’m not one of your beck and call girls,” Caprice replied. “I told you I have finals every day this week. You should be trying to make things easier for me, not expecting me to go out when I should be studying.”
“I still want to see you,” Aries insisted.
“Then how about I text you when I’m done today and we can get lunch or something.”
“You want me to come all the way to the Village?”
“You gotta leave Queens at some point in your life, Aries. I’ll text you later. Gotta go. I’m about to be late.”
Caprice disconnected the call and slipped her feet out of Steve Madden sandals and stuck them in her large bag. She slid on her Nikes. She really was late and was going to have to run across campus to make her final on time.
****
“Lord Jesus!” Keisha yelled when she and Caprice stepped outside the classroom building. “Thank God that shit is over!
Professor Reynolds be on that bullshit!
That bitch didn’t have to make the final that hard!”
“It wouldn’t have been that hard if you had studied instead of following Diesel around all the time, or hanging at my house with your cousin. You see what I be doing while y’all be
gettin
’ high. Studying. I’m trying to graduate. What are you trying to do?”
Caprice lowered her sunglasses and started walking towards her favorite campus coffee shop.
“Let’s go get a latte.”
Keisha adjusted her heavy book bag and shook her head. “Can’t. I have my English Lit final in twenty minutes. You done for the day?”
Caprice nodded. She stopped walking when she spotted a red Cadillac parked across the street from the school campus.
“That’s my cousin’s car,” Keisha pointed out. “What’s he doing in the Village?”
With a look of pure satisfaction, Caprice started walking towards the car. Keisha was too nosy to stay behind so she quickly tried to catch up.
The car was bumping 2Chainz
I’m Different
extremely loud, making it stand out even more on the generally tame street. Caprice tapped on the driver’s window. Aries’ grinning face greeted her when he rolled down the window.
“You’re stalking me now?” Caprice smiled.
“Nah, baby, never that,” Aries chuckled. “You said you were done with finals and hungry so here I am. You know I always come through for you.”
“So sweet,” Caprice laughed.
“You didn’t tell me you told Aries to come up here,” Keisha said loudly. “Y’all a couple now? Why didn’t you tell me?”
Caprice looked at the girl and frowned. “I don’t tell you all of my business. Good luck on your English Lit final.”
She walked around to the passenger side and climbed into the car and out of the hot New York sun. A blast of cool air hit her as she sank into the buttery soft leather.
“See
ya
later,
cuz
!” Aries rolled up his window and pulled into traffic.
“This is new,” Caprice stated. “Thought a man like you couldn’t be seen in anything cheaper than a Benz.”
“This is an OG’s car,” Aries laughed. “Where you want to eat?”
Caprice closed her eyes and considered her answer. She had to move faster if she wanted to get any information out of Aries. Continuing along the same path wasn’t getting her anywhere close to what she needed to do. She needed him to trust her enough to be alone with her, and not in a public place. She was going to have to give up the goods.
Caprice leaned over and softly kissed Aries on his cheek. “We can go to your place. You can cook for me.”
Aries burst out laughing. “Me? Cook for you? Yeah right.”
Caprice sat back in her seat and shrugged her shoulders. “Okay. That’s cool. If I’m not worth a home cooked meal, then fuck it. I can cook for myself.”
“It’s not like that,” Aries explained as he pulled to a stop light. “But I don’t cook for females.”
Caprice opened the car door and got out. “I said it’s cool. But you should know that I’m not just any female.”
She shut the door and began walking towards the parking garage housing her Lexus.
She wasn’t mad and that’s exactly what she wanted Aries to see. She knew that getting out of the car would aggravate him. People didn’t just walk out on Aries when he was talking.
He’d been the leader of Black Diamond Mafia for so long that he didn’t encounter many people who didn’t do what he wanted. He was used to getting his own way. He was used to women throwing themselves at him. He had some of the
baddest
bitches in New York City willing to drop whatever they were doing if he texted them that he wanted his dick sucked. However, it was the twenty-two year old college chick from Miami that kept him on his toes and excited him. She was his biggest challenge and they both knew it.
None of that mattered to Caprice as she drove through the Village. She had more finals to study for. Maybe she could convince Rocco to come to her since she knew that Diesel was unavailable.