“Muthafucka—”
“Sit down.” Mr. Laurent grabbed my arm as I rounded the table. “That’s not what we’re here to do today.” He looked over to Rosier, who seemed not to have a care in the world. “You, too, son… have a seat.”
Engaging in a brief stare-off, we both took our respective seats. Everyone looked between both of us, waiting to see what the next man was going to do. A few minutes went by before Rosier decided to speak.
“My apologies for that.” He placed his hand on his chest as he surveyed the men, who nodded their acknowledgment. “Let’s get down to business.” He dragged his eyes over to Mr. Laurent and said, “Let’s start with you. Do you have any questions or concerns? How’s business?”
“Business is well, son.” He smiled and nodded. “You have been doing a phenomenal job taking over these past three years. I’ve been around a long time, and I know your father would be proud of you right now.”
He smirked and nodded. “Thank you, sir.”
I barely stopped myself from rolling my eyes like a bitch. Looking around the table, he asked each of the men the same questions. I frowned as each answer mimicked the previous one. There was no way everyone’s life was fucking perfect now that he was over the Family.
“Gourneau.” Rosier scoffed, causing me to snap my eyes to his. “Do you have any business you’d like to discuss?”
Rubbing my chin, I pondered over if I wanted to strike shit up with this nigga or not. Looking around the room, the numbers weren’t on my side. Deciding to keep my personalfeelings out of the matter, I draped my arm over my seat before replying.
“As a matter of fact, there is.” I popped my toothpick into my mouth and nodded. “Why are the tariffs on my shit so high? I mean, ten percent is a bit much, don’t you think?”
Furrowing his brows, he looked at me in confusion. “You think taxing you ten percent when you’re bringing in millions through my vessels is too much?” He chuckled before continuing, “Tell me, Chandler… what do you think is fair?”
“Nothing.” I smirked, standing from the table. “Once Noemi and I are married, I want that to be part of the stipulations that’s added. You see… I’ve been doing my own research, Boudreaux. The bylaws state combined families can only profit from separate businesses. Once Noemi and I are married, she will be part owner of my legalandillegal businesses. Therefore, it would be as if you’re taxing your sister. That’s against the rules.”
Seeing the way his face transformed, he knew I was right. Crossing my arms, I felt like I’d just had a major win. The twinkle in his eye should have told me I was wrong.
“While that is true, that’s not happening in this case. You see, you’ve already signed documents with my sister, which entails to keep things separate for the next five years.” He smiled. “You remember… when we went to dinner and spoke on her terms of your marriage? All of them were listed, including not combining assets. So, the ten percent stands. Sorry.”
Dismissing me, he continued on with his meeting as if my words meant nothing. I wanted to blow his head off of his shoulders, but as I glanced over at Andre, he shook his head no. I knew before I could get a shot off, he would slit my throat. Sliding back into my seat, I zoned out for the remainder of the meeting. Once it was over, I stayed behind to have a word with Rosier.
“When your sister gets home, we’re getting married right away,” I reiterated to further push his displeasure. “I was thinking we could get together and plan an engagement party for her. We haven’t done anything to solidify us coming together as families, and I think it would be nice.”
He gave me a hardened look, but I could tell he was thinking it over. It was better to play nice with Rosier for the moment, but I was already thinking of multiple ways to ruin him. His time was coming, but the first thing on the order of destruction was marrying his sister.
“You want to surprise my sister with an engagement party?” He chuckled, patting me on the shoulder as he passed me. “Sure. Let me know the details, and I’m there. If bullets get to flying, you’re on your own.”
Simpering, I said nothing as I stepped onto the elevator. Little did he know, if bullets got to flying, it was him who needed to duck. They were in for a massive shock, and I couldn’t wait to see their faces when their world came crumbling down.
“Now,Skip… when we get in here, I want you to act like you have the good sense God gave you, baby. I raised you right, so act like it. In other words, don’t get in here acting like Wild.”
Gripping the steering wheel so tight that my knuckles turned white, I said nothing as I drove my mother and me to the Motel 6 that Gia was staying in. I had a few of my guys check into the surrounding rooms to scope out the place before I got there. Giais not the woman I used to know, and if she was on some “setup” shit, she wasn’t going to live to talk about it.
The day Gia came by the club claiming to have my kid, I went straight to my parents. Call me a mama’s boy, but I needed someone with a clear head to help me think. Wild and Uno happened to be there, and they didn’t want to waste any time about coming to see about the bitch and the baby. I needed time to think about all of this so I could move appropriately. I hated what this could mean for Gia being in my life again, but there was no way in hell I was going to turn my back on a child that could potentially be mine.
“Mama, I promise you that if there is a child up in here, I won’t kill Gia in front of them. That’s the best I can do.” I pulled the car into the lot of the motel. She would pick the most unpleasant one near Grove Heights. “Come on, and let’s get this over with.”
Exhaling, I got out of the car and patted my hip. Looking around at the lingering faces, I spotted the men who were on Money’s team and essentially mine. I didn’t want to bring my mother to this side of town, but I knew she was the only one who would keep me off this girl today. Plus, my mother said she could look at a child in an instant and know if it was her grandchild or not. Wild has given her plenty of practice.
“Well, isn’t this the safest place to have a child,” my mother murmured as I walked over to the passenger side and helped her out of the car. “You’re going to move them somewhere else if this kid is yours.”
Holding her hand, I said nothing as I led her to the room Gia was staying in. I wouldn’t be spending a red cent on that bitch. I would make accommodations for the kid, but the mother could die.
“Who is it?” I heard Gia yell from the other side of the door as I knocked. I took a deep breath to keep from voicing my irritation. It’s not like she didn’t know I was coming.
“Man… open this door before you piss me off.” My mother elbowed me and frowned disapprovingly. “We don’t have all damn day, Mama.”
“I have some of the rudest boys.” She sighed and shook her head slowly. “Just damn mean.”
Hearing the chain removed from the door, I held onto my mother’s hand and pulled her back slightly. Slowly, the room door opened, and the smell of marijuana hit me in the face, instantly pissing me off. Not only that, but she answered the door in a T-shirt and a pair of panties.
