Page 28 of Krash & Bern

“Ralph and Toni.”

“All right, boss. I’ll send the invoice and tell Ralph and Toni to meet you at the work van. I’ll make sure the warehouse has your van loaded for the magnitude of the job.”

“You’re the best. I’m going to have to go change into a work uniform. I haven’t worn one in so long.” I laughed.

As the boss, I usually delegated all of the installs to technicians. Now, at the request of a wealthy client, I’m going back to the basics. I never had a problem going out into the trenches because, at the end of the day, it was my name on the front of the building. I promoted quality security, and I’d make sure I did my darndest to keep it that way.

When we finally got everything loaded into the van, my team and I headed to the outskirts of Houston to thehugemansion. The path to the driveway was lengthy. The stoned driveway was a beautiful beginning to a massive home. The property was extensive. The thought I’d be able to do this all on my own was a laughing matter.From the front of the mansion, I could tell it had to have been at least three stories—not including the expansion of land on all sides of the well-kept property.

“Damn!” Toni ogled the huge home in front of us.Her eyes were wide as saucers as she perused the exterior of the home.

Toni Lively had been a technician in Massachusetts as well. She came in during the startup process once we’d done the soft launch. She was a fast learner, great with people, and had a knack for technology. Her bright personality and wits were why she was one of my best employees.

“Whoever lives here has to be an entertainer. Celebrities in the entertainment industry love a huge mansion like this. They love flashy,” Ralph added.He’d been the driver, so he put the van in park and turned down the radio.

Ralph Toretti had only been with the company for two years. He was a few years older than me and was such a protective and caring spirit. He learned quickly and fell into a comfortable place in the company. I loved having him around because he taught me a lot of things.

“It doesn’t matter who the house belongs to. The check cleared, so that’s all that matters.” I chuckled.

I didn’t want the two of them to get caught up in who the client was. The last thing I needed was for my elite employees to fan out over a celebrity. I climbed out of the work van and grabbed my tablet and cell phone.As the fresh air entered through my nostrils, a feeling greeted me. My gut told me to turn around and run, but I had work to do.

“The two of you begin prepping the camera. We want to make this a seamless and smooth install so we’re not here all damn day and night,” I instructed before I made my way up the staircase to the front door.

My hand lifted up to the door, and I knocked. The home was big, so I figured it would have been smarter to ring the doorbell. I pressed the small circular button three times and waited.A few moments later, the front door opened. I’d had my head down in the tablet to prepare the consent forms. The scent greeted me first. The scent was familiar, but I couldn’t put my finger on where I’d smelled the fragrance before.

When my eyes lifted, the breath in my lungs evaporated, and I struggled to breathe properly.

It couldn’t be.

Krash.

The realization had my throat dry and my palms moist. The sight of him after all these years had me in a deep stupor.He was just as fine as he was the last time we’d seen each other, nearly a decade ago. His body was covered in more tattoos. His hair was cut low into a fade. His beard was thick but also cut low, with the hair on his chin a little longer. He’d gotten his ears pierced and his nose. The diamond stud was different but looked good as hell on him. The gold chain dangling from his neck looked expensive as hell.

“Bernice?”

The sound of my name coming from his deep baritone made my body turn rigid. My blood pumped fast through my veins as my head spun.

How could he still have such an effect on me?

It was like I’d seen a ghost. The woman standing on my front porch, in a pair of khaki pants and a purple and white button-down shirt, could not have been Bernice. It couldn’t have been the woman who broke my heart all those years ago. My sweet, smart Bernie was here in the flesh and not just a figment of my imagination.

I took in her appearance as she did the same to me. She was still short, but she’d filled out a bit more since the last time I’d felt her soft, brown skin. Her hair was black with her signature pink skunk strip. My girl loved a dash of color in her hair. Her lashes were long and wispy. Her lips were a dark pink with a glossy shine. Her eyes… Those beautiful brown orbs were filled with shock.

“Bernice?” Her name fell from my lips in a tone barely above a whisper. For a moment, we were frozen in place, both coming to terms with the unexpected reunion.

After a moment, she came out of her stupor and greeted me. “Good morning! My name is Bernice James, creator of BerJam, Security. We got an order for a deluxe security install throughout the entire property. This is a large order, so I brought on the help of two of my best technicians, Ralph Toretti and Toni Lively.”

“Very formal.” A soft laugh slid from my lips.

“The install should take no longer than five hours with the three of us working diligently. Before we begin the install, I need you to sign a few consent forms. Once you’ve signed them, we will do a walk-through of the property to explain camera placements. Then we will go over how to use the app.”

She kept it professional, and I could respect it. I wanted to ask her so many things, but the priority was making sure my home was secure.

“Thank you for coming out on such short notice,” I stated as I pushed open the door and allowed her access to my home.

“No problem. Like I stated before, you’re free to do as you please, because we will be working swiftly to set up the cameras. The only thing we require is someone in the home to verify camera placement.”

“It’s just me here, so I don’t plan on leaving y’all unattended in my home. My old security system was ass. I came home from a night out after defending my title and niggas thought it was a cool idea to break into my shit. They’re lucky all of my really valuable shit was locked in a safe. Had I caught them in the act, there’s no telling how bad I would’ve beat their asses.”

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