Page 49 of Tangled Hearts
Like her, he had an internal battle, but love was the winner for him. And he loved her—had been loving her since he was ten and she was eight. He loved her even when she was in love with the only brother he had. “If loving you is wrong, I don’t want to be right,” he joked, but as they say, ‘all good jokes contained true shit.’And Hov was speaking nothing but his real feelings.
“Westside in this bitch!” Cash got on stage yelling, which drew their attention to him. “Y’all ready to cut the fuck up with me?!”
The crowd went crazy. Cash’s new single “Out The Trenches” was picking up a lot of traction. Everyone was saying he was up next, and he felt it in his bones. A few local record companies were starting to contact him, but he wanted to go big or go home. He was only taking meetings with the big execs. Anything below that was a no go for the hungry up and coming artist. He knew what he had was real and raw talent and wasn’t going to be bought with chump change.
Noir stopped fussing with Christian to give Cash her attention. She was so proud of him and prayed he got everything he deserved. Like always, her heart skipped a beat when she locked eyes with the tawny-colored, tatted up, curly head who’d stolen her heart at the age of five when he asked her to be his homeboy.
The bass shook the floor, and Cash rapped until his soul was content. His stage presence couldn’t be matched, and neither could the hunger in his eyes. He was getting a little illegal money, but he was ready to put the city on his back and check the biggest bag he’d ever seen.
“Out. The. Trenches. I got this shit out the muthafuckin’ trenches. It’s my time, time to get up off them benches,”Hov rapped along to his lyrics before the song ended. He was just as proud.
The club was going crazy. Everyone in the city loved his music. “I see y’all niggas fuckin’ with that one. Y’all know the ladies be on me hard, so I got something special for them too. Let me give the ladies something to vibe out to, but I need my special friend to come up here.” He licked his pink lips, watching Noir like he was a hawk, and she was his prey.
Everyone’s head jerked in the direction where Cash was looking. His down-turned, magnetic brown eyes were locked in on Noir. Her breathing hitched in her throat from both flattery and uncertainty. Although she and Christian were on the outs, she knew how the peaceful night could turn deadly because of disrespect.
“Noir, don’t make me wait too long.” Cash’s hand squeezed the microphone while his expression was pleading, or more like beckoning her.
She wasn’t sure which one, but her feet carried her towards the stage as the crowd clapped and cheered for the mere fact that he was about to rap another song. Most of the people in attendance were familiar with Noir and the others didn’t care one bit.
“I’m going to kill you,” she mumbled under her breath when he wrapped his arms around her. His masculine scent warped her nose, leaving her floating.
The grill in his mouth shined when he smiled at her. “As long as I can say I got the baddest girl in the city to grace the stage with me, I’d die a happy man.”
He was always so flattering and extremely charming. Noir was just as charming, which made for a bad combination.
Finally able to tear his eyes from her, he addressed the crowd. “Make some noise for the baddest bitch in the club tonight!”
Her cheeks warmed as a red pigment danced on her face. “You’re showing out,” she mouthed when the music started to play.
“I just want to fuck the baddest bitch in the club.”His raspy singing voice crooned through the mic directly to her middle.
Girls in the audience screamed and hollered as he rapped the raunchy lyrics to Noir, who was oblivious to Christian. His light skin was on fire.
“This nigga got me fucked up,” Christian spoke through gritted teeth, damn near chipping them.
Hov placed his hand up to Christian’s chest. “You gotta chill. That’s my little nigga, and your issue ain’t with him. It’s with Noir, but you ain’t about to put hands on her either. So, I advise you to just smoke some green and chill.”
Christian’s nostrils flared. He was pissed and didn’t like the way Hov was trying to handle him. At the same time, he knew he was telling him right. Never in his life had a woman had the power to make him want to put a man in the dirt. Noir had that, plus more. It was clear to him that his feelings for her were blossoming into something real. A deeper connection was being formed and Christian knew it was time for him to take their situation to the next level. Noir was the type of girl you either locked down when you had the chance or sat back and watched another nigga wife her up. She was just that special.
Christian could only nod his head at Hov ‘cause no matter how upset he got, putting his hands on him wasn’t something he was going to do. The love he had for Hov was deeper than what they’d built. It was a part of their DNA.
When the song ended, Noir wrapped her arms around Cash’s neck. “I’m still going to kill you,” she joked.
“And I’m never gonna stop trying to claim your hot ass.” He held onto her ass while the crowd watched. It was evident the two of them had history because the chemistry they had was unmatched.
Noir was so stuck on Cash she didn’t notice the death glare Christian gave her.
“Make some fuckin’ noise for my future wife. What’s your Instagram so the people can follow your pretty ass?”
Taking the microphone, she called out all her social media handles, and within seconds, her phone was blowing up with new followers. She cut her eyes to him. “And I want to wish my best friend a happy birthday. Happy Birthday, Knyc!!!”
“I told you I was gonna bring you with me.” He winked before ambling to the back of the stage.
Needing to catch her breath and process what just happened, Noir took her time getting back to their VIP section.
Cash had left her flustered.
“I see you like to play games.” Christian growled in her ear once he had her pinned to the wall.
