Page 127 of Captivated By Danger

“It’s a joke, Diese, dang.”

My eyebrows went together before I shook my head in confusion. “What did you say?Diese?I have never been called that. Please do not start.”

She kissed her teeth. “Oh, man. That didn’t land? I’d been working on that all morning.”

I chuckled.

“Oh, well. I’ll think of something else. So, back to you. What do you do on Sundays? I know you have about a hundred people working for you, so you don’t have to do much to prepare for work.”

“You just incorrectly assumed that I have a hundred people working for me, the number is actually thrice that, and you think I don’t have to prepare for work?”

She dropped her fork and clasped her hands together. She inhaled and exhaled slowly before she reached for my hands. Reluctantly, I let her take them.

“Diesel, can you please try to have a regular conversation? Everything doesn’t have to be so formal. You know how you tell me to relax when you fucking me? Try to relax when you are having a conversation. You act so stuck-up. Sheesh.”

She released my hands and started eating.

“I don’t know what any of that means, but I do have to prepare for work. When you have as many people working for you as I do, you have to over-prepare for work, especially with what I do. I’m the numbers guy. If the smallest number is off, it can fuck up a lot of shit. Trust me.”

“Okay, I understand. So, you have to prepare for work? Is that what you do on Sunday’s? What do you do to prepare?”

“Well, for starters, I go over my calendar to see what meetings I have and don’t have. I check the weekly charts that we have for each hotel to make sure they are continuously progressing toward the goal we set for them for the month. If not, there are meetings we have to set to see what’s going on. Payroll week is more tedious than the other weeks, but yeah, that’s what I do to prepare.”

She was looking at me with a smile on her face. “You are so sexy when you talk business. Can I shadow you for a day? Like to see what the Twins in Black do for you?”

“Woman.” I laughed. “Nah, Twins in Black is funny as hell. I’m going to tell them you said that.”

She shrugged her shoulders, shoving some food in her mouth.

“Okay, so work…and sexaside… what do you do for fun? Where are your friends? I’ve been here for a week now and I hardly ever see you on your phone. You don’t watch T.V. So, all you do is work, sex, and work out?”

“Yes. For the most part. I don’t have any friends, really. There are people that I talk to every now and then. Dymon is my friend. My dad is my friend.”

“They don’t count. You don’t have anyone that you can call and shoot the breeze with. Like, go to a rec center and shoot some hoops with. You didn’t make any friends in college? Whose best man would you be? Or who would be your best man?”

“Babygirl, I really don’t have time for any of that. Dymon would be my best man. Declan. My father. When I’m out and about, I fuck with some people, but I don’t have time to shoot hoops in a rec center, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“Yes, you do have time, you just don’t make time. And I want better for you, Diesel. You’re thirty-seven and your only friends are your father and brothers.”

“What’s wrong with that?”

“On second thought, I know it could be hard for people like you to have genuine friends that you didn’t have when you were coming up. So, I can understand that. Nevermind on the friends thing, but you do need to do other stuff than work all day.”

“I’ll take that into consideration. Any other life advice?”

“I don’t know if you’re being sarcastic or not, so I’m going to leave it alone, for now, but life is more than just a schedule. So, let’s do something. Take me somewhere.”

“Girl, where are you trying to go?”

“I don’t know. Well, I wanted to go to Central Park.”

“Why Central Park? Why not somewhere… inside… and cool?”

“Oh, my next thing was going to say the zoo.”

“Even bigger no.”

“Okay, well take me to where you grew up.”

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