Page 58 of City of Gods

“Let me go to Junior.”

“No.” I stood up, hands locked to my hips. “Absolutely not, Bakari. Do you know what that could mean for me and my family? If he knows who we are, he’ll kill all of us starting with me since I’m the one who nearly killed him.”

“Did I say I’d implicate you or the rest of your family?” he asked, his expression firm and guarded.

“You don’t fucking have to!” I tossed a hand in the air. “He’s not dumb. It wouldn’t be hard for him to figure out that if my mother is a hitter then the rest of her family might be, too.”

“Who said I was going to tell him the truth? I need you to think before you fly off the handle.” He tapped the side of his head and stood to his feet, towering over me with ease.

“How else are you going to get Junior’s help?”

“Lie.” Our eyes locked and I felt the same fire stirring in my belly that I’d been feeling for a while whenever we were alone. “I can tell him that your mother wanted to get into the drug game. That you were the one who discovered it.” The more he spoke, the more the plan unraveled to reveal a brilliant diamond at the core.

I was still scared, though.

What if it didn’t work as seamlessly as Bakari presented it? Plans had a way of going awry when you least expected them to. Nerves trickled into my stomach, eating away at me.

“I don’t want anything to happen to you, Bakari,” I admitted quietly.

“I’ll be fine. Junior has given me grace since I saved his life. He trusts me for now and I plan to exploit that so we can find your mother.” He took a few steps until he was in front of me, his large hand cupping my face.

I wasn’t used to feeling protected by anyone. I didn’t know how good it felt to settle into the knowledge that someone had my back and would make sure that I was good no matter what. Those exact feelings rose to the surface with Bakari. I knew he wanted revenge for my mother killing Rob and trying to destabilize the Temple. None of that disillusioned me. I felt protected because I knew he wouldn’t serve me up like Mother did. I knew he wouldn’t let me get hurt just to serve his own agenda.

“Bakari, you’re talking about exploitation, lying, murder…” I shook my head. “This isn’t the Bakari Godwin I knew.”

“No. It’s not. It’s the Bakari Godwin you know.” He rested his hand on the small of my back, making my body heat up with laser focus. “Now, what I need to know is where your loyalty lies, and do you trust me?”

“I trust you,” I said without hesitation.

“Are you going to be loyal to me, though? I won’t be mad if you say no. I know how you are about the family and the business.”

“You knew how Iwas,” I smirked, giving him a taste of his own medicine. “Mother wanted me out of the business and I said I was going to make moves on my own so that’s what I’m going to do. So, I’m loyal to myself first.” I pushed my pointer finger against his chest. “And as long as you promise not to implicate my family, I guess I can be loyal to you, too. You haven’t lied to me or put me in harm’s way yet.”

“Yet? Are you expecting me to?” There was that little thing he did where he smirked and raised his eyebrow. It was such an arrogant but sexy thing.

“I don’t know, Bakari. I’m keeping my eyes peeled but so far, you seem trustworthy.” I tried to pull back to put a little space between us because being that close to him was making it hard for me to breathe.

He only pulled me closer.

“You seem trustworthy, too. I was going to say that maybe it was the grief fucking with my mind but if I’m being honest, you’ve been real from the jump. I noticed it the night you came in here after you almost killed Junior.”

“He would have died if you just left him alone, Mr. God complex.” I rolled my eyes and Bakari smirked a little before his expression cooled.

“Then he would have died for something he didn’t do and wasn’t planning to do. Also, I can’t help it if your man has blessed hands. I can patch anyone up.”

“My man?” I drew my head back and blinked narrowed eyes at him.

“I didn’t mean…” He sighed and shook his head. “I wasn’t trying to claim you or anything.”

“You mean like you made me claim your dick in the elevator?” My hand slid down to grip his dick. It went from soft to stiff in a matter of seconds. Everything between my thighs pulsed but my clit ached with need.

I needed to feel his pressure.

His force.

The fire that he expertly wielded.

“Nah, nah, nah. You’re Sanai Sinclair, I can’t make you do shit. Which means you wanted to claim this dick as yours.” His strong hand fit over mine and we both gripped his thick dick. A rush of tingles enveloped me, fluttering over my warm skin, marching down the back of my neck, and flitting across my nipples.

---