Page 166 of The Fire We Make

“You know you don’t have to do this?” Ace asked.

“I want to go,” Joy assured him.

Ace stepped closer, dropping his voice to a whisper. “Baby you don’t have to prove anything to me.”

“Don’t do that, Adonis,” Joy snapped, shoving at his chest.

Ace couldn’t help but chuckle. “Do what?”

“Treat me like some porcelain princess now that you know my past. I’m a soldier… just like you.”

She stepped closer, gripping him by the lapel of his jacket.

“I just got you and he tried to take you from me. I’m riding too, so let’s go.”

Ace’s dick stiffened at the possession and rage he saw in her eyes.

“Don’t talk like that Rose,” he warned. “We don't have time to take care of this." He pushed his erection against her, letting her feel just how much her words affected him.

Joy smirked.

“Let’s go put these niggas in the dirt, then we can take care of it.”

Ace kissed her. “Let’s roll then.”

The warehouse was in a tense silence when Ace entered, Joy at his left and Von on his right.

Marco sat in the middle, his two accomplices on either side of him. They all waited with busted lips and cut cheeks for what would come next.

“I heard you niggas wasn’t happy with how I’m running shit,” Ace said. His voice was calm but it broke the silence like a gunshot through glass.

When no one spoke, his calm shattered.

“I protected you. Let you make money in my streets. And this how you repay me?!” Ace roared. “If you had a problem with how I ran shit, you knew where to find me. Well, I’m here now. You got my full attention. So tell me—what the fuck was worth moving behind my back?”

Ace’s voice boomed throughout the warehouse as he stared down every man sitting there. Spit flew from his mouth, his eyes were blazing and crazed, and he beat on his chest with his fist to punctuate every sentence. Adonis King the Second had left the building and Menace had taken his place.

Joy stood behind him watching him move. She’d seen small flashes of the “menace” they said Ace was, but seeing it in full force was mesmerizing.

This was Ace the king. Ruthless, dangerous and beautiful.

He was pure power and rage as he addressed the traitors within his organization. The men weren’t tied up but none of them moved. Even Marco, the boldest of them, made no moves to swing or speak. As much as they wanted to convince themselves and others that Ace was unfit, none of them challenged him to his face even with the open invitation he’d extended.

He’d worn one of Joy’s favorite suits of his to dinner. It was a deep navy blue, the color against his deep skin made him look like royalty and the fit accentuated every dip and curve of his muscles.

The power that he normally kept reigned in, just under the surface in a reserve until he needed it, bubbled up and made the already big and powerful man larger than life. He was everything he thought he was and everything they whispered about him and only a fool would question his power and ability to lead.

The group of fools in front of them were coming face to face with the error of their thoughts and actions rendering them silent and frozen. But Ace wouldn’t let the indiscretion go with simply a quick death. No, Ace wanted to make a statement. He wanted to put on a show. This wasn’t about leadership or even respect. This was about fear.

Growing impatient, Ace shrugged off the jacket and threw it aside. He undid the Hermes cuff links, throwing them down like the pair didn’t cost six thousand dollars, then rolled his sleeves up.

Last, he unbuckled his belt. Joy’s mouth watered and her mind wandered to what happened the last time she’d heard that jingle.

“What, y’all scared or something? I don’t have all fuckin’ night,” he continued talking shit as the men glanced at each other, still mute.

“Who the fuck told y’all it would be a good idea to come for me? Cause clearly you simple ass niggas didn’t come up with that on your own.”

One of the lieutenants shifted.