Page 4 of Love’s Strongest Soldier

Luxe stepped around me, wearing only a fluffy white towel. Her body glistened with moisture. Luxe’s curly hair was pulled up into a ball on top of her head. A few pieces laid on the nape of her neck.

“Savion sent me.”

She waved me off. “I told him that I don’t need a babysitter.”

“Too bad, ’cause I ain’t going anywhere.”

Stopping in her tracks, she faced me, and her bushy brow arched to her hairline. “You really want to tempt me?” she asked as she twirled the knife between her fingers as if she was about to step out on the field with a marching band or some shit.

“Careful before you hurt yourself.”

“Man, please. The only person that’ll be getting hurt in here is you,” she said and tiptoed back into the bathroom.

I heard the water turn off. A few seconds later, Luxe came out of the bathroom and grabbed her bottle of lotion off the dresser.

“You gon’ stand there and watch me get dressed?”

Luxe was beautiful. She had this tawny complexion without a blemish in sight. Being on the slender side, she still had enough ass to cup.

Quickly, I shook the thoughts from my mind. I’m not even supposed to be looking at her like that. I was here for a job, not to fuck, but if she stood around me much longer like that, I was gon’ be on demon time.

“Fine.” The towel dropped from Luxe, and my eyes immediately went to her huge chocolate areolas. This girl just didn’t give one fuck.

I spun on my heels, giving her the privacy she needed to get dressed. “I’ll be downstairs, waiting for you.”

I didn’t even anticipate her response. I exited the room and headed for the living room.

The following day

“Tell Savion to get this man off me,” I said to Solei through the phone.

Ghost had been in my shadow ever since he showed up the day before. He even slept in my house out in the hallway on the floor, because I told him that I wasn’t going to no safe house. I felt the safest at home. I didn’t care if people were getting into my house and trying to kill me. There were weapons all over the entire house in case I needed them. He saw that for himself when I pulled that knife on him.

“You know he isn’t gonna do that ’til he finds out exactly what’s going on.”

It was gonna take me a while to track down that painting. The guy that I’d sold it to had died, and his estate ended up selling it. There was no telling how many hands that painting had gone through since then. I thought about calling the number back in the phone and telling them that I was trying to get my hands on the painting, but I didn’t want them to know that I had one up on them just yet.

Savion was digging into the issue, and I was trying my best to leave it up to him, but he was making it hard for me. I liked to have control. My brain needed to know what was going on at all times, or else I was gon’ go mad.

“This really isn’t going to work for me.”

“Luxe, I went through what you’re going through. It may not have been the exact way, but I was against it at first, and look at me now. Savion turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to me. Give it a chance. It just might work out in your favor.”

“Not happening,” I said and ended the call. Had I been right there in front of her face, I would’ve taken my hearing aids out.

Sighing, I tossed my phone against the bed and got up. I saw Ghost’s shadow underneath my bedroom door, letting me know that he was still out there. My eyes rolled heavenward. They really thought that I was about to pack up my life and move into this safe house until all this mess was over. They didn’t even know who was really after me and how long it was gonna take to handle the situation.

Going over to my closet, I grabbed my Louis Vuitton sneakers and slipped them onto my feet. I would’ve put on some pumps, but my intention was to dodge Ghost’s ass. Don’t get me wrong; I could run extremely well in some pumps, but I was faster in sneakers.

Opening the door, I stepped out into the hallway where Ghost was standing with his phone up to his ear. “I hope that’s Savion’s ass telling you to mind your business,” I said and trod down the hallway toward the staircase. Ghost wasn’t too far behind me.

“I’m about to head to the mall. You can just stay here.”

I yanked the door open, and he reached over my shoulder and slammed it shut. The wind slapped me in the face. Heat coursed my veins. I turned and faced him. Ghost was fine as hell. I couldn’t even deny him that. He stood about five ten. His tattoos covered his entire chocolate frame from what I could tell. My favorite was the piece peeking up his neck. Ghost was a bit younger than me. I wasn’t certain his age, but if he was hanging around Savion, I just knew he was in his late twenties or early thirties. Either way, he was much younger than me. I’d never in my life thought about talking to a guy that was around my siblings’ ages. I saw them as babies. They weren’t attractive.

Ghost had a fresh line up. His waves were cut into a taper with a line slicing through the side.

“The only way you’re leaving this house is if I come with you.”