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Not with my name attached to them. I’d spent years building my company into what it was. The people on my roster protected everybody from celebrities to some of the most powerful people in the world. When they needed security they could trust, my company was one of the first they called.

That reputation hadn’t come from babying motherfuckers during training. And I wasn’t about to start now.

“They can learn,” I said, taking another drink of water. “That’s what the fuck we’re here for. But I’m not lowering my standards because somebody’s feelings might get hurt.”

“I hear you, man.”

“Good.” I screwed the cap back onto my bottle and stood. “Now you gone help me get these motherfuckers right, or you just came over here to run your mouth?”

Kendric grinned. “You know I got you.”

“Then get your ass on the mat.”

He dapped me up before we headed back over to where everybody was starting to gather again.

I looked around at the men waiting for us, then at the same trainee I’d put on his back twice.

He straightened the second our eyes met. Which was good.

I pointed at him. “You first.”

His face dropped, and Kendric busted out laughing beside me, but I didn’t.

“Maybe this time you’ll stay on your fucking feet.”

༺ ♛ ༻

After I finished with them niggas, Kendric and I headed back to my office. I still had a few concerns about this batch, and I wanted his take on them.

“So, bruh, what you thinking about this batch now?” Kendric asked once he dropped into the chair across from me and kicked his feet up on my desk.

I looked at his shoes, then slowly brought my eyes up to his face. This nigga knew I hated that shit.

He grinned but didn’t move them.

“They decent or whatever.” I shrugged, leaning back in my chair.

A few of them had actually impressed me. They listened, adjusted when they fucked up, and didn’t need me repeating myself every five minutes.

But that one nigga? I still wasn’t sold on his ass. He was too fucking soft.

For one, he needed to get his weight up. And two, somebody needed to teach his ass how to fight back instead of letting every motherfucker who came at him put him on the floor.

I couldn’t send him out to protect somebody when he couldn’t protect his damn self.

“I feel you.” Kendric nodded.

“Yeah.” I looked over at him. “What you got planned for tonight?”

“Man, shit. I might just go back to the crib and chill. What about you?”

“Probably the same.” I shrugged. “I don’t feel like being bothered.”

Most days after training, I didn’t. By the time I finished dealing with everybody else’s shit, all I wanted was a shower, some peace, a blunt and a glass of wine.

And yeah, before somebody said some shit, a nigga like me drank wine. Wasn’t shit wrong with that. Drinking wine didn’t suddenly make a nigga pussy. I drank the harder shit too, but every time I got to fucking with that, my ass had a habit of ending some shit I hadn't planned on starting.

What kind of shit, you ask? Read between the fucking lines.