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He nodded.
“Were you any good?”
Ezekiel was fit. His body was quite nice and he moved with confidence and agility. I could see him as the athletic type.
“I was decent but the worst of the three.”
“The three?”
“My brothers Elias and Lucas were more skilled. It was natural for both of them. With me, more technical. The harder I worked, the more skilled I got.”
“So you’re not good at everything?”
He smirked, turning to face me. “I’m good at a lot of things, far more than the skill set you’ve been exposed to, Jhorie… But no, I’m not good at everything.”
I gasped and rolled my eyes. “Get your mind out of the bedroom. I was thinking of business, negotiating with criminals who want to rob innocent people, and, at the top of that list, forcing people to bend to your will.”
He smirked and nodded. “Then to your point, you would be right. I wasn’t bad, just not as skilled as my brothers. Elias had more edge so he was willing to take the hits, the abuse to his body from being in the ring. He welcomed it most days but Lucas was damn good. He could have gone pro if…”
He paused and I was hesitant to inquire further but curiosity got the best of me. I knew of their family but only their privilege.
“Did he choose another career over boxing?”
“No, he was murdered before he got the chance to pursue it.”
“I… Oh… I shouldn’t have asked.”
He shook his head gently. “No, it's fine. You would have found out sooner or later. Our family has a bit of a history here in town. Not all of that history is favorable. My brothers and I are very different. Lucas was the one who you would look at and try to make sense of how he fit, but he simply didn’t. He wanted to. Our father pushed him to be a part of a world he never should have embraced and it cost him his life.”
“I’m sorry.”
“So am I but I had no intention to dampen the mood. To your point, everything here is paid for. The building and everything in it. Staff salaries will be fully funded by grants which means qualified staff, skilled in their prospective areas of expertise, will work here. Sports, academics, trades, college preparatory, and life skills. Loyd will be nonprofit so nothing will be expected out of pocket for the families.”
“Well shit,” I rushed out and he frowned my way.
“I figured that would make you happy.”
“It does, but it’s also making me like you more than I want. I really want to dislike you.”
He threw his head back and laughed so sinfully enticingly that my pussy was angry with me for giving him a reason.
“I apologize for being likable but unfortunately I can’t help that you have a bad habit of misjudging me. Technically that’s your fault not mine.”
“Maybe but liking you is going to be my downfall.”
“I assure you; you will survive, Ms. Abraham. I’ll make it my personal mission to see to it. Now what happens along the way, I can’t make any guarantees but I can promise you’ll be thoroughly satisfied with the experience.”
After a heated stare, he smirked. “Now, how about we head out and grab dinner to go over a few things? Samiya mentioned she forwarded the plans for the reconstruction initiative to you. I would love to hear your thoughts since we’re moving that up at your insistence.”
At that very moment my stomach decided to sing its approval for a meal, causing him to add, “And before you argue you’re not hungry, clearly you are.”
“I am but that doesn’t mean I have to share a meal with you.”
“No, it doesn’t but you want to, so shall we?”
He slipped one hand into his pocket and motioned to the exit of the gym with the other. I relented and moved ahead of him, wondering if I would truly survive this experience or this man.
six
