Chapter 36

36

E lias

A Few Miles Away

Not even being at the strip club could take my mind off Amanda. The only ass I wanted to see shaking was hers. Still, this was where West and David wanted to go after we left the lounge, so I obliged. I wasn’t in the mood to be throwing money and shit, so when the girls came to our section, I shooed them away. All I could do was think about how good things had been between me and Mandy. Regardless of how much I enjoyed my time with the guys, I couldn’t wait to get back to my girl.

She was still on that let’s take our time shit, and I gave her that. I knew we would end up together, and I didn’t mind taking the time to rekindle our bond and prove we belonged together. As a matter of fact, I didn’t want us to rebuild our bond; I wanted us to create one that was better.

At the feel of someone gripping my shoulder, I looked behind me. Juelz smiled down at me.

“Hey, can I talk to you real quick?”

“Yeah, sure.”

Standing, I followed her to the stairway that led to the lower section.

“I just wanted to thank you for the advance.”

“You’re welcome. Were you able to take care of your business?”

Juelz squeezed her elbow and shook her head. “Yes, but he was so impressed by me actually getting the money that he added on interest.”

With a chuckle, I ran my fingers down the sides of my mouth. “Who is this nigga? Is he here?”

“That’s…I’m not looking for you to save me,” she said, gripping my arms. “That’s not why I’m telling you. I just wanted to thank you again.”

“Were you able to get the money?”

Her expression saddened as she avoided my eyes. “Yeah…I got it.”

How she got it… I didn’t want to know.

“Is there anything else you can do besides this? I mean, I know you needed to work to provide for your family but—”

“This is it for me.” She chuckled as her eyes watered. “I didn’t go to college, and I can’t be out here working several minimum wage jobs. I have to take care of my family. We can’t afford home aides.” She ran her fingers through her hair and rocked from one foot to the other. “I’ll be fine. I just need to save enough money to take care of them and get my sister through high school. Once she goes to college, it’ll be just me and my parents, and I’ll have a little more wiggle room.”

Juelz reminded me of Amanda, and I couldn’t help but wonder if there was anything we could do to help her. I knew she wanted to be an artist, but the money wasn’t guaranteed with that. She’d get an advance when she signed on, but after that, it would depend on if there was a buzz and desire for her art.

“Listen…do you have any experience working in an office?”

Her head tilted and brows wrinkled. “Um, a little. I worked at a law firm my two years of college before I dropped out.”

“Would you like to work for me? I need a new assistant. It pays five thousand a month.”

Juelz’s mouth dropped. “Are you serious? Most assistant jobs pay ten percent of that a month. That’s why I’ve been working here.”

“Yeah, well, not N.E. Art . So…what do you say? Would you like to come in for an interview?”

Her clapping hands as she released a happy squeal made my heart light.

“I would love to! When can I come in?”

As my phone vibrated, I pulled it out of my pocket. “Come in Monday at noon. Just ask for me when you get to the front desk.”

She gave me a quick hug before pulling away. “Yes, sir. Thank you so much, Mr. Peterson. Even if I don’t get the job, thank you for considering me.”

“You’re welcome. See you Monday.”

I wasn’t trying to dismiss her, but Amanda was calling, and I needed to check in with my girl.

“You good, bae?”

“Elias!” she yelled. “I-I shot him!”

Gripping the table to steady myself, I looked at my phone because I couldn’t believe what I heard.

“Who? Where you at?”

“We’re at the hospital.”

“I’m on my way.”

I didn’t even bother going back to the table to tell West and David I was leaving. As I took the stairs by two, I called West to tell him where I was going. I didn’t know what the fuck happened tonight, but whoever came at my girl wrong, for whatever reason, was going to have to pay.

Amanda’s leg shook as she rocked. We’d been at her penthouse for hours. I’d washed her and gotten her into a sleep shirt. Even after laying down for an hour or so, she couldn’t get to sleep, which was understandable. As she relayed the events of the night, I saw red. Knowing a nigga had the audacity to not only put his hands on her but try to rape her and assault Tamar and Felicity had me wanting to go on a rampage.

Based on where Amanda said she shot him, he was still alive, and I had men waiting at the hospital and every minor medical center in case he showed up later for help. I also had the security footage pulled after the police left. They may have been able to catch him, but I was hoping I got to him first.

Tamar and Felicity were a bit banged up but okay. Felicity had a concussion, but she would be able to go home tomorrow. Tamar’s back took the worst of it when he slammed her down, but I appreciated the fact that they went as hard as they could for my girl because she would have done the exact same thing for them.

I hated not following my first mind and spending the evening with Amanda. It wasn’t uncommon for men who knew her from the club to try to talk shit or get her to dance if they saw her out, but it had never been this bad. Not being there to protect her had been gnawing on me, but I pushed my feelings to the side to focus on her.

“You wanna talk about it?” I asked, and she quickly shook her head.

“I want to forget about it.”

“You wanna smoke? Maybe that’ll at least put you to sleep.”

She nodded, so I went to my stash and rolled up. We ended up rotating four blunts before her eyes got low. A random laugh turned into her crying. I carried her to bed and held her close. As I prayed for her and repeated that she was safe, I held her against my heart until her cries turned into whimpers, and her whimpers turned into light snores.