Page 5 of One Lonely Night In Dubai
I’d been sitting there, getting pissed off about a nigga I didn’t know when my plane home was about to leave soon, and I hadn’t even washed my ass. Wrapping the sheet around me, I swung my legs over the side of the bed and instantly regretted that shit. Everything from my pussy to my legs hurt and as bad as I wished I had time to soak, that would have to wait until I got home. Clenching my teeth, I eased to my feet and let out a relieved breath once I was confident I could actually hold my own weight. I snatched up my phone from the nightstand and limped to the bathroom, instantly getting flashbacks when I looked at the glass shower stall. Shaking off my lustful thoughts, I started the shower and brushed my teeth while I waited for the water to get hot enough. My eyes bucked looking in the mirror and seeing the results of a night full of sweaty ass sex. Makeup was smeared all over my face, and my once silk pressed tresses looked like I had a bad wash and go. I didn’t have time to go through a full skincare routine, so I opted to add my La Roche-Posay facial cleanser to a washcloth and quickly scrubbed my face once I’d finished my oral hygiene.
Although I’d rushed everything else, I took my time in the shower, letting the powerful spray of water kneed some of the kinks from my body. I tried hard not to think about Valentino fucking me like he loved me as I lathered my African net sponge and washed up, but everywhere I looked was a reminder of the previous night.
“Forget about him, Essence. It was a one-night stand,” I grumbled to myself, turning my back to the wall that he’d fucked me against. “It’s not like you’ve never had a one-night stand before.” That’s what I was trying to tell myself, and although it was true, I’d never had one likethat. It had been years sinceI’d done anything so spontaneous, but I couldn’t remember one nigga turning me out the way Valentino had. Obviously, it didn’t mean shit to him, though, because he’d left without so much as afuck you very much!
Shrugging off my hurt feelings, I washed and conditioned my hair for the flight home, and I felt a lot better after I was done. My mind was already on the long ass list of things I needed to do before my assignment started the next week. The distraction managed to get me out of my feelings as I moisturized my body and slipped into my airport clothes. If I was going to be in the air for fourteen hours, then I was going to be comfortable, and the light gray Nike sweatsuit and matching Jordan 1s were going to provide that.
My suitcase was already packed from the day before, and after tossing in my wedding attire, I did a final sweep of the room before leaving Dubai and my night with Valentino behind.
CHAPTER 4
VEGA
“What the fuck happened?” I asked, looking around at my employees and the useless niggas I’d hired for security.
Everybody’s face was long as hell, but none of them were opening their mouths to explain shit. I paced the floor, taking in the damage to my spot, and could hardly contain my rage. I’d been deep in a post nut slumber when Santana’s constant calling had woken me up. Not only had our casino been hit, but Quick had gotten shot in the process and was laid up in the hospital. He’d barely finished telling me, and I was already half dressed and on my way to the door, opting not to waste time waking Essence.
I met up with my brother at the airstrip, and he filled me in on what he knew, which wasn’t much. The niggas had been smart enough to kill the cameras, so all we had to go on was that it was five of them, and they seemed to know exactly where everything was. Quick had been caught off guard in the office, and was hit multiple times before those niggas got away with $250,000, plus whatever they got off our patrons.
When we touched down, our first stop was the hospital. Quick was out of surgery by the time we got there and was raising hell as expected. He wanted to hit the streets to find out who’d been bold enough to try him, and while I didn’t blame him, he would have to sit this shit out. At least for the time being. I had to promise to save him a piece of the action, just so he’d take it easy on the staff and stop threatening to check himself out. That shit had my mama hysterical, and my pops even more pissed off because he didn’t like her getting upset. He was acting like the whole reason this shit happened was that we didn’t leave Dubai when we were supposed to, and since Santana mentioned it was because of a woman, he really went off. Now, I was taking my frustration out on my staff. Somebody was gon’ have to tell me something!
“Y’all muthafuckas can’t speak?” I snapped, eyes landing on the head of security who was ducked off in the back. “Arnez? You should be the first one talking, nigga! You’re head of security ain’t you?”
His eyebrows shot up as everybody looked his way. “Yeah.”
I chuckled bitterly at the uncertainty in his voice, ready to shoot his ass just off the strength of that.
“You sure? ’Cause you sound like you don’t know, muthafucka.”
“Yeah, I’m sure, Vega.”
“Okay, so what the fuck happened? Aside from my cousin who’s shot the fuck up in the hospital, you’re the one who’s supposed to know what’s going on in this bitch. So, tell me how the fuck I’m outta my money!” I was spitting mad! A quarter mil wasn’t nothing to scoff at, but I’d have been just as pissed off about any amount of money that was taken from me. Hell, I’d traveled all the way to Dubai over a $50,000 loan, so I was ready to burn the city down over this shit. I leaned against a craps tableas I waited for his lips to start moving while Santana stood at my side, engrossed in his phone.
“I was in the surveillance room, tryna figure out why the cameras went out when they hit the door. By the time I realized what was going on, Quick was already shot, and they had everybody else hemmed up.” Arnez huffed petulantly.
“Who was on the door?”
The question caught him off guard, and he sputtered, “Uh, um-.”
“Spit it the fuck out!” I pushed up from the table, making him flinch with his scary ass.
“It was supposed to be Bear, but he called off today, so Arnez had his brother Royce up there,” a quiet but annoyed voice spoke up from the side of me. It was one of the card girls, Norielle, looking just as fed up as I felt but probably only because they’d been held up in here for hours, and she was ready to go.
I didn’t care how I got the information, though, as long as it was accurate, and my head swung back toward Arnez for confirmation. He was already on his feet, eyes wide, as he tried to explain.
“Vega, let me explain….” He swallowed hard, trying to figure out what he could say that would allow him and his brother to walk out of there. Even though I felt anything but generous at the moment, I waited with my neck bent lazily. “Bear been on bullshit the last couple weeks, so I had Royce on standby. This was his first day. He’s really a good kid, man. He just graduated and shit. I’m just tryna keep him outta trouble for my mama.” He spoke fast, not realizing that he was just digging him and that little nigga a deeper hole.
“You put a fuckin’ teenager at the door to guard my money, nigga? How the fuck that even made sense to you? I know damn well Quick ain’t approve no goofy ass shit like that.” I couldn’t help scratching my head at the fuck shit that had went on in myabsence. A nigga couldn’t be out of town for twenty-four hours without somebody fucking up, but this was straight up amateur, and I had half a mind to go fuck Quick’s ass up right along with Arnez.
“Quick didn’t know. He was setting up the poker room?” Norielle started, but I quickly cut her off.
“Ain’t that your job?” Embarrassed, her eyes shifted, and she mumbled some shit I couldn’t quite make out. “Man, what?”
“Isaid,he was helping me,” she said louder this time, making my face ball up.
“Tuh! More like helping himself to your throat!” this other girl Kya interjected.
“Bitch, fuck you! You’re just mad ’cause he don’t want your funny looking ass!” Norielle’s unemployed ass shot back, and they started arguing like this shit was Jerry Springer. Sosa chose that moment to tune the fuck in, only making it worse by egging them on every time one said some wild shit.
