Page 19 of Merci

“Merci, stop,” he said with a relaxed chuckle. “You don’t have to pay for shit, sweetheart. I’ll take care of it.”

I wanted to hug him, but I didn’t want to get Lamar’s blood on me. “Come take a shower,” I demanded, not waiting for him to agree. Hammer complied, pulling his vibrating phone out of his pocket in the process.

“Whadup, JoJo? You made it home, big brother?” I couldn’t hear what Cujo said, but he must have said yes because Hammer nodded as his shoulders relaxed. “Aight, bet. I ’preciate you circling back and looking out for my lady.” He chuckled. “I know, but still. Yeah. I’ll hit you up in the morning.”

“Thank you, Cujo!” I yelled, making Hammer laugh.

“He said you’re welcome.”

“Y’all split that money,” I said as soon as he ended the call. “I don’t want it anymore.”

“Nah. You earned that. Keep it.”

“Thank you, bae. That could have gone horribly wrong if I was by myself. Thank you so much.”

“You’re welcome, but you don’t have to thank me for that. It’s my job to protect you.”

I certainly wasn’t going to argue with him about that. Once we made it to the bathroom, Hammer undressed, and I took his clothes and immediately put them in the washer. Him casually telling me to wash them in cold water and add hydrogen peroxide reminded me that this man had a past that was probably far bloodier than this. He’d told me about his days in the streets, but Hammer downplayed it so much I didn’t think it was worth looking into or giving a second thought. Now, I was even more curious about who he was… who he used to be.

Once his shower was over, I gave him a long, warm hug and kiss before grabbing ice for his hands. I took a shower, head shaking constantly over what had just transpired. A part of me wanted to reach out to Aaron and let him know what happened, but after the damage the brothers had done, I felt it was best if no one knew they were involved in this.

Hammer’s lower half stayed wrapped in a towel as we lay in bed, and it was taking everything inside of me not to ride him until he fell asleep. Honestly, the only thing that stopped me was the fact that I was tired, and I was sure he was tired, too, because as soon as I finished posting the pictures from the party to my Instagram, Hammer pulled me onto his chest. Less than a minute later, he was sound asleep, and it didn’t take long for me to join him.

12

HAMMER

We’d been up long enough to handle our hygiene and climb back into bed. Even with me knowing I needed to leave and go home to get dressed for work, it was hard for me to pull myself away from Merci. With her in my arms, I had the best sleep of my life that wasn’t drug-induced. That was fucked up to say, but it was my truth. The only time I slept through the night without waking up or tossing and turning was if I smoked or drank enough to pass out. Last night, neither was the case. Having Merci in my arms was like my drug; I slept the whole night through.

At the sound of beating on her door, I climbed out of bed, but Merci took her time opening the camera app on her phone. “It’s my brothers. Please stay in here. I don’t want them knowing about you yet.”

That was cool with me because I didn’t want them to know about me either. I was curious about why she didn’t want them to know about me, but since that would open the door for a conversation I wasn’t ready to have, I let her secrecy ride for now. As quickly as she could, Merci wrapped her robe around herself and headed out of the door, closing it behind her.

Last night, we slept skin-to-skin. Somewhere along the way, the towel came off, and I was cool with that. After I showered this morning, I put my boxers back on, and all she had on was a red bra and panty set that Idesperatelywanted to take off. Merci’s body was truly a work of art. A fucking masterpiece. It took every ounce of discipline I had this morning not to try and have my way with her, but I knew the wait would be worth it. Sleeping with her and being skin-to-skin was a form of intimacy that was satisfying enough on its own.

As soon as her brothers came in the house, they went in on her ass, and it amused me. It explained why she was trying her hardest to call them last night because it was clear they didn’t play about her. I shouldn’t have expected anything less, though.

“I’m tryna figure out why we had to hear through the grapevine that some shit went down at your location last night,” one of them said.

Merci groaned, and I sat up in bed and rested against the headboard. “What did y’all hear, Marz?”

“Lamar had a team run down on Aaron at his event. Apparently, Lamar and his cousin tried to rob the host last night, too, but that shit ain’t work. There’s a video circulating of them getting worked, but no one can see who it is because it was so dark outside. You hosted that shit last night, right? So you were in that truck? The truck that’s parked in your driveway?”

“I didn’t know Lamar sent someone after Aaron too, but yes, he did try to rob me. Unsuccessfully.”

“Why you ain’t call us?” her other brother asked.

“I didn’t have to,” she replied casually. “My man and his brother handled it, Neptune. Clearly.”

Her response made me smile, and the dead silence that filled the room had me holding back my laugh. I could only imagine how they were looking at her.

“Yo’ man?” Marz replied. “Who thefuckisyo’ man?”

Merci laughed. “We just started dating, and it’s new, so no. Y’all can’t meet him. But as you can see in the video, I’m safe with him.”

One of them sucked their teeth.

“Nah, big sis. That don’t really sit too well with me. We need to meet him. At least to know who he is and thank him for looking out for you,” Neptune said.