PAPER VOWS Novel Chapter 24

Jade has blocked my fourth Facebook account. She doesn’t know that I don’t mind creating a thousand accounts just to talk to her. As much as I know she is Date’s woman, I am enjoying messing with her. Dante ignored my message last night – know I hit a nerve, and I don’t care. It’s not like he is going to do anything to me.

Just for fun, I create a Jade Lyon account and then call Jade Marshal with it. At this point, I think she knows that anyone who is trying to call her via Messenger is me because she immediately declines the call. I call again; she declines, but I call again. I wonder if she has told her man about this. Let’s see what Dante Lyon is going to do about me calling his woman. In my defence, what if I don’t know that she’s his woman – to me, she is a woman I met at the club and liked.

I hear the intercom. I get off the couch and go to attend to the gate. This morning, I called my doctor, and he came to see me. Luckily, I didn’t break anything, just bruised. I feel a lot better with the medicine I got. I also wouldn’t have let this slide if it were someone else who is not Dante Lyon. I have a good working relationship with Denzel, so I will let it slide. But I will mess with his woman just for fun.

There is a car I don’t recognise parked outside my house. The person toots when they see that I am trying to figure out who the person is. I should have carried my gun in case this person is here to cause trouble. I finally decide to open the gate, and the person drives in.

“Good morning, Mr Clark,” a man says, walking out of the car. I recognise him from the club. He is the man who was with Jade last night at the club. I bet all the money in my account; Dante Lyon sent him here to deliver a message to me.

“Good morning, messenger sent by Dante Lyon.”

“Mr Lyon requests your company,” he says, looking like I don’t have a choice for all this.

“And if I say no?”

“Force will be used, Mr Clark. It’s either you come with me willingly or by force,” he says. I have nothing to do, and I am not scared of Dante Lyon, so I’m going to go see him. Just for the fun of it.

“Well, get the door for me.”

Looking irritated, he opens the back seat door for me. I get in and wait for him to close it. It must be nice being close to Mr Lyon. One doesn’t need to get doors for themselves. The man who didn’t even bother to introduce himself gets into the car and starts driving.

“Can we get coffee on our way there?” I ask the man driving. He ignores me. “I see you are uptight like your boss.”

My phone rings – it’s Denzel calling me. I hope it’s not bad news. Sometimes bad things happen when the boys are offloading the merchandise.

Me: Dee! What’s up?

Denzel: I am good, checking if you are still alive?

Me: I am still very much alive. Your brother asked to see – I am on my way there.

Denzel: What did you do this time? I told you to leave Dante alone.

Me: I didn’t do anything. A man showed up at my house and told me your brother requests my company.

Denzel: Let me call him.

Me: Don’t worry about it, I can handle myself. How did it go with offloading the merchandise?

Denzel: Everything went well.

Me: Talk later, let me go meet your brother.

Denzel: You are always causing trouble, Ric, but in everything you do. Don’t be Dante’s enemy.

He hangs up. I put my phone away and ask the man who is driving me how far we are. He tells me that we are fifteen minutes away. Indeed, in fifteen minutes we are driving into 4th Street Club. I have never been to 4th Street this early. The place feels weird without the lights and the music.

“Dante Lyon!” I walk into his office. “You are a terrible host. I was expecting to be invited for breakfast at your house.”

“I don’t eat with my enemies,” Dante responds, serious as always. “Take a seat.”

“I didn’t know you and I are enemies.”

He says, “You have made yourself my enemy by bothering my woman.”

“You mean Jade Marshal?”

“Only I get to call her that. She is Miss Marshal to you. Are we clear?” he asks. As if I would ever listen to another man tell me what to do.

“Why am I here?”

Dante answers, “So we can talk like men. It seems like night didn’t teach you anything. Not only did you send me that stupid message, but you kept bothering my woman. You know she is mine, meaning you are doing this on purpose.”

“On purpose? I would never.”

“Do you think this is funny? Is this a joke to you, Clark?” he says. I think I am pissing him off and I love it. I get to the man who gets under Dante Lyon’s skin. I love it.

“While we are still on Jade Marshal, your relationship is public. What’s up with that? You never put your relationships in the public.”

Dante gets off his chair and comes to sit on the table, in front of me. “What I do doesn’t concern you. Leave my woman alone, this is a warning, next time I won’t be this kind.”

“Are you threatening me, Dante?”

“This is not a threat,” he says and without notice, a knife drives into my lap. “That is a threat. Next time I won’t be this polite.”

“What the hell, Dante!” I groan in pain.

He roughly yanks out the knife and wipes the blood off with a handkerchief. “Stop bothering my woman, next time it will not be your lap. And if you bleed on my floor, we are going to have a problem.”

Denzel barges in, “Dante, what are you doing?”

“Your friend will fill you in. You two better make sure there is no blood on my floor.” Dante leaves the room.

ARIA WILLOW

I am out shopping. I was bored, so I decided to go out and do a little shopping. One of the assistants is helping me, but it’s not fun shopping alone – I left Kelly at home. I would have invited Paula to join me, but she is out with her man. My girl is in love, and things are promising with her man. I think we will be attending a wedding soon. I hope I also get into a serious relationship soon.

“Lovely shoes,” says a feminine voice from behind me.

I turn around to see if it’s someone I recognise. I have never seen this lady in my life. I put on a smile and say, “Thanks, I got them here actually.”

“In this store, I would love a pair, they are gorgeous,” she says and then looks behind her as if looking for someone, “Jade! Come see these shoes.”

Jade? Is this the Jade I know about? I recognise her when she shows her face. It’s Jade Marshal. Dante’s Jade. She looks at my shoes and then at me. I am wearing a brown, string top, knee-length, body-hugging dress. She is wearing jeans and a tee. Doesn’t she know that she is Dante’s woman? She has to look the part.

Jade says, “Your shoes are pretty. You are also pretty.”

“Thanks, you are Jade Marshal, right?” I ask even though I know it’s her. “Dante’s new woman.”

“Yeah,” she answers.

I extend my hand to her, “My name is Aria Willow.”

“I know you from Instagram. You are prettier in person. I barely recognised you,” Jade shakes my hand. “This is Giselle, my sister.”

“Nice to meet you, ladies. I am doing a little shopping, it’s not fun when alone,” I say.

“Join us,” Giselle offers. “If you don’t mind, of course.”

“That would be lovely, you ladies are kind. And let me show you where to find these shoes,” I say, leading Giselle to the shoe session. Jade stays behind, checking her phone, then joins us moments later.

“Boyfriend?” I ask Jade, then I laugh to show that I am joking. “I forgot, you are Dante’s woman.”

“That was my mom. You know how mothers are.”

I nod, “I know that very well. Sometimes I have to pretend I don’t know that lady. She still treats me like I am a teenager.”

“That’s mothers for you,” says Giselle, then she says, “I am hungry, can we get food after this?”

I don’t know if she is talking to me too, but Jade answers, “Yeah, we can get something. Do you want to join us, Aria?”

“That would be lovely, ladies, thank you,” I answer with a smile, then reach for my phone to text Paula.

‘Having lunch with Jade Marshal. I ran into her at the VCT boutique.’