AHEAD OF THE GAME | BXB

XIX

I dressed in my new, practiced yet elegant attire.

An Alexander McQueen blazer hung snugly around my body, cascading all the way down to my feet with shiny rhinestones decorating the collar and sleeves.

It was something different but it still felt like me. If Kyron hadn't given me so much money, I wouldn't even have any of this stuff on: the jewelry, blazer, or the shoe's which were also Alexander McQueen.

I decided to wear a simple white turtleneck underneath it to not cause too much attention—even though the rock around my neck was probably brighter than my future.

I looked in the mirror and twirled, trying to make sure that the Ralph Lauren straight black pants that I was wearing weren't wrinkled.

I had always found it ugly when people with money mix-matched different brands with one another, but now I was doing the same damn thing.

I couldn't help but laugh at myself.

LB stared at me from the corner of my room, his eyes twinging with that of anger.

I rolled my eyes at him. "What's your issue?"

"You," he said without hesitation. "You my issue. You making us take you to this boujee ass club like Niggas not looking for you. You know, sometimes you be acting real stupid."

"We in Miami," I said in an attempt to calm his nerves. "You supposed to party in places like this. Don't you wanna get out and talk to girls or something? Hell, I don't know what y'all straight men do nowadays."

He didn't answer me. All he did was give me that look, the one that I always saw him giving me—like he just couldn't stand me.

"Look," I started with a sigh. "I'm not about to live the rest of my fucking life being scared of no nigga. What I'm about to do is have me some fun. If you don't wanna go then stay 'yo lame ass here. But, I already got everybody else on board. They've been instructed not to tell Kyron, and I trust you gone do the same."

"Instructed?" He mocked me. "All that money and power getting to 'yo damn head."

I shrugged, "And?" Then, I said, "We ain't even reach power yet. Matter of fact, I don't even want power, I want influence. There's a difference, and when we get it, you'll see."

"If you keep going behind Ky back...he ain't gone like that," LB said flat out.

I just stared at him. All of this conversing was starting to annoy me. "If you go behind my back and snitch I'm not gone like that," I said in a way that made him shut the fuck up. "I'm tired of you and everybody else questioning me and my choices. If I wanna do something then Imma do it!"

Okay, maybe I was letting this new lifestyle get to my head...but I just started getting into the swing of it. If I wanted to mess around a little, then who was I hurting?

With that, I threw my bag around my wrist and urged LB to follow after me. Outside of the door stood my eight new companions plus another four that Kyron had just sent over a few hours after my meeting with Nicolas.

I had a feeling someone told on me, but I wasn't gonna worry about that right now.

I had shit to do and new people to meet.

└──────┘

"Amore mio," Nicolas greeted me warmly.

He went in for a hug but two of my men had stopped him, causing Nicolas's guards to intervene.

"No, it's okay," he said, tight lipped. "They're just doing their jobs." At the sound of those words, everyone seemed to back down, even my guys.