Charmed By A Steel City Hustler

Lois:

I had finally returned to my own home after all the drama at my father's place. The past two weeks were insane. The kidnapping and shootout had left me with a form of post-traumatic stress. I was paranoid and on high alert all the time. I had not slept well, at all whether I was in my own home or my father's. He was pissed that my sister and I refused to stay under his watchful eye during this fiasco.

I was not going to live in fear of anyone or any situation. Adonis had not been in contact with me at all. He made it a point to tell my boss that I was taking some off for an undisclosed amount of time. I had to politely tell my supervisor that I speak for myself and would be in. I could not let this drama deter every aspect of my life.

I stared at my computer screen reviewing Bash's financial statements. He was beyond wealthy. The numbers did not line up with his prior taxes, or his business ventures. His illegal dealings were gaining him so much damn money. Lola was a fool to not know all of this was going on right under her nose.

There was a common name that popped up on his checks and that pissed me off. Yasmine Tate was on my shit list with Adonis. She was gunning for my husband heavily. She was bold as fuck to go after Bash as well. Yasmine was married to a very dangerous man that had dealings with my father.

I was not as naïve as everyone thought I was. My father was not strait laced, but he provided a great life for his family. That was all that mattered. I had a small inkling of what may be going on between him and the other men in my life. I just could not understand why Lola and myself were caught up in the middle of this power struggle.

I heard keys rattling at the front door and sat up on the couch. Adonis was coming in and would probably be shocked to see me here. This face to face needed to happen. We couldn't just pretend that he didn't walk in on me fucking his cousin.

I had pretended all these years that I didn't know about him having a relationship with my sister. His footsteps rounded the bend and he stopped cold to look at me. His eyes were dark as the night sky and his demeanor standoffish. This man was not my husband of seven years, he was a shell of that.

"What are you doing here?"

"This is my home. It's nice for you to finally return as well."

Adonis chuckled tightly and threw his briefcase to the chaise sitting to the right of him. He was pissed off to see me and was unprepared at all for my comeback. I was ready for every insult and mudslinging he had up his sleeve. I stood up to face him ready for war.

"You have some nerve being here after making a proper idiot out of me. I was kidnapped and beaten behind your slutty actions. You have embarrassed me, and my family on an entirely new level of trifling!"

"Triflin? Nigga please. So now the hood side of you is coming out after getting your ass whooped. You declined to mention your relation to Sebastian when my sister brought him home. Your ass also thought you were slick in fucking Lola prior to me. Not to mention you cheated on me with her."

"Bullshit, so that's why Bash was payback? For some shit that happened before us. I have never slept with Lola after we got married."

"The lies! And Yasmine Tate?"

The silence was deadly, and I reached over to slap spit from his mouth. He didn't have to say a word; his face revealed the truth. Adonis had tried to make me seem crazy for months and lied about that woman. I was hurt by his lying even though I had no room to be. He forced me to become this woman that I am today with his lack of attention.

Adonis rubbed at his cheek and just looked at me with a hard stare. This man owned my heart and soul for years and look what we had been reduced too. Standing here now, all I could think about was the beginning and how we got here. I have never given him a reason to lie or be unfaithful in the beginning. I was a good woman and put up with so much from him.

We stood there for what felt like hours. Then we each sat down on opposite ends of the couch. Adonis admitted he slept with Yasmine once and it was recent. That he did after knowing about Sebastian and me. Imagine my surprise when he stated that he had known about our affair from the beginning.

Adonis skated around his relationship with Bash and why they were after my father. I felt my cheeks flush at the description that he gave to me. Bash had candidly given blow by blow details of our sexual tryst to my husband. Adonis had to have been so embarrassed to hear of my actions. I was ready to tear into my husband for his lack of actions and indiscretions. Here mine were no better.

"Lois, I know that I have not been easy this past year while trying to make partner. I own that, and I have neglected you. But I did not once step out on our vows, prior to this incident with Yasmine."

The speech I had prepared went out the front door along with my face. Adonis had given more truth than I could handle. He was also still holding back. I wanted to know why. Our marriage could not survive this scandal, even if we tried. His male pride would never allow him to stay true to me after recent events, even if he did love me. I could never trust him to be faithful or honest with me again. The fact he basically gave Bash the blessing to continue sleeping with me. I needed a drink, so I stood up and walked toward the bar for a double shot of crown royal. I opened the bottle and filled the glass halfway throwing it back. The brown liquid burned my throat and my abdomen. The pain didn't stifle my array of emotions one bit. I took another one.

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"Lois say something, you are too quiet."

I turned around with the third drink in my hand and stared at the man who once owned my soul. Adonis was different but maybe I never truly knew him at all. He kept so much from me in such a way that I never would have figured any of it out.

"Were you upset when Bash divulged that information to you? Did you make a scene or even give a damn about me? Did you ask yourself why I did it?"

The questions came tumbling out of my mouth so fast I couldn't coordinate my thoughts quick enough. Adonis looked shocked and stood up walking over to me. He grabbed the glass from my hand and threw the drink back and didn't miss a drop. His face was tight and veins popping. That look was always sexy to me.

"Of course, I was irate to hear that bullshit come from his mouth. We fought right in his damn office like two fools on the street. I was worried you may eventually step out with my being preoccupied with work. I was prepared for some water cooler gossip with one of those faggot-ass first year interns. Sebastian was a big surprise and the way he described your love making..."

CRASH!

Adonis had broken the glass in his palm shattering it into pieces falling to the floor. We both looked down at his hand that was streaked with blood. I instinctively grabbed for the cloth on the counter and pulled his hand to me. I could see a few small shards still embedded in his skin and pulled them out.

Adonis continued to look at me as I tended to his wound. We were both silent as I walked him to the stool. I reached for the peroxide and gauze on the bottom shelf. I opened the box and focused my attention on his wound and began to speak.

"Donnie, we have both done wrong in this situation and there seems to be no easy resolution. I could never ask you to remain married to me after all this. Let's be honest, do we even want to be with each other anymore? We both said a mouthful today and I am sure there is more we need to disclose. I gather you and Bash are not seeing eye to eye right now. I need to know what your issue with my father is. You have slept with me and Lola, was that all part of this sick game you and your cousin are playing?"

"Aahh shit! Lo no, hell naw! Fuck, could you loosen up some?"

I had purposely sunk the gauze into his wound a little harder than need be. People tend to speak the truth when they are in excruciating pain. Adonis appeared to be fighting a battle within. I mean after all I was the enemy in a way. I had betrayed him in the worst way possible, albeit unknowingly.

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"Leo Jennings is a thief, murderer and fraud. Your father has been waging a silent street war with my other half of the family for years. This bad blood goes back to before you and I were born. My father had tried to lock him up but could never make charges stick and then something happened."

Adonis looked off into the distance as if someone caught his attention. I looked in that direction but didn't see anything. I let him gather his thoughts while fastening the wrap on his hand and sat next to him.

"Did I ever tell you about my Aunt Porscha?"

"No, I thought Charlotte was the only girl in your grandfather's children."

Adonis began to tell me the story of Porscha and my father. I was shocked and a bit sick to my stomach. My father was not the best man in the world. But murder in such a gruesome fashion I could not believe. If this story was true than my dad was a bigger monster than Adonis and Bash combined.

I needed to talk to him and hear his version of things. I still had not heard from Sebastian and really wasn't too pressed now. The sound of digestion juice and a loud burp echoed through the room. I was starving and normally that would have been embarrassing under any other circumstances.

"How about I whip up something and we eat and continue to hash all of this out?"

I just nodded my head again in shock by the words coming from his mouth. Adonis had never cooked anything beyond warming up a frozen pizza during our relationship. He got up and headed toward the kitchen. I grabbed for the bottle and then quickly decided against it. I needed to keep a clear head. The text message alert went off on my phone. I picked it up to see who the person was.

Bash: We need to talk soon. I will call you with a time and location.

That fool had some nerve sending a cryptic message like that. We were going to talk, but he was last on my to-do list. I heard pots and pans clanging in my kitchen and got up to go see what Adonis was preparing. I didn't trust that fool not to poison me the first chance he got.