SAVAGE

20

"Check this s**t out." Arthur chuckled as he stretched out his hand, showing Malcolm a video that was on the screen of his iPhone. Malcolm darted his eyes over, looking at the phone for only a moment. Arthur was trying to show him a video of some comedian. He shook his head, trying not to laugh at the antics. He had to stay focused on what was going on around him.

People were scattered everywhere, desperately trying to get everything in order. The Givin' Back event was scheduled for Thursday and Malcolm wanted to make sure his event was formally put together.

"This event stressing you out?" Arthur questioned him while locking his phone and burying it in his pocket.

Malcolm looked over at his bodyguard and said, "Kind of, but I need to be here." He looked around for a moment before continuing. "To sort everything out. I don't think Candace can do it all by herself."

Both men looked over at Candace who was busy speaking with one of the staff workers. She held a clipboard in her hand as she took orders for Malcolm. Her fair skin was bare and smooth. She had her auburn colored hair down and flowing.

"She seems to be doing her job very well."

"She does." Malcolm concurred with a head nod. "But I know how hectic this s**t can get. When s**t gets overwhelming, the staff gets cranky and that'll cause nothing but stress on her."

Arthur agreed with him and excused himself. Malcolm used that time to check everything out. He made his way around the convention center and sought out any flaw that bothered him. Candace wad about to past him until he spoke. She was dressed casually in her blouse, belted skirt, and pumps.

"How is everything going? Anything out of order?"

"Surprisingly, everything is going smooth." Candace replied with a subtle expression on her face. "I still need to make a few phone calls."

"Just let me know if I can help."

"I'm sorry to interrupt."

The sudden outburst caused Malcolm to dart his eyes. Relief hit him when he noticed Radhika standing beside him. She was one of his staff workers—the hiring manager of Givin' Back to be specific. Radhika was responsible for conducting interviews with potential candidates and hiring them. She had been a part of Malcom's team for almost three years now and still, she managed to become giddy around him. Most of it was from her crush she had developed on him.

Candace excused herself, so Malcolm and Radhika could talk. He placed his full attention on Radhika and watched as she tucked some of her hair behind her ear. Her South Asian roots gave her coal, black hair and dark-brown skin that was smooth and blemish-free. She looked over at him with her brown eyes and said, "We have some potential candidates for the English tutor position."

Malcolm's eyebrows hiked in curiosity. He wondered if Jersey was one of the candidates. She'd promised him that she would at least take the time to read through the electronic application and fill it out.

"How many do we have?"

"We have so many, almost one hundred applications." Radhika replied as she scrolled through the applicant forms. She held her iPad with ease.

"Let me check it out." Malcolm replied while reaching out for the iPad. Radhika wasted no time handing it over to him. His eyes scanned through the potential applicants quickly as he tried his best to find Jersey's name.

A, B, C... I found her. He said to himself. Jersey wasn't hard to find in the pool. He clicked on her application and went through it thoroughly. Malcolm made sure to keep a mental note on her education and past work.

While he was checking Jersey's application out, Radhika was checking him out. She couldn't help but to watch him in deep concentration. Malcolm stood there: tall, thick, and dipped in milk chocolate. The waves in his afro-textured hair were deep and well-trained. He licked his brown lips, causing Radhika to smile briefly.

Malcolm looked over, catching her in her bashfulness as he held out the iPad. He narrowed his eyes at her for a moment but didn't say anything immediately. Malcolm was aware of the crush she had on him, but he didn't address it. He didn't feel like it was necessary to. It was only a silly crush. Radhika wasn't dumb, she was aware of her limit.

"Make sure you interview Jersey Coleman first. Give her a shot—her resume looks nice." He replied, looking over at his employee.

She parted her lips at Malcolm's request. "Well, okay. I'll reach out to her first. At your request."

"Thank you, Radhika." He replied while excusing himself. Malcolm had a long day ahead of him.

_____________________________

"There...now that should feel much better." 

Jersey peered over at the woman who was busy putting the pack of bandages back inside her first aid kit. She was tall with an ivory skin complexion. Her hair was tied into a ponytail—for safety purposes.

"Does it feel okay? Not too tight?"

"It feels fine." Jersey answered coolly as she examined the bandage that the police officer managed to do. She made sure to clean Jersey's wound and properly dress it. She didn't realize how much damage the statue did to her hand until she looked at the clean cut. It was deep and sore.

"Great...you'll have to keep it cleaned or otherwise it'll get infected."

Instead of listening to the motormouth officer, Jersey decided to tune her out. She placed her attention on Kelli who was busy talking to the male police officer. She was telling her side of the story. Jersey wanted to know what was being said. Honestly, she didn't know what was on Kelli's mind. After the traumatizing altercation that took place earlier, she didn't know if Kelli was going to tell the actual truth to the law.

Jersey, however, didn't sugarcoat anything. She made sure to tell the officers everything that happened in the apartment. There was no way in hell she was going to lie for Quintin and Travis. In her opinion they were nothing but toxic, drug addicts.

Hours ago

"Need some help?" Quintin asked, holding his hand out.

Jersey's eyes darkened with a mixture of fear and anger. She wanted to understand what was going on, she needed to understand what was happening as of right now. Like why was Travis and Quintin in the apartment? And what started this ugly brawl?

Her chest felt heavy as she tried to breathe while struggling to push away on her butt. Quintin let out a hearty laugh as he watched Jersey. He placed his dark hand on his torso as he continued to push out a thick chortle.

Jersey made sure to keep her eyes on him as she used the wall to help her up.

"Don't put your hands on my friend! What the f**k is your problem!" Kelli screamed at Travis, causing him to slap her in the face. Jersey gasped from the sudden blow.

"Tell her to stay her nosy ass out of our business!" 
He argued back.

"That doesn't give you the right to push her!"

Feeling angry about the blow he delivered to her friend, she wanted to charge over, but Quintin knew her motive. He shook his head no and blocked her path. Her eyes widened as she observed the dark-skinned man before her. He stood there, dressed in casual clothing. A grey hoodie with the matching joggers.

"Don't even think about it. He already f****d up your hand, you want him to do more damage?"

"You two need to leave! Now! This is not your apartment!" Jersey announced as her chest heaved. She was nervous, scared, yet ready to get Travis and Quintin out of the apartment. They had already destroyed the place.

"s**t, I heard this ain't y'all apartment either." Quintin remarked while raising his eyebrows. 
Jersey held the look of confusion on her face. She didn't understand how they found out about their hiding spot.

She didn't talk to people about her business and from what she could understand, Kelli didn't either. Vena had to be the one doing the talking.

"Your aunt been running her mouth, yo." Quintin continued with a deadpan expression on his face. "She said Malcolm owns this spot. The same nigga you had to check me that night at the club."

Jersey's eyes widened with fear as she backed further away in the corner. She couldn't believe that her own aunt would sell her out like that. Lisa didn't know where she stayed, but she still managed to run her mouth and tell all of Jersey's business.

But still...

Who told her about Manhattan?

"Just leave, Quintin. I don't want no trouble."

"Trouble? b***h I owe you for that shit." He replied, growing close. So close that she could smell him. He reeked of cologne and possibly weed, maybe even more than that. "You didn't even try to take up for me, but I'm not surprised...you've always cowered away from shit."

"You tried to r**e me in a public bathroom." She stressed out as hot tears ran down her face.

Quintin didn't reply back, he just stood there watching her. Jersey grew cautious while looking at her shoes. Her body continued to shake involuntarily.

When she heard Kelli's loud objections, she looked over and noticed that Travis was pulling her to the back. She wanted to run after them, but she knew that Quintin wouldn't let her.

He grabbed her chin roughly and brought her attention towards him. Jersey didn't want to look into his eyes, so she closed hers shut.

"Look at me." He demanded while adding more pressure on her chin. Jersey's breathing increased as she rebelled again his request. She didn't want to go there with Quintin. Looking into his eyes only brought back bad memories that she didn't want to relive.

"I said look at me. Open your f*****g eyes, right now!" He raised his voice, shaking her with every word.

Jersey's heart drummed rapidly as she slowly opened her teary eyes. She felt like it was necessary since she grew frightened from his acidity tone.

"I don't know what you doing with that nigga..." Quintin trailed off as he removed his hand from her chin and touched the bare skin on her shoulder. "He got you way out here—in the upper east. You in this nice ass apartment too. So, tell me, Jay. What you giving him?"

She didn't speak, at all. Jersey was too busy trying to contain her breathing as she eyed him with pure hatred. Her lips were tightened and doubled.

"Huh?" He pressed while getting closer. He was so close that his nose touched Jersey's. He could smell her pleasant sent that was alluring to him. "You f*****g that nigga?"

Jersey's eyes fluttered as she silently contemplated on going off on Quintin. Truth is, she was still afraid of him. He was very abusive towards her in their relationship, so she knew what he was about.

"Quintin, what I do is my business. You just...you need to go...please."

"Is everything okay? I heard screaming and the sound of—"

A middle-aged man stood in the hallway as he observed the trashed apartment. His eyes widened from the unexpected scenery. He looked over at the pair who seemed to be in a heated discussion. 
Quintin pushed away from Jersey as he placed his attention on the stubby neighbor.

Ended
Jersey broke away from her thoughts, shaking them away. She was trying her hardest not to think about it, but it bothered her. It bothered her that Quintin was once again that close to her.

Suddenly, the third male cop appeared at the door. His physique looked similar to the next-door neighbor who happened to do a check up on them.

A look of agitation appeared on his olive skin complexion. He had little to no hair, due to the balding in the middle of his head. He kicked over the bloody statue that injured Jersey's hand.

He made his way towards the other male cop and talked in a low voice. After speaking for a minute, the other cop—who was much taller and slimmer, briefly looked over at female officer.

"So, we have a problem here." The stubby officer announced as he scratched the side of his head. "We have three statements, from three different people..." He trailed off. "However, the statements aren't adding up at all."

Jersey furrowed her eyebrows, not surprised at all. She huffed out some air while waiting for the stubby officer to continue with his lecture.

_____________________________

The taste of whisky brought satisfaction to Malcolm. He looked over at the glass and noticed that it was halfway empty. Dammit. He said to himself while placing it back on his desk. He was busy scrolling through his iPad, finally checking the emails that he'd abandoned since last week.

Candace managed his emails most of the time, but she only handled what he requested. Morgan's email caught his attention. He tapped on it and noticed that it was her blueprint sample. She had sent it during the weekend—Sunday, but he never had the time to check it.

Malcolm's eyes narrowed in deep concentration as he examined his cousin's blueprint. He shook his head, not satisfied with her work. Everything looked...so rushed and put together. Malcolm was aware that he did give her a short timeframe to have the project turned in, but she was supposed to be a professional interior designer. Malcolm expected for her to be able to create a blueprint in three days.

Instead of prolonging the situation, he sent his cousin a message. Letting her know that she rushed through it and had too many mistakes. It didn't take Morgan long to see his reply. She managed to call him about four minutes later.

"What do you mean, I rushed through it? You barely gave me enough time to come up with an idea." Morgan tried reasoning with her cousin.

"I'll give you two weeks to come up with something better than what you sent me." Malcolm proposed calmly while picking up his whisky. He took a sip, savoring the taste once again.

"I need to know the mistakes you found."

"Well, there are too many decorations in the design. You basically cluttered the living room with junk. And some of the decorations are misplaced—by that I mean they're not in a suitable position." Malcolm addressed professionally while looking over the project once again. "I also want you to be mindful about the size of the furniture, Morgan. The room you created does look like it’s expected to be big. You wouldn't want small furniture with a large room or vice versa."

Morgan sighed into the phone. She was trying her best to process everything her cousin was telling her. "Max, maybe you should start a career in interior designing. You seem to know more than me."

Malcolm didn't know if she was being sarcastic or what. Fortunately, he didn't have time to argue with her.

"No, that's not my calling. Its yours. I just want you to take advantage of this opportunity that I'm trying to give you. But you're right, I should've given you more time on the project. I want you to keep the design and just...spend two weeks on it. Give it a lot of thought and do your best. Edit the s**t and get it right."

"I'll do it."

The sudden beep made Malcolm looked at his phone. An incoming call was coming from Christine. He was puzzled for a second because she rarely called him.

"I'll talk to you later. I got some business to handle."

He eventually clicked over and answered Christine's call.

_____________________________

"You lied...for him." Jersey spoke to Kelli in a low tone. Her nose flared in fury as she eyed her friend mysteriously. Jersey couldn't shake the betrayal away. Both Travis and Quintin had the audacity to break into Malcolm's apartment and destroy it. In the process of doing that, Travis managed to put his hands on Kelli.

Kelli stayed quiet; she didn't even try to look over at her friend. She was busy going through her dresser. Jersey leaned over the archway, waiting for a reply. Kelli wouldn't give her one—she wanted to snub her.

Jersey looked over her shoulder before replying. She stood there with her arms folded.

"Kelli—"

"I'm not going to get him in trouble." Kelli blurted out as she looked up. Jersey could see the work that Travis managed to do to her friend's face. Her left eye was slightly swollen and had a pinkish hue to it while her lip was still busted but cleaned up.

Jersey narrowed her eyes, not speaking.

"He already has two strikes against him. If he gets one more—that'll be it for him. He'll go to jail."

"But he put his hands on you and destroyed the apartment. Why are you still caping for him?"

Kelli slammed her drawer shut, startling Jersey.

"I know what you're trying to do."

"What?" Jersey replied, touching her chest. "Kelli what am I trying to do, exactly?"

"You're trying to make me feel guilty about my decision. The only reason why Travis flipped out is because he found out about Ryder and I."

It still wasn't clear how Travis found out about Ryder. But Quintin did let them know about Jersey's talkative aunt.

Lisa was still upset with Jersey about Rudy's death. So, she managed to spill all of Jersey's business to her friends. She told them all about Jersey's sudden move and her relationship with the infamous Malcolm Sullivan. Of course, people took the information and ran with it.

"That still didn't give him a reason to put his hands on you and trash Malcolm's apartment. Do you realize the situation we're in?"

Jersey wanted her friend to open her eyes and see the trouble they were in. The cops couldn't really get an honest statement from them, plus the neighbor. Still, the trio stuck with their stories. Jersey told them the truth about Travis Simmons and Quintin Cunningham wrecking the apartment and Kelli's battered face due to Travis hitting her.

The neighbor was the one who called the cops and he made sure to report Quintin and his mysterious behavior towards Jersey. However, since he didn't see Travis and Kelli, he left them out of his statement. On Kelli's statement, she claimed that an unknown person broke in, ransacked the apartment, and attacked her.

Due to the different stories, the police decided to settle the situation fairly. The stubby officer retrieved the owner of the apartment's number and reported the issue. Jersey was surprised to see an older woman strutting inside the wrecked apartment.

She looked to be in her early forties and she sure did dress like it. The cardigan and booties gave it away. The owner carried both her clutch and iPhone in her hand as she eyed the place with her mouth gaped. Seeing her apartment destroyed badly was disappointing. She and her husband spent a lot of money trying to fix up the apartment building. Just seeing their money go to waste pissed her off.

She went from interrogating Jersey and Kelli to huddling with the officers, trying to find a solution. The stubby officer suggested she take Malcolm to court and sue him for the damages while the tall officer suggested the girls leave.

"Ladies." 

Jersey didn't jump but the hair on her neck did stand up. She turned around and noticed the owner looking at the girls with a deadpan expression. She had those pouty lips that were covered in red lipstick. Her short manicure was also painted in a ruby red coat.

"I hope you all are getting your things together." She continued while clasping her pale hands. "Time is running out."

The owner asked both Jersey and Kelli to leave the apartment. Since their names weren't on the lease, they had no choice but to comply. There was no written agreement made. The property had been violated in the worse way.

"We're getting our stuff together now." Jersey replied briefly. She looked over and noticed that the landlord was busy snapping photos of the huge hole that Travis managed to put in the hallway. It was so big that two people could probably put their heads in it.

"Great."

Jersey sighed and crossed over to her room—her old room. She looked around and couldn't help but to drop her shoulders. Here she was again, at square one. She couldn't believe that she was once again homeless. Going to live with her aunt was an automatic no. She knew that Lisa wouldn't allow her to come back and staying with Vena was an automatic no. Her parent's house was already full.

"I don't know what to do." She said to herself as her heart started to flutter in the worst way. Tears threatened to cascade down her brown cheeks, but she did her best to keep them put.

_____________________________

The conversation with Christine was pretty unbelievable. Malcolm was informed about the situation with his apartment. Because the lease was in his name, he was fully responsible for the property damage. Christine made sure to inform him on the legal steps she was pursuing. Like a businessman, he managed to listen and suggest an alternative.

Malcolm wasn't even trying to take it to court. He was going to pay the fees and leave the contract the legal way. However, he wanted to know what the f**k was going on. Christine did explain the situation to him, but he wanted to hear from Jersey and Kelli.

When he made it up to the apartment, he noticed some workers holding up a new door. The previous door was on the floor and in poor condition. Malcolm frowned in suspicion as he walked further into the apartment. He noticed that Christine was talking to Jersey.

"Is it possible for us to get some kind of notice. Like a two-week notice." Malcolm heard Jersey asking. He examined her thoroughly and noticed that she had her hand bandaged.

"I'm sorry..." Christine apologized, shaking her head. "Due to the situation, I won't be able to do that. I do apologize."

Jersey sighed in defeat as she nodded her head. Her eyes shifted over to the tall figure standing by the archway, she noticed Malcolm standing there in deep concern. His thick eyebrows were knitted as he moved closer to the women. Christine followed Jersey's gaze and shook her head.

"Do you see this place?" She questioned him.

Malcolm didn't respond right away. He was too busy looking from Jersey's face to her bandaged hand. Slowly, he looked over and narrowed his eyes at the punctured walls and turned over furniture.

He sighed before speaking, "I'll deal with it."

"I hope so because this." Christine swirled her finger around, referencing to the apartment. "Is unacceptable."

"I agree." Malcolm replied with a nod. He looked over at Jersey with a slight frown on his face. She noticed his glare, so she turned her attention elsewhere. Jersey managed to stand there looking uneasy as she fidgeted with her raggedy luggage.

Christine excused herself and left out of the living room. As soon as she left, Kelli made her way to the front with some of her things. She was dressed in a white tank top and some Guess jeans. The Louis Vuitton slides paired well with her white toes and anklet.

When she placed her attention on Malcolm, her eyes bugged. She looked over at Jersey and said, "You really called him over here?"

"I didn't know he was coming." Jersey remarked.

"This was my apartment..." Malcolm trailed off. "I was called up here by Christine. What the f**k happened? And I want the truth—the whole truth."

Kelli darted her eyes over at Jersey and Jersey couldn't help but to look at her. The girls had a quick stare off as they tried to read each other. Kelli wanted to lie, while Jersey wanted to tell the truth.

"Travis and Quintin broke into your apartment. They destroyed it." Jersey ratted with a shaky voice.

Kelli didn't say anything, but she made sure to sport her attitude. Malcolm examined her briefly when he noticed her bruised face.

"Yo, them niggas did this?" Malcolm looked at the two women.

"Y-yeah." Jersey answered.

"You don't have to give me a speech about my nigga." Kelli informed Malcolm as she touched her chest. "I got him; I know how to handle him."

"You know how to handle him?" Malcolm reiterated with his eyebrows raised. "Seems like he's handling you instead. Your face is f****d up."

Kelli grew furious when he mentioned her face. Her mouth doubled in anger as she tried her best to control herself.

"How you know he's the one who did this?"

"He put two and two together." Jersey answered for him in a low tone.

"Whatever." Kelli snapped as she rolled her eyes. "I don't need y'all trying to play me. I was fighting his ass back. Like I said—I'mma handle him."

"f**k that." Malcolm cursed. He planned on handling both Travis and Quintin personally. He was not about to let this situation slide. The two men caused great damaged to both the apartment and Malcolm's pocket. "They bad enough to f**k up this apartment then they bad enough to see me. f**k what you talkin' about."

Kelli sighed irritably as she looked over at Jersey. She ran her fingers through the wig she had put on before stepping out of her old room.

"I'm leaving." She announced while grabbing ahold of her things. "I need to get my bags out of the room first."

Jersey's heart drummed fast as she watched her friend wheel her luggage. Her mouth parted quickly to speak. "You think I can come too?"

Kelli stopped wheeling and turned around to look at Jersey for a quick minute. As of right now, she was very upset with Jersey. She didn't want to be around her at all. "Nah, you know that my mom only has a two bedroom. I have to share a room with Britney."

"Oh." Jersey managed to push out as she looked down at her feet. She wasn't upset about Kelli declining her request. She was more hurt that she lied to her. Britney didn't live with Kelli's mom anymore. The room was vacant. Kelli's mom had been living in her two-bedroom apartment by herself for over four months. Britney had left to attend college out in Florida.

Kelli eventually left after getting all of her bags, leaving both Malcolm and Jersey alone.

"You don't have nowhere to go?" Malcolm questioned her.

Shamefully, Jersey shook her head no.

"Damn, Jersey." He cursed. Malcolm was caught up in a crazy predicament. He wasn't sure if he wanted to let Jersey crash at his spot. Most days he wanted to be alone and he was able to do that since he lived alone. With her around, he felt he wouldn't get to have his alone time anymore.

But she needed a place to stay.

He didn't want to see her homeless on the streets.

"I'll be alright." She assured him in a low tone. Her expression was...emotionless. She tried to put on her poker-face, but Malcolm see right through her. "I'll just go and check into a homeless shelter."

"What?" Malcolm c****d his head to the side. "You really gone do that?"

"What choice do I have, Malcolm?" She asked exhaustedly as she turned her face away.

"I mean..." Malcolm trailed off. "I was thinking about letting you stay at my crib, but I got a b***h who lives there."

Jersey's mouth dropped as she turned to look at him. Her eyebrows knitted as she closed her mouth slowly. She was totally confused. From what she could understand, Malcolm didn't have a girlfriend—at all. Just like her, he was single.

"b***h? You have a b***h who lives with you? I thought you was single."

This is what Kelli warned me about. She said to herself.

"I am single. I was referring to my dog, Ivy."

"Oh." Jersey replied quickly as a rush of relief hit her. She could literally feel a wave of cool air throughout her body. Her thick lips were still parted, which caused Malcolm to shake his head.

Kelli was wrong.

"I should've used a different term." He replied while briefly looking over his shoulder. "Come on, let's get your stuff."

"I can't." She shook her head no.

"What you mean, you can't? You have nowhere to go."

"I told you that I was going to a shelter. I don't want to bother you and your living arrangements. You've done enough for me."

Jersey was being difficult, which wasn't surprising to Malcolm at all. However, he wasn't about to play with her. She was getting her s**t and coming to his apartment. Whether she liked it or not. He refused to send her to a homeless shelter.

"I'm not going to argue with you." He replied sternly while grabbing her luggage. "Get your other s**t and let's go."

She blinked a few times as looked over at him grabbing her things. Instead of giving Malcolm some lip, Jersey decided to do exactly what he said. She went into the bedroom and started grabbing the bags she packed.

_____________________________

"Right here." Malcolm instructed Jersey as he pulled his key out. Jersey stood beside him with one bag in her hand. She looked around, checking her surroundings carefully. Malcolm didn't live in a regular apartment like the one in Manhattan.

The building was more civilized and extravagant. The lobby looked more like The Ritz-Carlton. Most of the walls had a taupe color and was trimmed in a bright white. The front lobby was decorated with a zigzag lounge set, glass top desk and end tables, and marble flooring. Statues were here and there—some were questioning while others were self-explanatory.

Malcolm unlocked and pushed the door open. They walked inside, and he managed to turn the lights on. When Jersey gained sight, she examined the small penthouse carefully. His place wasn't insanely extravagant, but it was decorated and homely looking. She could tell that Malcolm decorated the place; it had a manly aura to it.

"This is it. It's not much." Malcolm spoke as he tossed his bag on the couch. "It's just a one-bedroom apartment. Well, it was a two-bedroom, but I turned the other room into an office."

The apartment was definitely small, yet still spacious enough for people to move around. 

There was the kitchen with the small dining set and the living room was separated from it with a wall separator. The living room was occupied by a couch and chaise set, and a flat screen television that sat comfortably on the television stand. There were authentic house plants and his diplomas and trophies that sat on the shelves.

"Not too much?" Jersey repeated as she examined the very few portraits that was on the eggshell walls. "Malcolm, your man pad is...real nice. I can't believe you decorated your apartment—wait you did decorate, didn't you?"

He only nodded his head casually as he started tidying up his things. Malcolm wasn't the type of guy to leave his stuff all around the house. Everything had to be put up in its rightful place.

Malcolm's place was great and all, but that still didn't cheer Jersey up. She ran her hand through her short hair while taking a seat on the chaise that was a part of the couch set. She watched as Malcolm opened the closet door to put away something that he had walked in with.

"Where am I going to sleep?" Jersey asked him.

"Shit." Malcolm cursed. He had forgotten all about the sleeping arrangements. His motive was to get Jersey to stay with him. "You can have my room. I'll sleep on the couch."

"No, no I won't put you out of your own room. Sleep there and if you don't mind, I'll crash on the couch." Jersey didn't want to take his room away from him. Malcolm wasn't no skinny dude. He was tall with weight from working out faithfully. She didn't want him to be all cramped up on the couch.

However, the L shaped couch looked big enough for him. But was it comfortable enough?

"I'll be fine. I can sleep on the couch." Malcolm assured her. "Besides, I'm barely here. Take the room."

"Alright then." She nodded her head.

The sound of tapping caught her attention. Jersey looked over and noticed a dog walking into the living room. Her eyes went on Malcolm who wasted no time showing the dog some love.

"Hey girl." He greeted warmly while ruffling her head affectionately. The dog tried jumping on Malcolm multiple times as her tail wagged excitedly. "Where you been, huh? I'm surprise you didn't hear the door. What you been doing all day?"

Seeing Malcolm behave in such a compassionate way. In her opinion, it was beautiful to see him calm and friendlier. In public he was always so hard, cold and quiet. She didn't like that side of him—at all.

Suddenly, she thought about something that Malcolm mentioned in Manhattan. Jersey couldn't help but to crack a small smile. "So, this is your b***h?"

Malcolm held Ivy's head in his hands as he rubbed her face. A smirk appeared on Malcolm's face as he looked over at Jersey. "Yeah, this my b***h. But I call her Ivy."

"Is she vicious?"

Ivy noticed Jersey and made her way over. Slowly, her wet nose moved as she sniffed away. She was only close enough to sniff her.

"Nah, I didn't train her to be vicious." He answered while shaking his head.

"I'm taking your word." Jersey replied as she leaned over, reaching out her hand for Ivy to sniff. "I love dogs. I've always wanted one, but I can't afford to take care of one."

"s**t, you can help out with Ivy. I mean—Candace comes over and take care of her when I'm not here, but if you're willing to help then you can."

Ivy sniffed Jersey's hand and eventually licked it. She grew closer as she examined the strange woman carefully.

"I would love to." Jersey smiled, excited to hear that from Malcolm.

"Let me show you around the house, so you won't be lost in the morning."

Malcolm eventually gave Jersey a whole tour of the apartment. It didn't take long since his place wasn't that big. Jersey took a shower by washing in her favorite body gel and moisturizing her body with her favorite fragranced oil. She put on a t-shirt with some leggings. As soon as she left out of the bathroom, she noticed Malcolm going through his drawers. Clearly, he was trying to find something to wear to bed.

Jersey looked over at his bed that was posted right in the center of the bedroom. It was a upholstered bed that had a foam padded headboard attached to it. It looked comfy and all made up with the black comforter set and pillows decorating it. His bedroom also led out to a small balcony that had a nice view of the city.

He looked up after he pulled a pair of boxers from his drawer. Malcolm couldn't help but to look her up and down. Jersey managed to look sexy in something so simple. Her erect n*****s were pushed up against her shirt and she wore leggings that expertly showed off her lower half.

"Y-you can just put those extra pillows on the chair, over there." Malcolm pointed out as he cleared his throat. He had to keep himself together. He felt like it wasn't the right time to be pursuing Jersey. Especially after the long day she had.

She watched as he left out and made his way into the bathroom to shower. While he was doing that, Jersey stood on the bed and removed the pillows, piece by piece. Soon, she pulled the blankets back and slid right in the bed. It didn't take her long to get comfortable, but she could tell that the bed was barely used. It still had that firm hold. Malcolm definitely wasn't lying when he said he was barely here at the apartment.

Jersey's eyes begin to grow tired, but she couldn't sleep at all. She looked around the room and sighed exhaustedly. Her mind wouldn't let up—it wouldn't let her go to sleep at all. She was still paranoid about what happened to her at the old apartment.

"I can't sleep." She said to herself in a brittle tone.

She looked over and noticed Ivy walking inside the room. When Ivy realized Jersey was laying in the bed, she turned her head to the side. She was trying to figure out why the strange woman was now in Malcolm's bed.

Fresh out of the shower, Malcolm decided to read some emails. He didn't bother to mess with Jersey since she had fell asleep. He made his way into his office, powered his iMac Pro on, and started going through some important emails. He had closed the deal on the new building and now he was working on the interior design. Candace was the one who kept everything in order for him, and he was very thankful for her.

He sighed while running his hand over his face as he clicked away.

Knock, knock, knock

Instantly, Malcolm turned around and noticed Jersey standing beside the door. He looked at her and slid his chair back. They didn't speak to each other verbally—their eyes spoke for them.

"You, alright?" He asked quietly but he was concerned. He watched as she closed the door behind herself.

Jersey blinked a couple of times, but she didn't respond. She moved over to Malcolm and sat right on his lap. Without thinking, she pressed her lips against his while touching his face. Surprisingly, he didn't bother to stop her. Their lips pressed against each other roughly. Malcolm ran his hands down her lower half. Gently, he gave her butt a squeeze and shake.

When he pulled away, he asked, "I thought you were asleep?"

She shook her head no. "I was trying to go but I couldn't. It's just that..." Jersey trailed off while shaking her head.

"You don't have to talk about it right now."

Jersey nodded her head and leaned over to press her lips against his again.

"f**k me." She pleaded in a hoarse voice while grinding against him. "Please."

Malcolm couldn't resist her at all. His d**k grew with anticipation as he ran his hands up and down her slim frame. He bit down his bottom lip softly before asking, "Is that what you want?"

"It's what I want and need."

Jersey lifted up and helped him pull his pants down. His thick erection bounced happily from being freed. She raised her eyebrows, clearly surprised that he was already hard and oozing with precum. Seeing this beautiful sight made her weak, misted and hungry for him. She wasted no time stripping and mounting on his lap.

"Mmm..." She moaned softly while grinding the head against her moist slit. Her groans grew louder as she straddled his d**k—inch by inch. The stretching of her walls and the combination of the tightness had her experiencing both pleasure and slight pain.

Malcolm's eyes lowered as soon as he felt Jersey's warm box snugged tightly around him. Hungrily, he leaned over and kissed her. He slipped his tongue right into her mouth, sloppily kissing her without a care in the world. 

Expertly, Jersey found her rightful pattern. She used her lower body strength to move up and down on his rod. She whimpered quietly, not believing how good his d**k felt inside of her. She could feel herself growing wetter as Malcolm lifted her shirt. He slipped her left n****e into his mouth and suckled. She threw her head back in pleasure as she humped away, loving the penetration and the feeling of climaxing all him. Her sudden release made her wind her hips dangerously, causing him to gap his mouth open.

He used his lower body strength to match Jersey's rhythm as she bounced away. His peak was rising, and she knew it. From his vocal increase. Malcolm grabbed her neck and managed to suck on it feverishly. He eventually moved up to her face and kissed her everywhere as he pumped away fiercely.

Malcolm's breathing grew heavy as he coated Jersey's walls, once again. She laid her head on his shoulder, feeling exhausted from the constant movement. They sat there, trying to get their breathing back on track. Still, he managed to remain inside of her and... she loved it.

When Jersey gained her breathing, she raised her head and looked at Malcolm who was biting his lip and looking off. He was in deep thought and she wondered why.

"Please, sleep with me tonight. I don't want to go to bed by myself." Jersey stated as she stared at him. "Every time I close my eyes...I keep seeing him."

Malcolm knew she was referencing to Quintin. He nodded his head and grabbed her injured hand. "Did he do this?"

"No." She answered. "Travis did. When I tried helping Kelli, he pushed me down and I cut my hand on one of the broken statues."

"I don't like that shit..." He cursed, shaking his head as he held her hand, examining it.

Jersey was surprised to hear him say that. She could tell he was being genuine by the look on his face. His eyebrows were knitted as he thought about what he was going to do to the men.

"Don't worry about them f*****g with you no more because that s**t is dead." He informed Jersey while eyeing her seriously. "I know you probably don't want to talk about what happened right now, so I'm not gone push you."

"Thank you." She thanked him before giving him a kiss on his lips. "So much. I'm sorry about what happened."

"You don't have to worry that s**t. It's not your fault."

_____________________________

The sun woke Jersey up. Her eyes fluttered as she looked over at the sun that was peeking through the balcony's door. She yawned while looking up at the ceiling. Jersey slowly sat up and looked around the room with a slight frown. She had to remember where she was at. The woman was expecting to be at the old apartment in Manhattan. Instead, she was laid up in an upgraded room. The aura was just...different and refreshing.

The slight discomfort in her legs brought back some great memories from late last night. A small smirk crept on her face as she thought about the good s*x she had with Malcolm. She reminisced on his d**k, those love faces, and the way he groaned in her ear when she rode him wildly. Those visuals had her c******s thumping against the thin fabric of her panties. She had to pull herself together.

When she looked on the opposite side of the bed, she noticed that it was empty. Malcolm was nowhere to be found. She sighed while searching for her phone that was surely underneath her pillow. Jersey retrieved it and quickly checked the notifications on her wall. She had nine missed calls from Vena and one from Alesha. Two messages from Vena, and one message from Malcolm. Nothing from Kelli.

Please call me. Kelli told me everything. Vena

Jersey just shook her head. She didn't want to discuss the s**t right now. Instead, she went to the next message and read what Malcolm texted her...

I'm at the gym right now. Candace has Ivy. Malcolm

Okay. We really need to talk about birth control methods whenever you get here. Jersey

Once again, they were reckless. Jersey blamed herself for being so horny and irresponsible. She just couldn't resist Malcolm. A condom was the furthest thing from her mind. Malcolm was no different either.

She figured he would be gone by the time she woke up. After going through her messages, she went straight to her emails. Jersey held a curious look as she tapped on one of the emails that had radhikalaghari@givinback.com in bold, italic letters.

Dear Jersey Coleman,

Thank you for applying to the Givin' Back Project.

Your application for the English Tutor stood out to us and we would like to invite you for an interview at our office to get to know you better...

Jersey's mouth was gaped as she continued to read the email. Radhika was over the hiring process for Malcolm's project. She had scheduled her an interview for tomorrow at eleven in the late morning. Jersey smiled as she replied back to the woman. She was overpowered by excitement as she thought about the possible outcome of the interview. She couldn't believe that she had been picked, but then again, she wondered if Malcolm had anything to do with her potential offer.

Feeling great, she left the bed and went straight into the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face. After finishing those daily habits, she grabbed her phone to call Alesha. She knew that the girl wasn't at work today.

The phone rang twice before Alesha picked up. It didn't take long for Jersey to hear her high-pitched voice.

"Girl, I was just about to text you..." Alesha trailed off, in high spirits as usual. She was always happy and so sweet.

"Great minds think alike." Jersey commented while looking at the corner of the room. Malcolm managed to bring in the remainder of her clothes from his car. She smiled, feeling butterflies in her stomach as she thought about him and his newfound soft spot for her.

"Wait, are you at work?"

"No." She answered. "I'm taking the day off because some s**t went down the other day. I didn't have the energy to go in."

"Why? What happened?"

Alesha's voice was laced with concern, which meant she was serious. However, Jersey didn't feel the need to inform her about what happened. Instead, she decided to sugarcoat the truth.

"I just had an argument with Kelli. We're not on good terms. But look—that's not why I called you. I wanted to tell you about—"

"Who are you?"

Jersey jumped when she turned her head over to the voice that had called her out. A young woman stood by the archway as she held her Fendi bag in her hand. Her chocolate eyes studied Jersey attentively with a perplexed expression.

Without thinking, Jersey ended the call on her iPhone. She held it in her hand while parting her lips to speak. "J-jersey."

"Jersey?"

She nodded her head yes. Jersey was too busy mentally appreciating the woman before her. The woman looked to be in her late thirties as she chewed away on her bubblegum. She wore a graphic sweater with some sweatpants that showed off the thickness of her lower half. Her hair was braided neatly to the back and pulled into a low bun.

Suddenly, another person popped up which caused Jersey to clench her throat. She blinked a few times and realized it was June.

"Why are you in here—matter of fact, why are you in my brother's apartment?" June asked. 

Her voice was hostile. She managed to raise her voice as she walked further into the room.

Jersey sighed in defeat. She felt like she just couldn't catch a break. People were always coming for her. She looked down at her bandaged hand and thought about the consequences of whooping June's ass if she decided to get reckless in front of her friend who was still standing by the archway.

_____________________________

"You still messing with that b***h?"

Malcolm sighed and said, "Man... I tried to leave her alone, but she keeps begging and shit."

"So." Ryder jibed. "Cut her ass off. I told you not to f**k with her anyway—she's a whole cop. I don't trust her ass."

Malcolm didn't want to be with Tilly, at all. She just wasn't the type of woman he wanted to marry and build a relationship with publicly. Tilly had many flaws that terminated the thought away from his mind. She had a habit of being controlling with him. Most of the time when they were together, she would try to snatch his phone out of his hand and that didn't sit well with him. In fact, it pissed him off. Not only was she controlling, but she was sneaky as hell. Her going around and collecting folders of possible evidence with his name on it was also something he didn't like; Her being a cop just put the icing on the cake.

"I'm not trying to be serious with her and she knows that. I already told her that I'm not ready for no relationship and shit."

"Yeah right." Ryder smirked while looking over at his friend. "Then why you moved Hershey into your apartment?"

"I already told you man; she didn't have anywhere else to go. You know after that s**t went down—they got kicked out."

Ryder knew that both Travis and Quintin broke into the apartment. However, he didn't know that he was the reason and motive for their boldness. He'd tried calling Kelli numerous of times since he was a little upset about her punk ass boyfriend putting his hands on her. 

Unfortunately, she never answered.

"I understand that, but I already know what's going to happen."

"And what's going to happen?" Malcolm challenged him while leaning his head to the side.

"Y'all gone fall for each other—watch."

Malcolm scoffed while shaking his head. That wasn't him and apparently, it wasn't normal for him to fall for a woman. He wasn't trying to believe that. Jersey was only going to be at his place a little while. He was going to make sure their relationship wouldn't go any further than just having s*x.

"Hell no..." He declined while shaking his head.

"Nigga, you're already buying her s**t and making sure she straight. If you ask me, I think you've already fell for her and I don't see nothing wrong with that."

Malcolm continued to deny his friend's claim. He believed he was showing his generosity towards Jersey as a friend and not a lover.

"I don't see why you're tripping." Ryder commented. "I mean, she used to be a drug addict, but that s**t is in the past."

Malcolm stayed quiet, silently processing what Ryder was saying.

"Just think about it, Jersey is fine as—"

"Alright." Malcolm interjected as he looked over at Ryder who was doing too much. He didn't want him lusting after her at all. He was already f*****g with her. Ryder needed to think about Hope and not Jersey.

Ryder couldn't help but to laugh as he leaned over with his elbows on his knees. "I'm just f*****g with you. I don't want Hershey—respectfully because of you."

"So, listen..." Malcolm trailed off. "Catcher is fighting tonight at Newts."

"Against?"

"Maniac."

Ryder grimaced while furrowing his eyebrows, "What's up with these pitiful ass names?"

"I don't know." Malcolm sighed while shaking his head. "But stay on topic man because this s**t is serious. You already know what Catcher is about. We need to go in and watch. I want to study him and see what I can learn."

"We making this his last fight or what? Let me know so I can be prepared."

"Not yet."

"Fuck." Ryder cursed.

Apparently, Catcher was related to Nieko. He'd heard that Malcolm had something to do with his death, so he was seeking revenge. He started off by killing some of Malcolm's crew, trying to get his attention. He wanted to scare Malcolm and let him know that Nieko's name and legacy wouldn't die down.

Fortunately, Malcolm wasn't bothered by that at all. Tonight, he was going to show up at Newts and let Catcher know to back the f**k down or get killed trying to save Nieko's weak ass legacy.

"I'm going to deal with Travis and Quintin. I'm definitely not going to let that s**t slide." Malcolm stated. "Jersey's not telling me much, but whatever they nigga did, he traumatized her."

"s**t, we're on the same page then." Ryder concurred.