The Diamond Syndicate

“I think I know why you were named Diamond,” Dr. Ricci said while Diamond lay in his arms.

“Why?”

“Because diamonds are at the top of all the precious stones. Diamond, I have never made love to a woman who has made me feel this way, not even my wife.”

Diamond lay there, her head resting on his chest, and a smirk on her face. She knew then that she could have her way with the doctor. “Well, Michael,” she said, “this doesn’t have to end here. Your office is not far from where I live.”

“You would really see me again?” a sprung Dr. Ricci asked.

Diamond didn’t answer right away. She thought about settling down and having a good relationship with him. He seemed honest.

“Are you kidding me? You rocked my world, Michael, and I’m all yours for the taking.”

Diamond’s phone began to ring at one thirty in the morning. She got out of the bed to retrieve her phone from her purse. Looking at the caller ID, she saw that it was Trey. She sucked her teeth, not wanting to answer, but she knew he would only continue to call, if she didn’t. Trey was persistent like that. She also knew he would tear up the hotel looking for her, and she didn’t want that either, so she answered.

“Hey. Are you back?”

“Yeah, we back. Where are you?”

“I’m in the hotel. Are you in the room?”

“Yeah, I’m in the room. Where in the hotel are you?” a suspicious Trey asked.

“OK, I’ll be there in a few. See you in a minute.” Diamond disconnected the call. She placed her phone back in her purse and exhaled.

“Was that your son?”

“Yeah, that was him. They’re back in the room. I better go up there. You know how teens are. I want to make sure they don’t do anything to get us thrown outta here.” A little paranoid, she smiled nervously.

He watched her pick up her clothes from the floor. “I understand. Do you want to have breakfast in the morning?”

“I won’t be able to do that, Michael. We plan to leave first thing in the morning.”

He sat up in the bed. “So when will I see you again?”

Diamond continued to get dressed. “Well, I’ll give you my number, and you give me a call when you get back up that way, and we can set something up.” She smiled at him.

“Sounds like a plan.” He reached over onto the nightstand and grabbed his cell phone.

Diamond gave him her number and kissed him passionately before leaving.

When she walked into her room, the first thing that hit her in the face was the smell of weed. Pop and Al-Malik were sitting in the living room of the suite, smoking weed and playing PlayStation.

“What’s up, Diamond?” Pop asked, the blunt hanging out of the corner of his mouth. He never looked up at her. His eyes were glued to the big-screen TV, while his thumbs worked on the video game control.

“Hey, Diamond.” Al-Malik too was glued to the TV.

Diamond didn’t say a word. She simply made her way to the master bedroom. As she passed the kitchenette, she saw the remainder of the crew stuffing their faces with some takeout food they’d obviously picked up after the concert.

Tyquan looked up and saw her walking past. “You want something to eat?”

“No,” she said and kept stepping. She was wondering why they weren’t in their room. She’d booked two suites for that reason.

When Diamond walked into the master suite, Trey was sitting at the end of the bed watching TV.

He stood when she walked into the room. “Where were you?” he asked like a jealous boyfriend.

Diamond wanted to curse out Trey. She was grown, and he was a child. Who the hell was he to question her? But she realized Trey was her right hand and would do anything for her. He was indeed young, and she had to remember that he wasn’t a man like Dr. Ricci. Just thinking about Dr. Ricci made her want to turn around and go back to his room.