An arranged marriage. An illicit affair. An unforgettable passion. A forbidden love...
A spoiled socialite clashes with a streetwise mechanic who challenges the order of her privileged life while an arranged marriage threatens even more.
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Boys all around the gym were either shooting hoops or studying. Except one.
Dominique was sitting on a bleacher by himself when I approached him. He was texting on his phone. The goofy grin on his face let me know he was more than likely talking to a girl.
" 'Sup?" I asked as I took a seat next to him.
He jumped. His eyes enlarged as he whipped his head in my direction. "Come on, bro. Don't be doin' that."
Looking at Dominique head-on, I could see bags under his eyes from lack of sleep and an uneasiness about him.
Something was up, but I couldn't dive in just yet. I could tell by the way he was eyeing me that his guard was up and he wasn't about to just come out and tell me he was in trouble.
"Shouldn't you be workin' on homework?" I brought up as I gestured to the guys who had their heads in their books.
Dom peered at the other kids around us and shrugged, not interested. In fact, I didn't even see his backpack in sight. "I'll do it tonight."
"Why can't you do it now?" I asked.
Dom faced me, a crooked grin on his face suddenly. "I'm talkin'."
"Oh yeah?"
He held his phone out, and on screen I caught a glimpse of his Instagram page. It was full of shots of him smoking weed, flashing the middle finger, holding money—all the juvenile shit kids thought was "cool." He pulled up a girl's page, some cute little thing who had a penchant for selfies and flipping the bird as well.
Kids.
"That's cool, but you should still hit the books," I suggested.
Dominique made a face and tucked his phone away. "Yeah, yeah."
I looked out at the floor, trying to come in casual. "So, what's up, D?"
Dominique leaned over, planting his elbows on his knees and huffing a sigh. "It's whatever."
"Mmm-hmm." I hummed. "So why ain't you sleepin'?"
The frown that stretched across Dominique's face as he kept his gaze out on the gym floor made me tense up.
Something was wrong.
"I ran into some trouble." For once, Dom wasn't giving me the runaround. "My people...they wanted me to move some stuff for them. You know, do 'em a solid like how they looked out for me when I needed it." He hung his head, the muscles in his jaw flexing. "But I didn't think it was a good idea, because of the stuff you be tellin' me. They ain't like that I wasn't down. Almost had to square up with one of them."
Instinct had me wanting to reach out and touch him, but remembering what it was like to be in his shoes. I didn't.
"So now what?" I prompted when he didn't continue.
