Despite the feud brewing between their families, Anastasia Caradine finds herself saving Giovanni Hendrix. In doing so, the two find themselves falling in love with each other. But in this game, loving someone under their circumstances proves to be...
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October 31, 2023 Virginia Beach, VA
Giovanni looked over the banister at the array of people that were in attendance for the Halloween party he was hosting. It was something he tried to do every year, but this year was different. He had leveled up in his family's business which he felt was a great accomplishment that called for a celebration. He was more than happy to accept the call—renting out an Airbnb for the night.
Giovanni Hendrix was known as a party boy, but he genuinely loved to enjoy himself. He knew that another day was never guaranteed considering the line of business he was in. He took every day he was blessed with to make himself feel good, so whenever his demise did approach him, he would feel content with life.
"G, this is an amazing turnout." Dylan, his best friend and right-hand man, said as he placed a hand on his shoulder. "Then it's some fine ass girls in here too."
Giovanni laughed and shook his head. "Be careful, bro." He knew how his friend was, and he knew he would find a woman or two to stay with him for the night.
"Yo, I know that's not who I think it is." Dylan said, his eyes following a woman who looked familiar to him. "Isn't that Armon's little sister?"
Giovanni looked in the direction Dylan was pointing in, noticing the familiar face. It was like she sensed him looking at her because her eyes met his as she moved about the dance floor. He couldn't deny her beauty, but those were boundaries he couldn't cross.
"Don't make her out to be a threat if she isn't acting like one," Giovanni told him as his eyes remained on her. He watched as she whined her hips, like she was giving him a show—her eyes never leaving his as she danced.
"Please don't fall for it." Dylan watched his friend become entranced by the woman. It was a look he had seen in his eyes quite a few times. "Sure, she's fine as hell. Don't let that shit sway you, though."
"I won't," Giovanni said, finally focusing his attention elsewhere. "I know she's the enemy, but she is nice to look at."
"Look, but don't touch nigga." Dylan said, hitting him upside his head before walking away from him.
He waved him off and focused his attention back on the dance floor. When he saw she was no longer there, he decided to go outside to smoke a blunt he had rolled up earlier. It was like a little celebration to himself.
As he sparked the blunt up, he was unaware of the fact that someone had been watching him—waiting to catch him slipping. The mysterious person looked around the area to make sure no one was lurking around before they creeped out of the house behind him. As the person began to close in on him, a gunshot sounded off—throwing Giovanni off and putting him on high alert as the blunt fell from between his fingers.
"What the fuck?" He looked to where the gunshot came from, anger instantly taking over him as his eyes met with the person who pulled the trigger.
"He was trying to kill you." She put her gun back into her bag. "You should be thanking me for saving your life rather than be angry with me. It's not cute, Gio." She smirked at him.
"Thanking you? How do I know this wasn't your doing?" He gestured towards the now dead woman that lay on the ground.
"Do I look like I came to beef with you tonight?" She did a 360 spin, his eyes immediately falling to her ass before she turned to face him again. "I came to have a good time tonight, whether you're an enemy of my family or not."
Giovanni sighed heavily, running his hand over his head. "Then what the hell was this, Anastasia?"
"It's a lot of people looking to end you. I want to be clear and tell you that I'm not one of them." Anastasia turned to walk away. She looked over her shoulder at him. "Take care of that body too, hon."
He didn't know whether to be pissed off or turned on by her actions. She had just killed someone for him without a care in the world. Yet, he had too much pride to show his appreciation due to the ongoing rivalry between their families. He didn't want to display weakness in front of her, especially when he wasn't sure of whether to trust her or not.
*
Once Giovanni found somewhere to dump the body, he went back to the Airbnb to make sure things were still going smoothly. No one heard the gunshot since the music was so loud which was a relief to him. All that was on his mind was the lingering curiosity of why she did what she did.
"Nigga, where the hell you been?" Dylan approached him as he walked through the door.
He closed the door behind him. "I had to handle something," he answered nonchalantly, shrugging his shoulders. He looked around the place. "Is she still here?"
"Who? Armon's sister?" Dylan asked, furrowing his eyebrows. "She left half an hour ago. Why?"
"Somebody tried to sneak up on me, but she killed them before they could get to me."
"What the hell?" Dylan frowned, his eyebrows coming together. "Why would she do that?"
"I don't fucking know. I was caught off guard by the shit myself," he shook his head, still in disbelief.
"You think it was a set up?"
"I don't know." He was confused. "Before she walked away she said something about a lot of people wanting to end me, and her not being one of them."
"And what the fuck is that supposed to mean?"
"Maybe she's not the enemy." Giovanni shrugged.
"Get real, bro. Your families are at odds. What makes you think she isn't your enemy?" Dylan asked.
"I don't know, but I'm gonna let this shit play out."
