Bait & Snatch Series

FADE 2 BLAQUE INK PRESENTS

BAIT & SNATCH

&

BAIT & SNATCH 2:

HIDE AND SEEK

By

BlaQue

Copyright 2016 BlaQue

Published by:

Fade 2 BlaQue Ink

Washington, DC

All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without prior written consent from both the author, and publisher Fade 2 BlaQue Ink, except brief quotes used in reviews.

This work is a work of fiction. It is not meant to depict, portray, or represent any particular real person. All the characters, incidents, and dialogues are the product of the author’s imagination and are not to be construed as real. Any references or similarities to actual events, entities, real people, living or dead, or to real locales are intended to give the novel a sense of reality. Any similarity in other names, characters, entities, places and incidents is entirely coincidental.

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this ebook with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author/publisher.

Chapter One

Shelly and I were sitting in our favorite happy hour spot waiting for show time. I was watching the patrons come and go while drowning my sorrows away with liquor. Normally I didn’t overindulge, but because of my current situation I figured drinking was all one could do to calm their nerves!

Nevaeh, you really should slow down, Shelly said, eyeing me toss back another Jim Beam on the rocks.

It had been a long day and I wanted to make all of my problems disappear. Shelly needed to mind her business and let me drink. I needed this, and from the information she had relayed to me earlier, she had better enjoy her drinks as well. It was going to be a long night if this shit didn’t go well.

The shit we had brewing could land our asses either dead or in jail. I didn’t want to lose the freedom I had worked so hard to keep. Freedom in my life consisted of the releasing the constraints of a bad job and a slew of bad choices in men. That included my piece-of-shit ex.

He was the reason I was in half the shit I was into. Had he not baited me in, I wouldn’t have been in this shit now. His controlling, conniving ass continuously set me up to fail each and every time. He firmly believed in payback and that if he couldn’t have me then no one would.

I got this; you worry about yourself! I slurred to Shelly as I waved down the bartender to pour us another round.

Shelly rolled her eyes and I continued to drink. This is the quietest she has ever been and I was happy as shit about it too. I drank until our intended target walked into the bar with his date clinging to his side. I turned around in my seat so he wouldn’t see me. The last thing I needed was for him to recognize us. If he saw us there he would most definitely know something about the situation wasn’t right. He might have gone as far as shooting me and Shelly, then running out the front door.

Bryce’s movements were like clockwork and being late was something he never did. He stuck to the strict code of time is money. He looked as fine as the day I had met him. Boy did I learn the hard way that looks can be deceiving because Bryce wasn’t shit.

* * *

Bryce and I had met about five years earlier and he made me melt with the first hello. We were at a grand opening for club Besos in downtown Hollywood. It was supposed to be popping. Just my luck I would fly to the other side of the country to meet who I thought was Mr. Perfect, only to meet Mr. Hustler, Mr. Abuser and Mr. Controlling!

Bryce was tall, dark and handsome, and he had a swag about him that screamed, fuck me! From the moment I saw him walk into the upper level of the club, I couldn’t take my eyes off of him. His tall, muscular frame wrapped up in his Armani shirt, pants and Gucci shoes, had me going. The bling around his neck and wrist made me and Shelly sit up and take notice of him. He walked into our section and it seemed like everyone wanted to know him. When he scanned the room and his eyes caught mine, he flashed me a smile that made me moist. His dimples were deep and his lips begged me to suck on them.

Girl, that nigga is fine! He’s headed this way, Shelly said, nudging me.

I tried to ignore Shelly’s thirsty ass behavior and act like I wasn’t tripping off of him.

He made his way to our table and I felt my pussy thump in my thongs.

Shelly was fidgeting around in her seat trying to adjust the already low cut top she was wearing to a dangerous low as she stuck out her big augmented breast. She liked to call her game of nigga hunting Bait and Snatch. Bait um in with the pussy and then snatch everything you can from a nigga and be out. I ain’t gonna lie; I was with it for a minute until some other hot shit happened a while back. I had slacked up because I had almost got caught up by a nigga who almost peeped me dipping in his stash. That part of the game I wasn’t with.

Good evening ladies. Can I get you a drink or something? The mystery man asked once he had made it within earshot.

May I join you?

He had a sexy southern drawl and a mouth full of diamonds. I usually didn’t go for that grill shit, but he was still sexy. Shelly was more than happy to make room for him to sit between us on the circular sectional. Once he was seated, he waived the waitress over to our area and ordered a round. I made mental note of the fact that the waitress addressed him as Mr. Jones, and that he didn’t supply her with a credit card to start a tab, nor did hand her any cash. Whoever he was, he was obviously known.

Are you ladies enjoying ya’selves? Mr. Jones asked.

Shelly was overly anxious to speak up.

Yes, this place is nice. It’s a lot to look at and take in, she said flirting openly.

Good. Glad you like it. Are ya’ll from around here? he asked with a southern drawl that was very noticeable.

No, we're from Virginia, I said, finally speaking up. I didn’t need him to know where I was really from. It was none of his business. At least not yet.

Oh, aight. Ya’ll are from the East Coast. So am I, he said turning to me. He licked his lips and I caught myself staring at them, wondering how they would feel against my skin.

Where are you from on the East Coast? Shelly asked excitedly. Her eyes were lit up. I already saw the wheels turning in her head. She was mentally making him a mark. It was remarkable how fast she would lock onto a target.

I’m originally from Greer, South Carolina, but I have been living in Richmond for the past five years. I make it over here to the West Coast a couple times a month to check on my investments, he informed us.

What kind of investments? Shelly asked cutting to the chase. If she was going to get at him, she needed to make sure he was worth all the trouble he might cause being that he was so close to home. DC and Richmond weren’t far enough in distance to be fucking with some street cat’s money and he not find you. She was sizing him up.

I own a few clubs in Vegas. I just opened this one last month and I opened one in San Francisco in February. I’m sorry; I didn’t catch your name. Mine is Bryce, but everyone calls me ‘Big’, he said, introducing himself.

I am Shelly and this is Nevaeh.

Nice to meet you both. Nevaeh, I like that. That is such a beautiful name, a beautiful name for a beautiful woman.

Shelly and I had known each other a while and she could tell he was feeling me a little more than he was feeling her, so she fell back. It was an unspoken rule. Had he been interested in her, I wouldn’t have given him any rap.

What brings ya’ll to the Westside? Are ya’ll here on business or pleasure?

A little bit of both, I responded.

Well, I hope this isn’t gonna’ be the last time I get to see you Nevaeh, he said drawing me in with his infectious smile.

I hope not either.

How long you in town for?

We are here for a week, I responded. His irresistible smile was making my insides hot.

The waitress came back to the table with a bottle of Ciroc. She opened the top on the bottle and addressed our guest.

Mr. Jones, your guests just arrived. I took them to your office. The waitress put the bottle and the bucket with ice along with the glasses on the table and waited as Bryce stood to say his goodbyes.

Well ladies, duty calls. I hope somebody else calls me, Bryce said, giving me a sexy smile and handing me a business card.

Ms. Shelly, it was nice meeting you as well. Ladies, order whatever you like. Tasha here will hook you up.

I thanked him for his generosity and he disappeared down the stairs. I don’t know why I felt giddy. He left me almost breathless. I had dated my fair share of men but none of them left me feeling like this.

Damn Nee. He did everything but jump in your pants. Shelly cracked up.

I was speechless. I couldn't even come back at Shelly's smart ass. His country ass had me feeling a certain kind of way and I wanted to know more about him.

Shelly and I partied the night away. There were a few celebrity sightings and we danced until our feet hurt. Shelly had found some C-list celebrity and we decided we were going to call it a night. I knew she was getting ready to put down her game on dude and I was to head back to the hotel. Shelly left with her new friend and I was making my way to the door when the waitress stopped me.

Excuse me, but Mr. Jones wanted me to give you this, the waitress said.

She handed me two long stemmed, red roses and a hand written note that read:

Nevaeh,

I hope you enjoyed yourself this evening. I also hope you can forgive me for being rude and having to leave. Please use the number on the back of the card so that we can get a chance to spend some time together. I will make sure you won’t regret it. Breakfast tomorrow—my treat—anywhere you want to go! Call me when you wake in the morning and I will send a car for you.

Big

My already big head was swelling. This nigga was already talking some shit I was trying to hear. The roses and the note helped, but the club ownership put him in a different income bracket.

I left the club already curious about what my breakfast date was going to be like.

Chapter Two

I woke up the next morning and Shelly still wasn’t back in the hotel room so I called her hot ass to make sure she was ok. We were on hiatus from the bullshit, and I was hoping she wasn’t out here in California cutting up and getting into any more trouble.

She answered on the first ring.

Wassup Nee?

I was just calling to make sure that nigga ain’t run off with your crazy ass. I laughed.

Naw, I’m good. I will get up with you a little later. I’m tryna see what kind of money C-list celebrities make in a year. She giggled into the phone.

Aight girl! See if he has any friends in high places for me, I said and hung up.

I emptied out the contents of my bag to find my lighter. I was ready to spark up some Cali bud because they had the best weed on the planet. The high concentrated amounts of THC in the weed on the Westside were enough to sit you on your ass for hours. Either the weed would have you stuck, or you would have the munchies, or both.

While I was sifting through shit in the bottom of my Michael Kors bag I found Big’s number. I thought about his offer for breakfast and decided to call him. He seemed exciting enough to take for a test drive.

He answered and after a brief conversation said he would have his driver scoop me up within the next hour from the front of my hotel. I got up and showered and went through my luggage to find something to wear to breakfast. Unpinning the curls that I had rocked the night before, I decided to wear my hair loose and wild.

I settled on my white linen drawstring pants and an orange halter top. I had a pair of burnt orange stacks that set my top off. Since it was just breakfast, I didn’t want to overload my face with make-up, so I applied a little lip gloss and headed out the door.

I got down to the lobby just in enough time to see a stretch Hummer pull up in the turnabout in front of the hotel entrance. A tall white man got out and made his way to the front holding a sign that read, Nevaeh.

I’m Nevaeh, I said to the gentleman holding the sign.

This way ma’am, the driver said leading me out to the truck and opening my door.

I was stunned that there were at least fifty long stemmed, red roses tied together with a beautiful silk ribbon in the back seat with a card attached.

The note simply read; Can’t wait to see you again.

I smiled at the gesture and enjoyed the sights as we sped off for downtown LA. We pulled up in front of a swanky bar and grill, and the driver opened the door for me to exit the limo. When I walked inside I noticed that the restaurant was totally empty except for one table. Big was seated at that table and he smiled as I neared. He stood up and pulled my chair out for me. I thought to myself, chivalry isn’t dead. I looked around the restaurant and took in its ambience. The high ceilings and beautiful table settings reminded me of something out of old Hollywood.

Hello Ms. Nevaeh. I am glad you could grace me with your presence, Big said, taking his seat across from me.

"Thank you for having me. Where is everyone? I would expect a beautiful place like this to be