Free Married to a Balla by Jackie D. Page A

pushing line one. “Hello, Deacon Jones.”
    “Hey Justice, how are you?
    “Busy as usual. What can I do for you?”
    “I met a young lady and her kids today, she was badly beaten. I gave her a card and didn’t really think she would contact me, but I received a call from an officer saying she was running from her husband. He’s escorting them there. They should arrive within minutes. She has a very pleasant sprit, I watched her interact with her three kids and she seems to be a loving mother. She’s a beautiful woman as well.”
    Justice chuckled. “I know where you’re going with this. I don’t mix business with pleasure Deacon.”
    “Yes, I know, but I have a feeling you might make an exception on this one,” the Deacon said.
    “Are you sure you weren’t interested in her?” Justice joked.
    “No, son…not at all.”
    “Whatever you say. So, I guess you’re trying to set me up.”
    “I promised your mother I would look after you boys and I’m a man of my word Justice.”
    “Okay Deacon, I’ll be expecting them. We have three families moving out this week so it’s plenty of room. I’ll talk to you later,” Justice replied then hung up.
    Moments later, he started the paperwork for the new arrival, which was the part he hated the most. He didn’t like to see the women when they first arrived. They were so mentally and physically hurt, most times he could hardly take it.
    When opening the shelter he planned to be more of a behind the scenes owner. He had hopes that Mercedes would be the perfect candidate to run the business, but after monitoring her behavior and how she sometimes looked down on some of the women, he realized that her heart wasn’t genuine. How quickly she’d forgotten that she too was just like them when she first came to the shelter.
    Plus she was more interested in fucking him instead of handling things on a professional level. She’d let her emotions get in the way. Justice had to admit, Mercedes was fine, but he really regretted sleeping with her. Ever since that night, she’d been acting crazy as hell. To make matters worse, Justice couldn’t stand her two bad ass sons.
    He never meant to get involved with a woman he worked with or someone who was a former occupant. He was there to help the women…dating them wasn’t an option. He didn’t have the heart to build them up and when things didn’t work out, break them down again. If Mercedes didn’t get herself together Justice knew he’d have to let her go.
    He listened as kids ran up and down the hall. After only a year and a half of running the shelter he wanted to do something different already. Justice had several profitable organizations interested in taking over, and after he tied up some loose ends he was going to think about stepping away.
    Opening up a few envelopes with his letter opener, the big read letters reading PAST DUE on his utility bill made Justice shake his head.
    “These fucking bills never stop,” he mumbled to himself. After opening up his mortgage bill that said the exact same thing, he threw the papers to the side.
    Justice looked up at the clock and decided to buckle down and knock out the paperwork. Hopefully he could get out in time to see the Monday night football game. He grabbed his IPod and placed the small white earplugs in his ears. The lyrics from his favorite rapper Jay-Z echoed in his ears.
    “If you're having' girl problems I feel bad for you son, I got 99 problems, but a bitch ain't one!”
    You got that right Jay, he thought.

 
    Chapter 9
    Skye drove behind the police car closely as the officer escorted them to the shelter near Stone Mountain. Even though he was way out of his jurisdiction, he wanted to make sure Skye and the kids arrived safely. While driving, Skye kept looking in her rear view for signs of the Tahoe, but the truck never reappeared. She was definitely confused. Even though Skye didn’t get a good look at the driver, and she knew Sandino wouldn’t have