Pretentious and misguided lawyer Leila discovers a new passion in her job when she is assigned to defend a sixteen-year-old boy for murder against the state. Unfortunately, what she presumes to be an open-shut case is more complex. The hottest rappe...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"Kaanon, babe!" A sultry voice cut through the air. I turned to see a gorgeous woman with the most impeccable, "effortless," and glossy black voluminous curls sashay toward Kaanon and me. She draped herself over him, her jealousy evident as she eyed me with thinly veiled contempt. "Who's your friend?"
"Em, this is Leila," Kaanon said, a hint of warning in his tone as he gently extricated himself from her embrace.
"Nice to meet you," Esmeralda said, a fake smile plastered on her face. "and I like your outfit," Her tone dripped with condescension, and I could tell she wasn't thrilled to see me with Kaanon.
"Thanks, it's a pleasure to meet you," I replied, extending my hand to shake hers, but she looked at it and then back at me, raising an eyebrow.
"So, what's the deal with you two?" she asked, her voice saccharine sweet but her eyes sharp as daggers.
"We're working on something together," Kaanon said, trying to keep his voice neutral. He seemed uncomfortable with Esmeralda's blatant display of flirtation, which only fueled my annoyance with her.
"Kaanon's been incredible to work with," I said pointedly, trying to put some distance between Esmeralda and myself. "He genuinely cares about making a difference."
"Of course he does," she purred, her eyes locked onto mine in a silent battle of wills. But just as the tension between us threatened to boil over, Kaanon stepped in, placing a protective arm around my waist.
"Em, why don't you give Leila and me a second? I have to catch her up on some things," he said softly, guiding me away from Esmeralda and into the throng of partygoers.
"Esmeralda?" I said quizzically, walking along Kaanon's side. "What's going on with–" Kaanon cut me off before I could finish my sentence.
"It's nothing; don't worry about it."
"Um hm." I hummed knowingly. The party was more laid back than I had anticipated. Black Hollywood was present all throughout the house party. Kaanon didn't even mention whose house we were even in.
"You drinking anything?" He asked me as we approached the kitchen.
"I'll take a beer," I shrugged. The Los Angeles evening was warm and tempered. It beat the chilly New York nights from where I had just flown from. Kaanon grabbed both of us a bottle of beer and guided me outside, where a few other people were lounging under the hypnotizing patio lights.
"Tell me about your family, Leila," Kaanon said, settingly comfortably on some Architectural Digest-looking furniture outside. His voice was barely audible above the pulsating beat of the music vibrating from the inside. It was the first time we'd ever broached the subject of our personal lives, and I paused for a moment before answering.
"Both of my parents are attorneys, so there's always been pressure to excel," I admitted, my words spilling out in a rush. "I love them, but sometimes it feels like I'm living someone else's life."
