“Totally.”
“I still think I should take things slowly,” I spat out when Rowdy looked too smug.
“I think you should marry her by Christmas.”
Chuckling, I shook my head. “You’re so fucking stupid sometimes.”
“Look, man,” Rowdy said and stepped closer. “I saw Clint move Ivy into his place. I watched Exile move into Lula’s house. Those men didn’t hesitate, and they’re happy. Meanwhile, I played things cool with that hot, crazy lady, and she ran away. Don’t be like me. Be like Clint and Exile.”
“But I’m me, and I think Nova needs more time.”
“Fine, whatever, I just hope you plan on making me one of your groomsmen when you get hitched.”
“Done,” I said and frowned at where Tricky entered with two of the Baton Rouge boys, Bob and Vinny.
They stopped talking when they saw us. Rowdy smiled in a friendly way, even while flipping them off. I only nodded at Tricky and ignored the other two men. I didn’t plan to make friends with men who viewed me as their enemy.
Returning inside, I decided to locate Clint and ride with him to keep my mind busy until I could see Nova again.
NOVA
Ivy stuck close for the afternoon, even joining Lyric and me to pick up Skylar. She also played with the girls while I got ready for my date. Yet, when I left my bedroom, I found her replaced by Elle and Zodiac.
“Change in plans,” Elle announced. “We’re going to babysit instead of having the girls go next door.”
“Why?”
Zodiac replied, “So you can get those cobwebs removed from your pussy.”
I nearly hissed at him for talking like that. Fortunately, the girls were outside and oblivious to his dirty mouth. He snickered at whatever he saw on my face.
Elle only shrugged when I frowned at her. “Zodiac was a foster kid. What do you expect him to act like?”
“Stop making excuses for him.”
“I can’t help it,” Elle said and rubbed her belly. “We’ve created life together.”
Rolling my eyes, I was too flustered to think straight. Zodiac sat on the couch and stretched out his arms along the back. Elle joined him and smiled at me.
“I was thinking about how if the girls were next door with Bebe, you’d need to get home early enough to put them to bed. But with us here, we can get the girls settled. That way, you won’t need to rush back.”
“There’s no reason to stay out longer.”
“You say that now, but wait until you’re sharing space with Boone. You’ll look into his big brown eyes and become consumed by the urge to climb him like a monkey. Once you get all up on him, you won’t want to rush back here. With two responsible adults at the house, you won’t need to.”
“It’s our second date. There’ll be no getting all up on him.”
“She’s lying,” Zodiac announced. “Nova reeks of wet pussy. She’ll be lucky to get through the movie without giving him a handjob.”
Elle laughed at his words before noticing my irritation. “I can’t help it. If you loved Zodiac like I do, you’d think his bullshit was funny, too.”
“Maybe Bebe can stay over.”
“Wait, do you think we can’t handle your hellion daughters for a few hours?” Zodiac muttered. “I’m not intimidated by the little beasts.”
“I figure you’ll get bored.”
“No, you think we’ll hump on the couch and pollute your daughters’ brains,” Zodiac said and then looked at Elle. “This woman is too curvy to interest me anymore. I’m only sticking with this relationship for the boy she’s carrying.”
