“Nigga, yo’ drunk ass about to carry yourself home on foot.”
“You wouldn’t do that to me.”
“Try complimenting my wife one more time and find out.”
I lifted my hands. “Damn. See, now you’re emotional.First, you wanted validation, now you’re threatening the messenger. Pick a struggle, nigga.”
We laughed in unison, and just like that, we were back to talking shit the way we always did.
That’s how our friendship worked. We could insult each other for ten straight minutes and never take a single word personally. Besides, Knox knew better. Janira had been around long enough that she was family at this point. I looked at her the same way I’d look at a sister—somebody to respect, protect, and occasionally annoy for my own entertainment. Whether I admitted she was fine or not was irrelevant. There wasn’t a universe where I’d ever look at her as anything other than Knox’s wife, which was exactly why I could joke about it.
“Back to yo’ ass,” I said. “You over here assigning character flaws based on a dress and a face. What I consider a problem is a woman calling me at three in the morning asking for money she already know I’m not about to give her. That woman,” I pointed at ol’ girl, “ain’t said a word to me yet. Who knows… she might bejustwhat a nigga needs. But for now, I’m just observing.”
“Yeah, that’s how every bad decision begins with you,” Knox muttered.
I ignored him.
Some bad decisions be the best mistakes of a person’s life. Hell, half my success came from things I should’ve left alone.
“Just finish yo’ drink so we can go, nigga,” he added. “Besides, it looks like shawty got some shit of her own going on. Whatever it is, yo’ assdon’tneed it.”
My smirk returned as I continued watching her. “Need it? Nah. But I want it.”
Her to be exact.
It didn’t matter if ol’ girl was playing hard to get, pretending not to notice me, or halfway across the room acting like her phone was more important than the way my eyes were undressing her.If I wanted her, she was already mine… whether that was for the night orforever.The rest was just timing.
For fifteen minutes, I watched her drink as though peace was at the bottom of that glass. Shawty threw back shots like she didn’t give a damn who was watching… but I was.
Finally, she glanced my way and caught me staring. She didn’t blush, look away, or do any of that shy shit. She simply stared right back with a smug little smirk that said she knew exactly where my mind was and found it amusing.
I didn’t smile or raise a glass; I just leaned back and gave the smallest nod toward the hallway that led to the bathroom. My intentions weren’t loud, but they were clear.
To my surprise, andmuchto my satisfaction,she hesitated only a second before taking one last sip and setting her glass down. She then stood up, smoothly and unhurried. I tried not to look too pleased with myself as I watched her walk toward that direction. She never looked back… hell, there was no need. I was already on my feet, prepared to follow her as if I’d been summoned.
“Aye, I’ll be back,” I announced to Knox.
“And just where the hell you going, nigga?” he questioned with raised brows.
“To go see if ol’ girl is as bad of an idea as she looks.”
“And if she is?”
I chuckled darkly. “Then tonight will still be a success.”
Knox cocked his head in disbelief. “Merge, you drunk, nigga, but notthatdrunk. Right?”
I knocked back the last of my drink. “Guess we ’bout to find out.”
“Bruh... you don’t even know her.”
“And she doesn’t know me,” I shot back. “Well, maybe. But if she doesn’t, then look at us… we already got something in common. What Idoknow is that she’s fine as hell, clearly pissed at somebody, and looks like she’s drinking tequila. That’s three things we already got to talk about.”
Hell, the way she was typing, I was liable to learn the name of whoever she’s mad at before she tells you hers.
“But look, I ain’t trying to apply for a mortgage with her, nigga. I’m just trying to find out if she’s interested in making a few bad decisions tonight. If I don’t go holla at her, I’ma spend the rest of the night wondering what would’ve happened, and you know I hate unanswered questions.”
Knox sighed and tossed his hands up in defeat, like he knew that was a losing battle.
