Page 13 of Know Your Place

Icelynn crossed her arms over her chest. “Why?”

I glanced ahead of me again and noticed Stephanie walking toward us.

“Shit.”

Icelynn’s eyes followed my line of vision, and she frowned. “Oh. Your ex-bitch.”

“The fuck? How you know that?” Never mind the fact that Stephanie wasn’t my ex. I wanted to know how the hell she knew who that was.

She shrugged. “I do my research.”

I had no idea I had a stalker on my hands. I was one to talk. She didn’t know I had a tracker on her damn car, and I had made a copy of her house key. The difference between us was I had no issues admitting that I liked her crazy ass. Icelynn always liked to play shit cool like she could take me or leave me. Though I saw through that bullshit, it was validating to see the way she cared about me slip through her tough exterior.

Icelynn had my mind so gone, I didn’t even realize Stephanie was in front of us. She had on biker shorts that were entirely too short for a family restaurant. Her long, silky black hair was pulled back into a ponytail, and her big breasts popped out of the purple crop top she wore.

“Beretta, what a surprise,” she purred.

Icelynn laughed once, loud and punctuated, but I knew nothing was funny at all.

“Get this bitch,” she murmured.

My gut told me that would be her one and only warning. I chose to take heed.

“You need somethin’, Stephanie?”

“Callin’ her by her name in front of me is wild,” Icelynn said, now looking up at me.

I ran a hand down the back of my neck, but Stephanie spoke before I could say anything.

“I just saw you and thought I would speak. How you been?”

“Good.” I felt like keeping shit short and to the point would be best at the moment.

“I can tell,” Stephanie flirted, oblivious to the storm called Icelynn standing right next to me. She was about to get privy in five . . . four . . . three . . . two . . .

Icelynn stepped between us, so Stephanie had no choice but to look her in the eyes. “Can you tell from over there?” Icelynn pointed across the restaurant, as far away from us as possible.

Stephanie snorted like Icelynn was funny. Poor lady didn’t understand that there wasn’t shit funny at the moment.

“Right here is just fine.” Stephanie tried to look around Icelynn at me.

Bad move.

I’d never seen Icelynn fight before, but I just knew she had to know how to knock a bitch out with a mouth like that. There was no way she talked so much shit and had such a shitty attitude and didn’t know how to back it up. If I had to put money on a fight between Stephanie and Icelynn, my money would go straight to Icelynn . . . plus interest, just for the hell of it.

I didn’t want it to come to all that, though, so I pulled Icelynn back into me and kissed the top of her head. “Chill.”

Her neck twisted so she could look up at me. The look on her face let me know that Stephanie wasn’t the only one putting her foot in her mouth at the moment. Apparently, I’d said the wrong thing.

“Chill? Yeah, aight, nigga. Tellin’ me to chill while she’s being the disrespectful one. Bet.” Icelynn nodded her head and tried to move out of my grasp, but I tightened my hold on her.

“That ain’t even what I meant. I just don’t want to cause a scene, Juicy.”

Her head cocked to the side. “Since when do you give a fuck about causing a scene? You still fuckin’ her, Beretta?”

Stephanie chuckled.

Icelynn’s eyes cut at her, and then she shook her head. “You know what? Y’all got it. This shit ain’t even worth it. I’ll drag a bitch all through this mothafuckin restaurant, and I can’t count on you to bail me out.”