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Jonathan’s little ass snorted hard before laughing even harder. Juggy was right behind him. But when Sheema’s face dropped, joining in, internally, I rolled my eyes.
“I know you ain’t laughing,” Man challenged Sheema, who was just as meaty as Myron.
“Oh, fuck you!” Sheema rolled her eyes into her plate.
Man quickly shot back, still muttering, “And break my fucking back…”
This time, the whole table except for Myron and me cracked the hell up. Man always fucked with Myron. Knowing him as well as I did, I knew it was nothing personal. He had people in his own family he fucked with the same way. It was just Man, had always been.
“Come fuck with a big bitch and gather your life, darling,” Corinne growled, taking in on the fun.
Man looked over to her and nodded. “I got you. My shit strong enough, too!”
“I’ll be the judge of that!” Corinne’s brows lifted.
Smiling beautifully at the middle of the table, Witherspoon brought her phone over to Corinne to take a pic of the two of them. She’d been ignoring me since the banana boat turned over in the water. We spent almost an hour jet-skiing. Everyone had fun doing that, except for Tanya and Myron’s baby’s mother, Sheema. Those two couldn’t get a grip of the vehicle and even fell off a few times, causing us to circle back to get them straight.
The next excursion was parasailing in which Witherspoon took part with Shizu, leaving me to kite in the air with little Jonathan. Afterwards, a few complained of being hungry, leading Shizu to recommend this small, secluded island filled with restaurants. Sitting here, at the head of the table in paradise with the clearest waters and bluest sky, brought a satisfaction I didn’t anticipate. Being surrounded by family and the most beautiful and sexy woman I’d ever seen was a dream never occurring in my sleep.
And this was my life. From the streets to theFEDS. From the cell toLake Sha’Ron. Then from worksites to paradise. What man could claim that pathway? I quietly praised God for His provisions. For years, I believed just having freedom from theDepartment of Correctionswas good living. Turning from the water and finding Witherspoon chowing down on her steak and salad, I realized this is the next level of living in freedom. That next tier was here and now with her.
A chill struck my spine, traveling all the way up to the back of my skull. I blinked a few times, eyes still planted on the stubborn girl insistent on ignoring me. She was mine. In that moment, I knew Ashira was the woman for me. A woman I could see at my side, raising my seeds and providing more life in her companionship than I imagined receiving from any other chick I’d met. Sitting here, in this moment, I felt the shit in my bones. Now, I had to figure out a way to express it to her. The woman was specific in her life pursuits and a damn tour de force when it came to me. If I was going to get her on the same accord with me, I’d have to start working ASAP.
Disrupting my trance, Witherspoon whistled with her fingers for the waiter. Immediately, my attention went to Jug, who was on it. I couldn’t make out Witherspoon’s words to him, but peeped when she spun her index finger around, gesturing the entire table. When done, the waiter nodded and took off. Jug swung his chin toward the direction the waiter was headed to in question and I nodded in the affirmative. If Witherspoon thought she’d pay for the food this afternoon, she had some other shit coming.
It was clear Witherspoon and two of her girls were done eating when they left the table to take pictures closer to the water.
My back was to them, so I didn’t know what they were doing until I heard Chelsea’s friend, Chrissy, comment, “How can she eat a whole New York strip steak and plate of a fully loaded salad and still not have to hold her stomach in when taking pix? This crab salad got my belly pushing out.” She frowned, stabbing the lettuce on her plate with a fork.
“Tuh!” Tanya rolled her eyes. “Girl, eat what you want. A good man’ll find you. Look at me…two thirty-three. Been married for nine years. All women ain’t skinny just like not all skinny girls got a man.”
“Damn!” Jug coughed in his hand, coming back to the table, having heard Tanya’s words likely aimed at Witherspoon. “What that mean, T?”
“The fuck you want it to.”
“Chill with that shit, man,” Antoine warned. “Errbody vibin’ out here.”
Tanya rolled her eyes. “I said what the fuck I said.”
But she didn’t say it with her chest. I knew from our childhood interactions, Antoine, her husband, had leveled her with those two sentences. And I was happy because if I did it, the sting would be far worse. Tanya had been giving Witherspoon the cold shoulder since the card game at her house. Witherspoon ate it, but shouldn’t have to. The thing was, Tanya would be on chill with the coldness toward Witherspoon if she knew Witherspoon was mine. But my family didn’t even know we were fucking. Our public chemistry had been that cool. And that was something I wanted to change.
“That nigga was dumb as fuck,” Jonathan mumbled, attention behind me, toward the water.
“Who?” Myron asked.
“That nigga, Austin Seers. He letthatgo? Man, she be applyin’ that pressure. Ya heard?” Jonathan blew out air. “Muthafuckas ‘on’t know how to keep the home happy while outside doing them.”
“I heard the nigga was cheating with Rihanna,” Myron shared.
“Easy!” Jonathan shook his head. “That’s Harlem pride right there. Be careful what you putting on the homie’s bitch.”
“Bitch,” Chelsea croaked, able to hear from her distance. “Jonathan, grow the hell up and maybe you’ll get a girl with a quarter of Rihanna’s success and capabilities.” She left the table and Chrissy followed her.
They walked past me, down by the water.
“Yaaaaaay!” I recognized Witherspoon’s cheer. “C’mon, Chels and Chrissy! Let’s flick it up!” Her delivery was dramatically silly.
I wanted to laugh with her, but held my shit together. Witherspoon sure had three personalities. There was the bitch and then then the silly girl and then the seductress. I could handle all three, but preferred the last two.
