Page 122 of Real's Love

"I think you like to be scared, though," I whispered, tugging on her nipple.

I had never touched her so intimately. She sucked in a breath, her gaze glued to me as I cupped her breast, pulling the fabric of her long-ass night shirt tight against her skin.

"Targen." Her voice was almost a moan. "I can't... you shouldn't... just go, please."

I shook my head.

"Nah. Not ’til you tell me the truth. The worst thing you can do is lie to me. You won't like the consequences," I promised her.

She gripped my wrist suddenly and pulled, anger flashing from her brown eyes.

"I'm so fucking sick of hearing about consequences. Get off me, Targen. Just leave me alone. I'm serious?—"

"Who else promised you consequences?" I focused on her comment, holding on to her despite her struggles. "Did someone threaten you?"

"It's not your business?—"

I shook my head, stopping the bullshit she was spitting.

"Everything about you is my business from now on. Who threatened you?"

She fought me for a little while longer before going completely still and quiet, her full lips pressed together tightly. My baby apparently had a stubborn streak, but she didn't know her nigga.

"A'ight, shorty. That's the way you wanna play it? I'm good with that. Long as you know I ain't going nowhere and you ain't, either."

I caressed her throat before I dropped my hand and walked over to retrieve the remote control she dropped.

"What you wanna watch? Might as well enjoy this time since we both gon' be here," I said with a smirk.

She rolled her eyes and stayed silent. I shrugged. Guess I was picking something. From my peripheral vision, I watched as she started to slide off the dresser.

"I can beat you to the door, and when I catch you there, you might not like it," I said calmly, scrolling through the streaming services.

She froze. Then, she hugged herself, trying to ease the fact that she was suddenly shaking. Shorty looked off, like she was unsure about me and what I might do. I didn't like that.

"You... you said you wouldn't... you promised..."

"I would never hurt you,milaya. Never," I promised her again. "But you don't get to push me away and hide."

Her shoulders dropped in relief. I opened Netflix and started searching for something we might both like. After selecting a movie, I sat down on the floor in front of the bench at the foot of her bed, ignoring her gaze. After a minute, she sighed loudly before easing down and coming to sit on the bench, her thigh temptingly near my face. I grabbed her ankle, then let my hand trail up to grasp her calf.

"Targen—" she murmured.

"Shh."

I massaged her calf, not going any farther, but refusing to let her go. She claimed to want my touch, so she might as well get used to it. Together, we watched some silly ass production until she relaxed and even managed to laugh. Then, her phone vibrated. She looked at it and her body stiffened. She dropped it beside her, and her eyes went back to the TV screen. The tension didn't leave her. I waited for her to say something, anything, but she didn’t.

“Who was that?”

I wouldn’t be the type to ask her that often, but she was clearly upset. I’d always follow up on shit like that. She moved anxiously, legs bouncing, before pulling her hands into her lap, where she tugged at the material of her gown.

"I need to go. You don't understand," she said, her voice low. "You don't?—"

I scoffed. “We back on that? You right, I don’t. You was just excited about your family reunion and talking about staying through the fall and baking pies with Granny when the fruit orchards get harvested. That changed in a couple of days? Yeah, I don’t get it, Theory. Explain,” I growled the challenge.

"I have to go, Targen. My being here... It's not safe for my family. It's not?—"

She stopped, but she’d said enough to piss me the fuck off.

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