Page 16 of The Only Shot that Mattered

Damien grinned down at her. “Bet. What kind of pizza you like?”

“Damn, nigga, you can’t ask the rest of us what kind of pizza we want?” Dax asked, teasing Damien. It was clear to him by now that he was feeling Kenna, and he would make sure Damien never heard the end of his little crush.

“I been knowing you for two decades, fool. I think I know what kind of pizza you like.”

As they discussed what kind of pizza to get at length, Cam and Jendaya came back into the room. By the time Damien put in the order, he noticed Kenna seemed a little more relaxed. That made him happy. He wanted her to feel comfortable in his presence.

He watched as Cam and Kenna gravitated toward each other, and he understood now more than ever that they were each other’s comfort zones. He respected it, but he also found himself wondering what it might look like if Kenna felt secure enough around him to claim him as a comfort zone.

He subtly watched her as she interacted with everyone until he was brought out of his daze by the sound of the doorbell. Damien stood and looked at Dax. “Come help me with this food.”

Dax stood up and rubbed his stomach. “Say less, man. I’m hungry as hell. You know what playing ball does to me.”

After every game, Dax pigged out on whatever he desired. He always worked up a huge appetite, which was why Damien got him two pizzas of his own, plus some salad and wings. Dax wasn’t even fat. He just had a high metabolism. He’d always been like that.

Damien answered the door and tipped the delivery woman before they walked toward the family room again.

“We can go into the dining room and eat,” Damien announced.

Jendaya was the first one up, and everyone else followed her. Kenna was last, and as soon as she stepped in front of Damien and Dax, Dax whistled. Damien was about to drop the pizza and punch him right in his forehead because he thought Dax was looking at her ass. And what an ass it was. Dax got lucky when he followed the whistle up with, “And she’s wearing that jersey dress with my name? Yeah, I fuck with her.”

Kenna’s eyes widened as she turned around. “Your last name is Rivers?”

“All me, sweetheart.” He cheesed down at her. “Number twenty-eight.”

Her eyes floated toward Damien, and she blushed slightly before she said, “I guess I’ll have to get one with your name next.”

Damien’s heart did a little dance as she turned around and caught up with Cam. Dax let out another low whistle as they kept walking. “Boy, you’re a goner, ain’t you?”

Damien couldn’t even deny it if he wanted to. “There’s something about her,” he admitted.

“Better lock that down, my nigga.” Dax’s long legs walked ahead of Damien, causing him to lag behind slightly as he wondered how he could go about doing just that.

“That rugrat looks a lil tired, Ms. Annalise.” Cam pointed a bony finger toward Alanzo, who leaned halfway off his chair and snuggly against his grandmother with his eyes half open.

Alanzo wasn’t too tired to screw his face up at Cam. Damien chuckled. He had peeped that Alanzo and Cam seemed to have some sort of rivalry going on one second and they were cool the next. It seemed right now, and for the next few minutes, at least, the rivalry was back on. Through dinner, the two had taken up most of the conversation talking about anime.

“Yeah, it’s been a really long day.” Annalise glanced up at the large clock hanging on the wall. It was an antique clock Damien’s grandmother had in her house. He learned how to tell time because of that clock, and when she passed, it was one of the few things he took from her house when they cleaned it out. “And it’s definitely past his bedtime. I think it’s time we get going.”

Damien’s heart dropped. He knew if Ms. Annalise left, Kenna wouldn’t be too far behind. He wasn’t ready to let her go just yet. He’d been watching her while they ate. She kept quiet and observed. He watched as she scoped out all the exits, one to the right of her and one straight ahead of her and right behind him, and he noticed that she jumped slightly when Jendaya accidentally dropped a glass, causing it to shatter.

His instinct was to go to her, just like he had back at the arena. He wanted to pull her close and remind her that she was safe, but once again he found himself practicing restraint since being in her presence.

Kenna covered her mouth as she yawned and stretched from her seat before she pushed the plate with her pizza crusts away. “It’s past my bedtime too.”

Cam smacked his lips and rolled his eyes. “Sometimes I swear you’re seventy-five instead of thirty-three.”

Thirty-three.Damien thought she was around that age but wasn’t sure on the exact number. Now he knew. Baby was only four years younger than him. Perfect.

He ran a hand down his face as he tried to clear his mind. His thoughts about her made him feel insane because he had never felt this way before. Here he was thinking about how perfect they could be together and planning their future, and he didn’t even have a clue if she was feeling him in the same way.

Kenna shrugged but didn’t respond verbally. Damien thought she looked cute when she was sleepy.

“I think it’s time we get home,” Annalise said, glancing Damien’s way.

“I have a driver out front for you already. You’re free to head out whenever you’re ready. Thank you both for having dinner with me.” Damien kept his words gracious and tried to keep the disappointment out of his voice.

Annalise stood and pulled Alanzo up with her. The soft smile on her face reminded him of his late grandmother’s. “No, Mr. Blaze, thankyou.”

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