Page 42 of Jaeda

“No. It’s just . . . I missed you, and I was kind of expecting a different greeting.”

He chuckled as he set the glass down. “Come here, baby.”

I placed my glass next to his and moved into his space. His hands came to the sides of my face, and he leaned in, pressing a sweet kiss to my lips. As his tongue greeted mine, I savored the taste of the wine he’d just consumed. His hands dropped from my face and slid around my waist.

A subtle grip of my ass caused a moan to fall between us. Shit! I just knew the seat of my panties were soaked at this point. I could already feel my nipples straining against the lacy fabric ofmy bra. When my clit started throbbing, I had to pull away from him. This man was fucking dangerous. I wanted nothing more than to offer myself up to him as a living sacrifice.

“Better?” he asked.

“You could get me into trouble,” I said, wagging my finger at him.

He smirked. “I wouldn’t do anything to you that you aren’t ready for or want. Right now, all I want is to feed you.”

I blushed. “Okay.”

“Go on and take a seat at the table. I’ll bring the food over.”

I nodded, grabbed my wine, and turned to walk away. He gave my ass a light smack, and it made me giggle like a schoolgirl. I made myself comfortable at the table, watching as he moved around plating our dishes. It wasn’t long before he was seated next to me with a delicious aroma floating between us. After a quick prayer, we dug in.

That first bite of the short ribs made me close my eyes and pulled a moan from me.

“Oh. My. God. You sure you cooked this?”

He laughed. “I’m offended. Of course, I cooked it. I told you I can throw down.”

“This is amazing. You may give my grams a run for her money.”

“You want me to have smoke with that lady before I even meet her?”

It was my turn to laugh. “Grams is chill. She hasn’t put her gangsta hat on in a long time.”

“Wait, so she was in the streets too?”

“Right at my grandfather’s side. They had that whole Bonnie and Clyde thing going.”

“Ahhh, so that’s where Maceo and Shar get it from.”

“You know what? That makes sense. They learned their lesson, though. Right now, all they care about is being mommy and daddy to that beautiful baby.”

“Speaking of babies, how’s the new addition coming along?”

My smile widened. “He’s an angel. I was just over there before I came here. I can’t believe my brothers are fathers. If you knew them before, you’d understand.”

He chuckled. “Things change when you meet your person.”

I nodded in agreement. “They do. I know they are a handful, but the way they love their wives and children is beautiful. I never saw it coming for them. Steel, maybe. But those other three? Hell no.”

“What makes him different?”

“Steel . . . he’s a lover at heart. These days, he’s operating under the guise of hurt. When he was in college, the love of his life broke his heart. He hasn’t let a woman get close to him since then. I know it’s killing him. Even though we never met the girl, we all saw the pictures and heard how much he loved her from him. He wanted to marry her. Honestly, I thought he would have been the first to tie the knot and have kids.”

“Well, maybe it will still happen for him. Not every heartbreak stays a heartbreak.”

“You ever had your heart broken?”

He shook his head as he took a sip of wine. “Thankfully, no. I will say that every relationship I’ve been in has ended up being a lesson. If it didn’t give me what I needed, it taught me what I didn’t.”

“That’s a positive way to look at it.”

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