Page 303 of Kentrell

“And…” Ayesha’s eyes went wide like she was the only sane person in the room. “He’s afucking murderer!If he finds out she killed his baby—God, Zoe—he will kill you. Period. Point. Blank.”

“Girl… put the street lit down,” Stacia groaned, rolling her eyes so hard it looked like it hurt. “He is not gonna care one wayor the other. Shit… he was tryna kill her when he didn’t even know she was carrying his child.”

“Exactly!” Mars threw her hand up for emphasis. “It’s giving…Lifetime Presents: A Killer’s Kiss.”

“Ahhh!” Stacia hollered, throwing her head back as both she and Mars cracked up laughing.

“The Target of His Affection!” Stacia added, tossing out her own fake movie title like we were making a playlist.

“No, no, no…Till Death Do Us Part,” Mars said, grinning wide as she clutched her chest.

I folded my lips into my mouth, trying to fight the smirk creeping across my face… but it was useless.

“Hired Heartbreak,” Stacia said next, deepening her voice and mimicking that dramatic Lifetime movie announcer from all the commercials we used to clown back in college.

“The Gravedigger Has a Name…” Mars jumped in, pausing for effect like she was on a soundstage. “And it’s Kentrell?—”

“Okay, shut up.” I laughed, shaking my head as I finally let the smile break free. “Y’all get on my nerves. And it’s nice to know y’all think its funny that somebody put a hit out on me.”

“Girl, boo—We laughing with you,” Mars said, still grinning but her tone shifting just enough to let me know she meant this part. “But had that nigga actually tried to act on that shit? We woulda been riding from dusk to dawn to tag that ass. No questions asked.”

I smiled, feeling the weight in my chest ease just a little. Knowing my girls… she meant every word.

“So… y’all really don’t think he was in on it?” Ayesha asked again, still deep in her feelings, clearly holding tight to her opposing stance.

I exhaled slow, rubbing my hands over my face, already bracing for round two of this conversation.

“I mean… me and Zoe talked about it… and I’on know.” Mars lifted her shoulders in a lazy shrug. “She kinda convinced me that he wasn’t.”

“No… her lil’ dicktales convinced you?—”

“Dicktales, bitch? I wish.” Mars cut Ayesha off, rolling her eyes before glancing back at me. “I been hounding yo ass for a week… how big is it?” She groaned like knowing the answer would somehow improve her whole life.

“It’s…” I started, just to watch the room fall silent. All three of them froze, eyes locked on me like I was about to give up state secrets. I almost laughed… but I wasn’t telling them a thing. “Not up for discussion.”

Mars let out the loudest, most dramatic exhale like I’d just ruined her whole day, while Stacia cracked up beside her.

“Zoe…” Mars deadpanned, her face going completely flat. “Get out.”

That set me and Stacia off all over again. We laughed so hard I could feel it deep in my stomach… the same stomach that had been sending me to the toilet every other hour… trying to tell me exactly what was happening inside of it.

When the laughter finally died down, Ayesha’s voice broke through, soft but serious. “Are you gonna tell him?”

Before I could answer… a hard, aggressive pounding rattled the door, startling all four of us. Stacia and Ayesha both shrieked as I jumped in my seat.

“Who the helly is knocking on my door like that?” Mars stomped toward the door, already rolling her neck like she had a point to prove.

“Noise complaint,” Stacia called out with a fake warning tone, making my eyes go wide as panic shot through me. I prayed she was wrong. The walls in Mars’s apartment were thick—thank God for that—but with the way we’d been clowning, I couldn’t be sure.

“For their sake… it better not be,” Mars grumbled, unlocking the deadbolt and popping the door open with absolutely zero caution or glance through the peephole.

“No survival skills whatsoever,” Ayesha muttered, catching the same thing I did. I smirked at her, shaking my head.

“Oh my God!” Stacia’s gasp yanked my attention back to the door just in time for my breath to catch.

My eyes widened.

And there he was.

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