Page 25 of Certified Pressure 2
“I can’t.”
“You gon’ make me stand out here all night?”
His tone carried something that made my knees weak, but my pride had me fighting back anyway. We went back and forth until I couldn’t take it anymore, and finally, I unlocked the door and slipped out. I pulled it shut behind me, folding my arms over my chest like I could hide everything I was feeling.
I tried to keep my eyes on the ground, but when I finally looked up, all I could do was stare.
He looked the same as always—broad shoulders stretching against his black tee, jewelry shining under the light, skin smooth and flawless. He was so safe and so damn sexy that for a second I forgot where I was. I forgot everything except him.
He didn’t hesitate. He stepped forward and pulled me into him like he couldn’t stand another second of distance betweenus. My body melted before I could think, my arms wrapping tight around him like I’d been starving for his touch. It felt like I could finally breathe again, and the hurt from the last three days broke loose inside of me.
He rubbed my back in slow, steady motions, kissing the top of my head first, then my forehead, then the side of my cheek. When his hand slid under my chin, tilting my face up to his, I already knew I couldn’t fight it. His lips brushed the corner of mine before finally claiming me fully, his tongue sliding into my mouth, kissing me like he wanted to make up for every single second we’d been apart.
I clung to him, letting myself drown in it until I had to pull back just to breathe. When I looked into his eyes, everything I’d been holding back came rushing out.
“Ride with me,” he said.
My mind went straight to Zurie, asleep in the next room. I didn’t want to leave her, but the way he was looking at me made it impossible to say no.
“Zurie is sleep,” I whispered. “I can’t be gone too long.”
“That’s cool,” he replied, brushing his thumb across my lip while he stared at me.
I grabbed my keys, my slippers, locked the door behind me, and slid my hand into his. We walked side by side through the cracked parking lot, our fingers laced tight, and in that moment, it felt like those three painful days apart had never happened at all.
While riding with Pressure, I couldn’t help but stare down at our hands. His gun sat on his lap while his right hand gripped mine. He drove with his left, his hand wrapped around the wheel withease, and every now and then he rubbed his thumb across my skin so soft that it sent a wave of chills through my whole body. Then he lifted my hand to his lips and pressed a kiss against my fingers. His mouth was warm and damp, and it was the kind of touch that made me forget the rest of the world existed.
The rental smelled just like him—weed, money, and cologne all mixed into one scent that had me dizzy in the passenger seat. I never thought I’d be here again, riding across town with him, feeling his presence so close after nights of missing him until my chest ached. I couldn’t believe he had really come back for me. A part of me wanted to ask how he even knew where to find me, but I already knew the answer. I was the one who gave my real address when I signed up to be one of his Diamonds, never thinking it would get this far. Never thinking I’d fall for him this hard. Never imagining he would come find me at my front door.
I leaned against the seat, my eyes tracing over his thick beard as he drove, the glow from the dashboard highlighting the tattoos running down his arm. I thought about how different this felt compared to the first time I saw him. Back then, he was a Prince in his mansion, a man who could never belong to me, and now here he was driving through the city with my hand in his, kissing my fingers like he couldn’t let me go.
Pressure didn’t say much as he rode, and he didn’t have to. His silence spoke just as loud as words, and the small ways he touched me told me everything I needed to know. He kept driving until he pulled into the lot of a restaurant that sat lit up with neon lights.
My stomach dropped as I looked down at my oversized shirt and plain leggings. “If I would’ve known we were coming here, I would’ve changed,” I mumbled with a frown, pulling at my shirt like I could make it look like more.
He glanced over at me, the corner of his lips pulling up. “You good just like that. Don’t need to do nothin’ else. You look fine as hell already.”
Heat rose to my cheeks as I looked away, because he meant it. I could hear it in his voice.
When we stepped out, I watched him tuck his gun into his waistband before reaching for me, pulling me close to his side as if that was where I belonged. The way he smelled—his cologne mixing with his deodorant—wrapped around me, and my body relaxed even though I still felt shy about walking in here dressed how I was.
The waitress led us to a booth in the corner, and once we sat down, Pressure ordered a drink like it was nothing. I thought about playing it safe, but then I thought about how much I’d missed him, and I decided to order one too. If he was here, if this was real, I wasn’t going to waste a second worrying. The place was known for steaks and seafood, so we picked our plates, and when the waitress walked away, the silence that fell between us felt heavy but good at the same time.
I looked at him, and damn near melted right there. His eyes caught mine and held them, and I swore it felt like he was pulling me in without saying a word.
“I can’t believe you’re here with me,” I whispered, my voice soft and full of everything I’d been holding inside these last few days.
He leaned back in the booth, licking his lips slowly before reaching across the table for my hands. His thumbs moved against my skin, warm and rough, and he stared at me in a way that made me feel like I was the only woman alive.
“I missed the shit out you,” he said, his voice low and certain, and my whole body trembled from how good it sounded.
The way he was looking at me, the way his love came down in that moment, I knew he wasn’t just saying it. His eyes weredifferent with me, softer and deeper, like I was something he never wanted to lose. I swallowed hard because the feeling rushing through me was too much to keep inside.
I asked if anyone else had been eliminated since I left, but when I brought it up, he shook his head like he didn’t even want to entertain it. “I ain’t talkin’ about that right now,” he said, his eyes still locked on me.
I rolled my eyes a little, but I let it go. I had missed him too much to start an argument about something that didn’t matter in this moment. Kashmere and the rest of the women might have gone back and forth with him, pushed him just to get a reaction, but that wasn’t me. I wasn’t about to waste the time I had with him.
The waitress brought our food and drinks, the table filling with plates of steaming steaks and buttery seafood. We ate slow, talking between bites. He asked me how Zurie was holding up, and my smile faded as I told him she was overdue for her surgery.
