Page 27 of In the Safety's Zone
“That’s crazy, Aphrodite.”
“That’s life. How you think I had all the time I did to discover all this. I know Jersey even better. Maybe one day I can show you around.”
I stepped toward her and took the bag of trash out of her hand. Our fingers brushed as I did and I curled mine through hers.
“You think you gone shake me that easily? Nah, you definitely not gonna. Just like I let that fake ass Drake at Leo’s know we gone definitely link up again.”
As I spoke the words I was already mapping out how that would happen without shit being awkward. If it weren’t for off-season workouts I would’ve moved my damn flight around tomorrow to stay and hang out.
“Can I have your number?”
Aphrodite shifted again, like it took all her courage to ask me that. Which was wild seeing as though I was a sure thing. But given that she couldn’t tell old boy was hitting on her, maybe she thought my ass was just being friendly.
Definitely not.
“This is a mutual thing so I’m not leaving here without yours. Nothing I said to your lil fan back there was lip service.”
Her face lit up and she dipped her head, trying to hide her smile. “Cool.”
“I know shit has changed some in this city so we still hailing cabs or are we doing ride shares? The subway was cool orwhatever but I ain’t trusting that shit after dark. Call me scary, cautious or whatever but we not about to —”
“Umm…what about your hotel?”
“Excuse me?” Now my ass was the one that was shocked. Lil baybeeh was really being bold right now and I fucked with it.
“Am I not doing this right?”
She got this frustrated look on her face like she’d been plotting on my ass this whole time. Damn, had she been planning to get some dick and was softening me up by taking me around the city? Had to admit if she was it was smooth as hell cause I didn’t suspect a damn thing.
“Nah, I know what you’re thinking but contrary to what you think about football players I’m not somebody that’s just passing out dick.”
“And what does that mean?”
“Is this something you’re doing just as another fuck you to your father? Cause I’m not trying to be a notch on somebody’s bedpost just so that you can throw it in his face. I don’t want to be somebody you fuck out of rebellion and then run back to the program later on after you’ve fucked with my feelings.”
“You mean the way you’ve done with people before.”
Her words were sharp but I wasn’t going to be offended by the truth of my past.
“I’ll take that. Because back then I was young and dumb and definitely full of cum. And absolutely should’ve been better than I was. But now? I got a fully formed frontal lobe so I’m a lot older and wiser at twenty-six than I was at sixteen. I know the damage that messing with somebody’s heart can bring.”
“You sound like you’re speaking from experience.”
I tugged her hand toward the trashcan so I could drop this bag off and get us somewhere safe and warm. “I got a mama that was so eager to run after a no-good nigga that she would let hersons die in the water to make him happy. So yeah, I know a thing or two about it.”
“And yet you still followed their path?” My admitted hypocrisy seemed to bother her but I had no issue clearing up my words.
“And did an about-face when I realized that I could make some woman as crazy about me as my mother is for my father. And I didn’t want that, for her or for me. Didn’t want the weight of that hanging on my soul or my conscience or my future. Because karma will always swing back around for her due.”
“This isn’t about me trying to rebel against my dad. I just like the vibe that we have going on and I hate for it to end because…”
I pulled her to me and wrapped her arms around my waist. I did the same with mine before looking down into her face.
“Because what? You don’t think that we gone ever see each other again? Ain’t shit we gotta rush, Aphrodite. We vibing and we can leave it at that without issue.”
“What if I don’t want to?”
“You trying to do the walk of shame early in the morning in New York?”
