Page 34 of When Love Becomes A Need
“So, tell me why I walked in and saw you sitting here alone, looking like that.”
“Like what?” she asked quietly.
Gnawing on the corner of my bottom lip, I slanted my eyes. “Good as hell, like you want a nigga to eat you up.”
A shocked expression appeared on Fatima’s face that she quickly switched up. Her cheeks flushed and her mouth turned upwards.
“Well, I was meeting a friend here, but something came up that he didn’t think to tell me until I had been sitting here for a half hour.”
Outlining my bottom lip with my tongue, I leaned forward. “Well, he’s stupid because if he’s missing out on you looking like this right now willingly, then he needs his ass whooped.”
Fatima’s eyebrows shot up. “Ahmad, are you flirting with me right now?”
I grunted lowly. My name rolling off her tongue sounded good. It was soft and innocent, yet it pulled me into her.
Chuckling, I sat back and crossed my arms. “I’m just telling it like it is.” I shrugged.
Fatima smiled brightly at me. “You know the way your sister described you is completely different from what I’ve witnessed.”
Tilting my head slightly to the side, I gave her a lop-sided grin. “And how is that?”
“She warned me you could come off standoffish and rude, but I don’t get that. You’re always nice when I see you, sometimes nonchalant, but never in a mean way.”
Showing off all my teeth, I rubbed my beard.
“Autumn always running her mouth, but nah, she wasn’t so far off. I don’t really deal with too many people. I like to keep people at arm’s length.”
“Does this have to do with the stupid hoe your sister mentioned at your shop the other day?”
Usually, the mention or reference of Kylie would instantly shift my mood, but when Fatima did it, it didn’t. I was shocked she remembered Autumn mentioned that.
“You can say that,” I vaguely told her.
She nodded. “Well, she needs her ass whooped if she let you go.”
Chuckling softly, I watched her grin get bigger. “Is that right?”
“Yeah, you don’t seem like you’re a bad guy. In fact, the way your sister talked to me about you, you seem damn near perfect.”
That caused me to laugh again.Damn, I was doing that a lot with her.
“Nah, I ain’t perfect. A nigga got a few flaws, but I was good to Kylie.”
“Kylie?”
“The stupid hoe,” I smirked.
“Mhm.”
The server returned with our food and couldn’t have come any sooner. The conversation with Fatima was flowing so well that it didn’t even bother me to talk about Kylie. She was easy to talk to, and the fact that she didn’t push the subject with Kylie was nice. Still though, it felt like things were too good with her. I was growingtoocomfortable with her, as if I’d known her forever.
Fatima and I made small talk, ate and drank the wine the server hadbrought out. Well, she mainly drank the wine. I only had a glass and a half. Throughout the night, I learned a little more about her. She told me she grew up in a single-parent home with her mom after her dad abandoned them. Just like at the shop, I could tell there was more to the story, but I didn’t push it. She also told me how she was going to take the leap of starting her own photography business, which made me happy that she took my advice.
By the end of the night, Fatima had loosened up a lot. She wasn’t nervous or reserved like she normally was when I was around. She had dropped the guard she built around herself, and I couldn’t lie and say I didn’t like what was behind that guard.
The server had come over and brought the check. Fatima and I both went for it. I gave her a look.
“I got it,” I said, taking the check. Without looking at it, I grabbed my wallet and placed my card inside.
