I pushed out a sigh because I already knew that I was about to lose the battle. I could deny it to everyone else, but I couldn’t deny it to myself. Lean had a real bad hold on me. I even attempted to make myself feel better by thinking about the fact that Mazi wasn’t around anymore. I didn’t know who to get cough syrup from if it wasn’t him and if I couldn’t get it, I couldn’t use it. With that thought in mind, I didn’t hesitate to grab the cough medicine out of my closet and walk to the kitchen, so I could get the Sprite.
With anxious hands, I mixed the concoction and felt like a stone-cold junkie while doing so, but that didn’t stop me from placing the cup to my lips, closing my eyes, and taking a sip. Cup in hand, I went back into my bedroom to grab my phone and rolled my eyes upon seeing that Wilde had texted me that he was five minutes away. Despite the pep talks KoKo had given me about not caring what people thought, I wasn’t all the way comfortable just popping out with Wilde.
Most women would have been elated to be seen out with him while he was all up in their face, hugging on them, etc. It would make them feel like they had a trophy on their arm. A lot of the chicks in Diamond Cove flaunted men more proudly than they did their children. If they had a man with any kind of statusand money, they couldn’t wait to let the world know they were dealing with him, even if they were knowingly sharing him with other women. I didn’t get down like that. There was no telling how many women Wilde was sleeping with, and it would make me feel like an idiot to have him parading me around town while half the city knew what he was up to. It would be a repeat of me and Drew.
“Ughhhh,” I groaned before taking another sip.
My lip curled into a snarl when I read Wilde’s text telling me he was outside. But I quickly remembered he wasn’t pursuing, and it wasn’t a real date, so it didn’t matter if he acted like a gentleman and came to the door. I walked out to his car and got in. Manners were forsaken as I closed the door without speaking to him and placed my cups in the holder.
“You be on that drank kinda heavy, don’t you?” he asked, and my head snapped up.
“The same way you be in my business?” my head angled to the right, and I studied him. Not even being annoyed with him made me miss the fact that he was fine! His thick curls were loose, and his hair smelled so good. I wasn’t sure what he put in it, but he could give a few females a run for their money with that thick healthy hair.
Wilde took his hand off the wheel and held both up in surrender. “Aye, that’s yo’ business, G. Just don’t be at the park going into dope fiend nods. That shit will be embarrassing.”
I was willing to bet money that steam was coming out of my ears. I was so pissed that I couldn’t even think of a proper comeback. I just stared at the side of his face while he backed out of the parking space with that dumb ass smirk.
“Boy, fuck you,” I finally snapped.
He chuckled, and I sucked my teeth. It was going to be a long ass day. I stared out of the window the entire ride to the park. Wilde’s phone was ringing nonstop, and it was annoying. I couldtell when he was talking to a man and when he was talking to a female. He didn’t exactly become sweet and romantic when he was talking to a woman, but I could tell because he said things like, “Word? Let me see. Send a pic.”
I rolled my eyes, but when I thought about how ole girl from the night before was screaming bloody murder, goosebumps pricked my arms. Wilde was an ass, but he was fine, and if his dick game had them going crazy like that…
I shook my impure thoughts off and grabbed my cup to take a sip as Wilde pulled into the parking lot of Diamond Cove’s biggest park. Half the city was out for a basketball tournament that was taking place. I placed my hand on the door handle, and Wilde tapped my exposed thigh with the back of his tattooed hand.
“Hold tight.”
I removed my hand and watched as he exited the car. Wilde rounded the car and opened my door. That made the second time I was shocked that he had some type of manners. Sucking in a deep breath, I got out of his car, knowing all eyes were on me. After closing the car door, he placed his hand on the small of my back and directed me through the crowd. People eyed me and spoke to Wilde as we walked toward a group of four guys.
“Right here. Let me holla at my people.”
I recognized Pierre and was slightly disappointed that I didn’t see Nina with him. I really liked her, and she would have made the time with Wilde a little more tolerable. Then, I remembered that KoKo was coming, and I perked up a bit. With my cup resting on my lip, my eyes darted around the park, taking in the many faces in an effort to see how many of them I recognized. My drink almost went down the wrong way when I locked eyes with Drew, and he was fuming. His baby mama was standing next to him, talking a mile a minute, but his orbs were locked on me.
Seeing them together was a little crazy. But I couldn’t really focus on that when he was glaring at me like he wanted to kill me. Or Wilde. Or both of us. Wilde pressed his body into mine from behind, placed one hand flat on my belly, and spoke directly into my ear.
“You see that pussy ass nigga watching us, bae?”
I swallowed hard as my chest tightened, and my yoni contracted. The feeling of Wilde’s hands on my body and his lips brushing against my ear should have given me the ick, but instead, I was insanely turned on. When he called me bae, I could have sworn my knees buckled. With my head turned to the side, I spoke over my shoulder.
“We’re doing all of this for that?” I spoke in a tone that only he could hear. “He’s pissed, and he’s looking at me like I owe him money. That’s it?”
Wilde pressed a little more, and my nipples hardened. If he didn’t let me go, my panties were going to be uncomfortably moist. “Pretty much. I want that nigga to hate me. I want him to hate me enough to jump bad. So I can put him in the dirt. If I kill that nigga, you gon’ cry, bae?”
If he called me bae one more time, I was going to scream. Wilde’s touch and the deep rasp of his voice had my heart beating way too fast. “I stopped crying over him a long time ago,” I confessed.
My eyes widened when Wilde smacked me on the ass. “Good girl, G.”
Wilde went back to talking and laughing with his friends, and I mustered up the courage to look over at Drew. He was still staring, and his baby mama was looking, too. Just great. With a slight roll of my eyes, I looked away.
“Hey boo,” KoKo sang, and I breathed a sigh of relief.
“Hey. Girl, Drew is looking over here like he’s about to shoot the scene up,” I couldn’t wait to inform her.
KoKo’s irises danced around the park until she spotted Drew and when she did, she laughed. “Ah man he looks constipated.” Wilde was busy talking, so KoKo leaned into me. “I saw that nigga all on you. He might be a blackmailing asshole, but baby, he is too fine.”
“That he is,” I agreed with a shake of my head.
A guy approached me and KoKo. As soon as he was near, Wilde came back over to me and pressed his body into mine while wrapping his arm around my waist. The guy held his palms up. “No disrespect. I’ve been calling the shop and haven’t gotten an answer. I would like Wonder to wrap my car.”
