“I was in an accident.”
“A what?”
“An accident. I don’t have a car, a cell, or anything. I just needed to find a place to lay low in until the storm blows over, and I can call my family.”
“And you chose this apartment?”
“It was the first thing I saw. I’d been walking for miles, trying to find shelter.”
I glanced over at my patio door and immediately noticed the shattered glass around it. He’d broken into my apartment like some hulked-out Goldilocks. The next thing I noticed was the mound of my wrinkled clothes piled up on the armchair in the living room.
“What the fuck did you do with my clothes? Why are they not in the dryer where I left them?”
“My clothes were soaked, so I’m drying them. You got anything dry for a nigga to put on while I wait? Shit is a lil awkward being naked now that you’re here.”
“Nigga, this ain’t the fuckin’ laundry service, and I’m not your maid. Now who the fuck are you.” I spazzed, feeling my heart buck against its reigns.
As pissed and dumbfounded as I was, I found it funny how I was considering a one-night stand in Miami with a handsome stranger, only to come home to a naked one with my throw pillow hiding his dick. If that wasn’t the Lord’s way of showing off his sense of humor, I didn’t know what was.
“My name is Kareem,” he answered finally, “and the mutt’s in the bathroom.”
My brows instantly downturned. “He’s not a mutt. His name is Butta.”
“Butta?”
“Yeah, like peanut butter . . . because of his brown fur. Did you not even look at him before you trapped him in the bathroom, you fucking demon?”
“No. I was just trying to get him the fuck away from me.”
“There is such thing as animal cruelty. You know that, right?”
“Would you rather I’d killed it?”
I gasped. “Get the fuck out!” I hollered before rushing over to the bathroom to save and comfort my fur baby. “It’s okay. Mommy’s here now.” I whispered to him while rubbing behind his ears.
Butta was a jittery mess in my arms. I was barely able to hold onto him before he jumped out of my grip and raced down the hall to get his get back on Kareem for trapping him in the bathroom.
“You should be fucking ashamed of yourself,” I scolded the stranger.
“Watch out,” he grumbled before pushing me out of his way so that he could get to the bathroom. “A nigga gotta piss.”
The slam of the door in my face followed his announcement. It was as if he paid the rent every month around here, and Butta and I were visiting.
He was vulgar.
He was absurd.
And he had the smoothest dark chocolate ass I’d ever seen.
Regardless of that fact, he had to fucking go. But with the roaring wind and flooding from the hurricane, I already knew his ass wasn’t going anywhere.
“What’s your name?” he probed when he reentered the living room wearing a stained white T-shirt and some boxers.
By that time, I had already put Butta in his crate so that I could sweep up the broken glass and put a couple of towels down to soak up the water and keep any more from coming in.
“The help, obviously.”
He smacked his lips. “Real cute. Fine, don’t tell me. I really don’t give a fuck.”
