I grinned and stepped all the way in. “Teach me the game, Ghost,” I said, throwin’ my hand up like I was in an episode ofPower.
Kay’Lo damn near choked on his blunt laughin’. Blaqson smirked, but Renza looked like he was about to snatch me up and throw me right back out the door.
“Nah, for real,” he said, sittin’ up straighter. “You don’t belong in here, Toni. If Pressure catch you in this room withus, he gon’ try to kill us like Mr. Biggs did in them old R. Kelly videos.”
“Boy, chill,” Kay’Lo cut in, still laughin’. “She cool. Let her rock.” He motioned toward the empty chair at the table.
That was all the invite I needed. I strutted in like I belonged here and dropped down in the chair, smilin’ big at Kay’Lo before lookin’ back at Renza. “See? At least somebody in here got some manners.”
Renza sighed and shuffled the cards, talkin’ under his breath. “Manners my ass.”
Kay’Lo leaned over the table with that grin of his. “You know how to play spades, Toni?”
“Hell yeah, I know how to play spades,” I shot back. “What you think, I was raised under a rock?”
Blaqson laughed low. “We gon’ see.”
They shuffled, cut, and dealt the cards. I picked mine up and spread ‘em in my hand, already peepin’ I had a strong set. Kay’Lo passed me the blunt, and I hit it, lettin’ the smoke roll out slow before handin’ it back.
“Alright,” Renza said, “don’t renege, Toni.”
“I don’t renege, baby. I break hearts,” I snapped back with a smirk.
The whole table cracked up, even Renza, though he tried to hide it.
We got into the game, and I was lovin’ it. I was talkin’ shit the whole time, slappin’ cards down like I was at a cookout. “Cut that! Run them books! Don’t play with me!” Every time I scored, I made sure to rub it in, and Kay’Lo was hypin’ me up right along with it.
Between hands, the conversation flowed just as easy as the smoke. They was goin’ back and forth about basketball, and I jumped right in. “Man, LeBron still runnin’ the league, and y’all can’t tell me nothin’ different,” I said, waggin’ my finger.
Renza groaned. “Girl, you trippin’. Giannis eatin’ right now.”
“Giannis? Please. That man still ain’t got the star power. You know damn well everybody still watchin’ Bron.”
They laughed, shook their heads, and moved on to talkin’ politics, then money, then music. And I held my own in every convo, talkin’ loud, crackin’ jokes, and gettin’ them to laugh with me.
Every now and then, though, I caught Kay’Lo watchin’ me. He’d deal the cards, look up, and our eyes would lock just for a second before he looked away. I couldn’t even front like I wasn’t doin’ the same. This man was fine. Just like his cousin, but different.
Pressure was big and broad with that beard, and built like he could pick up a car if he wanted to. Kay’Lo was slimmer, no beard, but he didn’t need one. His jawline was sharp enough to cut glass, his lips were full and soft lookin’, and his eyes… damn. They was so deep it almost felt like I could fall in ‘em if I stared too long. He had that same chocolate skin as Pressure, and the same family genes that made them all look related, but Kay’Lo had his own vibe.
I kept my cool though, laughin’ with the others, playin’ my cards, and passin’ the blunt when it came back around.
At one point, I leaned back in the chair, took a sip from the cup Blaqson slid me, and said, “Now see, this what I’m talkin’ about. I been bored as hell in this mansion, walkin’ around lookin’ at art I can’t touch. Y’all in here livin’ like it’s Vegas.”
Kay’Lo grinned at me again. “Stick with us then.”
I raised an eyebrow at him, smilin’ slow. “Don’t tempt me.”
The table got quiet for a half second before Renza shook his head and slammed his next card down. “Man, let’s play before Toni get us all in trouble.”
I laughed so hard my stomach hurt.
By the end of the night, I was feelin’ good. The liquor was sittin’ warm in my chest, the weed had me relaxed, and my cheeks hurt from all the laughin’. I wasn’t thinkin’ about Pressure, or who he was gon’ pick, or the fact that I probably wasn’t gon’ be the last one standin’. For once, I was just havin’ fun.
And if I was bein’ real, I liked the way Kay’Lo kept glancin’ at me when he thought I wasn’t payin’ attention. It gave me somethin’ new to think about, and it felt good.
For the first time all day, I wasn’t bored anymore.
I didn’t know what time it was, but I knew it was late ‘cause Blaqson had left at least thirty minutes ago and Renza was so damn high, he could barely keep his eyes open. He was leaned back in his chair with the blunt halfway out his hand, mumblin’ to himself about who knows what. I laughed, snatched the blunt from him before he burned his fingers, and looked across the table at Kay’Lo.
