Chapter 7
Jameela
It had been a whole week since Nicholas had given me a car. After I finally accepted it, he went missing for a couple of days. Nicholas was charming and all that, but I wasn’t going for any and everything.
Although I had confirmed that he wasn’t a drug dealer and actually a legitimate business owner, that didn’t change the way I felt about accepting things from him. I refused to let a man think that he could buy me. With that being said, good dick and expensive gifts were a pretty good down payment.
I laughed to myself as I watched Bella play on her mat on the floor.
My hand found the place on my hip where he’d held onto me when he came.
I could still feel his hands on me. I could still smell his cologne.
It was infuriating that no matter how hard I tried to fight against his pull, I was still drawn to Nicholas like a magnet.
It had only been one freaking night, but I’d be damned if it didn’t feel like just the beginning.
I hated the sappy feeling of hope that slowly crept into my bones.
I wanted this to be everything it felt like.
I wanted it to be real. Lord knows, I was overdue for something good.
Just as much as I hoped for the best, I knew that whatever was growing between Nicholas and I could very well be something that would burn me alive.
Something about him made me wary. He seemed too good, too perfect, and too damn fine to be real.
For that reason, I didn’t want to show my hand and reveal that I was a cop.
What if he already knew? What if there was some underlying plot?
I knew it was crazy to think like that, but I also knew that in my line of business it would be crazy not to.
My phone buzzed in my hand, jolting me from my daydream. It was a text from an unsaved number, but my heart told me who the sender was before I even opened it.
229-467-3999: My first thought this morning was your smile. The second was that ass. I hope you dreamed about me, my love, because I found it even harder to sleep without you.
Me: Well, aren’t we charming?
229-467-3999: Have lunch with me. There’s this brunch spot near you that I’ve been wanting to try.
Me: I’m not even going to ask how you got my address.
Nicholas: The same place I got your phone number since you forgot to give it to me. Get dressed, I’ll pick you up.
Me: After not hearing from you in days you can’t expect me to drop everything and run to you.
Nicholas: Tell me you missed me then.
Me: I didn’t say all that.
Nicholas: I missed you too, habibti, but I wanted to give you a little space to accept that I’m not going anywhere. I hope you had time to clear your roster.
Me: Roster?
Nicholas: Booty calls, exes, anyone who thought they had a chance with you. I wanted to give you time to let them down easy because I’m not backing down off my pursuit.
Me: Is that right?
Nicholas: I have no problem pursuing you, Jameela. I’m about to go even harder to show you that I mean everything I said. What do you have a taste for?
Me: Maybe another time. I can’t get a sitter by then.
Nicholas: Bring her with you, or I’ll bring the two of you lunch. I want to see you again, Jameela.
Me: I’m not sure if I’m ready for you to meet my daughter.
Nicholas: Understandable. Can I buy you lunch?
Me: Nicholas, you don’t have to buy me anything.
Nicholas: Have you eaten lunch, Jameela?
I knew there was no talking to him after he bought me a car against my protest, so I didn’t bother responding to his message.
“You hungry, Bella?” I asked my girl as she crawled over to the couch.
I was so ready for her to start walking, but I knew she was going to tear my house down when she finally did. I picked her up and kissed her face while she climbed all over me. I hugged her little body against me before letting her go.
You couldn’t tell Bella that she wasn’t a big girl sometimes. She didn’t like being babied, so she wouldn’t let me hold on to her for too long. I picked up the remote control and turned the TV to one of her cartoons, then stretched out on the couch, letting her cuddle up with me to watch.
Right when I started to doze off, there was a knock at my door.
Bella clung to my arm, so I picked her up before walking over to see who in the world it could be.
I frowned when I saw a face I didn’t recognize but quickly noticed the plastic bags in his hand.
Taking a step back, I opened the door to greet him.
“Jameela?” he asked when the door was open.
“Yes.”
Once I confirmed I was me, he handed me the bag and scampered away without waiting for me to react. I closed the door behind me and headed to the kitchen with Bella on my hip. The logo on the bag gave it away before I could open the containers.
I put Bella on the couch and placed the bag on the table before removing the contents. The aroma of fried catfish made my mouth water as I removed the Styrofoam container from my favorite hole in the wall eatery.
Cheesy grits were the perfect addition to the deep-fried fish. Like me, my baby girl loved fish. I was gradually learning to expect Nicholas to go overboard, so I wasn’t exactly surprised that he had sent enough food to feed a family of four.
I took Bella to the kitchen and placed her in her high chair before returning to the living room to get the food. Once I had Bella’s plate set up and set aside to cool, I grabbed my phone and called Nicholas.
“Thank you, Nicholas,” I said as soon as he answered the phone.
“Oh, wow! I wasn’t sure you knew that phrase.”
“Well, I do. My baby loves fish just as much as I do.”
“When can I see you again, Jameela?” I sighed audibly, trying to think of a quick excuse. He spoke up before I could respond. “I have my daughter for a few days. You can bring Bella with you for a movie night.”
“I don’t know about that. I don’t want to start bringing men in and out of my daughter’s life.”
“Who said anything about coming in and out of her life?”
“No one had to say it. I’m talking about reality, Nicholas.”
“And I’m only talking about watching Harry Potter movies. I’m trying to be furthest from reality as possible for a few hours.”
“You like that crap too? My friends were just getting on me about never seeing it.”
“What do you mean you’ve never seen it?” Nicholas asked, sounding just as appalled as my girls.
“When would I have seen a kid’s movie?”
“You have a daughter? Speaking of that, did you take her donor off child support?”
“I’m not even getting into that right now. I just wanted to call and thank you for the food.”
“You’re welcome. I’ll see you tonight, Jameela,” he said before ending the call.
“What the hell?” I laughed to myself.
Even when he was being ridiculous, Nicholas made me smile.
Who would have thought that just a week after meeting the man for the first time that I would smile at the very thought of hearing him tell me good morning or ask about my day.
From the very start, Nicholas insisted that he meant nothing but good and had shown and proved.
Bella and I had just got cozy on the couch when my phone buzzed in my lap.
I picked it up and opened the text message thread from the unfamiliar number.
I frowned at the message, not understanding what I was looking at.
While I tried to process the strange message, my phone rang.
It was Nicholas, so I swiped the screen and put the phone to my ear.
“Hey, you.”
“Hey, baby. I just wanted to give you a heads-up. We have a date in about an hour. I need you and Bella to be comfortable and ready for movie night.”
“Nicholas, I told you I’m not going anywhere tonight.”
“You love to argue when there’s no use. Have my little lady in her comfortable pajamas, and make sure she has plenty of snacks.”
“I just hope you’re prepared to go to the movies by yourself.”
He only chuckled in response to my statement. “Go ahead and enter that log-in information I sent you and get my girl situated. I’ll call you back in thirty minutes.”
Since Bella and I were already in our pajamas, I didn’t pay Nicholas’s demands much mind.
I could tell he liked to give orders. As a police officer, I had no issue with taking them.
As a single woman who only planned on having a one-night stand with the man who thought he could call and make demands at the drop of a hat, not so much.
If Nicholas thought buying me a car meant that he could just tell me what to do, he had another thing coming.
I liked him, and the sex was phenomenal, but I wasn’t about to let him run my life.
I had already told him I couldn’t be bought.
I couldn’t make myself any clearer. I would return the car, if I had to.
A knock at the door almost made my heart jump out of my chest.
Even though it was only six in the evening, I didn’t take kindly to uninvited guests.
My mom was the only one who got a pass, and even she called when she was on the way.
Another knock had me on my feet. I was fuming as I stormed toward the door.
I had already told Nicholas that I wasn’t ready for him to meet Bella.
There was a difference between being persistent and being overbearing. I could already see that my best bet was to give him back the keys to the car and figure out my problems on my own. I opened the door and shook my head when I came face-to-face with another delivery person.
“Are you Miss Jameela Rice?” he asked.
“Yes, I am.” I nodded to confirm.
“I have a delivery for you. First, I have to give you this,” he said, passing me a thick envelope.
“What’s this?” I asked, not waiting for him to reply before opening it. It was packed with money. “Who is this from?”
I asked the question, but the answer was obvious. My phone was already in my hand, so I went ahead and called Nicholas. I had already told him to stop trying to buy me. Apparently, he didn’t get the picture.