Chapter 4
CHAPTER 4
RHODES
K arima had just gotten back to town. She’d been gone for a little over a week, seeing after her baby brother and her cousin. Thankfully, he was fine and had gone home. Her cousin Jacob had gotten arrested but had been released as well. She got back late last night, and I was dying to see her… feel her.
What we’d shared the night she left was nothing short of amazing. I needed her. I knew that before I entered her sanctuary, but now that I had, there was no way I could let her go. Nothing was off limits when it came to securing our future together. I planned to tell her I loved her tonight. There was no way I could hold it inside any longer.
I’d gone to my interview, and I’d gotten the job. When I told Karima where I would be working by FaceTime, she slowly shook her head. Her exact words were, “You better be glad I like you, or I’d report you as a stalker.”
She’d laughed, but I made her cut that shit short when I reminded her that she would have a hard time proving that she didn’t want me to be where she was when she was sharing her location with me. She acted like she was about to stop sharing it at that moment then burst into laughter all over again when the frown graced my face.
I swore, that woman had quickly become my life. I felt like a crazy ass nigga with the way I was wanting to be wherever she was. It took everything in me to not hop a flight to Houston and go meet her in Nome. A nigga was barely sleeping from wondering what she was doing. If my boys back in Cali knew that shit, they’d clown me for years to come.
After taking a few water samples, I made my way to the rodeo arena to find her teaching her intermediate class. Barrels were set, and she was slowly running them, showing the girls the track they were to take when barrel racing. Seeing the way her hips moved in that saddle only caused my dick to wake up to see why he was being summoned.
When she saw me, she smiled brightly and waved. I hadn’t seen her since she got back last night. I wasn’t expecting her to be at work today. These people let her get away with everything, since her brother was famous. I could only shake my head. KJ was already cocky as hell, if I was remembering correctly. If Karima told him how these people damn near idolized him, I knew his head would float to another stratosphere.
Karima had only been working here a week or so when she left to go see about Kane. Those people told her to take all the time she needed. I couldn’t do a thing but shake my head. They were even sponsoring her for the next rodeo. I hadn’t seen her barrel race in a long time, but I was sure she was even more amazing than she was the last time I saw her compete. I couldn’t wait to see just how good she’d gotten. I winked at her and walked away to go do what these people were paying me to do.
Most times, I ran samples of water and feed to make sure the animals were receiving the best quality of what we gave them. It was easy for bacteria to set in and make them sick. I was also responsible for implementing feeding programs to ensure the animals were receiving the right nutrients for their overall health and performance. I hadn’t really gotten into that yet, though, since I hadn’t been working here but a couple of days.
Despite the lack of work, being that my boss was off today, the day went by fast. I was happy about that, because that was the sooner I would be able to spend time with Karima. I went home to shower and messaged her about going to dinner. Hey, baby. You wanna go out for dinner tonight?
She responded immediately. Can we save that for the weekend? I have a roast cooking in my slow cooker. You should come to my house and eat.
Gladly.
She sent back the laughing emojis and a kissy face. I was surprised she woke up in time to get that started since she’d gotten in so late last night. I wasn’t complaining though. I couldn’t wait to taste her cooking. Her parents were both great in the kitchen, so I was sure they passed those skills down to her.
I quickly showered and made my way to her place by following her location. I had never been there. She was staying in an apartment not far from the job. Had I been smart, I would have gotten an apartment closer to work as well. I was damn near twenty minutes away if I beat the morning traffic. I had to wake up extra early, because I was still somewhat living out of boxes. I’d gotten all my bathroom and kitchen stuff done, but my clothes were strewn everywhere.
I did that shit so ass backwards. Being that I barely ate at home, the kitchen should have been the last thing I unpacked. At the time, I was just looking at which room took the least work. The kitchen was the easiest since I wasn’t much of a cook. I didn’t have a ton of pots and dishes or appliances. I simply had a toaster, a Keurig, a rice cooker, and a blender. I rarely used the rice cooker.
After showering, I put on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, then made my way to her. I couldn’t wait to show her how much I missed her. I was sure to grab a couple of condoms as well. Talking to her every day wasn’t enough. I needed to hold her in my arms. Even if she didn’t want to have sex, I wouldn’t try to persuade her otherwise. I knew she had to be tired.
My lifted, Texas edition Chevy 2500HD had finally come in, and I loved being in it. I supposed the commute wasn’t so bad when I got to drive that muthafucka. It was an attention getter for sure. When I got to her complex, she was calling. “What’s up, KD? I just parked.”
“Okay. I’m going to leave the door unlocked. I’m about to hop in the shower right quick.”
“Damn, for real? And you want me stay put and not join you?”
“I didn’t say that, Rosewood. Do what you will with that information.”
“Shit! See you in a minute. Oh, wait! What’s the apartment number?”
She giggled. “Two fifteen.”
“Bet.”
I ended the call and damn near ran up those stairs to her unit. When I got to it, I opened the door and immediately smelled the food. That shit was somewhat distracting, because I had to walk over to the kitchen to see what she’d cooked to go with that roast. When I saw the pot of rice, mac and cheese, cornbread, and greens, I nearly lost my mind. That was probably why she was just getting in the shower.
After making sure I locked the door, I followed the sounds of Beyoncé. I slowly shook my head. I knew Karima would love that country album. It just sounded like her type of shit. When I got to the bathroom door, I slowly opened it to find her standing in front of the mirror pulling her hair up. She was naked, and her nipples were hard as if they were anticipating my arrival.
“Damn, baby. What’s up?”
She smiled as she turned to me and pulled me by my dreads to her. I loved when she did that shit. I immediately gripped her ass and lifted her. She wrapped her legs around me and brought her lips to mine. I loved picking her up. Being that she was only five feet three or so, it was easy as hell to lift her. Even with her curves, she was still light weight.
“I missed you, Rhodes. Damn.”
“The feeling is so fucking mutual, girl. Yo’ sexy ass all I been able to think about.”
I released her from my grasp, letting her slide to her feet, then pulled my shirt over my head while she unbuttoned my pants. I didn’t even waste time putting on a belt. That shit would have just been in the way. I kicked off my shoes then pulled my pants off. Reaching into the pocket, I pulled out a condom and strapped up.
I picked her up again and lowered her on my shit. There was nothing tender about what we were doing. I was fucking the breath out of her. That was a good thing because I was in desperate need of the oxygen only she could provide. When I got that first nut out the way, we took a shower together. I washed her body, taking my time to admire everything about her.
I did my best to memorize everything about her, even the dimples in her ass. When we got out, she quickly patted herself dry and put on her shorts and T-shirt. We were both hungry as hell. Round two would have to be after we ate. I followed her to the kitchen and helped her fix our food and get drinks. Once we’d gotten situated at her bistro style table, she grabbed my hands and said grace.
What had me swallowing the huge lump in my throat was her thanking God for bringing me back to her. Her prayer was so beautiful, and it touched me deeply, especially when she asked God to bless me simply because of everything I’d been to her. I thought I was going to have to excuse myself just to gain my composure.
The moment we were done demolishing that food, we didn’t waste any time getting to the bedroom. “That food was good as fuck, baby. Yo’ mama would be proud.”
She chuckled. “She’s tasted my cooking before. So, yes, she’s proud.”
I pulled her in my arms and kissed her deeply. Backing her to the bed, I began pulling off her clothes. Once she was naked, I put the condom on the nightstand then took off my clothes and joined her in bed. Sliding my body on top of hers proved to be what I needed. I grabbed the condom and tore it open with my teeth then leaned to one side to put it on. However, I suddenly decided to take a different course of action.
I slid into Karima immediately and closed my eyes, loving the way she felt without a barrier. The condom was still in my hand, and I dropped it behind her mattress. She had me fucking crazy. I knew she wouldn’t have agreed for me to go inside of her raw, so I had to pretend to put that shit on. I needed to ensure that we would always be connected by doing what I could to possibly give her something to remember me by.
She was already so spent I knew she wouldn’t even notice whether I took the condom off after the fact. I would make sure I fucked her right to sleep. Her pussy felt heavenly. Her heat and wetness were threatening to take me out prematurely. I lowered my head to her ear as she moaned and scratched my back.
“Damn, girl. Yo’ pussy so fucking good.”
She sank her teeth into my shoulder as she continued to throw the pussy back at me. “I love your dick, Rhodes.”
“Mmm. You do? That’s all you love, Karima? Just my dick?” Not giving her a chance to respond, I said, “I love your pussy, baby, but I love all of you. I love you, Karima Denali Henderson. Forever, baby.”
Her back arched, and she squirted all over the damn place. That only made me fuck her harder. When my nut escaped me, I could only hope that it endured the journey and did its job.