Chapter Eleven
SIA
I didn't even fuck him.
I left right after you did.
That was the last text I sent to Dose—and he never responded.
I don't even know why I felt the need to explain myself. Truth be told, he didn't deserve an explanation. Still, I didn't want him sitting around thinking my comment about keeping things private had anything to do with KC. That wasn't the case at all, no matter how suspicious the timing looked.
The morning after, KC hit me up, being real gentleman-like, talking about pulling up to the studio.
The fan girl in me jumped at the opportunity and had been excited ever since.
What I didn't expect was to walk in and see Dose posted up with all his homeboys.
I damn sure didn't expect to see other women there either.
If I'm being honest, I thought the night would be innocent. Instead, it turned into something else.
When you're a man who's used to having women throw themselves at you, I guess it gets easy to assume every woman is the same.
Dose's cold stare replayed in my mind every time I closed my eyes that night.
And if the roles had been reversed, I would've expected him to react the exact same way.
The problem was I couldn't tell whether he was deliberately ignoring me or not because I had him blocked. He hadn't posted anything on After Dark, but for all I knew that could've been a lie. I wasn't subscribed, so I couldn't see any of his subscriber-only content.
Which left me with only one option.
I pulled up. In the middle of the damn rain.
I needed to see him face-to-face and figure out why he was acting like I didn't exist. When those roses were delivered, his address had accidentally been left on the back of the card in the return section.
I'd tucked it away for safekeeping, thinking it might come in handy one day.
Turns out, today was that day. Showing up at a man's house uninvited was risky business.
Another woman could've been there. Hell, his mama could've answered the door.
Either scenario would've been enough to make me turn around and leave.
But I was feeling bold.
And when I get bold, common sense usually takes a backseat.
He stayed in a nice place—The Dream Apartments.
Thankfully, somebody leaving the gate was nice enough to let me in because I was the first car there and didn't have anybody in front of me to trail behind.
By the time I made it through the gate and found his building, my nerves were already doing backflips.
After finding a decent parking spot, I took a second to freshen up.
I sprayed on his favorite perfume, Jimmy Choo I Want Choo, then applied a fresh layer of e.l.f.
lip gloss. I'd already checked myself in the sun visor before getting out of the car, making sure everything looked right before pulling the hood of my Lululemon jacket over my head.
Even in my Lululemon joggers and black Nike Vomeros, I caught hell fighting against the wind on the walk over.
The entire drive there, I'd been talking myself out of it.
More than once, I considered turning around and going back home, but I never did.
No matter how many excuses I came up with, none of them were strong enough to stop me.
Which was exactly how I found myself standing in front of his apartment door, gathering enough courage to knock.
It took a while for him to answer, and during those ten seconds, I prayed he was alone and not expecting company.
The last thing I needed was for some random bitch to answer the door looking confused while I stood there in the rain.
When the knob finally turned, my heart damn near beat through my chest.
There he was.
Dose stood in the doorway shirtless, wearing a pair of black Nike joggers that hung low beneath his chiseled V-cut.
His tattoos seemed darker beneath the dim lighting behind him, making him look even more intimidating than usual.
Then there was that stare—that same intense stare that always made me feel like he could see straight through me.
It did something to me every single time.
Without saying a word, he stuck his head outside and looked both ways down the hallway before motioning for me to come in and stepping aside.
My face was damp from the rain, but thankfully I wasn't drenched.
"Why you drive all the way out here in the rain?" he asked, his deep voice nearly making me jump out of my skin.
Instead of answering right away, my eyes wandered around his apartment.
The place was beautifully decorated with a black-and-white color scheme that looked straight out of a magazine.
Everything felt expensive without trying too hard.
I could tell there had been some thought put into the décor because every piece seemed intentional.
Against one wall sat a massive black sectional couch resting on top of a gray area rug.
In front of it was a sleek table decorated with gold abstract figurines and other pieces that gave the room personality without making it feel crowded.
Mounted against the wall was what looked to be an eighty-inch television surrounded by white LED lights that illuminated the dark space since he hadn't bothered turning on any lamps.
The soft glow bounced off the black accents throughout the apartment, giving the room a moody atmosphere that somehow fit him perfectly.
My eyes continued roaming, searching for any sign that another woman had been there before me, completely ignoring his question.
"I came to see you, and you were ignoring my texts."
He scoffed and brushed by me, his scent lingering in the air. "Maybe 'cuz I ain't want to talk."
"I was being honest!" I called out after him.
"Good, you wasted the drive over here to tell me that shit. You can let yourself out," he said over his shoulder and disappeared into a room.
Not liking his tone, I sucked my teeth and sauntered after him.
I peeped into the room and saw that I had definitely interrupted something.
He was on After Dark watching content, and my mouth gaped open in shock.
Of course, I watched porn—hell, I participate in it—but Dose was doing some wild shit that left me speechless.