Chapter 18 Nyree
Damn, her last nigga wasn’t shit.
I stared at her, trying to piece together the words to say to make her feel better.
Though I appreciated her opening up to me, I didn’t like that vulnerability I saw in her eyes. I wanted to put a smile back on her face.
I spoke my next words slowly. “The only thing I can tell you is, I’m not that nigga, Ma.”
Asia snorted but I continued. “Listen… I know. I get it. I understand what you’re saying about what that nigga did to you, but I ain’t him.
You seem embarrassed to tell me what you just told me, so shit, let me embarrass myself too and show you my search history.
” Asia wrinkled her nose. “Your search history?” she repeated.
I pulled out my phone, blood rushing to my ears and my brain telling me to slow the hell down and to not show her what I had been doing, but my stupid ass finger tapped the screen and pulled up Google.
“Click the search bar.”
Asia clicked it.
The searches for engagement rings popped up.
“All that was for you,” I clarified. “Now we can be embarrassed together.”
Now that I dropped the ball, I waited for her to call me a creep and hightail it out of my apartment.
She didn’t.
Asia seemed taken aback, like she didn’t know what to say.
I continued, trying to explain that I wasn’t a psycho.
“I don’t mean to come off as some crazy nigga.
I’m well aware that we haven’t known each other long, but I feel something about you that I can’t explain.
You’re different. What we have is different.
I’ve never experienced it before but I wanna go deeper. ”
Asia remained silent.
I continued. “Don’t take it the wrong way, Asia, but I can see a future with you.”
At those words, a tear slid down her cheek.
I wanted to wipe it away, but I held back. I'd already exposed too much of myself in one night. Showing her my search history was reckless—the kind of move that could scare a woman off for good. But looking at her face now, I couldn't tell if she was touched or freaked out.
I decided to pull back. The last thing I needed was for her to start overthinking this, comparing me to that bitch-ass ex of hers. I wasn't about to let that nigga's shadow come between us.
"Look, forget I showed you that," I said, taking my phone back and pocketing it. "That was too much, too soon."
Asia opened her mouth to speak, but I shook my head.
"Nah, let's just leave it for now. I don't want you getting all up in your head about this. What I will say is this—I hear you about your ex. That's some foul shit he pulled. But I need you to understand something."
I leaned forward, making sure she was looking me in the eyes. "I don't need you to pay for my meals. I don't need rides. I don't need you to finance my life or solve my problems. What I need from you is just... you. That's it."
I gestured around at my apartment. "Yeah, I'm not rich. You can see that. And yeah, I'm still building my business—which, by the way, you just helped me with in a way nobody ever has before. But I've never been the type of man to use a woman. My mama raised me better than that."
I could see Asia processing what I was saying, her eyes still damp but focused on me.
"I can't promise you that I'm perfect," I continued. "I'm gonna mess up sometimes because I'm human. But I can promise that I won't lie to you. I won't use you. And I won't disrespect you by playing games with your heart."
I reached out and took her hand in mine, relieved when she didn't pull away.
"All I'm asking is that you give me—give us—a chance to see what this could be. No pressure, no rush. Just... don't let what that other dude did stop something good before it even starts."
Asia squeezed my hand but still didn't speak.
I didn't push it. I'd said my piece, and now the ball was back in her court.
Whatever she decided, I'd respect it. But there was no way I was going to let her ex's bullshit dictate how this went down.
That nigga had already taken too much from her.
I wasn't about to let him take this too.