Chapter 6
“ W ait a damn minute,” Titan said, blowing smoke from his blunt. “You mean to tell me she had them roll up in here, rough you up, break your shit, kidnap you, Jaeda put a gun to your head, and you still want to date her?”
A few days had passed since the incident, and he was finally back in town, so I told him everything.
“Well, when you say it like that, it sounds bad.”
“Because it is bad, nigga!”
Maybe it was. I’d never been kidnapped before, and the fact that I wasn’t shaken up by it told me that I’d been around Titan too long. His nonchalant ways were bound to rub off on me at some point. I just didn’t think it would be during a life-or-death situation.
Once Jaeda and I were left alone, and I put it all on the table, I left the ball in her court.
I didn’t expect her to give me an answer right away.
I halfway expected her to flat out say no.
We sat in that basement for a good hour, getting to know each other, before her father came in to check things out.
He wasn’t too happy to find us laughing and smiling, but he kept quiet about it.
Jaeda offered to return me to my apartment, but her brothers said no.
I wasn’t sure how I felt about them just yet, especially that big nigga Smoke.
If I got into it with anybody, it was going to be him.
I understood defending his sister’s honor, but he was doing too much for me.
In the end, Maceo was the one that took me home, but not before Jaeda and I exchanged numbers.
The whole ride was a little awkward.
It was mostly silence. We were about five minutes out from my loft when he finally said something.
“Aye, man. I apologize for the way we had to snatch you up.”
I waved him off. “It’s nothing.”
“You’re awfully calm about that shit. You were more upset about that damn monitor than being taken.”
“For one, that monitor was essential to my business. And two . . . I figured this was gonna happen, eventually.”
He chuckled. “You like my sister that much?”
“You were listening at the door, I see.”
“This family is very fucking nosy.”
“I see that too. To answer your question, yes. I like her that much. Jaeda . . . she’s a rare find for men like me.”
“Elaborate on that shit ’cause if you leave it to me to interpretate, I might have to slide you, my nigga. My job deals with predators, and that verbiage ain’t sitting right with me.”
“You know, y’all have a bad habit of not letting people finish speaking. You would get your answers if you shut the fuck up.”
He laughed. “I’ll give you that one. Speak your peace.”
“What I meant was in the past, women have approached me. They see a good-looking guy that seems like he has his shit together. I get hit with a few of the same things every time. A woman looking for a good time, a sponsor, or a pushover. When we got behind closed doors and they realized I’m a whole Lego building, cosplay loving, goofy ass nerd that’s not about to fuck them, the tune changes. ”
“Damn, you’re a virgin too?”
I frowned. “When did I say that? Wait . . . Jaeda is a virgin?”
“She is, and don’t be out here trying to fuck my sister.”
“You realize your sister is grown, right? Like, I can respect you as her brother, wanting to protect her, but my woman would never need protection from me.”
He laughed. “Your woman?”
“Yeah, my woman. If your sister lets me pursue her, it’s with intention. As nosy as y’all are, y’all aren’t about to be in our business like that.”
“Playa, I hate to tell you this, but we will know your business one way or the other. Jaeda and the girls tell each other every damn thing, and they love pillow talk. I’ll know more about you than I care to know.”
It was at that moment I realized he was probably right.
My mama gossiped with my aunts like there was no tomorrow.
Then there was the fact that he let it slip that she was a virgin.
I wasn’t expecting that. Jaeda was beautiful.
I wasn’t saying I expected her to be out there like that.
I was just shocked that she hadn’t been with anybody . . . ever.
“It wasn’t that bad,” I finally said to Titan. “That big nigga was about to catch these hands, though.”
Titan shook his head. “Yeah, him and Deuce know how to strike a fucking a nerve. My trigger finger itches around those two. Steel is pretty quiet. Maceo? Well, when his wife is around, he doesn’t give a damn about much else. Anyway, where is this shit going from here?”
“We exchanged numbers.”
“I guess it was worth it.”
“I even made it home in time to have dinner with my parents. Ma said to tell you hey, heathen.”
He laughed. “Your mama knows she loves me. I don’t know why she acts like that.”
“You know why.”
“She’s convinced I tried to corrupt her precious baby boy. I mean, I did turn you into quite the savage with those hands.”
I chuckled. Before we became friends, I used to get my ass beat .
. . a lot. I was an easy target, as were my normal group of friends.
To this day, I still don’t know what made Titan stand up for me back then, but I was grateful.
He had his ways about him, but he was a good friend and loyal as hell.
No matter his flaws, that was my brother.
My phone chimed, and I saw it was a message from Jaeda. A smile spread across my face as I went to our text thread. We’d spoken a few times but were still getting a feel of each other. When I opened the thread, I saw she’d sent me a picture of the completed Toad Lego set.
“Look at y’all being nerdy,” Titan said, peering into my phone.
I shoved him off. “Fuck you. We both wanted this one, but I let her have it.”
“How chivalrous of you.”
“You know what that word means?”
He shoved me back. “Fuck outta here. I’m about to leave you to cupcake since you want to insult my fucking intelligence. Good luck with your lady, man.”
“Thanks, T. How about you go make up with Mia so we can double date.”
“Bye, Quaid.”
I laughed as he slammed my door. One thing was for sure: I never wanted to be like the two of them.
Tuning back into my conversation, I opted to call Jaeda instead of texting. She answered on the second ring.
“Hello?”
“Hey, are you busy?”
“Not at the moment. What’s up?”
“You wanna grab a coffee?”
I could hear the smile in her voice. “Um, . . . sure. Where were you thinking?”
“There’s this bookstore downtown that serves coffee and small bites to eat. It’s called?—”
“The Velvet Spine?”
“Right. You familiar?”
“I’m a very loyal customer. What time were you thinking?”
“How about noon?”
“Noon is perfect. I’ll see you there.”
“See you there.”
I smiled as we disconnected the call. This was going to be interesting.
I’d gotten to The Velvet Spine around 11:50. Since I lived downtown, it only took me five minutes to get there. I took the extra time to search the shelves for a few new reads while I waited for Jaeda to show up.
I smelled her before I saw her.
Her scent had imprinted on me the day I saw her at The Joy Factory and again the day she had me snatched up.
I turned to see her standing behind me dressed in a graphic tee, ripped skinny jeans, and a fresh pair of Vans.
Her hair was slicked into a sleek top knot, and minimal jewelry completed the look.
“Hi,” she said, smiling.
“Hey, beautiful.”
I extended my hand, and she slipped me her palm. Pulling it to my lips, I kissed her knuckles before leaning in to kiss her cheek.
“Thank you for joining me,” I said.
“No problem. Did you find anything good?”
“A few things.” I showed her the books in my hands.
“So you like fantasy?”
“I’ll read most any genre, but fantasy is my favorite. What about you?”
“I, um, . . . mostly read romance. I guess you can say I’m a hopeless romantic.”
I looked down at her bag with a logo on it that read “Missing My Book Boyfriends.”
I chuckled as I fingered the bag. “How many book boyfriends will I find myself competing with?”
She giggled as she searched the shelves. “My book boyfriends aren’t who you have to worry about.”
“Let me guess. It’s your brothers and your father.”
“And my uncles, cousins, stepfather, and my baby brother.”
“Baby brother? How old is he?”
“He’s eight, and he doesn’t play about his big sister. Watch yourself before he runs up and kicks you in the ankles.”
I laughed. “I don’t want any smoke.”
“Do you have siblings?” she asked, pulling a book off the shelf.
“Nah. My parents were lucky to have me. They quit while they were ahead. The closest thing I have to a brother is Titan.”
“How long have you two been friends? I have to say, you don’t seem like a pair.”
“We are total opposites in most things, but we learn a lot from each other. If you ever really get to know him, you’ll love him.”
“I’ll take your word for it. My sister can’t seem to get enough of him.”
I shook my head. “He can’t get enough of her, either. Full transparency? They are getting on my nerves.”
Her hand flew to my arm where she gripped it. “Oh. My. God. Yes. If I have to hear Mia complain about that man one more time, I’m gonna scream. I know she likes him, that much is obvious. I just don’t get the appeal of breaking up to make up. That’s exhausting.”
“I’m with you when you’re right. Maybe one day they will get it together.”
“Maybe.”
We continued to talk and look through the shelves as we walked up and down the aisles. After grabbing an arm full of books, we treaded to the counter to pay for them. When she pulled out her wallet, I stopped her.
“I wouldn’t invite you and not cover your tab,” I said, gently pushing her hand away.
“I can pay for my?—”
“I’m aware that you can pay, but I didn’t ask or require you to. Put your card away.”
The cashier’s eyes widened. “Girl, put that card away.”
Jaeda hesitantly slid the card back into her wallet and put the whole thing away.
“Thank you.”
“No thanks needed.”