15. Chapter 15
Queen Adanna
The thick, sweet scent of burning loud hung under the track lighting of Jade’s living room, drifting over the bass thumping from the speakers in the corner.
The blunt moved through the rotation at a steady pace.
Dame was sunk deep into the sofa beside me, pouring another splash of dark liquor into his cup.
Then, he took a long, slow drag until his eyes were low and bloodshot.
He was getting comfortably shit-faced, but I stuck to my regular rhythm.
I had two light hits off the front end just to take the edge off, then back to ice water in my cup for the rest of the night.
My baby could get as lit as he wanted to, but it wasn’t my thing.
I lived by a simple, unyielding rule: the second you put your guard down completely, shit pops off. If everyone else in the room was going to be crossed, and off their game, I had to be ready.
I glanced sideways at my husband, taking him in.
Dame looked too good tonight. His dark shades sat low on the bridge of his nose. A big, fat easy smile played on his lips while he laughed with the room. He was relaxed, and the sight of him sent a drop straight to my gut.
My thighs were pressed together, but my hands were twitching to grab him by the back of his neck, and bite his bottom lip until he groaned my name.
I had to plant my sneakers flat on the floor to keep myself from climbing into his lap right there on the couch.
I was forcing myself to sit back and just let my man have his moment.
Inviting his small circle over had actually been a masterclass move on his part.
These weren't the reckless, hot-headed street soldiers he used to run with back in the states. Dame was far too smart to bring those unpredictable hoodrats to Jade’s sanctuary.
The couple of guys he brought along were low-key members from neighboring tribal that we barely spoke to.
Just average, hard-working men who spent their days managing community programs, working legit jobs, and keeping their heads down.
I bit back a smirk, resting my jaw against my palm as the game table descended into beautiful, chaotic noise.
Across the room, Kandi and Jade were going back and forth, screaming over a hand of Spades.
Nyah was sitting on the far end of the sectional.
Her dark eyes were laser-focused on her cards, but every few seconds she was throwing a protective glare at one of Dame’s homeboys.
He was a tall guy with neat locs, casually pushing up on Jade and flirting over the rim of his plastic cup.
Nyah’s right hand was twitching toward her hip under the table edge. I caught her eye through the smoke.
“Chill,” I mouthed.
Nyah caught my lips moving, gave me a reluctant nod. Then, she took a long gulp of her drink to cool her tits.
Meanwhile, Nana and I were sharing a hand.
The charming woman had claimed thirty minutes ago that she "didn't wanna play no damn Spades," but now she was sitting right on my hip, digging her nose into my cards.
Not only that, but she was dictating every play.
Just as bossy and nosey as she could be.
Dame took another long drag, and the cherry glowed bright red before he passed it right back to Nana.
Nana snatched the blunt with her left hand and slammed a card down onto the felt with her right. "Kandi, stop pissing off Jade so she can play, damn!"
Kandi smirked, popping a potato chip into her mouth. "I ain’t did nothing but tell the truth!"
Jade threw her arms up, whipping her long hair back out of her face. Her eyes snapped as her temper boiled over. She snatched her Glock off the table, and pointed the barrel at Kandi.
I rolled my eyes just thinking about the time Jade tried to keep pet crabs in her house.
Who the fuck told her to go get Mr. Krabs and turn him into a pet?
None of us! But her loony ass was so damn sensitive and loved animals so much that if she wasn't terrified of the outdoors, I was convinced she would be living in the middle of our jungle.
I bit back a laugh, watching my friend relive the moment Kandi boiled her pets and ate them with melted butter sauce. To be fair, I took a little nibble myself, but I already had a to-go plate before shit popped off.
"You killed my fucking child, bitch!" Jade whined, her eyes watering.
Kandi threw both of her hands straight up in the air, yelling right back, "It was a CRAB and we were hungry!"
Jade slammed her hand onto the table. "I told you to leave him alone after he pinched you!”
Kandi responded, “You should’ve taught his ass not to pinch!”
Jade was fuming now. She countered, “You scared him! I didn’t say steam them in a fucking pot, bitch!"
The entire room instantly descended into a screaming match. Kandi drew her piece out, continuing to argue with Jade.
“We can all pull out a piece, baby!”
Nyah reached for her waistline, and Dame’s homeboys threw their arms up, pulling their guns out. At this point, we were half-laughing, half-prepared to dive under the sofa.
Kandi broke the tension, blowing a dramatic, sarcastic kiss across the table.
"Come on and dap it out," Kandi said, flashing a big grin as she extended the slide of her Glock. "You know you can't be mad at me for too long."
Jade slowly lowered her piece, rolling her eyes all the way into the back of her head. Then, she leaned across the table and lightly tapped the nose of her barrel against Kandi's. The rest of the room followed suit, tapping their pieces together in a chaotic circle.
The locced homeboy leaned toward Jade again, whispering into her ear.
Nyah lost her damn mind. "Don't start that whispering shit! Share it with the table!"
Dame chuckled, leaning his heavy, broad shoulder completely into my side as his warm hand slid high up my thigh.
Before I could even catch my breath, Nana leaned her whole weight onto my other shoulder, wrapping her arm through mine while she reached across me to grab the blunt again.
I rolled my eyes at their annoying, suffocating affection, stuck dead in the middle as they took up all my damn space.
Despite the dramatic huff I let out, I didn't push either one of them off.
The dude flirting with Jade raised his hands in defense. "Man, I was just telling Jade I can go down to the market and get her some more crabs!"
A flirty smirk spread across Jade’s lips, right before she slammed her final card down.
"That’s game, bitch!" Jade yelled, throwing her hands in the air.
Kandi’s mouth dropped. Nana threw her hands up too. "I knew your ass was cheating! Rematch!"
Jade leaned back, thoroughly enjoying her victory. "Bring it! And don't forget to shuffle right this time! Since y’all want to be sore losers!"
Nana leaned up. “Who you talking to!”
Jade got loud. “I’m talking to both of you!”
Kandi snatched the deck up. "Let your girlfriend shuffle then!"
My eyes jumped wide as Jade pushed off her chair, and strutted across the room. Then, she sat down into Nyah’s lap.
The entire room erupted into a frenzy. Dame’s boys started howling and hollering while Kandi cheered at the top of her lungs. Nyah froze, but her cheeks flushed under her skin. Homegirl was blushing so bad, it didn’t make no sense. Then, a goofy grin stretched across her face.
I was sitting there, stunned as my eyes jumped back and forth between them.
Nana nudged my arm hard with her elbow, leaning her face toward my ear. "I added some special liquor in Jade’s drink," Nana whispered with a wicked grin.
I couldn't help the dark smirk that broke across my face. I shook my head, tapping my cup against hers.
Nana added, "They're worst than those dudes from Brokeback Mountain. They needed a damn push."
I dapped Nana up. "Well played, Nana."
Nana took a slow drag off the blunt, holding the smoke in before blowing it dead into my face. "Mhmm... you built my Wendy’s yet?"
I waved the smoke away as my answer.
"You dragging your damn feet," Nana grumbled, taking her cards back, "but it's okay. I’ll get it somehow."
By the time Jade finally got up off Nyah's lap and walked back over to her own seat, Nyah was sitting there showing all of her 32s. Her fingers moved like lightning as she quietly shuffled the deck.
Looking around the room, I felt a rare warmth settle into my chest. There were no bad vibes in the air.
No immediate threats.
No back stabbing snakes at the door.
No political drama.
This was exactly what this crew needed; a night to be young, loud, inebriated, and funny together.
I looked back down at Dame’s hand resting on my thigh, and watched his thumb trace circles against my jeans. The intention in his touch made my clit throb.
Everyone in this room was having a good time, but as I locked eyes with my husband, I realized the only thing I needed right now was some dick.
Kandi was busy trying to prepare her win. "Alright, fresh hand. Who's in?"
This time around, Nana wasn't sharing a hand with me. She had migrated over to the table, reached into her bag and pulled out a fresh, banded stack of hundreds. With a THWACK, she slapped the stack in the middle, setting the vibe.
"Let's play for real," She said.
The entire table went silent for half a second before the energy spiked through the roof.
Dame’s homeboys started grinning, digging deep into their pockets and pulling out their own wads of cash to match the pot.
Kandi didn't hesitate—she pulled a rolled-up stack out of her bra, and slammed it down with a wild laugh.
Nyah wasn't even sitting at the table for this hand, but she reached over from her pockets, and tossed a stack of crisp hundreds down. "I got my money on Jade."
Kandi rolled her eyes, throwing a card toward her. "Of course you do."