Chapter 11 #2
"Congratulations, Champ." Zoo's smile as he handed me a bouquet of roses and a gift bag was heart-warming.
"Thank you," I replied, somewhat shy. Seeing my name laying against his chest caused me to do a happy dance on the inside. What nigga wore a woman's name on him unless he planned to claim her? I had the chain made, hoping he’d see the sentiment in it. Obviously, he saw it loud and clear.
"What's in here?" The gift bag had no name on it, but it was small.
"You gotta look in it, Baby," he said.
I missed him calling me baby. It opened up the floodgates to my middle.
Handing him back the roses, I dug in the bag for whatever was inside. A black velvet box emblazoned with LUCAS surprised me. Lucas was one of the most sought-out jewelers on the East Coast.
Opening the box, I was stunned by what laid inside.
"Zeus!" I gasped.
"Oh, damn," he drawled. "I thought we agreed on you not callin' me that anymore."
"No," I countered. "You said I wasn't entitled to call you that anymore. When did I ever say I agreed?"
He sheepishly shrugged.
Getting back to my gift, I opened the box. My mouth hit the floor. Glistening diamonds made up an extravagant heart locket. Blinking back moisture, my shocked eyes met Zoo's grin.
"Open it," he encouraged.
Speechless, I undid the clasp, wondering what was inside. Smacking my teeth, I laughed.
"Really, nigga?" A picture of Zoo was situated perfectly inside the locket. On the picture, his smile was big and inviting.
"I'm ya best friend, Pen. Who else was gon' be inside that bitch? I had that picture made special for you."
I laughed so hard at his mug.
"I can't stand yo’ ass, you know that?" Still laughing, I jumped into his arms. He caught me without so much as an effort. Another thing I loved about Zoo; his arms.
"Quit playin' like you don't love me, Pen." All joking aside, I stared at Zoo's smile.
"I do, actually. I miss you," I admitted.
"Damn, all a nigga had to do was ghost yo’ ass for you to notice me?"
I smacked my teeth. "Don't do it anymore."
"If I remember correctly, you pushed me away."
Placing my hand over his mouth, I said, "I know, I know, don’t remind me. We are here now and that’s all that matters.”
"True. Nie gimme a kiss," he demanded.
Jumping into his arms again, I quickly pecked his juicy, moist lips.
"Nie get off me." Zoo placed me on my feet with me giggling.
"So demanding," I quipped while he clasped the necklace around my neck.
"So fuckin' hardheaded," he shot back. I was, but I wouldn't be again.
"You love me, though," I joked back.
"Yeah, you're my baby.”
"Y'all finally made up?" Sin voiced, strolling up with Naomi by his side.
"Whose business you mindin'?" Zoo questioned while me and Mimi hugged each other. She kissed my cheek as we both wiped the tears from each other’s eyes.
"Hell, we in y'all business 'cause both of y'all been actin' very round-the-clock watch-ish."
Naomi laughed, then swatted Sin's arm. "You better act like that if we ever run into some problems."
Sin's playful smile disappeared. "I’ma act worse 'cause you already know I can't live without you. And anyways, who says something like that? You got a problem or issue we need to address?"
"Oh Lord," Mimi grumbled.
"Yeah, call Him, ‘cause you gon' need Him in a minute," Sin said. Zoo and I stood there with our eyes bouncing back and forth like we were watching a tennis match.
Mimi busted out laughing. "See how you joke with them but can't even take a lil’ joke ya’self."
“That shit ain’t funny, Baby,” he practically whined. That made Zoo cough in a fit of laughter.
“This nigga ain’t had you back for two seconds, and he’s already actin’ like he forgot he was cryin’ just yesterday.”
I fell out laughing this time. Zoo and Sin were a mess, but they loved each other. What tickled me the most was that Zoo didn’t even deny it.
“My man is about to dance with me,” Mimi said to which Sin mugged her.
“No we ain’t. You finna go over here and sit yo’ ass down somewhere. All we came to do is congratulate PJ. We’re leavin’ in ten minutes.”
Mimi smacked her teeth. “We just got here!” she whined this time.
“I’on give a damn. You got nine minutes now, so let’s go congratulate Bri so we can bounce.”
“I’ll see you late, Peeg. Mama and Daddy are at Sin’s house anyway. I’ll go hang out with them.”
I hugged Mimi again. “I’m just glad to see you here. I’m leaving in a minute, too.”
“Okay, boo. Make sure my sis makes it home safely, Zoo,” Mimi issued.
“You know it,” he answered. He dapped Sin, then Mimi and Sin were off.
“What you drinkin’ tonight?”
“Whatever you’re drinking,” I responded. “I really want to go home and sleep.”
“Aight, let’s grab one drink, and I’ll get you home.”
Satisfied with that, I followed Zoo to the bar. As we drank, Bri and Brooklyn approached us. I hugged my best friend, congratulating her for the one-hundredth time. Neither one of us would understand the gravity of what we’d accomplished until days, maybe weeks from now.
Somewhere during the hour, I found myself in Zoo’s arms as he and Brooklyn talked.
Bri and I recounted some of the best plays of the night, but both agreed that we were glad the season was over.
Her plans were to jump right into studying other plays to incorporate for next season.
My plans were to dive headfirst into school…
And spend time with Zoo. He’d spent so much time with me, doing what I loved to do.
Now, it was time for me to spend time with him.
My back was against his chest, and his hand rested on my stomach.
It was strange how we gravitated to one another.
The unspoken claim we had on each other was evident.
I was comfortable here, being held by the only man I contemplated giving my innocence.
Well, no longer contemplating. I was definitely about to let Zoo lay me down.
His dick felt so good pressed against my ass.
Turning in his arms, I slinked my arms around his waist. Whatever he was saying to Brooklyn died on his lips as his gaze flew to mine.
His eyes sparkled, literally. I could look into Zoo’s eyes forever because they were that damn sexy.
Why I’d been suppressing everything I felt for him was stupid on my behalf.
I was done playing with him, especially after almost losing him.
Tugging his beard, I brought his thick lips to mine. The surprised look on his face lasted a split second before I kissed him. I thought he was holding my tightly until he held me even tighter.
I wasted no time opening my mouth for his tongue, which tasted of Hennessy. He’d only had one drink. The fact that he said and did exactly what he told me he would didn’t go unnoticed.
Kissing Zoo reminded me of the first time I dribbled a ball. I was unsure yet bold in claiming what I knew was something I could love. I loved Zoo. There was no doubt about it. When his hands palmed my ass, everything in my brain went up in flames.
I broke the kiss before he wanted me to.
“Why’d you stop?” he asked while nibbling at my lips.
For one thing, I felt his dick getting harder. For two, I was sure Zoo’s dick could do serious damage.
“You gotta be ready for that, Baby,” he said, reading my mind.
Damn.