Chapter 8
EIGHT
SINCERE
I wasn’t sure what pulled me over to Kenedi, but there I was, standing in front of her, daring her ex-nigga to do something stupid.
I’d overheard their conversation as I stood with my back to them, and after hearing her repeatedly ask his ass to get the fuck up and keep it moving, I knew it was time for me to step in.
I had no doubt that she could handle him by herself, but since I was there, I thought it would be best for me to step in and help her out.
The last time she took matters into her own hands and dealt with his ass, she damn near caught a case.
“And just who the fuck are you, nigga?” He asked, letting her arm go and turning his attention to me.
“That doesn’t really fucking matter. Now, as I already said, she asked you to move the fuck around, so get the fuck up and do that,” I said, leaning against the bar with my drink still in my hand.
“And what if I don’t want to, nigga? Do you know who the fuck I am?” He asked, standing up next to the table. That nigga didn’t take a step toward me, and I knew something in his head was telling him that wouldn’t be a great idea for him.
“Yeah, I do actually. The problem here is that you don’t know who the fuck I am,” I said, shrugging.
As he went to inch closer, I could see the worry in Kenedi’s eyes. I wasn’t sure if she was more afraid for me or him. I was hoping it was him because she didn’t have shit to worry about when it came to me.
Her ex-nigga liked to play tough and as though he was about that life, but me, on the other hand, I was really about that life.
Now, the nigga could leave peacefully and live to fight someone else another day, or I could end that nigga’s career before he truly got to enjoy being in his prime.
The choice was ultimately up to him, and I was honestly okay with it going either way.
“Aye, man, do you know who that is?” One of his friends, I was assuming that was who the nigga was, came up and asked.
“I don’t give a fuck who this nigga is. He’s coming between my girl and me,” he barked, getting the attention of everyone in the room.
“Nigga, trust me, those are not the kind of problems that you want. Come on, trust me, that’s not the move,” the man said, pulling him away.
“Oh my God, people are going to have this shit on social media within the hour,” Kenedi cried, grabbing her things and standing from the table.
She didn’t get too far before she stumbled, and I caught her.
As her head rested on my chest, I looked down into her tear-filled eyes.
She looked as though she wanted to be anywhere but here, so I knew it was time to get her home.
As I helped her gather her things and wrapped my hand around her waist to guide her to the front, someone tapped my shoulder.
I could tell from the light touch that it was a woman, so I knew it wasn’t a threat.
“Uh, and where the hell are you going with my friend, huh?”
“It’s okay, friend. This is my boss we were talking about. He’s just helping me get out to my car,” Kenedi slurred. I thought she would’ve recognized me from the last time I saw them at the club, but apparently not.
“I’m not helping you get out to no damn car. You’re in no condition to drive,” I said to Kenedi before turning my attention to her friend. “I’m taking her home. You got a ride home, or you need one, too?”
“No, I’m good. I didn’t drink nearly as much as she did.”
“Okay, cool. Well, since she’s leaving, you gotta go to. I know she wouldn’t want me to leave you here by yourself. So, you got your stuff?”
“Yes, sir,” she said, saluting me as she laughed and led the way out of the bar.
“I guess I’ll get up with you later, huh, nigga?” Johari asked as he met us at the exit.
“Yeah, I’m going to make sure she gets home safely, and then I’m going to head home myself. I’ll get up with you later,” I said, dapping him up and leading a still wobbly Kenedi out to my car.
Once we hit the road, I could hear her lightly crying as she rested her head against the window.
I felt bad as fuck for her. Since I’d been working with her for the past month, I got to see that while she had a hard exterior that made her a beast at what she did, she was still a sweetheart on the inside.
She did a lot of little shit to make my job and life easier, and the shit never went unnoticed. I knew that everyone was different with their significant others and shit, but I had no idea as to why her ex-nigga thought it was a good idea to fumble her for some random ass Instagram models.
I didn’t know what to do or say to ease her pain right now, so I chose to just let her get the shit out. If she wanted to talk about it, we could, but I had a feeling that this was some shit she’d have to process on her own. She’d say something if she wanted my input.
As we made the drive to her house, I thought back to the lunch we’d had together the other day, where we both got to know each other better. I wasn’t sure why we’d chosen to share our life stories that day, but we did, and I really enjoyed talking to her.
“What kind of tacos do you like?” I asked, handing her the menu from my favorite street taco spot, Fuel City. Some people thought they were overrated, but not me.
Everyone else had gone home for the day, and it was just the two of us.
We both had work to catch up on before the day was over, and we had decided we weren’t heading home until we got everything done.
So, I decided to order dinner, so we didn’t have to go out and fight the traffic that was still backed up outside.
For the most part, I’d already learned what Kenedi liked and didn’t like, so I could order for her or have Beverly order for her without having to ask her what she wanted.
I’d learned the little things about her, like what she did and didn’t want on her burger.
She was an extra lettuce, but no pickles or tomato kind of girl.
She also always scratched her eyebrows when she was frustrated or deep in thought, which made sense why she didn’t wear makeup.
I was sure that she’d rub it all off by lunchtime.
She had to drink a full eight ounces of water before her first cup of coffee, because if she didn’t, coffee would be all she drank for the day.
And she was very observant and used that skill to help me make some pretty good deals since she’d been working for me.
I wasn’t sure why in the hell I was studying her the way that I was, though.
I kept telling myself it was because we spent so much time together because of the hours we worked, but I knew it was something deeper.
However, I wasn’t going to ever explore it.
Kenedi was an amazing woman, but I would never intentionally cross those lines with her.
She was an asset to the company, and I didn’t need any kind of office romance to ruin that for us.
“Uh, I’ll just have what you’re having. You keep raving about them, so I think it’s only right to try out what you like to eat for the first time,” she said, looking up from her computer briefly as she sat on the couch in my office.
“Alright, I got you,” I said, sending in the order.
It took about thirty or so minutes for the food to get to us, so we continued working until it arrived.
Once it was delivered, I had to damn near force her to take a break from work.
I tried to tell her that there was always going to be a fire that she needed to put out, and that she couldn’t do that to the best of her ability if she wasn’t taking a few seconds to breathe every now and again.
“Put the computer down, Kenedi. Trust me, if I know nothing, I know the work will be there,” I said, laughing as she sat her computer to the side of her and came over to the table where I sat.
“Here you go,” I said, scooting her food over to her.
“Thank you.”
We sat in silence for a few minutes, eating, before I decided to say something. Whenever we were in silence together, it was comfortable and not weird. But for some reason, today, I felt like talking, so that’s what I did.
“So, how are things going with the ex?” I asked.
“Uh, they’re going. He’s still calling, and I’m still ignoring. I’m sure he’ll get the picture that it will never ever happen between the two of us again soon.”
“Nah, he probably won’t. Women like you are hard to find, so he’s going to keep trying until he finds someone he thinks might come close.”
Blushing, she took a bite of her food. I could see the orgasm she’d just had from that first bite, and I knew she’d be hooked on them the same way that I was.
After wiping her mouth, she replied, “You sound like you’re speaking from experience there.
Did you lose a good woman? If you don’t mind me asking.
I know my ex and my story is public knowledge, so it’s easier to talk about it. ”
“Yeah, something like that. I was young and dumb, and she told me that if I ever fumbled her, there wouldn’t be a second chance. Now, I have to watch her living the life I wanted with someone else.”
“Do you still love her?”
“Nah, I have love for her. But I stopped loving her like that a long time ago. I want nothing but the best for her, and I accepted a long time ago that she wasn’t meant to have the life that she has now with me.”
“I see. Well, at least you’ve grown from that experience. Did finding Logan help you get over her?”
“Who?”
Laughing, she replied, “Uh, Logan, your girlfriend. Did she help you get over the woman before her?”
“Oh, hell nah. That shit just came with time and understanding. And Logan is not my girlfriend.”
“Oh, well, she definitely seems to think otherwise. I guess I did, too. I could’ve sworn the two of you were together.”
“Nope, we just fuck. She seems to think it’s something more than that, but I can’t help whatever made-up scenarios she has rolling around in her head.”