Page 64 of Save Room for Us

“Me first!” Sophie rushed into the living room just as I opened the door for Asif.

Upon seeing her, his eyes lit up as he stepped inside, chocolate sweater on his upper half and jeans on the lower. His chains swung a bit as he moved around the door, shutting it, while his freshly twisted hair flowed down his strong back.

“What’s up, pretty girl?” He squatted down to Sophie’s level as my mama entered the living room.

She lifted her brows to me to say Asif was handsome as if she hadn’t seen him before. It wasn’t a lot but she knew what he looked like.

“A giant!” Sophie screeched, making us all laugh.

“I’ll take it.” Asif smirked. “Can I get yo’ permission to take ya mama out? I’ll take good care of her and bring her back at a respectable hour.”

“Okay.” Sophie nodded animatedly.

“Thank you. Can I have a hug? Or is it too… soon.” Before he could finish, Sophie tossed her small arms around his neck and Asif’s face was beaming brighter than Candy Cane Lane during Christmas. “That was a good one, thank you.” He stood up to his full height, dwarfing everyone.

“Nice to see you again, Mrs. Chase.” He reached to embrace my mother, and I could tell by the way the corners of her mouth were touching her eyes that she liked him.

“You too, young man. Keep her as long as you need to.”

“Mama!” I exclaimed as she and Asif laughed, Sophie soon joining though she didn’t know what the joke was.

Asif led me out, making sure to tell my mother to put all the locks on just like my father used to. It was a small gesture but I liked that.

“You look beautiful, love.” Asif let me know as he opened the door to his Range Rover for me. He towered over my frame, even with these high heels on as he regarded me momentarily, hands on my hips. “You feel as beautiful as you look?”

“I do.” I nodded as he leaned in to peck me gently on my glossed lips.

“Good.” He moved back some so I could get into the car with his help.

“Thank you,” I said and before he shut the door, he leaned in to kiss me again.

Like always, one was never enough so after two more pecks, he shut the door. Climbing in, he turned on the heat for me since I didn’t have a jacket, nothing matched, and then he played some music. When Tamia’s song came on, I looked at him with a knowing smile.

“What?” He played dumb. “Never heard this song?”

“Nigga.” I chuckled. “This is already starting off good.”

“Good. And yes I got Yolani shit on here but I want you in a lovey mood before we get to her hating ass.”

I guffawed at that, just as his hand gravitated into my lap, gripping mine.

“You made me a playlist?” I questioned.

“I did. More like a joined playlist. I started it but we can add to it over the years with songs we fuck with individually or together. Something that’s ours.”

I nodded, watching him as he spoke, one hand holding mine while the other whipped this big ass truck.

“I love that,” I admitted, realizing that I was liking Asif even more than I planned to in this moment.

“What else should we add?”

“Hmm,” I thought, shaking my head internally at how much I was smiling still just from being in this bubble with him. “How about ‘You’ by Lucy Pearl. It was playing in the Compton Boys lounge that night I went and now when I play it, I think of that night.”

Half smiling with his fine ass, he nodded with a lick of his full lips. “Aight, I’ll put that one in the rotation. You gotta put me on to some more love songs and shit. I ain’t trying to just be adding hood shit to our list.”

Giggling, I asked, “You don’t listen to R&B?”

“Not really. Not unless it’s a nigga singing on the hook or some shit like that. I have heard some Chris Brown shit in passing that I fuck with though.”

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