Page 9 of Love Me 2

I happened to look up from the paper in my hands, and when I did, I saw a familiar face standing at the end of the aisle. Seeing him standing there, looking at the different types of cookies in the aisle did something to me. It made me think about the last time that I was in his presence. That kiss. The kiss that still to this day I believe that I had an orgasm from it right on that dance floor, and his hands nor his dick had never even touched my privates.

I remembered everything about that night verbatim. The way

he kept whispering in my ear, the way he made me dance on him. I could feel his hard dick poking me in my ass and the way he grabbed my waist when our tongues were having a little tongue battle of their own. I know for a fact that it wasn’t the liquor in my system that had me acting that way toward Za’Kai because I wasn’t drunk or tipsy. That was all of me right there, and if the opportunity presented itself again, I’d probably do the same thing.

That night, I promise I was ready to risk it all, but it was him who stopped everything, bringing me back down to reality and reminding me that no matter how good that kiss was or how good the dance was that I gave him, I was still a married woman.

I wanted to speak to him, but I had my daughter with me, and I didn’t need her asking questions. It was only right that I spoke to the man who had been a reason why I was able to release big orgasms with my toys at night before I had been spending my nights at the hospital with Jaden. I cannot tell you the amount of times that I’d called this man name out when I was in the privacy of my bedroom trying to bring myself to a much needed orgasm. Fuck it, my daughter is just going to have to inquire on who this is because I can’t walk past and not say anything.

“Za’Kai,” I called his name out once I got a little closer.

The closer I got, I could smell the weed on him, and when he looked up at me, I his eyes were blood shot red. He wasn’t even my man, and I hadn’t even known him long enough to start picking up on his moods, but I could tell from his facial expression that something was bothering him. Granted, he still had that hardcore look on his face, but he also looked sad. I had never really seen him sad before, so that instantly made me feel bad. Every time I saw him, he was either talking shit, laid back, or the last time, real sultry.

“What’s up, shorty? Hey, little one, how you doing this evening?” he asked, taking his eyes from me for a second so he could look at my daughter.

Was this little girl blushing? I laughed to myself although I had to agree that he probably had this effect on just about every woman that he came into contact with. He was dressed so laid back, but God was it sexy on him. He was in a black sweat suit with black socks and slides on his feet. He must have decided to run out at the last minute because his do-rag was still on his head, but that was a good thing because it made him even sexier. His beard, mustache, and everything screamed that he must have gotten a shape up or something today.

“I’m doing good,” Jada said shyly, as she wrapped her little arms around one of my thighs, trying to hide herself from him. My daughter was the furthest thing from shy, so it was a shocker to see her acting like that toward him.

“How are you? You look like something is bothering you,” I finally asked.

I watched as he released a sigh and then pulled down on his goatee. Yeah, something is definitely bothering him.

“I’m burying my ole boy tomorrow. I’m better than I was yesterday, so I guess that counts for something,” he nonchalantly said as he shrugged as if it was no big deal at all.

Hearing him say that his father’s funeral was tomorrow had me instantly feeling bad for him because although Za’Kai and I weren’t that close, I knew of the love that he had for his dad. The night I fell asleep with him, we talked for hours about pretty much everything under the sun, and one of the conversations that we spent a lot of time on was the relationship that he had with his father.

I didn’t want to ask too many questions about his father because I could easily tell that he didn’t care to have that conversation, but I did want to be there for him. The night Jerrod literally threw me out of the house with no clothes on, Za’Kai was there. He allowed me into his grandmother’s apartment, allowed me to take a shower there, and he offered me his time. All of those were things that he didn’t have to do, but he did.

“I’m so sorry to hear that. If you don’t mind, I’ll go with you. You know, just for support,” I let him know.

Za’Kai was sizing me up and down, and I could tell that he was reading me. He was trying his best to see if I was being honest or if I was just bullshitting him. After minutes of him staring me down, he finally shook his head, as if he was turning down my offer.

“You don’t have to do that. You don’t owe me your support. You giving me your condolences is good enough in my book,” he let me know.

“I know that I don’t have to, but I want to,” I spoke up.

It took a while, but he eventually pulled his phone out and passed it to me, telling me to key my number in.

“I’ll text you tonight with the time and the address for tomorrow. On some real shit, Shrimp, you don’t owe a nigga shit. I respect you for wanting to be there for me during this difficult ass time in my life, but I been handling tough shit like this ever since I was two years old. I’ll be good,” he let me know.

I didn’t respond; I just nodded. It was already made up in my mind that I was going with him tomorrow to that funeral. Mentally, I was already scanning my closet and trying to remember if I had a black dress that I could throw on for tomorrow. I’d forgotten about the rest of the things that I needed to pick up at the grocery store because, after our talk, I followed him to the register.

I had to laugh to myself because I was leaving behind the fruit that I needed to make my smoothies in the morning, the meat that I needed for when I cooked dinner during the week, and the sanitary napkins that I was going to need when my period started in a few weeks. I left all of those important things behind just because I didn’t want to part from this man.

“Mommy, please. I promise I won’t ask for anything else,” my daughter said with a Snickers bar in her hand.

If my daughter could live a life with no rules, I knew her diet would consist of nothing but pure junk; chocolate especially because she loved to eat chocolate. Just like me, she ate a lot, but we still didn’t know where all the food went on her little body. I hated this part of going to the grocery store. I swear it was a psychology thing that these stores did by putting all these candies in the aisle when folks went to check out because they knew that kids would beg for it. It never failed; when we came up to the aisle to check out, and my kids always begged for something.

“No, I’m not getting it. Look at all of this stuff you put in the cart. Put it back, Jada,” I said to her.

She tried her best to give me those big, puppy dog eyes, but I looked away from her so I wouldn’t fall for it this time. Her eyes were a gift and a curse because over the years, she’d managed to have me wrapped around her little finger by using those eyes, with those long lashes, but I wouldn’t fall for it this time. Not when she’d already managed to convince me to buy Fruit Rollups, cotton candy, and whatever other little junk that she managed to throw in the cart.

“Give it to me, lil mama. I’ll get it,” Za’Kai said and reached out to take the candy bar from my daughter.

She looked at me, basically trying to verify that it was okay for him to pay for it. Only because I felt like he wasn’t in the best of moods, I let him. If only my daughter knew that I planned to take that candy from her the minute we made it to the car.

“What about you, shorty? You want a candy bar or anything?” Za’Kai asked me.

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