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“You cold?” Julius paused and asked mid conversation.
“Yeah.”
“Ass should’ve put on some clothes.” He fussed but passed his jacket over to me.
I wrapped it around myself and nestled into his side. After we left Opium, he had hit up the guys and told them to meet us at Marietta Diner. Thank God, they sat us in the back of the restaurant ‘cause these niggas was drunk and talking loud as hell. I had tuned them out and was scrolling through Instagram.
I hadn’t seen either of them since Miami and just like I wasn’t fucking with Julius I wasn’t fucking with they ass either. The only one that really got any talk from me was Tito and that’s ‘cause he wasn’t with Julius when I was looking for him.
“Nariah, what’s up with your girl Shunta?” Lucas asked.
“Ask her.”
“Wait. Not you checking for Shunta. You know Tito cracked her some years back.” Julius blurted out.
“First of all, stop telling my friend business.”
“Ain’t nobody telling that girl business. I’m tryna keep this nigga from back dooring that nigga.”
“It was a one-time thing. As a matter of fact, she really wanted to get at yo ass, but you swerved her.” Tito asserted.
“You cool with somebody that tried to get at yo nigga, Nari? Not yo possessive ass.”
“Byron, that was before Julius, and I were a thing. And I’m the one that told her to try him.”
“You did what?” Julius damn near yelled.
The elevation in Julius’s tone made me giggle. “I told her to shoot her shot. Hell, you was trying to get at me and I wasn’t interested.”
“Shunta cool and all but you know I love me a chocolate chick.” He bragged and pinched my cheek. “Milk chocolate, dark chocolate, cocoa powder brown. I like my chicks dark with an ass that’s round.” He rapped.
“Ignorant ass.” I grinned. “You got bonus points for not taking the bait though.”
“So, you really was interested huh? Yo ass was just playing my nigga for weak.”
“You’ll never know.” I winked at Lucas. Taking a sip out of my cup, I peered at Julius over the rim before saying. “He tell y’all I whooped his ass with a belt.”
“See now you ‘bout to piss me off. Get yo shit and let’s go, Nariah.” Julius said and stood up from the table.
The guys were doubled over in laughter while I sat there smirking at him. I knew he had told them ‘cause I heard him on the phone asking Tito what he could use to get that welt to go down.
A cute lil frown etched across Julius’s face when he sat back down. “I’on think I ever got my ass whooped that hard.”
“I’ve been meaning to ask you what the fuck was going on in your head when you did that shit.”
“I’on know.” I hunched my shoulders. “He hurt my feelings, so I wanted to hurt him.”
“Nawl yo ass played me. You weren’t even supposed to be at the crib yet.”
“I keep telling you I’m always gon’ be ten steps ahead of you.” Julius was trying to surprise me and got surprised himself. He thought I wasn’t around when he was talking to my mama, but I heard their whole conversation.
When he asked her to keep Jude, I was cool with that because I had planned on confronting his ass anyway and didn’t need my baby around to hear it. I don’t know what was going through my mind but when I heard the truck pull up outside, I got pissed off all over again.
Jude’s belt was the first thing I put my eyes on, so I used it. I tried to whoop him something serious with that fucking belt for playing with me. Julius was telling a bitch ass lie ‘bout him being at the studio. I knew it just like his ass did. He thought I fell for that lil spill but that was the furthest thing from reality.
Truthfully, I don’t know where he was or who he was with. That shit was still a mystery to me. I searched his Apple devices front and fucking back and hit a brick wall every time. No cap something in my heart was telling me to just ride it out ‘cause the truth was going to reveal itself soon.
I can’t explain it, but it was this feeling that I had. A feeling I ain’tneverfelt before. Like to the point where I was damn near restless at night. I was lying beside this nigga staring at the walls ‘cause I couldn’t sleep. Something had me so uncomfortable that it kept me up at night.