Page 10

I fought back a smile. His directness matched mine, and I appreciated it.
"I guess I could grace you with my presence," I said.
He smiled, revealing perfect, white teeth. "You already have."
We ordered a mix of appetizers, and Marlon convinced me to let him buy me one more drink—I wasn't a lightweight and would take a rideshare if necessary. The conversation around the table was easy, and Marlon didn’t press me. I sat back and enjoyed myself. At some point, I turned to tell Kelsey something and became aware of a man approaching our table. My speech dried up. Tall, broad-shouldered, and tightly muscled, his brown eyes were on me. To describe him as handsome was an understatement, and I could tell he knew it. His mama must've kept that perfect chocolate skin greased in Vaseline and cocoa butter when he was younger. Full lips tempted me to stand right then and kiss him and I rarely kissed. The lines and angles of his face had to be a study in perfect symmetry, and the full, soft-looking beard only highlighted that. My eyelids dropped, and it wasn't the slow drag I did to flirt. It was the "Lawd, let me stop looking now before I show too much," blink.
"My nigga," Liam greeted him, a smile in his voice. "To what do we owe the pleasure of seeing the owner?"
"On my way out and saw y'all. Had to make sure everything was on point. Ay, Chill, them Lakers still trash, I see."
His deep voice, laced with humor, made something inside me yearn... no,craveto hear more of it.
"Bet Bron could still single-handedly beat them Bucks, though," Chill challenged.
"Bruh, you crazy," Marlon goaded.
"Wait, we being rude. Real Hamilton, this is my wife Taleah, Chill's wife Kelsey, and their girl?—"
"Ev," I said hurriedly. "Just Ev is fine."
"It's nice to see such beautiful ladies in my establishment. I hope everything is good?"
We offered compliments and assurances, and I felt Real's eyes on me again. This time, I wouldn't give in first. I met his gaze squarely and watched as a small smile played around his sexy lips.
"You look so familiar," he said.
"Do I?" I asked coolly.
A harder, more challenging look entered his eyes. A moment ago, he seemed laid-back, every inch the successful young businessman. Now, there was something about him that screamed predator.
And something inside me that wanted to be prey.
"You do. Maybe I'm mistaken, though," he continued.
I sipped from my glass before responding, very aware of how quiet our table had gotten, the friction between me and Real could be felt by everyone. Gaze tangled with his, I finally spoke.
"And why do you say that, Mr. Hamilton? Faulty memory?"
I pulled a strawberry off the side of my glass and bit it, feeling a trickle of the juice cling to my bottom lip. His eyes blazed as I licked it up, before slowly chewing.
"Nah, love. Nothing about me is faulty. I just know, if we knew each other, there's no way you'd be able to forget me or any of our... interactions."
His eyes and his voice were both hypnotizing in that moment, and I was absolutely still. It was Kelsey who saved me.
"Whew! Damn, Kyriq, let's go home and work off this tension for them," she popped, using her husband's real name.
"Kelsey, shut the hell up," Chill said as the table dissolved in laughter, everyone's attention momentarily diverted except for Real’s and mine.
His gaze shifted to where Marlon’s hand rested on my chair, then back to mine. Finally, an even taller guy with scars on one side of his face tapped Real's shoulder.
"You ready?" he asked.
"Yeah," Real said before turning back to us. "I took care of your table. Ladies, it was nice to meet you. See you all again soon."
He was talking to everyone.
But his eyes were on me.