Page 37 of A Million Boss Kisses

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Quinten “Lil Q” Bentley Jr.

“ M a, you copped a new whip?” I questioned watching her and Yaseer approach a clean ass purple Bentley after embracing her in a hug.

“Yaseer bought it for me,” she chirped.

“Okayyyyyy, Mama Marissa got that new custom Bentley pussy!” Girl Quori shouted, sticking her tongue out.

“Alright man, you doin’ too much!” Quincy mushed her as she snickered.

“My bad, forgot young ears were out here,” she cackled harder.

“Aye jit, keep your hands off my wife,” Vez joked, throwing his set up to slap box with Quincy for a few seconds.

“So good he bought me two.” My mom lowered her voice to address Girl Quori and Jury, but I was still close enough to hear it.

“I know that’s right,” Jury slapped her five. “Tech, take notes. My push gift better be something comparable.”

“Nah, I’m getting you something else. I told you when you take learning to drive serious, I’ll put you in whatever you want.”

“I guess you don’t have new car pussy.” Girl Quori wagged her fingers in Jury’s face before laughing. “Bae, our anniversary is coming up, I know this…”

“Man, Lil Q, come on. I’m not trying to hear this shit. I’m about to be sick,” Quincy complained, cutting Girl Quori’s words off.

“No, for real. Nobody wanna hear that about their mom and sister. We out!” I chucked the deuces and hopped into my black F150.

Quincy slid in the passenger seat while all the girls yelled bye to us.

Yaseer, Tech, and Vez stood around with them while they did all that motha fuckin’ gigglin’ and carrying on.

Zay and his wife left about an hour ago because she was pregnant and tired, and Jameera left with them. I pulled out my phone to text Amill.

Me: You lucky you left before everybody else. The old heads was out there wilding.

Amill: What were they doing?

Me: You don’t even want to know. Me, Jameera, and Quincy are going to Universal tomorrow. You wanna come with us?

Amill: I just got off the phone with Jameera. She invited me. I told her to tell me what time y’all coming to get me so I can let my dad know.

Me: Bet.

“You text Amill about as much as you text Jameera. I hope you not crossing the line with that girl. Do you see how strict her dad is? Mom likes him, don’t put her in a position where shit goes wrong because you fucked her,” he lectured me as I maneuvered through traffic. “I actually like dude.”

“Yeah, because he is the answer to all of your problems.”

“No, because he actually makes mom happy,” he nudged me.

“You a selfish ass nigga who doesn’t pay attention to shit like I do.

Mom has been stressed. She lost weight, and I’m sure she was a little depressed.

Cooped up in her room all the time if she wasn’t doing anything that pertained to us.

Wearing joggers year round. Even when it’s hot as fuck outside. ”

I scratched my head because Quinten was right. I lived with her and never put that shit together.

“You too busy spending money like it’s water and chasing pussy.”

“Aye nigga, Jameera ain’t just pussy,” I argued.

“Well, you just said you giving her the green light to throw pussy in Tokyo,” he clowned.

“That ain’t what the fuck I said,” I chuckled.

“Either way. You need to slow down on that spending. I overheard ma on the phone with Aunty Karina the morning after you went to homecoming, and dad doesn’t help her with shit financially. He’s the biggest fuck nigga.”

“For real?” I faltered.

“Yeah, he popped up at the house after you left for homecoming. They got into it bad then he got into it with Tech because he started choking her before he took off.”

“He put his hands on her and you just telling me?” I roared.

“Calm the fuck down. I stayed with her that night just in case he came back,” Quincy informed me.

My jaw was tight and I was seeing red. I didn’t play about my mama. That nigga would’ve had to see me if I knew about this shit. I lifted my phone and placed two calls to him that went unanswered.

“Fucking pussy!” I spat when his answering machine picked up for the second time.

“Calm down and let’s go back to the initial topic at hand. Do not fuck that nigga’s daughter!”

“It’s not like that. I’m inviting her to Universal with us tomorrow. Now you don’t have to be a third wheel like you always complain about,” I cracked.

“Fuck you nigga. I just feel like you and Jameera could separate sometimes so we can have bro time.”

“Awwww, you miss a nigga?”

“Ever since we moved to Tampa y’all practically joined at the hip. I was surprised you came to watch the game with me last weekend.”

“All you had to do was say you missed a nigga and I could’ve penciled you in.

” I reached over to pinch his cheek. He quickly swatted my hand away as I continued talking.

“You be busy with school and shit, but I’ll start staying at your spot more.

Next year we can get a two bedroom and be roommates.

Ma all in love and shit. As soon as her divorce from dad is final, she’s going to try to move in with that nigga.

He cool and all, but I’m not trying to live with the nigga. ”

“You know if you tell ma how you feel she won’t move in with him. We will always come first,” Quincy clarified.

“I know, but I don’t wanna do that to her. Let her live because I’m trying to live too. And not under the same roof as my mom. Especially because Jameera already agreed that we are taking a break while she’s in Tokyo for the year.”

“What the fuck does that even mean?”

“She can do her and I’mma do me and we’ll find our way back to each other when the year is up. I’m not putting my dick on ice for a whole year.” I shook my head in disgust at the thought.

“So she’s free to fuck whoever she wants to while she’s over there?”

“I ain’t say all that now,” I refuted. “Why you always up in my relationship business? Who you sliding on? What happened with fine shit you met at the bar?”

“She was a fucking airhead who couldn’t hold a conversation,” he grumbled.

“But did you hit?”

“Knocked that shit out the park. I’ll probably keep her in rotation. I ain’t trying to get into shit serious anyways. I don’t have time for a clingy ass girlfriend like Jameera.”

“Stop talking about my girl before yo ass be walking,” I threatened playfully.

“We around the corner, I don’t mind.”

We bantered a little more as we pulled into his apartment complex.

“Alright, jit. You driving tomorrow or me?”

“Damn nigga, I drove to the game today. You driving tomorrow.” I side eyed him.

“It was just a question.” He threw his hands up in surrender. “I love you, bro. I’ll pick y’all up in the morning,” he dapped me up.

“I love you too,” I threw my arm over the middle console to hug him.

“I’ll text you when I’m on the way,” Quincy stated before stepping out of the truck.

I pulled out of the parking spot, and his phone started ringing in my passenger seat. Placing the car in drive, I eased back into the parking spot and hopped out with my key fob in hand, locking the doors as I jogged underneath the dark night sky towards Quincy’s building.

As I rounded the breezeway, I froze for a half a second.

“What the fuck?”

Across the hallway, closer to Quincy’s door, he was fending off four men who were trying to stuff him into a white van with dark tint. I dropped everything in my hands and sprinted in their direction. Quincy was giving it to them niggas, fists flying and connecting with jaws and rib cages.

When I reached them, I jumped in without hesitation, throwing a punch that knocked the closest nigga off balance.

He stumbled, and I followed it up with a right hook to the face before somebody grabbed me from behind.

I swung my elbow back into his gut and broke free.

Three other men appeared from the van, and Quincy disappeared into the truck just before a loud pop sounded.

POW!

The force hit me like a Mack truck, signaling that I was hit.

I stumbled back as the bullet seared through my skin, leaving me feeling like my entire body was on fire.

My hand flew to my side, and when I pulled it up, blood soaked my hand.

My vision blurred, and I looked up at the van, still worried about my brother, but they pulled off.

I told my body to chase after them, but it failed me, and I collapsed on the ground, gasping for air because I felt like I was suffocating.

Each breath I fought for only intensified the pain.

I used all of the energy in my body to dig my phone out of my pocket and place a call to my dad. Groaning, I frantically put the phone on speaker and listened to it ring. His answering machine picked up again.

“I don’t know what you got going on, but if you don’t find my fucking brother, I swear to God!” I moaned, tapping the red button to end the call.

Blood from my soaked hands covered the screen, and I knew I fucked up calling him first. The pain intensified and I managed to tell Siri to call mom.

I blinked repeatedly, fighting to stay conscious, but everything around me became muffled, like I was underwater.

Then the stars in the dark night sky above me spun, and my world faded to black.