Page 19 of He Thugged Me First

“Can’t a nigga bring you breakfast?” he asked, setting my food on my desk while taking a seat on my sofa.

“That’s sweet of you. How did you know I was here?”

He laughed. “I can’t tell you that much. Just know it cost a grip.”

I giggled. “You stalked me?”

“I have to. I mean, you work enough for the both of us, so I’m tryna fit in ya schedule if that’s okay.” He never broke eye contact with me. “And I’m sorry for the way I came at you.”

“That probably won’t work. You’re accustomed to females framing their life around you. I ca?—”

“You right. I am, but I’m not asking you for that. I’m asking you to give a nigga a chance and let’s see where this goes. I’ll even frame my shit around you.” He winked.

“I like the sound of that.” I couldn’t contain the smile that overtook my face.

“Good, because you really ain’t have a choice, G.” He set his food down and walked over to where I was leaning on my desk. His rough hands traced the bags under my eyes. “How long has it been since you got some sleep?”

I giggled because that was a funny question. “Real sleep? About two weeks, and if you’re referring to cat naps, then a few hours. What, do I look bad?”

“Never that. I can just see you sleepy, baby.” He looked concerned.

“I’m good. Summer should be over soon, so the GSW rush ins will be lower, and people will stop calling off.” I shrugged it off.

“You want me to handle that for you?” he asked with a serious expression.

“And what are you gonna do, Mazzier?” I asked with amusement in my voice.

“Put the word out in the streets. Anybody upping the heat better kill the pulse or get the fuck on because my baby needs a fucking break.” He looked so serious, but I didn’t understand a word he said.

“I’m sorry, what did you say?” He had lost me after upping heat.

He laughed and wrapped his arms around my waist. “You gotta talk to old boy. I already don’t have much time with ya. I ain’t in the business of sharing it.”

I smiled, biting my bottom lip. He was right. I needed to talk to Chase, but not because of him. I needed to talk to Chase for myself. Earlier, we both said a few things, and I was just over the entire situation. It was clear that neither of us wanted to be with one another.

Shockingly, my day went good after Mazz’s impromptu visit.

No one called off, and I was able to for once follow my schedule for the day, and then I was off.

That was definitely odd but good, because my ass was ready to clock out and go about my business.

First, I was gonna drive out to the hospital and talk to Chase.

I had given myself a pep talk and thought about this conversation all day.

My thoughts were interrupted by my phone ringing.

When I glanced at it attached to the fixture on my windshield, I saw that it was my sister and Autumn.

I answered and focused on backing out of the park I was in.

“This is definitely the first time we’ve spoken to you this week, and it’s Friday,” Nadeen lectured.

“Girl, these last two weeks have been hell, but things finally slowed down, and I’m actually off.”

“That’s good. Where are you headed?” Autumn asked.

“To—”

“Get her back blown out, duh!” Nadeen interrupted me.

“Um, actually no. I’m finally gonna have that conversation with Chase.”

“Damn, it must be lethal,” Nadeen said, confusing me.

“What?” I asked.

“The dick. You’re finally about to do something we’ve been telling you to do for years now.” Autumn explained.

“It’s definitely not that. I just need to do this.”

“You’ve been needed to do this. Dick just needed to be the motivation apparently,” Autumn responded.

I cracked up laughing. They were both fools and had been this way for years. “Whatever.”

“I’m just saying, Mazz gotta be with it, honey,” Autumn said.

Speaking of the devil, he was calling. “Let me call you guys later. He’s calling now.” I didn’t even give them a chance to talk their shit. I accepted his call and hung up on them.

“What time you off, G?” he asked.

“Now. I just need to go handle something. Why?”

“I’m tryna spend my night with yo’ fine ass, if that’s cool,” he asked.

“That’s fine, but isn’t tonight a money-making night for Canez?”

“Yeah, but it doesn’t need me to make money,” he responded.

“Are you home?” I asked. The hospital Chase worked at was right up the street from his home.

“Yeah. I’ll see you when you get here. Don’t take too long either.”

“Okay.” I hung up and pulled into the small hospital parking lot.

No wonder he was always full of energy. They didn’t get half of the traffic that the city got out here.

I gathered my purse and my phone before I hopped out of my truck and walked up the pathway toward the hospital.

When I walked in, I was greeted by the nurse at the front desk.

“Hello, is Dr. Jacobs available?” I asked her peering at her.

She smiled warmly and nodded before she responded. “I’ll page him now.”

I nodded and pulled my vibrating phone from my pocket. I wasn’t shocked to see that it was a text from Mazz. He had sent me a photo of the deep-dish chicken spinach pizza. Now I was really ready to get to him.

“Gayze, what are you doing here?” Chase’s voice made me turn around and look at him. He was peering at me and looking around like he was nervous or something. I wondered what the hell was going on with him.

“I actually wanted to talk to you about?—”

“And it couldn’t wait until I got home?” He cut me off disrespectfully.

I laughed and threw my head back. “Excuse you? Nah. I didn’t hear you right.” I glared at him.

He dialed his tone down a little and swallowed hard. He knew not to let the educated dialect fool him. “I meant, we cou?—”

“Babe, who is this?”

My icy glare lifted from him and found its way onto the female standing next to him in the pink scrubs.

“Babe?” I asked with a laugh. The funny thing is I wasn’t even surprised.

I was more so amused. So I decided to have a little fun with him.

“Who am I, babe ?” I watched him turn pink right before my eyes.

Since he wasn’t gonna introduce me, I turned toward the female who looked confused.

“My name is Gayze Fields. I’m the chief of surgery over at?—”

“Let me explain, Gayze.” He finally found his voice.

“No. You don’t need to. What you need to do is have all of your shit out of my home by the time I get home tomorrow,” I said in a very icy tone.

Then I reached for the engagement ring on my finger and pulled it off.

I dropped it in his white coat pocket. “Have a nice night, guys.” I turned on my heels and walked out of the automatic doors just as fast as I entered them.

When I got to my car, I called my sister and Autumn back before turning my car on.

“Here my goofy ass was miserable, and this nigga was playing house at the hospital.”

“Remember, he’s not a nigga; he’s a wigga. You wanna set it off?” Nadeen asked.

“Nope. I’m good. I actually couldn’t do anything but laugh.”

“Good because he doesn’t deserve anything about you. I hope you politely asked him to get his shit out of your place,” Autumn responded.

“I damn sure did. Now I’m on my way to?—”

“Pound town!” Nadeen screamed into the phone.

I couldn’t help but laugh. She was right, but definitely too excited to say it.

Oddly enough, I felt like a weight had been lifted from my chest the moment I heard old girl say the word babe .

In reality, he’d given me the easy way out, and I just had to take the opportunity.

So actually, Kenya was right. I wasn’t good at goodbyes.

MAZZ

I felt like I was getting out of the game at the right time.

I had studied the patterns and did the research, and I could say for a fact that niggas rarely made it out because they’d allowed themselves to be controlled for that need for power.

It was different for me though. I was consumed with the need to provide for my sisters and stay full.

Once I was able to do that, I felt done.

I came up in the streets under niggas like Ozzi and Cass, so I knew firsthand that these streets didn’t love you, no matter how much they claimed to.

I even briefly worked for that nigga Gemini, but I was never meant to work for anybody, so I waited for my time, and I came up the right way.

I didn’t believe in snaking niggas that I once broke bread with.

It was room in these streets for all of us to eat.

The thing is, not everybody felt that way, so that’s why whatever the fuck was happening.at this point in time.

My thoughts were interrupted by the way Gayze was stirring in her sleep. She had dozed off a few hours ago, and I let her because she seemed too sleepy.

“Why did you let me go to sleep?” She wrapped her arm around me.

“Because you needed sleep. Yeen gonna miss shit.” I looked down, and she was looking up at me.

“If I trust me with you?—”

“ If you trust me with you? Baby, you already trust me with you.” I laughed and kissed her forehead.

“You know what I meant.” She giggled and sat up on me.

“Question is can I trust you with me? I fucked around and fell right back into it with you. Now you gotta handle ya shit at home.”

A smile covered her face. “What if that’s already handled? What are you?—”

“That’s what you went to handle before you came here?” I locked eyes, looking up at her.

She bit her bottom lip looking at me. “Does it matter?”

“Smart ass mouth.”

She giggled before leaning down and pressing her lips against mine.

“Nah. I guess it doesn’t if you handled that shit.”

“Good.” I felt her delicate ass hands slip into my sweats as she continued to bite at her bottom lip, looking at me. Gayze knew what she wanted. It was just up to her to get it.

Just like I knew she would, she slammed her lips shut and looked at me. “I wanna talk.”

With a smirk, I put my hands behind my head and focused on her. “Then get ya hands out of my pants and talk, ma.”