Page 10 of Obsessive Love

PYRITE

“So, you’re cooking?” Xoey asked me as she came outside to stand beside me at the grill. Her face scrunched as she looked at the meat on the grill and then back at me. “How do you know that girl eats meat?”

“Just because you don’t doesn’t mean nobody else does,” I replied, and she rolled her eyes. “And you’ve only been a vegetarian for like a week.”

“I saw a trailer of cows one day, and I swear one of them made eye contact with me,” she dramatically said, and I shook my head. “There was no way I could eat a burger or steak afterward.”

“Did you take your meds that day?” I laughed as I worked. Xoey was always doing something crazy, so her saying she was no longer eating meat and her reason didn’t surprise anyone.

“Yeah,” she answered as she stepped away from me and sat on the steps near the back door. “But I swear to you, Pyrite, it knew it was on its way to be slaughtered.”

“How do you know?” I flipped my steak over and then turned my attention to her.

“It mooed so sad, like it was about to cry,” she answered, and all I could do was stare at her. “I couldn’t handle the sound. Shit was sad.”

“Is that why your daddy now owns twenty cows?” I asked, and she nodded. “I can't wait for you to meet the nigga that’s going to tell you no.”

“Never,” she said, waving me off. “And if he does, then he’s not for me.”

“Or he’s perfect for you,” I countered, and she kissed her teeth. “You spoiled as fuck, Xoey plus twelve, like legit spoiled.”

“Probably, but I make life fun.” She smiled at me and stretched her legs out before her. “Now, tell me your plans for The Baker.”

“The Baker?” I questioned her, and she nodded. “Is that what you’re calling her?”

“Yeah,” she answered with a nod. “Now, stop trying to distract me and tell me your plan.”

“Her pop is going to have to come see me,” I said with a shrug. “I got his son and daughter. Both make him money; he will have to pick which one he wants more.”

Xoey's face twisted like she didn’t believe what I was saying, and then she shook her head. “You have his daughter; I have his son. The son makes more money, but the daughter has a steady income. Which one would you pick?”

“The daughter,” I answered, and she rolled her eyes.

“You’re attracted to the daughter, but we will pretend that isn’t true.”

“The son is a liability,” I said, shaking my head because Xoey might be crazy, but she wasn’t blind; I knew it, so there was no reason to pretend otherwise. “She’s quiet, lowkey; if anything, he could have used her business to wash his money.”

“She wasn’t about to let that happen,” I denied as I checked over the steaks. “She’s legit. Nothing funny is coming her way.”

“And you’re going to keep it that way,” Xoey said, pointing at me.

I nodded, and she smiled. “I like her for you, Pyrite.” She stood and wiped her hands over her butt and the back of her legs to knock off any dirt that may have gotten on her.

“She’s going to give you a run for your money, and you’ll love it every step of the way. ”

“Why do you always wish love on people but don’t want it for yourself?” I asked as I took the steaks from the grill.

“It's not that I don’t want it; it's more so I doubt I’ll get it,” she said with a shrug. Her phone beeped, and she sighed before heading to the door. “I gotta go. I’ll stop by later this week and check on my bestie.”

“Alright,” I said as I watched her leave. I finished cooking my steak and then took it to the house to rest while I prepared some garlic mashed potatoes and green beans. Once everything was done, I plated it and headed downstairs to check on Fable.

“You got any food allergies?” I asked her as I set her plate on the table in front of the couch. Fable watched me closely, and all I could do was laugh. “Itty Bitty, step out here so we can talk.” She stared at the door and then sighed before pushing it open.

“This door has been unlocked the entire time?” Her eyes narrowed, and I nodded. “The fuck kind of shit is that?”

“You didn’t try it?” I knew she hadn’t because I’d watched her the entire time, but still wanted her to say it.

“No,” she answered. Her eyes went to the stairs, and I knew she would book it up the stairs to test her luck.

I sat just as she took off up the stairs, and I picked up my plate to start eating. She banged against the door, screaming for help, and all I could do was shake my head.

“It’s locked,” I said between bites of my food.

I could see her kicking the shit out my door, and I chuckled.

She’d break her fucking toes before that door budged.

It was damn near a foot thick, and eight of those inches were metal.

When I had this basement renovated, I asked for it to be a shelter in case my past came back to get me, and I needed to protect my family.

“Let me out!” Fable yelled and slammed her fist into the door. “Let me the fuck out of here! Help me!”

“Nobody can hear you,” I said as I watched her. “The door is too thick, and the room is soundproof!”

“HELP ME!” she continued to yell. I had to give it to her; she was stubborn and persistent, yelling, hitting, and kicking the door the entire time I ate. “Help!”

I wiped my mouth with my napkin, put it on my plate, and then set it on the table. I was full and partially sleepy, but watching Fable was entertaining. My phone rang, and I pulled it from my pocket to see Amethyst's name on my screen.

“What’s good, Am?” I answered the phone.

“Send her the fuck away!” Amethyst announced. The roar of his engine echoed through the phone, and I knew he was probably going faster than he should have. “Get her the fuck out of the city!”

“It ain't my call, lil bro,” I sighed as I watched Fable. “She’s here to drop off Givens’ engagement ring.”

“Tell that nigga the next time he needs her that they are supposed to go to her!” Amethyst yelled. “That’s the fucking deal! They go to her.”

“That’s not my call, Amethyst,” I replied. Fable finally stopped fighting the door and was staring at it as if she could magically force it open. “She’s grown and makes her own decisions. I can't make her do shit she doesn’t want to.”

“Stop fucking flying her back!” The sound of him fucking up the steering wheel echoed through the speaker. “She has unlimited access to the jet; home is now on the no-fly list.”

“Ameth-”

“No!” he yelled. “That’s my fucking rule! She can't come back home until I got this shit handled.”

“It’s been six months, Amethyst; she needs to know the truth,” I sighed and wiped my hand over my face.

My brother was stubborn as fuck. I understood why he was on edge, but I would never know why he didn’t tell the truth to his best friend, Yale Forrester.

If anyone was going to ride with him, it would be her.

Would she be hurt? Yes, but she’d forgive him and have his back. He just needed to give her the chance.

“Send her the fuck back!” Amethyst yelled, and then the call ended.

I dropped the phone onto my lap and sat back. “The door ain’t gonna open, Itty Bitty; come here and eat.”

“I would rather starve,” she replied as she turned her face.

The light above her head made her brown skin glisten, and I couldn’t help but be a little jealous of the fact that she’d allowed it to bask in her presence while she looked at me like I was shit under her shoe.

“For all I know, you could’ve poisoned it. ”

“Why would I do that?” I chuckled.

“You kidnapped me,” she replied like it answered my question. “You don’t seem like the kind that thinks things through, which is surprising because you are known as a good businessman.”

“I am,” I said, nodding. “Which should tell you that I know what the fuck I’m doing.” I pointed to her food. “Now come on, eat so I can get ready for bed. I have to be at the arena early in the morning.”

“Why?” She didn’t move from her spot. “You could just come up the stairs and move me out of the way.”

“Or you could just come down here and eat,” I suggested with a shrug. “Answer a few questions for me.”

“What kind of questions?” Her eyes narrowed, and it took everything in me not to smile. “Like, who to send my body to once you kill me?” she crossed her arms. “The only person who would care is Yamari.”

I sat forward, resting my elbows on my legs, and shook my head. “I don’t understand why you keep thinking I’m going to kill you.”

“Ugh, cuz you already kidnapped me,” she replied in a tone that sounded like she was questioning my intelligence. “Let's be honest, I doubt I’ll ever go home.”

“You never know,” I shrugged. “You might want to go visit Yamari or something later on.”

“If you touch my friend, I’ll kill you,” she threatened. “Leave her out of this.”

“Yamari is already involved; you saw the feed from your bakery; she’s covering for you right now since you’re here helping me.”

“Helping you?” she asked me, and I nodded. “Yamari would never believe that.”

“Never say never,” I laughed. “Now, come on down here and eat.”

“No,” she denied. “Tell me what you told my friend to make her believe I’m here helping you.”

“It doesn’t matter,” I said, shaking my head. “Come eat.”

Fable and I stared at each other before she finally nodded and descended the stairs. She grabbed her plate from the table and sat across from me. “If you poisoned this, I’m going to come back from the dead and haunt you for the rest of your life.”

“Yamari is friends with an associate of mine,” I said as I watched her eat. “We spoke over the phone, and after she cussed me out, threatened to go to the news and police, and even come kill me herself if something happened to you, she finally calmed down.”

“Who’s the friend?” she asked between bites of her food.

“Purpose Blackmon,” I answered.

“Of damn course, you’re friends with the fucking FBI, too,” she sighed. “I’m never getting out of here.”

“You will,” I laughed.

I only discovered that Yamari and Purpose were friends once I had the Strongs dig into her background.

Once I had the information, I called and explained what was happening to Purpose.

She knew Yamari would cause some issues, so she helped me.

Yamari was giving me time to handle the situation with Javien Sr., but I had to meet her in the middle regarding her friend's safety.

“I doubt it,” she replied.

“You want to call Yamari and check in?” I asked, and she side-eyed me. “Look, I’m not that bad of a nigga. Let your friend vouch for me, and once you see that this shit ain’t that bad, you can relax.”

“Call Yamari,” she demanded, and I nodded. I picked my phone up and pulled up her friend's contact information. “On FaceTime.” I swiped the screen, waiting for it to connect, then turned it so she could see.

“Yamari!” Fable yelled when the call connected. “You let this nigga kidnap me and didn’t call the police?”

“And say what exactly?” Yamari questioned her with a laugh. “He’s Pyrite Stone; his connections are limitless, and I know for a fact that the second I dial the number and snitch, there would be nowhere for me to hide.”

“She’s right,” I agreed with a laugh. Fable cut her eyes at me, and I smiled.

“Shut the fuck up, Pyrite,” Fable scolded me, then turned her attention back to Yamari. “I am kidnapped-”

“Call it an unplanned vacation,” Yamari interrupted. “More than likely, you’re sitting in a fucking mansion.”

“I’m locked in a basement.”

“In a mansion,” I informed her, and she flipped me off. “Eventually.”

Fable cut her eyes at me, and I saw her nostrils flare. Yeah, her little ass was turned on too, and no matter how much she thought she hated my ass, she couldn’t hide the little queues her body was giving off.

“Just listen to his offer,” Yamari said, cutting off our stare-down. “It can work for you, Fable.”

“He can’t offer me shit that I want,” Fable argued and shook her head. “Especially since he has me locked in his basement.”

“You’d be surprised,” I said, then turned the phone back to me. “Time’s up. I’ll keep my word as long as you keep yours.”

“Don’t hurt my friend, Pyrite,” Yamari said, nodding.

I looked up to see Fable watching me closely. “Never,” I said, then hung up. “Eat your food, Fable; we have a business meeting tomorrow.”