Page 23 of Obsessive Love

“I hate you, Pyrite Stone!” I yelled because I knew he was listening.

“I hate the fucking ground you walk on. I hate that your mama is such a nice fucking lady because she has a psychopath for a fucking middle son! I don’t even know your daddy, and I feel sorry for him because he is half responsible for your crazy ass.

I know your entire life you drove them crazy, and it’s probably a piece of them that instantly gets sad when they see you coming because they know that your crazy ass is a menace to society, and they are responsible for it. ”

I turned on the water for the shower, then stripped out of my clothes, still pissed.

This crazy ass nigga! I showered, got out, put on some body cream, walked to the sink to brush my teeth, washed my face, pulled the scarf off my head, and fluffed my curls.

I did a light beat on my face, not really in the mood to do too much work, then went back to the room and grabbed an outfit from the closet and underwear from the dresser.

I don’t know when I decided to put the clothes Pyrite bought me away, but I had, and now that even pissed me off.

I got dressed quickly, sat on the edge of the bed, and stared down at the shoes I would wear. They were strapped heels, which allowed me to wear them without worrying about the monitor on my ankle. Sighing, I put them on, secured the straps around my ankle, and stood just as the door opened.

“You ready?” Pyrite asked with a smirk. “You look good, Fable.” His eyes went to the monitor on my ankle, and he licked his lips. “I love the accessories.”

“Shut the fuck up,” I said as I walked past him, purposely pushing him when I was close enough.

When I got to the steps, Starburst flew over my head and down the stairs, and Watermelon landed on my shoulder.

I went down the stairs and headed into the kitchen to make breakfast, only to find it was waiting for me.

“Watermelon, Starburst cage,” Pyrite said as he rounded the corner to enter the kitchen. To my surprise, my birds went to their cage. Pyrite walked past the cage to the island, picked up a small bowl, went to their cage, and set it inside. “Thank you.”

“Home,” Watermelon demanded, then started eating the fruits and vegetables from the bowl.

“Bitch nigga!” Starburst yelled, then followed behind Watermelon.

“Fuck you, nigga,” Pyrite said to Starburst, then thumped him. Starburst screeched at him, then went back to eating. Pyrite turned to face me, and I flipped him off. “We leave in thirty minutes.”

“Take the ankle monitor off,” I said as he handed me my plate.

“No.”

I let out a deep breath and then nodded; fine, if he didn’t do what I was asking, then I was about to make his life a living fucking hell.

I took the plate from him, and even though it looked good, I wasn’t about to eat it.

Pyrite walked back to the island, and I took the moment to launch the plate across the room, barely missing his head.

“Take this fucking monitor off!”

He looked down at the plate, then up at me and smirked and got damn it if my pussy didn’t start to throb. “No,” he laughed. “Now, do you want me to make you another plate, or are you not hungry?”

“I’m not eating shit until you take this damn thing off,” I declared.

Pyrite laughed as he nodded, picked up his phone from the island countertop, and dialed a number. He put the phone on speaker and stared me down.

“Yeah?”

“How long would someone have to refuse to eat before you would put in a feeding tube?” he asked his brother, and I had to school my features because this nigga had just hit a new level of crazy with that question.

“Just eating or no drinking, too?” Amethyst asked with a low chuckle that sounded so much like Pyrite’s that I knew the crazy gene ran through their family.

“Does it matter?”

“Kind of,” he answered. “But just for shits and giggles, let’s say seven to twenty-one days. Their health is a factor in how long, though. Why?”

“Itty Bitty is refusing to eat, and I may need you to put in a feeding tube,” he said as he stared me down. “Can you put her on your schedule?”

“Yeah, let’s pencil her in for two weeks from now,” Amethyst said. “I’ll have Lauren call you later to get some information.”

“Bet,” Pyrite said as he nodded. “I appreciate it, baby bro.”

“You know I got you,” Amethyst replied as if they were talking about the weather and not this crazy-ass shit. “You got me on speakerphone?”

“Yeah.”

“What’s good, Fable? Do you think you could make me some of those fruit bars? I was telling my boy Krude about them, and nigga is lowkey jealous he hasn’t tried them yet.”

“I’ll make you whatever you want if you get this ankle monitor off of me,” I said.

Amethyst gave me that crazy laugh again. “Nah, that’s y’all freaky shit; leave me out of it,” he said, then hung up.

“You ready?” Pyrite asked, and I grilled him.

He closed the distance between us and got in my face.

The smell of his cologne filled my lungs, and even though I wanted to pop him right in his shit, I also wanted to kiss him.

Shit was sickening. His hand went around my throat, and he licked his sexy ass lips.

“You didn’t listen, so I had to make sure you understood that this wasn’t a game.

When I say something, I mean it, no matter what.

You’ll get that monitor off when you trust me. ”

“I trust you?” I gawked, and he nodded. “I’ll never trust your crazy ass.”

“Yes, you will,” he laughed. “And when you do, the shit is going to be that much more special.” He softly traced my bottom lip with his thumb, then shook his head. “Now, let’s get ready to go so we can deal with Rhodes’ ass.”

“You’re black?” I asked as I looked over Rhodes Jeffers, the center and captain of the Rooks Hockey team.

“Both my parents niggas,” he laughed as he took his seat.

Skin the color of the darkest chocolate, tall, muscles, a head full of deep waves, and a mouth full of golds was not what I expected when I thought of a hockey player.

I looked at Pyrite, then back at Rhodes, and shook my head.

“What were you expecting, some big ass hillbilly white boy?”

“Uh yeah,” I answered with a nod. “I’ve never seen a black hockey player.”

“Shit, we're out there,” he replied and ran his hand over his waves. “Our entire team is black.” He shrugged his massive shoulders. “Shit a vibe.”

“Wait, the entire team?” I turned and asked Pyrite, who nodded. “Do you know how rare that is?”

“Yeah,” he answered. “Which is why I did it. I believe in representation to the fullest.”

“Damn,” I sighed, then turned back to Rhodes. “Alright, so did Pyrite tell you why you are here?”

“Nah,” Rhodes replied. “All I know is he said to come in this bitch on time, be respectful, and I better fucking not think about touching you.” Rhodes’ dark eyes took me in, then smiled. “I see why he said that shit, too. You fine as fuck.”

“Rhodes,” Pyrite called out in a warning tone. “Nigga, I’ll replace you, not her.”

“I’m just fucking with you, boss man,” Rhodes laughed as he threw his hands up in surrender. “Yeti already warned me that you ain’t playing about her. I just had to check for myself.”

“Do what the fuck you supposed to do and get on,” Pyrite said as he stood. “I have a meeting with the flag team; I’ll be back.”

“Ay, KO gonna be there?” Rhodes asked, and Pyrite nodded. “Keep an eye on her for me.”

“Why?” Pyrite’s brow went up in question, and I could tell from how his shoulders were squared that he was on alert.

“Her bitch ass baby daddy causing problems on the net,” Rhodes said. “I already got my shit in motion, though.”

“Alright,” Pyrite nodded. “Let me know what you need.”

“Keep Morning on speed dial,” Rhodes said. He leaned forward, rested his large arms on the table, and shook his head. “I ain’t playing about that one, just know that.”

“Noted,” Pyrite said. He gave Rhodes a nod, kissed my head, and then left his office.

“Alright, now that your nigga is gone, let's get down to business,” Rhodes said, turning to face me. “What you need my black ass in here for, Ms. Lady? I feel like a lil nigga that got called into the principal's office.”

“For one, I’m not the one in charge here,” I said, shaking my head. “It’s Pyrite.”

“That nigga know that?” Rhodes pointed to the door that Pyrite walked out of.

“Because you sitting behind his desk, in his chair, in his damn arena, and he ain’t trippin’ off it.

That nigga don’t share his space with nobody; not even his brothers get the privilege he is giving you right now.

” Rhodes shook his head and smirked. “So, in my eyes and every other person in this arena, you are in charge.”

“I’m not, trust me,” I replied, and he gave me a look that showed he didn’t believe me.

“Anyway, you are here because Pyrite is adding a bakery to the building. To add to the appeal, we are going to do specialty desserts featuring each team as well as each captain or starting player to have their own signature treat.”

“That shit is dope,” Rhodes said, nodding. “So, what do you have in mind for me?”

“Nothing yet,” I answered, happy he was on board. “Which is why I wanted to meet with you. I want to get a feel for your personality, likes, and dislikes to create the perfect dessert.”

“Alright,” he replied, then sat back in his seat. “I’m thinking something dark chocolate with gold.” He held up his arm and then smirked. “Of course.”

“Of course,” I agreed, then opened my notebook.

Over the last few days, I’d been working on something that matched his initial description.

“I didn’t even know what you looked like or who you were when I thought of this, but take a look.

” I slid the notebook to Rhodes and watched him review my recipe for a lemon truffle dipped in dark chocolate.

“Yeah, Ms. Lady, this is the one,” he said, tapping the notebook. “How soon can we get in the kitchen and start putting it together?”