And that terrified me more than anything else.
“It’s complicated, baby,” I said finally.
“Everything’s complicated with you.” He wasn’t being mean. Just honest. “You never let anybody in. You never let anybody help. You just keep running and hiding and pretending we’re fine when we’re not.”
His words hit like a physical blow. Because he was right. We weren’t fine. We were surviving, barely, and I was so tired of just surviving.
“I’m trying to keep us safe,” I said quietly.
“I know. But maybe…” He paused, choosing his words carefully. “Maybe being safe isn’t the same as being happy. And maybe Prime could be both.”
The knockat the door came exactly thirty minutes later. Prime was nothing if not punctual.
My heart kicked into overdrive. I stood from the vanity, smoothing my sweater down even though it didn’t need smoothing, checking my reflection one more time even though I’d already checked it five times.
“I got it!” Yusef was already halfway to the door before I could stop him.
“Yu, wait?—”
Too late. He swung the door open, and there Prime was.
Jesus.
His masculine presence filled the doorway—all six-foot-something of tattooed muscle wrapped in luxury. He sported a black cashmere sweater, a pair of Japanese denim jeans, and a VVS Cuban chain hung around his neck.
His eyes found mine immediately, and the heat in them made my knees weak.
“Goddess,” he said, his voice low and rough. “You look incredible.”
“Thanks.” I grabbed my purse, needing something to do with my hands. “You clean up nice yourself.”
“Prime!” Yusef was practically bouncing. “So when do we start? The boxing lessons?”
Prime’s attention shifted to Yusef, and his whole demeanor softened. “How about after school tomorrow? I can pick you up, take you to the gym I use.”
“For real?” Yusef’s eyes went wide.
“For real.”
“Yes!” Yusef stuck out his hand for a dap, and Prime met it, pulling him in for a quick shoulder bump that made my son grin so hard I thought his face might crack.
This man was going to ruin me.
“You gonna be good while we’re out?” Prime asked him.
“Yeah. I’m just gonna practice and do homework.”
“Good man.” Prime looked back at me. “You ready?”
No. Not even close. But I nodded anyway.
The restaurant was upscale. The last time I ate at a place like this was when I was living in Cali, back when the job I had placed me around high rollers. But these days, if I ate out, it was at afast food or chain restaurant. This restaurant was one of those expensive places that didn’t even list the prices on the menu.
I felt out of place immediately.
“Prime, this is too much,” I said as the hostess led us to a private corner booth.
“It’s not enough.” He waited for me to slide in, then sat next to me. Close enough that his leg brushed mine under the table. “You deserve this. More than this. Shit, let something good happen to you.”
