His lips pressed together in a tight line. He gave a simple nod, then walked off. I cursed under my breath before ripping open the door and storming out. I’d only made it to the bottom of the porch before Grai was running out onto the porch, out of breath.
“You’re leaving? I cooked dinner for you.”
I paused my retreat and sighed. There was nothing I wanted more in this world than to go back into that house, sit down, and have dinner with her and my boys. But she’d fucked up my head, and now I was questioning everything. I needed space to recalibrate to life in the friend zone because apparently that was where she loved for me to be.
“Yeah, I need to get some air. Don’t wait up,” I answered honestly.
I barely made it a step before she was hurtling down the steps to block my exit. “No, talk to me. What’s wrong? It’s a great day. We’re supposed to be celebrating, and you’re leaving! Why?”
I shook my head and figured since she wanted to talk, then we should. “It was a good day until I realized you’re planning a life without me.”
Her eyebrows dipped, and she froze. “What are you talking about?”
“Looking for a job and a place to stay . . . I obviously haven’t been clear enough with you, but I want you, Grai. You telling me you planning all this shit sounds too much like shutting me out and moving on like you don’t know deep down in your soul that you belong to me.” I didn’t even intend to close the distance between us, but I was pissed off. “When I told you to let me take care of you, I always meant for the rest of your life.” I shook my head and dropped my chin to my chest. “I can’t handle seeing you with another nigga who doesn’t deserve to even breathe the same air as you, Bubbles.”
Grai palmed my cheek. “Don’t leave, Lyrix.” She looked so innocent when she nibbled on her bottom lip. “I promise I was only doing those things because I was afraid of you waking up one day and truly seeing us as burdens. I felt like I needed independence.”
I leaned into her hand, feeling my heart rate finally begin to slow down. “I don’t need you to think for me, Grai. I love you and my boys. When I said y’all could never be burdens, I fucking meant that. I want you here forever.”
“You sure? There’s no coming back from this. We can never go back to what we used to be.”
I smiled and dug my fingers into her curly hair. I tilted her head back a little so I could have the perfect view of her beauty. “Good, because once I felt you, I knew there was no going back for me. I never want to go back to pretending you’re notwho I want. I never want to go back to restraining myself from showering you in the affection you deserve. I never want to go back to just your friend.”
All she could do was nod because I pressed my lips into hers. She parted her lips to allow my tongue access to her mouth, and I had to have her. Pulling my keys from my pocket, I unlocked the doors, then opened the back one. I forced her into the back seat. I sat beside her and paused to allow her one more chance to halt the trajectory of what came next between us.
“If you want to be with me, then you need to tell me, Grai. I can’t be your temporary nigga until you feel like someone better comes along, because I’m telling you now, there ain’t a nigga out there better than me for you.”
Slowly, she turned her head to look at me. I wished I could turn the expression on her face into poetry. Her doe eyes were bright with tears. “Lyrix, you’re my forever nigga, literally the only one I want to do life with.” The longing in her eyes had me ready to drop to my knees to serve her, to fill that void no other man could because it fucking belonged to me. I was the ruler of her nation, and it was time she allowed me to take my rightful place.
I chuckled. “Prove it then.”
Nothing else needed to be said. I dug my fingers in her hair and yanked her pretty ass to me. Our lips collided in a beautiful symphony that calmed the raging waters of my soul. I was finally at peace. This was where I belonged. I inhaled her essence, then pulled her until she was on my lap.
I massaged her ass cheeks, allowing her to suck on my tongue. Because of the dress she was wearing, I had easy access to her wet pussy. I slid my fingers over her slippery folds, making her moan so beautifully. My toes curled in anticipation. She pulled my dick from my basketball shorts and sank on it. In tandem, we sighed in relief.
“Fuck, you feel so good, Bubbles,” I admitted through a moan.
“So do you,” she cried. My arms wrapped around her waist until she was anchored to my chest. I loved the feel of her nipples sliding up and down my chest while I lifted my pelvis to fuck her from underneath. She began to moan, and it sounded like the chorus to the beat her clapping ass cheeks made against my thighs. When she began to wind her hips, I started to lose control of my body. “I love you, Lyrix. I love you so fucking much.”
Her confession was euphoric. Her pussy wrapped around me was crack. She could say anything right now, and I’d bust inside of her. I slapped her on the ass. “You ready to let me in, Grai? You done running from what we both know is right? Is it me, you, and our boys until the fucking end?”
I continued to drill her while trying to hold onto my sanity. I felt her tightening around me, making me release her to suck on her neck. Every time she moaned, I swear her pussy got wetter. “Yes, oh my god, yessssssssss! You can have all of me, Poppa.”
I smiled, loving her sultry voice telling me exactly what I wanted to hear. “Cum for then, Bubbles. Mark your territory with your sweet pussy.”
Thunder shook the truck seconds before rain began to splatter on the windshield. Grai held onto my shoulders, tossed her head back, and allowed herself to succumb to the pleasure. I loved the faces she made when she came. She was her most vulnerable, and I didn’t take that for granted. This was all I ever wanted.
I joined her on the other side of ecstasy. Her lips found mine, and we shared a passionate kiss that left us both even more breathless. I leaned back, and she fell on my chest. Her hair was sprawled everywhere, but I didn’t mind. I smoothed it out of the way and placed a kiss on her third eye. I smiled when I heard her snoring lightly while wrapped around me like she never wantedto let go. It was cool with me because I wasn’t letting her ass go either.
Chapter 18
Grai
The soft glow of the rising sun caused my eyes to weakly flutter open. I rolled onto my side, slamming one of my pillows over my head. I’d meant to close the blinds, and now I was up earlier than I intended to be after the beating Lyrix put on my body last night.
After that quickie in the truck, he’d woken me so we could go inside to eat dinner. When he got the boys into bed for the night, he took me to my room and had his way with me. He’d folded me in so many positions to stretch me out or taste me. By the time I fell asleep, my body was completely limp and satisfied.
I started to drift back to sleep when the door was pushed open, and I heard the light sound of feet pattering across the floor. “Mommy, Mommy! Look what Poppa gave me!” Loh said excitedly. He climbed onto the bed and fell on top of me.
