Her chest tightened when Relic fished a pair of shades from his pocket to slip on and took a seat in the front row. Kennedy knew the hug he’d given Shabu was bigger and more meaningful than anyone in attendance could truly understand.
“Aye, let me... hold up, hold up! Let me make a toast right quick!”
Kennedy cracked up as Shabu held up his umpteenth drink with an arm around Savvy’s shoulder, sending her body swaying with his each time he wobbled. They’d been turning up for hours on end, and everyone was enjoying themselves with no drama or spats, while the children had left with their grandmothers because Relic paid the adults to babysit once the sun started setting. Jahleel was the only kid there because he begged to stay, and Kennedy caved, although Relic had been hesitant about it.
“How many toasts are you gon’ do, Shabu?” Savvy whined, and he grilled her.
“As many as I fucking want, Whoop. This our shit!”
“Nigga, this is my shit,” Relic corrected from where he sat under Kennedy with an outstretched leg and both hands on her thighs. Shabu fanned him off.
“As I was saying! I want to toast my folks, man. All y’all came through to celebrate us, and we feel the fucking love. Shoutout to Kenn Dog for putting this together at the last minute and thinking about including me. To my bro who—”
“Don’t start yo shit, Shabu.”
“To my fucking big brother!” Shabu shouted anyway, and everyone hooted behind him. Relic pushed his shades up with a sigh as Shabu expressed, “To the nigga who acts like he don’t like nobody. Like muthafuckas don’t love his ass because he be tweaking sometimes. If ain’t nobody else told you, I love you, bro. I ain’t gon’ say too much because I’m fucked up, but I appreciate you. Anybody who don’t gon’ fucking miss yo ass and wish they had when you’re gone.”
Shabu lifted his cup and then chugged his drink, and Savvy stared with worried eyes while Kennedy cut Relic a side glance. Relic sighed and scratched his facial hair.
“That nigga just went dark as hell,” Pierre jumped in to shift the energy. He chuckled and tossed an arm around Treasure’s neck before finishing, “I think what he meant is thank y’all, he loves everybody, and enjoy this shit ‘cause Relic ain’t inviting us over again. Cheers!”
Everyone followed his lead and raised their cups in celebration before finishing their drinks. As soon as they were done, Pierre bopped over to Shabu and pulled him aside while Savvy looked on, and Treasure stood by her sister in silent support. The rest of their family members seemed oblivious to Shabu’s concerning speech and went back to their card games, eating, and chatting like nothing had gone down. Kennedy angled in Relic’s lap to see his face, but she couldn’t gauge where his head was behind his shades.
“You want to go talk to him?”
“No.”
“Do you wish you hadn’t told him?”
“I’ve wished that since the shit left my mouth,” Relic replied, brushing a hand over his waves. His head turned in the direction Shabu and Pierre had walked off before he told her, “Go ear hustle to make sure the nigga ain’t crying like a bitch to P.”
“Relic!” She punched his chest as he chuckled. “His feelings are hurt.”
“You don’t think I know that?”
“Then, go talk to him! I’m about to go inside and peek at Jah. He hasn’t come out to be nosey in the last thirty or so minutes. That’s not like him.”
“He’s probably on that damn game, but go ‘head.”
He tapped her thigh, and she stood before holding a hand out for him. Relic grunted his annoyance but took it to lumber to his feet, knowing she wasn’t going to let it go until he went to check on Shabu.
Once Kennedy watched him trudge on the right path, she went in the opposite direction, passing where Tekken and Toot were at the edge of the pool, dangling their feet in the rose petal water. Los chucked his chin, and she shot him a middle finger, making him laugh from the table he was playing Spades at with Tima, Calm, and Nubia. The music blaring from the speakers outside decreased as she entered the house and made her way upstairs to Jahleel’s door that she pushed open. A smile formed at seeing him sprawled across his bed, asleep.
Kennedy slipped inside to turn off his television, and removed the game controller from his hand to place on his stand, before dipping out to trek toward Relic’s room next. She plopped onto the bed as soon as she stepped inside. A relieved sigh seeped from her as she took off her heels and laid back, resting her eyes for a moment while she had the small chance to do so. She wasn’t sure how long they were closed before a woodsy scent mingled with saffron swept into the room, cocooning her while causing a light throb in her center.
“How long are you going to stand there like a creep, Relic?” she asked after a minute or so of silence.
“I’m just enjoying the view. Is that alright with you?”
“If enjoying the view isn’t gon’ lead to me enjoying you, go away. I’m tired.”
As if he were waiting for the offer, the door shut and lock clicked, making her slowly peel open her eyes. Relic didn’t waste a second trekking over to the bed as his hand fumbled with his pants to undo and shove down.
Kennedy sat up, scooting toward the edge of the bed to meet him as her heart sped and matched the throbbing of her swelling clit at the sight of his dick springing loose. The mere thought of tasting him, or feeling him inside her, caused her hand to tremble as she gripped his thick shaft with a hard squeeze. Relic palmed her head and let out a moan that made her walls clench as she bent to inhale him into her mouth.
“Shit, Larenn,” he grumbled, jutting his hips to fuck her face as she went straight to work.
Her body was crooked and angled awkward, but she didn’t give a damn as she threw her neck, fisted the base of his shaft, and sloshed her spit around to trap his dick in a tsunami grip. Kennedy swore they were in a duel of who could work the hardest because his hips slammed into her face just as swiftly as she sucked his hard-on to the back of her throat. She choked and gagged but never lost her flow. His protruding veins throbbed against her tongue like he was nearing his release the fastest that she had ever gotten him there. She palmed his stomach and glided her soaked lips to and fro on his length, moaning when his fingernails incised her scalp before he emitted a husky groan while his dick twitched inside her mouth.
