“Shit, I’d take a moan right now,” Adrian muttered from the corner, tossing a mini marshmallow in his mouth. “A little whimper, a soft grunt. Hell, Chesteria, breathe on me if you got to…even if it’s ‘Ugh, Adrian, you get on my nerves’. Just say it slow, and I’ll fake the rest.” Adrian sighed and closed his eyes like he was imagining it.
I didn’t even offer him the courtesy of a side-eye.
I turned back to Isis. “Then… you can’t even cook.” I chuckled. “Let’s start there. Girl, I had that man licking curry off my wrist and calling his mama about it!Stop trying to reheat soup you don’t know how to season!”
I paced a half step like I was testifying at the altar.
“You think because he let you come, that means you’re special? He probably just didn’t feel like arguing with your ‘Pick me please’ ass. Half of y’all females swear you're wifey material, but the only ring you know is a smoke detector going off when you’re trying to make toast! You probably can’t even fuck him right! You look like you moan like a cartoon character—‘Oop! Ah! Eee!’Meanwhile, I had that man speaking in tongues. He blacked out one night and told me he saw his future in my thighs. And you think a trip to the mountains gon’ make him forget me?” I scoffed. “Answer this. Does he still close his eyes during sex sometimes?”
I cut my eyes toward Bryce, who was biting his bottom lip, jaw flexing like he rememberedeverything.
“If he does, I wonder who he’s picturing? Girl, I know his demons; you know his vacation playlist. You might’ve gotten a cabin trip, sis, and that’s by atechnicality.But don’t forget, I’m part owner of this muthafucka.”
I let that marinate, then hit her with the rest like I was laying floor tile with my words.
“So technically, you’re a guest in a house I picked, paid for, designed, and made unforgettable just by being in it. Every detail from the heated floors you tiptoe on, to the custom marble you keep wiping your off-brand moisturizer on, screamsme,not you. You walking around in a space my presence made luxurious, like you’re the main character, when hunnie, you’re barely a footnote.”
I gave a faux sweet smile.
“Oh… and it’s lookingrealbad outside, and you’re too many miles away frommattering.And if you don’t know, wolves don’t play nice with visitors. Just something to think about while you’re trying to be funny and shit.”
Isis’s smirk melted quickly. Her eyes darted like she was looking for a lifeline, silently wishing she’d left well enough alone.
I slid my robe on tighter like I was sealing a deal with God.
“Now… it looks like we’ll be spending another day orthreetogether—heaven forbid. So let me advise you,” I leaned in just enough to make her uncomfortable, “Leave. Me. The. Hell. Alone. Now enjoy your little trip while it lasts… because you’ll never get invited back.”
With nothing else to say, I strutted off the way bad bitches exit when they’re officially out of grace, patience, fucks to give, and a single ounce of tolerance.
I’m one of the nicest people anybody could ever meet. So if I’m ever mean to someone, trust me, they earned that shit.
Chapter twenty
Bryce
“She didn’t raise her voice, but she raised my dick and the bar”
Damn.
I watched Chesteria walk off like she didn’t just body the entire moment with a calm, lethal dose of grace and grit. That girl didn’t have to scream, throw hands, or even cuss too hard to get her point across. I wasn’t mad; I was proud… and turned on as hell. That’s why I was still sitting there, stuck, with steam rising all around me. But the real heat? That was between my damn legs. I washard… and not that lazy kind of hard that fades in a few seconds. Nah. That was thataching,can’t-think-straight,need-to-fuck-her-right-nowtype of hard… and it was all her fault.
And that robe didn’t hide a damn thing.
Not her walk… not her shape… and definitely not her power.
I always knew Chesteria wasn’t the one or the two to play with. She gave people space to play themselves, but once they did, she handled it—respectfully reckless.
I rose from the jacuzzi slowly. Isis got out right behind me, clearly still salty.
“You’re just gonna let her talk to me like that?!” she snapped, wrapping a towel around herself. “I know we’re not together, but I’m still a guest you invited! Can I at least get some respect?”
I paused, towel in hand, and looked her dead in the eye. “And she’s my ex… and this is her cabin too. Let’s not forget that.”
Isis’s face cracked just slightly.
“So while you’re sitting here pouting and shit, maybe take a second to ask yourself why she even had to check you. ‘Cause I ain’t blind, and I ain’t dumb. Yeah… y’all both been poking at each other since y’all were introduced—subtle shit, slick shit, fake nice shit. But you initiated that entire readdown. So don’t play that fake victim shit now. You wanted smoke, and she delivered it with a bow. And that wasn’t even her being messy; that was her doing spring cleaning on yo’ ego. So stop dishing shit out that you can’t digest. And don’t ask me to defend no damn disrespect you volunteered for.”
Isis blinked, lips parting like she had something to say—anything to pull back control—but I was done.
