We fell into a comfortable silence. I couldn’t help but look up and admire the starry night sky. “I love sitting out here,” I admitted softly. I didn’t know what made me share that with him, but I did, and it was like once I started talking, I couldn’t stop. “My granny used to have a house with a huge wraparound porch. Plenty of land too. I always told myself, when I got older, I would have a porch just like that so I could sit in a rocking chair admiring the sky, just like her. Back then, I didn’t understand why she did it . . .” I glanced at Port to find him silently watching me. He was leaning back in his seat with his hands resting on his stomach. “I get it now though.”
He gave me a sad smile. “When I was locked up, I missed the outside the most. The sun, the moon, the stars, the wind. Ihaven’t been able to enjoy fresh air like this in a long time.” He chuckled dryly. “I can’t lie; this is not how I imagined my first day out would be.”
Leaning forward, I placed a hand on top of his knee. “I’m sorry,” I whispered sincerely.
“What for? You didn’t do anything.”
I shrugged as I returned to sitting up. “I know, but I can tell something happened that tainted what should’ve been a joyous occasion.”
He pinned me in place with an expression I couldn’t read. I held my breath, waiting for him to say something. Instead, he reached for the liquor bottle to pour himself another shot. I passed him my glass to match his, and we toasted a second time. I only had about two more of these shots before I would be barreling toward intoxicated.
“Star was playing me,” he whispered after a beat. My eyes found his, and I could see the pain he was in. It broke my heart to see the sorrow within the depths of his eyes. “Like lied about me having a son, type of played me. Been fucking on some other nigga and currently pregnant by him for a second time. Apparently, Sterling is a junior.”
He shook his head, releasing a dead laugh before allowing his head to fall backward. “I mean, I’m a realist, so I figured over the years it was likely she was doing her own thing, but this shit . . . I never would’ve guessed. She broke my fucking heart, El.”
Hearing the crack in his voice made tears sprout to my lash lines. I nibbled on my bottom lip because what could I say to that? What Star had done was wrong. I could still hear how excited he was to meet his son earlier today. She’d taken something special from him, and for no reason at all. She allowed him to believe her lie for seven years; that was unforgivable on so many levels.
“You didn’t deserve that, Port. She is trifflin’ as fuck, and if you want, I will go stomp that ho out when she delivers her next baby.”
Perfect burst out laughing, and a wave of relief washed over me as I joined him. “Calm down, Claressa Shields.” He shook his head and blew out a shaky breath. “She ain’t worth it. At least she gave me something to look forward to while I was locked down.” I could tell he was trying to find a silver lining in the situation, which made me empathize with him even more. Perfect was a little rough around the edges, but he was a good man.
“So, what now?” I wondered.
He sighed with a shrug. “I don’t know yet, but I’ll figure it out. One thing I do know is going back to the Northside is not an option.” He glanced at me with a stern expression. “Don’t worry about me, Princess. I’ma be good.”
I picked up the cognac and began to pour myself another shot. As soon as I sat it down, he scooped it up to pour himself one too. “Fuck, Star!” I yelled.
He blessed me with another hearty chuckle. “Yo’ ass goofy as hell, but yeah. Fuck that ho.”
I smiled as we tossed the shots back, skipping over the part where we clinked glasses.
“You want to listen to some music?” He shrugged, so I went to grab my phone. I came back and put it on a playlist that played in the background while we poured up again.
When “Rare Film” by K Camp came on, I hopped up and started winding my hips. “I love this song,” I admitted jovially. I kind of forgot all about Port while I got lost in the beat and rapped along with Float.
Out of nowhere, Perfect said, “I’m feeling way too easy for you to be doing all of that in front of me.”
I glanced at him over my shoulder but never slowed my movements. “Join me then,” I suggested with a wink. He only eyed me for a second longer before I felt his big, warm hands sliding over my stomach. Goosebumps immediately sprouted all over the surface of my skin. I released a shaky breath, ignoring the spark I felt in my core when Port nuzzled his face in my neck. “Let’s make a movie,” I sang freely.
We swayed to the beat as it mixed into another K Camp song called “ARI.” It had a beat I found myself bouncing my ass to. When I bent over in front of Perfect, his hands went to my waist, and I was sure I creamed a little when I felt something firm and lengthy against me. I yelped when he slapped me on the ass, leaving fire in the wake of his assault.
“If I’m doing too much, just tell me,” he slurred. “But I’d be lying if I said you don’t look good as fuck right now.”
I giggled then spun around to face him. “And what if I said you weren’t doing enough?”
He smirked, pushing my hair from my face. “Then I’d have to fix that.”
I licked my lips as my head tilted to the side. I admired his handsome face and allowed the liquid courage to kick me off the ledge where logic resided. Right now, all I wanted was to find out if his lips were as soft as they looked. His intense eyes with the long lashes didn’t make it any easier.
“Please do.”
In a swift motion, he bent down to grab my phone, then hiked me up around his waist. He carried me into the house as if I weighed nothing.
“Which way to your bedroom, Princess?”
“At the end of the hall,” I replied giddily. I loved being hoisted around his waist and carried in his strong arms.
He kicked my door closed, then tossed me on my bed. We watched each other as we stripped out of our clothes. I drooledwhen I saw how ripped his midsection was. He clearly used his time in prison to work out because everywhere I looked was a bulge that made me tingle in places usually offline.
