“If you’re about to give me the same excuses?—”
“I’m not, but we need to have a serious conversation first.”
“I’ll be over tonight.”
She shook her head. “No. Come tomorrow.”
“Why can’t?—”
“Russell, please. I need time to figure a few things out. Come tomorrow.”
“This better not have anything to do with that nigga because I’ll tell his ass when?—”
“It’s not about him. It’s personal. Come tomorrow at noon.”
“Okay.”
I kissed her forehead, and with her legs still wrapped around my waist, I carried her to my desk before easing out of her and rushing to my drawer to retrieve the wet wipes I kept there for this reason. I pulled several from the package and handed them to her.
After we quietly cleaned ourselves up, Rose realized she didn’t have any panties.
“Am I supposed to walk around here for the rest of the night pantiless with your cum dripping down my legs?”
I chuckled. “I can take you home right now if you want.”
“That’s not helpful.”
I shrugged. “If you want, I could eat your pussy clean, but that wouldn’t do anything but make it wetter.”
“Sounds delightful, but I’ll pass. Can you wait a few minutes before you come back to the gym? I don’t want to have to explain anything.”
“I better not catch you explaining shit to that nigga. Fuck him.”
“Russ, can we just get through the gala without you doing something to ruin it?”
“I’ll be cool.”
I pulled her into my arms and kissed her lips. I couldn’t express how much I’d missed something as simple as this over the past year. Having her in my arms again fed my soul in ways no one would understand.
I released her and watched as she left my office and disappeared around the corner. A few minutes ticked by, and I left my office and returned to the gym. My eyes found Rose immediately near our table, talking to her date.
I watched their mannerisms to ensure everything was cool, and they seemed to be, so I searched for Gayle. It took me a moment to find her on the dance floor, dancing with some random nigga I didn’t know. I didn’t care, so I let her do her thing and returned to our table.
“I’m not feeling well, so Preston is taking me home,” I heard Rose say, and I couldn’t hide my smirk.
“Do you think it was the food?” Rue asked.
“I’m not sure, but it’s probably best that I leave.”
She said her goodbyes, hugging everyone except me. When she tried to walk past me, I grabbed her arm. She looked at me nervously with wide eyes.
“I don’t get a hug?” I asked.
Before she could react, I pulled her into my arms. Preston stood behind her, and while we embraced, I looked dead in his eyes as I rubbed her back, letting one of my hands fall casually to her ass.
She tried to push away when she felt my hand, but I held onto her tighter and dared her or her weak ass date to do or say something. I released her when I got good and damn ready, kissing her neck before she walked away.
“That was disrespectful as hell, nigga, but you got it,” Preston said as he walked away.
