Page 72 of Full Court Press

“Uh un. Excuse you? Don’t come over here with that bad energy,” the woman she was with said, jerking her neck back like I had the audacity.

I had all the fucking audacity.

“No disrespect, but I’m not talking to you. Why don’t you go find yourself something to do?”

“Oh, you got me⁠—”

“Shina, it’s fine,” the heart wrecker said, cutting her off.

“It’s not. I understand the history, but for you to still be in your feelings after ten years is diabolical.”

I frowned. “Apparently you don’t know shit to be commenting on shit. I suggest you walk away before I have you escorted out of here, which will be in the next three minutes once I’m done with your friend.”

“Shina! Please?” Piper begged.

Shina huffed, snatched her drink from the bar, and walked off.

My eyes went back to Piper. “Get up.”

“Khalil—”

“Now, Piper.” I didn’t wait for a response as I moved toward an exit, into the empty hallway leading toward the back exit. I made sure to close the door once we made it out, then planted my eyes back on the big, beautiful-eyed baddie I fell deeply in love with years ago.

“You got a lot of nerve showing up in my fucking space after all this time, Piper. What the fuck are you doing here?”

“I-I was invited.”

“By who?” I sneered. Yeah, I was still angry, still frustrated, still heartbroken, and still madly in love with her ass. This now full-grown woman snatched my heart at True. I loved her, and she shitted on me by leaving me in the middle of my storm.

I’d tried so hard to get over her, but I never could get her out of my system. I was just great at hiding the shit.

Some would say I shouldn’t be holding on to old shit, but for four years after she left, I mourned her absence.

“You left. You didn’t even have the audacity to face me like a woman and tell me to my face that you were standing on leaving me. You just packed your shit and got the fuck on. Now, you want to show your fucking face after all this time like you didn’t ruin me?”

“Listen, I understand that you’re angry. I was wrong for how I handled it, but this isn’t the time or place for this conversation⁠—”

“You don’t get to make the choice of when or where we have this fucking conversation! You walked out on me when I needed you the most. Do you realize what your presence here is doing to me? I loved you. I wanted forever with you, and you walked out without regard for how the fuck you broke me.”

I could see her eyes misting as she blinked a few times and looked away.

“I’m sorry, Khalil. I am. I didn’t know how to handle everything that happened during our relationship. Everything happened so fast that I felt like if I hadn’t left, things would have only gotten worse.”

“You didn’t have enough confidence in us to believe I would have handled anything that came our way? I married you to prove to you how invested and confident I was in us, and you just said fuck me and my feelings!”

And there was the benediction.

The reason behind my anger.

The secret no one else knew but us.

The truth that tied us together.

The day after I took her to the hotel and purchased her the car, I woke her up with breakfast, slow, soul-stirring sex, and the biggest rock I could find.

I knew I was doing too much too soon, but that was how passionate my love was for her and how confident I was in us.

She protested, of course, but it didn’t take long for her to get on board after I threw on my charm. So, after we showered and dressed, I took her to the courthouse, and we both signed and sealed our love.