Page 14

He held his hand out, but all I could picture in my head was me bendin’ this nigga’s fingers back.

“Vipers gon’ have to hold that L forever. Congrats on signing with the Blackhawks.”

I shook his hand, then looked back at Juicy. “Yeah, man. ’Preciate it. This my girl, Niema. Niema, Savannah.”

“Nice to meet you. Your dress is gorgeous,” Ni said, shakin’ Savannah’s hand.

“Thank you,” Savannah said, leanin’ into Emery. “You are stunning tonight. That shade of green is beautiful on you.”

“Juvie picked it out. He did good,” Ni replied, smilin’ and holdin’ onto me.

Somebody called Emery from across the room, and he whispered in Juicy’s ear, makin’ her blush.

It made my fuckin’ stomach turn.

“It was good seeing you, Juvie,” Savannah said. “And so nice to meet you, Niema. Welcome to the DMV. I’ll call you, Dice.”

They walked off, then Dice dapped me, leavin’ me there with Ni. She tugged on my arm, pullin’ my attention back to her. She looked at me wit’ the same jealousy I felt seein’ Juicy wit’ another man.

“The infamous Juicy. She’s even more beautiful in person. You have exceptional taste, Juvie.”

“What? You jealous?” I spat.

“Aht, aht,” she purred, wrappin’ her arms around my neck. “You and I both know I could never be jealous. But even if I were… You can’t have that right now. Wouldn’t want a scandal on our hands, right?”

That was bullshit. Ni was jealous as fuck. The way she was standin’ in front of me, fingers lingerin’ around the base of my neck; puttin’ on a show. But she knew better. She wouldn’t let her feelings get in the way of business.

“Can’t have her?” I repeated, pressin’ a kiss just below her ear. “You mufuckas don’t own every fuckin’ thing I want. Chill out. You showin’ yourself.”

She grabbed my face, pecked my lips, then smiled. “Oh, but we do, JuMarion.”

I wanted to shake the shit outta this bitch in front of everybody. Instead, I gripped her waist tight enough for her to know I wasn’t in the fuckin’ mood. Her eyes bucked, and she tried to pry my fingers off. I just pulled her closer, squeezin’ her tighter.

“Smile for the fuckin’ cameras, Niema. You know people watchin’ and shit. I’d hate to fuck up yo’ image,” I whispered against her lips.

I knew it was gettin’ harder for her to breathe by how shallow her breaths were, so I pulled back. She gasped but didn’t step out of my arms. That fake ass smile was back, but the fear behind her eyes was enough for me. I grabbed her hand and led her to our assigned table. At the table, I pulled out her chair. When she sat down, she wouldn’t even make eye contact wit’ me. That was cool. I ain’t want her to say shit else for the rest of the night.

A waiter came by wit’ a tray of champagne, and Ni took two. She guzzled the first one, then pushed the other in front of me.

“Ion want that shit.”

She finally looked at me wit’ glossy eyes. “Are you going to act like this for the rest of the night?”

I cocked my head and smiled. “All you had to do was watch yo’ fuckin’ mouth. Now, look. You bouta cry and shit. Don’t do that wit’ all these people in here. Ion give a fuck, but yo’ daddy will.”

Her eyes sharpened, nostrils flared, and tears sat right there. I knew that ain’t have shit to do wit’ me grippin’ her ass up. Ni’s feelings were hurt. She hated when I reminded her that all this control she thought she had came wit’ limits.

Juicy bein’ here really had her beside herself. I’d fucked other bitches over the years, and Ni never acted like she cared. But she knew how I felt about Juicy. She knew it was certain shit of hers I kept. Tattoos I never covered, and places nobody could reach but her. Ni wanted somethin’ she could never get from me.

From the corner of my eye, I saw a photographer makin’ his rounds. I dragged Ni into my lap, and her arms fell around my neck.

“I didn’t mean…” she whispered.

I cut her off. “Here comes a camera… Fix yo’ face.”

By the time the camera reached us, Ni had that smile back like the last five minutes never happened. That shit amazed me. Tears one second, picture perfect the next. What fucked me up the most was how good I was at makin’ this whole thing believable. Ni kissed me at all the right angles and smiled real pretty when people walked by. She flashed that ring, knowin’ we would never make it down the aisle. I fed right into that shit. Laughin’ at these niggas’ dry ass jokes. Takin’ pictures wit’ all the right people.

We made three laps around the room before I couldn’t take no more. Ni ran into some bitches she knew. I fucked at least three of them, and she was standin’ over there, bein’ fake as hell. I dipped off into the hallway and leaned against the wall, loosening my tie. My face hurt from smilin’. The whole night felt like one long ass commercial for a life I ain’t even ask for.