Hey, book bae! Here’s a look into Love’s Battleground before it goes live April 1st!
Unedited, Explicit
“I got ‘er,” came from behind her as the arm placed a Faygo and bag of Rap Snacks next to her things.
“Yes, sir, Kawan. What else can I get you?”
“Two Swishers.”
Amalia looked back, frozen at the sight of Kawan. He looked down at her and smiled with the left side of his mouth.
“Wha’chu doin’ out this way?” Kawan asked, pulling her from the trance he’d had her in to look down and grab his wallet out of his pocket.
“Um, I had to drop someone off. What makes you think I don’t live out here?”
He chuckled quietly. “You couldn’t, not acting the way you do.”
His accusation replaced her shyness with a challenge that had her putting her hand on her hip as she turned more in his direction. “And how do I act?”
There was still a comfortable smile on his face as he handed the cashier a twenty-dollar bill. “Like you sheltered as fuck.”
Amalia scoffed, but she couldn’t deny it. She was sheltered—as fuck. Deciding not to go back and forth with him, she pulled a ten dollar bill out of her pocket to hand it to him, but he denied it.
“I can pay for my own things, Kawan.”
“I know,” was all he said before waving his change off from the cashier.
As he grabbed both their bags the cashier asked, “Hey, Kawan, can I talk to you about something real quick?”
“Yeah, that’s cool.” Kawan handed Amalia her bag and told her, “Don’t go outside without me.” She nodded, jerking the bag slightly when he didn’t release it. “Do I need to keep this to make sure you stick around?”
With a smile, her head shook softly. She didn’t want to tell him she wasn’t going to stick around either way nor did she want to lie, so she remained silent.
Once she was sure he was listening to what the cashier was talking about, she slowly backed back toward the door. The moment she stepped outside she regretted it.
“Aye, miss lady,” the man in the black shirt called, grabbing her wrist. “I was trying to get your attention before you went in the store.”
She shimmied softly, trying to remove herself from his grip. But she regretted it when, “Damn, she got a fat ass too,” came from behind her.
“Oh word?” a third man asked, stepping closer and looking behind her.
“Damn. She sho’ do,” the fourth stated, rubbing his hands together as he stared at her ass.
The door opened, and she could have burst into tears with gratitude at the sight of Kawan. With no words, all it took was a look and tilt of his head for the men to back away from her. They scattered quickly, causing Amalia to wonder just who in the hell Kawan was and why his presence was able to evoke such fear.
“Didn’t I tell you not to come out here without me?” he questioned, closing the space between them.
He was a few inches taller than her, forcing her to tilt her head to look up at him. “I—I… thank you.”
His anger dissolved as his eyebrows and shoulders relaxed. “It’s cool. You in the Wagon?” Amalia nodded. Kawan licked his lips and looked around before walking her to her SUV. He opened the door for her as he asked, “How far you stay?”
“Like thirty minutes away. I’ll be fine though.”
Kawan considered her statement for a few seconds before nodding in agreement. “I’ma follow you out of the neighborhood just to be safe.”
“Okay, thank you.” Before he could close her door, she asked, “Um… are you… will you be at Kacy’s Saturday?”
“Nah. I just went last weekend because my sister wanted to go.”
Amalia let a few seconds pass before she said, “I’ll be there.”
Kawan smiled. “You saying you a reason for me to go?”
Realizing how bold her statement sounded, Amalia adamantly shook her head.
“Oh. No. Not at all. I was just saying because you wanted to hear my poem. I think I might do it this weekend. Since I’ll have time to mentally prepare.”
“I might come through. If I do, you better be worth it.”
Amalia’s grin caught her by surprise. “I always am.”
She closed the door quickly, refusing to believe she was flirting… with him of all people. Instead of pulling right off, she watched him go to his purple old school whip and get inside. Rolling the window down and blasting a rap song Amalia had never heard in her life, Kawan reversed and motioned for her to do the same with his hand out of the car. Amalia wasn’t exactly sure what it was about Kawan that was so attractive to her.
Sure, he was fine, but she’d come across attractive men all the time. But there was something different about him. Something that made her want him. And Amalia was sure she was crazy… but it seemed like he wanted her too.
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Are you ready for more of these two? I hope so! Let me know in a comment below!