Page 22 of It’s The Dawg In Him For Me

He shifted his weight slightly, one hand brushing down the front of his shirt like he was buying himself a second to think. “You keep sayin’ that like you caught me doin’ somethin’ crazy, ma.”

“I did,” I said, cutting in quick. “You just don’t think it’s crazy.”

That made him pause for a second.

Just a second.

But I peeped that shit.

He tilted his head a lil’, eyes narrowing just enough to show he was starting to take me serious. “So you mad ‘cause I was out?”

“I'm not mad,” I corrected, my tone flattening. “Don’t confuse me checkin’ you with me bein’ in my feelings. That’s two different things.”

He watched me closely after that, like he was trying to figure out where the emotions were at, trying to see if I was bluffing or if I really meant everything I said.

“I asked you on a date,” he said, a lil’ slower. “That don’t mean I don’t have a life outside of that.”

“And I got standards,” I replied right over him. “That don’t change ‘cause you want to talk like you have some game and have a rack of bitches.”

A faint smirk tugged at his mouth, but it wasn’t as confident as before. “So that’s what this is? You think I'm all talk?”

“I don’t just think,” I said. “I observe.”

That wiped the smirk clean off his face.

For a moment, neither one of us said anything. He acted like he couldn’t just take his L and go.

“You seen me out with somebody,” he said again like I wasn’t there. “But you don’t even know the situation.”

“And I don’t need or want to,” I shot back. “That’s the point you keep missin’.”

He let out a small laugh, shaking his head. “Nah, you need to hear it. Stop bein’ difficult.”

“I don’t need to hear a damn thing,” I said again. “You asked me out, then turned around and was out with somebody else. For all I know, it could have been your girl. I don’t care what label you put on it. That’s not how you come at me.”

His jaw tightened just a lil’, but he nodded like he was taking it in instead of fighting it.

“Iight,” he said. “So if I would’ve told you that I had somethin’ lined up already, that would have made it better?”

“No,” I answered instantly. “It would have let me know not to take you seriously from the jump.”

That made him go quiet again, but this time, he looked like he was thinking of something.

He ran his hand ova his chin, eyes still on me, but deeper now. Less cocky, more locked in.

“You got it set in your head already,” he said.

“I got it set off what you showed me,” I corrected.

He exhaled again, longer this time, then stepped a lil’ closer, not enough to crowd me, but enough to test the space between us.

“And what if I tell you I'm still tryin’ to take you out?” he asked.

I didn’t move, didn’t lean back, and just looked at him.

“That would be your problem,” I said.

His brow pulled together slightly. “How is that my problem?”