Page 139 of The Ninth

“You don’t even know that man!” I whispered.

As I sat on the couch, Devyn came out of her room. I could tell in her body language she felt bad for me. I ignored her sad gaze as she sat next to me. The smell of vanilla surrounded us, coming off of her smooth skin. She looked beautiful in a tight-fitting, gray body dress. Her sew-in thrown into a claw clip and big ass glasses on her face. She looked more like herself today than she has in the past week.

“What’s the consensus?”

I sighed, “The only reason I’m not running through Chicago like Harley Quinn right now is because it was disrupted. He’ll check my ass, but never really raises his voice unless it’s some shit. Like the birth control or the club. He felt he was doing too much, so he left. All I can do is respect it while hoping for the best. It’s not over until I fucking say it’s over.”

“They’re way too insane for you to be meeting them in the middle.”

I cackled. “Where’s Duke?”

“I haven’t talked to him and don’t plan on it. Fuck him and fuck K3. We need to get out of this apartment. Kenzie called and wanted us to meet her and Tati for lunch.”

My foot bounced as I considered leaving. What’s the point? All I’ma do is go out and be fucking depressed over my nigga. It’ll be a full twenty-four hours soon since he was released, and all we’ve done is argue. My feelings are hurt. I’m just not into it.

However, I gotta be there for my sistas. They would never pop up on me knowing my man is home. We just robbed niggas not even a full two days ago. Damn...was K3 out when I did that? When the fuck did he get out? How? Clearly he knew about the club prior if he ambushed me as soon as he got out.

I shook my head, catching my mind drifting to him instead of them.

“Alright. Give me a second to change and then we out.”

“Yes!”

Just being inside of my room, I couldn’t believe how quickly it went from us to just me. The overwhelming feeling in my chest was there to stay. Ain’t shit I can do about that. But my mind tried to think of every single thing but Kenzo.

I slid on a matching baby blue set. The bottom was a long, tight fitting skirt that did little to hide my shape. A strapless tube top to complete it. After placing K4 back in his crate, I washed my hands, did my make-up, and brushed my teeth. Devyn came into the bathroom with her phone as her and Tati argued about where we would eat. I styled my pretty blonde hair, sprayed my perfume, and we left.

“I’m not kidding, Devyn,” I said as we crossed the lobby. “I told you when you first got here you could have that car when I was done with it. Bitch, I’m overly done with it.”

“And I told you, Cassandra, that I couldn’t accept a gift that nice!”

We stepped outside. Kenzie started blowing kisses to us while Tati blew the horn, making us walk faster. I looked over at Devyn and rolled my eyes. I don’t know how this bitch is going to be with Duke of all men and expect not to have nice things.

As we reached the curb, my phone started to ring. My mind didn’t even register it would be Kenzo as I read his name. It was the same phone he used to FaceTime me in jail. How they let this nigga leave with a phone he didn’t come in with was beyond me.

Me: Hello?

K3: And where you going with them?

I paused.

Me: What?

K3: Can you hear me?

Me: Yeah...

K3: Where you going?

I twirled around, searching everywhere for him.

Me: Kenzo, where the fuck you at?! Why the fuck you keeping up with me and what I’m doing! You left ME!

K3: I left the apartment; I didn’t leave you. You really gon make me ask a third time?

Me: BYE!

I hung up, roughly pushing Devyn inside of the Range Rover. I smacked the back of Tati’s seat like I was in a damn taxi, “Go! Go! Go!”