Page 68 of When I Thug You Like That

“I ain’t tryna be.”

“Mmhmm. I can’t wait to tell Taina about how I left the house for pizza and somehow ended up sitting across from you like we’re on a date.”

His brows lifted. “Oh, so this feels like a date to you?”

“That’s not what I said.” I quickly tried to correct myself, but the words had already come out.

He laughed, leaning back in his seat. “Nah, don’t try to clean it up now.”

“I’m not. This is not a date.”

“You’re right. It’s the prelude to one. When I take you on a date, you gon’ know exactly what it is.”

My stomach did that little flip again, making me reach for the last of my water. Drinking it down to recover, I sat the empty bottle on my plate.

“I think it’s crazy that you just make plans with people time without consulting them.”

“What can I say? I’m a forward thinker.”

“Yeah. It’s time to go.”

It was time to end this little outing before he said something else to make me laugh and feel something in the pit of my stomach. I stood, and he followed. Pulling my phone from my back pocket, I noticed how much time had passed since we walked into the pizza shop, an hour and a half to be exact, and I hadn’t checked my phone once. With Jay behind me, we walked outside.

The temperature had dropped a little since we’d been inside, and the second the wind blew too hard, I pulled my cardigan tighter with a slight shiver.

“You cold?” he asked from beside me.

“I’m good.”

“That doesn’t answer the question I asked.”

“I’m good, Daddy,” I replied jokingly before considering who I was talking to.

Stopping short, I turned to him. The grin on his face was as wide as the block from end to end.

“I didn’t me...”

He cut me off. “Mean to say that out loud?”

“It was a joke.”

“I caught it. Trust me. Come on.” He started walking again.

We continued down the block, and this time, I stayed silent. There was no telling what else I’d let slip all because I was comfortable. I paid attention to how he made sure to walk closest to the street without making it known that it was something he was doing. As we walked, I thought to myself why I was noticing little things that I’d normally notice on a damn date when I wasn’t on a damn date. Furthermore, why was I starting to feel a little sadness as we got closer to my building? Like I didn’t want the night to end.

“Remember the line, Jai’ana. The line you drew,” I muttered to myself.

“You aight?” he asked once we made it to the front entrance.

“Yeah. I’m good. Thanks for the company and paying.”

“Anytime. And you ain’t gotta thank me for that. It’ll always be on me.”

My eyes narrowed before breaking out in a smile. “I can’t take you. Goodnight, Mr. Sullivan.”

“Glad I ain’t open my arms for a hug. I would’ve looked crazy as hell.”

I giggled. “You want a hug?”