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She blew out a breath and then nodded. “Yeah, but Gino? I’m trusting you. Please . . . just don’t hurt me.”

I nodded. “Never in a million years. You gonna be okay until I see you again? This will all be over in just a few hours.”

She offered me a small smile. “I’ll be fine.”

“Text me what you want for breakfast. I’ll pick it up on the way into the office.”

Her eyes lit up. I loved that when she felt good, her appetite was out of this world. Baby could eat, and I appreciated that about her. I also hated that her disease kept her from being a true big back at heart because her appetite really came in waves.

“Okay.”

I pinched her chin. “See you in a few.”

“See you in a few.”

I had to quickly exit the room because her soft tone and pretty eyes were enough to make me have the DA and the police handle the shit, but I refrained. I’d worked for over a year to make this day come to fruition. I needed to make sure it went on without a hitch so I could get the fuck on with my life.

I couldn’t keep my attitude or lack of patience under control for the life of me. As soon as I entered the home I had built for Aniya when we got married, a mug appeared on my face. It made me happy as hell that this would be the last time I ever had to come up in this bitch.

Over the past few months, I had slowly taken all the most important items to me to a condo Downtown Desmore Bay. All that was left were clothes I didn’t care about. My closet at my new place was already stocked, and tonight would be the first time I lay my head down there. As soon as the dust settled, this house would be put up on the market and sold to the highest bidder.

At that thought, I had a bit of a pep in my step as I made my way up the stairs and toward the master bedroom. Inside, Aniya walked around, still getting ready. That caused my irritation to flare.

“Don’t you gotta be to work in thirty minutes?”

She jumped and turned toward me, wearing only a bra and panties. “Shit, you scared me, G. You’re just now getting home?”

Her hand found her hip, and she looked at me with squinted eyes. Her ass was so far gone. There had been a time where she would blow my phone up if I was out running the streets all night, thinking I was up under a woman. I used to think that shit was cute. I thought it meant she cared. Now, I saw it for what it was. Shorty was so insecure, and it was sad because she had no reason to be. She was gorgeous, but her personality and mindset made her so ugly to me. I couldn’t believe I never saw it before.

It seemed like now that she had taken to setting me up, she didn’t care if I came home or not. I’d slept in one of the guest rooms for the past year, and she didn’t seem to even notice. If she did, she definitely didn’t care. It felt ironic that today, of all days, she decided to question me on where I had been.

I eyed her for a second before I responded. “Yeah.”

“Where the hell were you?”

“Out. Go ’head and finish gettin’ ready. I’ll drive you to work.”

Her brows rose. “Since when do you drive me to work?”

I frowned at her. “You act like I ain’t do that shit all the time when I first got you the company.”

I’d only stopped a year ago. Again, she didn’t seem to notice until this very moment.

She eyed me as if she was suspicious. I really didn’t give a fuck. Either way, she was going to get into the damn car with me.

Finally, her shoulder relaxed, and she smiled as she walked toward me. “You’re right. We really haven’t spent much time together lately. Maybe I can take a day off, and we can hang out instead?”

I shook my head. Over my dead body.

“I got some shit to handle today. A lot goin’ on.”

Her eyes sparkled with interest. “Oh yeah? Anything you want to talk about?”

There had been a time when I would lay all my street bullshit at her feet. She had been my safe space, or so I thought.

Her hands found my chest as she looked up at me. My jaw clenched before I shook my head. “Nah, it’s all good. Get ready. I got a tight schedule, but I ain’t really seen you, so I thought I could at least spend some time wit’ you on the way to work, and then I can pick you up after. Maybe do dinner or somethin’.”

The lie rolled off my tongue so easily. I wanted to spit on the ground at her feet because the taste of the words were so vile, but I held it together.