Page 34 of Session 33
When I pulled up to the club, the line was long as hell, and finding parking was a headache. For a second, I thought about turning around and going home, but the thirty-dollar valet and seventy-five-dollar VIP entrance called my name.
Walking straight to the front of the line was a rush. Men kept trying to stop me, throwing compliments and lame pickup lines, while women gave me the kind of side-eyes that could cut glass. I’d never been the type to threaten another woman’s confidence before, but tonight? Tonight was different.
The three hundred-pound, dark-as-night bouncer waved me in for free.
As soon as I stepped inside, Rihanna’s “Turn Up the Music” blasted through the speakers.
“Turn it up, turn up!”
And that was exactly what I planned to do, right after I got a few drinks in me.
Chapter twenty six
I was ducked off in the shadows, watching Angel from the second floor of the club. I’d been watching her for the last fifteen minutes, dancing up on some random guy—or at least, who Ithoughtwas some random guy. The dress she had on was riding up her thighs.
I guess the look on my face alerted Jonas to the fact I was no longer focused. He looked at me, then walked over to the balcony and peered down at the dance floor. He cursed, then glanced back at me. Then I watched him look around, probably for his wife. Her and Angel were thick as thieves these days, so it was rare that one went somewhere without the other.
“She ain’t here,” I shouted loud enough for him to hear.
He nodded, then walked off, pulling out his cell phone. I stood there, watching my girl let some motherfucker grind all up on her ass, his hand on her waist, and I felt enraged, disrespected, and agitated—to the point of wanting to lay hands on both their asses. But I stayed put because to expose her would expose me.
Keisha was behind me, sitting on the sofa ten feet away. Her girl messing with Silas caused us to end up in the same places sometimes. I hadn’t told Angel about being in proximity to her so often because I didn’t want to hear her mouth. It wasn’tlike I was fucking her. But it wasn’t like she hadn’t tried. She practically begged for the dick every time I saw her.
My eyes wandered from Angel back to Jonas, and he was smiling into the phone. I assumed it was because Naomi was at home where she was supposed to be.
Silas had disappeared off somewhere.
Jonas walked over and stood next to me. “You gonna say something to her?” he asked, shoving my shoulder.
I ran my tongue across my teeth, then gritted them. “No.”
I wasn’t about to say shit to her and give her the chance to turn everything around on me. But then I glanced back—and that’s when I saw it. Angel’s dress was hiked up, her panties on full display.
That was it. I saw red.
Before I could stop myself or remember why I shouldn’t, my feet were already moving. I rushed toward the stairs, taking them two at a time, the pounding in my chest matching my pace.
Behind me, I could hear Jonas calling after me, but I didn’t stop.
By the time I pushed through the crowd, I no longer saw her in the spot she had been dancing in, but I thought I caught a glimpse of her head bobbing toward the exit. My heart pounded as I tried to catch up with her, but I kept getting blocked by people—bodies bumping into me, drinks sloshing everywhere.
"Move, man," I muttered under my breath, shoving past a couple making out in the middle of the floor. My jaw tightened with every second I lost.
Finally, I made it out of the club, the cold air slapping me in the face. That’s when I saw it—the bouncer cradling Angel like ababy, her arms lazily draped around his neck. Her head lolled to the side, a goofy, drunken smile plastered on her face.
“What the fuck is going on, Angel?” I barked.
She looked up at me, her eyes glassy and unfocused, but her smile only grew wider.
“Oh, baby,” she slurred, reaching out toward me like I was her savior. “You came for me.” She giggled, the sound high and bubbly. She held her hands out like a toddler wanting me to take her from the bouncer.
I stiffened, stepping back as if her touch might burn me. My fists clenched at my sides, and I could feel the muscles in my jaw flex.
A loud screech snapped my attention to the curb. A black G-Wagon came to a halt, its headlights bright as hell. The door swung open, and Naomi hopped out, her hair tied up in scarf. She wore a long-sleeve pajama set, a coatthrown over it, and Timbs on her feet. Her round belly led the way as she marched toward us, her face tight with confusion and annoyance.
She looked me up and down like I was the one drunk and acting stupid. “Why is she calling me to pick her up when you’reright hereto take her home? You drunk too?”
Her voice was sharp, and her eyes narrowed as she shifted her gaze between me and Angel.