In Love with My Enemy

by A'zayler

  “Go look on my dresser and get that money out of my drawer.” Don told her with no hesitation.

  Without an ounce of hesitation in her, Danna stood to her feet and proceeded into the house. She spent so much time at Don’s house, it might as well have been hers as well. She was so comfortable there and he allowed her to be, which was why she thought nothing of looking at the receipt that had been balled up in the wad of money.

  Her eyes scanned it for nothing in particular, just trying to see what he’d spent money on. Things were fine and she had just been about to put it down with the last item caught her eye. The fuck? She looked at it again to make sure it was what she thought it was. When she was certain, she saw what she saw, she threw it down, snatched the money and stormed out of the house.

  “Don!” She yelled as soon as she got outside.

  He looked up at her, now shirtless. Her eyes observed the excellence that was him, before they rolled back to the matter at hand. With the receipt in hand, she walked right to him and held it up so he could see.

  “Who you buying pregnancy tests for?”

  Don’s poker face remained. Not an ounce of guilt blinked through. “My baby mama’s broke ass.”

  “What the fuck you buying her pregnancy tests for? She pregnant by you again?”

  “Hell nah,” He frowned in disgust. “She’s just broke as fuck. I bought my son some pampers the other day and she asked me to grab a few other things for her, and that was one of them.”

  “You must think I’m a fool?” Danna countered back.

  “Nah, I’m telling you the truth. I bought some washing powder, dish washing liquid, Aleve, and a bra too. All of which is at her house. She asked me to grab the shit, so I did. That’s it.”

  “Even if that is the truth, why in the hell are you buying her shit like y’all together?”

  Don finally finished with her car and moved away from it. “She’s my baby mama. I just help her out with stuff from time to time. It ain’t nothing to it.”

  Danna’s temper was rising and she could feel her hands starting to shake. That was that mess she didn’t like. She didn’t care if the girl was his son’s mother, grandmother, or auntie. He didn’t need to be buying her shit that didn’t involve the baby.

  “So, if I let another nigga buy me stuff even though you’re supposedly my man, that’s cool?”

  Don leaned his head to the side stretching his neck. When he didn’t say anything, Danna knew her words had struck a nerve, but that was good for his ass.

  “Don’t even worry about answering me. I’m out.”

  After retrieving her keys from the table in his garage, she snatched her purse from the futon and headed for her car. She was in her front seat and about to close the door when he stopped her. His hand was holding her door open as he moved around it and squatted down next to her legs.

  “You’re right. I’m sorry.” He placed a couple of kisses along her thighs and knee. “I didn’t think about it like that.”

  Danna said nothing.

  “I don’t give a fuck about her, only you. Aight?”

  Determined to hold on to her attitude, Danna said nothing.

  “I won’t do it again. Stop being so mean.”

  “Whatever, I’ll check you later.” Danna reached around his head and grabbed her door.

  Don licked his lips before standing to his feet and leaning into her car. He kissed her lips once before stepping away and closing the door. Danna cranked up and pulled away without another word. Don had her all the way fucked up if he thought she was about to play the fool. Angry and annoyed all at once, Danna needed a release, and had just the way to get it.

  5

  Games well played

  With a quick detour, Danna headed for the block. As soon as she spotted him, she parked and got out. Using a fake errand to the corner store as her distraction, Danna got out of her car and sashayed toward the barred glass door with the raggedy OPEN sign.

  “Aye, you!” A male voice came from behind Danna.

  Holding in her smile, she turned to face the man that owned the voice. With one of her hands shielding the sun from her eyes, and the other holding her purse and keys, Danna stood back on one leg allowing a better view of herself.

  “You talking to me?” Danna’s voice was small but vivacious as she took in the fresh white sneakers and gold jewelry shining beneath the sun.

  “Hell yeah, I’m talking to your ass. Didn’t I tell you the next time you were on my block you needed to come holla at me?”

  Danna’s smile finally made its way out as she eyed Quay’s sexy ass. The shoulder length dreads and arms filled with tattoos had her feeling stuff girls her age shouldn’t be feeling. The white tank top he was sporting hugged his chest, while the gym shorts hung loosely from his waist in all the right ways.

  “Bring your hard-headed ass over here.”

  The defiant Danna wanted to make him come to her, but the young girl crushing on that fine ass man in front of her moved her feet and got going. She was standing directly in front of him in no time. The jean shorts she was wearing gathered between her thighs giving her something to do with her hands. Before she could even pull her hands from between her thighs, Quay’s had found them and stopped her movement.

  His eyes were low as he took a step closer and invaded her personal space. “Let me get that for you.” The gold charm looking bracelet around his wrist rubbed against her skin when his hand pushed hers away and grabbed the rugged material of her shorts. “You ain’t got no business with these little ass shorts on anyway. Out here showing all these niggas my legs and thighs and shit.” Quay’s fingertips brushed the inside of her legs as he took his time pulling her shorts back to their rightful place.

  Danna’s heart fluttered with every word he spoke. She loved when a nigga talked that thug shit to her, and hearing him claim her body as his was setting her off.

  “They ain’t even that short.”

  “Shid,” Quay finally allowed her to breathe again when he removed his hands from her body. “Got your stomach and shit showing.” Quay half frowned, half smiled. “Hell, you out here trying to be fine for? You dun’ lost your mind today I see. Out here dressing like you ain’t got no man.”

  Danna was smiling harder than she’d ever smiled in her life. Quay was real life making her feel like a giddy little child. Never in all her years had a nigga made her feel shy, but Quay had her barely able to make eye contact. His smooth and cool aura was a turn on all by itself, but to pair it with his voice had her feeling like kissing. Jesus . . . those lips. Danna raised her hand to fan herself but put it back down the moment she realized what she was about to do.

  Quay’s eyes went to her hand before going back to her face. “Aye, be cool with them hands, I don’t do all that moving while I’m talking, it’s intimidating. I might mess around and swing on your ass.”

  More smiles. “Boy, please. You swing on me I bet you won’t swing on nobody else.”

  Quay grabbed her hands and leaned back on the wall, still holding them. “What you gon’ do?”

  “Swing and see.”

  His dark brown eyes observed her face calmly before he smiled lazily. “Nah.” His locs brushed his shoulders.

  “What you want to do then?” Danna baited him.

  The blazing sun was shining down on her back as she stood with her back facing the street. Cars could be heard in the distance as they stood lost in one another. Danna could even see people passing them in her peripherals, but she was so focused on Quay and all his handsomeness, that she could care less about anything going on behind her.

  The feeling of Quay’s thumbs rubbing across the back of her hands felt so good that Danna was scared to make the slightest movement and he stop.

  “I low-key want to be on some boyfriend shit with you, but I need to feel you out a li’l more first.”

  “Feel me out for what?” Danna asked as she looked down at her vibrating phone.

  When she saw the letter D,
she already knew it was Don. He’d called her twice already since she’d been standing there and she hadn’t answered either time. She’d call him back, right then she was enjoying Quay. He didn’t want nothing anyway, other than to beg and plead his sorry case.

  That pregnancy test stunt had her hot and Danna wasn’t letting up that fast. Danna had done her best to play it cool at his house, but after the thought of him playing her like a fool continued to circulate through her mind, she got angrier. She’d been ignoring and dodging his calls the entire drive to Quay, and didn’t plan on stopping any time soon.

  “See, shit like that.” Quay smiled at her and the sun caught his gold teeth. They lit up the block. “You’ll fuck around and break my heart. Be ignoring my calls and shit while you in the next nigga face.”

  “No, I wouldn’t. I don’t even be talking to nobody like that.” Danna told him seriously.

  She and Don did their thing, and could probably call what they had something like a relationship, but it wasn’t something she could really count on because they couldn’t be seen together like her and Quay could. She and Quay were at least in the same age bracket. She’d been on and off with Don for a little over a year, and had even fallen in love with him, but it was hard with him with so many caution signs prohibiting their relationship.

  His boundary-crossing baby mama being the biggest one. She didn’t even really know who Danna was, and she was constantly becoming an issue. There was no telling what would happen if she and Don ever made themselves public. Too much drama!

  “Who keep calling you then? Your phone been vibrating since I grabbed your hand.” Quay brought her thoughts back to the present.

  “Somebody that don’t want nothing.”

  Deep chuckles came from Quay as he released one of her hands and wrapped it around the back of her neck, pulling her close to him.

  “You too savage for me.”

  “I’m not trying to be though.” Danna’s words were spoken innocently as she looked up at his face.

  The prickly black hair on his chin was in her direct line of vision as she rested against his chest with her face near his neck. The smoke and dice inked around his throat, next to the cross and bible, were entertaining as she waited for him to say something that might put her thoughts at ease, because they were flying around her head right then.

  “How you know they don’t want nothing? They keep calling back, so they must want something.” Quay leaned down some and rested his chin on the top of her head. “I know if I was calling I would want something.”

  With the weight of his chin causing an awkward amount of tension on her neck, Danna had no other choice but to lay her head on his chest.

  “Come on now, don’t be doing this.”

  Danna had a feeling she knew what he was talking about, but she asked anyway. “Doing what?”

  Quay gave the hand he was still holding a light squeeze and tightened the arm around her shoulder so that she was held snuggly in his grasp. Danna closed her eyes in the middle of the hood with cars flying past, babies crying, the sun burning up her back, and plenty of people that knew Don, all because Quay’s embrace felt that good.

  “Being all up under me making me feel special and shit. You know you ain’t even trying to do this with me.”

  “How you know?” Danna pulled her hand away from him and circled them around his waist.

  “Because whatever nigga you got calling you, is still blowing that li’l phone up.” Quay pulled away from her and pinched her cheek.

  “How you know it’s a nigga? It could be my mama.”

  Quay smirked at her. “Prove me wrong then.”

  As bad as Danna wanted to pull her phone out of her purse and show him the screen, she didn’t. She knew just like he did that it was a man.

  “See,” Quay winked at her. “I’m fucking with you though. Just text me later.”

  For some reason, his dismissal made Danna feel like an egg had just been cracked all over her face, but she kept it G, and smiled.

  “I got you.” Danna winked back and took a few steps backward toward her car.

  “Have me then, baby.” Quay joked with her.

  The feeling of awkwardness was lifted with that one statement, and she was back smiling. No more words were spoken as she turned away and walked back toward her car. She was on the other side and about to get in when she finally looked back at him. His eyes were focused on her with a wanting gaze strong enough to hold her in place.

  “When we get our chance, we gon’ ball the fuck out, beautiful. I promise you.”

  “I’ma hold you to that.”

  “Please do. That’s one promise I plan to make good on.”

  Danna blushed before waving once more and getting into her car. She gave him one last look before cranking up and pulling off. As soon as she was down the street she pulled her phone out. Don had called and texted her a number of times, but she still wasn’t trying to talk right then. All he would do was ruin the high Quay had just put her on.

  Don was her baby, and she enjoyed what they had brewing, but he didn’t make her feel how Quay did. The difference was massive. With Don, she felt like a grown hood rat. Everything they did was either ratchet or above her age bracket. Between drinking, smoking, and having sex, she rarely had time to do things people her age did. Don was bent on “exposing” her to real life, but that wasn’t necessarily what she wanted all the time.

  Sometimes, going to the movies, going bowling or out to eat, would appease her just fine, but of course they couldn’t do that. If she wasn’t sneaking in and out of his house, dropping him off at traps, learning street shit, or her newest pastime, stalking his baby mama’s social media pages, they were laid up having sex.

  Which was starting to scare her as well. That nigga never wanted to use condoms and she’d had one too many concerns about that. Her life was all she had, so getting an STD wasn’t something she planned to experience. It was just so annoying to have to argue about condoms every time they were about to have sex. The only thing more annoying than that was the fact that he wouldn’t stop calling her. Danna rolled her eyes and answered her ringing phone.

  “What?”

  “Why the fuck you ignoring me?”

  “Why do you think?”

  “I don’t give a damn about that little attitude. You can lose that shit. Where you at?”

  “Headed to my mama house, why?”

  “That ain’t what I heard, but aight. I’ll catch up with you.” Don hung up.

  Danna looked at the phone utterly confused. How in the world had he found out where she was? Niggas and the way they ran their mouths got on her nerves. She hadn’t been on the block five minutes and somebody had already put her business out. Echo and his overprotective staff irritated her. She literally had no privacy, and since Don was considered her little bodyguard, niggas probably blew his phone up when they saw her with Quay. Stupid niggas.

  Not even in the mood to get her nails done anymore, Danna headed for her mother’s house. Vonetta always made her feel better. It didn’t take long before she was pulling into the driveway of her mother’s house. Her mind was so clouded from thoughts of Don, and fantasies of Quay, that she totally missed his truck sitting in her parents’ driveway. However, that carelessness was short-lived the moment she opened the front door to their home.

  “Look at this li’l sneaky thing right here.” Vonetta called her out as soon as she came into view. “Come on in here Ms. Fast Behind.” Her mother’s words were laced with love and a smile as always.

  Danna was smiling back at her while shaking her head. “Ma, leave me alone. I ain’t sneaky.” Danna looked over at Don, and hurried to look away.

  The look on his face was annoying and making her eyes want to roll. Though he was laid back on the sofa chilling, she could tell by the scowl on his face that he was angry. His mouth was balled up and his left eye kept jumping. Two signs she’d learned to be aware of.

  “Um huh. Tell that to somebody els
e,” Vonetta scratched the back of her head, making the million bangles on her wrist jingle. “Echo, I sure wish I could meet whatever nigga that’s got your mean ass daughter running around here like a chicken with its head cut off.”

  Danna finally closed the door behind her and switched into the living room as her father’s voice boomed through her mother’s cellphone. She was seated on her favorite side of the sofa, while talking to Echo’s tired ass on the phone. Clearly, it was a good day for him because that was one some-timing nigga right there.

  Old as he was, he still didn’t know if he wanted to be a family man or a hoe, and though Vonetta was the furthest thing from being his fool, she still loved him and let him come and go as he pleased. Even talking to him on the times he was away.

  “Let me call you back, Echo. I need to check little Miss Fast Ass out.” Vonetta laughed and said a few more things before ending her call with Echo.

  “I don’t know why you got off the phone, Ma. It ain’t nobody serious.” Danna’s mischievous smile said something the total opposite of what her words did.

  “Let me catch the nigga, I’m killing his ass.” Don’s voice stopped Danna mid-step.

  “Don, don’t you start too.”

  Don sat up and looked at her. “Try me.”

  If only Vonetta knew, Danna thought to herself as her mother sat there laughing loudly. Don had Vonetta so fooled with his over-protective act that she probably couldn’t see the real anger dancing behind his eyes. She could feel his gaze on her, but kept her composure; she’d deal with his ignorance later.

  “Ain’t nobody gon’ try you. I just be chilling. I don’t love these niggas.”

  She snickered inwardly when she saw Don run his hand over his mouth smoothing out the hair on his chin. He was big mad, and she didn’t care. So was she. Had she known he was there, she would have stayed on the block with Quay.

  “That’s my girl.” Vonetta smiled.

  Don looked at her with a frown on his face. “See, that’s her problem right there. You be encouraging this shit. I see I’ma have to talk to Echo about both of y’all.”