Passion of the Streets Read online

  His eyes trailed over her body slowly until stopping at her face. When he finally met her gaze head-on, Gia winked at him and his face turned red.

  “Did I just make you blush?” Gia asked Jamil.

  Jamil wiped his hand over his face and shook his head. “Cut it out,” he told her, but he was still smiling.

  “I’m only checking because I think your face just turned red.” Gia leaned closer to him, pretending to be taking a closer look at his face. “Yeah, I made you blush. That’s so cute.” She smiled at him before winking again.

  This time he didn’t turn red, but he did smile again. “Move back, man.” He pushed her out of his face playfully.

  “I like your freckles.” The small brownish orange dots beneath his eyes and across his nose were the most adorable thing to Gia.

  “I like your hair.” He picked up one of Gia’s locs and inspected the color on the ends.

  “I like yours too.”

  “Look at y’all over there complimenting each other and shit.” Iverson interrupted their flirty play.

  Gia looked at him. “I know you ain’t talking. All that smiling and giggling the two of you were just doing.”

  Oni was still smiling when she and Iverson began looking at their menus. Gia took their lead and grabbed hers as well. She was looking over it when she noticed that Jamil wasn’t looking at his.

  “You not hungry?”

  “Yeah, I just already know what I want.”

  Gia pushed her menu away and looked at him. “Well, I’m getting what you’re getting.”

  “How you know what I pick ain’t gon’ be nasty?”

  Gia shrugged. “I trust your judgment.” She stared at him bashfully and he stared back.

  They looked at one another, taking in each other’s beauty. Jamil had already told her how attracted to her he was, but she hadn’t done the same. Though that didn’t mean she wasn’t.

  Jamil was one of the finest men Gia had ever seen. His demeanor was calm and collected as he sat in his dark green shirt and black shorts.

  In the back of her mind Gia wondered why his friend was dressed so impeccably yet Jamil’s attire was average. For a brief moment she wondered if she had hooked up with the right one. She wasn’t a sac chaser by far, but she did like for her man to have at least a little bit of money. Especially since she had her own. She was still silently observing him and trying to feel him out when their waitress came over to the table.

  She stood there taking their order as Gia sat back with her arms folded. She’d decided to allow Jamil to order for her since she was getting the same thing as him. Her mouth watered as she watched him speak and listened to the food he was ordering. She didn’t know which part had her the readiest—the food, or him.

  Jamil was fucking breathtaking to say the least. So unique but so ordinary at the same time. He was definitely not something she saw on a daily basis, but she was more than welcoming of it now. The southern drawl that accompanied every word that slid off his tongue was so sexy. Gia wondered if he knew just how much.

  “You’re so sexy, Milli, and the way you talk is amazing.” The words just fell off Gia’s tongue.

  He looked confused. “The way I talk?”

  “Yeah. You’re so country.”

  Jamil’s facial expression changed as he smiled at her. He didn’t laugh or respond, he just watched her. Gia tried her best to return the intensity behind his eyes but was unable to because it was so overwhelming it was starting to make her nervous.

  “What y’all got planned for today?” Iverson asked loud enough to gain everyone’s attention.

  “Nothing for real. We may go to the nail shop, but that’s about it.” Oni answered for them both.

  “Well, I was thinking about riding to Atlanta to hit the outlets. Y’all down?” Iverson asked Gia and Oni both but had turned his head toward Oni.

  Of course Oni was smiling like a Cheshire cat. “I am. You want to go, Gia?”

  Gia was a little skeptical because she didn’t know much about Atlanta other than it was an hour or two away. Going to another city with two men she’d just met wasn’t at the top of her to-do list, but she didn’t want to seem like a party pooper. However, she also knew how spontaneous Oni could be when men were involved.

  “Umm, I don’t know. Exactly how far is that away?” Gia asked.

  Jamil answered her. “It’s only like an hour.”

  “Where’s the outlet?”

  “Atlanta has an ass of outlets, but the one I’m going to is only like thirty more minutes out once we get there. It’s the North Georgia outlet,” Iverson said.

  Gia bit the inside of her cheek as she looked at Oni for some sort of common reasoning. Even though the men didn’t know her that well, Oni knew her well enough to know that this was not something that she was comfortable doing. Jamil was cute and all, and had even saved her life, but that didn’t mean she knew him well enough to be taking spur-of-the-moment out-of-town trips.

  The table was quiet as everyone waited for Gia to make a decision. It sounded fun. Outside of running and softball, shopping was her next favorite thing to do, but she didn’t know about going to an entirely different city with strangers.

  Iverson touched her hand to get her attention. “If you don’t want to, Gia, that’s cool. I just figured shopping might be some shit y’all would be into, and Peachtree Mall ain’t got shit.”

  Peachtree Mall was the local mall that everyone went to in Columbus, and he wasn’t lying. Gia had been in there with Oni, and she had thought the same thing as they walked through.

  “Let me think about it while we eat,” Gia said.

  “A’ight. Bet,” Iverson told her as the waitress walked up with their food.

  She sat the food down and they all began eating. Every so often Gia would catch Oni’s eye and she would smile at her. Gia just shook her head. She could already tell this was about to be a rerun of all of Oni’s other escapades. She would fall for Iverson, fuck him, and move on to the next. Gia could see it already, and they hadn’t even been sitting there long.

  The foursome made small talk as they ate. When they’d finished eating and were preparing to go, it was almost two hours later. After the waitress brought their ticket over, Jamil and Iverson both began to dig into their pockets. Gia wasn’t surprised to see Oni’s eyes glued to the knot Iverson pulled from his pocket like it belonged to her.

  Gia, on the other hand, tried her best to be discreet as she eyed the twenty-dollar bill that Jamil sat on top of their ticket. Again, she wondered if she’d taken an interest in the wrong one. Though she had her own money, thanks to her parents, and wasn’t hurting for cash, being with the broke friend was not what she wanted.

  After getting up from the table, Gia looked it over once again to make sure she hadn’t left anything when she noticed that Iverson had left a hundred-dollar bill on his and Oni’s ticket. That was crazy, but she kept it to herself. It was obvious by the way he dapped out of the restaurant that he was paid.

  His whole swag screamed hood rich. Gia had definitely put her cousin on this time. When she looked over at Jamil, his swag was the same as it had been when she met him: calm, cool, chill. Although he wasn’t wearing expensive clothing like Iverson, he was still killing his attire as well.

  The slim-fitting black cargo shorts with the fitted green shirt and all-black 12s were sexy as hell on him. His cute tanned yellow legs stood pigeon-toed in his shoes, and every time he moved it made Gia want to lick her lips. His sex appeal was off the map. His dreads were all down and he had them tied back with two from each side, a style Gia too wore occasionally.

  Jamil held the door open for Gia and allowed her to walk out in front of him. She wasn’t sure what she was about to do now since she still hadn’t made up her mind about whether she was going to Atlanta. Her eyes wandered around the parking lot trying to see what car was theirs.

  She wasn’t even shocked when the lights to a dark gray G wagon blinked. When Iverson walked to th
e driver side door and opened it, Gia’s heart nearly dropped. She had gotten the broke friend. Oni’s excitement at his car ignited her initial excitement about their trip to Atlanta.

  “Gia, what’s it going to be, cousin?” Oni asked.

  Gia gave her a look like she should have known better than to put her on the spot like that, but instead of saying it, she just rolled her eyes and stood near the front of the truck where Jamil was standing.

  “I don’t know.” Gia shrugged.

  “Come on, Gia,” Oni whined.

  “It’s going to be straight, Gia, I swear. You’re in good hands.” Iverson cosigned with Oni.

  When Gia remained quiet, Jamil grabbed her hand and pulled her around to the other side of the truck. He pushed her against it slightly so that her back was pressed against the window. He stuck both of his hands in his pockets. Gia wondered if that was to keep from touching her. She figured her body in that skintight pink dress had him wanting to feel all over her. She stood there while she ran her hands through her hair.

  Gia looked at him with his dreads resting around the bottom of his chest. His wide and well-defined chest stuck out through the thin fabric of his shirt. The various tattoos covering his left arm had her attention as he stood tall in front of her. His head was bent slightly as he tried his best to look into her eyes.

  “You know you don’t have to go if you don’t want to, right?” His voice was softer than normal. Comforting, even.

  “Yeah, I know.”

  “Talk to me . . . What’s wrong?” He pushed the lone dreadlock that had just fallen into her face back with the rest of them before holding her chin to make her look at him.

  Talk to me . . . What’s wrong?

  That simple statement had Gia in her feelings bad. It was so subtle yet endearing. It was so personal and touching. Like he really wanted to know what was bothering her.

  “Don’t take this the wrong way, but I don’t know y’all like that. I don’t know if I need to be going out of town with a man that I just met. Oni may be into it, but I ain’t really feeling it.”

  Jamil smirked at her, rested his hand on the side of her waist, and gripped it softly, but firm enough to keep her from moving if she tried. When he stepped closer to her, Gia inhaled deeply and looked at his face. His light brown eyes were staring her down as he wet his bottom lip with his tongue.

  The cologne he was wearing wafted up her nose, making her feel closer to him than she really was. It surrounded her fully and eliminated any personal space she had.

  “You think I would hurt you?”

  Gia shrugged but maintained eye contact.

  “I would, but not in the way that you’re thinking.” He let his hand fall from her waist to her hand and held it. “You’re safe with me. I promise. I wouldn’t do nothing to you. I can tell you’re different. It’s all over everything you do. I wouldn’t want you in any situation you’re not comfortable with, but I would like it if you came with us.”

  How was everything this man said and did a turn-on to her? He was standing in her face telling her things like he would never hurt her, and it had her feeling like she was already in love.

  “If I don’t go, then what? Will you be mad at me?”

  He shook his head. “I’ll just stay here with you.”

  Gia liked that response, and because of that she decided to go. There was something about him that made her feel safe. “Well, I guess we can go, then.”

  When he smiled at her, she felt relaxed. “Look at your pretty ass. Come on.” He grabbed her hand and opened the back door for her to slide in. “Aye, we gon’ slide with y’all,” Jamil yelled to Iverson.

  Oni looked at Gia quickly before giving Iverson back her attention. “Okay. Where should I leave my truck? I don’t want to leave it down here.”

  “I’ll follow you to drop it off somewhere,” Iverson told her.

  He and Oni discussed where she was going to leave her truck before she walked off. Gia looked over at Jamil with alarm on her face, and he burst into laughter.

  “Yo, shawty, chill. We ain’t about to do nothing to you.”

  “I don’t know that.”

  Jamil was still laughing when he pulled his gun from behind his back. Gia shrieked and scooted across the seat as fast as she could while still staring at him. Iverson stood at the door watching in amusement.

  “I’ma need you to calm down, Gee, for real. We ain’t gon’ do shit to your ass.” Jamil cocked his gun and handed it over to her. “Take this. If either of us do anything that you don’t like, shoot our ass.”

  Gia held the gun in her hand trying to get used to the weight of it. It wasn’t her first time holding a gun, nor would it be her first time shooting one if they pissed her off. The Colonel had trained her well, and little did Jamil and Iverson know, she would blow their heads off with little to no effort. She was a perfect shot.

  She was just a tad bit nervous since she didn’t know them very well. The gun was cool, but she was still not too fond of riding out of town with strangers. The only reason she was going along with it was because of Jamil. She wanted to spend time with him. Hopefully she wouldn’t regret it.

  “No.” Iverson stuck his head into the car. “You shoot that muthafucka. Don’t shoot me.”

  Gia began to relax and even laughed at Iverson as she sat with the gun in her lap. “I’m shooting both of y’all. You better not make me mad either.”

  Iverson shook his head and got into the car. When Oni’s truck passed his, he drove out behind her. Gia watched every turn she made, hoping she wasn’t about to make them follow her back to her house to drop her truck off. That would be the dumbest shit in America, but she still didn’t put it past Oni.

  Though Oni was smart, she was too hyped off their trip at the moment to use common sense. Gia wasn’t exactly sure how to get back to Oni’s house, but she could tell by the way she was going that they weren’t headed there. When Oni pulled into the parking lot of Walmart, Gia breathed a sigh of relief.

  She watched Oni hit the locks to her truck and walk to Iverson’s truck. Once she was in, Gia handed Jamil his gun back and made herself comfortable in the backseat. He winked at her once he’d put his gun away. Gia’s stomach fluttered. Hopefully she could relax her mind enough to enjoy her time away with him.

  Chapter Six

  “Before meeting my Gee, I was nothing. I was an empty shell of pain and disaster, dying a slow death. All I’ve ever wanted in my entire life was to have someone who loves me. A person who showed it more than they said it. I was an empty person just going through the motions of life until the day God blessed me with my angel. She was my saving grace then, and she’s my saving grace now. She saved me from myself and she didn’t even know it. With everything in me, I’ll love Gianna forever.”

  —Milli

  The sun was shining as people of all races and colors went in and out of stores loaded down with bags or pushing their babies in their strollers. The sidewalks were crowded with chatter and moving feet. The sweltering heat and crowded walkways didn’t make for such a good getaway, but as long as Gia continued to sway her sexy ass hips in front of him, then Jamil would be all right.

  Polo, Gap, Armani, Converse, and J. Crew were only a few of the stores that Jamil and Gia had gone into so far. Gia felt the need to gasp and announce the name every time they entered one. He and Gia had split up from Iverson and Oni the moment they’d gotten out of the truck, so it was just the two of them.

  Neither of them had purchased anything yet, even though they’d both seen a lot that they’d liked. Had Gia not been so quiet about her every thought, he would have been buying her shit left and right already. The only problem was that he didn’t know what to do or where to start. She perused the racks, picking up things and putting them down in every store.

  He had been following behind her obediently, and she hadn’t kept one thing she’d liked. It was starting to slightly annoy him. Here they were at a nice-ass mall with every store that she co
uld think of, and she wasn’t shopping. What girl didn’t like to shop, especially when it was on another person’s dime?

  Jamil picked up the red shirt Gia had admired moments ago, only to put back down, and handed it back to her. “Here, get this.”

  Gia gave him a quizzical look. “I don’t want it.”

  “Yes, you do. Just like you wanted the black dress, the pink skirt, and the blue purse. Get the shit, Gia.”

  She stood there stunned, clearly unaware of what to say next. “You’ve been watching me?”

  “Like a fucking hawk. Now, will you please get something?”

  Gia looked away. “I don’t want to shop by myself. It’s no fun.”

  “What you mean by yourself? I’m right here with you.”

  Gia fidgeted with the tag on the shirt. “But you’re not picking up anything.”

  So that was her problem? All of this time she’d had him confused about what it was that she liked. Jamil held his head down and laughed quietly.

  “That’s because we haven’t gone in any stores that I like yet.”

  “Well, come on, then.” Gia grabbed his hand and pulled him from the store. “Where you want to go?”

  “Anywhere you take me. What kind of man do you think I am?”

  Gia looked him up and down before walking toward the Nike outlet. He was smiling when she pulled him in behind her and over to the men’s side. She stood in the middle of the section and gave him attention.

  “Shop,” she ordered.

  “I’ll go with you, then we’ll come back to me.”

  Gia didn’t look like she believed him, but she turned and headed for the women’s section anyway. He watched her ass every time it moved in her dress. He wanted to reach out and touch it so bad, but he didn’t know what she would say. In the back of his mind he didn’t really care, but he still had to control himself.

  The way her eyes lit up at all of the different workout gear made him smile. He leaned on a rack as she picked up one thing after another. When he noticed her hands were getting full, he grabbed everything from her and encouraged her to continue. Sports bras, leggings, running shorts, Dri-Fit shirts, and even a few running jackets weighed down his arms.