Page 135 of The Coldest: Stay Dangerous Part 2

@RicoSuave: Snow dont need no pup when she got a big dog

“The biggest,” I say, shaking my head, before ending Red’s Live.

Wyn

Today is the day I might actually relapse.

The skin on my cuticles are peeled back so bad that the A/C blowing in Rico’s car burns my fingers. He won’t turn it down, opting to blow it fully even though it’s not hot, because I slapped on a blonde wig and covered my freckles expertly. My bare arms folded across my chest aren’t enough, even after rubbing them with my fucked up hands.

I’m freezing.

He’s in a thick hoodie, humming along to his playlist as he drives us to my parents’ house. I told him I could go alone. I even told him I could have Auty get me.

He told me to get my ass in the car and stop playing with him.

At first I thought he was doing the most to distract me from being around my parents, but he isn’t that unorthodox. No. He’s really mad I wanted to wear my new romper because we had decided to go out after this bullshit lunch.

A hating ass non-boyfriend if I’d ever met one.

I reach over to turn off the A/C. He turns it back to up the max.

I reach over again. He takes his gun out of the small of his back and uses the barrel to turn the knob, before resting the gun in his lap.

“You’d shoot me to keep me freezing?”

Rico glances at me as he turns onto my parents’ street. “You know the answer to that.”

“You get on my nerves–”

“Bro!”

My hands slip off the gun, and he overcorrects, narrowly missing a parked car as he holds it away from me. His rims scrape on the curb before he throws his car in park and turns to me.

“You gon’ act right in this fuckin’ crib?”

“You didn’t have to come!” I shriek. “In fact, don’t. Auty can take me home.”

The doors lock before I can swing open the door, and I look just in time for him to activate the child lock.

I hate that he’s so fine. Even now, with his forest green hoodie set from some local designer I don’t know. His face is healed to where his bruises can be taken for him just being tired, and he has the nerve to have grown out his mustache and goatee in the days I haven’t seen him.

That pink tongue I love to sit on licks his lips, leaving them glistening. Honey eyes roll before they settle on me, hooded, and muted.

“Snow,” he starts, his voice shooting straight to my already painfully hard nipples. “It is literally taking every iota of energy I have not to run up in this fuckin’ house and kill these muthafuckas. I have managed to avoid Aaron and Amani Shaw for almost fifteen years, but because you decided to humor Haze and Turk, I gotta sit up in this fuck ass house, eat some dry ass food, and not react to blatant disrespect aimed at the woman I love. Gotta be cool with you covering up some of my favorite things ‘cause they chasing ghosts. And then gotta listen about how they shared psychosis is somehow yo fault.” Rico sits up, and gently takes my hands in his.

Hearing him say out loud that he loves me will never cease to make butterflies take flight in my middle.

He examines my cuticles, placing kisses on each one of my fingers before meeting my gaze once again.

“You got a lot on ya plate today, Snow. A lot. I’m so proud of you, I know it’s hard as fuck right now, and I’m here to support you in any way you need. But in turn, as my woman, I need you to support me. Please, kill all that bullshit. I ain’t got time nor energy to give you no act right when I’m already holding back from lighting up they crib.”

I lean forward, grazing my lips on his.

Rico melts instantly, enough for him not to notice me unlocking the child lock.

I bite his bottom lip hard enough for him to hiss.

“Nigga, I ain’t seen you in weeks. Talkin’ ‘bout some ‘act right.’ Yo act is putting you right in the dog house!” I unlock the door and get out, over him and the lunch I planned.