For you to be mine again. “Absolutely nothing,” I say, tracing a line up his thick bicep. He shudders under my touch which sends a thrill down my spine. “Let’s go so I can meet Shane’s friends.”

He playfully pinches my side. “Shane’s friends, huh?” I laugh until the butterflies in my stomach simmer down.

When we walk inside, I’m taken aback by the vibrant aesthetic. It’s a perfect blend of bright colors standing out against the white of the walls and tables. It looks like a place you could spend hours in without realizing it. There’s a reading nook in the back corner. I’d love to bring Justine here so we could chill and read our smutty books.

Kai’s hand caresses my lower back as he leads me over to Shane, who is talking to a gorgeous Black woman. She has on green-and-white wide-leg pants with a white crop top, which makes me like her immediately because even though it’s November, it’s still Austin, Texas, so it’s hot as fuck here and I appreciate her for wearing a very summer outfit. The tight curls of her dark afro are perfectly picked and her brown skin is flawless. Her face looks bare of any makeup except for the heavy lining of her eyes, which gives her a sultry vibe. When she sees Kai and me approaching, she turns her body to face us, and her eyes light up with Kai and slightly fall when they see me. I let it slide because I recognize the look all too well. She’s wary of me. If I had to guess, she knows about my history with Kai and is cautious about my intentions with him now. It’s respectable. As long as she keeps it cute, I’m fine with it.

“Liv, my girl!” Shane shouts, his arms already stretched out in front of him to wrap around me. Kai blocks Shane’s arms and pushes them down by his sides. The move is aggressive but I can tell he’s smiling as he does it.

The two of them dap each other up and communicate silently before Kai crushes the woman into a hug.

“Hey, Sasha.”

“Hey, Kai. Nevaeh has been asking for you.”

“Aww, I gotta get over there to see my girl. We need to have a standing date like her and Shane.”

Shane has told me that Nevaeh is his ‘best bud’ outside of the guys. “You wanna be like me so bad. That’s my little buddy, get your own,” Shane interrupts.

“Boy, fuck you.” Kai turns to me. “Olivia, this is Sasha. She runs this place. She’s Lincoln and Isaiah’s older sister but really she’s the big sister for all of us. Sasha, this is Olivia. My client and…friend.” There’s a pregnant pause before he says friend, and I shift to put all my weight on my good leg.