“It’s not my favorite, but when I told Billie I was staying with you, she wasn’t too happy with me. I’m lucky she gave me food at all so, I’ll take what I can get.”
“My grandmother doesn’t want you here,” I acknowledge. She doesn’t want me involved with a man like King. She’d rather I find the boring accountant I was thinking about yesterday.
“She thinks I’ll bring trouble your way,” King admits.
“Grandma Billie is smart, especially when it comes to men. If I had listened to her, I wouldn’t have dated Mason,” I tell him. “You’ll never know how much I wish I could go back and follow her advice.” I let out a heavy sigh.
“I’m not here to hurt you, Shelby. Your grandmother is wrong this time.”
“I’m not so sure.”
“I’ll just have to prove it to you,” King compromises. “Now eat so I can give you your surprise.”
He pushes my food over to me with a plastic fork on top of the container. He hands me a soda and I take a drink gratefully. My stomach growls again as I take a big bite, moaning. My grandmother’s food always makes me feel better.
“What kind of surprise,” I ask, around a mouthful of food. My grandmother would be mortified by my manners right now, but I’m too curious.
He pauses eating before pulling out an iPhone from the shiny bag. It’s the one that just came out. I’d been eyeing it for a while but refused to spend the money. He slides it over to me.
“Babe, just saying if you take a hammer to this one, we may fight,” he jokes.
I’m in shock. “You bought me a phone?”
“Yeah, you shouldn’t be without one. I programmed my number in, too. That way you can call or text me any time.”
“I can?”
“Yeah, feel free. Especially if it’s late at night and you don’t have clothes on.”
“King!”
“I’m serious, baby.”
His reply in his deep, rumbly voice makes my body tingle in all the right places.
“This is very nice of you,” I tell him, looking at the phone knowing that it costs way more than my last one. “But I can’t afford it. And you didn’t get it through my plan so I can’t make payment arrangements.”
“I bought it on my account.”
“I can’t—”
“It’s my business how I spend my money, Shelbers. If I want to buy my girl a phone, I will.” He goes back to eating like he didn’t just spend a fortune on me.
“Your girl?” I ask, liking that so much that I ignore the fact he used my nickname again. I realize now that he only does it when he’s joking with me or trying to make me laugh.
“Oh yeah beautiful, did I forget to tell you that part?” King says, stepping closer as he looms over me. He tilts my chin up with his finger.
I can’t seem to catch my breath as his chocolate brown eyes hold my stare captive.
“Shelby Rush, I’m claiming you as mine, baby.”
His lips are on mine and he’s invading my mouth like a Viking going to war and I can only go along for the ride.
Claiming me as his?
I’ve never been so happy.
Chapter16