“You’re right. It looks like I tried to alienate him on purpose because I fancied him. Which is so, so, so far from the truth.”
Malakai frowned. “Okay, we get it. Why so many sos?”
“I only kissed him to shake off Zack . . .” The panic crawled up my throat as I fanned my face to subdue the sudden, inexplicable, uncomfortable heat that was rushing through me. “I just thought he was the best bet! I assumed he would be down because I thought he was a ho.”
Malakai quirked an brow. “Excuse me?”
I rolled my eyes. I had no time for feelings. I didn’t care about being liked, but I did care if the Blackwell babes lost respect for me because they thought I’d double-crossed them. I also really cared about my show.
“Oh please. It’s not sexist if it’s directed at a man. Women deserve sexual liberation and guys like you do not. You can’t be trusted with it. You misuse it.”
Malakai rolled his tongue in his mouth, his eyes glinting with irritation. “Ah. So we’re back to you acting like you know me again. Cool. I missed that. That was a good time.”
I laughed humorlessly and scooted forward on the sofa. “Oh. Oh, I see. So you can presume shit about me, but I can’t about you? That’s the same entitled crap that probably led you to date multiple girls at the same time and not expect any emotional investment. Don’t act like you don’t know what you’re doing. It’s manipulative.”
Malakai released a slanted, dry smile. “Remind me why we kissed again? Was it love at first sight or was it to piss off Zack? And listen, I rate it, I get it, but what I don’t get is you acting like we’re so different. And you kissing me proves that. Everybody saw that you’re exactly what you preach against. It’s like I said before. You’re a hypocrite, Kiki.”
I froze. “Okay, wow.”
Aminah’s eyes widened as her head whipped between Malakai and I, her hair swishing in my face in the process. Something flitted across Malakai’s strained face and he flattened his lips. It looked like it might have been a small dose of regret. He cleared his throat.
“Look . . . let’s just calm down. I didn’t mean to—”
I held up a hand. I had stopped floating a while ago, but now I crashed to the ground. I had been so stupid.
“Oh, I’m calm. Who’s not calm? Don’t try and do that . . . gyaldemwhisperer thing to me. It won’t work. And don’t try and backtrack because you just exposed the real you. Now it makes sense. You didn’t agree to kiss me to help me. Why on earth would a guy like you do that?”
Malakai’s smile was now a sardonic curve. “Guy like me?”
I ignored him. “You did it to call public bullshit on what I said on my show. You wanted to show me up. Expose me. You played me.”
Malakai sat back. He nodded slowly and his demeanor shifted with a shrug of his shoulder. “What if I did?”
Hot fury turned the words in my mouth into ash. A heavy silence dropped between us. I shook my head in disbelief. It was almost a relief to know that it was just a seduction ploy to make me look dizzy. The part of me that wanted to believe that what had just happened between us couldn’t have been fake only worked to convince myself that it had to be. This was exactly what guys like Malakai did. When you fell into the trap, they’d tell you that you should have been watching where you were going.
Aminah cleared her throat. “Wow. That was hot.”
“What?” Both my and Malakai’s voices were incredulous, our eyes snapping into each other’s almost as quickly as we tore them away.
Aminah shook her head sloppily. “I mean don’t get me wrong, I am vexed. I wanna cuss Malakai out.” She threw him an irritated look. “But it was compelling. Juicy. Better than my favorite reality show, Romance & R&B.”
Malakai stared at her. “What is happening right now?”
I picked up my bag. “I’m leaving.”
Aminah placed a hand on my arm, steadying me. “Seriously. I would watch this. Or listen to it.”
I nodded sarcastically. “Yeah. Okay. Let’s do a radio show where I let Malakai break down all the benevolent ways being a Fuckboi actually helps women.”
Aminah gasped and her eyes widened. “Kiki Banjo, you beautiful, talented superstar. This is why I manage you! Opening up the lines of gyaldem-mandem communication. Fuck, I’m a genius. I mean, technically you came up with the idea but I definitely led you to it. Wow, even when I’m not trying, I’m on it. Why am I studying marketing and business when I could just teach it?”