Chapter 9

9

D ali

The Past

After His First Championship Fight

As hyped as Dali’s crew was to celebrate his first professional win, there was only one person Dali wanted to celebrate with—Kassadee. A little over three years had passed since he unintentionally broke her heart, and he’d been fighting to make up for it ever since. Though they still talked and had sex, she’d friend-zoned him and done everything she could to preserve her heart. It stung knowing she didn’t trust him with it anymore, but Dali respected that. He made it his mission to be the best friend to her that he could possibly be, and he was grateful Kassadee allowed him to do that.

That didn’t mean he hadn’t gotten into a few squabbles behind her. Friend or not, Dali wasn’t willing to allow anyone to disrespect her or their friendship. Five times already the guys she called herself dating tried him, and five times he’d laid them all out. Regardless of how many times she reminded him they were only friends, that never stopped Dali from going to war behind her.

His parents and friends were vying for his attention while his cousins lifted glasses for a toast. Dali walked through them, parting them like the Red Sea. With his eyes zeroed in on Kassadee, he almost floated to her. Her smile was wide as she held a bouquet of roses for him and a black gift box.

“Congratulations, champ!” she cheered, handing him the roses and the gift box. He opened it, and the sight of The Demolisher written in cursive font on a gold chain caused him to grin widely.

“Thank you, baby. Put it on me.”

He turned and lowered slightly so she could put the necklace around his neck. Once it was secured, Dali picked her up and wrapped her legs around him as she gasped.

“Dali, I—”

He silenced her with a kiss that had Ken sucking his teeth and grumbling, “Here they go with this shit again.”

“Mm,” he moaned against her lips before pulling away. Kas stared at him, eyes blinking and mouth partially open, making him chuckle. “Come to Miami with me. I want to celebrate my first championship win with my favorite girl.”

Pam, his mother, cleared her throat. “I’ma act like I didn’t hear that. A boy will forget the woman’s coochie he came out of just to slide in some more.”

Though they all laughed, Dali’s expression turned serious as he licked his lips. “Will you come with me, bae?”

“Are you sure that’s what you want?” Kas asked quietly, eyes shifting around the room. It was the first time Dali had ever displayed his desire for her publicly, so he understood her shock.

“I want you. So yes, I’m sure.”

A slow smile spread her lips before she nodded her agreement. “Okay, we can go.”

As Dali carried her out of the room, her father demanded he bring her back home a virgin. His steps quickened when Kennessy mentioned that ship had sailed years ago…