had to admit she enjoyed the conversation with Brinson and Nell. Brinson's charismatic comedian style made Olivia laugh like she hadn’t in a long time, which she needed to do.
Despite the entertainment, Savvy grew impatient and tired of being there. She glanced at the time on her cellphone and determined she would give Olivia fifteen more minutes before they left the guys behind.
“Boy. Wake up.” Nell had fallen sound asleep at the table. His head lay on his folded arms where he snored from time to time. Brinson thumped him with his finger. “Wake up, man.”
Startled, Nell jumped from the seat and rubbed the back of his neck. “Why are you thumpin’ me? I’m gonna hurt you for waking me up.”
“You’re being rude to the ladies. Plus, it’s time for another shot.” Brinson waved to the bartender to order more shots of tequila.
“None for me. I’m the designated driver.” Savvy’s disapproving glare remained unnoticed by Olivia. Although glad her friend was relaxing and having a good time, Savvy recognized the signs of her drinking too much. Her eyes were half-closed and she swayed in a happy stupor. A brown stain spread across the front of her yellow dress. Every time she laughed, she brushed Brinson’s leg or arm and he kept doing the same to her.
“Me either, man. I’m done. I need to go home to bed. It’s almost ten o’clock and we gotta get up early to hit the road. It’s time to go, dawg.” Nell rubbed his eyes, stretched, and yawned like a lion.
“Olivia. I know you’re good for one more. Right? I can count on you to hang with me for our final drink.” Brinson beamed his drunken smile at Olivia. His left eye seemed lazier the more he drank and drifted in the opposite direction of his right eye.
“Olivia. You don’t need another drink. This is the fourth one and you’re wobbly. It’s time for us to go.” Savvy said. Olivia’s eyes were glassy from alcohol.
“Yeah. I know I shouldn’t.” Olivia’s words slurred. “Okay. I’ll have another shot, too. For Brinson. Only one more, Savvy. I’m good.”
“Alright. Make it two shots of tequila.” He produced a wallet and removed a ten-dollar bill. “Keep the change.”
“Thanks, man.” The bartender grinned and set the two shot glasses filled to the brim in front of Brinson.
“Are you ready?” Brinson handed Olivia one of the glasses.
“Yes. You do the toast this time.” Olivia shook salt on the back of her hand and grabbed a lime slice.
“Okay.” Brinson stood in front of Olivia with his glass raised. “Take everything in moderation…including moderation. Lick, suck, drink,” he shouted and clinked glasses with Olivia.
“Cheers,” Olivia yelled. They threw back their heads and took the shot in one gulp.
Brinson laughed and wiped his tiny lips on the back of his hand. “Girl. You took your shot like a pro. A real woman. I’m impressed.”
“Well, thank you,” Olivia slurred. “I’m a pro at everything I do. Don’t forget it.”
Savvy took Olivia’s bold statement as her cue for them to exit. “And now, we’re out of here.” Savvy stood from the barstool and picked up her purse. “Nice to meet the two of you. We have to go.”
“Aww, Mom,” Olivia whined. “Why you have to be a party pooper? The night is still young. Let’s go sing karaoke.”
Nell spoke up. “Naw. The night is old. I need to sleep. We gotta go, too. Don’t forget we’re heading to the casino tomorrow. If you expect me to go, we need to leave now.”
“Alright, man. I guess I’ll give you a break.” Brinson helped Olivia stand. He held both of her hands in his and gazed into her drunken eyes. “Let me get your number. Maybe we’ll get together before I leave town.”
“Okay. Hand me your cellphone. I’ll put it in there.” Olivia held out her hand and Brinson gave his phone to her. She typed in her number and passed it back to him. “There you go. Call me.”
“No doubt. I will.” Brinson looped his arm through hers. “Let us go with you to your car.”
“Thank you. You’re such a gentleman,” Olivia purred and stroked his arm.
Relieved, Savvy led the way to the car. Nell opened the door for her and waved a sleepy goodbye. “Thank you, Nell. I hope you’ll get some rest.”
“Me too. It’s always like this whenever Brinson comes to SA. It will be at least ten days for my liver to recover. Nice to meet y’all. Have a good night.” Nell closed the car door.
Savvy glanced at the passenger side expecting Olivia to get in. Instead, she got an eyeful of Olivia’s behind covered in yellow fabric pressed up against the window with Brinson’s hand around her waist.
Savvy opened the door and jumped out. She marched to the other side where Olivia and Brinson were slobbering on each other. “Olivia. Stop it. Get your butt in the car, now. Otherwise, I’m leaving you here.”
Olivia and Brinson stopped kissing. She had a childlike guilty expression. “Oh. Savvy. Girl, I’m sorry. I guess we got
carried away.” She placed her hand on Brinson’s chest and smiled at him. “Ooh. We’re in trouble.”
Brinson laughed and kissed her forehead. “Yeah. I better let you go before your Mom whips your butt.” He tapped her behind with his hand.
“Boy, stop playin’.” Olivia slapped his hand away and batted her eyelashes.
“Okay, this is it. Get in the car. Bye, Brinson.” Savvy opened the door and waited for Olivia to enter.
“Nice to meet you, Savvy.” Brinson did a slight bow before turning to Olivia. “I’ll call you later, babe.” He gave her another kiss on the lips before holding her in a tight embrace. After releasing each other, he helped Olivia into the car.
Olivia blew kisses at him. “Bye. Thanks for a fun time. Call me.” Brinson waved as he and Nell staggered away.
Savvy got back into the car and started it up after slamming the door. She paused and turned to glare at Olivia with contempt. “What were you thinking? I know you have to be drunk to be kissing on him.”
“What? I wasn’t expecting him to kiss me. He started doing it when we hugged. I couldn’t feel his lips. They’re teeny tiny like a baby. I like a man with nice, thick ones.” Olivia giggled.
Savvy drove through the busy streets toward Olivia’s house. “Me too. Why did you kiss him? I know you can’t think he’s cute. He’s kind of funny looking.”
“Yeah. He favors Tweety Bird mixed with Mr. Magoo.” They both laughed.
“How could we even think he looks like Wynton Marsalis?” Savvy asked.
“I have no idea. They don’t favor at all. Although Brinson isn’t good looking, I think he’s fun to be around. He has
enough talent to go on the road with his show and make money as a comedian. Lord knows I needed a good laugh after everything I’ve been going through. He’s refreshing.”
“Brinson is hilarious. Most of his material comes from making us laugh at ourselves. He thinks quick on his feet to come up with those jokes,” Savvy agreed. “Aside from his humor though, you need to pump the brakes. Don’t get caught up in his charm and turn him into a rebound relationship.” Savvy parked in front of Olivia’s house.
“Girl, please. Merely a drunk kiss. Nothing more. Not only am I opposed to dating anyone right now, but I’m also not attracted to Brinson. Stop worrying,” Olivia said.
“Okay. You know I must keep my eye on you. It’s fine to have fun. Please be careful.” Savvy let out an exasperated sigh. “There’s something about him I don’t like.”
“Really? I didn’t notice anything. What’s wrong with him?” Olivia turned in her seat toward Savvy. She appeared to sober up.
“When we were at the barbecue place, did you catch how he claimed to be an Alpha? He put his hand up in their sign and said ‘Ice, ice baby. Too cold, too cold’.”
“Yeah. What’s wrong with showing love for his frat?”
“You know how I suggested we all go check out the day party the Alphas were throwing at a bar on 6th Street, he wasn’t
interested in going there. Did you catch when I asked him where he pledged? He said at The University of West Oklahoma in 1989. When I mentioned my cousin pledged in the same year at TUWO, he claimed he didn’t know him. My cousin only had four line-brothers. How would he not know who he is?”
“Maybe he forgot. I mean, he drank a lot tonight.”
“He’s way past drunk. He’s also lying. I noticed how he changed the subject after my question and started cracking jokes. I think he’s hiding something.” Savvy shook her head with frustration at the thought.
“Well, it doesn’t matter. We’ll probably never see him again anyway.”
“Are you sure? Did you forget you gave him your number and told him to call you?”
“I did? Oh yeah. I tried to find a way to tell him goodbye without hurting his feelings. I have no plans to speak to him. I doubt if he’ll even call.” Olivia waved her hand to dismiss the idea. “Oops. I forgot. I’m still married.”
“Hmm. Fine time to remember.”
“Hey. Don’t even trip. You’re the reason we even hung out in Austin,” Olivia exclaimed. “After everything I’ve been through with Malcolm, I needed attention from someone other than him.”
“Yeah. Sure. Whatever.” Savvy drove into Olivia’s driveway. “Are you okay to climb the steps to your porch?”
Olivia laughed. “I’m fine. I’m not super drunk. I only had a fun time and much-needed stress relief. Quit worrying about me. I’ll call you tomorrow.” Olivia opened the car door, steadied herself on her feet, and tugged her dress into place. After finding the keys in her purse, she blew a kiss at Savvy, slammed the car door, and stumbled up the steps to the house.
Savvy lowered the window. “Sleep it off and forget about Brinson. I hope this will be the last time I hear about him.” She scolded herself for not ending the night sooner after seeing Olivia’s tipsiness.
Olivia waved her hand with a drunken nod as she entered her house. “Yeah. Okay, Mom. Bye.”
THIRTY-FOUR
Olivia
The rays of sunlight strained against the window blinds and stirred Olivia from sleeping. She massaged her throbbing temples before struggling to rise to a seated position on the side of the bed. A moan slipped from her lips. “I’m not ready to get up yet.”
“I’m not ready to get up yet either,” a gruff voice mumbled behind her.
“Aah,” Olivia screamed. She flew from the bed and turned around in a panic. Brinson laid naked on top of the covers. “What are you doing here?” She spotted her robe on the floor and grabbed it after realizing she also didn’t have on a stitch of clothing.
Brinson squinted against the sunlight and chuckled with a sleepy voice. “I see you slept well. Did you forget about last night?” He rolled onto his stomach to prop his chin on his hands and watch her with his oversized eyes.
Olivia struggled to get her arms through the sleeves of the robe. She turned to face the wall and tightened the belt around her waist. “How did you get into my house? What happened?”
“You don’t remember, do you?” Brinson teased. She peered across her shoulder and he started to sit up.
“No. Stay there. Please cover yourself.” Olivia squeezed her eyelids tight as if she could make him go away if she didn’t look at him.
Brinson laughed with gusto as if he enjoyed her embarrassment. “I don’t know if I should feel offended about you not remembering all the fun we had. I know I haven’t forgotten.”
Olivia spun around. “Do you mean to tell me something happened between us? Please don’t tell me, yes.” She ran a hand through her disheveled hair. She began pacing the bedroom floor from the nightstand to the dresser and back.
“Come here. I have my underwear on now since you seem to be ashamed of something. Sit here and let’s talk.” He patted the bed next to him.
Olivia peeked at Brinson in reluctance. She took a deep breath and made her way toward him to sit with caution. There wasn’t anything appealing or sexy about his body. The hair on his chest resembled crumbled taco meat above his sagging stomach. Seeing him without clothes added twenty years to his age.
“Okay. Brinson. I’m embarrassed. The last thing I remember is Savvy dropping me off. How did you end up here? More importantly, why are we both nude in my bed?” Olivia’s questions tumbled from her mouth one after another. “Did we have sex?”
“Well. I called you to make sure you made it home safe. We got to talking and I asked if you wanted more time with me, as I wanted with you. You said yes and gave me your address. When I got here, we picked up where we left off. Had some more drinks, and then…” Brinson nuzzled Olivia in her neck with his nose. “We ended up in your bed doing nasty things to each other.”
“What?” Olivia fled from the bed. She widened her eyes in horror. “No. I don’t do those kinds of things with strange men. I’m not a one-night-stand type of woman. Please tell me we didn’t do what you said we did.”
“We did,” Brinson teased.
“No. We didn’t. Brinson stop playing.” Olivia began pacing again.
“I’m not. I’m serious.” Brinson stood in front of Olivia to make her look him in the eyes. “What’s the big deal? We’re both adults and we had a good time together. At least, I assumed we did from the way your body responded to mine.”
“Stop talking about it. I know we’re grown. I wasn’t ready for this. I drank too much. I’ve never done anything like this before.” Olivia dropped her eyes from Brinson’s gaze.
“It’s okay. Trust me, you did everything with perfection.” Brinson traced her jaw with his fingertips. “An Olympic performance score of ten across the board.”
“Wait a minute. Where’s the condom you used?” She began walking around the bed searching for the wrapper. “Show me the condom.”
“Condom? Um. I didn’t have one on me and you don’t have any in the house. You said something about you haven’t had to use a condom since before you were married. I thought about running out to get some, but we couldn’t wait to get busy. We used nothing except good ole’ skin-on-skin. You aren’t going to find a wrapper,” Brinson admitted.
Olivia stared at Brinson in his tighty-whitey underwear. She shook her head in hopes of waking up from what had to be a nightmare. The hairs on the back of her neck prickled from anger toward herself more than at him.
She clapped her hands in front of his face and exclaimed, “No. Having unprotected sex with men I don’t know is not something I do. Do you understand what I’m saying? I don’t even know you. How could this be happening to me?”
“Look, Olivia. Calm down. I figured you were okay with it based on your actions last night. I’m sorry you’re upset. If I’d known you were going to react this way, I wouldn’t have slept with you.” Brinson tried to hug Olivia. She jerked from his grasp.
“STDs? Have you had a test for STDs recently? Do you have HIV or AIDS? What have I done?” Olivia sat on the bed and began rocking in despair.
“No. I don’t have an STD. I got tested last month. I stay on top of getting checked out. I don’t have any diseases. Are you on any kind of birth control?” Brinson questioned with new concern on his face.
“Birth control? What? No. Oh no.” The mortifying truth hit Olivia in a flash. “I’m not on birth control. I haven’t been on anything in years.” She couldn’t stop the tears from welling in her eyes. “What have I done? What if I’m pregnant?”
“Hold up, Olivia. Don’t cry.” Brinson knelt in front of her on one knee. He held her face with his hands. “I’m not worried about you being pregnant. I promise you. I pulled out in time. We don’t have anything to be concerned about.”
Olivia shrieked. “You believe the pull-out method is foolproof? Are you telling me you get checked regularly because you have unprotected sex all the time?”
“Well, sometimes I put a rubber on if a woman insists. It doesn’t feel as good. Don’t worry. I’ve perfected pulling out
instead. You
know what I’m sayin’?” Brinson shrugged.
Olivia swooned after hearing his statement. She stared at him and couldn’t bring any words to her lips.
“Olivia? Olivia?” Brinson shook her shoulders. “Are you okay?”
“No. I’m not okay. I’m still a married woman. My divorce isn’t final. This isn’t supposed to be happening to me,” Olivia moaned. “How could I be this foolish?”
“It isn’t as serious as you think it is. Trust me. You’re fine.”
Olivia focused on Brinson before responding, “I think I’m in shock.”
“No problem.” Brinson lured Olivia onto her feet and directed her to the bathroom. “Tell you what. Let me go make us some breakfast. Why don’t you get in the shower and clean up? I’m sure you’ll feel better once the water hits your body.”
A sense of disorientation and disassociation flowed through her. The moment seemed like a déjà vu of waking from her sex-capade with Malcolm.
She allowed Brinson, a stranger, to turn on the water in the tub and close the bathroom door.
Olivia tossed her head back and moaned with regret about the fact her actions could put her in the ‘ho’ category for having sex with two men in one week. She realized she remained in the ‘Team Ratchet’ category.
The reflection of herself in the mirror made her reel backward. Mascara smeared beneath red-rimmed eyes. Chicken feathers would be better groomed than what stood up on her head at this moment. Her disheveled appearance explained why Brinson told her to get in the shower.
Olivia rushed to clean up to sober her mind. She realized Brinson could be robbing her blind for all she knew.
Once she dressed in a warm-up suit, she followed the smell of bacon and coffee to the kitchen.
Brinson wore one of her aprons on top of his clothes from the night before. He made his way around the stovetop and cabinets like an expert.
Frankie Beverly & Maze’s song, Morning After, played from his phone at the same time he worked on cooking their meal. He danced by himself and sang out of tune to the music using a spatula as a microphone. Bewildered, yet intrigued by his energy, Olivia observed him in action until he noticed her.
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