by Sequaia
“We not going by the tigers today, so you’ll be cool.” He exited the car, coming around to help me out, and I took his hand as he led me to the other side of the entrance, where we walked into a banquet hall.
“This is beautiful, Prentice,” I complimented, looking at the nicely decorated table. “How did you know I would even agree to come out with you? You had all this set up for me?”
We moved closer to the table, and there was an array of food and fruits, and everything smelled great.
“Because I wasn’t taking no for an answer. Letting you deny my invitation to live with me was the first and only no I’m taking from you.” He pulled out my chair, waiting for me to sit before pushing me slowly closer to the table. I kept my eyes on him as he swaggered his way to the seat across from me.
“Thank you. This is very nice.”
“Hey, you doing big things now, so I had to celebrate you in a big way.”
“You’re surely on the right track with this move.”
“Glad you like it. So how do you feel about everything? You know, your place, working, being back here?”
“I feel like everything is finally good. I don’t have any complaints,” I told him honestly because I couldn’t think of one thing to complain about when I was so grateful for all I had that I didn’t have to have. When I came back here from L.A., I had hit rock bottom. When I left here for L.A., I had nothing. So I was more than appreciative of everything I had now.
“That’s what’s up,” he said before removing the top from his and my plate. “You got this, or you want me to serve you?” he asked with a crooked grin.
“I can make my own plate and yours too.” I didn’t wait for a response as I used the serving spoon and placed the different items on both of our plates.
“Can I ask you something?” We had been silent for a few seconds, and I figured now was a better time than any to ask something I’d been dying to know.
“Anything. But you know that already.” He looked me right in the eyes, and for a moment, I found myself afraid to speak. Why did I care anyway? Shit, who was I kidding? I cared because of how I felt about him, so I was going to ask my question.
“Since I’ve been here, the only girl I’ve seen you with . . . well, knew about, is Brittney, who wasn’t your girlfriend, I guess. You’re young, handsome, and single. What are you waiting for?”
“What do you mean, what am I waiting for?”
“Like, why are you single? Brittney was a pretty girl, and you’ve been with me a lot. I mean, I know you have to.”
“Have to what? Want to have sex with someone?” he laughed.
I swear I felt my cheeks flush in embarrassment. I picked up my glass and took a sip. I didn’t even want to continue this conversation now, pissed I stepped on a ledge like I wouldn’t fall.
“My sex life I’m not going to discuss with you, only because there’s this sexy-ass, butterscotch-complexioned girl with some thick, curly hair and a badass shape that makes me bite my bottom lip to keep my composure every time I see her. So, yeah, I’m waiting for her to be ready for a nigga like me, so she can be loved right.”
I tell you, I felt my panties get soaked, like my water just broke. My heart pined as I did my best to keep still—any idea I had about him not wanting me as anything more than a friend was dead wrong.
Dead.
Fucking.
Wrong.
However, now that I knew that, I didn’t know what to do with the information. I did realize that I wasn’t ready to act on it just yet.
“Okay. That was TMI,” I whispered, when, in actuality, I was happy as hell that he said what he did. “Is there a restroom around here?” I needed to go and handle this puddle in my panties, mainly . . . removing them from my body.
“Back there,” he pointed, and I popped up so quick that you would’ve thought someone lit a match under my ass. I hightailed it to the bathroom and removed my panties, placing them in my pocket. I would’ve thrown them away if we weren’t in a public place.
“Pull yourself together, Aúrea,” I told myself, taking deep breaths while looking in the mirror. My cheeks were a rosy color, giving away how flustered I was. Holding the edges of the sink with both hands, I continued to take deep breaths to calm my nerves. This man really had me on one.
“Okay, you got this,” I told myself, exiting the bathroom. I wasn’t all the way together, but I didn’t want him to think I snuck off to take a shit in the middle of our lunch, so I went back to the table.
“You good?” he questioned, and I could’ve sworn he winked at me like he knew what I was doing in the bathroom.
“I’m fine.”
“What do you plan to do next? You got you a place, a part-time job, so is there anything else you plan to do?”
Thankful he changed the subject, I smiled, feeling refreshed. This was something we could definitely talk about.
“Yes, I’m going to go back to school. I still want to be an actress. I’m just going to go a different route this time. Next week, I’m going to enroll at the community college majoring in theater.”
“Damn, that’s dope.” His broad smile was infectious, making me smile as well. It felt good to see he was genuinely happy with my plans.
“Thanks. You know, I don’t think we’ve ever discussed what it is you do. You have a huge house, a whole lot of expensive cars, and—”
“I have a couple of ways I make money, one we won’t discuss. I have a consulting business, and I’m a silent partner in my mom’s place and a restaurant.”
Nodding to let him know I understood, there was nothing else he needed to say. One way he made money was legal, the other, illegal. We made small talk and finished as much of the food that we could before taking a quick stroll through the zoo, avoiding the tigers altogether. By the time we were done, I had an hour to get to work. Prentice dropped me off and promised to be back to pick me up. So I went to work, hoping that 11:00 p.m. came quick.
* * *
Prentice wanted to walk me upstairs to my door, and no matter how much I protested, he wasn’t having it. When we walked inside, Nijah was relaxing on my sofa with her feet underneath her butt and my dark grey throw over her legs, watching TV. Either we opened the door super quietly, or she was so into the show that she hadn’t noticed us coming in. Deliberately, I slammed the door and laughed when she damn near jumped out of her skin.
“Aúrea!” she sang when her eyes landed on me. She leaped from the sofa and rushed over to me, wrapping her arms around my neck. We held each other, jumping up and down like Celie and Nettie did on The Color Purple.
“I missed you,” she exclaimed, still holding on to me for dear life, while I giggled uncontrollably. I missed her too and didn’t realize how much until now. Nijah was my breath of fresh air.
“Damn, I wish I had been greeted like that.” Prentice’s voice broke our embrace.
“Shit,” Nijah yelped, removing herself from me. She had been so happy to see me that she didn’t notice him. And because I was so excited to see her, he had been forgotten about that quick.
When her eyes met Prentice’s, she took off back to the sofa. It was then that I noticed the small-ass boy shorts she had on. She picked the throw blanket up and wrapped it around her waist before walking back over to us.
“I’m sorry. I’m Nijah, Aúrea’s big sister from another mister.” She extended her right hand toward him, holding the blanket with her left.
The way she introduced herself to him brought a smile to my face as I realized she was the female version of Prentice. Crazy. It was something that I was just now aware of. Being around him all this time, seeing how protective he was of me, was almost the same kinda way Nahji was. They weren’t exactly the same type of crazy when it came to me, but I knew without a doubt they both loved me.
“I’m Prentice. Nice to meet you.” He shook her hand.
“Thanks for looking out for her. I mean, I know you knew her first and all, but this girl is my heart.
I’m glad she has someone like you looking after her.”
“She’s my heart too, so no thanks needed.”
Nijah cut her eyes to me, and I hurriedly shifted mine to the floor, flattered and embarrassed at the same damn time.
“Good to know.” She was grinning her ass off as I elbowed her. She wasn’t slick, and though she wasn’t flirting with him, she was absolutely calling herself playing matchmaker. All it took was seeing how sincere Prentice was when it came to me, and she was silently marrying me off to him.
“Aúrea, I’ll see you tomorrow, all right?” He turned his attention to me.
“Still?” There wasn’t a reason for me to be shocked that he planned to come by tomorrow. He visited every day. I should’ve known having company wasn’t going to change that.
“What? You thought ’cause your people was here something was about to change?” He grabbed me by the waist, pulling me into him, kissing the top of my head.
“Guess not,” I whispered. Damn, this boy was getting me hotter and hotter and bothered by the day. He released me, and I’d be damned if my heart didn’t sink at the separation.
“Lock the door,” he ordered as he opened my front door.
“I will.” I placed my hand on the knob, holding it as he stepped outside.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” he reminded me. “Bye, Nahji,” he teased, smiling before we all laughed, and I shut the door, locking it.
“Giiirrrlll,” Nijah sang, smiling so big that if her cheeks burst, that would be no surprise.
“I know what you’re thinking, and your ass needs to relax.”
“Look, I know what I said about finding yourself and all of that, but that man right there? You can go against every damn thing I told you. I know a good man when I see one, honey.”
“You do, huh?”
“Damn right. Let’s not forget I’m the one who advised you not to get with Adrian’s ass, and who was right? You or me?” She used her index finger to point between us.
Rolling my eyes toward the ceiling, she spoke again before I could even say something smart.
“You can roll them eyes all you want to. You know I’m right. Anyway, since you want to act like you didn’t want to drag his ass up those stairs and ride him ’til tomorrow—”
“Change the subject, Nahji.”
“Okay, okay.” She threw her hands up in mock surrender, doing a horrible job of suppressing the smile she so desperately wanted to show.
“What were you doing since I’ve been gone?”
“Talking to yo’ ass every day, Aúrea, and working. You know that.”
“Did you go by Ms. Jackie’s and let her know I was okay?”
“Sure did, and she said Adrian came by looking for you. Hell, I’ve caught him sitting outside of my apartment a few times looking for you.”
“He didn’t say anything to you, did he?” Just knowing Adrian’s crazy ass had been stalking Nijah’s house and going to the café to look for me put my nerves on edge. I don’t know why I thought he would let me go by now. I should have been an afterthought. “Why didn’t you tell me, Nahji?”
“Because all you would’ve done was worry, and I didn’t want you doing that. Adrian’s ass doesn’t scare me. I already told you that. Besides, his dumb ass would be under the jail if he tried anything.”
“What do you mean?”
“Look.” She handed me her phone, and I looked at the multiple messages she had from him. There were screenshots of him threatening not only her but also me as well.
“I’m sorry, Nahji.” My heart broke, and guilt took over. He wouldn’t have been harassing her if it weren’t for me.
“Girl, you know better than to apologize for that sorry-ass nigga. You have no control over him acting like a bitch. Once again, his threats do not scare me. Neither does his punk ass. Plus, he doesn’t know you’re out here, so you don’t even have to see his ugly ass again.”
“Okay, but you know he isn’t ugly.”
“He acts like a bitch, so he’s ugly. A person can be fine on the outside, but if their insides are ugly, that shit will eventually show on the surface, and Adrian’s ways make him hideous.”
“You’re right, I guess. I stopped liking his ass after the second time he slapped me.”
“The second time?” she looked at me like I were crazy.
“Yeah. He didn’t slap me hard enough the first time, I guess.” It wasn’t meant to be funny; still, both of us burst into laughter.
“I’m thrilled you’re here. You gonna stay for a while?”
“I don’t know. Probably until I begin to feel like a third wheel. That damn Prentice is about to make you his woman soon, child. Real soon, and it doesn’t look like any of your efforts to fight it will work.”
“We are just friends.”
“Yeah, keep telling yourself that,” she teased. “I know your friend-boo is going to be coming around. Please make sure my time here is not spent in your home. It’s really nice, but I’m trying to go out and see the town.”
“I got you, I promise.”
21
Prentice
Standing at Aúrea’s door with a bouquet of roses, I held my hand up, fist balled, ready to knock, only I hesitated. Why in the hell was I so nervous? It wasn’t like we hadn’t gone out on numerous occasions. Keeping it real with myself, I knew this time was going to be different. Before the night was over, she would know how a nigga really felt about her, and I just hoped that she was open to receiving what I was trying to give, which was full access to my heart. She been had the shit, yet, with the way things were going, she needed a reminder and reassurance that I wanted her to have my shit and give me hers in return.
Taking a deep breath, I sucked up the shit and knocked on the door. Knocking on her door made me feel lame as hell. There was no reason I didn’t have a key. She needed to fix that.
“Hey, she’ll be down in a minute,” Nijah spoke, letting me inside. She was still out here, and since Aúrea enjoyed having her around, it was fine with me as well. Long as I got my time in with A, there was nothing for me to complain about.
“Awe, those flowers are beautiful,” Nijah complimented, and a nigga felt his cheeks heat up.
“These ain’t nothing,” I shrugged, trying to get my cool back.
“So, where you and little sis goin’ for y’all date?”
“It’s not a date,” I quickly corrected. My voice had gone up a notch too, which had me sounding nervous as fuck.
Damn.
“It sure looks like a date.”
“It ain’t, though. Me and Aúrea have our own thang. We just hang out.”
I don’t know who I was trying to convince, myself or Nijah. Honestly, I would have loved to call this our first official date, but she continued to make it known that a relationship or even dating wasn’t something she was concerned about now. So forcing this outing to be a date wouldn’t work in my favor, I was sure.
“Okay.” She shrugged and went and took a seat on the sofa. She sat down, tucking her feet underneath her butt. No lie, Nijah was drop-dead gorgeous, and if I met her in another lifetime, shooting my shot wouldn’t even be a second thought. I’d probably be on one knee with a ring in front of her. She had a smooth, caramel complexion. Thick in all the right places, about a D-cup bra size. If I had to compare her to someone, she looked like a shorter, darker, thicker version of the singer Mya, except she wore her hair shoulder-length straight with some kind of red tips at the bottom.
“Okay, I’m ready,” Aúrea spoke, stepping into the front room, looking breathtaking. She wore a pair of black shorts with some boots that went high up her legs and a pink and black shirt that hung off her shoulders. Her usual curly hair was straight with a part on the side, reminding me of the style the late Aaliyah used to wear. If Aúrea didn’t want me or any other dudes lusting after her, she was damn sure making it hard, looking the way she was looking. I shifted a bit, hoping neither she nor Nijah noticed me adjusting my dick.
<
br /> “All right, let’s go.” I tried to sound unmoved like I wasn’t tripping, and like tonight was a regular night like any other, but if Aúrea didn’t know, I was fronting. Nijah’s ass sure did. The mischievous smirk on her face gave it away.
Holding the door open, I waited till Aúrea got in front of me.
“You sure you’re gonna be okay?” she asked over her shoulder to Nijah.
“Girl, yes, bye.”
When she said that, I wasted no time pulling Aúrea farther out the door and shutting it behind us, knowing that Aúrea would probably cancel on me if she didn’t receive the right answer.
“You look beautiful.”
Aúrea smiled at my compliment as she got into the car. We were in my Tesla tonight. She’d been driving it, but I missed being behind the wheel of the vehicle, so tonight, I was driving.
“Where are we going?”
“Just ride.”
She sucked her teeth before sitting back and doing what I asked. Since I hoped to use tonight to lay my feelings on the table, a public place with a large crowd wasn’t going to work, so I paid to rent out the entire restaurant. It wasn’t really fancy, just a Japanese spot across town. When we walked inside, I immediately noticed how Aúrea’s eyes widened in surprise.
“You like it?” I asked, smiling knowingly when she looked at me.
“There’s no one here.”
“We’re here. That’s how it’s supposed to be. Tonight only, anyway,” I shrugged, taking her hand and leading her over to the small sitting area. Shortly, a chef came out and began setting up. When he lit the fire over some onions, Aúrea’s ass just about jumped out of the seat and her skin.
“It’s not funny, Prentice. I wasn’t expecting that,” she fussed.
My ass was laughing hard as hell too.
“My bad, my bad.” Wiping my hand over my mouth, I forced myself to stop laughing.
“You’ve never been to a spot like this?” Now, my curiosity had taken over, wondering what kind of life she really had out in L.A., where she hadn’t even been to a place as simple as a teppanyaki restaurant.
“No.”
“Glad to know I brought you here first.”
