“Wanna hold my boobs?”
“All day, every day,” I answered teasingly before taking an appreciative peek.
But she brought my eyes back to her face when she said, “No, silly. For the shoot. You don’t have to do it if you don’t want to, I understand. But I really, really want you to. You know, to give it the full Janet effect.”
My lips twisted as I lifted my hands, examining them in a way I had never cared to do before. “I mean, my knuckles are kinda ashy, but…”
Her laugh cut me off. “They have plenty of lotion, fool. Matter of fact…” she trailed, waving a hand to get the attention of her makeup artist so that she could bring me a bottle. And instead of letting me apply it on my own, Zalayah rubbed it in herself, taking time to give my hands a mini-massage as if she didn’t have a hoard of people waiting to resume the photoshoot. But in that moment, they didn’t seem to matter. She was completely focused on me, completely focused on making sure I was comfortable when she asked, “You’re sure you wanna do it, right? No pressure, babe.”
My eyebrow piqued when I repeated, “Babe?”
“Gabe. I said Gabe,” she corrected with a grin before instructing me to sit behind where she was standing. Then she grabbed my hands and placed them exactly where she wanted them, giving me two perfect handfuls of her breasts before telling the photographer, “We’re ready now.”
No one seemed as fazed by my presence as I felt for being in this position. In fact, everyone loved the idea, cheering Zalayah on and letting off a round of applause once the photographer captured what he claimed as the “Money Shot”.
Zalayah’s assistant, Kelly, immediately brought her a jacket to cover up with once we were done. And Caleb joined us as well, typing away on his phone as he told her, “I sent your mom the behind the scenes shots she asked for. And you have a little over an hour before you’re due at the fitting for your gown for that gala coming up, which looking at the traffic, you probably should’ve left twenty minutes ago.”
“Damnit. Let me go find the rest of my clothes,” she replied, leaning over to give me a quick kiss on the cheek and a whispered, “Thank you, babe” before following Kelly towards her dressing room.
And once she was out of earshot, Caleb wasted no time teasing, “Looks like you’re in a little deeper than a mutual understanding, bruh.”
While it would’ve been easy to play it off and act like it was nothing, something about Zalayah’s easygoing energy made me feel confident, made me feel… secure. Even if we weren’t anything official and even if it was only temporary, she was making the most of it, and there was no good reason for me to not do the same.
So this time, instead of talking it down like usual, I smiled proudly when I replied, “You know what? You might just be right.”
Zalayah
“Would it weird you out if I cried right now? Cause I can feel it coming.”
My lips were trembling as I pulled the top one between my teeth, trying not to burst into tears as we played the album back for what had to be the hundredth time. So many long nights dreaming about this day, so many long nights in the studio working towards this day, and it was finally done; the tracks ordered then mixed and mastered after picking apart each and every detail, ready to deliver to the label who knew better than to make any major edits.
I couldn’t have been any happier, and Gabe felt it too, his grin full blown as he said, “Do what you gotta do, Rose. There’s plenty of tissues around here.”
One single tear slipped out with permission, though I only swiped it away with my hand as I gushed, “It’s just so fuckin’ perfect. I can’t believe we really pulled this off.”
“You killed it, little mama. Congratulations,” Gabriel offered, leaning over from his seat on the couch to land a kiss on my cheek.
A kiss that forced me to correct, “We did it.” Earning myself one of his gorgeous smiles, though it quickly turned into a scowl once I suggested, “We should celebrate.”
“Hell nah. Last time I saw you with some liquor in your system, it wasn’t a good look,” he said, though the memory only made me roll my eyes since there was really no memory for me to put together.
But since I knew his insistence was the truth, I shook it off as I said, “Not like that. Let’s… go somewhere. Get out of this city. Hell, we can get out of this country if you want to.”
“And not be able to get back in because your president be on that fuck shit? Hell, you can’t even fly without getting your ass beat by the damn airline these days.”
I smacked my teeth, trying to hold back my laugh as I told him, “I fly all the time and have never had any issues.”
But he quickly countered, “Yeah, because you’re you. The same rules don’t apply to everyone else.”
“How about a road trip then?” I suggested, random destinations within a reasonable radius already flooding my brain as I considered which one would be the most peaceful, the most secluded.
And Gabriel seemed legitimately intrigued by the idea, his eyebrow piqued when he asked, “Yeah? Where we going? Up the coast?”
“Let’s go to the Hoover Dam.”
He snapped his head back, his face scrunching with confusion when he repeated, “The Hoover Dam? There’s nothing to do out there, but just… look.”
“That’s exactly what I want to do. Be one with nature,” I said as I crossed my legs and closed my eyes in the middle of the living room floor, pinching my fingers together in my best meditation pose.
But my moment of zen was immediately interrupted by Gabe laughing me off. “Zalayah, you’re a city girl. Hell, you were born and raised in the most popular city in the world before you came out here to the west coast. Don’t act like you wanna be Ms. Tree-Hugger now.”
My eyes snapped open as I clarified, “I don’t have to hug them. I just wanna… see them on the drive. And take lots of cool pictures for Instagram. And stay in some shoddy ass motel where no one will recognize me.”
This time, his laugh was one of disbelief when he shook his head and said, “Now you’re really trippin’.”
“Come on. What are you? Afraid or something?”
He nodded, continuing to laugh at me when he replied, “Yeah, afraid of you talking this good game now and then wasting my time driving somewhere you don’t really wanna be.”
Instead of agreeing with him and cancelling my idea, I crawled up onto his lap, wrapping my arms around his neck as I told him, “As long as you’re there, I’ll be perfectly fine.” And that was the truth. In fact, I was most looking forward to spending an extended period of time with Gabriel that didn’t include work, or music, or… anything other than being in each other’s aura and creating a memory we could both hold onto.
My physical persuasion seemed to be working as he gripped my thighs, licking his lips when he asked, “You really wanna go?”
“I really wanna go. And I don’t want to tell anyone where we’re going. I just want to… get away. I mean, I know everything already going on in my life is only going to be amplified by a thousand once this album drops, so I want to take this last opportunity to just… be.”
He studied me for a moment before his lips finally transformed into the sexy smirk I was waiting on. “If that’s what you want, Rose. But you gotta promise me one thing?”
I was already prepared to give him just about anything to make this happen when I asked, “What’s that?”
“When this shit blows up like I know it will, don’t forget about the little people like me, aight?”
The genuineness in his expression made me blush, flattered that he’d even be worried about such a thing. But since it was clear he was serious in his request, I was sure to clarify, “I could never forget you, Gabe. I mean, for one, your ass better not be going anywhere anytime soon. And for two, you’ve done more for me in these past few months than anyone besides my mother has done for me in years. I’m forever indebted to you.”
“Well how you gonna start paying me back, huh?” h
e asked teasingly, leaning forward to meet my lips for a kiss.
“I’m gonna start... by taking you on a road trip,” I answered, punctuating my response with a kiss of my own.
“And then?” he asked, gripping my thighs a little tighter to let me know exactly what was on his mind.
I had no problem playing along, enjoying the feel of his lips when they landed against my neck as I told him, “And then I’m gonna fuck you like a prostitute in our shoddy ass motel, like Jay-Z rapped about.”
“So that’s what you’re on? Some On The Run, Jay-Z and Beyoncé shit?” he asked with a little chuckle right against my skin before covering it up with another kiss.
“Maybe…” I said with a giggle of my own.
A giggle that earned me a hard smack on the ass, making me laugh even harder as he insisted, “You better get your fine ass upstairs and get to packing then. Sounds like we got some driving to do.”
While I was glad that he had accepted my proposal, my mind was elsewhere the longer I sat on his lap, his dick steadily growing against his jeans giving me an even better idea. “How about we get upstairs and take care of this first? And then we can come up with an actual strategy to skip town without anyone noticing?”
Instead of answering with words, he lifted us from the couch with ease, my legs instinctively wrapping around his waist as he carried us up the stairs. And once we made it to the bedroom, he made it clear that he was determined to make me the happiest girl in the world by giving me everything I had asked for and more.
&
“Yo, you’re the worst road trip partner in history.”
My eyes were slow to peel open as I took in my surroundings that looked nothing like the California hills and busy freeways that I was used to. In fact, it was the exact opposite, only a few cars in the otherwise desolate parking lot outside of the motel that looked straight out of a horror flick.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t even realize how tired I was,” I told him, stretching in my seat as the dust in my brain began to settle once I realized where we were.
And Gabriel only doubled down on my realization when he replied, “We made it, Rose. Shoddy ass motel and all.”
He tossed a ring of keys my way, my reflexes allowing me to catch them. Though once they were in my hand, it only confused me since, “What are these for?”
“I already got us checked in. Our room is up there,” he answered, leaning over the steering wheel to point through the windshield towards the second level of doors, the only sign of life being a guy who looked like a truck driver resting on the balcony smoking a cigarette.
I tried to shake off the reluctance Gabriel had already expected me to have as I peeked back down at the keys and asked, “They really have actual keys? These look like they belong to someone’s haunted antique home.”
“This is what you said you wanted, Rose,” he reminded me, his tone half-amused and half-annoyed as if he expected me to change my mind. And maybe if I had been awake during the drive, I would’ve been able to change my mind.
But now that we were already here, now that the room keys were already in my hand, now that we were only a short drive away from our intended destination, I decided to brush off my uneasiness, coaching myself up as I repeated, “This is what I said I wanted. Right. And I mean, I guess we won’t be here much anyway since we’ll be out… exploring and stuff. Let me just go in and change my clothes.”
He gave me a pat to the thigh as he insisted, “You don’t need to change, Rose. You’re already givin’ off all types of sexy stranded mountain girl vibes, so you’ll fit right in.”
I rolled my eyes, peeking down at the floral print leggings that didn’t at all match with the hoodie I must’ve borrowed from Gabe mid-drive and the only pair of tennis shoes I had packed in my suitcase. But since I wasn’t quite ready to deal with the crisis that was surely waiting on me on the other side of the motel door, I replied, “Whatever, asshole. Let’s just head on up to the good stuff.”
Gabriel wasted no time pulling out of the dirt parking lot, the short drive giving me the opportunity to check out all the beautiful scenery I had missed on the way here; mainly the intricately carved mountains that faded into the distance with winding roads in between them. But there were also people, a lot of people, making me worried that our mission wouldn’t be accomplished without someone recognizing me.
We pulled into a parking lot that was already filled with cars even though it was still fairly early in the morning. In fact, we had purposely timed the trip so that we’d be able to take it all in before the afternoon crowd showed up. But apparently what we thought was early was actually late as I adjusted my cap low over my eyes, already a little sick to my stomach as I thought about taking this many people on without any security.
“Don’t worry, Rose. I got you,” Gabriel announced, giving my thigh a reassuring squeeze as if he could read my mind. And somehow his words were comforting enough for me to agree with as I slipped on a pair of sunglasses before climbing out of the car.
The first thing I noticed was the air. It was different, fresher, a hell of a lot cleaner than the smog I was used to back in Cali. But the sun was shining all the same, reflecting off the river below us and all the beautiful mountains surrounding us.
“It’s so… massive. So gorgeous,” I said as I rested my elbows against the ledge of the stone bridge, looking out towards the steadily flowing water.
Instead of joining, Gabriel stayed behind me, observing from a distance as he suggested, “Here. Let me take your picture.”
“How about we take one together,” I countered, pulling my phone from the pocket of his hoodie and clicking the button for the front-facing camera. Then Gabriel turned us around so that the mountains were our backdrop, wrapping his arms around my waist and leaning forward so that his chin was against my shoulder before I snapped a bunch of pictures.
He stayed there as I scrolled through each, trying to decide which one I liked best. But the only conclusion I came to was, “Ugh. You’re way finer than me in these. Got me lookin’ all homely while you’re out here on your GQ shit.”
To no surprise, my annoyance only made him laugh. “You look beautiful, Rose. Quit playin’. Matter of fact, send me that picture so I can put it on my Instagram.”
I slipped the phone back into my pocket as I shouted, “Hell no! Our first picture together and you really wanna play me like this? You gotta wait ‘til I’m a little done up to show me off, babe. At least for the first time. After that, I don’t care.”
Gabriel shook his head, brushing me off when he replied, “Zalayah, come on now. Everybody knows you’re fine as hell done up or not. So let me show my girl off on the ‘Gram.”
“Your girl?” I asked, my eyebrow piqued and my heart racing as he wrapped his arms a little tighter around me.
And as I sank deeper into his hold, he replied, “I let you drag me up to the Hoover Dam on some random shit, so that must mean I really fuck with you. But I guess you ain’t gotta be my girl…”
“No! I mean, I wanna be your girl. Just wanna be your girl…” I sang, doing my best Teedra Moses impression as I danced against him, his laugh in response roaring right against my ear.
“Quit singing like that before somebody recognizes your silly ass,” he said as he turned back towards the dam, his arms straddling my body as we looked out towards the water together. And while I was caught up in its beauty, I was also caught up in the beauty of the moment as Gabe landed a short kiss against my temple.
“I’ve never done anything like this with anybody. Never wanted to do anything like this with anybody,” I admitted, gnawing at my lip as he pressed his cheek against mine.
“Me neither. But I’m glad we did. Glad you could be the first.”
I moved my face so that I could turn to meet his eyes that were filled with nothing but joy, and… love. There was definitely some love there. But before I could acknowledge it, before I got a chance to tell him I felt the same way, our staring w
as interrupted by someone nearby asking, “Zalayah?”
“Shit. We gotta go,” I groaned, turning to find the two teenage girls already snapping pictures of me as I gave them a polite wave while Gabriel dragged me towards the car, apparently taking his job as protector to heart.
But I didn’t get far enough to miss them yelling, “Zalayah, wait! Zalayah, can I have your autograph?!” causing even more of a scene that others quickly caught on to.
In the blink of an eye, there was a circle of people surrounding the car trying to sneak pictures through Gabe’s windows that were thankfully tinted. And he seemed determined to run somebody over as he started backing out of the parking spot anyway, forcing them to move out of our way until we cleared the parking lot.
“Damn, girl. Can’t take your famous ass anywhere,” he joked as we made our way back towards the motel. And while I wanted to be annoyed, I could only smile as I thought about how sweet of a memory we had created even if it had been cut short.
Then again, it technically wasn’t over as we pulled in front of the motel. Though Gabriel still wasn’t convinced I was really down, turning my way to ask, “You sure you wanna stay here? We don’t have to. I mean, I think you got your point across.”
Instead of replying with words, I got out of the car, climbing the flimsy wire stairs two-by-two until I landed right in front of Room 202. Then I released a nervous breath before pulling out the regular set of keys, giving the knob an extra wiggle to get it to work before pushing the door open to find… a standard motel room.
Double bed against the wall with two nightstands flanking, lamps with shades that were past needing to be replaced, an old-timer television that still carried a booty on the back resting on a dresser. Everything about the room felt very ordinary, and Gabriel seemed surprised by that once he joined me with our bags, leaning against the door frame as I plopped down onto the bed and told him, “It’s actually not that bad. I mean, this bed is like… four-star comfortable. And the bathroom is clean. I’ll be fine. Let’s stay at least for the night.”
Heated Harmonies Page 16
