If Only for the Summer

by Alexandra Warren

  It was almost ridiculous how annoyed I became from the question. Not because of Guy’s curiosity, but because of my uncertain state with the person who he was talking about. But once again, I tried to play it cool when I answered, “He’s uh… working. Out in L.A. And Kay’s not too fond of him anyway so…”

  He chuckled again. “Kay’s not fond of a lot of people, but it’s usually for good reason. What’s her gripe with your ol’ man?”

  “I’d rather not go there,” I replied as plainly as I could, setting a boundary without giving too much away.

  And I was grateful when he only nodded again, taking a cool sip from his drink. “I can respect that.”

  “But I also noticed that she seems to have a gripe with your baby mama...” I trailed as I turned away from him to hide the fact that I was blushing from my own teasing like an idiot.

  “I’d rather not go there,” he said mockingly, my eyes flying back his way just as he was taking another sip of his drink through his own laugh, not even fazed by the sting that probably would’ve knocked me out.

  “I guess I should’ve saw that one coming, huh?” I asked as I watched him the same way he had been watching me while he looked out towards the water.

  He kept his eyes there when he smiled and answered, “You started it. But actually, I don’t have an issue going there. Jaxson’s mother and I get along great. We do right by Jaxson as you can tell, and it’s all love.”

  His explanation seemed reasonable - ideal, even -, but for some reason, I couldn’t shake the fact that it still wasn’t adding up in my head. So instead of letting the confusion linger, I relied a little on liquid courage to ask, “If it’s all love then why didn’t she come out here with you boys? Seems like the perfect family vacation.”

  He shrugged, his neutral expression not giving anything away when he replied, “She might come out to visit. Already claimed to be going through Jaxson withdrawals, so we’ll see.”

  I expected his response to put me at ease one way or another. But it only made me even more confused since it didn’t exactly lend itself to clarifying his relationship status with her.

  “Why do you even care so much about his relationship status with her?” I thought to myself just as Guy was reminding me of my own when he asked, “You think your ol’ man is gonna slide through? Make the coast-to-coast trip to see his lady?”

  Instead of staring at him, I brought my eyes back to the drink in my hand, hoping the lingering ice cubes would help me come up with a plausible answer. But the only thing that came out was the truth when I replied, “I… I don’t know. We haven’t talked about it. And he wasn’t too thrilled about me coming down here in the first place.”

  “I can imagine that. I mean, this city is a pretty happenin’ spot. All this hot, sexy, sensual air around, not to mention you out here lookin’ fly as hell. Then you pile that on top of the fact that we’re surrounded by a bunch of niggas who might be ugly in the face but all have decent enough bank accounts to get your attention, and yeah… I’d be worried if I was him too.”

  I shook my head at his comments, crossing my arms over my chest as I asked, “What’s a relationship if you can’t trust each other, right?”

  “Now that I can drink to,” he said, lifting his glass my way for a clink that I met before we both took a quick swig.

  My gulp was barely down my throat by the time I added, “And besides, I’m sure Jaxson’s mother feels the same way about you being out here surrounded by women in bikinis who have all paid Dr. Miami a visit even if they won’t admit to it. Fit tummy tea, my ass...”

  Even though I had nothing against those who chose to go the nip and tuck route to achieving the body they wanted, there was nothing more annoying than using their picture as #BodyGoals only to find out later that they had went under the knife instead of doing the millions of squats like they claimed. And I suppose my irritation with that fact was obvious as Guy let out a heavy chuckle, one that gave me shivers when he said, “Fit tummy tea aside, the man performs miracle work. Have you seen his Snapchat?”

  I rolled my eyes. “Of course I’ve seen his Snapchat. And I’m pretty sure I can perform a Brazilian Butt Lift operation by now thanks to it. Maybe I should go see him while I’m here so I can get paid for taking pictures and hosting parties like the girls he does surgery on.”

  Guy smacked his teeth in disbelief, leaning back from the ledge to check me out as he gushed, “Nah, Nova. You got the au naturel poppin’ back there. Don’t go messin’ with God’s work.”

  While I wanted to blush from his compliment, I only smirked instead as I finished off the liquor that was beginning to settle into my bloodstream even deeper meaning I needed to get away from Guy as soon as possible before I did something I would regret. And that was exactly the plan when I stepped away from the ledge to tell him, “I’m gonna... get to bed. Thanks for the drink.”

  He turned around to match my step, his eyes speaking a language that made my body flush with heat as he looked down at me with his lip pulled between his teeth and said, “Thanks for joining me, sweetheart. Hopefully we can do it again sooner than later.”

  “I’ll think about it,” I replied quickly as I turned to walk back inside.

  But he caught me by the wrist, forcing me to peek back when he asked, “You promise?”

  His hold on me was gentle, but it was still enough for me to feel the transfer of energy as he ran his fingertips against my skin while waiting for an answer. And even though his simple actions were tempting me to give an answer that went totally against my moral compass, I straightened up just enough to agree, “Yeah. I promise.”

  He gave the most attractive grin as he let me go, the heat of his eyes glued to my ass burning through the leggings I wore in a way that made me feel sexy as hell. But just as I crossed the threshold of the door, it felt like a bucket of water had been tossed on the fire he created inside of me when he shouted, “Tell your little boyfriend I said goodnight!”

  &

  “So… how’s the arrangement at the condo going?”

  Kaylin’s teasing tone spoke volumes as I sank deeper into the massage chair, my eyes closed as the nail technician worked on one of my feet while the other stayed soaking in the glass tub of bubbles. And though I wanted to remain as relaxed as possible, I couldn’t help the way my lip curled up when I corrected, “You mean how is your little plan to set us up going?”

  I couldn’t see her face, but I imagined it being twisted into a scowl as she said, “Nova, I didn’t set you up. It was purely coincidental, I swear.”

  “Yeah, yeah, yeah. Tell me anything, Kay,” I rattled as I shook my head in disbelief.

  “Nova, I’m serious! I would never… actually, I take that back. I would set you up, but never to this extreme. The condo was double-booked by accident. Just like hotels, or flights, or whatever,” she insisted, trying to normalize what she knew was a messed up situation.

  I finally opened my eyes, but only so that I could lift my empty champagne glass to signal the need for a refill on my mimosa as I explained, “Except with hotels, or flights, or whatever, someone usually gets kicked to the curb.”

  “But how much sense would that make? You know there’s plenty of room for all of you, Nova.”

  “Doesn’t mean I planned on spending my summer playing nanny,” I fired back, once again shaking my head at what I knew sounded ridiculous. But falling into what could only be defined by that title felt way too natural at the time for me to combat, especially with Jaxson being such a sweetheart.

  Of course, Kaylin had to blow things out of proportion when she asked, “Nanny? Damn, Guy has you whipped enough to play nanny already?!”

  I rolled my eyes, accepting the fresh mimosa and taking a much needed sip before I answered, “No, Kaylin. But you know I can’t help it. Nova loves the kids. And Jaxson is such a sweetheart. He fell asleep to me reading him a bedtime story last night and I swear I was ready to adopt him on the spot.”

  “Well… you
gotta go through his daddy first. Or on top of his daddy. Or bent over in front of his daddy…” she trailed, the sneaky little grin she wore telling on her even if she still wasn’t ready to admit it.

  But there was nothing that would convince me otherwise when I told her, “See?! This has set up written all over it.”

  She shrugged, taking a sip of her own mimosa as she said, “I’m just sayin’, Nova. I seriously didn’t do this on purpose. But now that you mention it, you guys would make the perfect little family.”

  “Family? Who said anything about making a family?” I asked hastily, the thought alone making me cringe since it was far from what I really desired no matter how much I had joked to myself about Guy and Jaxson fitting the build of what I maybe wanted long down the road when I first saw them.

  Still, Kaylin played coy when she asked, “What? You said you wanted Jaxson. Guy is just... a bonus.”

  “A bonus. Right.” I thought as I shook my head and told her, “Whatever, Kay. You know I’m still rockin’ with David right now anyway.”

  She damn near hopped out of her chair in response, startling both of our technicians as she groaned, “Oh. OH! Speaking of him… did you see the latest?”

  I could only sigh, purposely finishing off my mimosa once again as I watched Kaylin scroll through her phone for what was surely gossip. It seemed like she was constantly hitting me with something new. And though it was always useful, relevant information, I was honestly growing tired of it.

  All of it.

  She leaned over the armrest of her massage chair to hand me her phone and sure enough David and some new popstar were plastered as the top post on a gossip blog, apparently sharing a romantic candlelight dinner together after whatever video she was filming. The gallery of pictures below it only added to the intimate feel of the scene, some of them holding hands, some whispering near the ear, lots and lots of grins. And while stuff like this would usually garner an immediate reaction in the form of calling to question him about it, “Interesting,” was all I cared to respond as I handed the phone back to her.

  She cocked her head to the side as she repeated, “Interesting? That’s it?”

  “What do you expect me to say, Kay? Of course I don’t like the shit, but there’s nothing I can do about it right now,” I explained, closing my eyes as I tried to recapture the zen I had found in the beginning.

  But Kaylin didn’t care to join me when she once again repeated, “Nothing you can do about it? Umm… how about you get in touch and cuss his ass out?”

  I sank back into my chair, turning up the pressure to knead instead of thump, hoping that would soothe the negative energy that was threatening to brew when I asked, “And then what, Kay? Listen to him deny it like he’s done with everything else? That shit does nothing but give me a headache, so I’d rather not. Not right now at least.”

  To my surprise, she actually accepted my plea, releasing a heavy sigh as she said, “Fine, Nova. I won’t push it anymore.”

  “Thank you,” I told her shortly as I settled a little more into my chair.

  “But one more…”

  “Kaylin…” I growled, cutting her off. Though truthfully, I really couldn’t be mad at her for sharing information I probably wouldn’t have sought out on my own. In fact, I pretty much did the exact opposite these days, avoiding just about every blog I could so that I wouldn’t run into what I knew was always waiting for me. And it was always, always waiting for me, so much so that I really had no choice but to finally face the reality of the situation.

  But for now, all I wanted to do was relax. And I was glad when Kaylin finally agreed, “Okay. Okay. I’ll be quiet. For now.”

  Guy

  It was cool as hell to watch my bro ball out, even if it was just a run-through for tomorrow night’s game. Jaxson couldn’t wait any longer to see his Uncle Lamar after he had flaked on us on our first night in town, so we ventured down to the arena to check him out, only catching the tail end of practice. But that was plenty as far as Jaxson’s attention span was concerned.

  Lamar invited us to the locker room to meet his teammates and of course Jaxson talked everyone into taking a picture with him. In fact, the players couldn’t get enough of his witty ass, going back and forth about kid shit like favorite cartoon characters, fruit snacks, and iPad apps. I insisted a few times that they didn’t have to keep talking to him, but they all claimed not to be bothered so I let him have at it.

  Less answering questions for me to do.

  I waited with Lamar at his locker while keeping a close eye on Jaxson who was clear across the room. Lamar tossed a hand over his shoulder at him with a smile as he said, “Yo, that dude is a character, Guy. What you been doin’ to my nephew?”

  Since I sometimes wondered the same thing, I could only shake my head. “I swear I’ve raised ‘em as normal as I can. Nothing none of us weren’t around growing up.”

  Smacking his teeth, Lamar’s face was scrunched when he reminded, “Bruh, our dads had us shootin’ craps with they old ass homies and tasting hard liquor at like twelve. I hope you ain’t raising ‘em like that.”

  My first extinct was to defend that we still came out alright, but I knew none of that shit was regular. Lamar and I had been introduced to stuff way earlier than reasonable, from alcohol to drugs and gambling, and everything in between. But since my pops didn’t think anything of it, neither did I. I absorbed his knowledge like it was the bible and wanted to be just like him until I grew up and realized how destructive his habits were. So sure, Jax had tagged along with me and the guys back home, and had probably overheard some… non-kiddie conversations. But I did my best to balance it out with educational and life skills, not to mention his mother was on the complete other side of the spectrum when it came to keeping his environment as perfectly stimulating as possible.

  “So maybe not exactly like that, but the same general principles. The kid is just… special.”

  Lamar laughed, changing out of his practice jersey into a fresh t-shirt as he said, “Nah, the apple just didn’t fall far from the tree. Lil’ dude is crazy just like his blockhead ass daddy.”

  I brushed him off. “Bro, come on now. I’m super chill. As chill as they come.”

  Sure, between the two of us I had always been considered the wild child growing up. But I wouldn’t exactly categorize myself as crazy. Still, Lamar acted unconvinced, draping his duffle bag over his shoulder as he said, “Yeah, ever since you got on your fatherhood shit you’ve calmed down. But before baby boy came in the picture, that was the real you. The crazy you. The nigga I grew up with. To be honest, I don’t even know who you are right now.”

  I held a hand to my chest as I defended, “You don’t know who I am? You’re the one with the key to Miami and shit. Can I have your autograph, superstar? Can a nigga get a selfie or two for the ‘Gram?”

  He brushed me off the same way I had done him as we headed to snag Jaxson. “Here you go with that bullshit. You know I’m the same me. Ain’t shit changed but my address, brodie.”

  “Yeah, your address and your bank account,” I corrected. Then we laughed together as he pulled me in for a quick bro-hug. “I feel you though, man. You livin’ the dream. Bossed up. I’m proud of you.”

  His smile was genuine as he let me go to pick Jaxson up, tossing him over his shoulder and causing him to squeal. “Uncle Lamar, put me downnnnn!!”

  “Nah, sucka. I heard you a big boy now. That means I can tickle you like one,” he teased as he continued to attack his ribs.

  Jaxson was all laughs as he tried to fight Lamar off, but it was no use. I made myself busy dapping up a few of Lamar’s teammates before we headed out with plans on grabbing a bite to eat, though I honestly wished Nova was at home to cook for us. Surely chicken stir fry wasn’t the only thing she could whip up.

  Speaking of Nova…

  Once we got settled into Lamar’s car, Jaxson secured in his car seat, I wasted no time asking about her. “So… what’s up with Kaylin’s hom
egirl?”

  I tried not to sound as thirsty as I felt. But from the look on Lamar’s face, he had picked up on that vibe anyway when he asked, “Who, Nova? She’s cool peoples. Her and Kaylin have been best friends since the beginning of time. Matter of fact, I’m pretty sure you met her at least once back in school when you came to see me hoop. Maybe at an after party or somethin’.”

  I was waiting for Jaxson to jump in about who had quickly become his favorite person in the world. But when I peeked to the backseat, he had already dozed off, making it even easier for me to answer, “Nah, I would’ve remembered that.”

  There was no way in hell I would’ve forgotten an encounter with someone like Nova. She was way too attractive for me to have ever skimmed over no matter how drunk I probably was at the time.

  It was college after all.

  Then again, it made sense once Lamar explained, “She’s changed a lot in the last couple years. I mean, she didn’t always look like she does now. Used to be a little more on the chubby side, wore a bob instead of the locs she rocks, cleared up her skin with some home remedies and shit. I mean, don’t get me wrong, she was always a dope person, always pretty inside and out. But now she has the… energy to match. Not that I’m checking for my sis like that, but you know what I mean.”

  I nodded as I told him, “Yeah I hear you, bro.”

  “But you may have to fall back. I’m pretty sure she’s still got a man back home.”

  The original disappointment of the news returned, but I acted as if I didn’t know at all when I asked, “Oh word?”

  I was hoping Lamar could give me some insight on her ol’ man since Nova had been mostly tight-lipped about him. And since she hadn’t exactly acted like a taken woman the night before outside of the few half-hearted mentions of her dude, I was interested to see how serious things were in his opinion. But it seemed as if he didn’t really know him at all when he shrugged and answered, “Yeah, some little actor dude or somethin’. Kay hates him though so you know I ain’t fuckin’ with him either.”