The Look of Love

by Crystal B. Bright

  “Come with me.” Gunnar put his hand on her back.

  Eboni nodded as he stroked faster and faster. As hard he tried, as soon as Gunnar dropped his gaze and saw her true hourglass figure, her broad shoulders that went down to a slender, tapered waist and out again at the soft curves of her succulent hips, he knew he wouldn’t have long. His pounding heart and panting breath supported his thoughts.

  Gunnar squeezed his eyes shut, but it didn’t help. He increased his speed. The combination must have been enough for Eboni. He felt her inner walls tightening around his shaft. Each time he pulled back, her tightness drew him back inside.

  When Eboni screamed, he grunted. The only thing that could have made this experience better would be to come inside of her. No condom. No barriers. He would take what he could get for now. At this moment, he had his woman back. Could he keep her?

  As soon as he pulled out of her, Eboni slid back down on the bed. She curled her arms under a pillow that she used to rest her head. She completed her heavy sigh with a smile.

  “You’re an evil, evil man.” She laughed.

  “You didn’t like that wake-up call?” Gunnar brushed her hair from her face and kissed her.

  “Loved it, but I’m going to be so stiff today. Can I call in sick?” She rolled on to her back, showing off her firm breasts.

  Gunnar had to back away from her to prevent himself from reaching out and touching her again. If he touched her tits, he wouldn’t get out of bed for the rest of the day.

  “I thought you said I wasn’t the boss.” Gunnar stood and removed the used condom. “You really need to be at the salon today.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I have to pick up Mom.”

  Eboni sat up. “You’re not going to tell her, are you?”

  The same queasy feeling that had hit Gunnar last night when Eboni had made the same request washed over him again. “Yes. I had planned on telling my mother with heart problems that her oldest son brought a woman home and had sex with her in the apartment over the garage.”

  When Eboni’s mouth hung open, Gunnar saved her.

  “I’m kidding. No, I hadn’t planned on saying anything. Why are you so concerned about that? You’re the one who said last night that we are two consenting adults and we’re going into this with our eyes wide open.” He crossed his arms over his chest.

  “I don’t need the chatter going on at the shop.”

  Gunnar felt in his bones that Eboni had another reason behind her request, but he allowed the subject to drop. He held his hand out for her. “You take a shower. There’s an extra unopened toothbrush in the medicine cabinet and towels underneath the sink. I’ll run over to the house and get you another outfit.”

  Eboni accepted his hand and stood on wobbly legs. “No. That’s okay. I can go home in the outfit I wore last night.”

  Gunnar cocked his head. “Your family will still figure out you weren’t eating dinner all night even if you wear a different outfit home.”

  “I’m fine.”

  “Okay. Then I’ll make you breakfast.”

  “You’re not joining me?” Eboni nibbled on her bottom lip as she backed into the bathroom.

  Gunnar strolled up to her. He wrapped his arm around her body and gave her ass a gentle squeeze. “If I do, we’ll never leave this place.” He gave her a quick peck before guiding her into the bathroom.

  Although he loved everything he’d done with Eboni last night--and that morning--Gunnar wanted more than just his short trip home. Before he went back to Vegas, he had to convince her to give up life in Virginia and join him.

  * * * *

  Eboni almost didn’t accept the good-bye kiss from Gunnar when he dropped her off at her apartment. With the quick brush against his lips, she confirmed she wanted what they had rekindled hidden.

  Being a gentleman, he opened the vehicle door for her. Eboni had to stop him when he offered to walk her to her building.

  “See you at the salon,” Gunnar said as she ran up to her building.

  She unlocked her door and ran inside. Her cousin remained asleep on the living room couch. Until he could smell food cooking, or until his girl of the moment wanted sex, he didn’t move.

  Eboni started down the hallway to go to her bedroom when she ran into her aunt. “Oh, hey, Auntie. Have you had breakfast?”

  Her aunt gave her a suspicious glare. “Isn’t that the same dress you wore last night?”

  “Yeah. I just spent the night at a friend’s.” She hadn’t lied. “Let me change and get you something to eat.”

  Eboni hurried to her room to change.

  Behind her, she heard her aunt say, “Craig said that boy you used to date is back in town. Is that right?”

  As she stripped out of her dress, Eboni answered. “You mean Grover? He never left town, and he’s married.” She knew exactly who her Aunt Bettie meant, but Eboni needed some time to come up with reasons why associating herself with Gunnar Wells again wouldn’t be damaging to her soul.

  “Don’t be cute. You know exactly who I’m talking about.”

  Eboni got dressed in her usual work attire of a black turtleneck, black slacks, and comfortable black flats. Now that business had increased, she needed to be as relaxed as possible.

  “Who are you talking about?” Eboni ducked into the bathroom to put on some lipstick and redo her hair.

  Going to work with obvious morning-after-sex hair wouldn’t be sexy. Plus, she could almost hear Shay’s cackling if she showed up with signs that she had been with a man.

  “That fighter boy,” Aunt Bettie said. “Garth.”

  “Gunnar.” Eboni walked into the kitchen. She poured some prune juice into a glass and placed it on the table in front of her aunt.

  “Is it true?”

  “Yes. He’s back in town. He came back to help his mother. She’s not doing well.” Eboni prepared her aunt’s oatmeal and toast breakfast.

  “You’re staying away from him, right?”

  “Aunt Bettie, I’m a grown woman. The mistakes I made when I was a teenager won’t happen again.” At least Eboni had hoped not.

  “I hope not. Losing that baby might have been a godsend.”

  Eboni rushed to her aunt and pointed in the living room at Craig who looked to still be asleep.

  “Let’s not revisit the past. Let’s move on. Lord knows, I have.” Her aunt’s toast popped up. Eboni quickly slathered some butter and a bit of jelly on it before serving it.

  “I don’t want to see you hurt again.” Aunt Bettie shook her head and wiped her eyes.

  How could Eboni be mad at the only relative who cared about her? When the microwave dinged, Eboni removed her aunt’s hot cereal and gave that to her.

  “I appreciate you being there for me.” She leaned down and gave her aunt a hug. In a whisper, she said in her ear, “And I really appreciate the fact that you have kept my secret after all these years.” She kissed her aunt on her cheek. “I have to go to work. I’ll see you all tonight.”

  “Okay. See you later. Love you, baby.”

  “Love you.” Eboni grabbed her coat and purse. As she walked by her lumbering cousin, she glanced his way and thought she caught him closing his eyes.

  She hoped he hadn’t listened in on her conversation with her aunt. She didn’t need her cousin revealing the secret she’d kept from Gunnar for all these years before she had a chance to explain.

  * * * *

  “Hey, Ma.” Gunnar beamed as he strolled into her room. He gave her a kiss on her cheek and held her hand.

  After regarding him for a moment, Queen Elizabeth proclaimed, “You’ve had sex.”

  The nurse in the room taking Elizabeth’s vital signs snickered.

  “Mom.” Gunnar felt his face get hot. “Why would you say something like that?”

  “Because it’s true. A mother always knows. I knew it when you lost your virginity.” She tapped the nurse on her side. “He skipped
through my house like he had ants in his pants.”

  The nurse giggled and split her attention between the machine calculating Queen’s blood pressure and Gunnar.

  “I really don’t think this is an appropriate conversation to have right now.”

  His mother pulled on the nurse’s arm to bring her down closer to her face. When she bent over, Elizabeth said in a not-so-quiet whisper, “Did you notice he didn’t deny it?”

  The nurse burst into laughter. Gunnar sat on the couch that doubled as a bed.

  His mother at least waited until the nurse walked out of the room before she continued with her questioning.

  “So?” She sat up in her bed and pressed a button to bring her head up even more.

  Gunnar waited for the whirring sound to end before he answered her. “So what?”

  “Don’t be cute. Did you have sex with Eboni?”

  “You know this is an awkward conversation for an adult man to have with his mother, right?” He leaned back on the couch and stretched his feet in front of him.

  Elizabeth sighed. “You’re really not going to tell me anything, are you?”

  “Wasn’t it you who told all of us that it’s impolite to talk about our intimate relationships in public?”

  “Did you take her to Amoré?”

  His mother’s fishing expedition had no end.

  “Yes. I took her there for dinner.” Before his mother could ask, Gunnar quickly supplied, “And we talked about everything in the past. I think that’s all resolved now.”

  “Really?” His mother gave him a quizzical look.

  He nodded to reassure her. “Yes. We agreed to remain friends.”

  “Then you took her back to the house and had sex.”

  Gunnar laughed. “I love you, Mom.”

  “Did you at least use protection?”

  “I love you.”

  “Did you tell her you love her?”

  Gunnar didn’t have time to answer that question before the doctor came in the room. He wanted to kiss the petite Indian woman for the intrusion.

  “Queen Elizabeth, how are you feeling today?” The doctor nodded to Gunnar and then turned to his mother.

  “Much better. Looks like I might be missing some excitement at my house.” Elizabeth winked at Gunnar.

  Gunnar sprang to his feet. “Nothing exciting happening at her house. She’s kidding. Can my mother go home today?”

  “Yes. She can change and we’ll be sending her home today. The discharge nurse will come in to give instructions on what she needs to do when she’s at home. Hopefully, they’ll set up the schedule for your surgery today. If not today, we’ll call you at home when a date and time has been set up.”

  The joy drained from Elizabeth’s face. Gunnar held her hand and smiled as he nodded at her to try and reassure her.

  “Of course, if anything changes when she’s at home, please don’t hesitate to bring her back here.”

  “Thanks so much. I appreciate everything you’ve done for her.” Gunnar shook the doctor’s hand before she left.

  He noticed after the doctor walked out and closed the door that his mother squeezed his hand.

  “I’m scared, son.”

  Gunnar embraced her without a word. If he could give her a part of his physical strength, he would. “I’m here for you. Gideon and Thane will be here for you, too. You’ve got nothing to worry about.”

  “Thank you, baby.” As soon as Gunnar pulled back from her, Elizabeth said, “You smell like you’ve just had sex. Did you do it before you came here?”

  “Mom.”

  “You did foreplay, right? I told you about how it takes a woman a while to get her engine going.” Elizabeth even chugged her arms like a train to illustrate her point.

  “Mom,” Gunnar said more sternly.

  “You didn’t spank her, did you? I don’t know who came up with that. It’s never okay to strike a lady.”

  “Mom. Will you please stop it?”

  Elizabeth smiled. “I’m going to miss teasing you like this.”

  “No, you won’t. You’ll be here. You dealt with three businesses, three ornery boys and an ex-husband not worth mentioning. You’ll outlive all of us.”

  A tear managed to escape her eye. Queen Elizabeth quickly wiped it away before she finally nodded to agree with her son.

  “If anything ever happens to me--”

  “Mom.”

  “No. Hear me out. If anything happens to me, promise me you’ll keep the family together.”

  Gunnar would give his mother anything. Corralling Thane into the mix would be the hardest thing. His baby brother had a way of dodging his calls.

  Gunnar smiled at his mother. “I promise.”

  She sniffed. “Hand me my makeup bag, please. I need to fix my face before I leave.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  If Gunnar could trade hearts and arteries with his mother, he would. The woman had given him the world. She’d given him an opportunity when no one else would. He would move heaven and earth to do the same for her.

  Chapter 12

  Eboni acted like she didn’t notice when Gunnar arrived to work around ten in the morning.

  “Sorry I’m late.” He put his coat in the office and came back out. “Great news, everyone. Our beloved Queen Elizabeth has been discharged from the hospital and is resting comfortably at home.”

  The staff and clients all applauded and whistled their excitement over the news.

  “She wanted me to bring her here today, but the doctor said no stress.” Gunnar glanced at Shay who still wore her sunglasses.

  “Why did you look at me?” Shay pointed her curling iron toward Gunnar.

  “Because you’re a handful, that’s why,” Gunnar shot back.

  “You know that’s right,” Monica said and laughed.

  “Forget you.” She pointed to Gunnar. “And forget you.” She pointed at Monica. “I’m nothing but positivity and light.”

  Tisha even giggled at that one.

  “And forget you, Mouse.” Shay pointed to Tisha.

  “Don’t call me that,” Tisha said.

  “Barely hear a peep out of you until you want to laugh at someone.” Shay continued styling her client’s hair.

  As soon as she finished her client, Tisha ran to the back room.

  “Tisha--” Eboni started to go, but Gunnar stopped her.

  “You have a client in a chair. I’ll go.” Gunnar ducked into the back room.

  * * * *

  Gunnar found Tisha standing in a corner. When she spotted Gunnar, she turned her back on him.

  “Hey, come on out, Tisha. You know Shay didn’t mean it.” Gunnar kept a safe distance away from her but remained in the room until he could gain her trust.

  “Yes, she did. Shay hates me.” She gradually turned around and kept a guarded stare on Gunnar.

  “To be fair, I think Shay hates everyone.” Gunnar smiled to calm her.

  It must have worked. Tisha took a step out of the darkened corner toward him. “I hate when people call me mouse or squeak or Tinker Bell.”

  “I know what you mean.”

  She shook her head. “No, you don’t. No one teases you.”

  “Are you kidding? I’ve been called a beast, a wall, a bully, and Thor because of my size and how I look. It used to bother me.”

  “It did?”

  Gunnar nodded.

  “What did you do?”

  “Fight.”

  Tisha blinked. “I can’t fight.”

  “And you shouldn’t have to. Shut people up with your skills.” Gunnar sat at the break-room table. He hoped Tisha would join him.

  She pulled out a chair across from him and sat down. “You really were teased?”

  “Yep. All my life. I bet you if you go online and pull up videos and websites about me, you’ll find that people post the nastiest things about me. They’ll call me a loser or a cheater o
r old or mean.”

  “How do you deal with that?” Tisha nibbled on her thumbnail as she waited for his answer.

  “I pay no attention to it. Those people don’t know me. The only reason people tease you is because they’re insecure.” It felt strange spouting the same speech his mother had given him when he kept fighting other boys in school who had made fun of him and his family.

  “Shay is tall, thin and beautiful. What does she have to be insecure about?”

  Gunnar shrugged. “I don’t know. But I’m sure she has something. The trick is to not worry about what she says about you. You worry about being your best. From what I can see, you’re an amazing stylist. I’ve watched your work since I’ve been here. You do great hair.”

  Tisha smiled and pushed her glasses up her nose. “Thanks. My mom calls me the hair whisperer.” She giggled with a snort. “Your mom took a chance on me. I came in here fresh from cosmetology school with my certificate. She allowed me to style hair in the chair by the window.”

  Even Gunnar had to blink at that bit of news. He knew what it meant for a stylist to get the window chair. His mom must have seen something special in Tisha.

  “My mom is an amazing woman.” Gunnar glanced to the side and noticed a postcard on the refrigerator being held up by a pizza delivery magnet. “Have you thought about going to a hair show?”

  “To watch it? Yes, I love going to hair shows. They’re so informative and theatrical at the same time.”

  “No.” Gunnar stood and removed the postcard. “I mean participate. You could represent Press ’N Curl at the next hair show in Atlanta. Do you want to? I’ll pay for you to go and I’ll foot the bill for the registration.”

  Tisha’s mouth hung open until she shook her head and lowered her gaze. “I can’t do that.”

  “Why not? I’m not asking you to win. I just want you to have the experience.”

  “I can’t go alone.”

  Gunnar looked down at the date. With the event being two months away, he didn’t know if he would be in town to be able to go. “Who would you want to go with you?”

  Tisha thought for a moment. “Eboni. She’s so organized and smart.”

  Tisha left out sexy, but he knew she wouldn’t say that.