Distracted

by Warren, Alexandra

  “What about these, Kennedy? Do these meet your standards?” I cocked my head to the side, putting my hand to my chin as I thought about what I could do with the sleek leather pants he was holding up. I knew the whole “fitted” look was in for men and with Bryson’s already lengthy frame, the pants would certainly do him justice.

  “I like those. You can keep them.” He looked satisfied as he tossed them over his shoulder and went back to looking for more. I was honestly surprised by how patient he was being with the whole process; hardly irritated by the fact that we were already an hour in and hadn’t gathered much to purchase.

  Landon would’ve surely dragged me out of the store by now.

  I grabbed a few things from the rack before I found Bryson looking at the shoes.

  “Here. Go try these on.” He flipped through the shirts, handing one back to me.

  “I’ll try these on. This one isn’t gonna work.”

  Though the shirt was one of my favorites, I was willing to sacrifice it for the moment. “Compromise. Fine. Now go try them on. I’ll be out here.” He gave me a skeptical look before I urged him on with a push.

  As I waited for him to come out of the dressing room, I checked my newly fixed phone and saw I had a text.

  Mr. Montgomery: Hey babe. I hope you’re having a good day. The kids are bouncing off the walls. Must be a full moon. Anyway, I can’t wait to see you tonight. Love you. ;)

  I smiled into my phone, until I felt eyes hovering over my shoulder.

  “Aww, isn’t that sweet? He can’t wait to see you tonight, Kennedy,” Bryson said in a mocking tone. I tossed my phone into my purse, turning around to fix the collar of his button-up shirt.

  “Nosey much?”

  “Nah. More like jealous much.”

  I took a step back, pretending to observe his outfit though my mind was racing after his little admission.

  I tried to keep my tone level as I asked, “Jealous? Jealous why?”

  “Jealous that I’m not the one making you smile like that.”

  I took a step forward to adjust his shirt a little more. “You know… you could always find yourself a special girl to make smile like that. I’m just sure they’re lined up waiting for their shot at a ball player.”

  He stopped me from my meddling, grabbing me by the wrists to get my attention. “It’s funny that that’s always the assumption. But the truth is, as much fun as that offers temporarily, there’s nothing like having a real one to call your own.”

  &

  “Damn, girl. You’re fuckin’ me like a porn star...”

  I heard Landon talking, but I could hardly interpret what he was saying as I took out every ounce of sexual tension I had built up during the day on his dick. Of course we had sex on the regular, but I’d be damned if I didn’t feel like I needed it more than ever tonight.

  After spending the whole day with Bryson under his watchful, flirtatious eye, I was more than ready to get home to my man. He hadn’t been in the house for more than five minutes before I pounced on him, desperate for a fix.

  But even more so, desperate to remind myself why I was with him.

  Starting with his dick…

  “Fuck! Right there, baby. Right…” I shuddered as I came harder than ever before, collapsing on top of him while he continued to pump into me to get his own.

  “Shit!” I could feel him oozing inside of me, his essence filling me up in a way I had never let any other man do before. I rolled off of him as I tried to catch my breath.

  “Damn, Kennedy. What the hell was that all about?”

  “I umm… I missed you today. That’s all.”

  “Well can you miss me more often?” he asked with a goofy little laugh as he turned me on my side to spoon me, not even bothering to at least let me clean myself up first.

  I sighed, scooting deeper into the curve of his body while I tried to come up with a response. Of course I had missed Landon; I always missed Landon when we were apart. But did that really explain the super boost of sexual energy that came over me the second he walked through the door? Or was it the….

  Stop it, Kennedy!

  This is your fiancé.

  Of course it’s because of him.

  Instead of answering his question, I asked one of my own. “Did you… miss me?”

  “Of course I missed you, babe. And I’ll miss you even more tomorrow. And the next day. And the next day.” He punctuated his lines with kisses that in the moment should’ve soothed me, but I was too wrapped up in what he said.

  Tomorrow.

  Tomorrow, I’d be spending most of the day and night with the ever-draining Bryson, first getting him dressed for his afternoon game and postgame conference. Then getting his wardrobe ready for the movie premiere he was attending out in LA the day after that, along with whatever Instagram model he had decided to take.

  Waist-training, detox tea drinking ass...

  Stop it, Kenn…

  “Kennedy, are you alright? It seems like something is on your mind.”

  See what you did?!

  I tried not to sound panicky as I replied, “No, I’m fine. I was just… thinking about what kind of outfit I wanted to put Bryson’s date in tomorrow.”

  Partially true…

  “Oh, he has a girlfriend? Phew. That’s a relief.”

  Not having to ask him face-to-face made it easier to inquire, “Why do you say that?”

  He used the tip of his finger to draw lazy circles around my nipple as he explained, “No man is excited about having his woman work exclusively with another man, no matter how famous he is. But since he has a girlfriend, I don’t have anything to worry about.”

  Even though I knew the girl wasn’t exactly his girlfriend, letting Landon believe that would certainly keep me out of trouble.

  “You didn’t have anything to worry about regardless, Landon.”

  Partially true…

  “Oh I know… Mrs. Montgomery.”

  I’d be damned if I didn’t cringe on the inside before correcting him, “Almost Mrs. Montgomery.”

  “Future Mrs. Montgomery,” he tossed back, letting his hand glide from my breasts down my belly to my folds that were still saturated from round one. “Mmm… I see she’s ready for me again.”

  In all honesty, I really just wanted to go to sleep so I could be fresh-faced for the next day. But the idea of Bryson doing this same thing with his little date tomorrow gave me a sudden surge of energy.

  Bryson

  “Where’s whatsherface?”

  I could tell Kennedy had a little attitude about her the second she showed up to my house though I couldn’t figure out why. She seemed fine this morning when she picked out my clothes for the game, but now that she was looking through the recently delivered racks of women’s clothing, her whole demeanor had switched. You would’ve thought the clothes had done her wrong with how aggressively she was sorting through them.

  I watched her closely as I told her, “She’s on her way. I set her up with a bunch of appointments to get all freshened up for the trip.” I figured it was the least I could do since I hadn’t given her much attention other than the occasional heart eyes emoji in the comments of her Instagram pictures. But all it took was that and a few DMs to convince her to join me for the weekend.

  She yanked a dress from the rack, laying it on the couch as she tossed out, “Hmph. Must be nice.”

  I watched her for a few moments longer as she opened a box of Louboutin pumps, staring at them in awe before closing it and setting it next to the dress.

  “You like those?”

  She shot me a glare. “Is that even a real question?”

  I walked over to the couch, opening the box myself and pulling one of the shoes out as I tried to figured out what was so special about them. I mean, they were just shoes.

  “What’s up with you women and designer shoes anyway? Most of us guys would rather have you barefoot and preg…”

  She cut me off, “Nope. Nope. Nope. Not
gonna go there. Not falling into that trap.”

  She made herself busy straightening out the dress she picked out for my date as I took a step closer and pried deeper. “Let me guess. You’re one of those, My body, my cho…”

  She held a hand up to stop me again. “Bryson, stop while you’re ahead. Please.”

  I stepped right behind her, tempted to wrap my arms around her waist as I teased, “Why stop me? I’m on a roll and you know it.”

  She stepped to her left to respond, “No. All you’re doing is undermining the potential of women by acting like they don’t have the power.”

  I found her again, this time stepping in front of her the second she turned around. “All the power is in the pussy. You and I both know that.” Her eyes were fixated on mine and there was no denying the flicker of interest.

  I licked my lips ready to make a move, but she spoke again. “My pussy may be powerful, but it’s not all I’m worth.”

  “So it’s bomb then, huh?” I teased.

  She rolled her eyes, stepping away to reply, “That’s none of your business.”

  I filled the gap once again, this time unable to keep my hands to myself as I wrapped my arms around her thin waist. “What if I make it my business?”

  She rested her hands on my chest, giving me a little push just as the doorbell rang. “Your business… is waiting for you at the door.”

  I didn’t really wanna go answer it; wanted to savor this moment of lighthearted back and forth banter with Kennedy. But when the doorbell rang again and I looked down to her left hand that was still near my chest, I knew this was as good as it was gonna get.

  &

  “I don’t like it.”

  I threw my hands up as Monica turned down yet another one of Kennedy’s masterpieces. We had been at it for what felt like hours as we tried to find something for her to wear to the movie premiere, but nothing seemed to please her.

  That CoverGirl contract from a few years back must’ve went straight to her head.

  I tried to hide my annoyance as I told her, “Monica, if you keep this up, we’ll miss our flight. Just pick something.”

  She whined, “It’s not that simple, Bryson. I have an image to protect.” Out of my peripheral I saw Kennedy roll her eyes. But she kept quiet, sifting through the racks for yet another option.

  “You weren’t thinking about your image when you posted all those thirst traps on Instagram. So why are you so worried about it now?”

  She had the nerve to get an attitude as if I was lying. “Excuse me! Those were for my brand.”

  “Could’ve fooled me…”

  Kennedy stopped to smile before she went back to the rack.

  “Well maybe if you got a real stylist in here, we wouldn’t have this problem.”

  Oh shit.

  I heard the distinct click of hangers smashing together before Kennedy said, “The stylist doesn’t bring the outfit to life, the person who’s wearing it does. So maybe you need to check yourself before you worry about my credentials.” I hardly expected to see Kennedy clap back, but I was honestly impressed.

  Hell, that shit actually turned me on.

  But instead of focusing on that, I had to set the record straight. “Kennedy’s right, Monica. You can either pick one of the options she’s already laid out for you, or just stay your ass here cause I’m done going back and forth about this.” She looked ready to argue back, but I dared her with my eyes to say something.

  She growled, throwing her hands down as she said, “Fine! I’ll take this dress and this… ensemble.”

  “And tell her thank you.” Now both women were looking at me.

  Monica’s was wearing a scowl as she asked, “What?”

  “Tell Kennedy thank you for picking out these wonderful options for you to choose from. She did you a favor, ya know.”

  Monica acted like the idea was crazy, brushing me off as she said, “Bryson, you have got to be kidding me.”

  “Didn’t your mama raise you with any manners? I mean, you wouldn’t be able to tell from that booty pic you posted, but…” That got her attention.

  “Thank you, Kennedy.” She said it so low I could hardly hear her.

  I thought about making her repeat herself until Kennedy replied, “You’re welcome.”

  Kennedy

  Took a shift at the club. I’ll be back before sunrise. Love, Hubby :).

  I sighed at the note that was attached to a new floral arrangement, smaller than usual but still perfect in taste. Though I wished Landon would stop pulling shifts at that damn strip club, I couldn’t help but acknowledge how perfect he was. Handsome as all get out, provider by nature, socially-conscious career, good with kids, could cook almost better than me; everything you could ask for in a husband.

  But my mind was beyond occupied with the devil himself.

  I felt crazy as hell for even allowing my thoughts of him to get so intense, but it was like there was nothing I could do to fight it; especially after spending more time with him. The more time I spent, the deeper I fell into a trap I had no business even being around.

  Get it together, Kennedy.

  I changed out of my clothes into pajamas, hoping there wasn’t even a hint of Bryson’s intoxicating scent from the multiple hugs he tried to justify before he headed to the airport with his little chick. I sniffed my shirt just to check and sure enough there it was. All freshly-showered, and manly, and… I tossed it into the laundry basket before I could melt.

  I felt so stupid for being even remotely attracted to Bryson. I mean, he was fine, sure… and rich and…

  Did I say fine already?

  But other than that he was a misogynist, he was arrogant, and he just assumed every girl would give up the goodies to him because of his stature. It was pathetic, really, that all that caramel, tattooed fineness was going to waste on such a… dog.

  That’s exactly what Bryson was.

  A damn dog.

  And you’re getting ready to marry a real man in Landon.

  Instead of staying in my thoughts, I went to the bathroom to brush my teeth, wash my face, and tie my hair for the night. Then I snuggled in bed with my laptop so I could fall asleep to something on Netflix.

  It didn’t take long before my head was nodding off and my eyes were glazing over. I was just getting ready to throw in the towel and shut my computer when it began to ring, signaling an incoming FaceTime call.

  Bryson Harris.

  I panicked, first looking down at my chest that had been braless since I came home, then touching my head that was covered in a scarf, and finally adjusting my glasses that I only wore at night when I was tired of my contacts.

  I can’t let him see me like this!

  I pulled my scarf from my head, brushing my hair down with my fingers before hitting the key to answer the call. Once it connected, I could tell he was already in bed too, his chest tattoos on full display and his durag tied tight.

  Fine. Ass.

  His smile was pleasant as he said, “Hey you.”

  I tried to clear my throat before I addressed him. “Bryson. What’s going on? Is something wrong?” Considering it was well past two in the morning, that was the only logical explanation for the call.

  His bare muscles flexed as he laughed. “Nothing’s wrong. I just wanted to… talk to you.”

  Talk to me?

  He’s on a weekend getaway and wanted to “talk to me”?

  “Where’s Monica?”

  “Man, I ditched her the second we landed. That girl was gettin’ on my gotdamn nerves.” I couldn’t help but laugh considering I had been thinking the same thing once she showed up to his house, though I was actually grateful when she did show up as Bryson was getting a little too close for me to control.

  “Makes sense. Well now who are you going to take?” I was sure it was far from slim-pickings for him, even last minute.

  “That’s actually why I was calling. I wanted to see if you would… fly out and come with me.” My heart l
eaped from my chest.

  It was flattering as hell that he had even thought to invite me, but… “Bryson, no. Come on now.” I was already spending more than enough time with him. And joining him on his trip was hardly necessary.

  “Why not? And don’t say because it’s late notice.”

  “How about because I have a fiancé? Engaged people don’t go on dates. You do realize that, right?” I always thought stuff like that was common knowledge, but apparently not.

  He brushed me off. “Oh, Kennedy. Save that shit. If you were really engaged, you wouldn’t have answered my call at this hour.”

  I shouldn’t have...

  “No. If you respected my engagement, you wouldn’t be calling at this hour. But you’re my boss. I have to answer.” I really hated how much power he had in this situation, especially after our earlier conversation.

  He smiled as if he was having an epiphany before he said, “Well as your boss, I’m telling you to get your ass to LA ASAP.” The panic returned. There was no way in hell I was gonna fly out to LA just to… please Bryson.

  “Bryson, that’s not fair and you know it.”

  He challenged me, “I’ll respect your engagement if you respect me as your boss.”

  “Bryson…”

  His goofy little smile returned. “I’ll send you the flight information in a minute. See you tomorrow, Kennedy.”

  &

  The flight from Philly to Los Angeles wasn’t long enough.

  In fact, no amount of time would’ve prepared me for the last minute flight out at Bryson’s request. It was like even though he and I both knew I shouldn’t be here, he made it his mission to test every inch of my moral capacity.

  I sighed just thinking about it as I dragged my carry-on bag through the terminals before making my way towards the pick-up area where a driver was supposed to be waiting for me. But instead, I only found Bryson’s tall frame terribly disguised in a hoodie, baseball cap, and sunglasses. I suppose since people were use to seeing celebrities in this particular airport, his presence wasn’t that big of a deal. But his effort to hide himself was humorous at best. He even held a sign with my name on it as if I wouldn’t recognize him.