Total pages in book: 96
Estimated words: 92930 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 465(@200wpm)___ 372(@250wpm)___ 310(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92930 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 465(@200wpm)___ 372(@250wpm)___ 310(@300wpm)
I picked up. “Hey, you.”
“Jake…”
I closed my eyes at the sound of her sweet voice. I hadn’t heard it since she left, and it reawakened the physical need that I’d managed to keep at bay this week.
“Nina…”
I immediately snuck into an empty conference room and shut the door.
“Oh my God. Your present came,” she said, sniffling.
“Are you crying?”
“Yes.”
“Oh, man, I didn’t mean to make you cry.”
“It’s okay. It’s all good.” She cleared her throat. “When? When did you do this? How did you do it?”
“I used the picture of him in your room. I waited until you went away to start, so you wouldn’t notice it gone.”
The sketch was of Nina’s brother Jimmy and my sister, Amanda. In the drawing, Amanda is whispering something into Jimmy’s ear as he laughs with a beaming smile. It was based on Nina’s comment that she wondered if they were conspiring in heaven to bring us together. In case she didn’t recognize the resemblance, I’d captioned it: Heaven’s Conspirators (Jimmy and Amanda). I was pretty confident, though, that my interpretation of both was spot on. Jimmy’s eyes came out particularly lifelike.
Sending it was a risk that I hoped didn’t backfire. It was an extremely personal gift, not only for her but for me.
“I can’t thank you enough for this. Words can never express how precious this is to me. I…love…” she hesitated.
My heart was racing. Was she going to say she loved the portrait…or me?
“I know. I know,” I said, not wanting her to say those words because they would completely undo me.
“What did I ever do to deserve this?” she asked.
“Just the fact that you would ask that question is the essence of why I…” Now, I was the one hesitating. Why I what? I finished my sentence. “Why I adore you.”
It felt like a safer word than love, less likely to do irreparable damage if things didn’t work out. And it was the damn truth. I adored her.
“I adore you, too,” she said. “Not only for this, but because you brought me back to life. Thank you.”
Long after we hung up, those bittersweet words wouldn’t stop repeating in my head all the way to Boston.
***
If the earlier part of the holiday break represented realizing the depth of my feelings for Nina, the second part marked the unraveling of my sexual control.
It was Saturday night, New Year’s Eve. As always, I’d spent the day with Ivy before heading home to Allison’s house.
My family’s New Year’s Eve tradition was to gorge on Chinese food. Every year, Cedric would come home with two large boxes, complaining about how long he had to wait for the takeout. The association between Chinese food and New Year’s Eve always baffled me, but it seemed like everyone in Boston had the same idea. This year was no different.
My nieces were begging to stay up until midnight, and per usual, my sister gave in. Cedric and I had just finished up a card game while my mother and Allison watched the Times Square festivities on television.
The fortune cookies left over from our dinner were strewn about on the table. One in particular seemed to be calling to me. I remembered what Nina told me during our Chinese karaoke date. Take the one facing you.
Cracking it open, I chuckled because the fortune spoke volumes about my feelings toward her: It’s easier to resist at the beginning than at the end.
Ain’t that the truth.
Even though you could have pretty much applied that message to anything, for me, it related to the intensity of the sexual frustration I was experiencing at the moment.
And the only woman I wanted was hundreds of miles away.
As I stared into the fire and fantasized about her, my phone buzzed with the words that set the tone for the rest of the night.
I wish you were here.
My mouth filled with moisture as my heart raced. I typed.
Jake: I was just thinking the same thing about you.
Nina: I’m supposed to be going out tonight, but I really don’t feel like it.
Jake: Why not?
Nina: For one, I’m going to be freezing my ass off.
Jake: That would not be a good thing. I’d really miss your ass.
Nina: LOL.
Jake: Where are you going?
Nina: Some friends from high school found out I was in town, contacted me on facebook and invited me to a party. I’m all dressed up, but I’m not sure I’m gonna go.
Jake: Show me what you look like.
Nina: Okay, hang on.
My pulse raced as I held the phone and waited while my dick rose to attention. Was I really so hard up that merely anticipating a picture of her had just given me an erection? I was just so desperate for a look at her again.
The situation in my pants was no better once the image popped up. Nina had taken a selfie in the mirror. She was wearing an emerald green fitted dress. It wasn’t low cut, but anything fitted looked indecent on her bountiful rack. Her hair was off her forehead, accentuating the light blue of her eyes that glowed in the bathroom lighting. Her expression reflected a shyness as if she were reluctant to take the picture.