Total pages in book: 62
Estimated words: 58947 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 295(@200wpm)___ 236(@250wpm)___ 196(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 58947 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 295(@200wpm)___ 236(@250wpm)___ 196(@300wpm)
“Sorry, y’all,” she laughs, turning tear-bright eyes back to the crowd. “That was just for me.”
“I told her that when I get her home,” Kenan says with a shameless grin, “I’mma—”
Lotus goes up on her toes to reach him, slamming her hand over his wide smile.
“Like I was saying,” she laughs, holding up a champagne glass undoubtedly filled with something non-alcoholic. “Happy birthday to the finest man I know.”
“Happy birthday!” we shout, sipping our champagne and oohing when balloons fall from the ceiling and confetti explodes from every direction. Amid the celebratory chaos, a sobering thread of realization runs through me like a fraying ribbon. Seeing Kenan and Lotus on stage, witnessing their devotion to each other, gives me a picture of what I could have—what I thought I maybe never would after all the app date disasters and failed attempts at relationships. Kenan and Lotus, Banner and Jared, August and Iris—all the couples we sailed with for the last few weeks have extraordinary marriages. Within a few minutes of being around them, you recognize a rare bond that most people never find.
But what if I’ve found it?
Naz and I have only been together two weeks, and it’s amazing. Beyond anything I’ve ever had. And it’s not just the outstanding, once-in-a-lifetime sex—though that’s worth mentioning. It’s how I feel when I’m with him. Who I am with him and who he is with me.
I have found the one whom my soul loves.
Lotus quoted that in her toast. What if I have found the one? Or he found me? Or I fell into his arms? Whatever. Fate, the universe—something threw us together again, and I have to believe it’s for a reason.
With Cliff’s judgment and his fragile recovery at stake, the question becomes Is the possibility of what this thing between Naz and me could be…worth it?
Kenan bends to kiss Lotus’s baby bump, and the blatant love on his face when he looks down at her, when she returns the look a hundredfold…I can’t help but think it is.
Chapter Twenty
Takira
“I’m on my way.” Naz’s deep voice on speaker sends a frisson of pleasure over me.
“Good,” I reply, looking in the mirror at my half-done makeup. “I’ll be ready.”
“I haven’t been to many premieres and I haven’t seen much of Canon’s work, to be honest.”
“Well, this is a documentary.” My hands dither between the Pat McGrath and Tarte eye shadow palettes. “So not quite as glamorous as the Dessi Blue premiere will be, but everything Canon makes garners attention.”
“I can’t wait to show you off on the red carpet,” he says, the same pride in his voice that’s always there when we go out.
“Um, about that…” I sit in front of the mirror, dreading this conversation. “I was thinking maybe we shouldn’t walk the red carpet tonight.”
The silence on the other end of the phone clogs up with his frustration before he agrees and we hang up. He already knows why. In the two weeks since we’ve been back, we’ve seen each other every day, every night. Sometimes he stays at my place. Sometimes I’ll stay over at his. Sometimes…we say good night at the door and I ache for him, but it’s a sweet ache because I know I’ll see him again. Sweet because I know he’s aching, too. It’s a relationship. Not a one-night stand, a hook-up, a booty call, a fling, or a smash and grab.
It’s us, and it feels as fragile as a bubble blown and floating in the air—as strong as an oak tree that has withstood storms. It’s playing catch-up and it’s ahead of its time.
It’s everything I had become too jaded to believe in or hope for.
Only one spot has marred such a perfect start.
I still haven’t told Cliff. Or my parents, for that matter. Of course, Janice knows, and keeps urging me to tell them. She says rip the Band-Aid off. It’s a point of contention between Naz and me, so we don’t talk about it much. He’s not going anywhere, and I don’t want him to. But at some point, I’ll have to tell Cliff. He’s just doing so well with his job, with his kids, with his life. Better than he’s been in a long time. If I did anything to hurt that, I’d never forgive myself. I’m not giving up Naz, though. My love for my brother and my…feelings for Naz are on a collision course.
It's too soon to say love.
Right?
I don’t know that I’ve ever actually been in love before, but if it feels any deeper, any richer than this—if it moves you more—I may not be able to stand it.
I check the mirror propped against the wall in my bedroom.
Damn, I look good.
It’s not just the silk dress that clings to all my curves from breast to thigh and then ends with a flare of tulle above my knees. Or the perilously high heels that tie up in straps around my calves. With my braids gone, I’ve styled my natural hair into a frothy halo of textured waves and curls. To garnish the sexy image, my diamond T charm glints against the lingering tan of my throat. I’m putting the finishing touches on my lipstick when the phone rings again. I grab it and glance at the screen.