Chapter 26
People like us deserve to feel…
The ocean always made things feel peaceful to La’Nova.
She embraced that fact soon as she stepped out of her truck and onto the wooden boardwalk leading toward the beach house restaurant Serenity had surprisingly picked.
She inhaled the strong scent of salt water then looked out at the waves that rolled slow and steady against the sand below.
It was beautiful in a way that made her feel content and relaxed, satisfied that she didn’t turn down Serenity’s offer to meet.
The restaurant sat half on land, the other half over the shoreline.
It had huge glass walls that let the ocean pour straight into the space.
Soon as she stepped inside, the smell of lemon butter, seafood, and fresh coffee battled with the sea air.
La’Nova paused for a second at the entrance, setting her eyes on Serenity who stood near a railing. In seconds, Serenity spotted her with excitement brightening her feline eyes.
“Girrrrllll!!!” Serenity shouted, rushing forward, not caring about the attention she brought to herself.
Before La’Nova could even react, Serenity wrapped her arms around her tightly.
“You just disappeared off the face of the earth! I was calling, texting, even asked Roy’s mean ass about you months ago.” Serenity rushed her words out, finally letting La’Nova go.
“I know, girl, a lot was going on,” La’Nova stated carefully. “I had to shut down from the world.” She chuckled.
Serenity studied La’Nova’s face then smiled.
She knew how private La’Nova was about her personal life and wouldn’t press her.
She was just happy to see who she considered her friend and protector looking good.
There was something changed about La’Nova.
Serenity didn’t see sadness or bags under La’Nova’s eyes like she used to see at House of Angels.
Her girl looked well rested, those hazel eyes had a twinkle in them. La’Nova was even dressed differently. Serenity’s eyes bucked out at La’Nova’s short acrylic nails and painted toes.
“Why you staring at me like that?” La’Nova frowned, tossing her thick pressed hair over her shoulders.
“Oh hell nah!” Serenity’s eyes widened.
“Bitch!!!” She exclaimed.
“I wish you would lower your damn tone,” La’Nova snapped. “In this nice ass restaurant acting ghetto as fuck.” Her nose wrinkled.
“Well the meanness is still there.” Serenity smirked. “You done got you some dick.” Serenity failed at whispering those words to La’Nova.
“Come the fuck on,” she said, pulling La’Nova toward their table by the window.
The table was nestled right beside the glass wall overlooking the water. Sunlight spilled across the white tabletop and reflected off the ocean.
“You look beautiful, Serenity.” La’Nova offered her a warm smile.
Serenity looked like a model, she was drop dead gorgeous to La’Nova.
Her warm vanilla tone glowed against the fitted coral bodycon dress she wore.
The dress hugged her waist tight before flaring slightly at her hips.
Her blonde lace wig fell in soft curls down her back.
Long lashes framed her sharp cat eyes and her lips were glossed in pink glitter.
“Not as beautiful as you.” Serenity shot back, taking in La’Nova.
She noted that La’Nova still had her signature perfume on which was Baccarat.
Her lavender sundress hugged her curvaceous frame.
She slicked her hair into a high bun and adorned her forehead with small baby hairs.
Per usual, La’Nova didn’t have on makeup; just gloss but the natural look really fit her.
“You glowing like a mutha fucka too, so spill the beans cause I know that’s a man’s glow,” Serenity said.
“I’m sitting in the sunlight.” La’Nova shrugged, squinting her eyes for emphasis.
"Girl please, sunlight my ass. It's something very different about you. Different in a good way." Serenity's smirk grew.
The waiter came by before La’Nova could respond.
They ordered quickly. Serenity picked shrimp and waffles with a mango mimosa.
La’Nova ordered salmon toast and ginger and lemon tea without even thinking about it.
Unbeknownst to her, Luca really rubbed off on her in ways she appreciated.
She loved his signature tea and constantly made it when the two were apart from one another.
“Me and Luca are friends,” La’Nova said carefully.
She stared at Serenity to gauge her reaction. When Serenity smiled, she relaxed against her seat and waited for her to say something.
“Lucille told me the same day you gave me that mean ass speech.” Serenity shrugged.
“It wasn’t mean, I just wanted what was best for you.” La’Nova frowned.
“I know,” Serenity paused as the waiter returned with their drinks.
Once the lady walked away, she lifted her drink in a toasting manner then took a sip.
“Luca is what’s best for you…It shows. Plus, I feel no way about it because he was never mine; I was offered to him. Your mean ass needed a man all along.”
La’Nova stared at her.
“I don’t need a man, and I don’t have one. I simply said Luca and I are close. What we got going is new for me, so I’m nowhere near close to putting a title on shit,” La’Nova stated firmly.
“So what kind of close we talking?” Serenity asked with her eyebrow cocked up. “Close close? Or y’all doing that weird emotional eye contact thing you be doing before people start falling in love?”
La’Nova reached for her tea just to give herself something to do.
“We friends,” she said carefully.
“Yeah, friends that be fucking.”
Serenity laughed so loud that the couple at the next table looked over.
“Actually, we had sex twice. He doesn’t press me for sex,” La’Nova stated smoothly but still surprised at her own admission.
Serenity’s perfectly arched brows lifted.
“Twice?” She repeated.
La’Nova nodded then wrapped both hands around her warm cup of ginger tea. The steam brushed her face, carrying that familiar scent of Luca. It comforted her and made her miss him all in one.
“That’s it,” La’Nova said before taking a small sip and placing the cup back down.
Serenity leaned back in her chair slowly, crossing her legs under the table like she needed time to process that.
No man she ever encountered took their time to get to know her beyond payment for sex.
The ocean breezed pushed gently through the open windows behind them, lifting the edge of La’Nova’s lavender dress against her thighs as she stared down at her tea instead of Serenity’s face.
“It surprised me too,” she admitted quietly.
“You like that?” Serenity asked, watching her friend intently.
“I do.” La’Nova nodded finally giving Serenity her eyes.
That answer came from somewhere deeper than she expected. She hadn’t thought about it this clearly until now.
“He don’t make me feel like that’s all he want from me…and it means something.” La’Nova’s heart fluttered.
“Most men can’t do that shit.” Serenity scoffed.
“I know.” La’Nova licked her lips. “With Luca, shit is different…that’s why I can sincerely say he’s my friend with no judgement attached.”
A Don’s Love… His raspy, whispered voice sounded off in her head.
She could see his handsome face in her mind without trying.
The way he watched her like he was listening to her, even when she wasn’t saying anything.
He moved slower around her than he did around anyone else.
He never rushed her, Luca took his time and made sure she did the same.
It was his small gestures toward her that she appreciated the most.
Even with everything that he learned about her and the significant pain that she caused him, proved to La’Nova that Luca was different. A man like him was placed in his own caliber.
“He sits with me, listens to me express myself. He watches me color like that’s something important,” La’Nova said mindlessly as she looked out at the ocean.
“He asks me questions, not the kind people ask just to make small talk like you used to do whenever you burst inside my office.”
Both of them laughed lightly until La’Nova’s face morphed into something more serious.
“When he touches me, it doesn’t feel like he trying to take something from me.” She thought back to the lesson he taught her in the cold shower and shivered.
La’Nova traced her finger lightly along the rim of her cup in deep thought. Heart yearning to be back in the same vicinity as Luca.
“What does that feel like?” Serenity asked curiously.
“It feels like he’s trying to understand me. No one besides my parents understand me.” La’Nova’s eyes saddened.
“Luca is determined to understand the real me. He has all the patience in the world to achieve it too.” She smiled faintly.
“He makes me feel safe,” she added, swallowing down hard.
“Wow, that’s deep as fuck.” Serenity blinked away a tear then dabbed her face with a napkin.
The waiter returned with their food. The ladies thanked her and dug in immediately. Both of them were trapped in their own thoughts of their love life.
“I left House of Angels.” Serenity barked out.
La’Nova set her fork down, placed her elbows on the table, interlocked her fingers and just stared at Serenity.
“I moved into a nice apartment in Hollywood; I’ve been making good money doing OnlyFans,” she quickly added.
La’Nova searched her mind for the proper response without sounding harsh.
She had never been the kind of woman people ran to for comfort especially working for Lucille.
She was always blunt with all the women there.
Across the table, Serenity kept her shoulders tight like she expected for La’Nova to judge and get on her case.
“Go ahead and give it to me raw,” Serenity said in a low defeated tone.
“Surviving ain’t the same as living, Renity.” La’Nova started carefully.
“It’s what I know.” Serenity shrugged, voice small but defensive. “I’m not about to work at a hamburger joint making minimum wage when my bank account ain’t used to small change,” she added.