Chapter 3 #2
“This has already been the longest amount of time I’ve been in the area since I graduated—and I’m still here until Sunday,” he admitted. “Since you’re here too, I’d love to link up.” He lowered his voice and leaned close. “I just met you, and you’re probably my favorite person in Chance.”
“I’m going to take the compliment, but the competition isn’t stiff.”
“Damn.” He snickered. When his amusement subsided, he asked, “What’s better for you? Saturday night or Sunday afternoon?”
Not knowing what my aunt’s schedule was going to be, I decided to play it safe. “Sunday.”
He nodded. “My mom has me taking her to this plant nursery in Richmond to pick up some materials for her yard. When we get back, I’m going to hit you up with the move for Sunday. That’s cool?”
I smiled. “That’s cool.” I shifted on the stool, glancing away from him briefly. “Are you waking up early for the gardening expedition?”
“Not particularly.” He stared at me, searching my eyes. “You’re not ready to go home yet?”
Holding his gaze, I wordlessly shook my head.
His voice lowered. “Then I have time.”
Thankful he didn’t ask me why and appreciative that he didn’t need a reason to stay, a small smile tugged at my lips. “Good. That’ll give me a chance to get a good read on you.”
“We’ve been talking for the last couple of hours, and you don’t think you have a good read on me?”
“I thought I did, but then I saw you bobbing your head to this”—I gestured to the speaker in the ceiling—“and so now I’m not so sure.”
He burst out laughing. “Okay, that’s what we’re doing?” Turning his body to completely face me, he gave me a look. “Because if you think I didn’t notice you doing your little”—he wiggled his shoulders, mimicking me—“dancey dance, I did.”
“Don’t do me like that!” I playfully pushed his shoulder. “All I’m saying is that I won’t know for sure what your vibe is until I know your musical tastes.”
“Okay,” he said, rubbing his hands together. “Top five albums, in no particular order…”
We talked until the bar manager announced it was closing time.
And it was the most at peace I’d felt in a long time.
Between the dissolution of my marriage and my aunt’s health battles, the last few years had been rough.
I loved my friends and family, and I was thankful for their love and support.
But it had been a long time since I’d had someone look at me without a hint of worry or sadness in their eyes.
Even if they didn’t say it, I heard the concern in their voices.
And because of life’s circumstances, meeting and connecting with new people just felt like more work than it was worth.
But tonight wasn’t like that.
There was no pressure with Lamar. We clicked organically and we talked easily. He didn’t know about my baggage. He didn’t know about my past. He didn’t know about the heaviness of Aunt Addy’s condition. He just got to know me.
And I liked that.
“After you,” he said as I hopped off the barstool.
In the mirror behind the bar, I watched his eyes sweep down my body, and my stomach, heart, and pussy fluttered. It had been a long time since someone invoked that reaction, and I didn’t know what to do about it.
“When did you get into town?” he asked, rising to his feet.
My eyes widened. He was as tall as he’d said he was. But with his broad shoulders and thick yet muscular build, his large frame loomed over me.
I looked up at him. Well, damn.
He put his hand on the small of my back, and my stomach flipped. It was the combination of his touch, his cologne, his build, and the way he was looking at me that did it for me.
I didn’t know if he felt that spark between us or if it was all in my head, but our connection was real. And even though I was attracted to him physically, it was his presence that attracted me most.
Lightly clearing my throat, I remembered I was supposed to be answering his question. “I made the five-hour drive this morning and got here this afternoon.”
“Wow, and you still came out this late?”
“Yeah. It’s been … a day.” I smiled up at him. “But talking to you tonight ended things on a high note.”
He grinned. “Same here. I almost didn’t come out. I was working in my mom’s yard all day. It was hot and I was tired. But I had a taste for some wings…”
“And didn’t even get your wings.”
His eyes darted to my lips. “What I got was better.”
I folded my arms over my chest, covering my hardened nipples and forcing my feet forward. He kept his hand on my back and escorted me through the exit.
He cleared his throat. “There’s this expensive reservation-only restaurant downtown that makes the best wings,” he continued.
“I don’t believe a place like that could have the best wings.”
“They do, and they’re on the menu only as appetizers. But if you’re ever up my way, I’ll have to take you to get some. Best wings of your life.”
“Ain’t no way.”
“Let me take you to get some.”
I smirked. “You want to take me to get fancy wings to prove me right?”
“I want to take you to Ember and Flame to prove me right.” His tongue ran from one corner of his mouth to the other. “Where did you park?”
My stomach flipped.
I pointed my key fob toward my silver sedan and unlocked it. “I’m right there. Where are you?”
“I’m right beside you.” With a chuckle, he pointed to the black SUV with heavy tint on the windows that was parked in the adjacent spot. “Looks like I’ve been right beside you all night.”
“I guess it was meant to be,” I joked, looking up at him.
He licked his lips again. “I agree with that.”
“Jazmyn Payne?!” a woman’s voice called out as we walked across the parking lot.
“The girl from high school?” a man wondered loudly with a gruff voice.
I hated being recognized in Chance.
Discreetly, I looked in the direction of the voice and saw a woman with a blonde Afro and bright red lipstick pointing at me. A man wearing a hoodie in the summertime stood next to her.
I looked back up at Lamar, who was watching me intently.
“Yes! Look! That’s her!” the woman said.
Ignoring them, I continued putting one foot in front of the other. Lamar’s hand remained on my back. I wanted to start talking so I could drown them out, but words wouldn’t form.
“I thought Olivia and Morgan were lying.” The man laughed. “That is her. I thought she died. I swear to God, I thought she did.”
“She disappeared, and she wasn’t at the reunion,” she said. “Jazmyn! She got a man in her face, and she thinks she’s too good to speak.”
“I heard she got married before she died,” he commented. “I’d go over there and say something, but he’s big as hell.”
“You think she’s giving him her tax money, and that’s why he’s with her?” the woman speculated loudly.
They both snickered.
Lamar’s hand remained on me as we approached my car. It wasn’t lost on me that he wasn’t saying anything. He was hearing the exact same thing I was hearing.
We stopped at my car, and I looked up at him and immediately looked away, mortified.
How do I explain that I’m a social pariah in this town?
Lamar leaned down, and for a split second, I thought he was going to kiss me. I froze, unsure of what to do.
“Let me get this for you,” he said as he reached for the handle and opened my door.
“Oh.” Embarrassing. “Thank you.”
I took a step and then glanced back at him before getting in.
His eyes darted from my body to my face.
“It has been an unexpected pleasure meeting you,” I admitted softly.
“Believe me, the pleasure is all mine.”
He took a step back as I started the engine. He closed my door, and I rolled down my window.
“I’m going to hit you up with the plans tomorrow,” he stated, pulling out his phone. His fingers flew across the screen. “But text me when you get home.”
My phone vibrated with his text.
“I will—”
“Was her ass that fat in school?” the man asked at the same time I was speaking. “I might’ve risked the backlash for—”
“Yo, you good?” Lamar asked, turning toward the man and woman diagonal from us.
My eyes widened. The bass in Lamar’s voice and the way he shifted gears had caught me by surprise.
“I ain’t mean no disrespect,” the man stated, lifting his hands in surrender. “Me and Jummy go way back.”
Lamar took a few steps toward them. “I don’t know a Jummy, but I do know if you talk about her”—he pointed at me—“ass again, I’m going to put my size-fifteen foot in yours.”
I didn’t immediately react because I was shocked and mesmerized.
And turned the fuck on.
“You ready to risk it all for that tax-refund money, huh?” the man clowned, making the woman laugh. With each step Lamar took, he stepped back. “I’m playing! I’m playing! I’m playing!”
“Hey, it’s not worth it,” I called out. When he kept walking in their direction, I raised my voice. “Lamar! Please.”
He stopped walking, but he continued staring their way. “The fuck is wrong with y’all?”
“We’re just playing. She knows we’re just playing,” the woman said with a drunken laugh. “It’s just a little harmless fun.” She looked at me. “Jum—Jazmyn, we’re just playing.”
He stared them down for what felt like a solid minute.
“Keep her name out your mouth,” Lamar warned, before coming back to my window. “I’m sorry about that.”
“No, I…” I reached for his hand, and when I had it, I squeezed. “Thank you.”
“That was some bullshit.”
I nodded in agreement. Another great example of why I hate it here.
A spark ignited between us suddenly, and I realized I was still holding his hand.
I quickly let it go. “Sorry,” I mumbled.
“You don’t have anything to apologize for.”
Thinking about the things being said by people I didn’t even remember, I felt the weight of being in Chance on my shoulders. “I should get going,” I whispered.
“See you Sunday?”
My lips curled into a smile, and I confirmed, “See you Sunday.”
I pulled out of the parking spot. As I looked back at him in the rearview mirror, my stomach fluttered again. He defended me.
It was equal parts sexy, sweet, and surprising.
I spent most of my life in Chance ignoring the bullshit, but sometimes, if necessary, I’d confront them and defend myself. But I’d never had someone defend me before. I’d never had someone be willing to fight for me before.
Certainly not in Chance.
Checking my mirrors before I turned, I caught a glimpse of myself. Surprisingly, I looked a little better than I had when I’d arrived. And I felt a little better, too.