Chapter 4 #2
“Hmph, as a matter of fact, I found out that they orchestrated us meeting. Then when I was tired of him, they pretty much hand delivered me back to his lying, cheating ass.”
“That’s crazy. So, what are you going to do now?”
“I’ll figure something out. For now, I just want to get lost in whatever this is we’re doing and not think about the world outside. Can I do that? I don’t want to impose. I know you have a life and probably have to work or whatever, but can I at least lay low here for a while?”
“How about you start by ordering you some supplies for while you’re here? As much as I love watching you walk around in my T-shirt, I’m sure you want to change.”
“Yeah, I was thinking about that. I don’t want anybody figuring out where I am by tracing my transactions. Those people have access to every fucking thing. Can I send you the money and have you order what I need?”
“I don’t mind paying for whatever you need to get, Carteay. It’s cool.”
“I’m already imposing.”
“You made breakfast and fucked me into a coma last night. You’ve earned a little bit of shopping.” I winked.
“Fuck you, Kannon!” She laughed.
“I wanted you to, but I was kinda scared to ask after I put you through the ringer all night,” I joked.
I had to laugh because if I didn’t make a joke of it, I was going to pick her up and carry her back to my bed.
Nah, I didn’t need to go to my bed when there was a counter right here.
I shook the thoughts off knowing that if I let them take over, there was no telling where the road might end.
Instead, I opened my delivery app and passed her my phone.
“Thank you again, Kannon.”
“Anytime, C,” I assured her as I pushed off the stool and tore myself away from her eyes.
She was trying to read me. I didn’t want to be read right now. I had to think about Carteay and what she really needed. I wanted to protect her. She didn’t need me ogling and lusting over her. She needed someone to keep her safe from whatever had her so afraid to face the world.
In order to do that, I needed to keep myself busy.
I did the dishes and cleaned a kitchen that was virtually clean.
While I was taking out the half-filled trash bag, I noticed the delivery driver pulling up.
I let him put the bags at my door before walking back up the driveway and taking them inside.
“That was quick. I’m definitely ready to take a shower and change,” she said, accepting the bags from me.
“Yeah, I’m sure you are.”
It was all I could offer with images of beads of water rolling off her tawny skin under the stream of the shower. My chest rose and fell as I took a deep breath. Thankfully, she walked away, making a beeline for my spare bedroom.
I needed to take care of a few things of my own, so I headed back to my bedroom and made my bed before showering and getting dressed myself.
Finally, I picked my phone up from my nightstand, preparing for the shit storm that awaited.
Whatever it was wouldn’t come to Carteay, not yet anyway.
Not ever if I could help it, but I knew that some things were out of my control.
I had over twenty missed calls. Surprisingly, ten of them were from my oldest brother Kross. I didn’t even want to start to imagine what the agency wanted. I wasn’t interested in talking to them. I would return my brother’s call though.
“What, nigga?” I asked as soon as he answered.
“What’s your problem, boy? You were supposed to call me after you left your assignment last night. I was about ready to pull up on you, but I figured you probably brought a nice little female companion home with you.”
“Oh, shit, I thought something happened. Your ass doesn’t call ten times.”
“I was about to suit up and come find your ass,” he told me.
“Yeah right, nigga. You ain’t got it no more. Janelle’s ass done made you a marshmallow.”
“The fuck ever. Don’t make me show you.”
“It’s cute that you checked on me. That woman gave you a heart.”
“Don’t patronize me, Kannon. Is that fucking girl with you?” Kross asked, finally cutting to the chase.
“Ah, so now we get down to business.”
“I take that as a yes.”
“How bad is the media?”
“I actually haven’t seen anything, and Doc didn’t ask me about it, so I’m thinking they’re trying to keep it contained. One of my sources reached out to me last night.”
“She just needs a break. Her and her dude got into it, and I pulled her out of there before it got out of hand.”
“You fucking her, bro?” Kross asked, catching what I didn’t say.
“Now why you worried about my dick?”
“I take that as a yes.”
“You think you know everything with your dog ass.”
“Be careful, Bro. I have a pregnant wife and a daughter to think about, but you know how I’m coming behind you.”
“I got it, Bro. She said she just needs a break from all the glitz and glamour. I’m going to give her that.”
“Let me know if you need me, son.”
“You know I won’t.”
“I know. Let me go feed these damn dogs before my baby girl tries to do it. She gave Clay a turkey wing last night. I almost had to kill him to take it.”
“All right, man. Let me get in here and make sure she’s good,” I said, ending the call.
When I walked out of my bedroom, the scent of sugar and roses slowed my steps to a stop. I wasn’t sure if her smell or the sight of her sitting on my couch in a pair of bicycle shorts and a little tank top was worse. I was going to have to be strong right now.
“Hey, I’m glad you came out. I want to use your phone. I probably should call my mom.”
I nodded.
“All right, but I don’t want you going on social media or doing anything that’s going to disturb your mental.”
“Trust me, I don’t want to.”
“Not wanting to doesn’t mean you’ll be able to resist doing it.”
“I might need to call the label. I don’t want anyone thinking I’m dead.”
“I’m sure no one thinks you’re dead, Carteay. You know your boy told them exactly what happened and who you left the venue with.”
“That kinda makes me nervous,” she confessed.
“Don’t be. I got you.”
“I’m not just worried about me, Kannon. I drug you into this.”
“You didn’t drag me anywhere, Carrie. I came in that room on my own, and I’m glad I did.”
She nodded. “Me too.”
“You don’t have to call anyone unless you absolutely want to. You’re not obligated to do anything while you’re here but unwind.”
“I’m trying.”
I wanted to ask her more about her contract Now felt like a good time to bring it up. I’d seen fucked-up contracts. I’d even used my resources to get people out of them. I didn’t want to get too deep in her business, but I would help her in any way I could.
“They really threatened to sue you if you left him?”
She took a deep breath before answering me. “My contract had an image clause in it. According to them, my image belongs to the label. My image is stronger attached to him, so they want to keep us connected.”
“That’s not a contract, C. That’s a fucking leash.”
Her faint smile wasn’t convincing, as she crossed the room and plopped down on the couch. “Yeah, I guess so.”
The way the shorts rode up her thighs as she adjusted her weight and got comfortable immediately drew my eyes to them before I could stop myself.
My goal was to be a soft place for her to land, not a hard dick for her to ride.
I’d be damned if I wasn’t willing and able to be both.
I moved over and joined her on the couch.
I put my elbows on my knees and folded my hands under my chin.
I needed to do something with my hands to keep me from reaching for her.
She was too quiet. I looked over at her, hoping the current of want flowing through me didn’t push me closer.
I successfully tore my attention away from her and picked the remote control up from the coffee table.
Once I turned the TV on to break the silence, she spoke up.
“I feel like I should regret what we did last night, but I don’t. Do you?”
It would have been easier to just say yes and reiterate her statement that it was a mistake. I didn’t like lying. Plus, once I got it in the air, I would feel better. Instead of leaning into the lie, I told the truth.
“Not at all.”
She released an inaudible sigh, releasing the tension between us.
Silently, we watched a movie that I didn’t pay one bit of attention to.
I couldn’t watch a movie when I was so busy watching her.
I couldn’t stop paying attention to the way her eyes wrinkled when she laughed or the way her heart pounded at the base of her throat.
Carteay had always been captivating, but now that she was at my house, being herself, she was a wonder.
“I wish I could stay here forever. Don’t worry. I won’t try, but I wish I could.”
“You know you can stay as long as you want to. I mean that. Stay as long as you need to, and you can have access to anything I have.”
“What if me being here, this situation, ruins our friendship?”
“It might, but my only concern is saving you.” At least that part was true. “I’m going to do everything in my power to help you, but you have to help me. You have to help me resist you because I don’t know if I can do that anymore. My judgement is all fucked up.”
She slid closer to me on the couch. The heat of her body made me want to pull her into my lap.
“I don’t know if I’ll be any help. I’ve been sitting here thinking that if there’s a next time, I won’t call it a mistake. I’ve been talking myself out of kissing you because there is no way for me to lie my way into making you think I didn’t mean it a second time.”
My eyes fell to her lips as I weighed my options. I was pissed with myself before the words left my mouth. “I would suggest you not kiss me then,” I said with a deep sigh. “Because I know damn well I’m not going to pretend like any of this was a mistake.”
She was in my lap in an instant. Her small hands were quick as they moved to my face. Her thumb brushed my bottom lip before she landed a quick kiss.