Chapter 10 #2
My hand moved without thinking. Slowly and softly, I brushed a curl away from her face as if I had the right to do so. To me, it felt like a natural gesture because deep down, I never stopped feeling like she was mine.
“You so fuckin’ beautiful,” I whispered.
Chesteria’s breathing stayed steady.
I stared at her a little longer, taking in the way her skin glowed even in the dim light, swallowing the ache that rose in my throat.
“I know our daughter would've looked just like you… probably a lil’ prettier since she had my DNA too,” I said, trying to keep my tone light, but the joke cracked mid-sentence, hanging awkwardly in the air.
“She would’ve had my complexion, my eyes…
probably my nose and forehead too. That would’ve left her with your smile and that lil’ attitude you swear ain’t loud but be yelling without a sound. ”
I paused.
“I think about her every day… every damn day. And every time I do, I think about how I wasn’t there the way I should’ve been, how I let you carry that pain alone, and how you were hurting and still trying to be strong… and I wasn’t fuckin’ there.”
A quiet curse slipped out, laced with a violent regret.
“I’m so fuckin’ sorry, Chess. I can’t change what happened. I can’t bring her back or erase the pain I left you to carry, but I swear to God, if I could go back and redo that day... that whole year, I would. I’d show up right this time, no hesitation.”
My hand hovered above her cheek, not touching… just close enough to feel her warmth.
“You didn’t deserve that pain. You didn’t deserve to cry alone. You didn’t deserve my absence.”
Seconds later, her eyes fluttered open.
Shit. Did she hear that?
Chesteria’s expression shifted from sleepy confusion to alertness.
She blinked like she couldn’t believe I was real.
She always did wake up like a dream… and I was tired of living that nightmare without her.
Chesteria tugged the covers up and sat upright, acting brand new despite the history we shared beneath those sheets. I use to whisper to her nipples as I traced the shape of them with my tongue. I even remembered the exact shade of them—deep mocha… just a hint darker than the rest of her skin.
“Bryce, w-what are you doing in here? Is everything okay?" Her voice brought me back, shaking off the haze of nostalgia.
I smirked faintly. “Depends. Is spending another day here with me considered okay?”
Chesteria twisted her face up in confusion, then turned her head toward the window.
Her jaw dropped in disappointment. “Noooo! It’s snowing! Really?!”
“Good thing you’re already inside.” I shrugged.
“Yeah, but I planned on leaving today,” she revealed, catching me off guard.
“You did?”
“Yes,” she sighed, arms folding over her chest. “After the whole bear situation, I was over this damn trip and Adrian’s ass, too.
And having to be around him all day? Double yeah.
I was gonna leave after breakfast. I can’t believe this is happening!
The forecast said it wasn’t supposed to snow until Monday!
” she whined like the weather betrayed her personally.
“Well, you know the weather here is unpredictable… just like people.”
She nodded slowly. “You got that right! Ugh! That damn Klarissa!”
I raised a brow. “What she do?”
“She kind of jinxed this. She hoped we’d get snowed in.”
“Oh, yeah? Why is that?”
“She said… we, as in me and you, needed to talk."
I stared at her, my heart pounding. “You agree with her?”
She hesitated... then nodded. “I do. Don’t you?”
“Yeah,” I said finally. “We will… before I leave. But first, let’s figure out how long we’ll be stuck here with y’all." I tapped her leg, lightly. “Come on. I need to check the radio.”
As I exited the room, I crossed paths with Adrian again. That time, I smirked—a petty, disrespectful, I just handled your girl type of smirk.
He chuckled under his breath, but I heard it.
“What the hell so funny?” I asked, curious.
Adrian pointed toward the living room. “Yo’ girl is on Live, going crazy.”
I leaned over to peek around the corner.
Isis was propped up, filming herself like she was shooting a beauty vlog, face smoothed by an aggressive filter, and talking to her phone with the confidence of someone addressing a million followers.
“Y’all, it’s snowing… like full-on, white-out snow!” she announced dramatically. “I’m probably about to be stuck in a cabin with three other people… two of them being strangers and one of those two being my man’s ex. Crazy, right?! If anything happens to me—”
I rushed over, and snatched the phone mid-sentence, cutting her off.
“What the hell you doing?! I leave you alone for a few minutes, and you turn into a damn weather forecaster and a victim?! You online actin’ like we stranded in Antarctica.
This is a discreet location, and here you are, running yo’ mouth to five hundred strangers like we on Survivor: Bougie Edition.
Answer this. While you were on there lying, did you happen to mention how you just got done sucking dick like it was charity work, Ms. ‘Everybody Don’t Get That Special Treatment From Me’, but didn’t even brush your teeth afterward? ”
Isis gasped and slapped a hand over her mouth. “Okay… first of all, that was not charity work; that was me being supportive of you in a vulnerable moment, thank you. And second, I brushed last night, so technically—”
“Nah,” I cut in, already done listening. “Yo’ mouth been open all morning, but yo’ toothbrush ain’t seen daylight.”
Her face cracked for a split second before she tried to pull it together.
“Wow. Okay. So now we’re embarrassing each other? Real mature. You know what… go ahead! Be petty! But just know when I go Live again, I’ll make sure they know I was attacked for being honest, feminine, and emotionally available!”
“Isis, do whatever makes you feel relevant or delusional… whichever one helps you sleep better. But you better stop lying to them folks, like you got a man. Well, you probably do… but I ain’t him.”
Her eyes widened.
“Matter of fact… no more social media while we’re here. You hear me?”
Isis folded her arms and pouted like a brat. “You can’t control me!”
I smirked, low and lethal. “Probably not… but I control what goes down in this muthafucka.” I stepped closer, lowering my voice until it was damn near a threat wrapped in ice.
“What’s the saying? If you can’t take the heat, then get out the kitchen?
” I tilted my head slightly. “Well, this ain’t no kitchen, but it does get hot in here.
And out there?” I pointed toward the door without looking away.
“Ain’t no warmth, no comfort, or no one coming to check for you. ”
Isis opened her mouth to respond, but her attention, like mine, went to Chesteria, who sashayed into the area wearing a sexy ass champagne two-piece, long sleeve, pajama set that had feathers attached to the sleeves and ankles.
Compared to Isis, who was still standing there in booty shorts and a tank top with zero winter logic, Chesteria looked warm, expensive, and cozy in a way that made a nigga weak.
Did I forget to mention fine as hell? Because damn, she was.
My eyes immediately zoned in on her ass.
And fuck… there it was; that same perfect bounce I’d been haunted by for the last two years.
My jaw flexed.
All I could think about was how she’d gasp and bite her lip, how soft it felt under my hands, how it melted into my palms every time she rode me slow, how it clapped back like it had something to prove, and how it jiggled when I slapped it when she’d try to crawl away from nut number three while whimpering and shaking but never telling me to stop…
only to end up begging for number four. I remembered how I’d dragged my tongue across that ass, kissed the dimples, and gripped the back of her thighs, pleasuring her in a way that only she knew I could.
That ass wasn’t just soft; it was addictive, it was memory, and it was mine once. And seeing her wrapped in silk and feathers like that? I wanted to feel that ass bounce under my hands again and watch it move while she moaned my name with her face buried in the sheets I paid for.
Adrian strolled in a moment later, and just like that, my whole energy shifted.
I cleared my throat and spoke up. “As y’all see, it’s snowing. It’s not bad yet. It could ease up... or it could get worse. But let’s listen to the radio before we jump the gun."
I moved toward the shelf and grabbed the emergency radio, flipping it to the local weather frequency, the familiar static crackling in the air.
A man’s voice emerged, authoritative and urgent.
“A strong cold front has already moved into the mountain region, and conditions are expected to worsen. Snowfall totals may reach up to eight inches over the next twelve to twenty-four hours. Roads may become impassable. We advise all locals to remain indoors and stock up on food, water, and essentials. If you are already off the road, stay where you are until conditions improve.”
As soon as the broadcast ended, Isis began to spiral. Her hands flew up in a flurry of anxiety.
“Oh my God! I can’t be stuck here for days; I have to be back at work on Tuesday! Most importantly, I don’t have my steamer, my silk pillowcase is at home, and I only brought ten outfits!”
“Ten outfits?” Chesteria scoffed, rolling her eyes. “Girl, you were coming to a cabin for a weekend getaway, not going on tour.”
“I have to stay ready! I never know who might pop up, or who might be watching! I might’ve wanted to shoot content or go viral off a ‘stuck-in-the-snow’ fit check!
” Isis threw a hand dramatically toward the window.
“Now look at me! I’m trapped in the wilderness with barely enough outfits, one man who’s still traumatized from the bear,” she complained, flicking a side-eye at Adrian.
Then, carefully, like she had to pause and run it through a filter first, she cast a quick glance at me.
“And another man whom I’d rather not speak on,” Isis added a little softer, tone adjusted just enough not to come out as disrespectful. “Oh, and a girl who hates me,” she finalized, before flopping back onto the couch, completely ignoring reality.
“Correction,” Chesteria chimed in, dry and unbothered. “I don’t care enough about you to hate you. I just think you’re loud and unnecessary.”
Isis rolled her eyes.
Adrian, who’d been sitting quietly on the edge of the couch like a confused field trip chaperone, spoke cautiously, “I just got one question. So, uh… with all this snow, will the WiFi still work, or are we talkin’ full blackout conditions?
‘Cause I got a fantasy draft tonight, and I’m not trying to auto-pick a kicker in round three again. ”
Chesteria rolled her eyes again, that time with extra effort, like she was searching her skull for any remaining patience.
“Seriously, how did y’all survive before WiFi came along? Like, y’all can’t function without scrolling and filters? Maybe it’s time to unplug and enjoy nature a little!”
And just like that, Day Two had officially begun, and the storm outside didn’t have shit on the drama brewing indoors.