Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
So many thoughts swirled inside Cree’s mind.
The kiss. How right it felt to be with Tristan again.
The secrets that she’d kept over the years.
One scenario after another flooded her brain as she drove to her sister’s house.
She needed to talk this out, and since Essence knew her and Tristan’s history, she’d understand why this was all so complicated.
But that kiss, though. That hadn’t been just a kiss. Nope, it was a reminder of what she and Tristan once shared. Him and that lip-lock was everything Cree told herself she no longer wanted but everything she had missed.
He had always been easy to be around, and she was amazed at how simple it had been to fall right back into how things used to be between them. Hanging out talking, laughing, and eating together, feeding one another, and the banter. It all felt so natural.
But now, the desire, passion, and longing swirling inside of her was something she hadn’t experienced in a long time. Not since…
Not since Tristan.
Cree shook her head. “Man…” She hadn’t felt this way since they’d been together all those years ago.
There wasn’t a man on the planet who could turn her on like Tristan.
She used to think he’d been made specifically for her, and after spending the last couple of hours with him, she still believed it.
Which was a problem. A big problem.
Cree squeezed the steering wheel tighter as she drove through the streets of Chicago.
Getting involved with Tristan again was a horrible idea.
However, she wanted him more than she had ever wanted anything in her life.
But she didn’t want to still be attracted to him.
However, all the old feelings for him were back, and it was impossible to ignore them.
“What the heck am I going to do?”
A short while later, Cree stood on her sister’s doorstep and rang the doorbell.
Essence opened the door almost immediately. “Finally. Where have you—”
“He kissed me, and I liked it,” Cree whined, interrupting whatever her sister was about to say as she stomped past her and into the house. But Cree pulled up short when she reached the living room. “Ahh hell.”
“Soooo, he kissed you, huh?”
“And you liked it!”
Her sisters, Dorian and Nyla said at the same time, then burst out laughing.
Raven, their sister-in-law ran into the room from the kitchen. “Wait! What did I miss?” In her hands were a charcuterie board and a plate of what looked to be three types of homemade cookies. “Who’s been kissing who?”
“Yeah, that’s what we want to know,” Nyla, Cree’s most outspoken and pain in the butt sister, said. “And just think, I thought we’d only be talking wedding stuff tonight.”
“Wait. Oh, my goodness! Is this about your mystery man? The one we ran into at the boutique weeks ago?” Dorian asked, looking hopeful.
“Ugh! I just can’t with you guys tonight.” Cree did an about face and started for the front door. So focused on talking to Essence, she hadn’t scanned the street out front. Otherwise, she probably would’ve seen their cars.
Before Cree could leave, Essence blocked her path.
“You’re here now. You might as well come in and join the rest of us for girls’ night. You know, the night that has been planned for two weeks, and the one that you’re an hour late for.”
“Crap. I forgot.”
“Clearly,” Dorian said from behind her, and Cree turned to glare at her youngest sister. At some point, she had moved across the room and now stood a couple of feet behind her. “You can’t leave now Cree. We want to know who you’ve been swapping spit with.”
“Oh, my gawd. You’ve been spending too much time with Nyla because that sounds like some crap she would say!” Cree grumbled and rubbed her forehead, trying to decide if she should stick around or get out now.
She moved away from the front door and stood on the edge of the living room. The last thing she wanted to do was share her personal business. But she might not have a choice considering the way four sets of eyes were watching her.
Nyla poured tequila into two shot glasses, then crossed the room wearing an oversized suit jacket, a sports bra beneath it, and ripped jeans along with combat boots. “How about a little liquid courage to get you started?”
Cree huffed out a breath and took one of the glasses. She clinked it against Nyla’s, then slammed it back, cringing as the strong liquor burned its way down the back of her throat. And already, it was helping.
She handed the glass back to her sister. “Make it a double, and I’ll stick around.”
“Deal.”
Cree followed Nyla farther into the living room, dropped down in the recliner, and threw back a second shot.
“Now, start talking,” Raven said as she piled snack food onto a small plate. The others did the same, and Cree marveled at how well their sister-in-law fit with the family. It was like she’d been a Priestly forever.
She and Cree’s brother, Zion, had first met in Vegas.
Their one-night stand produced a set of the most adorable twins, but Zion and the rest of the family hadn’t found out until recently.
While in Vegas, he and Raven had only exchanged first names.
So when she later learned she was pregnant, she had no way of reaching him.
Thankfully, fate played a hand at them running into each other at Cree’s family’s bed and breakfast. Needless to say, they were all shocked by the news, but Raven and the kids were a gift.
Cree fixed a plate, loaded it with cheese, crackers, pepperoni, and a few grapes.
No one spoke as she took her time piling on the food while deciding how much to share.
The tequila did its job. She felt more relaxed than she had all day, and her mind was clearer.
Clear enough to come up with a way to buy herself some time.
“I’ll share a little about my mystery man, but only after Dorian tells us what’s going on with the wedding.”
“Seriously, Cree? You do realize you were over an hour late getting here,” Nyla snapped. “We already talked all things weddings. You’re just stalling.”
“So Dorian, how are the plans going?” Cree asked, ignoring Nyla who threw a handful of grapes at her.
“I hope you know you’re cleaning that up,” Essence said in what they referred to as her momma voice while she glared at Nyla. “What you’re not going to do is come in here throwing food. Now pick it up!”
Nyla dropped to her knees to pick up the grapes, and Cree couldn’t stop the smile that spread across her face.
“Cree, quit playing around and tell them,” Essence said, and Cree huffed out a breath.
“Fine. You guys know I don’t like people in my business. So if I tell you what’s going on, you have to promise to keep it to yourself. You can’t even tell your husbands or soon to be husbands. Do we have a deal?”
“Come on, Cree! You know if I told Harrison to keep it to himself, he wouldn’t say anything.”
“The same with Lynix,” Dorian said, frowning. “What is it? Did you kill someone?”
“Cree, I have a feeling, Tristan is here to stay,” Essence said quietly. “Just tell them.”
Cree kept her mouth shut. All these years she’d been able to keep her secrets from her family, but Essence was right. Tristan wasn’t going anywhere, and Cree knew her resolve was weakening where he was concerned. She just didn’t know what she’d do with him yet.
Raven threw up her hands. “Fine. We won’t say anything, and I won’t tell your brother. Just spill it.”
“She’s right, we’ll keep your secrets. Now who’s the mystery man?” Dorian asked. “I’ve been dying to know since seeing him at Jada’s boutique.”
“Fine. His name is Tristan Whitmore… and he’s my ex-husband.”