Chapter 8
Eight
Dy
I rolled my eyes as soon as I made it through TSA. Because there were so many cancelled flights in the last two days, the airport was much busier than normal, which was saying a lot because JFK was always packed with people.
I hated airports, mostly because I was usually in one when I was accompanying or on the way to Maria Striten.
The time I spent with my boss was never pleasant, so it was hard not to resent this place.
I also hated maneuvering through crowded spaces, and as soon as Brick got through security, that was exactly what we would have to do.
Brick .
I turned toward TSA and found him finally getting his bag from the conveyor belt. He looked just as annoyed as I felt, but he had good reason to be. Although we both paid good money every year to have an expedited security process, they selected him to do a secondary security screening.
It added at least ten minutes to an already drawn-out experience, and I knew he wasn’t feeling it. When he locked eyes with me, however, his face softened, and he headed straight toward me.
Without words, he threw an arm around my shoulders and led me away from security. We joined the heavy flow of foot traffic, and as annoyed as I’d usually be because of all the people, I wasn’t.
Brick held me close and maneuvered through the crowd with ease.
If a person got too close to me, he would block the contact with his other hand, and not a single person bumped into me as we walked.
I felt like a princess who had her own personal bodyguard, and instead of rolling my eyes like I thought I would be, I was smiling from ear to ear.
It was a fifteen-minute trek, but we made it to our gate without issue.
Luckily, we made it there before every seat was taken and claimed two on the end of a half-full row. Once we were seated, Brick placed his arm around me once again, and I adjusted my body so that I was as close to him as space would allow.
For a while, we just sat there without speaking. There was so much noise buzzing around us, but I allowed it to fade to the background as I rested in this man’s embrace, wondering where things would go from here.
The last couple of days had been perfect.
The grown-up Brixton had proven to be even better than the one I used to know, and I was borderline obsessed with the man.
Although we hadn’t been reunited for too long, I didn’t think I’d be able to depart from him when the time came.
When we landed, would he even want to be bothered with me?
Or would he just go back to life as he knew it?
Brick said he was currently single, but there was no way he didn’t have all the women in Jai City falling all over him.
I knew I was ready to lock in with him, but was he truly ready to do the same?
I’d experienced sad breakups over the years, but the happiness I felt in Brick’s arms was an indicator that a heartbreak he caused would be unlike anything I’d ever known before. I probably wouldn’t survive it.
“What’s next?” I asked. The question came out much lower than I intended, so I cleared my throat and asked louder before looking up at him for an answer.
He gazed at me briefly before lowering his lips to meet mine softly.
“I’on know, Doll, but whatever it is includes you and me together.”
I couldn’t help the smile that stretched across my face at his words.
“You think so?”
He chuckled. “I know that shit. Ain’t no way in the world I’m lettin’ you go again, Dy. That just ain’t happenin’.” Brick spoke with a confidence that made it impossible to doubt his words. He was saying we were in this, and call me crazy, but I believed him.
“You got plans when you get back? I heard you talkin’ to your moms earlier,” he said before kissing my forehead.
“Not specific plans, really. This week was just about spending time with her before I go to Paris.”
I was still looking up at him, and I didn’t miss how his jaws tensed when I mentioned Paris.
“What?” I asked.
His eyes scanned my entire face before he shook his head.
“Nun. I’m glad you’re gon’ have your time wit’ ya people, but if you’re really leavin’ next week, I’ma need my time, too. Stay with me tonight.”
I observed him silently as I contemplated his offer. There was still a hardness in his expression that let me know he wasn’t being honest about nothing bothering him. I had a feeling I knew what it was, but if he wasn’t up to discussing Paris right now, then I wouldn’t pressure him to.
As for his request, I wanted nothing more than to spend my nights cuddled up with Brixton. I was sure my mother and stepdad wouldn’t be fans of the arrangement, but my mind was made up as soon as he asked.
“Okay.”
That one word softened him once again, and he brought me even closer, prompting me to rest my head on his shoulder. We remained that way until we got our boarding call, and after Brixton gave the man assigned to the seat next to me a wad of cash, he wrapped his arms around me again.
The fact that he had just given up his first-class seat and a thousand dollars just to sit next to me in coach had me feeling all kinds of special, but he acted like it was no big deal.
We had just spent the first days of our reunion in blissful seclusion, so I wasn’t sure how the city noise and real life would affect what we were building, but I did know one thing: I wasn’t ready to let it go.