Hassan #3
“Why are you looking at me like that, Hassan?” She picked up her fork and I kept my eyes on her wondering if I was being too intense. The lsat thing I wanted was to make her uncomfortable but I also didn’t want her to miss that I was into her.
“No reason. Just admiring the view.”
Her head fell back and she laughed loud enough to draw the attention of other patrons. If anyone had a problem I’d make sure they forgot it immediately. No one was about to steal her joy. “Not you flirting with me.”
“Nope. Just being honest. Break bread with me, Si. We’re doing the catching up thing so let’s do that. I need an unbiased opinion on how the family is keeping up standards around here.”
“If this is the kind of catching up you like to do, I can’t let you go another twenty years without seeing me.”
Her words had me stuck because the little things she was saying made me think Dave was slacking all the way off. As badly as I wanted to ask questions, I didn’t want her mood spoiled.
“Twenty years won’t happen again, baby, I promise you that.”
“You don’t have to be shy, Hassan. Hell, I probably need someone to talk to who will be even slightly more objective than my family.”
“I ain’t the nigga you need to speak on this with then.”
Her face scrunched in confusion and I wondered how much plain I could say what I was thinking. “I know you’re not advocating for me to talk to Dave?”
“Hell no. I’mma throw dirt on that man’s name every chance I get so that slightly more objective desire disqualifies me completely. I’m biased as a muthafucka.”
She giggled loudly and the sound went straight to my heart.
It didn’t hold the weight of the pain I was sure she’d been carrying around all day despite the way she’d carried herself.
Her resilience to show her face in public after going through what she did was admirable but I was thankful she was letting the stress ease up off of her.
“At least you’re honest.”
“Always. Especially about this.”
“I really appreciate this. I haven’t been out and dressed up in a long time. It feels good to feel like me again.”
“I heard that people can lose themselves sometimes when they grow up.”
She laughed again, and the sound was quickly becoming my new favorite. “Why do you sound like you haven’t?”
“I haven’t hit any of the markers of what people would consider me being an adult.
No wife. No kids. Not settled and my career path got cut short.
Damn, am I a bum?” We both laughed and it was easy to be playfully self-deprecating with her.
I knew who I was and living off a woman would never be my style.
“Stop it! None of that shit makes you an adult. It’s just markers that society tries to give you so that you can feel better or worse about your life’s choices. None of that shit means anything if you’re happy. Are you?”
“With some things but I know I’m lacking in others.” I kept staring at her so she could hear the unspoken thoughts. She obviously got the message because her head dipped slightly and she smiled.
We ate and continued to talk about what we’d missed about one another over the last twenty years. I spoke on the places I’d gotten to travel and she spoke about her kids. The love for her kids was clear and it had me wanting to get to know them myself.
“Do you mind me asking what happened with your eye? I know you said war but were you attacked?” We’d finished our dinner and I’d switched from the Shirley Temple blacks to a glass of Prism. She’d asked for a few sips of it and the intimacy of sharing the glass had us moving closer to one another.
She was trying to soften her question but it never bothered me when people asked about my eye.
It was hard to miss and everyone in the Grove that I’d run into had the same question.
That was the joy of people knowing you since you were a kid.
Her asking had me wondering if she was thinking I had unchecked PTSD or something.
Her concern was double-edged and made me wonder if she was thinking about the future.
“I got into an accident when I was in the military. Glass got me in the eye.” Her full lips spread delicately and I could see sympathy written all over her face. My story was a lie but that was the official story on record.
“I’m sorry I asked. That’s got to be difficult for you to talk about. I apologize for bringing up something that painful.” Her hand covered mine trying to comfort me but all it did was make my dick swell.
“You’re good, Sylvia. You think I wouldn’t have answered you if it was going to be too much for me? I’ve come to terms with it.”
“I can’t imagine you in the military. You don’t seem the type to want to follow rules. Was it hard for you to lose your career?” Her fingers toyed with the straw in her drink as we focused solely on one another.
“I know how to take direction and I damn sure have no problem with giving it.” I winked at her and she shifted in her seat. “The great thing about it was that I was able to find a new career path that allows me to use the skills I learned in the military.”
“Oh! That’s Wonderfull. I’m glad that worked out well for you.”
I wondered if she would feel the same way if she knew I was still a sniper.
I was thankful that the injury I’d suffered hadn’t prevented me from being recruited into the Order.
Cardinal had advised against it but after Jahmir brought me in for a marksman test he refused to rescind the offer they’d given me.
That combined with the money the government paid me for being wounded in action along with the dividends from the hotels, I was more than set for life.
“‘Preciate it. But the beautiful thing about all of this is that I’m still here. Losing something makes you remember that gratitude isn’t something to neglect.”
“That’s a beautiful way to look at it. I feel like I’ve been neglecting myself all this time.” She’d leaned in conspiratorially like she didn’t want everyone else to hear how she really felt.
I leaned in closer to her to the point that I could feel her breath on the side of my face as I spoke in her ear. “Maybe it’s time you stopped.”
When her hand dropped from her drink and slid up my thigh I was only mildly surprised. I didn’t think Sylvia was one to be so forward. Was I happy about it? Hell yeah, but I didn’t want her to have regrets about me.
“Maybe you’re right.” She’d started to softly stroke the head of my dick and it swelled at her touch. She was doing it discreetly enough so that no one could tell but me and that shit was erotic as fuck.
“You been drinking all night. Are you sure you’re wanting to do this?”
“I’ve been with the same dick for years and I’m ready for something new. I know you, so why not?”
“Because you’re not sober.”
“I’m sober enough to know I want to feel your dick at the back of my throat before you make me forget how devastating today has been for me.”
I almost snatched her ass up off that stool with the way she was teasing me. “Damn, you giving my dick a lot of responsibility.”
“Can’t handle it?”
“Never said that. I’m pretty sure I could absolutely do what you’re needing and then some.”
“So what’s the issue?”
“The issue is that I’m still not trying to be a rebound. Especially when you’re not in your right mind.”
She laughed but she kept her hand on my dick like she had taken possession of it. “Get over this shit, Hassan. I told you what it is I’m on. If you don’t find me attractive just say so.”
I grabbed her hand tired of her downing herself to because a fuck nigga had her questioning herself. He was pissing me off for how he’d fucked her over but
“When was the last time you had an orgasm, Si?”
She bit her lip and it was a damn shame that she had to think this hard about it. Especially since she was married. “That I didn’t give myself? At least two years.”
My resolve was weakening hearing how badly this woman had been neglected. “That’s fucked up.”
“What’s worse is that I haven’t had sex in six months. And you? I’m guessing it hasn’t been more than a few months.”
“Yeah, an orgasm is the end result for men and we have less in the way of us achieving the goal. But a good one? It’s been a minute since I had that kind of nut.” I wasn’t about to lie on my dick and pretend like I hadn’t slid up in something this year.
“I don’t believe you.”
“Why not?”
“Because look at you.” She gestured lazily with one hand and a smile on her face.
“You trying to hype me up for the dick, Sy?”
She giggled and all the stress that seemed to have been on her face when I first saw her seemed a distant memory.
“I shouldn’t have to in order for you to get the job done.”
“Nah, definitely don’t but it helps a man when his ego is being fed.”
“Feed me something else. And if I make another move on you and you turn me down I guess I’m stuck with a nigga like Dave for the rest of my life.”
Her blackmail worked and I stood up grabbing her hand as I reached for my wallet.
Her giggles increased as I tossed several hundreds on the bar as a tip.
We strode through the entrance of the restaurant and somehow managed to make it to the elevator unseen.
I had no issue with someone seeing us but I wasn’t selfish enough to think that Sylvia wouldn’t face backlash if someone thought she was out here cheating back.
The doors closed quickly and Sylvia was pressed up against me in the elevator as we rode our way up.
Her lips were on the side of my neck kissing her way up to my ear as her hand traveled down to my dick.
I was biting back a groan as she sucked on my ear lobe and I needed her to chill before she got put up against the wall and fucked.
Somebody would leak the footage and then that would cause me a whole host of other problems. And the last thing I wanted was for her name to be smeared especially since she had kids.