Chapter 19
Nineteen
One night quickly turned into two… and then three. That’s how long it took me to build the courage to break the news to Melonie. Aside from a few missed calls from Bello, there wasn’t too much effort on his end to contact me and I appreciated that.
So beautiful .
The stars twinkled in the sky, strategically highlighting particular spots in the sea of endlessness. After being away for some time I’d missed these moments. The hills had been home for so long, I didn’t realize how much I’d grown to love them. The peace and tranquility they offered were priceless and something that I valued more than I knew. Until this moment .
The little time I’d spent away from Bello was daunting. To be quite frank, I’d even call it horrifying, emotionally. However, it was just what I needed to get my thoughts aligned with the actions I’d been making so that I didn’t feel like crap when I thought about it all. The truth was, I wanted Bello in every way possible. Not in secrecy, but openly and honestly. He deserved that and Melonie deserved the truth.
Just send it, I rallied. I’d been typing and deleting the same message for the last thirty minutes. Before I could change my mind again, I tapped the blue arrow.
I love you and I miss you. We have so much to talk about.
I waited a mere minute before the gray bubble started bouncing. It wasn’t until her message appeared that I realized I was holding my breath.
Melonie: Yes. We sure as hell do. Are you already in bed? Can you come over, now? Please. I have so much to tell you. Everything is a mess, B. I went to the clinic two days ago because I’ve been burning every time I pee. I got my test results back today and I just need you… tonight! She shared with me.
I’m on my way.
I responded as soon as I finished reading her message. It was clear that she needed me. Just as she was always there when I needed her, I desperately wanted to be here for her. In under three minutes, my camper was packed and everything that had the potential to fall in motion, I secured.
I slid into the driver’s seat and started the engine. It lit up without hesitation. Since being serviced it hadn’t stalled once and the ride was much smoother than before. I wanted to thank Bello every time I got it going but I hadn’t been able to bring myself to do it for the last few days knowing that I’d lied to him and stayed away much longer than I’d promised.
The twenty-five-minute drive to the Frank’s residence was a breeze, literally. My hand hung out of the window as I caught the night air in my palm. The city’s lights danced on my skin as I appeared and disappeared from beneath them. The late September air was dreamy and very indecisive. Fall had come, but Summer wasn’t quite ready to leave us. So, we were faced with a slight chill at night, nippy mornings, and heatwaves from midday to the evening. The weather was just as confused as I was.
I crept down the street, noticing Melonie in the driveway fully invested in a conversation on her cell. Just before pulling into the spiraled driveway, she spotted my van. Hadn’t it been serviced, she would’ve heard it at least a mile before she gained a visual. It was pretty loud.
“Hey, babe,” Melonie ended the call as she rushed to my side and opened the door.
“Hey,” I returned, shutting off the engine and stepping out to greet her.
I’d missed her tremendously.
“Please tell me you have some time on your hands. You can even spend the night if you need to. I just need like an hour of your time. Two tops,” she spat.
“It’s fine. I’ve had a nap. I could use a shower before I head out, though. It’ll save me a few bucks.”
“Of course,” Melonie agreed, “Before I forget, let me forward you this information for this apartment. I think you’ll love it. The crazy part about it is that it’s on Huff Street. It’s a cozy little spot near the theatre. It’s on top of a bakery and a convenience store. I had to search high and low for it. I’ve already called. The current tenants move out in about three weeks.”
“That sounds good,” I nodded, “Please send the information.”
“I’m sending it now,” she never looked up from her phone to say.
“Do you mind if I take that shower before we catch up?”
I wanted to be fully invested in the conversation with Melonie, especially knowing that I had a bomb to drop on her as well. In the shower is where I could calm my anxiety and prepare myself for the waterworks that were sure to come and massage my jaws for all the apologizing that I planned to do.
“No. I don’t mind. I just sent you the information. Let’s get inside.”
The Frank’s residence was as cozy as the last time I was over. I felt so much like home. One that I didn’t have but knew it must’ve felt much like theirs made me feel. Melonie led the way as I played the background, nerves settling in and choking me up.
“One second, I’ve been holding this man hostage all day because I couldn’t get hold of you. Let me tell him he’s free to leave, now. My savior has come,” Melonie announced, grabbing my hand and pulling me in the opposite direction.
We ended up in the kitchen, where my soul began to leave my body. The musky notes tickled my nostrils as we circled the corner just as the fridge closed. The figure behind it caused a whirlwind of emotions to swarm my insides like bees to their hive. Melonie began saying something that I just couldn’t quite make out, not that I was trying to anyway. I couldn’t. I’d gone death in a matter of seconds, too consumed with the presence before us to hear what she was saying to it. To him .
Bello stood in the kitchen with a cup in his hand, clad in his signature black. The joggers and v-neck did wonderful things for his figure. His gold chains dangling from his wrist and neck. His eyes met mine as I bore witness to the fire inside of them. I wanted to run in the opposite direction to free myself from his spell, but just as much I wanted to run into his arms until the side of my face collided with his chest.
God, I’ve missed him so much . I thought as my center began to throb. My lady had missed him, too.
“That’s a bet. I’m going to get out of here in a few minutes,” he spoke, eyes leaving mine to find Melonie’s.
She accepted his response before turning back to me and saying, “Now, you go ahead and handle your business. When you’re ready, I’ll be upstairs in my room waiting for you.”
I nodded, watching as Bello passed us both with his cup to his lips. He exited the kitchen and left Melonie and me alone. I definitely needed that shower more than ever, now. If there was any chance that I was going to get through the conversation with Melonie, I had to get it together. Seeing Bello wasn’t in my plans. He’d thrown a wrench in the entire operation, forcing me to rework my entire layout.
Before I was able to gather my thoughts and respond verbally, Melonie was out of the kitchen, too, and on her way upstairs. I shook off the fogginess of my head with a shake and headed for the basement to shower. My heart wanted me in the other direction, but I couldn’t. Though I didn’t want him to, Bello could wait until I fixed things with my friend. Right now, that meant more to me than anything else.
I slung my overnight bag over my shoulder and onto the bed in the basement as I removed my shoes. The oversized shirt that I wore slid off with ease and so did the black leggings. I was undressed in a matter of seconds and ready to prepare my shower. Before stepping into the bathroom, I slid on the shower shoes that I kept in my bag so that I wasn’t walking on the floor of the rest stops that where I usually showered.
I managed to start the water and achieve the perfect amount of pressure and heat almost instantly. It was crazy how well I knew the bathroom in the basement. In a sense, it had become mine. No one ever used it but me. There were four bathrooms available upstairs.
Body wash , I remembered. I’d snagged a new fragrance that I was desperate to try but had been saving for a time as the present - where I was in a residential shower and not a paid one. There was a huge difference to me. Some products simply weren’t meant to be experienced in certain places. The lavender and coconut milk shower cream was one of those products.
“GOD!” I yelped, clenching my chest and scanning the room for the location of my bath towel. My nudity was suddenly an issue for me as I wasn’t expecting anyone to venture into the basement where I was. Privacy had always been reserved for my visits down here.
“I’ve seen it already, Brisk. Been all up in it. Licked that motherfucker from top to bottom. Spelled my name on and in it,” Bello reminded me, sitting on the bed with my towel next to him.
“Bello,” I softened, recognizing the achiness in his voice.
“I never pegged you for a heartbreaker, love,” he responded with a shake of the head.
“Because I’m not,” I told him.
“Then, what do you call this?” With two fingers, he tapped his chest as he stood.
“I’m sorry,” I confessed. Because, honestly, I was.
“I miss you,” Bello breathed life into me as he approached.
Without hesitation, his lips were on mine as his body pushed me forward and back into the bathroom. Our tongues tangled as our hands roamed each other’s bodies. I’d missed him so much that my heart ached to have him near, again. Skin to skin simply wasn’t enough. I needed to be inside of his soul.
“I love you,” the words fell from my lips as I pulled away from him to acknowledge.
His palm collided with the center of my neck before his fingers engulfed the remainder of it. Bello kissed me once more before returning, “I’ve loved you since the moment I saw your pretty face, Brisk. Stop running from something you can’t control. Me and you, we’re tied. Not just by the heart, but by the souls. Jagged edges and all.”
With that declaration, he forced me to spin until my breasts were staring back at me in the mirror. His grip loosened as the position of his hand on my neck changed before he settled for a good grip on my braids. I arched my back immediately in order to find comfort.
I watched in the mirror as Bello pulled his joggers and boxers down in one motion. His hard sprang to life, assaulting my butt in the process. My mouth watered as his skin touched mine. Then, suddenly, he dipped low and disappeared behind me.
Spuuuuh! His spit made contact with my backside before he appeared, again. The second he’d straightened up completely, he entered me without remorse.
“Ahhhhhhhhhhh,” he rejoiced.
Closing my eyes, I did the same.
“Open your eyes,” he challenged.
In the mirror before us, he gazed at me. The sight of us together combined with the feeling of him ravishing my insides was too much to bear, causing me to close them again.
“Open your eyes,” he repeated, picking up speed and driving himself into me harder.
Complying, I opened my eyes and arched my back a bit more. My appreciation for his skillfulness coated his skin, making it easier for me to slide back and forward.
“Shit,” he fussed. “Throw that shit back, then.”
A hard slap on the cheek made me cream profusely. “I missed this soooo much.”
“Where the fuck you been?” Bello tossed out, well aware that I’d give up any amount of information while he was inside of me. Nothing was off-limits.
“I’ve been… in the hills,” I revealed.
“Where?”
“The hills.”
“More specific,” he demanded, never missing a beat.
“The park. The R… V park.”
Another slap on the ass and my climax was ready for its debut. Bello and I watched one another from the large glass mirror in front of us, both saying everything without saying anything as we rode the wave that would lead us to our destinations. I could hear my sloppiness each time he pulled backward before coming forward, again.
“Brisk!” Melonie’s voice rang out, startling me to the point of a near heart attack. I tried pushing Bello from behind me, but he closed the bathroom door, instead.
“She’s not going to come all the way down,” he convinced me. “Say something back.”
“Uh… Yeah?” I shrugged, not knowing what to say exactly.
“You want pizza?” She asked, still at the top of the stairs.
“No. No you don’t want no fucking pizza because you’re leaving once she finishes crying on your shoulder.” Bello whispered in my ear.
“Uh. No. I’m fine,” I made out as clearly as possible while Bello dug into me from behind. So slowly and methodically that it was driving me insane. He felt too good to me. My juices were evidence of my appreciation.
“Ok. I was about to order some, but I guess I’ll find something in the kitchen to snack on.”
“Oka… aaaay,” I yelled back.
“This shit so fucking wet,” Bello didn’t seem fazed by the encounter, but I was shaken.
“What if we get caught?”
“She thinks I’m gone,” he shared.
“This feels so wrong,” I whimpered.
“But, it feels so right,” Bello responded, sinking his teeth into my shoulder as he reached around and thumbed my clit. “Now, cum for me.”