16. Goldyn
The Next Day
After breakfast this morning, Lorenzo had looked at me and told me to be ready to go at noon. When I asked him why, all he did was kiss the corner of my mouth and mutter, “You’ll see.”
Now, I knew exactly why he hadn’t told me.
Twenty minutes ago, we climbed into his G-Wagon and didn’t stop driving until we pulled up in a rare parking space directly in front of the bank that had rejected me last week.
I squinted at the building through Lorenzo’s tinted windshield, confusion and a little panic warring inside of me. “Enzo, what are we doing here?”
Putting the truck in park, he killed the engine and cast a glance my way. “Getting you a bookstore.”
“What?” Why had he said that so casually? And why was my heart trying to claw its way out of my ass right now? When had Sincere even had the time to tell him about my little setback?
But Lorenzo didn’t stick around to give me an answer. Instead, he walked around the front of his truck, slid his sunglasses in place and opened the passenger door for me.
“Enzo.”
“C’mon, mamas. We have an appointment in ten minutes.”
“ What ?” I repeated, this time my voice sharper as panic won the internal war. “Enzo, I don’t want to go back in there.”
I didn’t care that my voice broke and he could hear it clear as day. All I cared about was not reopening a wound that hadn’t really began to heal.
It took Lorenzo a while to react at all, but he cocked his head as he stared up at me and bit his lip. “Don’t ever give someone this much power over you again, Goldy.”
His delivery wasn’t harsh, but I still flinched.
“Fuck this bank and fuck anybody who tells you you can’t do what the hell you want to do just because you’re not doing it the way they want. The other night Sincere told me about your business idea and I think it’s as brilliant as you are. All you need is funding, and now you have me, so funding is what you’re going to get. But not before we let this bank know you don’t need them for shit.”
“Can’t we skip to the part where I have the funding?” I asked, the slight squeak in my voice making him smile.
His fingers grazed my cheek and I was reminded of the way he’d caressed Sincere’s face when he had him on his knees in front of him yesterday. The thought sent a shiver through me, but at least the trepidation trying to whoop my ass earlier was gone.
“Let’s go, Goldy. We’ll be in and out in five minutes.”
“And then?” I followed up, placing my hand in his so he could help me down. But he didn’t pull me down just yet.
Instead, he held onto my hand and said, “And then we go to my family’s bank and get you what you want.”
My family’s bank?
Get you what you want.
What the hell?
Why did he say these things like they meant nothing?
“Can we pause on that? Please?”
“Which part?” His lips quirked and even though I couldn’t see his eyes, I knew amusement was swimming in them.
“Your family has a bank?”
He nodded.
“Who are you?” And I realized it was a little late to ask that question after everything I’d already let him do to me, but I needed to know.
“Lorenzo Wyatt Davenport.”
“You’re a Wyatt ?!” My voice was close to a screech at this point, and he took it all in stride, pulling his glasses away from his eyes so he could stare at me as we talked.
“Technically, yes. Even though I’ve been a Davenport for the past six years.” A proud smile lit his face and my heart soared at how happy he was to have Sincere’s last name.
“I had no idea.” The Wyatts were one of the wealthiest families in the state. Mostly contained between New Hope and King’s Town, they’d been running their Black-owned financial empire for decades.
Private banks. Private equity. Private wealth. Period.
“Most people don’t unless I tell them. I like that.”
Why had he chosen to take Sin’s last name?
Seeming to read my mind, he said, “It’s a long story, but I’ll save you the time and tell you that homophobia had a lot to do with it. At the time, my family didn’t understand why I was marrying a man if I claimed I was bi. Couldn’t I just marry a woman and save face? They didn’t care that I was in love and didn’t want me to tarnish the family name. So I dropped the family name,” he finished with a shrug, his voice indifferent.
Why wasn’t I surprised?
I’d only been around Lorenzo for brief stretches of time in the past week, but everything I’d learned about him backed up the decision he just shared. He was direct and a little bossy, so it came as no surprise that he hadn’t let his family win when it came to how he lived his life.
I was just surprised that it came to that. Six years ago was 2018 and I could admit my naivety at being shocked that families were still against gay marriage at the time.
Then again, we were in North Carolina. Only small pockets of this state had a semblance of sense and New Hope wasn’t exactly one of those towns. Especially in a traditional, no doubt conservative, family like the Wyatts. But damn, if they hadn’t supported his marriage to Sincere, how the hell would they react to his poly lifestyle?
From the slight tick in his jaw, I knew this conversation was hitting a sore spot and decided to steer it in another direction.
All you need is funding, and now you have me, so funding is what you’re going to get.
The words played on a loop in my head. I wasn’t dense enough to turn down the help, but questions still plagued my mind. “Why are you helping me?”
“Why wouldn’t I?”
“Because we just met.” I was a virtual stranger. “My mind can’t comprehend someone being this nice and expecting nothing in return.”
“I never said I didn’t want anything in return, Goldyn. I want you happy in return.” Lorenzo winked at me. “You agreed to be mine, and I take care of what’s mine. Why do you think Sin gets whatever the fuck he wants? The thought of you spending my money and it making you happy turns me on. That’s the beginning and end of it.”
He leaned in and kissed me so softly I had to touch my lips after to make sure it was real.
“I have more money and resources than I’ll ever be able to use in my lifetime, and I don’t believe in watching somebody I deal with suffer when I can easily fix it. I know you don’t technically need my money, but my name can still help. And I’m not letting you come up off a dime either. Keep whatever you saved up for yourself. Just know your bookstore is taken care of.”
“Lorenzo…” I wanted to protest, but again, I was shocked not dense. I knew my bookstore was just a drop in the bucket compared to how much this man had. And no part of me wanted to turn down his offer, but I still didn’t know how to articulate what I wanted to say.
Keep whatever you saved up for yourself. Just know your bookstore is taken care of.
My nipples budded at the memory of how those words rolled off his tongue. He’d said it like he was giving me the weather report and my senses were in overdrive because of it. What the hell kind of fairytale had I walked into?
“My family might not agree with all my decisions, but I still have my trust fund and access to everything I could ever need to live a life that’s better than most. What’s the point in having all that if I can’t share it?”
I swallowed past the questions trying to claw up my throat.
“If you’re sleeping in my bed and I’m not doing anything to make sure you have everything you want and need, then I give you permission to call me a deadbeat.”
A bark of laughter rose in my throat, disrupting the quiet street we were on. “I don’t think anyone would ever call you a deadbeat, Enzo.”
“That’s the goal. I try not to make promises I can’t keep. And I never get involved with someone I’m not ready to fully support. Just because you think this is casual doesn’t mean I didn’t do my homework on you and make my decision based on that. I know exactly who you are, Goldyn. And soon enough you’ll know exactly who I am.”
I bit the inside of my cheek as I stared at him, at a loss for words that would measure up to the mouthful he’d just said.
Lorenzo stared at me, the same bemused look I was growing used to painting his features.
The longer I talked to him, the more I understood why he and Sincere worked so well. They were opposite sides of the same coin and it was clear they’d struck a perfect balance over the years.
His gaze was unwavering and I think I was too stunned to speak or look away, so we stayed like that, staring at each other until he gave a dry laugh. “Let’s go inside, mamas.”
Of all the nicknames he’d given me, I was partial to that one and an involuntary smile curved my lips.
“Shit, has it been ten minutes already?” I asked, hopping down. It wasn’t like me to lose track of time unless I was buried in a book, but apparently talking to Lorenzo had the same effect. I wanted to dig deeper, but I had all summer to do that. The thin cotton of my sundress did nothing to protect me from the hard planes of his body as I brushed against him. And he didn’t move when I was standing in front of him, almost like he enjoyed having me this deep into his personal bubble.
He placed his hand at the small of my back and led me into the bank. “Remember, you don’t need shit from these people.”
An hour later, I crossed and uncrossed my legs as Enzo drove us to the next city over. There wasn’t a Wyatt Financial Group branch in Bliss Peak and although I would be able to do everything online after the account was opened, I needed to open it in person.
“How does this work? Am I going to be an authorized user on your account or something?”
Lorenzo shook his head, lowering the volume on the radio. “No, you’ll get two accounts and everything is in your name and your business’s name. All I’m doing is endorsing you to open an account because this bank is invite-only.”
My mouth ran dry. This conversation was out of my tax bracket. Nodding, I slid my poker face in place and tried my best to act unaffected by what he’d just said.
I was still riding the high of watching the people at my last bank trip over their feet when I walked in with Lorenzo on my arm.
All of a sudden, that loan I couldn’t get approved for last week turned into double the funding and double the personalized care after my loan was serviced.
“And after my three months with you and Sin is up, what happens?”
“Nothing.” Lorenzo kept his eyes on the road. “Whether you leave us today or in three months, your account still stands and you can use whatever benefits come with it.”
We pulled up to the nondescript building, and for the second time today, Lorenzo donned his sunglasses and got out of his truck to help me down.
We walked into the bank hand in hand, and the only thought I had when we entered was how much it didn’t look like a bank. There was no line leading to tellers. No receptionist in the front asking why we were here.
It was quiet, and as I looked around at the closed office doors, I couldn’t help but wonder about their occupants.
A petite middle aged woman appeared in front of us with a saccharine smile.
“Mr. Wyatt, to what do we owe the pleasure?”
Lorenzo intwined his fingers with mine and said, “It’s Davenport now. But you know that already, don’t you, Gwen?”
I had to squint but the inconspicuous nameplate pinned to her blouse said “Glenda” not Gwen. It took everything in me to bite back a smile at his pettiness. This man did not play when it came to Sincere and everything about that made me happy on a level I couldn’t explain.
“I need to speak to Killian. He knows why I’m here.”
Glenda pursed her lips, her eyes narrowing at the sight of our intwined hands before she schooled her features into a tight smile and said, “Of course.”
“Maybe we shouldn’t show PDA?” I whispered as we waited. I didn’t want to stir up any more confusion for him when it came to his family and the way Glenda studied me before turning on her heels told me that was exactly what we’d done. He was proudly touting Sincere’s last name, but walked in with me? I didn’t?—
“PDA?” Lorenzo scoffed, moving to stand in front of me and blocking my view of the rest of the office. “It’s not like my tongue is down your throat, Goldy. We’re holding hands. And even if I did want to shove my tongue down your throat, it would be none of their damn business. The threat of gossip has never moved me.”
“Okay,” I gulped, nodding up at him.
Yesterday, I’d been sitting on this man’s lap while he made me come, thinking I’d just agreed to a fun summer fling. Less than twenty-four hours later and I was realizing how wrong I was. There was nothing fun or casual about what he was setting me up to be able to do. Nobody in my life had ever poured into me just because. But Sincere and Lorenzo weren’t like anybody I’d ever met either.
It’d barely been a week and I knew without a doubt that by the end of this summer, my life as I knew it would be different in every way. And I didn’t know whether to be excited or terrified by that.
But as I settled against the soft leather of his seats on the drive home, I had to remind myself this was exactly what I spent months hoping for. I just didn’t know it would play out like this. And maybe that was the point. Maybe I needed to be open to things working out in ways I hadn’t expected.