Chapter 10
TEN
I checked my phone for the tenth time as I sat in the overly comfortable seat on the left side of the plane.
It was the spot that allowed me to see the movement beyond the space I occupied.
From where I sat, there was a view of the small set of stairs that were still extended, waiting for my guest. My leg bounced on the floor as I waited impatiently for her to climb them.
No sign of Lyric. Not one.
I opened our text thread again, going back to the second message I’d ever sent her from my new phone. The first was simply the flight details and hangar number so that she wasn’t confused and stuck trying to find me when she made it.
Eight, the message said, reminding her of the time that I was expecting her. Just as she’d neglected to reply to the flight details, she’d neglected to reply to the last message. However, she’d read it. According to the read receipt, she’d seen the message at 5:34p.
Worry lines creased my forehead as I hovered over the button that would initiate a call between the two of us.
My intentions weren’t to seem desperate, but in a sense I was.
Though I needed the vacation to unwind after six months in a cell, it wouldn’t be a successful one without her.
Now that she was in my system, spending time out of the country without her was something I wasn’t quite interested in.
Physically, I’d be there but mentally, I’d be at a faraway place.
Where are you, Lyric? I thought, staring at her contact. The black heart on the screen was tempting. I watched as the time went from 7:56p to 7:57p. Then, 7:58p. At 7:59p, I couldn’t stand the thought of leaving without her and finally gave the call icon a push.
The familiar sound of an iPhone ringing erupted in the silence, and when I looked up, I found Lyric looking down at me. Her eyes fell to my phone and then rose again to meet my eyes. She didn’t understand the magnitude of her presence, and I wasn’t sure if I’d ever be able to explain it.
“Hi,” she greeted me with a smile and tearful orbs.
“Hi,” I returned, finally resting the worry lines of my face.
Lyric chose the seat across from me as her own. She lowered into the seat with her eyes still on me. Leaning forward, I swiped away the tears that had yet to fall.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
The door of the plane closed and those steps that I’d been watching had finally disappeared.
With both of her hands clenching the seat, Lyric prepared for takeoff.
As the crew began speaking over the intercom, all around me faded into black.
All that was left was Lyric’s face. Her gorgeous face with brown eyes and lips that I loved to kiss. And then there was me. Just her and I.
Remembering her childhood anxiety of flights although she loved hopping from one to another, I extended my hand for her to grab.
Once she looped hers into mine, I pulled her in my direction and onto my lap.
I wrapped my arms around her, assuring her that she had nothing to worry about.
Once we were finally in the air – cruising, that’s when I felt the wetness from her eyes against the cloth of my shirt.
“Crybaby,” I joked, pulling her deeper into my chest and kissing her forehead.
“I love you, Keanu,” she cried harder.
“‘Til death,” I responded, finally able to close my eyes and relax.
A state of tranquility consumed me because she was now in my arms. It wasn’t long before her light snoring induced a peaceful slumber of my own. Neither of us opened our eyes again until the plane’s wheels were back on the ground.
Everything was private. The villa. The pool.
The jacuzzi. The showers that were just outside of our dwelling.
The view of the water. The deck. Everything.
It was as if we’d stepped off the plane and onto our own island where I could love Lyric out loud and without restrictions. That’s exactly what I planned to do.
The rest we’d gotten on the plane, hours and hours’ worth was enough to have us both energized long after the tour of the villa we’d call home for the next two days.
So when we were alone again, we both decided that showering and finding somewhere to have drinks and fill our bellies was the best course of action.
So that I wasn’t tempted, I stayed far away from the window and glass door that led to the shower as Lyric handled her business.
I was determined to keep my dick in my pants the duration of the trip.
My only goal was strengthening our mental and emotional connection so that we’d both have something concrete to present to her people when the time came.
A month. That’s all I was giving her. That’s all the time she had to gather herself and share her secret with her brothers. Otherwise, we’d have to say goodbye to one another. I wasn’t prepared to live my life in secrecy, and I wouldn’t allow her to do it, either.
“She got nine or ten niggas. I might rob ehh one,” I rapped along with Gotti as he spit over the beat.
“Matching APs rocking Prada.”
Unpacking both our overnight bags, I bobbed my head to the beat. I’d advised Lyric not to bring too much because I had every intention of hitting all the shops she loved and emptying my pockets for her. She could have whatever the fuck my money could buy.
“Ninety-nine opps but where yo shooters at. What y’all shooting at? I got ninety-nine soldiers and I can feed ehh one. All the guys that got a bond, I done freed every one.”
When the music stopped and the beat was no longer thudding on the Bluetooth speaker, I looked over at my phone. Nanny’s name lit the screen. Without hesitation, I picked it up and slid the little bar over to answer.
“Old lady.”
“Whatever. Will you be spending that trip alone or did she come?”
“Come on, Nanny. Stop playing with me. You know she came.”
“Hmmm. I was kind of hoping she didn’t,” she admitted.
“Are you serious right now?”
“Dead serious. I hope she gives you a run for your money.”
“Why would you say something like that? I thought you loved me?”
“I do, but your head too damn big sometimes. Somebody needs to humble your ass for once.”
“She ‘bout it,” I confessed.
“I know she gone be the one to do it. I know she is. And I’m going to be watching from the sidelines every time.”
“I’m about to hang up on you, old woman.”
“Hang up on me and that’ll be the last time you see your fingers.”
“You’re threatening me and you’re all the way in Dooley, Nanny. And you wonder where I get this tough shit from.”
“Oh, hush. I got to get off this phone. I’ve got shit to do.”
“Oh, now you’re ready to get off the phone?”
“I am. Have a good time. Be safe and tell Lyric I’m sending my best wishes. Also tell her that she’s not too good to bring her high yella tail by here and speak,” Nanny fussed.
“Aight,” I replied, finally resting on the bed, “I love you, Nanny.”
“I love you, too, son. I’ll talk to you when you get back.”
“Bet.”
I ended the call and the music began playing through the speaker.
When I stood from the bed and began putting away our clothes in the drawers, the volume decreased slowly, drawing my attention away from the task at hand.
When I looked up and saw Lyric standing near the speaker, I couldn’t hold back the smile that appeared on my face. Not even if I’d tried.
“Hi,” she said to me, a hand on her hip.
The polished Lyric had been stripped. I was left with a bare face, curly hair, glossed lips version of her that I loved even more.
As I gazed from across the room, I silently prayed to God for the strength to keep my hands to myself and my dick in my pants as I’d promised.
The shit would be hard. Literally and figuratively.
“You’re gorgeous, Lyric.”
“I feel naked.”
“Because you are,” I reminded her, tilting my head toward the towel wrapped around her body.
“Not that, silly. My face.”
“It’s most beautiful this way. Let it stay until our trip ends.”
“I don’t know, Keanu.” She shied away.
“For me, please.”
“Okay, but no pictures.”
“Why not?” I chuckled. “It’s our first trip together. Why wouldn’t I start my training as the perfect photographer now and get a head start?”
“The perfect photographer?” She tossed her head back in laughter. It was the most precious sound I’d ever heard.
“Yeah, the nigga responsible for all of your fly ass Instagram pictures that you love to post.”
“How would you know, Keanu? You don’t have a single social media account, never have.”
“Laike. Shit, Luca. Kale. They keep me updated on what’s going on. I’ve seen a few of your pictures over the years.”
“Did you like them?” she questioned, toying with her fingers as she waited for my response.
“As a matter of fact, I did.”
Not wanting to keep her waiting long, I answered. Of course I liked what I’d seen. I loved them, to be honest.
“I loved each and every one.”
Lyric paused, allowing her eyes to roam our space and then return to me.
“Did you unpack us both?”
“Yes. Your things are to the right and mine to the left. I grabbed this for you,” I told her, pointing at the cream, strappy cotton material. “I figured you’d want to be comfortable.”
“I do,” Lyric agreed. “Thank you so much. I would’ve gotten us unpacked.”
“So could the host, but I preferred it be me. I’m going to jump in the shower while you finish getting ready.”
“Are you wearing that?” She pointed at the t-shirt and above-the-knee shorts. The weather in Maldives was warm, a far cry from the Channing winter.
“Yeah.”
“Umm. Hmm. I see why you wanted me to wear that dress. You on your corny shit, I see. You want to dress just like me.”
“Shit, why not?”
The warmth I felt rushing through my frame wasn’t due to the elevated temperatures outside of our villa. It was solely because of the woman standing in front of me and all her beauty.
“Goodbye, Keanu. Go bathe. I’m ready for frolicking in Maldives and spending every red penny in your pocket.” She sighed, sitting on the edge of the bed where I’d left her body lotion.
“That won’t be an easy task, Lyric. That’s a lot of fucking red pennies.”