Chapter 9
CHAPTER
NINE
“What was that about?” Adrienne asked once Nadir disappeared into the crowd. I took another bite of my chicken patty and shrugged.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Adrienne blew out a breath. “He was like… undressing you with his eyes or something. I can’t explain it, but it was muy, muy caliente.”
Her sultry accent made me laugh. Biting down on my bottom lip, I contemplated if telling her what happened was a good idea. It had been two days since Nadir and I had sex and the mere thought made chills shoot through me.
How could something so wrong feel so damn right?
Which was terrible to even admit because this wasn’t me. I didn’t get involved in entanglements, especially with someone I cared for so deeply. Nadir wasn’t just some guy I could hook up with from time to time.
Our relationship involved too many intricate feelings for us to act so carelessly. I still wasn’t ready to face how I felt for him, let alone express said fondness to him. I had to fall back before I got hooked. After experiencing Nadir, the lover, I couldn’t help but look at him differently.
I didn’t want to think about his warm, passionate kisses or the molten desire in his eyes while telling me things I needed to hear.
But the constant flashbacks left me craving more.
The memory of that night was vivid, still.
I shook my head, knowing I shouldn’t be lusting over my best friend like this.
But I couldn’t help myself.
“We had sex,” I revealed unceremoniously. “I don’t regret it at all, but now I'm confused about if we can do it again.”
“Wait.” Adrienne held up her hand while fluttering her eyes. “When? How was it? And why are you confused?”
I giggled like a schoolgirl before telling her enough details for her to draw the right conclusions. By the end of my story, Adrienne’s smile was the widest I’d ever seen.
“So that’s why he was looking like that.”
“Maybe. I don’t know.”
She laughed. “He definitely wants to do it again; in case you’re wondering.”
I blew out a breath. “Trust me, he’s made that clear.”
If you want to go there again, we can. A smile covered my face.
Like it was that simple.
What if it was?
Adrienne’s shrieks halted my thoughts as I turned my attention to the man scooping her into a hug. I waited for them to finish before standing to introduce myself.
“Robyn, this is Q. We met while studying abroad. That was what, seven… almost eight years ago?”
“Exactly eight years ago,” he crooned, eyes fixed on Adrienne.
“Yeah,” she breathed. “Seems like a lifetime ago.”
I’d known Adrienne for five years and she’d never told me about Q. My gaze bounced between them, picking up on the sexual tension. Q was a few inches taller than Adrienne, smooth brown skin, expressive sable eyes, and a low-cut fade with a clean-shaven face.
Okay, Adrienne!
“Nice to meet you, Q.” I stepped in, holding out my hand.
He accepted my hand, finally meeting my gaze when he replied, “Yeah, you too.”
Then his eyes snapped back to Adrienne. “What are you doing here of all places? I thought you lived in Paris?”
Q nodded. “I’m still there. I came home to spend time with my family. My cousin is performing with his band today and invited me to the show.” He shrugged, then smiled at her. “I wasn’t feeling this too much until I saw you.”
Adrienne stopped blushing long enough to ask, “How long are you in town?”
“Two weeks. We should go to dinner while I’m here.”
“We should. Take my number.”
They exchanged numbers before sharing another long, cozy embrace. Once he was gone, I shot her a look.
“Q was definitely undressing you with his eyes,” I imitated her while moving my hips. We fell into a fit of laughter. “Why haven’t you told me about him or your time abroad?”
After discarding our plates, we started toward the main stage.
“I don’t talk about my time in Paris because he is a part of my favorite memories there. I can’t believe I did the most cliche thing ever; fell in love.”
“I love a good love story. So, give me all the details.”
“Well, I met him during my second year of culinary school. He was interning at the World Bank with hopes of getting a permanent role by the end of the term. We were new to the city and both from the DMV. We just clicked.”
“I’m swooning, already,” I said, hooking my arm around hers.
She giggled. “It definitely started like a fairytale. I was the whimsical cook; he was the meticulous finance guy. I could see us being together forever, honestly.”
“What happened then?”
Her eyebrows furrowed. “We were on two different paths. I wanted to be here and he had to stay there. I think we were able to part ways amicably because deep down we knew it was temporary. I still haven’t met a man who could make me forget him.”
“You should’ve seen the sparks between you two. It was cute to watch.”
“I felt it.” Adrienne paused. I glanced her way, catching the wistful look in her eyes. “I can’t wait for us to catch up.”
We stopped walking once we met the crowd forming around the stage.
Adrienne and I scanned the shaded hillocks for a place to watch the show.
Our scout ended once I spotted Mel and Nadir near a tree, dancing.
I pointed in their direction and Adrienne followed without objection.
By the time we reached them, everyone was doing Roseville’s Two-Step to the DJ’s mix.
Nadir had a beer in one hand as he did the line dance with an older woman next to him.
Joy danced in his eyes as he stepped to the right, then clapped his hands.
He wore last year’s festival shirt, gray cotton shorts, and a pair of sneakers, super casual.
But he still looked good as hell. His hair was down, cascading down his shoulders and back.
When he caught me staring, he waved me over to him.
“Come on, Goldie,” he shouted with a grin.
“Yeah, come on, baby,” the lady next to him chimed in.
Adrienne pushed my shoulder, smirking. “Go on.”
I shot her a glare before begrudgingly walking toward him.
“Dance with us,” he said, taking my hand. He spun me around, then held my waist, “Follow my lead, okay?” I nodded, settling in his hold.
The DJ had just transitioned to Tamia’s “Can’t Get Enough,” and everyone around us got in formation, literally.
Nadir tapped my right thigh, urging me to step forward.
I did so, swaying my hip before stepping back into place.
He repeated the gesture on the left. His grip tightened, guiding me to the left while crossing one foot over the other.
“Now swing,” he said, impelling my body in the direction it needed to go. “Yeah, like that.” I glanced over my shoulder in time to catch his grin.
After a few times, I got into the swing of it, moving my arms and clapping with everyone.
“You’re doing so good.” Nadir’s mouth brushed against my ear. Butterflies flooded my stomach.
Throughout the dance, Nadir stayed close, gently placing his hand on my waist whenever we turned and saying praises in my ear for only me to hear.
By the end of the song, my heart was racing and my cheeks ached from smiling so hard.
I turned to face Nadir; the desire in his eyes felt like a heatwave.
He took a swig of his beer; eyes still on me.
Ah, this is what Adrienne meant…
“Nadir,” came from behind us and my smile fell. He moved the bottle from his mouth and smiled at Alexa. “I thought that was you. How you been, boo?”
My eyes narrowed when she gave me a cursory glance before leaning in to hug him. I took a step back from them so I wouldn’t look like I didn’t belong. My stance didn’t matter because I was the third wheel. Alexa made sure of it, remaining close to Nadir after their hug ended.
“What’s up, Lex? What you been up to?” His tone was pleasant, but there was a hint of flirtation that made my stomach turn.
“You know, the same ol’. I just moved to Columbia.”
“So you did close on the townhouse. Congrats.”
She beamed. “Thank you. I’m having a housewarming party. I’ll send you an invite once I’m settled.”
Nadir nodded with an easy smile. “I might come through.”
I fought so hard not to roll my eyes. She looked at me once more; I waved at her.
“Hey, girl.”
“Hello, Robyn.”
I laughed. “I’m going to catch up with Mel and Dri,” I said to Nadir. Running my hand down his arm, I held his gaze. He nodded slowly, wearing a smirk. Alexa rolled her eyes as I walked away. So I wasn’t imagining our tension when they were involved; she was jealous of me and Nadir’s friendship.
“You better hit me up. Last time I invited you out, you turned me down.”
“Stop holding that over my head. I apologized, didn't I?” Nadir’s playful tone was enough to subdue her.
“But you haven’t made up for it.”
Nadir laughed. “Go ’head, Lex.”
I glanced over my shoulder, happy to hear the conversation was ending. Alexa waved with a smirk as she backed away. When she turned around, I rolled my eyes again.
“I haven’t seen her in a minute,” he mused to Mel.
Mel leaned closer to Nadir so I couldn’t hear what he said.
I knew Mel used to mess around with her cousin, which was how Nadir and Alexa met in the first place.
Their fling lasted two months before ending.
When I asked what happened, he explained it as “some petty shit” that wasn’t worth talking about.
But I suspected it was because of an exchange me and Alexa had in the grocery store parking lot.
She stalked past me toward the entrance when I simply greeted her.
“Hey, girl.” I waved and smiled politely.
It was rare that we saw each other without Nadir around. The energy between us had always been weird. Clearly the girl wasn’t too fond of me, but I wanted to take the high road. Our eyes met, but her lips didn’t part.