13. Lawton
Lawton
The walk through the hotel lobby to the elevator felt like it took hours. The air surrounding Talitha and I was thick. I don’t know what the fuck was going on in that head of hers but the way she jumped me back in the limo made me want to do something so explicit to her.
Luckily, the driver had enough sense to roll the partition up because my mind wasn’t processing shit fast enough. It was merely hours ago when the two of us had a disagreement and now I was fighting the urge to bend her ass over.
When the doors of the elevator closed, I pushed the button for our desired floor and stood with my back against the elevator wall.
Talitha was standing in front of me with her back to my front rocking on the balls of her feet.
Pieces of her hair had somehow made their way out of their fixed state.
The red lipstick she wore was now smeared on the collar of my shirt.
Locking eyes with the screen, I counted every single floor we passed until the elevator chimed, signaling that we had reached our final destination. Bringing my hand to the back her neck, I gripped it and directed her off the elevator.
Outside of our hotel room door she stood with her arms folded across her chest while waiting on me to unlock the door. Deciding to fuck with her, I pushed her forward causing her to drop her arms and grab the wall. Stepping closer, I used my knee to lodge her legs apart.
“I could fuck you right here and no one would ever know,” I hissed in her ear. “Is that what you want?”
“Harvey,” she panted.
Leaning down, I reached to grab the bottom of her dress, dragging it up, stopping right at her waist leaving her ass exposed. The black thong she wore had a butterfly that rested right above the crack of her ass. “You want me to fuck you, Talitha?”
“Harvey,” she uttered again.
“Tell me what you want Talitha.”
“I want…” She gulped a few times before recovering, “I want you to let me go.” She finally gritted, giving me the answer that I knew was coming. Talitha wasn’t ready for what I had to offer. She pushed the envelope just a little only to retreat when she realized it was too much for her to handle.
“Your wish is my command.” Kissing her on the ear, I let go of her dress and opened the door. Before she could stomp away from me, I tugged her arm and spun her around. “Breakfast will be delivered at seven. Get some rest, we have a busy day tomorrow.”
Rolling her eyes, she snatched away and this time I let her. The memory of her tiny hands wrapped around my dick had me hardening in my slacks. Had I followed through with my original plan and fucked Mia before leaving Atlanta I probably wouldn’t have been as bothered.
But I was, and instead of giving in to that burning desire, I decided to retreat to my bedroom. I would stroke myself into oblivion before I forced her across a line, she wasn’t ready for.
* * *
Breakfast was a blur. Talitha and I sat across from each other and didn’t utter a single fucking word to one another. I was in my head just as much as she was.
I almost expected for her ass to dip on me in the middle of the night but was pleasantly surprised when I strolled out of my room and found her sitting at the table drinking from a coffee mug.
I wanted to ask her what was on her mind but refused knowing all she would do was act like the shit never happened. When the driver picked us up, our first stop was the 9/11 Memorial and Museum.
Talitha sat on the concrete and reminisced about the day the world went up in a frenzy. She cried and prayed for each victim and their family. I stood by and let her do her thing without interruptions and when she was ready to go our next stop was the Rockefeller center.
It didn’t take long for her to realize it wasn’t anything spectacular.
I tried to tell her they overhype shit in movies for dramatic effects but she just had to see it for herself.
She wanted to take a stroll around Central Park, and I would’ve obliged until I decided to take her to my favorite part of New York City.
Using her mouth for the first time today, Talitha turned to me. “This is the infamous Grand Central Station?” she asked, standing in the center of the room staring up at the clock.
“The one and only.”
“I guess they don’t overexaggerate everything,” she retorted.
“They do,” I chuckled. “But this… This is a monument that can’t be duplicated.”
“It’s a metro station, Harvey. Nothing is spectacular about that.”
“Says the woman standing there with stars in her eyes. Had I known you would’ve reacted this way, we would have come here first. This is the most conversation I’ve gotten out of you all day.”
“That’s your fault.”
“How is that?” I stroked my chin and stepped beside her. “What did I do to deserve silence?”
“You were rude, rough, and arrogant last night.”
“Was I?” I queried. “Or was I taken aback and confused? Could it have been that I knew you would regret your actions as soon as the sun rose.”
“You tormented me. You chastised me like I was a child. I’m a grown woman, Lawton Harvey. One who is capable of those things you know.”
Cupping my ear, I asked, “Capable of what?”
“Forget it!” she huffed and walked off.
“Talitha,” I rasped, causing her to stop in place. “I don’t read minds.”
“Funny you say that,” she mocked. “It’s the same thing I’ve been saying to you.”
“You wanted to fuck and instead of saying that… you shied away like a child?”
Narrowing her eyes, Talitha pointed her finger in my face and hissed. “I fisted you in the back of a limousine with a stranger sitting inches away from us. If that wasn’t me showing you what I wanted, then I don’t know what the fuck you expected from me.”
“I expected you to use your words. You couldn’t possibly think I wanted the night to end that way, especially after you jumped me in the car. I asked you repeatedly what you wanted.”
“No, you didn’t ask, Law. You ostracized me which did nothing but make me retreat. Clearly, we were on two different pages last night. It happened… I’m over it, and don’t worry… it won’t happen again.”
“If that was me ostracizing you, then baby… you aren’t ready. That was me asking for your fucking consent.” Realizing that my voice had raised unintentionally, I looked around the packed station to make sure the passer byers hadn’t heard the argument the two of us were having.
Slanting her eyes, Talitha flipped me off and spat, “I’m not a child.”
“You sure are acting like one,” I called to her back as she stubbornly strutted away. Tugging on my ear, I turned and followed behind her like a lost puppy. Fucking woman was going to drive me insane.
* * *
After our showdown in the middle of central station, Talitha was back to not speaking to me. I asked her if she wanted to finish exploring the city and instead of answering me, she instructed the driver to take us back to the hotel.
When Poppa called a few hours ago and invited us to The Modern for dinner, she smiled and readily agreed. My ass wanted to decline because of my sour mood but I refused to ruin our last night here.
Sitting here next to her while she laughed and joked with Poppa had me regretting even agreeing to this bullshit. I don’t know if she was intentionally trying to piss me off but she was tap dancing on a fine line.
“You mean to tell me you’ve lived in Georgia your whole life and never been to a Demon’s game.”
“I haven’t.” Talitha shook her head. “I’m not big on sports.”
“That don’t mean shit! You ain’t gotta be big on sports to enjoy a game.”
“I guess that means you should invite me to one,” she flirted.
The way I cut my eyes at Poppa had his ass laughing. He knew not to fucking play with me. That’s why instead of agreeing, his ass said, “Law is a club owner. Make that nigga bring you out for a game.”
“Club?” she asked and peered over at me. “What kind of club do you own?”
I guess I’m not invisible after all. “Not that kind of club. I own a box at the stadium. Instead of sitting in the stands with everyone else, I can enjoy the game from my own private suite.”
“Oh,” she hummed. “I guess that’s another one of those rich people things.” Her eyelashes fluttered. “Poppa are you a club owner?”
“I am,” he confirmed. “But my suite doesn’t hold as many people as his does. I’m small time compared to him.”
“Yeah, I bet,” she surmised. “I forgot he has unlimited funds.” The way that shit rolled off her tongue, I knew she wanted a reaction and got damn it I tried not to give her one.
Dropping my hand from the table, I reached under the tablecloth, gripped her exposed thigh, and leaned over. “I don’t lose Talitha. Make sure you keep that in mind the next time you try and goad me.”
Talitha cleared her throat, stood, and excused herself from the table. My eyes remained fixed on her until she was out of view.
“She’s something spectacular, that one.” Poppa nodded toward Talitha.
“That she is, Pop.”
Smirking, Poppa shook his head and challenged, “I thought it was nothing.”
“It’s not. Talitha is playing a dangerous game and on the verge of losing.”
“What did you do?” he implied.
“What the fuck makes you think I did anything?”
“Come on, Dutch. I know you like the back of my hand. Last night she stared at you with admiration in her eyes. We’ve been at this table for over an hour and the two of you have shared what… maybe three words. She refuses to look at you and when she does, it’s not a pleasant one.”
“Like I said, I ain’t did shit.”
“She’s not Dahlia, and she for damn sure ain’t Adele. If you don’t watch yourself with that one Dutch, you gon’ find yourself in a world of fucking trouble.”
“And you gathered that from what? A few conversations with her.”
“Ain’t shit a conversation can tell me that your eyes ain’t already said. You want her. She’s different. She won’t submit, she’s stubborn, and she’s going to push you to the edge every time. She’s a challenge and yo’ ass ain’t used to that.”
“I hear ya’ talking Pop,” I dismissed him with a wave.
“You know what I think Dutch?”
“Nawl, I don’t… but go on and let me hear it.”