Chapter 6
COCOA BUTTER SKIN
For someone who said I would not actually celebrate this year, here I am.
In the kitchen, making hot cocoa. Homemade, I might add.
I do not know what Sutton has against packaged products.
I do not mind watching her move around the kitchen like she owns it.
I took a risk going into the shower. It was worth it.
There is more I want to know about her. A lot more.
“So what are you doing after the holidays?” I ask again, leaning against the counter.
I know she is probably annoyed, but I want to know.
I actually want to see if I could join. Whatever this is feels stronger than anything I had with Keke.
It is crazy it took a few hours to realize that.
Turns out I was more hurt in my ego than in my love for Keke.
“You have a lot of questions.” She places two cups on the counter and pours the hot cocoa into each. The steam curls between us.
“Yeah. A lot of them unanswered.” I lean in as she slides one of the cups toward me.
She licks her spoon after scooping a swirl of whipped cream onto her drink. My eyes follow the movement.
“Are you going to answer?” I ask.
“Maybe. What do I get out of giving you this information?” She raises her eyebrows at me.
“Well.” I step closer. Freshly showered, she smells warm and sweet, something like vanilla. “What do you want?”
She makes a thinking face, her eyes flicking between my mouth and my eyes.
“Well, I want…”
I cut her off gently. “Before you answer. Be honest.”
“Who said I was not going to be?”
“I am just saying you have been skipping around what you really want.”
“Oh really? And what is that, Heaven? Since you can read my mind. What do I want?”
I step even closer. Close enough that her breath brushes my chin. I take the cup from her hands and place it on the counter behind her. Then I press her back gently against the counter.
Her breath hitches.
“Open your mouth,” I say softly.
She hesitates, just for a second. Then her lips part.
I grab the whipped cream, hold her chin lightly with my free hand, and spray a sweet swirl right onto her tongue. She gasps, eyes wide, and something inside me tightens at the sight.
“Good girl,” I whisper.
Her cheeks flush. Her tongue sweeps across her bottom lip, catching the last bit of cream.
“That was good,” she teases softly. “I think you should have a taste.”
She takes the can from my hand. “Open up, baby.”
I smirk before opening my mouth. She gives me a light swirl, barely enough to taste. Before I can speak, she leans in, eyes already on mine.
I meet her halfway.
Our lips touch, warm and hungry. She melts into me, her hands sliding up my arms, her fingertip pressure sending heat across my skin. Her mouth tastes like sugar and something bright and soft that pulls me closer without trying.
I deepen the kiss. She sighs quietly against my lips, her fingers curling into my shirt. I grip her waist and pull her closer, feeling the warmth of her body press into mine.
Then my phone rings.
I ignore it.
Sutton kisses me harder, and I give in completely. I lift her onto the counter, her thick thighs wrapping around my hips without hesitation. My hands slide up her legs, her body warm under my touch, her breath catching against my mouth.
The heat sparks between us, deep and impossible to ignore.
I ease her back against the marble, her lighter brown skin glowing under the pendant lights. Her red hair spills across the counter, her legs opening for me without hesitation, without doubt, pure invitation.
I lean in, letting my lips brush her jaw, her cheek, the corner of her mouth.
“Tell me if you want me to stop,” I whisper.
Her hand curls at the back of my neck, pulling me closer.
“I will not,” she breathes.
And that is all the permission I need.
I shove two fingers inside her dripping pussy. She is so soaked, her walls fluttering around me like they are begging for more. The broken little “Heavennnn” that falls from her lips goes straight to my pussy.
I curl my fingers hard, stroking that spot that makes her entire body jerk. My free hand slides up her breast, my thumb tracing her nipple.
“Heavennnn,” she screams out. “I am about to come.”
“Come then, baby,” I rasp against her mouth. “You can do it. Let me see that pussy drip again.”
She does. Violently. Her pussy clamps down so tight I cannot move, just hold still while she pulses and gushes over my fingers in hot, endless waves.
When she finally sags, trembling, I pull out slow, bring my dripping hand to my mouth, and lick every finger clean while those pretty hazel eyes watch me through strands of red, pupils blown wide.
The phone rings again.
I pull back with a frustrated sigh and rest my forehead against hers. I do not want to stop. Not when she feels this good against me. Not when her lips are still a little swollen, her mouth still shiny from the whipped cream and my kiss.
I grab my phone from the counter and glance at the screen. My brother’s picture pops up along with several missed texts. Of course.
I swipe to answer.
“Hello,” I say, maybe a little too firmly.
“Hello? Why do you sound mad?” Ezra asks.
“I was busy.” I look at Sutton, who is pretending not to be interested while sipping her hot cocoa. I put the phone on speaker so she knows I am not talking to another woman. Not that she would care. I just want it clear.
“Doing what…”
“Hi, Heaven,” Iris calls out from the background. Thank God, because my brother is too nosey.
“Hi, sis. How are you?”
“I am good, girl. Your brother is annoying per usual. How are you?”
“I am fine…”
“Wait, the electricity is off?” Ezra cuts in, reading the texts I sent earlier. “What about the Christmas lights?”
I roll my eyes so hard Sutton laughs under her breath. This man and Ms. Joan Evergreen are the same person. I bet they are the only ones on the planet who care that much about the neighborhood contest.
“Man, give it a rest.”
“No, I will not. I refuse to lose against…”
“Ezra, watch it,” Iris snaps.
“I was only going to say…” He sighs dramatically. “I love you.” I hear him kiss her.
I make a gagging sound. Sutton does not hold back her laugh this time. She laughs so hard she almost slides off the counter, shaking her head at me.
“Wait, who is that?” Ezra asks.
“None of your business.”
“Is that the house sitter? Or did she leave since you decided to come home and do nothing for Christmas? Hi, Sutton. Greta told us… actually she did not tell us much except that you were a great fit for the job,” Iris says.
I press the FaceTime button and wait for it to connect. I set the phone on the counter so his nosey behind can see for himself. Ezra answers instantly.
A much older male version of me fills the screen. Ezra and I are five years apart. He is as much a father to me as he is a brother. Same dark skin. Same big brown eyes. No dimples, but the same face.
I do not know much about our parents. We went into foster care when I was two. Since we were a package deal, and I would not stop crying unless I was near Ezra, it kept us from being placed with a family for a long time. You would never guess we were raised in foster care now.
Ezra is extremely successful. And somehow, despite being broke as hell back then, he still managed to marry the daughter of one of the richest men in the world.
Iris is cool. I liked her the moment Ezra brought her home. Down to earth, surprisingly, considering her upbringing.
After six years together, I still believe Iris is way out of my brother’s league.
“Aww, there she is. Our little angel,” Ezra says in his annoying baby voice.
Embarrassment creeps up my neck. I glance at Sutton, who is adding more marshmallows to her cup, not paying attention.
I wonder if she is thinking about what would have happened if I did not answer this phone call. I plan to find out the moment I get them off this phone. I am not done with her. Not even close.
“Truly fuck off. Now behave and meet the girl you hired,” I say, laughing.
I turn the camera to Sutton, who waves at them. Her whole face lights up. “It is nice to meet y’all finally. Thank you for trusting me with your home. It is beautiful.”
“No, thank you, Sutton,” Iris says.
Sutton’s smile brightens, and for a second my mind goes right back to what we were doing moments earlier. I need to see her face with a different reaction. “I am going to cum” type of reaction.
When I look back at the phone, Iris and Sutton are in a full conversation while I stand here playing phone stand.
“You are extremely beautiful. I love your hair. I always wanted to dye mine. What color did you use? I need to tell my hairstylist to dye it just like that,” Iris says, snapping her fingers.
“You want to do what?” Ezra jerks toward her so fast I hear the movement.
“Well, I think you could definitely rock this color,” Sutton says kindly. “I can tell…”
“No girl. Text me. I do not trust these two with important information.”
I roll my eyes and hand Sutton my phone so they can chat more.
Keke never liked talking to my brother and Iris. She would call them boujee, spending too much of their money while she was doing the same thing with mine. I really was blinded by love.
Watching Sutton talk to my family so easily does something to me. Something warm and unwelcome.
My iPad rings in the living room. Walking up to it, I see it is a FaceTime call from Ezra.
“It took you long enough,” Ezra says when I answer.
“Why did you leave Iris alone? You know she talks too much.” I laugh despite myself.
“Yeah. Iris does not know how to stop talking. Anyways, what happened between you and Keke?”
I should have known he would ask. I hoped he would be too busy with the lights to notice. But of course he noticed. He always notices. I am not celebrating my engagement. My brother knew about the engagement. Hell, he helped me plan it perfectly.
I walk into the bedroom and close the door. I explain the whole day. From me opening my eyes, to the power going out, to the breakup, to Sutton knocking me out on accident, to me kissing Sutton in the kitchen like I had lost my whole mind.
“She knocked you out? Talk about ‘Honey, I am home’.” He laughs for a full five minutes.
“Thank God I did not have to go to the doctor. But yeah. That happened. Less than twelve hours and I am already single. Man, I cannot believe I am single.”
“Good. Because I could not stand her. Now I owe Iris a trip to Bali. I thought it would at least make it past the engagement.”
I deadpan at my screen, staring him in the eye. “What? Why did you not say anything?”
“Would you have listened? Maybe you do have a thick skull. Probably why your ass was not sent to the hospital.”
“I would have…”
“You were in love. Your first love. What could I have said that would change that?” he cuts me off.
“You are my brother. You could have told me she was not the one for me.”
“Just like I said, you would not have listened. Heaven, you are an ass. But you have a good heart. You can call me Mr. Goody Two Shoes, but I am not naive. I am kind, but that does not mean I do everything right. Yes, I could have told you. But that would have stopped you from experiencing what you needed to. You were in a dark place before Keke. And in some weird way, she gave you happiness. I was happy for that, but I still kept my eye out.”
He pauses.
“I noticed how Keke always made you pay for everything. She never lifted a hand to help. Iris is still mad she sat down in the living room during Thanksgiving, did not help with a damn thing, had the biggest plate, and complained the whole time.”
My chest tightens. Was I really that blind?
“She was more like a bad roommate with an even worse credit score. Like, come on. She did not even want you to move into the apartment you paid for. Red flag times two million. A messy situationship that turned into a relationship way too fast,” he continues.
I think about what my brother said. He is not entirely wrong.
Keke and I were vibing, and that somehow turned into something serious.
Well, serious for me. I think back to when she said I changed or got too busy.
I never grew up with money, so I never wanted the people I love to struggle.
So I stayed at work a little longer. I bought things to make up for my absence.
I chased the money, but that does not excuse her cheating on me.
Communication is big for me. Something we both lacked.
I think about when I threw money at Sutton to leave so I could have the whole house to myself.
“Yeah… you are right,” I say quietly.
“Try not to beat yourself up. It is the holidays. Make the most of it. Watch Charlie Brown, drink some eggnog, or cozy up to someone new.”
“I am stuck in the house.”
“Exactly. You have a house with a little electricity, a full kitchen, a TV, and an extremely beautiful girl there with you.” He raises his eyebrows.
“Sutton?”
“Yes, Sutton. Do you like her?”
“She is cool. We have something going, I think.”
I am definitely not telling my brother that my mouth was about to be somewhere it should not have been moments before he called.
“Okay, good. I was about to say. Keke cheated on you. Cheated. It is all free game. If you are vibing with Sutton, then go for it. In a couple days, you will be on your biggest project yet. I am so proud of you, by the way.”
The mention of my project with Heph Inc. at the beginning of next year brightens my mood. I cannot believe my business is going international, helping clients in the UK. I am so excited. When I got the email last weekend, I did not hesitate to accept.
“Thank you for always believing in me,” I say to my brother.
“Always. Now have fun. Celebrate Christmas. Whatever you do is none of my business.”
“Well, thank you for the advice, support, and permission to fuck your house sitter.”
He bursts out laughing. “You are welcome. Now, do you mind getting off my phone so I can fuck my wife?”
He gives me a serious look.
We stay on the phone for a moment before saying our goodbyes. He is right. I have to make the most of the rest of this holiday, even if it looks nothing like the one I planned.