Chapter 2 #3
Her pretty white French-tip toes touched the wet marble floors first, and she shivered from the cold air rushing in, slapping against both of our bodies. Then she closed the door, sealing us in together.
My eyes traveled up slowly—deliberately. From her delicate toes, to her thick thighs, to her bald pussy, to her soft stomach with that little pooch I loved, to her pebbled nipples, to her face.
Her hair was pulled up in a curly bun, but there were a few loose strands around the perimeter of her head. The steam from the water caused them to get damp and drop, clinging to her skin.
Her chest was heaving up and down rapidly, and I knew immediately—she was nervous.
"Whatchu' doin'?" I asked, screwing up my face in mock confusion.
"In the shower with you. What does it look like I'm doing?" She tried to sound confident, but I heard the slight tremor in her voice.
"Yeah, I know that, smart ass." I reached out and thumped her gently across the forehead with my middle finger. "You ain't got to be in here."
She simmered down, her tough exterior cracking. "But I want to be."
Those four words—I want to be—hit different.
Ignoring her for a moment, I turned my head back around and dipped it under the water, allowing it to cascade down my body and back. The hot water felt like needles prickling at my skin, but I wouldn't dare add coolness to it, even if Synthia mentioned it.
Then I felt it.
A towel gliding across my back, followed by thick liquid—body wash. It took a millisecond for me to realize what was happening.
Synthia was washing my back.
My eyes shot open, but I didn't turn around. I stood there, frozen, feeling her small hands work over my skin. One hand held the towel, scrubbing gently. The other kneaded my shoulders, my back, squeezing the knots away.
"You ain't got to do this." Irritation seeped from my tone, but it wasn't directed at her. It was directed at myself—at the fact that I didn't know how to accept this type of tenderness. "I ain't forcing you to do this shit."
"I know what I do and don't have to do," she said softly. "You don't have to tell me that. But I want to do this. Just relax and take a deep breath."
A low sigh escaped from my mouth as her hands continued their work. I couldn't help but release groans of satisfaction because it felt so fucking good. But this type of treatment was a stranger to me. I felt vulnerable—exposed in a way that had nothing to do with being naked.
She was washing my sins away. My stress. My anger. My pain.
It was therapeutic. A kind gesture I didn't deserve but desperately needed.
"You have to know that you deserve this type of stuff too, Romelo," her soft voice said, knocking me out of my thoughts.
"Not from no hard body like you," I chuckled a little, trying to deflect. "You don't fuck wit' me, Synthia. You're just forced to put up with my bullshit because I'm forcing you to."
She didn't say anything, but the deep sigh of exasperation that escaped from her lips proved that I was right.
Or maybe I wasn't.
"I don't want to fall in love with my cousin's boyfriend," she finally said, her voice breaking.
"We can't be who we are behind these walls, and being stuck here, I've learned to accept that.
You've put me in an awkward position, and that's why I can't stand the sight of you on days when I'm moody.
You have this magnetic force that lures me in, and you treat me so right, but Romelo. .. this is wrong."
I turned around then, the water still pouring down on us, and looked down at her. Her gaze bored into mine, and our eyes played ping-pong—searching, questioning, pleading.
"You're in too deep to be regretting this shit now," I said firmly. "There ain't no turnin' back, Juicy. You act like I'm married to her ass or sum'. There ain't shit keeping me bound to her. I'm done suffering with her, and I'm done trying to convince you of that too."
"How can you be so confident in this working out between us?" Her voice became pitched, desperate. "Seems like you treat women like a pair of jeans."
That stung, but I didn't let it show.
"Because I been a confident ass nigga all my life," I said, stepping closer until there was no space between us.
"I never gave a fuck about shit, Synthia, and I wouldn't do that to you.
I know your worth, and I value it way more than you do.
I wouldn't treat you like that after all it took to get you.
That's like choosing Tiffany Haddish over Beyoncé.
" I snorted, and she let out a small laugh despite herself.
"It don't work like that, and that ain't how shit's supposed to be.
Please tell me this is my last time addressing this shit to yo hardheaded ass. "
"I can't make any promises because as long as Trecee lingers in the shadows—"
"Fuck her," I muttered, annoyance flooding my tone. "Everything I've ever wanted is right here in front of me. It's you, Juicy. I swear to God, on my mama, it was always you, baby."
Reaching down, I pulled her body into mine and grabbed a handful of ass. Soap suds were between our toes, slippery and warm, but the more the water sprinkled down my back, the bubbles washed away. I got some on my hands, so it transferred to her ass too—slick and perfect.
Her hardened nipples poked my abs, and I felt my dick grow hard instantly.
Surprisingly, she reached down and gripped it, her small hand wrapping around my shaft. She began to stroke me—slow, tentative, testing.
Glancing up at me, she gave me a sinister grin, followed by a low giggle.
"You sure you know what you doin' with that?" I asked, my voice thick.
Tilting her head, she countered, "Would you stop me if I said no?"
I tittered and shook my head. "Are you willing to learn?"
"What are you willing to teach me?"
"One of the things I want to teach you, you said you don't do. I can't rob you of that or criticize you for doing something you don't do. I'm grown." I shrugged. "I can respect it."
Biting her lower lip, she seemed to be carefully weighing her next words. I peeped her hesitation immediately.
"You know I ain't forcing you to do shit," I added.
"You're not forcing me, Romelo. I know how to say no. I'm grown," she muttered, her hand still stroking my dick.
"Go 'head and show out then."