13. Myheir #2
“You damn right I told her. I don’t keep secrets from mine for nobody. Not even your hardheaded ass,” my pops said, stepping back and walking over to my mom to wrap his arms around her.
She chuckled and nodded. “He did. But I will tell you this. You two should never take up a career in acting. You cannot go falling for everyone you pretend with. Those masks fell a long time ago. Now don’t mess it up. I love this one.”
I smiled and strolled over to kiss her cheek. “I got you, Ma. Hopefully she is ready for more.”
“It’s going to happen the way it should. Now go handle your business. I plan to see her in Tuscany too, so we can shop, and she told me she would bring me some of that oil.”
I shook my head and made a beeline for the front door. I never expected this trip to my parents’ place to end this way, but it was everything I needed.
30 minutes later…
I pulled in front of Khaleya’s building and sat still for a moment. Then I let myself out. I glanced around as I jogged up the steps, then knocked on the door. Moments later, her roommate opened the door with a smile.
“Da’ana?” I questioned.
She nodded. “That’s me, and I don’t need to ask who you are. You got here just in time.”
I lifted a brow as she pulled the door open wider to reveal Khaleya grabbing her keys. Her curly hair was tamed in a big bun on top of her head. She was dressed down in a pair of sweatpants and a T-shirt, with a bit of lip gloss on her lips. The moment she glanced up, her eyes widened.
“Big, what are you doing here?” she asked.
“I would think you would be expecting me. The way you’ve been leaving my messages on read.”
She rolled her eyes and grabbed her purse from the counter. Then she walked in my direction before looking over at Da’ana, who looked amused as hell.
“You need anything from the store?” she asked.
“Nope,” Da’ana sang.
Khaleya walked past me and into the corridor heading for the steps, so I followed close behind her.
“So, you plan to continue to ignore me?”
“No, but I still have to cook a dish to bring to dinner at my parents’ place. So if you want to talk, it looks like you’re going to the grocery store with me.”
I shook my head and followed behind her until she was heading in the direction of her car. I reached out and touched her shoulder.
“Nah, I’m driving. My car is over here.” I pointed in the direction of my car.
She shrugged and followed me over. “I didn’t think you drove.”
“Why?”
I walked over to the passenger door to open it for her and waited for her to slip inside.
“I’ve never seen you drive before. That’s why.”
I nodded and closed her door. Once I was in the driver’s seat, I looked over in her direction.
“Valid. Where to?”
“Kroger.”
I nodded and put on my seatbelt before pulling off. We drove in silence for five minutes before Khaleya dramatically turned in her seat to face me.
“Is this what you popped up at my place unannounced for?” she asked.
I peered over at her, then back at the road.
“What you mean?”
She waved her hand between us. “You’ve been silent for the last five minutes. I thought you had a speech or something for me. But no, you’re over there acting like we’ve been talking every day.”
I chuckled with a shake of my head. “I’m not acting like anything.
I can’t make you talk to me. I wasn’t the one who went silent, Doll.
I came over here because I figured this would give us the push we needed to get to the point of the silence.
I don’t know how else to tell you I want this for real. ”
She slammed her back into the seat and turned to face forward.
“It’s not that simple. That’s your problem.
You have every tool necessary to take risks in your life at the tip of your fingers.
I could lose so much, but yet I could gain everything if this worked.
I don’t believe money is the answer to my happiness.
I’m not silly enough to believe that. But it sure as hell could make things a little more comfortable. ”
I continued to drive, not interrupting her.
I wanted her, but I didn’t want her to feel like it was a loss to choose me.
Shit, that definitely did something to my ego to hear that.
But I also knew that wasn’t exactly what she’d said.
I was just so used to never hearing no. The fact that she was sitting next to me acting like, if we were together, I wouldn’t make sure she had everything she could ever want in life, made me want her more.
Khaleya was nothing like any other woman I’d met before. She wanted to build her empire on her own, which I could understand. I felt the same way with my business when my pops loaned me the starter money. I made it back and some to give him in return.
“I don’t want to confuse you. I want you, and I want to try this. I have fun with you, surprisingly.”
I glanced over at her with a lift of my brow, causing her to crack up laughing.
“Doll, I’ve been trying to ignore the offensive shit you been saying. Stop acting like you don’t know I’m him. Shit, I know you have a good time when you’re with me, because it’s the same for me when I’m with you. I don’t recall the last time I laughed this much with anyone.”
I reached across the armrest for her hand, which she gladly slipped into mine. I ran my thumb across her knuckles as I continued to drive, until we arrived at Kroger. I got the closest parking spot I could.
Once we made it inside, I grabbed the cart and followed behind her. I don’t remember the last time I’d been in a grocery store. I had a chef who cooked all my meals, because I didn’t have much time to sit around cooking a damn thing.
“Why do you look like a child who is visiting an amusement park for the first time?” she asked.
“Don’t do me like that. I can count on one hand how many times I’ve been in a grocery store. But what are you getting from here?” I asked.
Khaleya’s eyes were wide and mouth gaped open from my revelation, I was sure. We were standing in what appeared to be the pasta aisle, from the different noodle types beside me.
“Close your mouth, Doll. You gone have these damn people thinking something is wrong with you.”
“You aren’t just going to go past that like it’s not a big deal. Your mom doesn’t shop in grocery stores?” she asked.
“I’m sure she has. But I wasn’t with her, Doll, and I damn sure know it hasn’t been recent. You saw they have a chef,” I told her.
She nodded and then reached over to grab a couple of boxes of elbows. Then she turned to me with a mischievous smirk. I knew whatever came after that look, I would not like it.
“Stop looking at me like that. What?” I asked.
She smiled. “I figure since this is really your first time in a grocery store—”
“Doll, I never told you this was my first time. I said I could count on one hand how many times I’d been in one.”
She waved me off and continued. “Same difference. So I’m going to allow you to shop for the things I need. I’ll tell you an item, and you have to find it.”
I shrugged, because I’m sure it wouldn’t be that bad. They had damn signs in every aisle. All you had to do was look up, but I wasn’t going to tell her that.
“Alright, I need eggs next.”
I nodded and pushed the cart down the aisle, then hit a left towards the area that looked like an aisle full of refrigerators. Once we made it, I read each sign until I came across one that said dairy, eggs, and so on. I walked until I found rows of eggs, then looked over at her with a smirk.
“You like white or brown eggs, Doll? Oh, and how many?” I asked.
She rolled her eyes and stepped around me to grab a dozen brown eggs.
“Don’t get cocky. We just got started. You think I would give you something hard on the first one? I have to keep you interested.”
I chuckled. “You don’t have nothing to worry about, Doll. I’m very interested.”
I bit my lower lip and reached out to pinch her ass, causing her to yelp, then pop my hand.
“Keep your hands to yourself, Big. I haven’t said yes yet. I need to make sure you can shop if we ran into financial troubles.”
I kept my mouth closed, although it was on the tip of my tongue to tell her that wasn’t an option, even if I blew through every dime I had gained on my own. I had a healthy trust fund that I hadn’t touched since I came into my own.
“I hear you. What’s next?” I asked.
She gave me a few different items until we found everything we needed besides the damn mayonnaise. I was confident as hell when we walked into the fridge section. I don’t know why I thought it would be there. Probably because that’s where I saw the chef put it after he used it.
Khaleya cracked up the entire time and went to grab it from the condiments aisle while I checked us out. The drive back to her place took little time. I helped her bring everything inside, then she showed me how to make a macaroni salad.
“So, you gone keep me in suspense on what you want to do?” I asked.
Khaleya was washing her hands, then glanced over at me.
“No, but I have one more test. If you pass this one, I have no choice but to say yes.”
I crossed my arms and waited a moment for her to continue.
“Come meet my family tonight.”
I didn’t need to think long about it at all.
“I’m down. Let me go get changed, and I’ll be back to pick you up.”
Khaleya looked me over and nodded.
“Yeah, it’s bad enough I allowed you to wear those thot pants to the grocery store. You will not be in front of my people showing your—”
She waved her hand in front of my dick.
I chuckled and moved up behind her.
“I hear you loud and clear. This muthafucka not trying to entertain anyone but you.”
“Mmm-hmm, go get changed, lover boy.”
I nodded and leaned forward and kissed her cheek. Then I made my way to the front door.
“See you later, Da’ana,” I called out.
“See ya!” she responded.
I was getting that yes before the clock struck midnight.