Chapter 8
I had a dilemma.
I loved The Godfather trilogy. I had a reason to call, or text, Ezekiel Monday evening, yet I found myself hesitating.
War flashbacks from my time with Corey came to mind, and I was ready to pull the plug. But then, the memory of laughing, of enjoying myself with Ezekiel, and being carefree came to me and I loosened up.
On a whim, I decided to send him a simple text letting him know I enjoyed the movies.
Me
Watched the first Godfather and oh. My. God.
Ezekiel
Shit is fire ain’t it? Keep going
Me
Already watched Part II and III as well
Ezekiel
We getting a Coppola?
Me
Scorsese is as clingy as they come, but it’s tempting
For a second, three ellipses bubbled over on his side of the convo, until they stopped completely. In another minute, my screen lit up with the sound and image of him calling me directly.
My stomach filled with uncertainty and anxiety as my hand shook and my grasp on my phone wasn’t the strongest. Why did I feel like a teenager about to finally stay up talking to her crush? It was ridiculous how nervous I suddenly felt at the idea of talking on the phone with him.
I took a deep breath and let it out before accepting the call and sinking back into my sofa. “Hey.”
“Hi,” he said, a slight chuckle in his voice. “Nice of you to finally be up to speed.”
I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, yeah.”
“So you watched them all back-to-back?”
Clearly I had no life, because in total, I’d spent two days dedicated to the nine-hour saga. With no regrets. “Yeah, I was off and had the time. Everything kind of just pulls you in.”
“Based on the reputation, definitely,” Ezekiel agreed. “What you gettin’ into tonight?”
“Honestly? I’m still recovering from all that.”
He hummed into my ear. The sound of him, his voice and the musical noise he just let out, had me still. Ezekiel had a nice voice. Deep, sexy, and just for me it felt like in that moment.
“We should link up,” he suggested, taking me by surprise.
“Tonight?” It was going on six, and the explosive echo of fireworks outside had me wanting to stay right where I was. When I was a kid, seeing fireworks was kind of cool. Now, the racket annoyed me, making me loathe the Fourth of July and all of July really.
“We don’t gotta do it tonight. You stay in Belmont, right?”
“Yeah.”
“Cool, what you doing Wednesday?”
“Working.”
“All day?”
Paisley and I usually worked eleven-hour shifts. On a slow night, we’d close early if needed. “Kind of. Paisley and I own this store and we’re the only two employees.”
“So you can cut early if you wanted,” Ezekiel reasoned.
“Yeah, I guess.”
“Good, come catch the sun with me.”
Pausing, I nibbled on my lip, unsure how to proceed with the conversation. I’d be ignorant to assume texting him and answering his call wouldn’t have led to this proposition. Reaching out only invited it.
Still, I was hesitant.
“I… I don’t know,” I admitted. I was sure he wasn’t a mass murderer, but still.
“What if we’re just two strangers meeting up to talk about your overdue love for classic cinema?” Ezekiel suggested.
Somehow, he forged a smile out of me. “Just two people hanging out?”
“Yeah, I promise I’ll make it worth it.”
“You and all these promises.”
“Have I broken one yet?”
There he went again, making me smile.
“Hey, Nas?” he pushed on.
“Yeah?”
“If I say you’re going to like it, you will.”
The adamancy and firmness in the tone of his voice made something below my belly button jolt.
“With a guarantee like that, how can I say no?” I teased.
“I’m glad you see things my way. What’s a good time for you to link?”
Wednesdays weren’t usually busy for us fortunately. Paisley wouldn’t mind if I left early. “Let’s say five?”
“Perfect. Do me a favor and text me your address.”
We weren’t meeting. He was picking me up or coming over.
I took a minute to weigh the pros and the cons. What did I have to lose? Everything. What was there to gain? Possibly some good, one-time D. Alannah’s advice popped into my head and I figured why the hell not? Lack of human contact wasn’t good for the psyche anyway.
“Okay,” I said in the end. “But, on second thought, let’s say five-thirty, or better yet, six.”
“Got you,” Ezekiel responded. “All right, now that we’ve got a plan, I’ll let you go and enjoy the rest of your night. Just don’t forget.”
“I won’t.”
“Good night, Nastasia.” He said my name in a way that made me squirm, and let me know he was smiling.
“ ’Bye, Ezekiel.” I hung up and texted him my address before I could change my mind, rolling the dice and running the risk. I felt silly for the way I was biting my lip. The way I was both nervous and excited. The way I felt alive, drumming with energy.
Corey was an asshole, but I couldn’t count out all men and hold myself hostage any longer. I deserved to live my life.
Maybe Ezekiel was worth it.
He was respectful, protective, a cat lover, and he cared enough to worry about my age—responsible. All that paired with his good looks had me curious.
In the end, I crossed my fingers and hoped I’d rolled a seven.
By Wednesday afternoon my second thoughts were eating me alive. I couldn’t concentrate through the workday, barely able to pay attention to whatever it was Paisley was saying, focusing more on the time than anything.
It wasn’t a date, but what would I wear? How would I style my hair? What were we even doing?
“Okay,” Paisley suddenly said loudly. “What’s up?”
“Huh?” I came out of my thoughts. Paisley was looming over me as I stood at the checkout counter, watching me for who knows how long.
Paisley gestured to me. “I’ve been talking to you all day and you act like you’re not listening, Nas.”
I hadn’t told her about my plans, stalling from the whole confrontation. Now time had run out.
A customer came up to the counter to check out. In her freckled arms, she was carrying two striped maxi dresses. I grabbed the gun and scanned the barcodes on the tags as I began ringing her up, using this interaction to buy time.
Could I wear a maxi dress later? He hadn’t explicitly stated his intentions or plans, so I was in the dark on what was appropriate to wear.
Paisley pasted her hand to her hip after I handed the woman her receipt and she walked off, heading toward the exit. “Well?”
Finally, I faced my best friend, ready to hear it. “Ezekiel and I are hanging out later, so I need to cut early today. I was thinking five.”
Paisley took a moment to compose herself as her thin eyebrows shot toward her hairline and her glossed mouth fell open. She held up a hand and angled her head, and then she paused, appearing thoughtful. “Hanging out? At y’all’s big ages? Girl, if you set up a dick appointment just say that.”
Was I beating around the bush? Ezekiel was grown.
I was grown. Hanging out did sound childish.
Maybe it was time to just implicate our Three Strike policy, where a man had to hit three strikes to get it.
It was something Paisley came up with for when she was being courted by a guy, something that was a failsafe that saw her through every time she swore.
“Okay, either way, I’m leaving. Is that okay with you?” I made sure to ask.
“I can handle the last three hours,” Paisley said as she waved me off. “I’ll just be on standby expecting all the details on what happened.”
I made her a deal and as the clock struck five, I gathered my bag and clocked out for the day. I rushed home, taking a quick shower before ransacking my wardrobe for the perfect look. In the end, I found three options and laid them out on my bed before snapping a pic and sending it to Pay.
Paisley
It’s hot af outside. Nay on the jeans
Paisley
Unless it IS a dick appointment, nah on the dress. Don’t tempt yourself
Paisley
I’m here for the romper, cause LEGGGGGS!
Me
I got some rose gold metallic heels that’ll make this shit pop
Paisley
Fuck it up, sis!
My pale pink romper it was. Summer was here and the Georgian heat did not come to play. The spaghetti-stringed outfit provided plenty of skin, from the cleavage to my legs. Paisley and I’d just gotten our toes done so everything was set.
I thought about pulling my hair back into a bun, but decided at the last minute just as my doorbell rang that loose and big was the look of the day.
Scorsese ran by me up the steps as I came down them, as he often did when he sensed a stranger coming over.
In the mirror by the front door, I did a last minute primp session: smoothing out my eyebrows, adjusting my cleavage, angling my body to see if my ass looked cute in the peek-a-boo slit the romper offered. This wasn’t a date, but that didn’t mean a girl couldn’t be on her shit.
After taking a deep breath, I let it out and pulled the front door open.
Ezekiel stood on my front porch, his eyes instantly zeroing in on me as a big grin spread across his handsome face. “Hey.”
I took a step back, leaving room for him to enter. “Hey.”
Ezekiel didn’t budge. “So, you ready to go?”
We weren’t staying in. A small sense of worry left my shoulders as the vagueness of this being sexual or not went out the window.
I grabbed my purse from my front table and looped it over my shoulder. “Yeah.”
Ezekiel stepped to the side. “After you.”
In my double driveway, a nice, huge, black Escalade with tinted windows was parked beside my car.
Of course he drove something lavish.
Ezekiel came up beside me, taking my hand and escorting me over to the truck. “Excuse the size. I would’ve taken my Acura, but for what I had planned, I needed the room.”
He had planned something for us. Just the idea of him putting in effort had him in my good graces. Strike one.
With his hand on the small of my back, he went and opened my door for me and helped me inside.
The truck held a new car smell, which mixed with whatever cologne Ezekiel wore. In the large space of the Escalade, I was consumed with the scent of him swirling around, intoxicating me.
He came and got in behind the wheel, pushing the Start button before settling back and buckling in as I did the same.