Chapter 21
She ghosted me again.
When I woke up Sunday morning, the other side of my bed was empty.
Running my hand along the sheets where she had laid, I found them to be cold.
As I sat up, I discovered the dress shirt Nastasia had worn to bed had been discarded on the floor.
Her dress was gone, as were her heels and bra.
Only the remains of her panties were left.
Damn.
I had no idea what was going through her mind to make her run.
Because that was exactly what she had done.
It was Sunday, beyond the fact that her shop was closed for her vacation, she didn’t work Sundays.
She had nowhere she needed to be. There wasn’t even a note or text to explain her disappearance.
As confused and as frustrated as I was, I decided not to stress it. I wasn’t spending the day trying to contact her again.
I got dressed and headed to the gym instead, needing to work this off. When the time came, I’d deal with this issue.
My phone rang throughout my car as I approached Phat Fitness. My touchscreen told me it was Pops, and it all came crashing back to me. I’d called Cease after my shower last night and told him I wasn’t coming in. Things felt too good with Nas to leave. I didn’t want to leave. And that wasn’t okay.
I pulled into the parking lot and sighed. What I wasn’t going to do, was run from my father.
“Hey, Pops.” I sat and answered the phone.
“You all right?” He was worried, probably thinking I was sick or something.
“Yeah.”
“Talk to me.”
Of course Pops was going to be patient, which made me feel worse.
“I’m not trying to fu—mess this up.” Even though I was doing exactly that.
“Look, you work every weekend. You have for the last seven years. I get it, it’s a big sacrifice.
I’m willing to meet you halfway, Eazy. If you want days off to be with your girlfriend, let me know.
Cesar talked to me about next weekend and it’s nothing to work that out.
But if this is some random woman you’re just screwing around with, I can’t have that. ”
I ran my hand down my face. I had to do better, but Nastasia wasn’t a “random” woman. “Chill, she got a name.”
“Okay, and what’s the word? Is there something you want to tell me?” Pops pushed on.
I spent my morning with Paisley and she set me up on this date… He’s nice…
Her words rang in my ears and I tried to ignore the sting in my chest.
“It won’t happen again,” I said.
“And Nastasia…?” Pops asked.
She wasn’t there when I woke up. “Unless it’s an emergency, I won’t be missing work again, Pops.”
Pops sighed. “You know, it sounds like Cesar got him a good woman.”
I glanced out the window, watching other people come and go from Phat Fitness. It was a little after eight a.m., so there was a good chance the facility wasn’t crowded. “Yeah, Leslie cool.”
“I want that for you. When you’re ready, and if you want to take time to be with your lady, let me know. In the meantime, we can’t have these absences. Am I clear?”
He was a father first, but business was still business. “Yes, sir.”
“All right, I’ll check with you later. I love you,” he said as he got ready to hang up.
“I love you, too,” I told him as I disconnected.
All I needed was a session in the gym, so I got out of my ride and put everything else on the backburner.
BLVCKJVCK opened at ten p.m. on the dot and a large crowd of people infiltrated the building. Nastasia hadn’t called or texted me all day, and I hadn’t attempted to get ahold of her either. I had a job to do, and I couldn’t keep fucking it up over this woman.
Still, that didn’t stop Cesar from questioning me.
After meandering throughout the building, checking each suite and feeling the crowd to make sure things were level, we settled up in the Spade Suite.
Of all the suites, the Spade Suite was my favorite.
When I needed a moment away to think and simply chill, the Spade Suite never let me down.
It was Sunday, one of those nights where the suite was blossoming with people.
Babyface was playing and a lot of the grown patrons who came to this area of BLVCKJVCK were feeling the music.
The vibe was calm and serene, you’d hardly know there was a massive party going on below us.
Cesar and I managed to grab a spot by the railing that oversaw the front of the building and the street down below.
It had been a hot day out earlier, ninety degrees of unrelenting sun, but now that night had fallen, it had cooled into the seventies.
It was the last night of July, and after a very successful month, I was ready to relax for the night.
“So, tell me, what happened?” Cesar wanted to know as he sat across from me.
When I’d opened the doors tonight, he’d looked at me with a knowing smirk and hadn’t said anything. Now, he was all ears.
And there was so much to tell. “She had a date last night. Apparently Paisley set her up.”
Cesar whistled. “Wow.”
I lifted my glass of water to my lips and saw red above the rim at the thought. “I shut that shit down though.”
“Word?”
“After ignoring me all day, she finally picked up on the date and I told her to come over.”
Cesar cracked a grin. “Of course, Eaze got pull like that.”
It wasn’t a bragging right. She shouldn’t have gone on that date to begin with. “The rest of the night was history.”
“Uh-uh, give me more than that. How was it?” Cesar pressed.
There was no denying something had happened. I wouldn’t have called off otherwise.
I scratched at my head, not wanting to explain it all. “She workin’ with somethin’ mean.”
Cesar wasn’t satisfied. “Mean, huh?”
It had been an illustrious swim. Something worth experiencing again in the morning. Had she been there. “Yeah.”
Cesar read me, narrowing his eyes. “So why the cold energy?”
“When I woke up, she was gone,” I came out and said as I glanced his way. “No note, no text, and it’s been like that all day.”
“Maybe she didn’t like it?” Cesar taunted me, grinning as he scooped up his water and took a swig.
Not likely.
I was confident enough to believe women didn’t fake it with me. Besides, most times, when women faked it, they were extra with it, moaning and screaming—just theatrical and shit. Nonsense copied straight out of a porno.
Nas… You couldn’t have faked that.
When she told me she was on a date everything went blank and I couldn’t shake the anger I felt.
I called her bluff and told her to come over, and then she did.
Seeing her all dressed up, in a tight dress, heels, and sporting my hickey, did something to me.
I didn’t want to talk. I didn’t want to hear her explanation.
Fantasizing about having Nastasia and actually having Nastasia didn’t compare.
Not even a little. Touching her, feeling her soft skin, hearing her strangled moans as she called my name, and seeing her beautiful face twist in agony was torture.
I was mad at her, but one taste of her lips—both sets—ceased all that had transpired before she walked into my condo.
I didn’t question if she liked it. Moaning and screaming were one thing, but crying was another. She’d thrown her head back, speechless as tears pooled in her eyes and fell. When she came, it poured. Even with my lifejacket, I drowned in her sea.
Watching her come was an art form. All of her shook, her eyes glued closed, her breasts jiggled as she quivered, and she breathed out a sated breath.
I was turned on just thinking about it.
You couldn’t fake that.
Shaking my head, I got back to Cease. “She wasn’t faking.”
“Okay, walk me through it, after the sex, what happened?”
“I took a shower, called you, and then I made us some food.” I could still vividly remember turning around and seeing her standing there in just my shirt. Seeing her bashful, trying to hide her shame. I loved seeing her blush. It never got old.
“You cooked for her?” Cesar studied me, shocked. “What?”
“Just some stir fry,” I said.
“Sheesh.” He sank back in his chair and peered off, looking thoughtful. “Oh well, right? I mean, it was a one and done anyway, right? Looks like she made it easier for you to walk away. You said she went out on a date.”
My grip on my glass hardened and I had to set it down. “Don’t get me started on that.”
“Oh, you ain’t like that, huh?” Cesar asked, going and steepling his fingers together.
I cut him a look. “No. I didn’t.”
“Why not? What’s wrong with her going out last night?”
“I wouldn’t have done that to her,” I said, the aggravation growing more at the thought.
“Why?” Cesar questioned curiously. The look on his face made me narrow my eyes. He was poking the bear.
“I don’t know.”
“But going out on dates was okay per your little agreement from the beginning. You were allowed to do you, and she could still see other people. Correct?”
He was right, but I still didn’t like that shit. “I know what we said.” Given the irony in where we were, I gestured around us. “I mean, let’s call a spade a fucking spade, I’ve been pretty devoted to her. I don’t know why I feel as betrayed as I do about last night, but I do.”
“But the sex was good, right?” he continued.
An image of her moaning crossed my mind and I sighed. “Incredible.”
“You get any head?”
“Nah.”
Cesar winced. “That’s a must.”
Usually, it was, but I’d been too caught up in the moment. The thought of watching Nastasia take me into her mouth set my blood on fire. That was a part of her whole appeal. Wanting to see the good girl’s bad side. To see her do things just for me.
I scratched at my jaw. “Yeah, well, I was distracted.”
“But the sex was incredible?”
His tone of voice and his repeated probing were eating at me. I cut my eyes over to him, letting him know he was working my nerves. “Yes.”
“Hmm, you won’t go into detail,” Cesar mused.
“Wanna tell me what you and Leslie did last night?” I shot back.
“No.” Cesar regarded me. “Because I love Leslie.”
Fuck him, because he knew what he was doing.