A Love Like This (Book 1)

by Lane, Kimberly

  Sarah and Steve are lying on the floor surrounded by plates of food. They look dazed and they’ve taken to laughing at arbitrary moments. “My cheap brother just pulled out his credit card to pay for something other than internet porn. Nickie must have a magical yoni,” Sarah says reaching over to kiss Steve.

  There’s moaning and laughing coming from every corner of the house.

  “The Peterson girls have lost their minds,” Pookie says.

  “Yep and my brother’s going to put a baby in your sister.”

  “Knock her up Riley,” Steve yells.

  “I have to get out of here. Tell Nickie our flight leaves at six and I’ll be back to pick her up at four.”

  “Six four got it,” Sarah says straddling Steve and reaching down to twirl his dreadlocks between her fingers.

  _______

  DJ bursts into his parent’s room early Sunday morning. “Momma wake up,” He says shaking the bed. “Noah shitted on his self and the whole house stink.”

  Keisha lifts her head from the pillow and looks at the boy, “I told you about your mouth,” She says groggily. Douglas Jamal Junior is ten years old with sandy brown hair and high yellow skin just like his fathers. Keisha can’t believe how fast her oldest boy is growing up. It seems like just yesterday she was bringing him home from the hospital.

  “Where’s your daddy?” She asks sitting up in bed.

  “He watchin the game,” DJ says. ”I know that nigga smell it.”

  Keisha slaps him on the back of the head as she walks past. “Don’t say that word,” She demands.

  She ambles across the hardwood floor into the living room where Doug is sitting on the couch balancing a beer on his knee watching ESPN. He looks over at Keisha standing in the door way with her hair wrapped in a pink head scarf and her arms crossed over her chest.

  “Ay Key,” He says than averts his attention back to the TV.

  “Doug can’t you smell this baby?” She asks scooping Noah up from the play pin where he sits surrounded by toys. Noah squeals laughing and swats at the loose end of Keisha’s head scarf.

  “No I thought you were cooking something,” Doug says his eyes never leaving the television.

  She kisses the baby and places him on Doug’s lap, “very funny change him,” she says than walks away to check on the other kids. She picks up toys as she walks down the hall. She reaches the end of the hall and hears a ruckus in the twin’s room. She pushes the door open and sees the girls pretending to be a ballet dancer and choreographer. Heaven is wearing a pink and purple tutu and Trinity is wearing all black. Trinity is yelling out instructions to Heaven.

  “Now spin around,” she says making circular motions with her little hand. “Faster, if you want to be a famous dancer you have to work.”

  “Heaven do you like this game?” Keisha interrupts.

  Heaven stops spinning and looks over at her mother, “No Momma,” she says panting; her caramel colored face is streaked with tears. “Trinity watched So You Think You Can Dance last night and she’s been making me dance all morning,” Heaven says with a little hiccup. Keisha puts the toys down and picks Heaven up. They are fraternal twins. Trinity is petite and fragile looking but she has her mother’s temper. At nine she is the biggest diva Keisha has ever known. Heaven is tall, sturdy and the sweetest gentlest child of all the five kids. Keisha feels like she has to protector her from her other rough necks.

  “Look I’m just trying to get us a trip to Hollywood,” Trinity says with her tiny fists defiantly balled on her hips.

  “Leave your sister alone Trinity. If you want to get to Hollywood, you practice dancing and just so you know Hollywood is only about thirty minutes from here.”

  “I can’t work under these conditions,” Trinity says throwing her hands in the air. “When I’m in charge of everything you will all be banished,” She waves her hand around the room and stomps out.

  Keisha puts Heaven down then kneels down to talk to her. “Don’t let your sister bully you. If you don’t like something you have to stand up for yourself.”

  “Ok mommy I will,” Heaven says wiping her tears with the back of her hand. Keisha kisses the girl on the nose then heads back towards the living room. Little Xavier, DJ and Noah are all on the couch watching the game with Doug.

  “It’s Sunday Doug,” Keisha says.

  “Yep,” Doug replies.

  “Well do you want to go or not?”

  “Go where?” He asks annoyed.

  “Doug I’ve been telling you all week that I got a baby sitter so that we can go to Tabitha’s party.” Tabitha has been Keisha’s best friend since high school.

  “Key I work hard all week. Your daddy is a slave driver at that construction site. I just want to watch the game and relax. Who has a party on Sunday anyway?”

  Keisha shakes her head and wonders when they became so complacent. When they first got married they would party all night but now she’s lucky if he stays awake long enough to kiss her at midnight on New Year’s Eve. He’s a decent man. He pays the bills, he’s faithful and sex has never been an issue. In fact most mornings she sneaks out of bed before he wakes up for a morning romp. On the surface their relationship appears perfect but he doesn’t see her anymore. He looks at her the same way if she’s wearing a new dress or a bathrobe. “Fine I’ll go alone,” She says hoping for a reaction, a protest anything at all.

  “Ok, have a good time and bring me back some of them ribs if she has em.” He says with his eyes still glued to the TV. Keisha stomps off to her bedroom and sits on the edge of her bed. She looks over at her reflection in the full length mirror near her bathroom door. She takes the head scarf off and her long black hair falls down around her face. She swipes the hair away from her eyes and walks over to the mirror to take a closer look at herself. Having five kids has a way of taking a toll on your body. She lifts her night gown and runs her fingers across the trail of stretch marks on her stomach. She pokes at the bulge of skin on her lower abdomen fondly remembering the days when her stomach was as flat as a board.

  Her cell phone buzzes on the night stand near her bed. She hopes it isn’t someone trying to get her to open the shop on a Sunday. Some women act like a loose weave track is a medical emergency. She’s relieved when she sees that the caller ID says Jermaine.

  “Hi uncle,” she says dryly.

  “What’s up Key? Why do you sound so down?”

  “No reason, just having a little pity party.”

  “How was your trip? Are you guys driving back right now?”

  “Nickie and I are taking a flight home tonight. She whipped it on some little white boy and he bought us tickets just to keep her around longer.”

  “What? Nickie cheated on Damian.”

  “Nickie went buck wild this weekend. We need to meet for coffee as soon as I get home. You will never believe what happened.”

  “Leila sent me pictures of Nickie dancing on the bar.”

  “Yeah things got pretty crazy.”

  “I also got a picture of Leila in a chapel with some white dude. What the hell did you guys do this weekend?”

  “I’m going to have to explain everything to you when we get home.”

  “Wait a minute, was that picture real?”

  Pookie pauses then exhales, “I wasn’t there but yeah it’s real.”

  “What the fuck!” Keisha shouts and plops down on her bed. “You let Leila get married? Daddy is going to kill you!” DJ, Doug and Trinity come rushing into the room.

  “What happened?” They all ask at once.

  “Your auntie Leila---“

  “Stop!” Pookie yells into the phone. “You need to talk to Leila before you start telling people and for the record I didn’t let her do anything. She’s a grown ass woman.”

  “That’s not how daddy’s going to see it.”

  “Yeah
I know,” Pookie says. In Xavier’s eyes his baby girl can do no wrong.

  Doug and the kids are staring at Keisha expectantly. “What did Auntie Leila do?” Trinity asks with her little arms folded.

  “Let me call you back Pookie,” Keisha says and disconnects the call. “Everything’s fine you guys,” She says to the kids as she gently shoves them out of the room and closes the door behind them. When only she and Doug remains she says, “You will never believe what your sister-in-law did.”

  _______

  The room is nearly completely dark but I can see the silhouette of Tucker’s naked body beside me. He’s lying flat on his stomach with his bulky arm around my waist restricting my movement. He’s so handsome even with disheveled hair and the tiny drop of spittle on the corner of his mouth. But I’m having a hard time coming to terms with the fact that I’m married to a man I just met four months ago. I’ve never met his parents, I’m not sure if he has brothers and sisters, I don’t even know if he’s a democrat or republican. All I know is that he makes me feel special and the thought of being away from him makes me sad. I maneuver away from his grasp, find my purse near the bed and feel my way to the bathroom in the dark. I flip on the lights look in the mirror and nearly scream at the sight of my scary Medusa hair. The flat ironed look was cute for a while but I look like I stuck my finger in a light socket. I fish around my purse for the comb and brush and gather the disorderly mane into a neat ponytail. I find my cell phone and put it on the charger before getting into the shower. After the shower I towel off and power the phone on. I have tons of messages and voicemails all from Keisha, Nickie and Pookie.

  Nickie writes, “What the hell are you two doing in there? It sounds like you’re performing an exorcism.”

  Pookie writes, “We’re leaving a little later today. Come out and say goodbye if you can pull yourself out of that room long enough. I mean really, we can hear you.”

  Keisha’s message is disturbing, “I know what you did and I’m going to tell!” I knew Pookie would tell Keisha. No one in this family can keep a secret. Thank goodness her next message says, “Just kidding, call me back.”

  I type out, ‘everything is fine will call soon. Please don’t tell mom and dad’ in a text message. I send the message to all three of them at once then hang up my towel and make my way back to the bed completely naked. I’ve gotten pretty bold in the last few hours. However, the first time I saw Tucker naked I wondered how in the hell something that big was going to fit into my body. It was pretty tight at first but it turns out my lady parts are extremely accommodating. I climb back into bed with Tucker and snuggle under his arm.

  “Baby, I need rest you’re trying to kill me,” He says. I’ve awaken him about every three hours since he first walked into the bedroom. I guess hearing Tucker say he loves me aroused my inner whore.

  “Rest later,” I say nibbling his ear. He rolls over and pulls me close to his side. I stroke his firm chest then let my fingers sink into the ripples of muscles on his stomach. I sit up and straddle his chest then bend down to kiss him. “Wake up Tuck,” I whisper in his ear.

  He stretches and yawns loudly. “You smell good,” he says placing both hands on my hips and pulling me forward until I’m hovering over his face. His hands move over my torso and up to my breasts as his tongue thrusts inside me then flicks against my clit. He rolls me onto my back and continues to explore with his tongue for what seems like forever until my body begins to spasm uncontrollably. Before I have a chance to catch my breath Tucker plunges himself deep inside me. I hold on tight rolling my hips underneath him matching his rhythm. Tucker drives into me deeper and faster until my body begins to shudder even stronger than before. I hold him tight while the wave rushes over my body taking my breath away. A few minutes later he tenses, releases and collapses in a heap.

  “I need food and water,” he says panting for a few minutes before he falls asleep right on top of me which would be great if he wasn’t so damn big. I manage to burrow my way from underneath his limp body. I climb out of bed and switch on a desk light. I pick up a shirt that’s draped on a chair and put it on before walking out of the room. I feel alongside the hallway wall and find a light switch. When the path’s lighted I toddle slowly towards the kitchen. “This house is too big for one person,” I think out loud. I turn on more lights in the kitchen. There’s food left out on the counter and quite a few plates in the sink. I switch on a big light in the living room and Sarah pops up from under a sleeping bag. I scream and clutch my chest. “I thought everyone left,” I say panting.

  “Yeah everyone except me,” she says stretching. “Riley took Steve home before Nickie and Pookie left for the airport.” Sarah sits up and gathers the plates and sleeping bags from the floor.

  “Looks like you had a little picnic. Wait a minute why did they go the airport?”

  “Riley wanted to bone your sister a few more times before she left for LA so he bought them plane tickets.”

  I shake my head, “I guess having a gay boyfriend’s left her a little sexually deprived.”

  “You are to talk,” Sarah says placing dishes in the sink.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I was not deprived,” I say turning away to hide my embarrassment.

  “Well Mrs. Bradley what are you going to do with your new fortune?”

  “What new fortune,” I ask as I rummage around in the refrigerator for food. I haven’t eaten since yesterday but there’s no real food in the fridge so I settle for a glass of juice.

  “For a smart girl you are incredibly naive.”

  “Are you going to tell me what you’re talking about?”

  “Your new husband’s loaded,” she says taking a bite of an old sandwich

  “Well you all grew up in Marin I thought everyone who lives there is rich.”

  “My dad is just a lawyer. Mike’s dad works for NASA. They make a pretty good living but Tucker’s family is loaded. He made me promise not to tell you but since you went and married him I guess you should know.”

  “Why didn’t he want me to know he has a lot of money? Did he think I was a gold digger?”

  “No just the opposite. He said you were the only girl who wasn’t interested in money or status. He thought that telling you would somehow make you look at him differently.”

  “That’s stupid.”

  “Stupid or not, California is a community property state. You didn’t sign a prenuptial agreement so you my friend are officially a very rich woman.”

  “I’m sure this will all sink in later and I’ll probably be mad at both of you for not being honest with me. But I had my first real orgasm today. My first four real orgasms as a matter of fact so life is good. I’m going to order food. Are you hungry?”

  “Yeah I’m starved. I saw a bunch of takeout menus in the kitchen drawer. What do you want to have?” Sarah says.

  “Bring them all out and we’ll look through them,” I say refilling my glass of juice. I tidy up the kitchen and pour a glass for Tucker.

  “Look at you being all domesticated,” Sarah says.

  “Whatever, I’ll be right back,” I say smiling all the way down the hall. I walk back to the bedroom and push the door open. Tucker is stretched across the bed in the same position I left him. I sit down next to him and rub his back.

  “Just give me five minutes,” he mumbles into his pillow.

  “I brought you juice.” He slowly sits up and takes the glass emptying it in seconds. I stand up and start picking up the clothes and underwear from the floor.

  “What are you doing?” Tucker asks in a hoarse voice.

  “Cleaning, this place is a mess.”

  “You don’t have to clean. I have a house keeper who comes three times a week.”

  “So you don’t pick up your underwear from the floor?” Tucker just stares at me blankly. I continue to pick up clothes then shove th
em all in a wicker basket in the bathroom. “I’m ordering food. I was going to cook but there’s nothing in your refrigerator except for sandwiches and sports drinks.”

  “That’s because the chef stops by Monday mornings and makes my meals for the week.” Now it’s my turn to stare blankly.

  “You have a personal chef?”

  “Someone’s always been around to do things for me,” he says looking a little ashamed.

  “Yeah Sarah just told me you’re loaded. It’s fine to have people working for you but what if the stock market crashes and you lose everything? You have to know how to take care of yourself.”

  “I don’t think you realize how much money I actually have.”

  I look down at the floor. “Our lives are so different,” I say feeling anxious about how quickly our relationship is moving. “I’ve worked since I was fourteen.”

  “Come here,” he says sitting up pulling me onto his lap and wrapping me in his arms. “You can work if it makes you happy but you will never have to work again.”

  I rest my head on his shoulder, “I guess most women wait their whole live to hear those words but I’ve spent my whole life planning my career. I have to work.”

  “I knew you’d say that,” he says kissing me.

  We sit quietly for a long time. “So we’re really going to do this?”

  “Really do what?”

  I exhale loudly and shake my head. “I know getting married was my idea so I’m giving you an out.”

  “It sounds like you’re trying to give yourself and out.”

  I lift my head and look into his eyes. “I’m twenty-six years old, 6’4 and 230 pounds. You’re a very strong woman but you didn’t make me do anything. I married you because I wanted to. Now stop trying to rationalize this. Your mine now, I’m not letting you go.”

  I bite my bottom lip, “The cave man thing makes me hot,” I say rubbing his firm chiseled body and kissing his neck trying to get started on orgasm number five. He catches my hand.

  “If we make love one more time tonight it’s going to fall off.”

  I laugh, “Ok I’ll go order food but later we’ll have to go grocery shopping.”