A Heart Not Easily Broken
Page 41
Chapter 30
I waited patiently in the living room of Ebony’s house for her to come downstairs. As excited as I was to be with her again, I dreaded the conversation we needed to have. How did I approach it? What did I say?
I’d been musing over these thoughts for the past few days and still hadn’t come up with an answer.
She looked as beautiful as always in a brown dress, which complimented her complexion and eyes. We kissed when she reached the bottom of the stairs. But in the truck we rode in silence.
Ebony’s gaze focused out the window, taking in the scenery as we drove.
It was Sunday evening, and we were driving to my parents’ house for dinner. I was glad to be with her again. I’d canceled our plans for Friday night due to a last minute late-night recording session. It pissed me off when we waited for nearly three hours for the artist to show up. We worked well into the wee hours of the morning before quitting. On Saturday, I slept most of the day.
Now it was Sunday, and we both were on edge.
Over the last few days, I’d pushed what Javan said aside. Why should I believe him? Ebony couldn’t have made love to me the way she did if she wanted to be with another man. She couldn’t fake what I’d seen in her eyes or her whispered words.
I couldn’t ignore the changes, but I was sure it didn’t involve another man.
It couldn’t.
The only valuable advice Javan gave me regarded dealing with her family. The last conversation we had about family dealt with her sharing her brother and sister’s opinions about us. We still hadn’t talked about her parents. In the end, their influence would affect our future, good or bad.
Since we were on the way to visit my family, there was no time like the present to bring it up again.
I reached for her hand. It felt soft in mine.
“Can we talk?” I focused on her eyes as mine left the road.
The nervousness came back. Though she smiled with her lips, it hadn’t reached her eyes.
She squeezed my hand. “What’s on your mind?”
I turned back to the road. “Family. I’m glad you get along with mine. It means a lot to me.”
“You were right, Brian. They are wonderful people.”
“I wouldn’t have it any other way. That’s what I want to talk about. Have you talked to your parents yet?” I risked looking at her again. She seemed surprised. “When we started dating, you were adamant about their opinions. You told me how your brother and sister felt. What about them?”
She turned her attention back to the road. “My parents…they don’t know.”
I inhaled sharply, forcing myself to think before I spoke again. I glanced over at her profile. “You haven’t told them?”
“No.” Her attention stayed on the road.
“Why? If your siblings know, why keep them in the dark? Are you ashamed of me?”
“No, Brian, why would I be ashamed of you?” This time she did look at me. “I’m not ready to hear their opinion, that’s all. I don’t have parents as understanding as yours.”
I clamped my jaw shut to keep from shouting the thoughts in my mind. I didn’t care whether they accepted me or not, I just wanted her to acknowledge our relationship to her family, the same way I’d told mine.
“Would your parents be opinionated about someone you’re in love with?”
“I don’t know. And honestly, I don’t want to know. I like the way things are between us. It’s you and me. I don’t care what my family thinks. The only reason Tre and Shana know is because she talked it out of me.”
I faced her when we reached a red light. “You mean you wouldn’t have told them?” Something in the pit of my stomach dropped.
“I honestly don’t know. What I do know is when asked, I didn’t hold back. I’m not ashamed of you or this relationship. I would rather not invite unnecessary issues into it.” She faced me. “I’m sure you don’t understand my reasoning. Do I plan to tell them? Yes, in my own time, when they’ll be more understanding. Telling them I’m dating a white man when every time I talk to them they’re telling me about an available black man …it’s not how I want to tell them about you. I don’t want them to think I’m with you because of what they say. When they meet you, they need to have fresh eyes. I want them to accept you and appreciate how happy you’ve made me. I don’t want them biased.”
The light turned green, and I pushed on the gas. She had a valid argument.
“What if that day never comes? Do you think they’d stop pushing guys at you if you let them know you were in a relationship?”
“I don’t know.” A flicker of uncertainty passed over her face.
I pulled her hand to my mouth and kissed it. “Don’t wait for our wedding day to tell them, okay?”
“I’d never do that. I want my father to walk me down the aisle and give me to you with his full approval.”
“I do, too. But this is about us, not them. You’re the one I want to marry.”
She glanced over at me, a slight smile on her face. “You still want to marry me?”
“Always,” I said with as much conviction as I could muster.
Our fingers intertwined. She hadn’t answered all of my questions, but it would be enough for now. Everything from now on would be about actions. Ebony was with me because it’s what she wanted. Drudging up anything else would be asking for trouble.
“I’ve never been more serious about a woman in my life.” The words popped out of my mouth. “I want to make you happy.”
Ebony unstrapped her seatbelt and leaned across the middle console.
“What are you─”
She planted a big kiss on my mouth and slid back onto her side of the car. “You have no idea how happy you make me.”
This time, I could see she meant what she said. It was in her eyes. The knot in my stomach unraveled.
“I’m glad there was no oncoming traffic.” I licked the flavored lip gloss left behind.
“I checked first.” Our fingers locked together again.
Our conversation had only scratched the surface, but it would be enough to keep our relationship moving toward our goal. For now.