by Nia Arthurs
“Thanks for coming,” he said. “Do you need me to help you inside?”
“No.” Ashanti swayed lightly and slapped her hand on his shoulder. “Come here.”
“Me?”
She nodded.
Luke bent over, curious to hear what Ashanti had to say. Instead of using her lips to speak, however, she planted them over his. His eyes burst open in shock.
Ashanti’s kissing me.
The thought barreled through his head a second before his eyes filtered shut and he kissed her back.
Chapter Twelve
Her breath mingled with his. Her lips pressed against his warm mouth. Her heart thudded, rocked, trembled. Pale fingers tangled in the thickness of her hair, binding around the width of her neck. She was drowning in the sweetness of his touch.
Ashanti’s eyes burst open. She registered the pillow currently attached to her mouth and rolled away, her heart still bursting with adrenaline.
Sunlight danced over the corners of her bedroom, sparkling against her open closet and dresser. She sat up and then flopped back into bed and tossed an arm over her eyes to calm the nausea produced by her sudden movement.
When she was certain she wouldn’t faint if she tried to get out of bed, she sat up slowly. Moved one leg over the edge. Followed by the other.
The room spun slightly and she held the wall for support as she headed to the bathroom.
Ashanti flicked on the light and froze in horror when she saw her reflection. Her face was puffy. She’d never been one to get bags beneath her eyes thanks to her grandmother’s wonderful genes, but now a dark shadow lingered there.
Her hair was wild, crazier than usual. Some clumps were arching toward the sky while others bunched together in sticky tangles.
She fingered a lock and brought her hand to her nose. “Why does it smell like soy sauce?”
Before she could answer her own question, another wave of pain slammed into her stomach. Probably ushered in by the scent of the sauce. Ashanti clamored to the toilet and heaved for what seemed like a year.
She felt better afterwards and padded to the kitchen for a glass of water. Her fingers closed over the refrigerator handle and pulled.
The mug of water waited inside, but Ashanti stood in the cold air and wondered why she couldn’t remember falling into bed or even leaving the bar. How did she get home last night?
The last thing she remembered was Luke warning her to stop drinking so much. Ashanti rubbed her temples and almost busted a vein trying to remember past that.
Nothing.
She pulled her hair, the move releasing another fragrant spray of soy sauce. “Stupid! Why would you drink so much?”
Ashanti prayed she hadn’t done anything too humiliating last night. Hopefully, Luke covered for her if she had.
“I’ll call and ask later,” Ashanti mumbled to her empty kitchen.
She headed to the shower and washed the soy sauce scent from her hair and body. The thought that she had done something embarrassing with the food floated through her mind, but she rejected it.
There would be time to freak out about her bad decisions when she called Luke tonight. Ashanti had a feeling he’d have a lot to say.
After applying product to her wash and go, Ashanti slipped into a pair of comfortable black slacks and a simple blouse. Her head was still thudding and she was not in the mood to dress up.
The clock warned that she had to hoof it if she’d make it to work in time. She splashed some perfume on just in case she still carried the fragrance of sauce and then sprinted to the living room.
“Keys, keys…” Ashanti glanced at the dresser where she usually kept them.
They weren’t there.
She lifted the picture frames showcasing her grandmother and father at her college graduation.
Nothing.
She pulled the dresser from the wall and searched behind it. Her fingers came back with a handful of dust, but no keys.
Ashanti brushed her fingers off and moaned. “I don’t have time for this.”
Wait… if her keys weren’t where she usually kept them did that mean she hadn’t driven home last night?
Ashanti moved to the window and drew the curtain back. Her eyes flickered to the empty driveway where she kept her car. The gravel path and her grandmother’s precious hibiscus bushes were all that met her eye.
Uh-oh.
With no time to spare, she grabbed her purse, locked the house and ran to the bus stop. The bus was already beginning to move off when she turned the curve. Ashanti waved her arms and shouted like a maniac.
The driver, mercifully, slowed down so she could catch a ride. She offered him a smile for his kindness and then ducked her head as all the passengers stared at her. Her feet shuffled along the narrow aisle until she found a seat at the back.
Ashanti plopped down and stared outside the window. Coconut trees stood straight up like soldiers guarding the boulevard. Thick traffic snaked its way over the bridge as people took their children to school or headed to work.
She tapped her forehead against the bus window. As the coolness of the glass pane seeped into her skin, she winced.
What did I do last night?
The thought swirled around like a never-ending carousel.
She wasn’t the type of person who got drunk.
Ashanti had stumbled into the house smelling of liquor once when she was eighteen. Her grandmother had grabbed her and whipped her so hard that she’d avoided alcohol for the next four years.
The bus slowed down to go over a speed bump. She squeezed her fingers and pushed the swell of vomit away with a swallow.
Gosh, being hangover was terrible. How did people go back to drinking after waking up to this?
Ashanti gritted her teeth and tried not to self-bash too much. It wasn’t so much the getting drunk as it was the blacking out that upset her. Anything, literally anything, could have happened last night and she wouldn’t know.
The mystery threatened to drive her crazy. Ashanti pulled out her phone to text Luke and ask for details when the bus stopped to accept more passengers and someone swooped into the seat beside her. She smiled at the young woman and slipped her phone back into her purse.
Ten minutes later, she waved at Byron and headed to the elevator inside the Madalon building. The lift was filled with workers from the other floors and she was squashed in the back for most of the ride.
It was a relief to elbow her way to the front and walk into her office.
All her co-workers were present today and she slipped her sunshades on before greeting them by name. Ruth sent her a funny look, but no one else seemed to question the glasses.
No one… except Tara.
“What are those for?” Her friend tugged on the shades. “We’re inside.”
Ashanti fought her back. “Leave them on.”
“Relax, Ash. There’s nothing you need to hide from me… whoa, you look like crap.”
“Thanks.” Ashanti snatched the glasses from Tara and ran a hand over her face.
Tara pointed. “Did someone bash you with an anchor? Is this a dry run for your Halloween costume? What?”
“I… drank a little too much last night.”
“You? Drank?”
“Yes.”
“Like… alcohol?”
Ashanti nodded.
“You don’t even drink rum popo at the office Christmas party.”
“Could you lower your voice?” Ashanti hissed. “I don’t want the entire office to hear.”
Tara leaned in. “Sorry. I’m just surprised. Did something happen?”
“Everything is fine,” Ashanti lied.
Tara called her out on it. “No one gets smashed in the middle of the work week over nothing. If it’s not something serious, then was it relationship-related? Was it Luke?” Tara observed her expression and nodded sharply. “It was.”
“It’s not what you think, okay. Luke and I are just friends. In fact, yesterday I set Luke up with
the woman he’s interested in.”
“So you drank because you were jealous?”
“No.” Ashanti sputtered. “Of course not.”
“Come on, Ashanti. You’re either being dishonest with me or with yourself. Give me a good reason why a girl like you would get drunk over nothing. Go ahead.” Tara jutted her chin. “I’ll wait.”
“Don’t you have something better to do?” Ashanti mumbled, swinging away and booting her laptop up.
“Nope.”
“Well, I’m busy. So…” Ashanti gestured to the door.
Tara wiggled her finger. “You can run from me, but you can’t run from your feelings.”
“Goodbye, Tara!”
Her co-worker ducked out of her cubicle. The minute she was gone, Ashanti’s hands paused over the keyboard and she frowned.
Did Tara have a point? She remembered feeling uncomfortable and out-of-sorts last night after bringing Michelle to the gathering. Luke’s invitation was for her alone and she’d worried he would be upset with her for bringing someone along without asking.
Maybe she’d even been hoping for it.
On the contrary, he went speechless when Michelle emerged from the car and immediately started acting like a besotted suitor. Luke was always courteous and kind, but he was extra with his crushes.
Ashanti chewed on her bottom lip. Were her romantic feelings manifesting? Was she acting out because she liked Luke? As more than a friend?
The thought upset her for many reasons, but mainly because Luke was serious about Michelle. He stood up to his parents so he could have her. That was not the mark of a man who would be swayed.
She slapped her cheeks. “Pull it together, Ashanti. You’ve got work to do.”
Her fingers flew over the keyboard for the next hour. At ten, the editor called them into the conference room for a meeting. When he released them for lunch, Ashanti headed back to her cubicle.
Tara slipped in once again, but her head was bowed and she wore a repentant expression. “Are you still angry with me?”
Ashanti shot her friend a look. “What do you think?”
“Don’t be mad.” Tara pushed out her bottom lip. “Are you hungry? Let’s head out. My treat.”
“I’d love to, but I have plans.”
Tara dropped her smile and narrowed her eyes. “See! You’re still angry.”
“I’m not,” Ashanti said with a laugh. “I have to pick my car up. I left it at the bar last night. That’s it.”
“You sure?”
Ashanti nodded.
“Alright.” Tara looked slightly less suspicious. “I’ll let you off the hook this once.”
Ashanti waved goodbye and then headed out to catch a taxi. She was on her way to the bar when she got a call from Luke.
She picked up immediately. “Hey, I was just thinking about you.”
“You were?”
“Yeah…” She drew the word out and then paused. “Are you okay? Your voice sounds scratchy.”
“I’m fine.”
Maybe that line would have worked with someone else, but Ashanti had known Luke for as long as she’d known herself. “Luke, what’s wrong? Did your parents try something else? Did Eddie change his mind about the store?”
“No.” He sighed. “Look, I have your car at the café. I wanted to drop it off after work, but I realized you might finish before me so… you can come and get it.”
“I’ll pass for it now.”
“Okay.”
“Thanks for—” The dial tone thundered in her ears. Ashanti pulled the phone away from her cheek and stared at it in shock. “Did he just hang up on me?”
The phone went blank.
Ashanti shook her head and bottled her irritation as she asked the cab driver to head to the café instead.
How dare Luke hang up on her? That was plain disrespect.
By the time his café rolled into view, she was seething.
Ashanti shoved her money at the driver and stormed out of the car, barely holding herself back from slamming the door. She crashed into the café and stalked straight toward Luke, ignoring the customers who spun to watch her entrance.
Luke glanced up. When he saw her, his face went pale.
Ashanti didn’t bother analyzing his strange reaction. She opened her mouth to tell him off when her gaze casually slipped to his lips.
They were pink, rounder at the bottom. Thin on the top.
She froze, her throat tightening until she could barely breathe. Her body trembled. Adrenaline pounded through her veins and throbbed in her stomach. A memory flashed in her mind.
She’d seen those lips before. Felt them against her mouth. Melted at their warmth.
She’d kissed Luke.
Just this morning.
In her very, steamy dream.
Chapter Thirteen
He’d kissed Ashanti. Well, technically, she kissed him first. But that wasn’t the point. She had a valid excuse, namely the alcohol running through her veins. If some other schmuck had taken her home, she would have smacked one on him too.
But Luke hadn’t been drunk last night.
He kissed Ashanti sober.
And that was bad. Very bad.
Ashanti seemed equally horrified. She stood stiffly, her shoulders rigid and hiked to just below her ears.
“Ash?” He poked her arm. “You alright?”
“What? Uh, yeah.”
“Sorry I hung up on you earlier. We had a customer and I couldn’t talk long.”
“No problem,” she said, staring at a point somewhere over his shoulder.
Luke wiped his sweaty palms on his apron. “You want coffee?”
“Sure.”
Grateful for an excuse to leave, Luke grabbed Ashanti’s mug and filled it to the rim. He took a couple calming breaths before turning around and serving her.
She sat in the chair all the way on the end, the farthest distance from him. Her head was ducked toward her phone and she didn’t lift it once, not even when he set her cup in front of her.
“Thank you,” Ashanti mumbled.
“Yeah.”
Luke trotted to the cash register and sat behind it. His shoulders hunched and his gaze fixed on the toe of his sneakers.
Last night, he got about four hours of sleep. He should have been worrying about his second ‘break up’ with Michelle and how he could get her back. Instead, he’d beaten himself up over that kiss.
What did it mean?
Did he have feelings for Ashanti?
Luke had always seen her as just a friend. His disinterest had nothing to do with her skin color. To Luke, Ashanti was beautiful, kind and smart. But he didn’t go there with her. Not even in his own mind.
Then… why did he kiss her back?
A customer raised a hand to get his attention, sparing him from having to answer the question. He jogged to the table and took their order, heading back to the counter.
Ashanti was on her feet. She avoided his eyes and released a handful of dollar coins on the counter.
He stared at the money, not making a move to pick it up. “What’s that?”
“For the coffee,” she said.
He tilted his head, stunned. “Why are you paying for it?”
She shrugged. “It just feels like I should. We should keep our personal life where it belongs rather than blur the lines and make things messy.”
“Okay…” Luke reached out and swiped the coins into his hand. It sounded like that was more than an explanation about the coffee. “Ash, if you’re not busy tonight, can we talk?”
“About what?”
“What happened last night.”
Her head whipped up and she looked him in the eyes for the first time since she barged into the store. “Did I do something embarrassing at the bar?”
How was he supposed to answer that? “Not at the bar. No. Not unless you count moisturizing your face with soy sauce.”
“I wondered why I reeked of that this morning.”
“And you didn’t wake me?”
“I tried. You were zoned out.”
Ashanti laughed at herself. “That’s why I don’t drink. Is that all? I didn’t insult any of your cousins or hurt Michelle?”
“No.”
“That’s a relief.” She drew out a breath. “Then I don’t have anything to worry about.”
“Not exactly. When I took you home—”
“What? Did I puke all over you?” She snorted. “I apologize for that, but it wouldn’t be the first time. Remember when I forced you to go on that rollercoaster after eating half a pizza?”
“No, Ashanti. That’s not it. Something else happened.” He waited a beat, staring pointedly at her and searching for recognition to spurt in her eyes.
It never came.
“What?” Ashanti glanced at her watch. “What happened that was so bad you need to come over and talk about it?”
Luke’s heart punched his ribs. He slipped his hands into his pockets, hesitating over the words. “We…”
“Yes?” Ashanti leaned in.
Luke gave up and snapped, “Why should I have to spell it out? Don’t you remember?”
“The last thing I remember is you telling me to stop drinking. After that, it’s a black hole.”
Luke glared at Ashanti, gauging her sincerity. She raised an eyebrow, her brown eyes devoid of humor or mischief. She was serious. She really didn’t remember kissing him. What should he do now?
“Forget it.”
“I’m sorry. I know you told me to slow down, but I…” She sighed. “It doesn’t matter now. How did things go with Michelle?”
“Fine,” he said.
“Great.” She smiled slightly. “If you need to come over tonight, you can. I’m not doing anything special.”
“Thanks.”
“See you later, Luke.” Ashanti turned and trotted out of the store.
Luke leaned against the counter and closed his eyes in exhaustion. Ashanti didn’t remember kissing him, which meant he could pretend it never happened. But what if she regained her memories someday and had questions. How shady would he look then?