by N'Tyse
“That’s cool,” I replied, letting her cuss, yell, and bitch all the way to her place. I pulled up in front of her building and she spat some threats about having some niggahs jump me. As soon as she slammed the door, I hit the gas. I hopped on the Dan Ryan and headed downtown to Madison’s hotel.
• • •
“So what now, Mom?” Amber asked.
“I don’t know, baby. We can hang in Chicago for a few more days. You know my sisters will never let me live it down if you came to Chicago and didn’t see them. Then I head back to Arizona and take it one day at a time,” I said.
“Sounds like a plan. And for the record, I refuse to go by Aunt Greta’s. Last time I went by, I swear I couldn’t get into the front door, Momma. Your sister is a hoarder and you need to call the people on her,” she joked. We erupted in laughter.
“I know, but since your grandma died, that’s what comforts her,” I said. We continued to laugh. “So do you wanna hit the lobby bar or call it a night?”
“I’d love to, but I told Sean I’d Skype him and model the lingerie I bought today when we were out. So I’m going to head to my room,” she said, getting up.
“Okay, but that was TMI,” I joked. I realized my baby was now a grown woman and that she did grown-up things with her man like I used to do with mine. I gave her a tight hug and I closed the door behind her. I hit the stereo remote and turned on some music and started to turn out the lights. I decided to soak in a hot bubble bath to relax and cry because I blew it. As I headed to the master suite, the bell chimed. I wondered what Amber forgot.
“What’d you forget? I know your room has a—,” I was saying. It was Jerome. I was so surprised to see him I just stood there and stared at him. I couldn’t speak so he stepped in, grabbed my face and kissed me passionately. “I’m sorry . . . I’m so sorry for what I did to you,” I cried when he put his face in my neck and held me tight. “I love you. I never stopped loving you,” I said. He pushed the door shut with his foot.
He stared at me and his eyes had a thick gloss. They said all he wanted to say to me. I caressed my skin and then he slid his hands under my dress and grabbed my ass firmly with one hand and then pushed my dress off my shoulder with the other. He pushed the other side down, exposing my bra. He put his face against my chest and moved it from side to side on my skin. He then pushed his face inside of my bra to expose my erect nipples. He devoured them and I could hear him sniffling. My eyes welled and a tear fell. He looked up at me and I could see how emotional he was. He finally let a tear fall. I reached and wiped his face. He grabbed my hand and kissed it, then held me. “Baby, take off your coat,” I said. He obliged. I adjusted my clothes and we stood there admiring one another. I wanted him to say something, but I figured it was just too hard. “Jerome let’s sit,” I offered. He joined me on the couch.
“I’m scared,” he finally said.
“What are you afraid of?”
“Giving my heart back to you,” he confessed. I swallowed hard. He had every right to be afraid.
“I know, and if that’s something you decide not to do again, I won’t be angry with you. I’ll understand,” I said honestly.
“Then what do I do, Madison? Say goodbye to you now or give my heart back to you? If you can’t promise me that you will keep my heart safe—say that…tell me the truth and I’ll leave and move on with my life. I’m tired of loving you, Madison. I’m tired of feeling like I feel about you for you to simply show up out of the blue and set me back. I feel like you are deliberately trying to mess with my head. What did you even come back for, Madison?”
“You,” I revealed as a tear fell. “I was wrong and I was selfish. I tried to convince myself that I was doing it for you, Jerome, but the honest to God truth is, I was doing it for me. I was afraid that I’d grow older and eventually you’d leave me for someone younger. The last night I was here, I overheard that chick Sage in the bathroom calling me old and saying things about you treating me like charity. I got scared and I took the coward route, Jerome, and I’m sorry. If you don’t want to forgive me or give us another chance, I will have to live with your decision, but I hope that you would give me another chance to show you how much I love you. You can trust me with your heart again, baby. I am now begging you to stay with me. I was wrong to walk out on you like that and I am willing to move here or whatever you want. It’s your call. I’ll do whatever you want; just please take me back,” I pleaded.
He sat in silence. My heart was racing and I hoped he wouldn’t get up and walk out on me. He wiped his eyes and rubbed his head. He turned to me.
“If I was cruel, I’d make you suffer, you know dat?” he teased. I exhaled. “You don’t have to beg me, Madison. I’m still yours and I forgive you. We will figure out what is best for us. We will figure out if we want to be here or in Arizona. I want to be with you, Madison, until whenever, so no more making decisions for me, you got that?” he said. I would have agreed to anything.
“Loud and clear, baby,” I said, kissing him. I climbed on top of him and straddled him. I kissed him like I missed him.
“I deserve to be with you, Madison. I never once made your age a factor. All I wanted you to do was let me love you,” he said.
“You’re right. And even though I did make a big deal about our age, I know now that I deserve you, too. I’ll spend the rest of whatever time we have making it up to you. I promise,” I said, meaning every word.
“I know you will, Madison, and I trust you. Now can I get some birthday sex? I miss making love to you more than words can say.”
“You don’t have to ask.”
We didn’t make it to the bedroom. He managed to do things to my body that night that made my thighs shake uncontrollably. He gave me more multiples than my pussy could take for one night. My jaw muscles and throat were sore when we finally threw in the towel. Neither one of us wanted to get knocked down in our lovemaking match. We exhausted every move and position we could come up with that night until my pussy was cardboard dry and his dick couldn’t stand up anymore.
We made magic that night and after six months of having a long distance love affair, I was back in Chicago for good. Kirk tried to warn me that it wouldn’t last since he and his little Ashley didn’t make it, but they didn’t have what Jerome and I shared. And after ten years of marriage and one five-year-old son that my daughter carried for us from Jerome’s artificially inseminated sperm, we are still fucking like we are both in our twenties. The subject of age has never been mentioned again.
• • •
Anna Black is a native of Chicago and the bestselling, award-winning author of the Now You Wanna Come Back series. Her desire to become a published author didn’t develop until her late twenties. She didn’t take her writing seriously until several close friends and family members encouraged her to go for it. After signing with Delphine Publications in November 2009, Anna became a bestselling author for her debut release, Now You Wanna Come Back, within a matter of weeks. She has since released several novels, short stories and compilations under her own publishing house, Black House Publishing which was launched in May of 2013. Her most recent novels include I’m Doin’Me and The Side Effects of You (Urban Books/Kensington). Anna currently lives in Texas with her daughter Tyra and her adorable dogs, Jaxson and Jasmine.
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“Mrs. Lyric Robinson-Washington, you are seeking a divorce on the grounds of adultery and mental abuse. The court has found that you have proved your allegations and has awarded you the following: the main residence, the Benz, full pension rights, four thousand dollars a month in alimony, and you may also take your maiden name, Robinson, back,” the judge stated to her and her estranged husband who was now fuming.
Lyric bowed her head and said a silent
prayer of thank you. She didn’t even really care about the material stuff. She only wanted her sanity and her last name. The other things were mere bonuses for being married to Vincent for so long. If anyone deserved it, she did. Although they had some good times, they didn’t seem to outweigh the bad. Throughout the entire twelve years they were married, she suspected Vince of cheating on her, although she could never prove it until she caught him at the end. Vince belittled her by calling her fat, ugly, and anything else that would deflate the already low self-esteem she had at that time. It took for her to go see a therapist to feel like a woman again. She was down a hundred and fifty pounds, a stronger woman mentally, and she felt like celebrating. Her divorce party tonight would give her just the release she needed. She spoke with her lawyer in the hallway for a moment and then headed toward the exit. Hearing her name called, she turned and then rolled her eyes as her now ex-husband ran to catch up with her.
“You know you don’t deserve any of my money,” he spoke with disdain.
“Well, the judge didn’t see it that way,” she told him. Turning to leave, he grabbed her arm. “And what the hell do you think you’re doing?” she asked him, yanking her arm from his grasp.
“Oh, I get it, you think you’re all high and mighty now that you have lost some weight. Must feel good to have some sex appeal again.”
“You wouldn’t know the first thing on how I feel, weight loss or not. I was always beautiful and I am glad I know my worth. I let you tear me down and that will never happen again,” Lyric told him while looking him in the eyes silently after she made her statement. She wanted him to know that she meant business. All Vince could do was stand there and not say anything because he could tell that she meant it. Walking away, she left him standing there.
Vince watched his ex-wife leave. He would never admit to her that he liked how she looked now. It took for him to hurt her for her to get there.
Walking toward her car, Lyric’s cell phone went off as she got into it. Hitting the button in the console, she spoke. “Hey, Erin.”
“Hey, so how did it go?” her best friend asked.
“Better than I expected. I still have my home, my car and some alimony, plus my Robinson last name back. I couldn’t be happier.”
“Congrats. So are you ready to celebrate?” Erin asked.
“You know I am. Too bad it’s only ten in the morning. I need a drink now. I didn’t eat breakfast this morning so I am going to go head to The House of Pancakes for breakfast. You want to join me?”
“I wish I could. I have a meeting in thirty minutes, plus, you know I am only working a half-day so that we can party tonight.”
“Right. Okay, girl, let me go eat and I will see you later at the shop.” Ending the call, she headed to her destination. Lyric owned Pastries and Cream where they specialized in homemade gelato and all types of pastries. She had begun to make herself known and had landed a feature on the news last week.
Lyric took a seat at her table. She started glancing over the menu but instantly raised her head when she heard his voice.
“Good morning. My name is Tyriq and I will be your server. Would you like something to drink?” he asked with a voice that could melt panties.
“Um, I . . . I will just have a cup of coffee, with cream and sugar,” she told him once she could finally speak. She stared into the sexiest bedroom eyes. She could tell he worked out even though he was in uniform. She noticed he was staring at her. Smiling. She instantly blushed. Her reaction must have been common. When he smiled, she noticed two deep dimples in his cheeks. When he walked away to get her coffee, she tried to concentrate on deciding what it was she wanted to eat. She tried not to look up when he came back but failed terribly. He stood over her and waited for her to begin. When she looked up, he was smiling that smile again.
“Are you ready to order?”
“Yes. I will have a two-egg-white omelet with spinach, cheese, mushrooms, turkey bacon and toast, please.” She handed him the menu.
“Do you mind if I ask you a question?” Tyriq asked. Lyric nodded. “You look very familiar. Have we met before?”
“In my dreams we have,” she attempted to mumble. When he laughed, she realized he heard her. She wanted to sink through the floor. “I’m sorry about that. No, I don’t think we have.”
“Don’t be sorry. I’m flattered.” He winked at her as he went to place her order.
Lyric managed to finish her breakfast without further embarrassing herself. She gave him a good tip and left the restaurant.
Tyriq watched her leave, noticing how well her body moved. He wished he had asked her for her number. Then he realized why she looked familiar. He had seen her on TV last week demonstrating some desserts. She owned a bakery. At least that’s what he thought he remembered. Tyriq worked the rest of his shift with her on his mind. He had a gig tonight and he was looking forward to it. His band had been signed to perform at a local nightclub three nights a week. Things were moving up for them and he was just waiting for it to happen.
Getting to the club for rehearsal, he and his band were told there were two parties and one special party for a friend of the owner, Donald. They would have to take requests if asked.
• • •
Lyric walked into her shop at exactly 4:15 p.m. Erin, Nicole, and Donna would be there in a little while to start the celebration. They would all get dressed at the shop and head over to Club Intense. The owner was her father’s best friend and he told her he had a new up-and-coming band performing that night. He reserved her area in VIP, knowing she loved live bands. Plus he had her area set up special for her divorce party. As she finished setting the wine out, all three of her girlfriends walked in together, ready to get it started.
“Who’s ready for a drink?” Erin said, reaching for the bottle of wine.
“A toast,” Donna said, breaking into Lyric’s thoughts. She held up her glass.
“Yes, to new beginnings and better endings!” They clinked glasses and then enjoyed the light food she had prepared for them. She told them about the guy at the restaurant. “Girl, I wish y’all could have seen him. He had a six-pack for days, and his eyes, OMG. He looked kind of young, though.”
“So and what does that mean?” Nicole chimed in.
“It means I don’t date jailbait, that’s what it means.”
“Girl, please. If I am not mistaken, wasn’t the woman you caught Vince with in her twenties? Men do this shit all the time and they are considered as just being men.”
“Why are we even discussing this? All I know is his name. It’s not like we exchanged numbers. Furthermore, I may not even see him again,” Lyric said, ending the conversation. Finishing her glass of wine, she finished getting ready. Afterward, they left in the waiting limo.
The club was packed for a Thursday night, but they were immediately directed to VIP. Champagne, food, and alcohol awaited them. They were joined by six more of their friends and the party went into full swing. Lyric turned toward the stage to check out the band and her mouth fell open. Looking even better than this morning was Tyriq. He was dressed in black slacks and a royal-blue dress shirt. The brother could sing.
“Damn, look at that man up there. He is fine. What’s the name of this band again?” Donna shouted. All the ladies turned to see who Donna was referring to.
“Damn, ain’t he a sweet thang. And you know I love me some fresh meat,” one of her friends said behind her.
“That’s Tyriq singing,” Lyric said, barely audible, but Donna, Nicole, and Erin heard her clearly since they were the closest to her. They appeared shocked.
“Lyric, did you say what I thought you said?” Erin spoke loudly so she could be heard. Lyric nodded.
“Yes, that’s Tyriq. The guy I met this morning.”
“If you won’t make a play for that fine-ass man, I will.”
“He is too young for me.”
“Says who?” Erin asked.
“Do you even know how old he is?”
&n
bsp; “No, I didn’t ask all that.”
“Humph, he look just ripe to me,” Donna said and all the women high-fived and laughed but Lyric. She never took her eyes off him. Now he was looking directly at her while he sang a ballad. Tyriq continued singing but came off the stage. He walked in their direction and the women went wild behind her. Once again she felt like disappearing through the floor. When Tyriq stood in front of her, taking her hand and serenading her, she wanted to die. When the song ended, he whispered in her ear, kissed her cheek, and headed back to the stage. Of course they all rushed her when he left.
“What did he say?” one of the ladies asked.
“He said I looked beautiful.” Taking a long swallow of her drink, she began fanning herself. It was the first time she even thought about going down that road. Could she?
The ladies went back to acting crazy. A few men came to their area to ask them to dance. Donna and Erin were the only ones to accept. Just as the band announced they were about to take a break, Lyric decided she needed to hit the restroom. The line was long so Lyric decided to use the private bathroom in Donald’s office.
Tyriq watched Lyric head toward the restroom. She wore a fire-engine-red dress with a split up to her thigh. She had all the men watching her and she didn’t even realize it. He was surprised to see her, sitting in VIP. He felt his soul open when he was singing to her. He had to talk to her before she left. Donald came up to him and asked for a copy of the song list, then remembered it was in his office and asked him to go retrieve it. Walking into the office, he was greeted with a soft thud to his body. Grasping the woman so she wouldn’t fall, he was happy to see it was Lyric.
“Whoa, I’m sorry. I didn’t think anyone was in here. Donald sent me up here for a list,” Tyriq told her. He didn’t want her to think he was following her.
“I’m sorry. I just came up here because the ladies’ bathroom was crowded. I will leave you to what you were about to do,” she told him, trying to walk around him. He made her nervous and she needed to get away from him. He blocked her path and smiled.