I didn’t tell him.
“Okay. I’ll see you tonight.”
7
August
I swear – I didn’t mean for the night to go like it did.
I ordered food, I had candles, I had flowers, I had wine – I really was trying to do this right.
But… ten minutes after Haven walked through my door… we were naked.
Like full-blown naked, in my bed, my hand at her neck, her tongue in my mouth while she rode me like…
Shit.
I had no comparison point for it.
It was simply good.
Maybe a little too good.
That was just one theory for why, after I made her ass cum three times, Haven wanted to act all embarrassed and in a hurry to get her wrinkled ass clothes back on.
“You… do realize I’ve seen all that already, right?” I asked, not bothering with anything more than my boxers before I moved on to wash hands and pour wine, ready to get the night back on track now that we had that out of our systems.
“Completely not the point.” She accepted the glass of wine I handed her, draining it like it was nothing before giving it back, indicating that she wanted me to pour her another, which I did.
“So what is the point then?”
“That you’re already making me lose whatever little control of myself I had. I can at least be in charge of whether or not I put on some damn clothes.”
“Fair point,” I conceded. “And… I’m sorry.”
She drained half of the second glass too, before turning to look at me. “Sorry for what?”
“Making you lose control. That seems important to you.”
For whatever reasons, those words made her stare at me a long moment, then push out a hefty sigh. “It is. But… you don’t have to be sorry. It’s not your fault.”
“Did somebody do something wrong?”
She raised an eyebrow. “I… guess not, actually. I just feel like this is… betraying myself.”
“It’s not betraying yourself to want something different. It’s betraying yourself to do something you don’t want. Or to not do something you do want.”
“You’re only saying that because it’s so obvious that what I do want… is you.”
I grinned. “You feel like it’s obvious?”
“Is it not?”
“Woman, you have been against this from the day you walked into the flower shop,” I laughed. “And I’ve tried to be careful not to push, not to pressure, because… if we’re going to do this, I want you to want it. Not about what anybody else wants, or thinks is right for you, fuck all that. This is about Haven and August.”
She bit down on my lip, dropping her gaze to her glass before she took another drink. “So… about ten years ago… right out of college… I had this boyfriend. Fiancé, actually. And man…. He was amazing. Checked all my boxes. The only problem was… I wasn’t the only bitch whose boxes he was checking. He was checking a lot of boxes, often. And I…” she stopped, letting out a wry laugh. “I wish I could say that I confronted him, and dumped him in some spectacular fashion, all that, but… no. I just stayed, and felt like shit, because at least I was getting married, and that was the goal, right?”
“Damn.”
“Yeah. It wasn’t even like me, you know? I think I had just gotten so lost, and wrapped up, and… I was so disgusted with myself, and I really think he was too. The woman he’d asked to marry him had a backbone. He dumped me though, and um… I’ve long considered it one of the best things that ever happened to me, because that’s when I woke the fuck up. I decided – never doing that shit again. And it was easy – effortless, because I was so focused on my work in the literary industry, and I just truly didn’t have time. A couple times a year, find somebody to enjoy for a night, and then send them on their way. Only… they never want to… go on their way.”
I shrugged. “Shiiit, can you blame them?”
“Don’t gas me up, my ego is already sky high,” Haven laughed. “But no, I… I know, this is the most cliché thing in the world, right? Girl swears off love, then here comes some unicorn ass motherfucka to change her mind.”
I put a hand to my chest. “It’s me? I’m the unicorn?”
“In this scenario, yes,” she laughed again, for just a moment, before she sobered. “I don’t want my heart broken again. But I also don’t want to betray myself by – as you said – not doing what I really want.”
“And what is it that you really want?”
“More than just tonight,” she said, nodding. “How much more, I have no idea. But I’d like to see it.”
I shrugged. “Well shit, we can get that popping right now.” I took her wine glass, putting it beside mine on the counter.
“What are you doing?” she asked, and I grinned at her, grabbing her hands.
“I’m finally about to get a yes to taking you on a date, is what I’m doing.”
Desperate knocking at my door woke me up.
Once I’d peeled my eyes open, I felt around on the bedside table for my cell phone, pressing the button to illuminate the screen so I could see the time.
Barely six in the morning, and already four missed calls.
All from January.
Shit.
Speaking of her, the knocking had finally stopped, so I could only assume she’d decided to hunt down her keys and let herself inside.
If that happened, it was going to necessitate a conversation I wasn’t ready to have with my little sister at this time of morning.
So much for sleeping in.
“Is this why you aren’t answering the door, or your phone?!”
Damn.
I hadn’t even moved yet and Ry was already in my bedroom, standing over me with hands propped on her hips, still wearing her work clothes from her late shift the night before. She was, at least, respectful enough to keep her voice down, but damn.
“You do realize what time it is, right?” I hissed back to her, motioning for her to turn around, leave, do something.
She rolled her eyes, then huffed out of the room, giving me the freedom to climb my naked ass out of bed without giving her a show. I tossed some clothes on, then headed into my kitchen where she was already making coffee.
“What’s the emergency?” I asked, taking a seat at the counter.
She sucked her teeth. “What is it always?”
I thought for a second, then chuckled. “What did Geezy do this time?”
“It’s not funny,” she insisted, but based on her facial expression, her ass was barely holding back from laughing, so…
“Are you gonna tell me or not?”
Instead of answering, she took a deep breath then turned to grab a mug for each of us. She started to get the carafe of fresh brew, then shook her head, walking to the other side of the kitchen to access the bar. My eyes went wide as she grabbed a bottle of bourbon.
“Damn, it’s like that?”
Pressing her lips together, Ry nodded. “Yes. It is very much like that.” She poured a generous splash of bourbon into both mugs, then fixed the coffee as usual, taking a long ass drink of hers before she finally spoke again. “So you know how your grandmother is all on Facebook, even though I was wholly against it, right? You, and the cousins, all y’all were on your but she needs to be able to talk to her friends shit, etcetera…”
“Oh God…”
“Nah – don’t call him now, because I had already predicted it was gonna be some bullshit, and… drumroll please, guess what it is? You’re right. Some bullshit.”
I took a swallow of the spiked coffee. “What the hell happened?”
“What happened is that your granny carried out an entire sexting conversation on her very public Facebook wall. With pictures. Hashtag, “demon time.”
I damn near choked. “She did not. You not gone lie on my Geezy like that!”
“Ain’t nobody lying on that old lady – I saw the shit myself. I drove to her house directly after a work shift to help her get her dam
n account restored because her shit got banned for sexual content.”
My eyes narrowed at my baby sister. “Who snitched?”
She laughed. “Nigga what? I snitched! I hit the report button on that shit so fast! Do you not understand that I’m telling you our granny had her pussy on a literal platter for somebody’s grandpa on the internet?!”
“A literal platter?”
“Yes. G, she was offering it up. This whole pussy is yours is a verbatim quote. She says she thought they were in private messages, but there were other likes and comments and I just… today has already been fifteen years long, okay?”
I sat back, shaking my head. “Wow. Wow. You know I would’ve helped, but I—”
“Was asleep, duh,” she interrupted, waving me off. “This isn’t about you not doing your part – it’s solely about me not being disturbed and traumatized alone. You’re welcome.”
I laughed. “Thank you, Ry, for never failing to bring the annoying baby sister energy. Appreciate that.”
“Any time. Um… you wanna tell me about your guest though?”
As if we’d spoken her up, Haven’s footsteps sounded coming down the hall. When she appeared, eyes still half-closed, hair wild around her shoulders and face, she was wearing a Posh Petals shirt she had to have dug out of one of my drawers.
“Oh my God. Haven?!”
The recognition seemed to pull Haven fully into wakefulness. Her eyes popped open, slowly registering the fact that there was another woman present.
“I… um… I smelled coffee?” she muttered.
“I can fix you a cup. Wow. I’m sure you have no idea who I am, hi,” Ry gushed, approaching Haven with a fresh mug of coffee in hand. “I’m January, I’m—”
“August’s sister,” Haven nodded, smiling and thanking her for the cup. “The Somers, neither of you born in summer, or the month you’re named for. I remember August telling me about it.”
I frowned. “I told you about that?”
“One of those two in the morning conversations,” she quipped, then turned back to January. “I don’t think we were at BSU at the same time though, were we?”
“I was a freshman when you guys were seniors,” Ry nodded. “I was obsessed with the upperclassmen, but like… you especially. You were so cool, and pretty, and I… am being a weirdo right now, aren’t I?”
Haven laughed. “A little bit, but it’s okay. It’s nice to meet you. Though… I think we’d all prefer to be dressed differently.”
“Yeah, probably,” I chuckled. “Ry was giving me an update on our Grandmother Gone Wild, but she’s leaving now to find some business.”
Ry rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah, I’m going, so you can get back to your… adult sleepover,” she teased, then seemed embarrassed about it when she glanced at Haven. “Sorry.”
“Don’t apologize – you’re supposed to razz your brother,” Haven told her, moving to the counter with her coffee.
I walked Ry out to the door, ignoring her under-her-breath griping about how everybody in the family was getting action except her. By the time I made it back to Haven, she’d already finished up her cup of coffee and was making another, stopping when I approached her from behind to wrap my arms around her waist.
“Why do I get the feeling you’re about to tell me you can’t hang around here all morning for sex and coffee?”
“Mmm,” she groaned, leaning into my lips against her neck. “Because I really can’t – I’ve gotta get to the store. Nubia’s signing is tonight. That’s why Toni and Justin are here.”
“Oh damn. That’s the first major one for this location, right?”
“Yep.” She turned in my arms to face me, wrapping her arms around my neck. “And then Jemma Love in another few weeks. I am quite well-prepared, but – oh my God, my breath is trash,” she laughed, clapping a hand over her mouth.
“Ain’t nobody worried about that.”
“I’m worried about that,” she countered, her words muffled by her hand. “I’m not really a stay the night kinda girl, and when you were at my place… I got up early to brush my teeth before you woke up,” she admitted, making me chuckle. “I couldn’t have you seeing me less than my flawless best – present circumstances excluded, of course.”
“Fuck you mean?” I teased, pulling her hand down to plant my lips against hers. Just a little peck – her breath was trash, and so was mine, so I wasn’t trying to get all in there like usual.
Later though…
“I really do have to go,” she whispered when we pulled away, giving me a sly grin. “But later, after I’ve come down from all the stress and adrenaline from pulling off this signing… I’ma need you to defuse me, okay?”
“I think I can make that happen,” I told her. “So… am I invited to your shindig, or...?”
She cringed. “Well it was reservation only, but… I guess I can slide your name onto the guest list.”
“Yeah, you do that,” I agreed, stepping back so she could finish getting her coffee, and then get cleaned up so she could be on her way.
All very, very… settled.
It was crazy, to go from she doesn’t date to I’m gonna be – respectfully – all over her fine ass at this signing.
Life was fucking good as far as I was concerned.
Then my phone buzzed, and it was goddamn Marcus.
Shit.
I hadn’t been fronting when I told Haven he was cool – he was cool, cause I wasn’t giving his ass any other option. Did it feel great knowing he was bothered by the idea of us getting together?
Obviously not.
But I also wasn’t going to let it stop anything, because – they broke up fifteen years ago, and he had a whole wife.
I was tired of saying that shit.
“What’s up bruh?” I asked, answering the phone on an upbeat know. “It’s… early as hell, everything okay?”
“I was just trying to catch you before you got in the shop, so you can call out and hop on this flight – me and the wife heading to the islands, but her friend just got divorced, so she’s trying to get in on the trip. She’s fine, nigga I’m telling you. I need you to come keep her busy so me and Lena can… get busy.”
Laughing, I shook my head. “I… appreciate the offer I guess man, but you’re gonna have to hit EJ as your wingman for this one. Haven has a signing at the store tonight, so I’ve got somewhere to be.”
He was quiet for a moment, then blew out a sigh. “Damn… so y’all are really gonna be a thing, huh?”
“Yeah man,” I confirmed. “We’ve been over this.”
“I know, but like… damn, man. That was my first love.”
“If you don’t stop fucking around,” I laughed. “You know damn well…”
“Aiight fine. You couldn’t get with one of my exes that I dropped?”
My eyes went wide. “Okay, so we finally get to the truth. You’re pressed about Haven because she broke up with you.”
“Only one ever. Plus she got finer? The shit hurts man,” he laughed, genuinely but… he was serious. And honestly, I got where he was coming from, but again…
Well.
There was no need to repeat it.
“You’ll get over it,” I promised him. “Let me get off this phone so you can gone and call EJ to run rebound with Lena’s fine friend.”
Marcus sighed. “She’s not that fine. But he won’t care. Later man.”
I shook my head as we hung up, and moved on to get in the shower so I could start my day too. As soon as I started down the hall though, I thought about another call I needed to make.
I navigated to the number in phone and hit the call button, then pulled the phone up to my ear as I started pulling open drawers for my clothes.
As soon as the familiar voice sounded over the line, I grinned.
“Geezy. Woman, what’s this I hear about you showing ass on Facebook?”
8
Haven
So much for a hot girl summer…
; I shook my head at myself as I glanced toward the front doors yet again, anxious for August to get here and see me in this damn dress.
The high hemline and low neckline were getting a lot of long, grateful looks from everybody except the person I wanted looking at me.
My head was already gone, wow.
Usually, at an event like this – Black folks from all across the diaspora, from all facets of the arts and entertainment industry, all kinda fineness and melanin on display – I would be in my element.
Both professionally and personally.
Between being the perfect host and putting out any last-minute fires, I would be scoping out my next prey, zeroing in on who I wanted to fuck the brains out of for the night and then never speak to again.
Tonight?
I really wanted to see August’s handsome face.
“You have absolutely done it again,” Toni said, sneaking up behind me and linking her arm through mine. “This is amazing. And you know I peeped the Black indie romance display right up at the front. August already has you going all soft and gooey on me I see.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I insisted, grinning as I looked toward precisely what she was talking about. I’d long been a proponent of giving those writers the space they deserved, but that particular primetime display had been a subconscious decision I didn’t fully grasp until it was done.
I wasn’t changing it either.
“Whatever liar,” she teased. “You didn’t ask, but I happen to think August is a perfect look for you. Almost like this was pre-ordained or something. You couldn’t settle with anybody else because it was always supposed to be him.”
I sucked my teeth. “Eww, Toni! Could you not? Go somewhere with all that!”
“I will go nowhere,” she laughed. “I’m just saying… I’m happy for you.”
“Because I might be giving up my hoe crown to get chose? Don’t be happy about that. I’m supposed to be like Jemma, forever hoe—oh shit, she settled down with Levi. We’re all falling for the scam!”
“No.” she rolled her eyes. “Because after your failed engagement, you said you were sticking to your guns – living exactly how you wanted. And that’s what you’ve done, sis. That is something to be proud of. When you didn’t want a man, you didn’t have one. When one came along that you wanted, you got him. And you know what… I think that if it comes to a point of this thing with August no longer serving you… I believe you’ll act accordingly then too.”
Me + Somebody's Son: A Heights Story Page 6