by Kenya Wright
I focused on my breaths.
“What was it about?”
I blinked and thought back to it. “Oh, God.”
“What?”
“I’m not telling you. It was stupid as fuck.” I let go of him.
He put me right back in his arms. “Tell me.”
The more I thought about my running away from people with toilet paper the sillier I felt. “You have to promise not to laugh.”
He leaned back. “Of course I’m not going to find your nightmare funny.”
I leaned against him, loving the feel of his hard, muscular body. “So. . .I was in a grocery store.”
“The one from today?”
“No. This was one I never saw.”
“Okay.”
“At first it was completely empty.”
“Sounds like a dream about our future.”
“Don’t say that.”
“Sorry. Go ahead.”
“Anyway. . .” I leaned away from him and gazed at those gorgeous eyes. “I found a pack of toilet tissue and grabbed it really quick. Suddenly, everyone began chasing me, trying to take it. And it didn’t seem like they would be nice about it.”
A grin broke out on his face.
I frowned. “Don’t you dare.”
He laughed. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t.”
“I know. It’s a silly dream.”
“You had a nightmare about an angry mob trying to take your toilet tissue?”
“It felt real.”
He chuckled and patted my back. “Oh, princess. That’s so horrible. I’m here for you.”
I sucked my teeth.
“I’m consoling you.”
“And having fun.”
“It was a dumb dream.”
“Yes, but not too far from a possible future reality. We did just steal toilet paper from another person and New York hasn’t even been locked down for a week.”
“Correct.” I looked back. Moonlight flowed through the open window. “What time is it?”
“Probably around 4 or 5. I didn’t get into bed until two.”
I dropped my arms. “Thanks for consoling me.”
He kept his arms around me. “I’m not done.”
“You are.”
“You just had a terrifying dream.” He let go of me, lay down, and gestured for me to come.
“What are you doing?”
He rubbed that sexy chest of his. “Come to Daddy.”
I chuckled, but took the invitation and lay my head on his chest. There was no thought or idea of consequences. I enjoyed the feel of his arms. I loved that I woke up to him in my bed.
Granted, I had told him that we should chill earlier this evening. I’d meant. But damn I liked his touch too.
I rested my head on his chest. In a rhythmic tone, his heartbeat in my ear. I had to stifle a groan of pleasure.
He wrapped those arms around me again, encasing my body in pure warmth and protection.
I closed my eyes and whispered, “Thank you.”
“Thank you? What am I to you? Some idiot off the street? A stranger that you don’t know.”
I grinned.
“This is what we do. We’re friends. Maybe. . .more.”
I bit my lip.
“Goodnight, Jade.”
I fell into the warmth of him. “Goodnight, Kamal. I’m glad you’re here.”
“The more I think about these last days, the more I believe the universe was working to better my life.”
“How?”
“Had the state not been on lockdown, I would have never come home early to find what I did.”
“Correct.”
“And if Amber hadn’t done that, I would have never been stuck in this apartment with you.”
“That’s a great way to look at everything. Sort of a silver lining perspective.”
“This ended up being a perfect situation.” He slipped his hands along my back. “Exactly what I needed.”
I eased into the comfort of him. “I agree.”
In his arms, the night’s terror left. I felt comfortable for the first time in a long while.
Sleep took me over.
A new dream arrived—one filled with a shirtless Kamal and a bigger room. Gold silk sheets covered the bed. He kissed my lips, turned me over, and massaged my naked body with hot oil. I moaned in delight. His fingers had skills. He knew how much pressure I required and what made me shiver with arousal.
I woke up with a groan lodged in my throat and my skin on fire.
Dear God. That was just a dream?
I opened my eyes and realized I was in bed by myself. I sat up and scanned the room. Sunlight bathed the space. Noise sounded from outside the door—dishes clattering and something sizzling. I sniffed the air.
Yummy. What is that?
I pushed away the blankets and left the bed. Unfortunately, my body was still aroused from the sensual dream with Kamal. My hard nipples pressed my pajama top. I’d worn my Shaolin Assassin short set since last night had been too warm for the new long johns Kamal bought me.
That dream though. . .
I blew out a long breath.
I wonder if his hands are really that good. Last night, his kiss was amazing.
I stopped in front of the closed door and paused.
I told him no more kissing, due to the craziness with Amber.
It was a smart move. Everything was too intense. And I really believed he should figure things out, before starting anything with me. His breakup was a fresh wound—one a band aid wouldn’t solve. It required more care. Maybe even stitches.
I placed my hand on the knob.
But what about this attraction that we have?
It was clear we had chemistry. In barely two days, we were in each other’s arms and mouth-to-mouth. But if I thought about Kamal and me for too long, complications entered my head.
How would Zora feel about this? And even her mother?
It could go either way. And was Kamal ready for anything more? If we had sex. . .I wouldn’t just want to be his rebound-plaything.
Whatever. We’re not kissing anymore, so forget about the worries.
I opened the door and entered the living room.
“Good morning, princess.” Kamal glanced over his shoulder as he cooked something in the kitchen. “You woke up just in time. I thought I was going to have to come in there. Are you ready for breakfast?”
“You cooked for me too?”
“Yes. This is your apology breakfast.”
“What are you apologizing for?”
“Involving you in the unnecessary bullshit from last night.”
“Not your fault.”
“I don’t play the fault game. I would rather make amends and learn the lesson.” He turned the stove off, carried the pan over another counter, and began plating. “Sit down. I’ll bring everything over. What do you want to drink?”
“Water.”
“And tea or orange juice?”
“After all that wine last night, I need to hydrate.”
He winked at me, set the pan down, and brought two plates to the table. He put one down at his usual seat.
“I’ll bring some water over in a minute.” He set a plate in front of me.
Fluffy eggs, sautéed spinach, and crispy potatoes lay on the plate. I was about to say thank you and then smiled at the joke in bed last night. “This is awesome, Kamal.”
“I’m not as good of a chef as you, but I have my dishes.” He remained there. “How was your sleep after the nightmare?”
I blushed. “I had a really good dream after the nightmare.”
“I bet.” He held a wicked grin.
“You bet?”
“You moaned a lot.” He left and went back into the kitchen.
I sat in horror. “I moaned a lot?”
“Oh yes.” He licked his lips. “It’s why I left the bed early and decided to cook. Sleeping with you in my arms and moaning. . .there was no way I could continue to be a
perfect gentleman.”
I bit my bottom lip.
He filled two glasses with ice and poured water in them. “What were you dreaming about?”
I swallowed and picked up my fork. “It was a sexy dream.”
He brought the waters over, set one in his place, gave one to me, and remained in front of me. “That makes sense. I am a sexy guy.”
I rolled my eyes. “No one said you were in the dream.”
“You basically did.”
“How?”
“You kept moaning my name.” He went over to his side of the table, sat down, and pierced me with a heated gaze. “And. . .princess. . .if I hear you moan my name like that again while sleeping in my arms. . .”
My arousal blossomed between my thighs. “What?”
“I’m going to wake you up and make you moan louder.” He picked up his fork, shoveled up some eggs, and ate.
I blinked.
Eating, he grinned at me. “Is there a problem?”
“Well. . .”
“What? Your little rule about not kissing and my needing to take care of things? Or was it the whole. . .this is too soon or—”
“All of those are good points—”
“Bullshit. You want me to kiss you again. Regardless of what happened last night with Amber or even what my sister might think. You fucking enjoyed and you know you’ll enjoy more.”
I widened my eyes. “I’m trying to be careful as well as responsible.”
“Good. I’ll be the wild and reckless one. We’ll balance each other out.”
“Oh, will we?”
“I liked holding you last night in bed. Your body is soft and curvy. And I damn sure loved kissing you and even twirling you around in the living room. We have fun—more fun than I’ve experienced in years. I want to do more. I will do more. And you’re going to fucking love every minute of it.”
Stunned, I sat there, holding my fork.
“You should eat.” He gestured to my plate. “You’ll need your energy.”
I grinned. “Kamal. . .”
“What did I do in your dream?”
I began eating.
“Okay.” He laughed. “We’ll talk about that later.”
I couldn’t wipe the grin off my face. When I tasted his eggs, I groaned a little. “Wow.”
“You like?”
“I love.”
“Good. It looks like I’ll have to beat you to the kitchen if I want to cook for you.”
“You will.”
“Then, I’ll take that as a challenge.”
Those words from earlier spun in my head. I did my best to return to eating, sampling the delicious spinach, and devouring the potatoes.
Is he serious? Of course he is. He didn’t become so successful by being careful or holding himself back.
I turned my attention his way. The whole time he watched me too, looking close to pouncing on me.
“You should eat. You’ll need your energy.”
My body went into overdrive. Sensations shivered through me. The idea of him on me—kissing and licking. Touching me everywhere. In these past days, I’d spied a nice thick dick print a few times. I was more than ready to truly see how long and big his cock was.
And what about logic? And things like. . .my friendship with his sister or. . ?
His deep voice filled the space. “What are you thinking about?”
“Logical things.”
He frowned. “This is an illogical time to be thinking with any form of common sense.”
“Oh really?”
“Yes. With this pandemic, we can’t take life for granted. We have to jump.”
“And what if we fall when we jump?”
“Falling is the best part, princess.”
“Kamal, you’re saying that we’ll kiss and play around for these seven days—”
“Correction. Not just seven days.” He held his finger up. “We’ll kiss and play for as long as we want to. With the hopes that it will be for an exceptionally long time.”
“How long?”
“Are you wondering if I take you seriously? If I believe that you’ll just be some sort of side thing?”
“I’m looking at all the—”
“Making you a side thing would be impossible. I know too much about you. My family loves you. No matter what you will be in my life forever.”
I stopped eating and leaned back in the chair. “Okay. So. . .we wouldn’t just be playing around?”
“Not even a little bit, Jade. What you’ve brought in my life these short days is something that I want to keep forever. When I tell you that you’re moving to New York, I’m serious.”
I grinned.
He kept a stern expression.
“Kamal, I can’t just move to New York.”
That determination never left his face. “You had your dreams. I had mine too.”
I went back to eating. “What did you dream about?”
“You and me. We were in my condo and incredibly happy. There was no sex in mine because I’m clearly not as horny as you.”
I almost choked on my food. I coughed a little.
“Are you okay?”
I swallowed. “Yes. And that’s not fair. I haven’t had sex since last year.”
He shrugged. “It’s been two months for me.”
“Amber and you stopped right after she moved in?”
“Pretty much. Her staying was good for about two weeks. After that, she couldn’t pretend anymore. Things went downhill. And when things are like that, my cock doesn’t like to get hard.”
“Oh.” I quirked my brows. “So. . .you wasn’t getting an erection?”
“Not with her, but as you’ve seen yesterday. I damn sure get one with you.”
I thought back to his cock pushing through those jeans last night. “Yes, you can.”
“You wanted me to take care of the Amber situation. It’s done.”
I took a bite of my eggs. “Is it?”
“Her father called. He bought her a plane ticket. She flies out in five days. He wanted to know if I was okay with her staying at my condo for that long and if I had extra gloves and masks at the house for her. I told him that it was fine and that I did have masks and gloves in the condo. She would be able to protect herself on her journey back to California.”
“So, she’s leaving this upcoming week, for sure?”
“Yes. He even paid for and scheduled transportation to pick her up from the condo and take her to the airport.”
“And once she’s gone?”
He frowned. “I’m getting the place cleaned and fumigated.”
I laughed.
“That bed has to go.”
“Kamal, really?”
“It does. I don’t want any memories of her in there. But, once my cleaning lady does me a special favor by sanitizing the area, I want Ganesha and you to come over there with me. It will give us more space.”
“I don’t know—”
“You have time to think about it.”
I let out a long breath.
“I’ll make sure to see if I can convince you in these next days.”
I smiled. “We’ll see.”
“We sure will.”
The rest of breakfast continued with ease. He changed the topic to the latest quarantine news. More states had decided to lockdown. More airlines began to cancel. More deaths had been reported. The world seemed to be shutting down all around us, while we existed within this apartment, starting something new.
This was fast for me, but I couldn’t pretend like I never found Kamal attractive. And with the craziness of this world and his sexy determined words coming from that gorgeous face and shirtless body. . .it was more than welcomed.
Okay. I’m throwing logic aside. Let’s just see what happens.
Chapter 12
Kamal
Coronababies
After breakfast, Jade tried to clean up the dishes. I refused and made her leave the kitchen. With her tiny frame
, it was no problem to pick her up and carry that beautiful body back into the bedroom.
She laughed as I set her on the bed. “And what am I doing? Going back to sleep?”
“I don’t know.” I marched away. “But what you’re not doing is washing the dishes.”
“We had a deal. If I cook, you clean. So, when you cook, I—”
“Get your ass out of the kitchen.”
Her laugher followed, filling my chest with happiness. It was pure joy to be with her. Nothing but pleasure and fun.
Is this how it will always be?
Jade was different from other women that I’d been with. She was the first I’d had a real friendship with. I’d know her forever and that familiarity and closeness made me comfortable to be myself.
“Fine,” she yelled back at me. “I’m taking a shower.”
My cock jumped in my pants.
“And will you need help, princess?”
She laughed.
I guess that’s a no.
I picked up the dishes from the table. If Ross had seen this, he might’ve taken a picture. I had a cleaning woman that did this. Once my wealth came, I’d refused to cook or do anything of the sorts. But today I wanted to do something special for Jade. And with this pandemic, I couldn’t simply take her off to a restaurant and spoil her. The world was quarantining—that forced me to take my credit card out of the courtship and make her feel special in simpler ways.
The sound of the shower filled the apartment.
I hadn’t even heard her go into the bathroom. I was so caught up in cleaning. With no control, I hummed Whitney Houston’s You Give Good Love.
Look at what she’s doing to you?
I stopped humming and laughed.
Nothing had made me happier than that phone call from Amber’s father. Soon, Amber would be out of my place, all evidence of her cheating gone too.
It was crazy to move Jade in so fast. I knew my sister and mother would have something to say about it. Even Ross might too. But if she remained at Zora’s apartment, it would be difficult to see her.
In this morning’s press conference, Governor Ellis talked about starting strict regulations to keep people out of the streets. There could be some fines and tickets if people were out for nonessential reasons.
This time of corona required more extreme methods for me to get to know Jade. That meant rushing a courtship that would have taken more time. It meant having her in my condo well before the appropriate relationship milestones.