Page 49 of Judgments of Fire and Desire

“I won’t let you suffer, baby. I know you need this.”

When he brought his fingers to his mouth to taste the essence of me, I released a soft moan. He made me forget everything I was worried about. The only thing I was worried about was how I would go home in the nude, because my clothes were already drenched. I knew he wasn’t done, and I didn’t want him to be. I was spoiled, and he loved every minute of that.

“What else doyou need from the store, Mama? I’m just leaving work, but I only want to make one trip to Kroger. If you forget anything, you’ll have to go back and get it because Genesis and I have plans,” I said to my mother as I walked to my car.

“You gon’ do what I tell you to do!” she said loudly then laughed. “That’s everything, baby. Where are y’all going?”

“I’m just taking her out for a night on the town. She’s been so patient with my journey to healing. I want to show her how much I appreciate her.”

“Umm, she wasn’t the only one that had to deal with your attitude. Where is my gratitude?”

“Mama, I felt like you gave me as much hell as I gave you, so we’re even.”

She laughed, and I did too. It had been six weeks since Genesis pulled me out of that burning car. I’d been back at work for the past two weeks. People seemed shocked to see me back sosoon, but I felt like I was about to go crazy. I needed to get back to normal. Plus, Johnson had told me that arrests were going to be made soon. I had to be back at work so I could secretly hear the gossip. I was the king of eavesdropping. Nothing got by me.

My colleagues were grateful for my early return, simply because it would lighten the load. They had been swamped. Cases were so backed up they couldn’t see the light of day. I was glad to be back as well. Law—exacting justice—that was my happy place. However, I found myself being a little more lenient. I wanted to believe Genesis had a lot to do with that. That woman had me soft as cotton candy. Whenever she licked me, I practically disintegrated. She held that much power over my heart.

Her love that she’d spilled into me was overflowing in my life and touching lives that I touched. She’d been staying at my house more often than not, and I had gotten used to being in her space. That was the only downside to coming back to work. Although she was working, her free time was devoted to me. Her mama wasn’t feeling that at all. She complained that I’d stolen her baby girl from her. I could only laugh in response, especially when she said for us to give her a grandbaby to occupy Genesis’s spot.

“Kyrie, the doorbell is ringing. If I think of anything else I need, I’ll text you.”

“Mm hmm. Don’t have me in the store all day, woman.”

She chuckled. “Bye, fool!”

I ended the call and slowly shook my head. My mama was a mess, but I wouldn’t change that for the world. Before I could turn into the parking lot at Kroger, she was calling back, as I knew she would.

“What’s up, Ma?”

“Kyrie! These flowers are beautiful! And food from my favorite place? Thank you, baby!”

“You’re very welcome, Mama. I love you, and I appreciate everything you do for me. I know you love roses and Olive Garden, so I figured that would be a good way to show you how much you mean to me.”

“I love you too, son. This was really nice. See you when you get here.”

“Okay.”

I ended the call and made my way inside the store. As I shopped, I got an uneasy feeling in my gut. I turned and surveyed my surroundings, trying to make sure I wasn’t being followed. I didn’t notice anything suspicious, but my guard was still in place. Besides work, I hadn’t been going many places. I started at the gym last week, just doing light cardio, and I went to church with Genesis and my mama. Those were the only places I had been besides the grocery store. This was the first time I’d gotten this feeling though.

My gut was telling me that they were after me again, but I realized it could also just be paranoia. Despite Johnson’s advice, I couldn’t just sit idle. I’d been looking at every document Darlene had signed. So far, I’d pointed out four different types of signatures for her. One was identified as Samuel Farris’s handwriting, one was Darelene’s, and I’d narrowed one down to either city council member, Jackson Doyle or Dana Houston, Judge Cameron’s stenographer. I was leaning more to Jackson though. I hadn’t even come close to figuring out the last one.

Another reason I wanted to take Genesis out was because her brother would be among those getting arrested. I just wanted her to have a relaxing weekend before chaos ensued. She deserved that and so much more. There was proof that he’d received money from the mayor along with the checks and documents he forged and made to look like the lieutenant’s handwriting. They were going to come down on him hard to get him to talk and reveal other parties involved.

From what Johnson said she could deduce from her own reasoning, Samuel was bribing the main parties. They were basically paying him to keep his mouth shut. He got cut into the deal that way and was way too intuitive for them to try anything. He would know who was after him… unlike me. I didn’t feel like he had a thing to do with the vendetta they had out for me, but he definitely knew whowasinvolved.

Once I was done with my mother’s grocery list, along with the couple of things she added while I was shopping, I went to her house and dropped everything off, promising to spend a little time with her, Sunday. Sundays were my days to wind down and get ready for the work week. I noticed Genesis had adopted that practice as well since her schedule had been set to weekdays.

When I got home, I went to take a shower, but before I got in, I sent Genesis a message, letting her know I would be at her house to pick her up in an hour. We hadn’t had sex yet, but tonight would be the night that I felt her walls wrap around me again. I’d been making sure she was pleased, whether that was orally or with my fingers. Whenever she tried to return the favor, I would stop her. I had to breathe too deeply and didn’t want to put myself through that pain.

I didn’t care if she had to do all the work tonight. I had to feel her. It felt like I was about to lose my mind not being able to indulge in her waters. Seeing her sexy ass daily and watching her sex faces when she orgasmed was torture. While I was happy to oblige her needs, it was hard as hell to restrain my own desires, although I knew that physically, I couldn’t handle it. After emerging from the shower and drying off, I checked my phone to see if she’d responded.

Okay, baby. I’ll be ready. Love you.

I smiled. Her words of love made me feel good inside. It was what my mama spoke of that would have my soul light and make me slow down some. Work came second now. It was hard toeven believe that transition had occurred. Genesis Farris was my number one priority, and it happened naturally. I wanted her to be number one without even thinking about it or rationalizing it. Everything she’d shown me had told me that she deserved that spot, even when I was pushing against it.

Once I moisturized and put on my black slacks and black shirt, I checked my reflection. The waves in my hair seemed to be more defined, and my dark skin looked flawless. It was like loving her had affected everything about me. She made me different… better. I was a fool to think that I could go on without her after encountering just how amazing she was. The bug had bit me, and thankfully, I learned to accept it while Genesis was still receptive.

I pulled into her driveway, ready to actually enjoy a night out on the town. It would only be our third date due to the circumstances. Taking a deep breath, I put the car in park and grabbed the pink lilies from the passenger seat. When I got to her door, before I could ring the doorbell, she opened it, wearing a black formfitting dress that dipped low in the front and left her shoulders exposed.

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