Page 6 of Judgments of Fire and Desire

She gave me a slight smile, and I turned to head back to Nederland.

I took a sip of my drink. Although it was Sunday, I was mentally drained. I’d gone to church with my mother, and so many people were coming to me to talk about the mayor and hoping that I would punish her. She was not only laundering money, but she was embezzling it as well. It seemed the charges were being stacked against her by the hour, and I didn’t know how she was going to beat them.

I knew I couldn’t go to church again until this case was over, though, because I couldn’t talk about it to anyone until it was over. Even then, I didn’t discuss case details with anyone outside of my courtroom. It was just safer to keep it that way. There was already a microscope on me because I was so young. That only added to the pressures of being a black man in America.

As I took another sip of my drink, my phone chimed, alerting me of a text message. I didn’t get those often, because I didn’t really have friends like that. Tyson and my mother were the only people who texted me. Since I’d already seen and talked to my mother, I figured it had to be Tyson. When I picked it up from the table at my side and noticed an unfamiliar number on the lock screen, I got slightly nervous.

Those letters were truly starting to bother me. I didn’t know who to watch out for. I found myself staying home this entire weekend, except for my trip to the Lord’s house. I opened the message and read it.

Hello, Judge Patrick. This is Genesis Farris. Thank you so much for the flowers. That was very kind of you. I was simply doing my job. Your thank you wasn’t needed. When I took my oath, I took it seriously. These flowers are beautiful though. Lilies are my favorite. Thank you again.

I hurriedly saved her number in my phone. I didn’t expect her to reach out, although I’d had them put my number on the card. I figured she would wait until she knew I was at work and leave me a message that way. Her text was a pleasant surprise. I immediately texted back.

You’re very welcome. Can I call you? I mean, I know you’re at work, but if you aren’t busy, I would prefer talking over texting.

I stared at the screen, waiting for what she would say. Instead of texting, she called. I took a deep breath, then answered. “Hello?”

“Hello, Judge Patrick.”

“Please, call me Kyrie.”

“Umm… okay. How are you?”

“I’m good, considering. How were your days off? I wanted to send the flowers Friday, but I was told you were on your four days off. I apologize if I was given too much information.”

“No. It’s okay. Now had they given you my home address or my personal number, they would have gone too far. My days off were good.”

She chuckled, and I did too. “I wanted to hear your voice outside of the traumatic experience. I wanted to hear you at peace, without the adrenaline rush.”

“Uhh. Okay. Why?”

“I am extremely grateful for you saving my life, but I feel a connection to you. It doesn’t have a thing to do with the trauma. You’re a beautiful and caring woman. I could tell how caring you were by the way you handled everyone you escorted out. While you had to move quickly, you were tender… even with me.”

“Thank you for the compliment. Why wouldn’t I be tender with you?”

“I know people talk about me. People are usually somewhat standoffish around me because they think I’m a rude jackass. I’m no nonsense in the courtroom. I mean… I’m no nonsense in real life, too, but I’m not as rude as they think.”

“You’re not as straightforward either. If this isn’t a trauma bond, what is it? You said what you thought about me, but what is this conversation really about? Why did you want me to call?”

“Although I think you know already, I’m gonna go ahead and say it. I want to get to know you. I’m extremely attracted to you, Genesis. I thought it was a trauma thing at first too. Then I searched you on social media, and it only proved that I was truly attracted to you. I liked almost all your pictures. It’s embarrassing.”

This woman had my body heating up with desire simply from her voice. It was soft and calming… soothing even. It fit her looks, if that was even a thing. Some people’s voices didn’t match their looks. Genesis had to be the image of Eve, God’s first perfect creation of a woman. Her aura had to represent the beginning of a new journey for me.

“Judge… I mean, Kyrie, I’m flattered, but wouldn’t this be umm… I don’t know. It seems like there would be a conflict in some way.”

“Why? It’s not like I work for the city. I’m an elected official for the county. There is nothing wrong or conflicting about us getting to know one another or dating.” Softening my tone, I said, “I would really like to see how much we have in common and explore what could develop between us. Do you at least feel an attraction to me?”

She was quiet for a moment, I supposed thinking about how she would word how she felt and how much she wanted to tell me about her feelings. She took in a sharp breath, then said, “I do. I felt it when I stared into your eyes. I thought that I was imagining your attraction to me, confusing it with extreme gratitude. I’m willing to get to know you. I don’t judge a person by what everyone else thinks about them. I form my own opinions based off my own experiences.”

“Well, I suppose I’m grateful for that. It will make getting to know you less complicated.”

She chuckled. “Yes. Well, I have some work to do. If it’s okay, I’ll call you back in a couple of hours.”

“Yes. It’s more than okay. I look forward to it.”

“Okay. Bye.”

I ended the call feeling like I was on top of the world. Feeling so sensitive about this woman came as a surprise. I hadn’t felt this way in a long time. My entire body was warm, and I was more aroused than I had been in months. She’d managed to make me forget about everything else that had been on my mind and replaced those thoughts with ones of her aura and appeal. Genesis Farris was going to be the woman to change my life. I didn’t know whether that was a good or bad thing just yet, but either way, I was anticipating the journey.

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