Page 56 of Crossing Lines

I suck my teeth. “I’m not soothing his ass.”

“Y’all been together five years,” she points out. “What about getting married?”

“We haven’t discussed it in a while. Right now, the focus is on our careers.”

“Or maybe that man doesn’t want to make you his wife. He didn’t even move you into his place. His mama doesn’t even like you.”

I throw my head back. “Wow, Mom. Thanks. Maybe I don’t want to move in with Jamir. How bout that?”

She rolls her eyes. “You’re just making excuses. Have you considered he could be cheating?”

“No.” I shift on the chair. “Jamir works a lot. He barely has time for me, let alone other women.”

Staring at me as if I’m naïve, she smirks and says, “Men always find a way, girlie.”

“Please don’t. Let’s enjoy dinner.”

“Fine.” She picks up her glass. “I assume my French gifts are in that bag you brought. You know my taste.”

“Yes, Mother. It’s all expensive.”

The organ in my chest gallops like a wild horse as I walk into the youth center and see Kross. The part of me committed to Jamir urges me to leave. The other side can’t ignore this attraction or that dirty phone call. Nor can I stop myself from checking him out in his black joggers and sweatshirt, the sleevesrolled up and revealing the ink on his arms. My eyes stay glued to the ornate designs as he approaches me.

“Davi.” That smooth, deep voice has such an intense effect on my emotions. “Everything okay?”

His question snaps me out of it. “Yeah.”

“Sure?” he checks, expression serious while looking over my appearance. “Did he hurt you?”

I quickly shake my head. “He’s never and would never do that.”

He relaxes his shoulders. “I wanted to text you last night but wasn’t sure you’d like that. Davi, listen—”

“The kids are all here?” I cut him off, avoiding the tension between us.

“Yeah,” he sighs. “Let me introduce you to the staff, and then we can sit in the group.”

“Okay.” I glance at the teens and draw a breath.

“Don’t be nervous.”

I fight back a shiver when he touches my arm. After introducing me to the supervisors, he leads me to the kids, a mix of brown girls and boys with charismatic personalities. Listening to their big dreams melts my heart. Some come from difficult homes but still have hope. Their eyes glisten with respect whenever Kross speaks, and I can tell he genuinely cares about them and wants them to succeed.

I discuss college and my fashion design career, then answer questions. Once the session ends, they move on to fun activities. I stick around with Kross until the kids take off late afternoon, and we walk to our cars out front.

“Thanks for coming today,” he says, smiling at me.

“Thank you for suggesting it. I enjoyed the time.”

“Hm.” He kicks at the ground. “Let’s grab something to eat at the vegan spot nearby. We could walk there. I just want to hang out.”

His enchanting gaze weakens the fight, causing me to nod. “Okay. You don’t have to go there for me if you want meat.”

He turns his head. “I’d rather you have other options than a dry salad. I know how these places can be.”

That makes me chuckle. “Thanks for thinking of me. I appreciate it.”

We stroll down the sidewalk to the restaurant at the corner, sitting at a table in the back. It’s thoughtful of him to choose this spot. Jamir always frowns at the idea of eating at a vegan restaurant, and he never checks the menu before taking me someplace.

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