Page 93 of Until the Ink Dries

While I made Charlie’s plate, Willow made mine, making sure she knew what I wanted on my plate. I wasn’t a picky eater, unlike baby girl. All she had was mac and cheese, cornbread, and a piece of the chicken, which I hoped she ate because of the gravy.

I watched as Charlie tried a little bit of everything. Everyone at the table seemed to be engrossed with her answer, not picking up their forks yet. Charlie chewed and then smiled big before putting a thumbs up. It seemed like her little thumb was as important as Chef Ramsey telling you that your food was phenomenal.

As the dinner went on, conversation was just as smooth. I took the time to get to know her mother better, realizing she would get along with my mother perfectly. It was crazy to me that all I thought of while being here was how much our families would mesh. I had never fantasized this much about a life with any woman. I peered over at Willow, whose smile couldn’t get bigger if I asked her to. She was one hell of a woman and I planned to continue to figure out just how much.

I’d been back in Rose Haven for three weeks now and while I loved having my parents close, it was definitely time to find my own place. I had a whole man and both of us living at home for the time being wasn’t working. Even though Benny had bought his house, he hadn’t completely moved in just yet. Hotels and cars got the job done, but if we were going to get it in, I would rather it be in one of our own spots.

Today, I was doing apartment tours and Shirah had come along to give her unsolicited opinion. We’d seen three so far and she had something to say about them all. Granted, the points she made were valid, but my best friend didn’t know the first thing about biting her tongue.

“Alright, Shy,” I said, as we pulled up to the final apartment. “Don’t go in here acting crazy.”

She scoffed, offended. “How am I acting crazy?”

“You told that last lady the place smelled like piss!”

“Because it did smell like piss! A drunken piss at that. Who is paying what they want for rent for the place to smell like that? She needs to get a professional cleaning crew or a damn plumber.”

I rolled my eyes. “Whatever, girl.”

“I don’t know why you’re wasting your time or money anyway. Benny just bought that big ass house, and the man told you he bought it with you in mind, too. I’d have my ass in there sitting pretty.”

I blushed at the memory and what happened after he revealed that tidbit of information. To say my heart was all in with this man was an understatement. I was so close to falling in love with him and it was crazy. We’d known each other for so long, but never on this level. He was everything.

I felt my face heating up as I thought about the way he made love to me in the master bathroom. That was the only way I could describe the feeling between us in that moment. It wasn’t just sex, and we weren’t fucking. He was intentional and passionate. Sex with Ben was an experience I felt throughout my body. But… him making love to me, I felt that in my soul.

“Look at your ass,” Shirah said, breaking my thoughts.

“Huh?”

“Huh?” she mocked. “If you can huh, you can hear. You’re over there thinking about that man having you on the bathroom counter, aren’t you?”

“Let’s get in there before we’re late,” I said, ignoring her as I opened my door.

Shirah’s laughter echoed as I got out. I took a deep breath, brushing those thoughts from my mind as we headed into the leasing office.

“Good morning!” a beautiful sistah with a megawatt smile said, greeting us. “I’m Briana. You must be Willow.”

“I am. This is my best friend, Shirah.”

“Hi,” Shirah said, matching her smile. “I’m also the friend that will tell you if your apartment sucks because she’s too nice.”

I smacked her arm. “Shirah! We just talked about this!”

Briana laughed. “We love a vocal queen. I promise, our property is up to standards. It might even exceed them.”

“We’ll see.”

I palmed my forehead. “Please excuse my friend. I’m ready to see the unit.”

Briana nodded. “I have the key right here. Follow me.”

She walked ahead, and we followed behind her, with me pinching Shirah along the way. She laughed as we climbed on the elevator. The ride to the fourth floor didn’t take long, and I was glad to see it was spacious enough to accommodate moving large furniture. We stepped off and made our way down the hall to apartment 421.

“I’m excited to show you this beautiful two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment. Keep in mind, this is one of our most popular floor plans, so it won’t last long.”

“They all say that,” Shirah whispered as Briana opened the door.

I elbowed her.

---