I slid my cane to the other side. He had me so distracted. I normally did that as I was getting in. After cranking the engine, I realized he was still standing there.Ugh!My shit sounded like a fucking lawn mower. It was really pathetic, but I couldn’t afford to get it fixed. I hurriedly got out of my spot, feeling embarrassed for the umpteenth time since we left class. When I glanced in my rearview mirror, I saw he was still standing there.
I probably wouldn’t be able to be his friend either. That man’s aura had the power to have me sliding down his dick without a care. I couldn’t allow myself to succumb to that. I had to stay focused on school. There was no room for him in my life simply because I was so attracted to him. That attraction grew when he said he was twenty-eight, only three years younger than me. Slowly shaking my head, I pulled into Zavion’s to get gas and a sandwich from their deli.
“You late, huh?”
I turned to see my cousin, RJ. My eyebrows lifted. He was the owner of JC Architectural Firm. He built this branch in Atlanta nearly five years ago and was about to build a branch in Houston. He also had branches in Los Angeles, Baltimore, and Palm Beach. I wasn’t expecting him to be here since he was just in Texas two days ago. He was supposed to be heading to Baltimore.
“My bad. I was helping a lady to her car. She was moving slow because she was walking with a cane.”
“Uh-huh. What’s up, though? How’s school going?”
“It’s going well. I don’t expect nothing less.”
“That’s what I’m talking about,” he said, slapping my hand. “I’m going to the other side. I’ll check back in with you before I leave.”
“Okay. How long are you in town?”
“I leave Wednesday.”
I nodded then went to the accounting office. As I walked, my mind went right back to Azari’s beautiful ass. I’d seen her before, but I had only watched her from a distance. I’d noticed her since the first day of class. I liked watching people when they didn’t know they were being watched. She seemed somewhat sad at times, but it was like she would find joy from somewhere and keep going. I watched her long enough to know that she most likely had a prosthetic leg.
She wore the same shoes every day, and we’d been at school for a month. Every woman had at least three pairs of shoes: sneakers, dress shoes, and casual shoes. When I was a kid, we weren’t balling or nothing like that, but my mama had about ten pairs of shoes. I could clearly see that Azari was struggling financially. Who drove around with their car sounding like that with a pocket full of cash?
Still, . . . I wanted that woman to be mine. I could see that she was going to be a hard case. My uncle Carrington had taught me that if a woman was worth it, to be patient, especially if I didn’t know her. She could be dealing with things I knew nothing about. I could imagine how much Azari was dealing with, being that she was a single mother. I could tell that her son meant everything to her by the way her face lit up when she mentioned him.
I loved kids. When Aunt Candace and Uncle Carrington’s kids were little, I was the perfect babysitter. We would have so much fun. Their asses were damn near grown now. All three of them were in high school. They had a ninth grader, a tenth grader, and a senior. I didn’t know how they managed when the kids were younger. They were stair steppers.
I flopped down in my chair, wishing I would have asked Azari for her number. I could see that she would be on my mind until I saw her again. There were so many questions I wanted to ask,but I didn’t want to offend her. I didn’t even know how old she was or if she was from Cove City or Atlanta. I’d only been here about five months. I transferred from the Palm Beach office to this one so I could work while in school. Most of my childhood was spent in Palm Beach, Florida. I lived in Baltimore until my mama was killed.
Aunt Candace and Uncle Carrington were living in Baltimore as well. When RJ built the branch in Palm Beach, they moved to Florida so Uncle Carrington could run it. That was about two or three years before my mama was killed. I was thankful they’d taken me in. I would have been miserable living with my grandparents. They were both deceased now. My grandmother died over ten years ago, and my grandfather died three years after her.
It was divine intervention that I ended up with Aunt Candace though. I wouldn’t have had half the opportunities I had if I hadn’t. Her husband was related to the famous rapper, Noah. He was in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame now and ran his own record label and production company. He was still making music as well. RJ was his brother. Uncle Carrington was their dad’s much younger brother. So money was never an issue.
RJ didn’t mind sharing the wealth. Neither did Noah for that matter. RJ would have Unc doing lil side jobs for him that they didn’t think I knew about. RJ was a whole ass thug that went by Ryan. He used his full name for his thug persona. I once saw him pay Unc close to a million dollars for some investigative work.
Like RJ, I wanted to share the wealth too. I wanted to take care of Azari. I wanted to ease those worry lines on her forehead. I could tell she was embarrassed when she started her car. That shit was loud as fuck. It sounded like it would break down at any given moment. It definitely looked like it had seen better days. I didn’t care about her financial status or her health. Just the little while I talked to her increased my desire to know her. At first, itwas all surface level because of her beauty, not to mention those big ass titties on her chest.
She spoke like she had a couple of degrees already. She mostly spoke correct English. I could tell that my education level impressed her, but she didn’t realize she was way more advanced than I was. She’d gained life experiences that I hadn’t been afforded just yet. While I was twenty-eight, I didn’t know what it meant to fend for myself. Because of my connections, I didn’t have a clue what it meant to struggle financially. Plus, she had a kid. I always knew I would want kids once I settled down.
I was never a player or anything, but I had yet to meet the woman who stole my breath until now. When I walked in class on the first day and saw her seated on the second row of the auditorium, I nearly forgot I was supposed to be walking. When I touched her hand today, the heat from it nearly had me sliding my fingers through her soft looking curls. I wanted to kiss those thick ass lips so bad. It was crazy how I wanted all that without even really knowing who she was. I didn’t even know her last name.
I turned my computer on and shuffled some papers around on my desk, stupid shit most people did to make it look like they were working. My mind was running a race that I could barely keep up with. I wanted to take her five feet of thick ass perfection and worship every inch of her. In my mind, she deserved the world, and I wouldn’t stop until I convinced her to let me give it to her.
Closing my eyes and taking a deep breath, I decided to get some work done, especially since RJ was in town. He wasn’t as strict as he tried to be unless shit wasn’t getting done. I was up to date on all my work, and most days, I was in here fucking around, sketching shit. He’d seen my sketches of buildings in the Palm Beach office, and that was when I told him that I wanted tobe an architect. I didn’t realize that was what I wanted to do until a little over a year ago.
I was going to attend school in Florida, but I knew that I needed to get away for a little bit and experience life away from my family. Going home to visit whenever I wanted to was what prompted the move. If we were a little tighter financially, I wouldn’t have left. Plus, I wanted to experience Blake U. I’d heard nothing but good things about it. When I looked it up and saw the school motto, that only heightened my interest.Engrained in Legacy. Created with Purpose.
There were notable alumni from the school that were doing great things for the community. The first African American woman elected as mayor of Cove City was an alumnus. I had also heard that the night life was popping. While that wasn’t really of interest to me, it could provide relaxation and entertainment if I needed it. Being alone wasn’t new to me, but it was different in Colorado. The other students were my age back then. It was a lot easier to make friends. I also played football out there, so that made it even easier.
It was different here. I found myself getting lonely. The only people I had gotten to know here were my coworkers, and I couldn’t really say that Iknewthem. I didn’t see them outside of JC Architectural Firm. Most of them had families, so there was no hanging out after work. Every night, I was in my condo alone, either on the phone with Aunt Candace or Uncle Carrington. Every now and then, my people from Palm Beach reached out. I was never thelifeof the party, but I was usually in attendance.
The worst part was that I hadn’t had sex in nearly a year. If the wind blew just right, my dick was rising. I had a girlfriend in Palm Beach, but after we broke up, I wasn’t even trying to fuck nobody for a minute. My heart wasn’t ready. I was in love with her crazy ass. She always thought I was fucking around. If I had to work late or go out of town, her insecure ass would accuseme of having a side bitch. Being with her ass was tiring as hell. I didn’t have the energy to put anything into shit else, especially not a chase.
Dericka made me reevaluate what it was I wanted out of life. I knew I didn’t want no toxic shit like she had me in. I put way too much time and energy in that shit. Aunt Candace had made it known she didn’t like her ass the second time they were around one another. The first meeting was brief, but that second time, they actually had time to converse. Her exact words were,“I know you fucking lying. That ho crazy as fuck.”
I’d laughed and brushed her off, only to find out she was right on the money. By the time I broke up with her, we’d been together for six months, and that was six months too long. Uncle Carrington and RJ had laughed about the entire situation. They could find humor in any damn thing, especially RJ.
“Yo, yo, yo!”
