Page 46 of Sugar Pie
He lowered himself back on the pillow and took my hand to hold between us. “I’ve had girlfriends before, but you’re the only one that I can picture in my life for more than a moment. I trust you.”
I swallowed. I wasn’t ready for a lifelong anything and told myself it was just casual sex. Before I could say anything, my phone rang.
Warren reached across the nightstand and grabbed my phone. He swiveled back and handed it to me. “You should answer. It’s your mom.”
She was the only one who called me other than Warren, as my father was never a phone person. “It’s late for her.”
He shrugged. “Might be important.”
I pursed my lips, imagining how she would object to how I was running my life, as Warren wasn’t a doctor or an insurance expert like Dad. “We’ll see.” Then I answered and ignored how rattled my skin was when I asked, “Mom, is everything okay? You’re calling late.”
“Did I wake you?”
I took Warren’s hand. “No. What’s going on?”
“I spoke to Romeo.”
Thankfully, I hadn’t hit the speaker button. I closed my eyes and whispered, knowing Warren heard everything, but I wished I hadn’t answered. “We’re divorced. If you love me, you won’t talk to him anymore.”
“He told me. I was in complete shock, but he implied you were cheating on him with a Norouzi.”
This was the late-night emergency?The name meant nothing to me, except it had been on Warren’s driver’s license. Who I was with didn’t matter to Romeo, though. I blinked. “I don’t know who that is.”
“We’d like you to bring him home.”
Right. Then they could judge whether he was good enough for me. If Warren was successful, maybe she would accept him in my life. Her approval wasn’t necessary, but she’d been the only anchor in my life forever. I let out a sigh. “Mom, I’m going to make my own life choices this time, and right now, I should tell you that I really like a guy, but know right now that he’s a general contractor.”
“You do?”
“Absolutely.” I said.
Warren winked at me.
My mother said, “Be careful not to get your heart broken, dear. People who think money never comes never have it. And you only know the nice parts of life. Please don’t be afraid to talk to me.”
When she wasn’t applying constant pressure for me to be someone I couldn’t be, she was a decent mom. My lips tingled as I stared at Warren. “I have to go. Bye.” I hung up and turned the phone off. There would be no more interruptions.
I handed Warren the phone, and he put it behind him. “So you like me?”
I nodded. “Like” was too weak a word. “You make me believe in myself.”
He pressed his forehead to mine, and warm goose bumps grew all over me as he said, “Likewise, though there is something I should tell you about me.”
I kissed him lightly. “It can wait. I think we should re-create what happened earlier.” Then I tugged him closer and let our lips meld together.
I needed him inside me again. The rest of the world could wait, because for once, I was happy.
* * *
His warm body against me and his hand holding mine startled me as I woke. It was still dark. I jumped, but he turned toward me and continued to slumber.
I took a few deep breaths. For years, I’d been alone in a bed. My ex was usually absent and left me after sex, not that he’d been thrilling between the sheets. Warren outclassed him.
My heart beat wildly, but I lay back down. Maybe I should have regretted what we did the night before, but I felt my lips curve into a grin.
I was happy. He was there and stayed and cared about me.
He hugged me, and tingles shot down to my toes, the way they always did when I touched him. “Good morning,” he whispered.
