Page 30 of Night and Day
“Hi,” he said.
Tamika stopped a few feet away. “You tracked me down, again.”
He laughed, his voice low and sexy. “I did.”
“You have some interesting resources. Should I be concerned that you might be a stalker?”
“Absolutely.”
He closed the distance between them and looked down at her, his face falling into serious lines. He still hadn’t taken his hands out of his pockets.
“I kept thinking you’d probably be out with some guy having a great time tonight.”
“I don’t go out like I used to. I’m mostly a homebody now. I hit the club scene pretty heavy when I first moved to Atlanta, and I may have danced on a bar top a time or two.”
Anton laughed.
“I’m serious,” Tamika said.
The smile on his face died. “Oh.”
Living under her father’s roof as an adult had meant she still had to abide by his rules, and though she went out, she’d been careful about her behavior. When she arrived in Atlanta, she’d partied hard with her co-workers and other friends she’d made, but nowadays, going out to a nice dinner or heading to the bowling alley was all the excitement she could handle.
As they continued to look at each other, the air vibrated with longing and sexual energy.
“I don’t know what’s happening to me. I don’t usually act like this—impulsive,” he said. “And I was going to save the next question for later—much later. Maybe another week or so because I don’t want to scare you off. But now that I’ve seen you again, I realize that I have to say what’s on my mind. I don’t want to see anyone else, Tamika. I don’t want date around or slow down so I can figure out if we’re right for each other. I already know that we’re right for each other, and I want you to move in with me. Now. Today.Can you picture it? You and me together?”
Heart thudding, Tamika gazed up at him. She understood what he meant, about not understanding what was happening. She didn’t understand either but was confident she was about to make the right decision and didn’t care what anyone thought.
Impulsive was her middle name.
“Yes, I can,” she answered.
“So you’ll move in with me?”
“Will I have my own bedroom?” Tamika asked.
“Nah. You’ll have to share mine.”
“Sounds tight.”
“But I think you’ll like it.”
“I’m sure I will.” Her smile broadened. “Yes, I’ll move in with you.”
14
Anton exited the car and walked up the steps with his briefcase and the mail he’d picked up from the box. This had been one of the most stressful weeks of his life, but coming home to Tamika made all the difference.
Two weeks in, and he didn’t regret his decision to ask her to move in at all. Yes, the question had been impulsive. Yes, he wondered if he was crazy—and so did his friends and family, but he hadn’t regretted the decision.
For one, she was usually the first one home, which meant when he arrived, he had the utmost pleasure of being welcomed home by a woman with a big personality. Not to mention she walked around the apartment in short shorts and tight tanks, sweatpants and tight tees, all of which were a feast for the eyes.
Though they shared the bedroom with an ensuite bathroom, he’d given Tamika full reign of the second bathroom in the hall. Lucky for him, he’d done that. When she wasn’t at the commercial kitchen, she experimented with and analyzed the product lines of other companies—very evident the one time he went into her bathroom to get a piece of tissue. He’d never seen so much makeup and skincare products outside of a department store.
The moment Anton stepped across the threshold, a delicious aroma greeted him. Another perk of having Tamika live with him was that he sometimes had the pleasure of a home-cooked meal. Last week she’d cooked twice, but this week, she’d cooked every night.
He dropped the envelopes on the glass coffee table and inhaled the enticing scent of simmering spaghetti sauce filled with basil, oregano, and garlic.
