Page 2 of Loving a Libra
“I’ve heard that a hundred times before, yet here you are. You got it good with me, Devyn. You don’t pay bills or spend your money. Most women wouldn’t care about marriage if their man is taking care of them like I take care of you.”
I didn’t respond because that was one of his go-to lines. Little did he know, letting me stack all my money was a mistake on his part, because when I left, it would be with a bang.
The rest of the ride was silent, aside from the nineties music coming from the radio. Many thoughts swirled through my mind as he weaved through the streets of Chicago, heading toward our condo downtown.
Niggas would play in your face and let you waste your good years on them, only for the relationship to end, and they’d go out and find a younger version of you to do all the things you wanted to do. I didn’t think Maurice was that kind of man, but lately, I’d begun to wonder.
I’d fallen asleep before we arrived home and woke up to Maurice gently shaking me and calling my name. I opened my eyes and looked around before sitting up.
“Why didn’t you go to the garage?”
“I need to stop byERLto check on things. Riq had a date tonight and won’t be there either. I won’t be long.”
I restrained myself from rolling my eyes because I was proud of my man for running a successful business in the city of Chicago. However, I sometimes thought he used it as an excuse to stay out late.
“Tariq had a date? That’s surprising.” I was shocked by the twinge of jealousy I felt.
Maurice frowned. “You clocking his whereabouts or something?”
“What? No. I’m just saying, besidesERL, he doesn’t go out much. Chill.”
“Let me find out you keeping tabs on another nigga.”
I didn’t have to keep tabs on Tariq because he willingly shared his schedule with me. I was surprised to hear about him having a date because he didn’t mention it the last time we spoke.
“Whatever. Don’t you have managers on duty for the times when neither of you can come in?”
“Are you about to complain about me running my business?”
“No, I’m just saying. You act like you gotta go in every night. What’s the point of?—”
“I gotta go, Devyn.”
I was tired and didn’t have the energy to argue with him, so I let go of the fact that he interrupted me while I was speaking.
“Okay.”
I got out, not bothering to lean over the console for a kiss. A few minutes later, I stepped out of the elevator on the twelfth floor and headed toward our unit. Tariq was coming out of his unit, which was across the hall from ours.
Maurice was fine, but Tariq was drop-dead gorgeous. Upon first glance, one would assume Tariq was a street nigga. Histattoos started at his neck and covered his chest, back, and arms. Both of his ears were also pierced.
He had soft hair that was cut into a curly fade, and sometimes, I caught myself daydreaming about running my fingers through his curls. His facial hair was always trimmed and lined to perfection. His face probably made the perfect seat for some lucky women over the years.
Unlike Maurice, most days, Tariq didn’t dress like a man who ran a business. He preferred to be casual in jeans, sweatpants, T-shirts, hoodies, and name-brand gym shoes. When he did dress up, he was a sight for sore eyes.
It was a bit late to be leaving for a date, and he wasn’t dressed as if he was trying to impress anyone, but I suppose it depended on what kind of date it was. Tariq had become very much a homebody over the past couple of years and was selective about the type of women he spent time with, so he didn’t date much.
“Hot date?” I asked as we approached each other, stopping in the middle of the hallway. I noticed his confusion immediately, so I explained. “Maurice said you weren’t going toERLtonight because you had a date.”
“Oh. I . . . umm, . . . yeah. The date was nice.”
He couldn’t look me in the eyes as he spoke, so I knew he was lying.
“You don’t owe me anything, but the least you could do is tell the truth.”
“My bad, Devyn. I was a little caught off guard.”
“I imagine you were, since Maurice lied on your behalf. Are you headed toERL?”
