Page 23 of Free to Love You
Erie was his nickname as of a few days ago. I liked it, but I wasn’t sure if he did. “Explode on this dick. Let me get that nut.”
My body followed his every command. I didn’t mind at all. My body shook as I felt my soul leave my body, do a pirouette, then come back. Moments later, I felt him explode inside of me. I was spent. His chuckle drew my eyes to him. “What?”
He smacked my hip. “Your ass wrote a check that you almost couldn’t cash. I’m proud of you.”
He pulled himself out of me, climbed off the bed, then walked toward the bathroom. I settled in bed, ready to take a nap. “Nope! Get your ass up and get in this shower. We got a market to get to.”
Rachel suggested that we come to the marketplace first. She felt that if I just popped up at the hospital that everyone would know someone told me prior to me popping up at the market. If I popped up at the market, then she could say something. She’d rather that she got in trouble for telling me in the moment than everyone wondering how I found out beforehand.
“Why don’t we just go . . . ah! Erie, put me down!” I couldn’t stop laughing.
When I first met him, he didn’t come across as a carefree, silly type of man. For the most part, in public, he wasn’t. It was moments like these where he pulled off his Dr. Carson hat. Oh, I tried a lounge again and it was a completely different experience. It was me, Erie, Beyuna, Benyon, and his friend that I made a quilt for. I hoped he made her his girlfriend because she was really a great person. When I was in public with Erie, I noticed that he was very protective, and I loved that feeling.
Erie and I taking a shower together was more sex than shower. That was the reason we didn’t take them together often. I guess it would be shower sex, shower, then to the marketplace we go.
The Marketplace . . .
I changed my outfit four times before Erie told me it was enough. I settled on a long maxi dress with a distressed, denim crop jacket and a pair of flats. I knew that as a person I was transforming, but I still wanted to respect where I came from. My hair was in its curly natural state up in a messy bun. I got my ears pierced shortly after my first date with Erie and wore a pair of diamond studs that my baby bought me.
“You ready, Love?” Erie squeezed my hand to get my attention. When he had it, he leaned over and kissed my lips. “I promise that everything will be alright. No matter what they say, you will be alright. Now, if anyone gets too disrespectful, I’m going to tell you now that beef and chicken won’t be the only thing barbecued.”
I glared at him for a moment before my eyes softened. I knew he meant what he said because he was my protector. “Can you be Dr. Carson for as long as you can before you go to Erygon Carson?”
He gave me his toothy smile. That was when I realized he had in his gold, diamond fronts. He wore a pair of dark denim jeans, a polo styled shirt, and a pair of matching sneakers. His gold watch dressed his wrist boldly. There was nothing modest abouthis appearance. As modest as I tried to dress today, the matching watch on my wrist stood out. “I’ll try for you.”
I said a quick prayer. We walked into the marketplace from the side entrance. My family’s bakery and barbecue restaurant was in front of the market. I held my man’s hand as we walked toward the front. Rachel was the first to notice me because we had video chatted on the tablet. I walked her through creating a Facebook account. I was her only friend. She knew not to say anything, but her smile was bright.
We got into the line like the rest of the customers. Rachel was at the register. “May I have an apple cinnamon bun?” She rang me up. I took a deep breath. “Hi, Rachel, Leah.”
Leah’s head popped up. Her eyes squinted before she stopped her task to walk to the register. “Lovina, is that you?”
I followed her eyes as they took in my appearance. “Yes, it’s me,” I said with a giggle. “How are y’all doing?”
She didn’t respond because her eyes were focused on Erie. Rachel took the chance to speak. “Hey, Lovina. You look so pretty. Who is this?”
I wanted to laugh because she wanted to rip the band aid off. Erie stepped forward. “It’s nice to meet you two. I’m her husband, Dr. Erygon Carson.”
He didn’t offer his hand for them to shake. Leah’s gasp was low but still audible. Without acknowledging Erie, she rushed out of the bakery to where my father and brothers worked adjacent from the bakery. I watched as she spoke, then five heads shot up, and eyes fell on me and Erie.
I made sure I came at a time when traffic was slow. I wanted to give them the opportunity to speak with me if they chose to. My father wiped his hands on his apron, then walked out of his section to come over to the bakery. I noticed Rachel placed theClosed for Lunchsign in the window.
“Lovina, what are you doing here? You chose to leave us, and now you are crawling back,” he said in a matter of a fact tone. I wondered why he thought I came here with the intention of crawling back.
Before I responded, Erie reached his hand out. “Mr. Stoltzfuz, it’s nice to meet you. I’m Dr. Erygon Carson, Lovina’s husband.”
Like I knew they would, his eyes traveled down to our hands. A gorgeous wedding ring rested on my finger, and a very nice band sat on his. His eyes lingered on them. These were not the modest titanium rings that most of the married couples wore in our community.
Like Erygon said we would do, we were married at the courthouse two days after he proposed at Ayriss’s play. His family was there to witness it all. I wore the most beautiful dress and even heels. There was a photographer, videographer, and we had a very nice dinner afterward. My courthouse wedding was more than any Amish ceremony that I could imagine. My choice to leave the community was a hard one, but marrying Dr. Carson wasn’t.
My love for Instalove books transferred over into my real life. Mama Beauvia said that we would have a ceremony within the next six months. I was excited because I wouldn’t be confined within the restraints to be modest. I could live out loud and public with my love for my husband.
“Married, huh? You have been gone for a short time, but you are already married?” My father’s sarcastic tone was expected, but not bothersome. That was progress for me. His eyes narrowed on Erie. “A doctor? You don’t appear to be a doctor.”
Erie lowered his head with a chuckle. When he lifted it to focus on my father, I knew this conversation would slowly get out of hand. “Understandable, sir. Looks can be extremely deceiving. From where I stand, you don’t seem like much of afather, but such is perception. To answer your doubt, yes, I am an anesthesiologist in Charleston, South Carolina.
“As far as our marriage, love is not on a schedule. As a man, I’m sure that you know that when you meet the woman that God has for you, you act.” He shrugged his shoulders. “I acted and made her Mrs. Erygon Carson.”
My father just stared. I was so zoned into their conversation that I didn’t realize we had an audience of my siblings. The only one that didn’t seem bothered by Erie’s presence was Rachel. My brothers looked disgusted as they examined his tattoos, which were all on display. I was sure they got a peep of his mouth jewelry.
