Page 40 of The Phyre that Burns
“I’m so glad you didn’t drag this out for that long, Ginae,” Jacklin said. “I was doing my best to give you grace. I couldn’t imagine having to work so closely with one of my exes, but damn, your attitude left a lot to be desired.”
Ginae gasped, looking completely shocked, as everyone agreed with Jacklin.
“I was nice to everyone,” she said in her defense.
“Is that what you call nice?” Lauryn asked.
“I don’t think you were mean, but you definitely weren’t nice,” Tania said.
“Damn. My bad. It wasn’t my—” she began before I interrupted.
“You don’t have to explain or apologize, baby. They were well aware of the situation and aren’t holding anything against you, right?”
Everyone agreed immediately, and Lauryn spoke up.
“It’s cool, Ginae. We’ve all experienced heartbreak—well, except for Waylen’s community penis having ass—and you were working under some extenuating circumstances. The way Dr. J still loved you after all these years, we knew you had a good heart.”
“And if you didn’t, it was his fault, so we wouldn’t blame you,” Tania added.
“I still feel bad because I’m genuinely a happy person. It took every ounce of energy I had to come in here each day and pretend like Phyre wasn’t the only man I’ve ever loved. In my quest to ice him out, I may have been a little cold toward y’all, and I’m sorry. How about y’all forget last week and we start fresh today?” Ginae offered.
They accepted her apology, and Ginae insisted on a group hug. It was corny as hell, but we obliged. After our kumbaya moment, we scattered about with a few minutes left before we officially opened for the day.
“Today was so much better. Last week, the tension was thick as hell,” Waylen said as we prepared to leave.
“I apologized once, but that’s all y’all getting,” Ginae said with a smile.
“Nah, girl. As we moved through the day, I realized it wasn’t just you. Dr. J wasn’t the easiest to deal with last week either,” Tania said.
“He sure as hell wasn’t, snapping at people for no reason and giving one-word answers,” Lauryn added.
“We’re not about to keep bringing up old shit. I might have been a little tense, but?—”
“A little?” Everyone but Ginae chimed.
“Maybe more than a little, but we’ve moved on. Right, baby?”
I slipped my arm around Ginae’s waist and pulled her against my body.
“Right,” she agreed.
“Y’all heard my woman. We’ve moved on. If y’all keep bringing up old shit, your invitation to the wedding might get lost in the mail.”
They continued to tease us all the way out of the building. I wasn’t surprised by their behavior today because that was how we were with each other. I wouldn’t trade my staff for anything, because as much as I enjoyed my chosen profession, they made it a lot easier.
“Do you have plans tonight?” I asked Ginae when I got behind the wheel.
“I thought we were going to the condo to pack my things and take them to your house.”
“If that’s the case, it’sourhouse.”
“My name isn’t on the deed, so it’s your house, but I don’t mind moving in while I’m in town. Don’t make the condo available, just in case you get sick of me and I have to move back in.”
“You keep saying while you’re in town, as if I’ll let you leave, but we’ll cross that bridge another time. I couldn’t imagine ever getting sick of you. My sister invited us to dinner, and I wanted to see if you already had plans.”
“Umm, okay. I guess packing my things can wait another day. I still need to go to the condo to pack a bag for tomorrow and find something to wear tonight. Are we going to her home or a restaurant?”
“She wants to meet at Elm Street Blues. I’m pretty sure it was around when you were in here.”
