“Nah. She’s moving into my crib. We know the shit is arranged, but no one else is supposed to know it. It would kind of kill the motivation for some people to extended certain courtesies to my uncle if they knew the marriage was fake. We have to keep up appearances.”
Averi leaned against the dresser in the room. They weren’t a couple. In fact, Averi was almost certain that he slept with other people, but she never questioned him. They had fun together. The sex was amazing, and he was generous as hell. Each time she felt herself about to catch feelings for him, she pulled back a bit until it was safe. They hadn’t promised loyalty to one another, and they were both single, but for some odd reason, the news made her feel a way.
“Are you going to be sleeping in the same bed?”
Blak’s brows hiked as though it was his first time considering the question. “Shiiiiit,” he drawled. “I really don’t even know. I mean, I guess. This shit is new to me. We have to be seen out in public, live together, and she has a big ass rock on her finger. Those are the only details that I know of at the moment. That and we have to have a wedding that her father is paying for. But I mean, we’re going to be in the same house. I won’t lie and say if she wants to give me some, I won’t give her what she wants.”
Averi responded with a curt nod. There it was again that gut wrenching honesty. She could deal with him having sex with women that she didn’t see or know about. But knowing that he was going to be sharing a home with a woman had her in her feelings just a bit. Knowing if she didn’t want the feelings to grow, she had to do something about it. It was now or never.
“So, I guess this is our last time together, huh?” she asked with a small smile, and his head popped up.
“What?” he licked his lips before ogling her.
“Whether you’re married only on paper or not, marriage is a big step. You have to play the part, and I’m sure that doesn’t involve sneaking around with me. If this is where we end, then I had fun while it lasted.”
There were no tears and no theatrics. Blak was pleased. Shorty really was one of a kind. He knew that the day he met herin a coffee shop. “So, you’re worried about me being faithful to my wife?”
“Not worried just cautious. I’m not big on dealing with married men period. I wish you the best though.” Averi gave another small smile, and he watched her as he tried to decipher if she was really handling things so well or if it was all an act.
“That’s what’s up,” he replied slowly. “Had I known this would be the last time getting that pussy, I would have showed out a little more.”
Averi’s laugh was hearty. “I’m sure you would have.”
Blak stood up, and the bulge in his jeans was very noticeable. “You really about to walk out that door and never fuck with me again?” his raspy tone made her chest swell. The way he peered into her eyes made Averi’s heart race. The heat wafting off his body did nothing to stop her nipples from hardening. His chocolate skin was so beautiful, she wanted to lick him from head to toe. His jawline was strong. Muscles huge. Blak was so damn fine it was sickening. Averi attempted to speak with confidence, but her first word came out shaky, and she knew she lost the battle.
“I have to go, and you have to go.”
“I’m not getting married due to being in love. We don’t have to stop anything, but if that’s how you feel, I can’t change your mind. The wedding isn’t for another four weeks though. Let me get my last time in proper like.”
The lust in his gaze made Averi’s knees buckle. She was actually quite proud of the fact that she’d been dealing with him for as long as she had been and hadn’t turned dick dumb. Even with frizzy cornrows the man was too fine. Averi loved a man with a beard, but Blak’s mostly bare face minus a small amount of chin hair ruined her panties just the same. His offer was tempting. Real tempting but in her heart, she knew she couldn’t take it there. One thing she refused to do was lust after anotherwoman’s husband. One too many times, she’d seen people with ulterior motives start out dealing with a person for all the wrong reasons and before you knew it, those same people had fallen in love for real. Averi was smart enough to know that she wasn’t going to take part in breaking her own heart.
“I’ll think about it.” The lie came with a smile as she eased by him.
After putting her shoes on, Averi grabbed her key fob and showed herself to the door. Blak’s home was gorgeous. It had three levels, floor to ceiling windows in the living room, and a kitchen large enough to comfortably fit fifty or so people. She’d only been there twice. It took Blak eight months of knowing her to feel comfortable letting her know where he lived. Blak was observant, and he could tell that Averi’s character was on point. Plus, she made damn good money creating video games, so she didn’t have to go to crazy lengths to set him up and have him robbed. Unless, she was just a greedy bitch.
“Wait up fast ass,” Blak called out as she reached the door.
Averi pivoted and watched him descend the stairs. Blak’s chest was bare and the ridiculously thick necklace that hung around his neck rested on his dark skin. “Running to the door and shit gon’ have you missing yo’ blessings.” Blak licked his lips and passed her a wad of folded bills.
“Thank you.” Averi paused. Blak had never been much of a kisser. He’d maybe pecked her lips a few times during sex, but their exchanges were merely about pleasure. No intimacy involved. However, as close as he was to her and as intoxicating as he smelled, Averi wanted nothing more than to devour his tongue.
“No problem,” he rasped. “Be easy.”
No kiss. Her heart sank a tad bit, but she knew Blak. She wasn’t even sure why she desired it.Married. The word echoed in her head as she walked to her Kia. Inside the car, Avericounted the money, and her cheeks lifted into a grin when she was done. Blak had given her $3,200. It wasn’t his first time giving her money, but it was the first time he’d given so much. Despite his flashy ways and the things he possessed, she’d never entertained Blak because of his money or status. Three months in, he paid her car note and six months in, he paid for her portion of a girls’ trip to Bali. Last month, he’d asked her what she was doing while she was grocery shopping and when she told him, he sent her $1,000 for food.
Averi appreciated those small gestures. She wasn’t about to ask the man for Louie or Gucci because if she wanted those things, she could get them herself. Averi had never played video games, but she damn sure loved creating them. Averi created the concepts, characters, and rules for video games. Once the specifics were worked out, she met with a team to collaborate on developing the game and bringing the idea to life. She had been doing it for the past two years, and she loved it. At the age of twenty-eight, she’d just closed on her first home. Her newest goal was to have her car paid off in the next few months. The cash that Blak had given her would help Averi to reach that milestone, so she wasn’t even mad.
At most, she was disappointed that she’d no longer be getting the D, but that was life. From the moment Blak ambled over to her and asked for her number, she knew he’d be around for a good time not a long time. She’d witnessed too many people get hurt by men like Blak. They were too fine and had too many women for their own good. Breaking hearts, ruining lives, and creating trauma were activities they excelled in, and she wanted no parts. When she was twenty-three, Averi made a promise to herself that her last heartbreak would be just that. Her last. Determined to keep the promise to herself, Averi pulled off with a smile dancing on her lips. She’d miss him, but she’d be okaywithout him. People came and went. That was how it would always be.
Blak trekked to the entrance of the courthouse with his birth certificate folded in hand. Foolishly, he never thought marrying Naomi would have any negative effects on what he had going on. Any woman he entertained was purely sexual, and he was never questioned about anything he did. Sure, women got in their feelings when he didn’t do what they wanted him to or when he didn’t stop anything he had going on to appease them, but they got over it. Blak had never been one to sweat any female, but he had to wonder if Averi was really done with him, or if she was just talking because it sounded good.
Naomi was bad. And he wouldn’t mind fucking her, but he wasn’t taking their union serious. He was doing his uncle a solid and looking out for himself in the long run. The proposition was made to him because the only one of Tech’s sons that hustled was Block. And while Block loved his father, even Naomi’s king pin of a father knew better than to ask Block to marry his daughter. That nigga would have automatically said no and stood ten toes on that shit. Blak looked at the marriage as a minor inconvenience for a major come up. Yes, he had money and clientele. But he wasn’t at the top of the totem pole. Blak loved his uncle, but Tech for damn sure wouldn’t be the only one that was blessed from this marriage. Blak had made sure to negotiate some pretty good perks for his damn self so for what was to come, he’d marry Naomi with no hesitation. He would even make it look good for the public, but this wasn’t that, and he hoped she knew it.
“Got me losing bitches already,” Blak mumbled as he opened the heavy door.
When he entered the first level of the courthouse, he spotted Naomi sitting on a bench with her legs crossed. Shorty was bad, and Blak found himself eyeing her and attempting to conclude if she was worth losing Averi for. When her head lifted and their eyes locked, he quickly decided she was. She was bad, and she came with perks. Naomi was affiliated and while Blak had his own motion, the added bonuses wouldn’t hurt at all.
Naomi stood. She appeared nervous which was something he had never observed the few times they met in passing. Naomi was confident and always walked with her head held high. Her father was that nigga, and she was hood royalty. The hood wasn’t the only place in Diamond Cove where she had been crowned. Naomi’s father, James, went to great lengths to keep his hands clean. Once he fell back from being visibly affiliated with certain people, places, and things, his wife went to law school. She was more than a much sought after attorney. She was into politics, did a lot of charity work, and was a staple in the black community. Naomi could literally go anywhere and if she wasn’t acknowledged as the daughter of a king pin, she was recognized as one of the city’s flyest, young socialites. Naomi knew damn near everyone and had made a job out of being on the scene. When certain influencers and even some B list celebrities came to town, they’d reach out to Naomi to see if she was busy or to ask her which spots they should hit.
