I melted against his sheets.
“Don’t look at me that way.”
“You leave me no choice. I’m fascinated. Admittedly, I’m in disbelief.”
“How so?”
“I’m trying my hardest to understand why God didn’t sit you in my path long ago. I could’ve used your presence. Would’ve saved me so much ene–”
“Timing is everything, Ishmael.”
He nodded. “It is.”
We embraced the comforting silence. Two full minutes passed before my lips parted again.
“Leave before I beg you to stay.”
“Begging wouldn’t be necessary.”
“No?”
“I don’t need much convincing, Royce.”
Ishmael placed the cup of coffee on the dark wood nightstand. He kneeled beside the bed, his face near mine. I covered my mouth with the cream sheet.
“I have morning breath.”
Ishmael pulled the cover from my face, tucking it under my chin. He placed a hand around my neck and leaned forward. When our lips touched, my eyes closed.
It was the natural reaction to his closeness. He felt so much like a figment of my imagination that I struggled to keep my eyesopen with him near. This didn’t feel like reality. Though he’d reiterated the fact that he no longer wanted to participate, he still felt make-believe.
Otherwise, there was no perspicuous explanation for his perfection. Lucidity failed me with matters concerning Ishmael. He stripped me of my brilliance. And, for all the right reasons.
“You were mistaken if you assumed I gave a fuck, my baby.”
He wiped remnants of me from his mouth as he pulled backward. He stood, towering over me. Discomfort stirred me awake completely. I tossed my legs over the bed, unprepared for Ishmael’s departure.
He dug into the pocket of his blazer and removed a sleek, black and gold YSL wallet. He removed the glistening card and shoved it in my direction.
“I’m not sorry for fucking your hair up, but I regretted the decision shortly after it had been made.”
“Did you?”
He nodded.
“Only because I liked the way it looked from my favorite spot.”
I clenched, pressing my walls together.
“Where could that be?”
“Face wedged between your thighs.”
My cheeks flushed as my smile reached my eyes.
“Go get your shit fixed, my baby. And, whatever else your heart desires,on me.”
My fingers curled around the thickness of his AMEX.
