He pulled her to him and wrapped his arms around her. “You were well worth the wait.”
***
Samira quietly searched Andy’s dresser drawers until she found a t-shirt to borrow. She was hungry, but he was sleeping so peacefully she didn’t want to wake him. After helping out in his kitchen the night before, she was sure she could manage to make breakfast. She slipped on a shirt then padded downstairs barefoot, making as little noise as possible.
Coffee was first. She was relieved to find a regular coffee pot and a can of ground coffee. Unsure how much coffee Andy drank in the mornings, she decided to brew an entire pot. She located the cabinet that held the pots and pans in no time. His refrigerator was reasonably stocked, so bacon and eggs alongwith some of the leftover fresh fruit from the night before sounded like the perfect plan.
“Good morning,” she heard from behind her as she was removing the last of the bacon from the pan.
She turned and was pleasantly surprised to see Andy wearing nothing but blue flannel pajama pants. She smiled and took a moment to appreciate the view of lean muscle that rippled from his chest to his abdomen. He had a smirk on his face once her eyes made their way back up.
She was glad her skin tone made things less noticeable when she felt the warm flush spread across her cheeks. “You hungry?”
“Yes. And breakfast sounds good, too,” he answered.
Instantly, Samira’s thoughts went to the night before. She had never felt such a connection with anyone. It was more than just something to do while she had to live there for the next several weeks. It was a connection that would be difficult to walk away from. The thought should have worried her, but it didn’t.
Andy took the coffee cup from her hand and set it on the counter before pulling her into his arms. He brought his mouth to hers, his hands warm as they roamed across her sensitive flesh. She could feel his grin when he found nothing underneath her shirt. His shirt.
“I’m glad you stayed.”
“I’m glad you asked me to stay,” she replied before standing on her toes to resume the kiss.
He pulled her closer and slipped both hands under the back of her shirt to caress her back. His hands were warm, and she could feel the strength beneath his gentle touch. Gripping his shoulders, she pulled him closer and deepened the kiss. His quiet groan had her smiling into the kiss.
She pulled back just enough to speak but was interrupted by the sound of his front door banging shut. They both joltedat the sound. Samira whipped around and was shocked to see Elizabeth standing in the doorway.
“Mom. I didn’t know you were coming over,” Andy said as he stepped in front of Samira.
Samira was mortified. There she stood wearing nothing but Andy’s shirt. The only thing that could have been worse was if she had walked in on them having sex. She made the split-second decision to get out of there.
“I’m going to get going. I have to get ready for the work week,” she managed before making a mad dash to the stairs.
Once in his bedroom, Samira tried to work out how to handle the situation. His mother was not happy, and it was all she could do to not let her mind return to the past. Whatever happened in the past was not the same thing. They were adults who had their own homes and lived by their own rules. They could make their own decisions. Even as she repeated those thoughts to herself, her heart continued to sink.
Hopefully, if she took long enough up there, Elizabeth would leave. She picked up her clothes from the various locations around the room and tiptoed to the bathroom for a shower. The only soap in there was his bodywash and using it did nothing to slow the memories of the night before. She didn’t spend long in the shower. Her main goal was to no longer look and smell like sex in case Elizabeth was still around when she emerged to make her quick exit.
She put on her clothes from the night before with the exception of her panties. Those, she tossed into his hamper. She would rather go without than put on a pair she had already worn. She straightened up her clothes and fixed her hair to the best of her ability without any hair products on hand. She was halfway down the stairs before she could overhear Andy and Elizabeth talking.
“…I understand that, but it doesn’t change the fact that she isn’t right for you,” Elizabeth’s voice said in the distance.
“I don’t want to hear it. I’m not a teenager anymore. I’ll live my own life. I’m sorry if that upsets you,” Andy’s voice said, slightly clearer than his mother’s.
“It doesn’t upset me. I just don’t want you to make a mistake by being with someone who isn’t one of us.”
Samira froze. She had been told how his parents felt about her, but she didn’t fully believe it without hearing it with her own ears. Her face and chest grew hot while a cold chill snaked down her back. She began to shake even though it was not the first time she’d overheard someone saying negative things about her. It never got easier.
After descending the last of the steps, she walked past Andy and his mother talking. She stopped long enough to mumble to Andy that she was headed home before she finished her quick exit. She had to get home before she broke down.
She unlocked her front door and couldn’t believe how history could repeat itself. She had walked through those same doors with the same sense of heartbreak over the same man. Tears fell as soon as she shut the door behind herself and made her way to the couch. The blanket was soft around her body but did not do much to control her shivering.
Without hearing the entire conversation, it was impossible to know for certain what had been said, but she was sure she’d heard enough. She took some comfort in hearing Andy stand up to his mother, but he could have done more to come to her defense. She was stupid to think they could start something and leave the past behind without dealing with it. Here she was, at this point in her life, getting slapped in the face with the reminder that she was different from the people around her.
Differences were what made the world interesting. She could no longer allow someone else’s opinion of her to determine herlife. She had left her hometown and her friends and family because of the opinion of Andy’s family. The reason she didn’t return home was because she was afraid of what people thought of her.
She set the blanket aside and went to the kitchen for the breakfast she didn’t get the chance to eat. Sitting on the couch feeling sorry for herself was not an option. She had already cooked breakfast once so she grabbed a yogurt and a banana and would call it breakfast. She did brew herself a pot of coffee since she also didn’t have the chance to finish that. Her emotions began to shift to anger; anger at the way her morning turned out all over something that had everything to do with her while also having nothing to do with her.
Chapter 11
