“This little house lit your whole face up,” Cassidy observed.
“I used to do these with my mom every year on Christmas Eve,” Sloan stated. She picked up one of the gummy candies and popped it into her mouth.“The trick is to make sure you put extra icing on the corners of the walls, otherwise, it’s just going to fall apart.”
She was so meticulous about each placement of every little candy piece.
“You eating more candy than you decorating with,” Cassidy joked. Her laughter professed her guilt.
“That’swhy the back of my house always blank. Mind your business if you not gon’help,” Sloan chastised.
“I’ma let you do your thing,” he said, admiring her.
“Whatever happened to that nigga you were so in love with back in the day?” Cassidy asked.
“DeyontaeCook?” Sloan knew exactly who Cassidy was talking about.
“Yeah, that nigga,” Cassidy said with distaste.“Old-ass nigga, dating your young ass.”
“He was only a senior,” Sloan defended.
“And you were in 8thgrade,” Cassidy stated.“Matterfact, you were in the 7th grade when he first started sniffing around. Chester-ass nigga. That’swhy I beat that nigga ass. Ho-ass nigga.”
“Times were different back then,” Sloan stated, laughing.“It was like a badge of honor to pull an older boy. When I look back, it washella creepy.”
“You used to love his bitch ass, too,” Cassidy judged.
“Yeah, until he went to college and broke my heart,” Sloan informed.“We lasted a few years. His junior year I got onBlackPlanet and found out he was in another girl’s top five. Turns out he was her boyfriend at Michigan State. As I was starting my senior year, I was nursing my first real heartbreak.”
“That top five was treacherous back in the day. I remember three different girls had me in their top five, caught my ass up,” he said, reminiscing as they shared a laugh.
“Who came after him?” Cassidy asked.
Sloan frowned.“Are you checking my ho fax?”
Cassidy bellowed at that. He sipped his drink and came around the bar, pulling up the stool next to hers.
“I’m trying to figure out why a woman like you doesn’t have a man,” Cassidy pried.
“Men don’t like alpha women, Cass. I make my own money, so impressing me with moneyisn’t a sure win for them. Then the ones whoaren’t in my tax bracket think I’m stuck-up. I work all the time, so I don’t have hours to spend on the phone with someone. I don’t respond to texts right away. I can’t hang out at all times of night. Men lose interest in me fast,” Sloan admitted.“Being too accomplished is a thing for women.”
“Seems like a trivial thing to overlook a woman like you for,” Cassidy answered.
“Until you’re the man on the other side of 60-hour workweeks, and I’m too tired to have sex at night,” Sloan said.“The men I’ve datedaren’t wrong. I get it.”
“I don’t,” he said as he watched her closely. Everything about Sloan was feminine. From her dainty, almond-shaped, French set, to the way she sat cross-legged on the bar stool.“Niggas have made you think you’re not the prize just because you’re hard to catch.”
He watched her place the final piece of candy on the gingerbread roof, and then she dusted off her hands.
“There,” she beamed with a smile.“All done.” She cracked off a piece of the roof.
“All that work just to destroy it,” he chuckled. She bit into the gooey treat, laughing.
“Yup. You want to try?” she asked. She held it to his mouth, and he bit a piece of the snack. They were one drink in, and the temperature in the room was rising. Their eyes met, and she quickly looked away.“I should go,” she said.
Cassidy finished his drink and then set the tumbler on the countertop. He knocked on the wood before standing.“Okay,” he said.“I’ma wrap-up here. You should head home before it gets too late. I’ma make sure I drop the diapers and shit off to Courtney like you asked.”
She stood, gathered her bag, and dug her keys out .“You remembered,” she smiled.
“I know a honey-do list when I hear one,” Cassidy snickered.
