A throat cleared.
“Sorry,” I murmured. Caught, I proceeded, eating another bite ofhisfood.Dang. He’d given me the rogue-tear-as-you-cry-in-ecstasy moment every Black woman craved, and I stole his shrimp and grits.
“I see how it is. You didn’t even try to back down.” Montana picked up my plate and went to the stove.
Dang, Zuri! More heat burned up my throat while he placed another heaping in front of me. “Thanks,” I deadpanned. “I can’t eat all of this.”
“Could’ve fooled me.” His voice was a teasing rasp.
“Hah.” I gestured to the phone he slid onto the table. “Wanna talk about it?”
“Ezekiel didit.”
“A lawsuit?” I undertoned in disbelief.
“Hearing’s set for March 24th. Good. Give him time to find a shady therapist. Get those emotional damage receipts. Please.” He scoffed. “Only trauma that fool is gonna see is me ghosting him. Like he’s done me all my life.”
How did I convince Montana to attend court? My hand strokedhis beard. “Oh, baby. He’s supposed to be someone you can trust most in this world.”
“Nah.”
“Yes, your father.”
“I trust God, Zuri! My momma. My brothas. My sis, Mad—though she’s living up to her nickname. Auntie Peaches.Some ofmy family. You.”
“Same.” My hand squeezed his, and the connection thrumming through our palms brought us to higher ground together. Virginia told me to be the salt. Bring him to my level. But this … us talking, growing together, softened my heart.
Besides, I doubt that’s where we should stop. We should be constantly striving. Growing. Was that her point? Once we were on the same level, we climb together.
My eyes darted to the leather jacket. The contract. Something I still believed in.Can I have more of you, Montana?
I remembered that ache in the HC&PP kitchen when I asked to get real with him, in front of a crowd. Now it was just us. My moment.
My chest heaved as I slid the plate away and scooted over on the counter until I was close enough to Montana. My legs rested over the counter, beside his obliques. His breath caught, unraveling the tension that resided in his shoulders.
The space between us felt thick and heavy. His gaze locked on mine, causing another shift.
Less tension.
My voice came out low, a tremble of emotion, laced in affection. “Montana, baby …” I swallowed, his name heavy on my tongue. “I know the sting of betrayal, the kind that comes from someone you should trust.”
His jaw tightened, eyes dark like he wanted to pull me in, but didn’t trust himself to. If Montana fell for me in the silence … let it be.
A moment later, Montana scooped me off the island countertopand carried me over to the open French doors. We sat outside on a couch, and he pulled me onto his lap, a blanket surrounding us.
Though he didn’t say it, some of the resentment he held for his father seemed to disappear. Perhaps the ghosts of my past, standing between us, and my confession of betrayal by those I trusted, helped close the distance. I desperately needed to believe that, because if his heart weren’t so weighed down, maybe his love for me would flourish beyond this fleeting month.
After a time, Montana spoke. “You know all about me,chère.” His palm stroked my spine, while my cheek lay in the crook of his neck. His beard tickled my forehead, the Bay rum oil scent enveloping me. “If you have any questions. Hesitation,bébé. Ask.”
“No, I don’t. You’ve been honest with me, Montana. Even your alter ego is brutally honest.”
“Okay.” That soft, firm drag of his palm never stalled. “Tell me your story, Zuri. That’s all I ask.”
zuri
. . .
Four Years Ago
