“Can we talk outside?” I finally asked.
He nodded and turned to Glamma, giving her a smile. “I’ll come back in to help with that dresser when we’re done.”
She smiled at him over jeweled reading glasses. “Good boy.”
I shook my head at them, holding on to the frame and all the hope it gave me until we stood on the front porch and could talk in the guise of privacy.
“You bought her a boutique?” I asked.
He tilted his head to the side. “Seems like she was keeping them afloat on her own.”
I laughed, the light feeling unexpectedly wonderful. “When did you do that?”
“As soon as I found out you were making returns to pay your bills.”
The way he said it made buying a business seem so uncomplicated despite the messiness of our situation. “Can you return a business?” I asked him. “You know, if you’ve changed your mind about us?”
“Jada...” He reached out, holding my cheek in his palm.
My jaw trembled. This was it, wasn’t it? The shopping bags—that was his way of feeling good about cutting me loose. “It’s okay,” I told him. Or maybe I was telling myself.
But then he said, “I’m not changing my mind.”
I looked up at him, confused. “What?”
His thumb crested the apple of my cheek. “I’ve been falling for you too, Jada, but I didn’t believe in love at first sight until I saw the photo of her.”
My breath caught. “Do you mean…?”
“It’s the three of us,” he said. Then he smiled, tilted his head toward the house. “The four of us. From here on out.”
I opened my mouth to speak, but then the doorknob twisted, sounding the rasp of metal on metal. We both looked over to see Glamma coming out the door. With a smile, she said, “I’m going to go celebrate with Irma. See you both sometime this evening.”
Then I realized there was a car waiting at the end of the sidewalk, Glamma's friend Irma grinning at us over her sunglasses. She wiggled her fingers at us and then slowly rolled down the window. “Congratulations on the baby, you two!”
My cheeks got hot. “You told her, Glamma?!”
“Don’t be mad at her!” Irma yelled out. “She’s excited to be an even greater grandma.”
Bryce squeezed my hand and leaned in to whisper in my ear. “Looks like we’re finally alone.”
41.Bryce
The second thewords were out of my mouth, I felt Jada’s subtle shiver. Even her wave looked stilted as she lifted her hand at the older woman. We both watched on the porch as the car drove off, leaving a sputtering cloud of smoke behind it.
Once they turned the corner, even the air seemed to still, waiting for what would happen next.
Jada turned toward me, flicked her gaze up to mine.
There was nothing between us anymore. No more secrets. No more lies.
Just us.
“Are we really doing this?” she asked me.
“Jada, I’m all in,” I said, and then I couldn’t hold back anymore. I kissed her deeply, finally able to fully let go. No one was around to stop us, no one was getting locked out of their house and needing a rescue. It was her and me desperately kissing while fumbling our way back into the house.
I let my hands explore her body, roaming over her curves, cupping her heavy breasts, grabbing handfuls of her ass to pull her closer.
