I should have broken eye contact with him before I tried to put a forkful of food in my mouth. My ass completely missed my mouth. We all chuckled at my small misfortune.
We ate and finalized the menu for the party. I never realized the restaurant had a food truck, so that was amazing to know. The menu was everything that I loved to eat and even some items that I hadn’t tried yet.
Two hours later, we were fed, the event was planned, and I had a to-go plate. Tafari walked us out to the car. “Pril, it was nice officially meeting you. I’ve seen you befo’, but yo’ ass be gone befo’ anyone ca’ get ta know you.”
I tittered softly. “I’m a homebody. Lacie and Nicole get me out when they can. Our agreement is that I stay at least thirty minutes. I keep my end of the agreement, then I leave.”
It really was that simple. With the way my life was, I was never sure if Lil Bitch would pop up out of nowhere. There was a time when she was on a set schedule, but not so much anymore.
Tafari nodded with a smirk. “I feel you. Ain’t shit really out in des streets like dat anyway. Since I ain’t gonna see you in dastreets, you should give me ya numba. I can FaceTime you at da house.”
Shock registered in my mind. Not sure what I expected from him, but it wasn’t for him to ask me for my number. “Oh, you want my number? Okay.”
He handed me his phone. I took the time to quickly enter my number then handed him back his phone. He asked me to spell my name, which I did. When he turned the screen around for me to check the spelling, my eyes bucked slightly at his entry.My Lil One Pril.His response to my inquiry about it made me swoon. “I mean, I claim what I want even befo’ I get ’em.”
A Little TimeLater
A First Date . . .
“Girl, when that man didn’t care about flirting with you in front of his mama, I knew it was real. I don’t know why you’re so surprised that he asked for your number. Stop acting like you’re attractively unfortunate,” Lacie said.
I rolled my eyes as I pinned my braids up into a style for my date tonight with Tafari. It was the weekend before Nicole and Jordan’s engagement party that we weren’t able to keep a secret from her. Jordan’s ass told her because he said that she was too crazy to sneak around for the sake of a surprise. At least he knew his woman.
A few days ago, Tafari asked me on a date when we were on our nightly FaceTime call. Since he asked me for my number, we have talked every day, multiple times throughout the day. It had only been two weeks, and I talked to him more than I did anyone at this point.
He was so different from any man that I’d dealt with. Not that I had vast experience with different men, but he was just different. Since I moved to Charleston, I noticed how different men here were. They were not the up north men that I was used to when I lived in Washington, DC. It was like you never knew that you loved country boys until you met a country boy. Add country to the Geechie culture and you have an entirely new human specimen.
Like any place there were fuck niggas here. Derrick was a prime example of that. He was from here and was far from the good man that I thought he was. From what I could tell from my interactions so far with Tafari, he and Derrick were not the same. The other day, I had appointments straight through the day. He called me around lunch and asked if I had eaten. When I told him that I hadn’t, he had food from my favorite restaurant delivered to me. Of course, the restaurant was his.
“I never said that I felt attractively unfortunate. Bitch, I know I’m gorgeous. I was just surprised that I was his type. Tafari doesn’t come across as a person who likes ’em thick,” I said with a shrug.
Nicole’s attention faltered from the television to me. “Bitch, try again. Jordan and Tafari are first cousins. You see my thick ass, and Jordan loves every forty-nine inches of this waist.”
“Nicole, what does that have to do with Tafari? Just because they are cousins does not mean that they like the same types of women.” I tilted my head to the side. “Why are you even here? You could have watched TV at your house with your man.”
Nicole’s eyes tightened. “You think I would miss the first date between my future cousin-in-law and my best friend? I had to see you go on your first date with that fuck nigga. I have the right to see you with a good nigga.”
Before I could reply to her snippy comment, there was a knock on the door before it opened. “Pril, are you ready? Your gentleman caller is here,” my mother said with a giddy smirk.
Meriland Blinds was a character . . . my favorite character. “I’m coming, Mama.” I stood up, turned to face her, then asked, “Do I look alright?”
“Girl, hush. You are gorgeous just like your mama.” My mama always knew what to say. She walked over, then adjusted my tresses around my face. “He’s down there looking fine. Much better looking than your stupid ass ex-bitch.”
My eyes widened while Lacie and Nicole roared with laughter. Meriland was so uncouth sometimes. My best friends loved it.
It had always been just me and her for as long as I could remember. My father, Cory Simmons, came around at his own convenience until I was six-years-old. My mama told him to be consistent or kick rocks. It seemed as if he chose to kick rocks. That was fine, because in my heart, my mama was enough.
When the debacle happened with Derrick, I went into a deep depression that even my best friends couldn’t pull me out of. Lacie and Nicole did what they thought was best and called my mama. She didn’t hesitate to pack her life up and move to Charleston to be close to me. No one asked her to, but she knew I needed her, and that was all she needed to know. I was blessed to have a mother like her.
She’s lived with me since she moved here and I would have it no other way. When I built my home, I ensured that a peace of mind suite was attached to the side of the house. It was a finished one bedroom, one bathroom apartment that was connected to the house but also had its own entrance. In my mind, it had always been the plan for her to move in with me at some point. When I was with Derrick, he was against her living with us. That should have been the biggest red flag of them all,but I thought that I could eventually change his mind. He was who I thought was my forever.
My mama’s smack to my ass jolted me out of my thoughts. Nicole finally got up to fuss over me before I made my way downstairs. I smiled when Tafari came into view of where he stood at the bottom of my stairs. A fine ass man in a five-piece suit had the same effect for me that a thick ass woman in lingerie had for men. I had a clit hard-on right now. “You are so handsome.”
His hand went to his tie and he adjusted it. “I had ta pull out all da stops if I even wanna measure up to half of ya dopeness. Your ass is fine.”
My cheeks warmed to his compliment. After I thanked him, he reached out for my hand. Once it was in his, he pulled me into his arms and hugged me tightly. His arms were strong and his cologne was intoxicating. “You smell so good.”
He pulled back from the hug and stared at me for a beat. His lips went to my ear. “There’s anotha fragrance dat I think would smell amazing too . . . especially on my top lip.”
