“I’m not telling you. It’s a surprise.”
“I know, but we’re going to skip out on it. It’s obvious you’re exhausted from work. You don’t need to overdo it.”
“But Mahari.”
“No buts.” Mahari kissed her forehead. “I appreciate you for going out your way to bring me breakfast this morning and planning whatever you did, but how about we order some takeout and watch a movie?”
Aspen pouted but didn’t protest. She nodded her agreement and headed toward Mahari’s in-home theater. Mahari let the driver know they weren’t going anywhere before going to find Aspen. When he walked into the theater, she’d kicked off hershoes and elevated her feet with a blanket over her. They locked eyes, and Aspen beamed.
“Happy birthday, Mahari.”
“Thank you, Bunny.” He plopped down next to her and patted his thigh. Aspen turned the best she could and placed one of her feet in his lap. “How did you think we were going to go out with your feet being swollen?”
“I would’ve managed like I do at work. It’s not that bad.”
Mahari looked at her feet and back at her with his lips tightly pressed together. “Shittin’ me. I got you, though.”
“But it’syourbirthday. I’m supposed to have you and not the other way around. It’s not fair you always show up for me, and I feel like I don’t do the same.”
“You’ve always shown up for me, especially when I needed it, so don’t start overthinking things.”
The sigh Aspen released was followed by a low moan when Mahari started massaging her feet. It did something to Mahari. His stomach twisted as he willed his member not to rise from the moans Aspen continued to expel. The sound was sensual and pleasing to Mahari’s ears. To know he was giving her pleasure had his mind on things it shouldn’t have been.
Clearing his throat, Mahari reached over and handed Aspen the remote to find them something to watch. His phone vibrating in his pocket caught his attention. He fished it out to see it was Dynasty calling. Since they’d been texting off and on all day, he decided to answer it.
“What’s up?”
“Hey, birthday boy. What are you up to?”
Mahari glanced over at Aspen and replied, “Chilling with Aspen. What about you?”
“Oh.” Dynasty mumbled something underneath her breath that Mahari couldn’t make out, and he didn’t care to. After a kissof her teeth, Dynasty explained, “Well, I was about to see if I could pull up on you, but I see you’re occupied.”
“We can get together tomorrow if you’re not busy. I’ll be at the studio for a minute, so you can slide through, or I can come scoop you after.”
“I’m sure you’ll be with her, so it’s all good. Happy birthday.”
The sound of the call ending beeped in Mahari’s ear. With a shake of his head, Mahari tossed his phone to the side and blew a hard breath through his nose.
“Tell me something, Mahari,” Aspen spoke.
“What’s up?”
“What are you and Dynasty? Are y’all friends? Dating? What is it?”
Tapping her leg for her other foot, Mahari leaned his head back and pondered on Aspen’s question. Truthfully, he wasn’t sure himself. He and Dynasty had been on a couple of dates and spent time together every so often, but Mahari didn’t see it going anywhere with her. The more he thought about it, he realized Dynasty was someone who helped him pass time. Nothing more, nothing less.
“I guess you can say we’re friends.”
Aspen snickered. “Does she know that?”
“She should. We haven’t done anything to insinuate we’re anything more besides have sex.”
“So, what’s her deal with me? It’s obvious she has a problem with me.”
“And you don’t have one with her?” Mahari asked with a side-eye and raised brow. Aspen leaned up and threw one of the pillows at him. He dodged it before it could hit him. Through a laugh, Mahari questioned, “Why you throw that at me?”
“You know exactly why.”
