I snickered and moved away. It had been this way all my life. I was the one who stirred up trouble for my big brothers, Daddy gave them the blues, and Mama gave him the business, and I was always the sweet and innocent one.
I didn’t know when I’d learned to become a troublemaker for my family, but I was always up to some mischief, and it was usually fun.
I saw Harlem jog across the street in my direction, and my heart leaped for joy in my chest. He looked so damn good in a short-sleeved cream, knit shirt, olive-green slacks, and on his feet were cream grained calf-leather designer shoes with red bottoms.
“Hey, gorgeous. What are you smirking about? You look like you’ve been up to no good.” Harlem greeted me as he stopped in front of me.
“Maybe I have. I was starting to wonder if you would show at all.”
“You know I would never stand you up. I had a few things to attend to at the last minute, but I wouldn’t miss your special day for the world,” he confessed, stepping up to me with his arms open.
I glanced around briefly, but I easily went into his arms. He hugged me, kissed the top of my head, and whispered, “Congratulations, beautiful. Looks like your special day couldn’t be stopped for anything.”
“Thank you. I’m so glad that you convinced me to remain strong. I was so nervous about today.”
“I know you were, but you’re strong, gifted, and blessed. I knew that it would all work out in your favor.”
“You were a big part of that, and I’m grateful for you.”
“Are you grateful enough to go on another date?”
I giggled. “You know that I am.”
He grabbed my hand and led me through the crowd and the tables. He had a way of moving that expertly moved us past anyone trying to get my attention.
The servers and my staff were on point, making sure that everyone had their drinks constantly filled and some form of a baked good in their hands.
We made it to the end of the sidewalk where his staff was seated.
They all tried to chat me up at once, hugging and congratulating me, and wishing me well for future success. They went on and on about how wonderful the event was. I had officially met them yesterday during the cleanup, but I hadn’t had much opportunity to interact with them individually, exceptfor Raque. There was so much that had to be done yesterday that Harlem made a generalized introduction, I explained the work to be done, and we got to work. I thanked them at the end, and that was that.
Today was different. Everyone was relaxed and in conversation mode. They weren’t as focused and as serious as they were yesterday. The women were nice and welcoming, warm and friendly, and made me feel as if I had known them and been a part of their crew forever.
“She’s a good woman,” Mia declared.
“Yes, let’s make a toast to a good woman.” Alicia lifted her glass.
The other ladies agreed, and when they saw the confusion on my face, everyone laughed, but Stephanie quickly explained.
The ladies teased Harlem about me, and the men went out of their way to annoy him by flirting with me. After talking with them for a while, I made my way back to the other guests to continue showing them attention, but I truly enjoyed the time that I spent with Harlem and his crew while I had the chance.
It was late after everything ended. The service that I hired did a wonderful job of cleaning everything up both inside and outside of the bakery.
Harlem had returned to his shop while I supervised what was going on at the bakery. By the time I finished, he was just leaving his shop. We talked for a while before he escorted me to my house.
I wasn’t ready to end the night, and I had been looking forward to spending time alone with him since I saw him earlier.His cologne had worked as an aphrodisiac where all I wanted was to touch him, kiss him, and talk with him.
I wanted to be with Harlem in the worst way, and while I wasn’t quite ready to take the plunge into sexual intimacy, I didn’t want him to leave just yet. So, when he offered to follow me home, I welcomed the idea.
He pulled into the driveway behind me, and I called him before I got out of the car.
“Hey.”
“Would you like to come in, Harlem?”
“Would you like for me to come in, Baby?”
“I wouldn’t have invited you if I didn’t.”
