Page 92 of 1001 Dark Nights: Bundle Forty-Two

“It’s about Naz.”

“Nazareth?” The silence on the other ends blooms and ripens.“What about him?”

“He and I…” I blow out a breath. “I ran into him here inLA.”

“And?” she asks, the knowing loud in her softly askedquestion.

“We’re seeing each other.”

“Ahhhh. How long this been goingon?”

“About a month. The trip to Italy—it was with him.”

“Takira.” Her chuckle on the other end of the line surprisesme. “You don’t ever make things easy, do you?”

I find myself laughing back, shaking my head. “I guess not.What do you think Cliff will say?”

“He won’t like it. You know this, but he’s a grown man,right?”

“Do you think seeing Naz at the ceremony or finding outabout us will set him back?”

I want her to say no. I want her to tell me it’s silly toeven think so, but she found him. She was more traumatized by it than any ofus.

“I don’t know,” she finally admits. “That boy…lots wasted,but he’s got a lot of life still ahead of him. He’ll have to decide what he’s gonna do with it. You can’t live for him, though. None ofus can, and I’ve been guilty of that more than once.”

“I…I care about Naz,” I tell her, my resolve strengthening.“And I’m not giving him up.”

“All right now,” Mama says, sounding pleased. “Even morereason for you to come for the ceremony. That’s something Cliff needs to hearfrom you. You need to be the one to tell him.”

Her suggestion is still ringing in my ears when Naz arrivesat my door a few minutes later.

“Hey,” I greet him with a pleased smile.

“Hey.” He bends to kiss me briefly, but his demeanor issubdued when he enters the apartment. He looks handsome and austere in hisimpeccably tailored dark jacket and slacks.

“Are you mad at me?” I ask, my voice sounding more uncertainthan I’m used to it being, and I hate that.

He glances up, his full lips tightening, and takes the fewstrides that bring him back to me at the front door. He leaves me no space,placing his arms on either side of me, pressing his forehead to mine.

“I’m not mad at you, Kira,” he says, a raw edge to hisvoice. “I’m in love with you.”

A startled breath chuffs past my lips. I can’t pretend thenotion hasn’t crossed my mind, crossed my heart, but we haven’t saidit. I thought it was too soon, thought we should be more sure,but there is absolute certainty in the eyes that burn into mine, and that lookfinds an echo inside of me. An answer to his call.

“I love you,” he says again. “And I don’t want to hide thatfrom the world by not walking a stupid red carpet that I usually don’t evencare about but want to walk with you.”

“Naz—”

“And I for damn sure don’t want to hide it from yourfamily.” He drops his nose to the juncture of my neck and shoulder. “But Iwill. If you aren’t ready to tell Cliff—if you’re scared it will set himback—that matters more to me than my desire to tell the world how I feel.”

He scoffs, shaking his head. “Me, who has always guarded myprivate life wanting to tell the world anything is crazy, but this…” He placesa large, warm hand over my heart. “This, I want the world to know.”

“We kind of scooted right past the part where you said youlove me,” I whisper, looking up at him, emotionburning my throat and tears welling in my eyes. “That seems important.”

“More important than keeping it from Cliff? From your familyand the rest of the world?”

I ease up on my toes and spread my hand over his neck,drawing him down until only a breath separates our lips.

“Considering I love you, too,” I say, not heeding the tearsslipping over my cheeks, “it seems more important than everything.”