“Yeah, and you can get my lady a French 75.”
The waitress looked at Irish, forcing a smile on her face. As a woman, she knew when a bitch was sizing her up and ol’ girl was doing just that.
“I’ll have that for you two right away.”
She walked away, switching her hips as Noble pulled Irish close to him.
“You're so popular, Noble. All the hoes just melt when you give them attention.”
“Not really.” He brushed it off.
“Oh, please.” Irish scoffed. “I had to sit through one BBL girl and another hoe flirting with you all night. Oh, yeah, you even got one of their numbers, too. What’s up with that?”
Somehow, he thought her rant was humorous. “You jealous?”
“Yes, now what?” she challenged him, arching her ginger brow. “What you gon’ do about that?”
Wrapping his arm around her shoulders, he kissed her cheek. She shuddered from his touch, trying her best not to melt into the booth.
“You don't need to be jealous. You the only woman on my radar. Besides, you and that nigga was real touchy feely tonight, so consider it payback.”
“Whatever,” Irish countered, not having a solid comeback. “Oh, and don't think I didn’t catch you calling me your lady. Are you trying to tell me something?” she teased him.
Noble’s smile was pure perfection as he shook his head. “I was being polite and letting her ass know to chill with that flirting shit.”
“Mm-hmm,” she hummed. “Let me find out you done caught feelings for me.”
“What if I did?” he challenged.
Irish faced Noble, giving him her undivided attention. “Do you remember when you asked me if I knew what I was doing?”
He nodded.
“Well, I thought I did but I don't know now…” Irish didn’t know how to tell Noble that she had caught feelings so deep that she felt like she had a disease. For the time being, it was incurable and the only way to treat it was more of him.
“You do know,” he stated. “You can tell me.”
She chuckled, suddenly avoiding his eye contact until he grabbed her chin and turned her face toward him.
“You a big girl, Irish. Tell me what’s on your mind.”
“Okay,” she relented. “I’ve caught feelings for you, and I don't know what to do with them… Like, I think of a future with you, but it’s cut short when I realize the position I’m in.”
Licking his lips, Noble nodded. “Same.”
“Really?” she asked, surprised that his feelings reflected hers.
Before he could respond, the waitress sat their drinks on the table. He slid her drink in front of her then took a sip of his. Irish couldn’t drink right away because she desperately wanted to sip on the words he was preparing to say.
“So, I was saying that, I feel the same. I’m even conflicted because I know this shit ain't right, but the feeling is. Pumpkin, I don't know what it is about you, but you got a nigga tuned in. Shit, I’m frustrated because I need to walk away, but I keep betraying myself, and I don't move that way.”
Irish’s gaze fell on the table, wishing she had a remedy for both of their problems. They were facing so many obstacles ahead but neither one wanted to make the move to distance themselves. She interlocked her fingers with his tattooed ones.
“So, what do we do?”
He shrugged. “I don't know and to be honest, I don't care right now. I’m locked in.”
Irish was content with that. If Noble wasn’t concerned, neither should she be. For the first time, she wanted to be selfish. She had raised her sister, been present for her mother, and been an anchor for Jovanis. Irish wanted something just forher. A piece of rapture that she could indulge in when life got rough. Noble represented that. Life was always on pause when she was in his presence. He was an escape from her regular programming. A first-class getaway that was wrapped in a milk chocolate covering.
