“You welcome.”
She tucked the notebook against her chest. We walked toward the doors, passing the last plaque about lessons learned from hard mistakes. By the time we got outside, the sky was dark and soft, the stars bright dots illuminating the gently curving pathway as we walked silently in the sultry heat.
She slid in when I opened the door of the car. I was reaching to reverse when she said, “You know, for somebody who act like he don’t care about people, you did a lot of caring today.”
I glanced at her, my lips twisting. “Don’t start tryna psychoanalyze me, Little Thug.”
She smiled. “Too late.”
I shook my head. She didn’t even know how close she was to the truth.
“Dinner?” I asked suddenly.
I meant to take her home after this. Now, I didn’t want to.
She raised an eyebrow. “Why, Mekhi Venzant, is that an offer instead of an order?”
“It’s both,” I said, and she laughed, almost messing up my focus.
We drove with only the radio for sound. At a red light, she flipped through the first couple of pages of the notebook and then snapped it shut. “We playing Spades at your place. Tonight after dinner.”
“Tonight?”
“Yeah.”
“You cuss me out, I’m kicking you out,” I warned.
She smirked. “You kicking me out your house? After making me stay?”
I sucked my teeth. “Get out my car.”
She laughed, sweet like before, and held the notebook tighter. The light turned green. I pressed the gas. We drove. I ended up choosing a restaurant that was way nicer than I thought I wanted—white tablecloths, soft jazz, all that for my bougie date.
This ain’t no date, I reminded myself.
Farrah fit right in like she belonged here, even in a t-shirt and jeans.
Over dinner, she talked more about her dream, about working in behavioral analysis for the FBI. I told her a little about my business, the legal parts, anyway.
She listened. Really listened. Like what I was saying mattered to her.
At one point, our hands brushed as we reached for the same glass. She sucked in a sharp breath, but she didn’t move away.
Neither did I.
“So,how is life with Mr. Tall, Dark, and Handsome?” Mariah asked as she climbed into my car.
I shrugged. “I barely see him, and I like it that way.”
That wasn’t exactly true, but Riah didn’t have to know that. I didn’t see a lot of Mekhi, but I wasn’t pleased about it. It had been a couple of days since I spent the night in his room and our next day visit to the museum, and he hadn’t brought any of it up. I refused to do so, even though I was confused and wondered why he had touched me, opened up to me, then grew so nonchalant about it. My cousin caught onto my mood and quickly changed the subject.
“What have you heard about this place we’re going?”
“Club Mirage? It’s new and supposed to be jumping. I’m hoping we can get in.”
I was tired of being confined to school and Mekhi’s house and had decided to go out tonight. Steel was right behind me, and I hoped he didn’t mind a little partying. Too bad if he did. I had to spread my wings a little. Riah and I chatted for the fifteen minutes it took us to get to the club. Looking at the line that had formed outside the door and the full parking lots all around, I was happy to valet. Steel pulled up behind me and jumped out.
“You told Mekhi this is where you were coming?” he asked, looking doubtful.
