“Set that shit up, Liv. I wanna learn this nigga’s intentions for myself.”
Liv sucked her teeth. “I swear the older you get, the more you sound like Daddy.”
I scoffed, not giving a fuck. “So be it.”
Was he good enough for her? Was any nigga that wasn’t me good enough for her? I told myself I should’ve been happy forher. But I kept thinking about our last night together—the night she gave me a piece of herself that no other man could ever say he had. But she was about to become some other nigga’s forever. I’d missed my chance. Or maybe I was never supposed to have one, given the circumstances. Perhaps I was always supposed to be her best friend’s brother and nothing more. Either way, I planned to find out everything I could about the man who was about to marry the woman who had a hold on my heart.
As promised,Pat blew into town after Oak’s welcome home party. Our time together seemed to go by faster than a speeding bullet, partially because I spent most of it on my back or on my knees. We only lived together when he was in town. Other than that, he stayed in one of his parents’ luxury hotel suites all over the country. I was adamant about keeping our separate spaces until after we tied the knot.
But we were in my apartment, sharing my small bathroom to get ready for dinner with Liv and Oak. Don’t ask me how Liv convinced me to say yes to some shit like that, but she did, and my heart had been hiccupping all day because of it. Pat was no stranger to seeing Liv, whether it was during a random pop-up at my place when he was in town or during a FaceTime call. ButOak? The two had never met, and I’d preferred to keep it that way. But I guess the universe had other plans.
“How do I look?” I asked Pat, turning away from the bathroom mirror to face him.
He gave me a onceover before shooting me a satisfactory grin at my satin blouse and fitted black skinny jeans. “Like a million bucks, baby. What about me?”
I smiled sheepishly. Pat was handsome—always had been. And that smile of his was part of the reason he always seemed to get away with murder.
“You look good too, baby. Just let me get my shoes on, and I’ll be ready to go.”
“Alright, I’ll be in the living room.”
I spent the next five minutes fumbling with the catch on my heels while trying to steady my breathing.It’s going to be fine. Everything is fine.
Pat and I left my apartment hand in hand, like always, and headed to my car. He opted to drive, and I didn’t object. From the way my heart was pitter-pattering against my ribcage, I was likely to go into cardiac arrest behind the wheel. I tried my best to keep the conversation light on the way to the soul food restaurant Liv had picked out, despite my growing anxiety.
Pat parked the vehicle, walked around to open my door, and helped me out. I’d never been so thankful for him holding my hand, because the moment I stood up, I felt like a baby deer trying to walk for the first time, and my heels weren’t even that high.
“You good?” he inquired, arching a concerned brow in my face.
I nodded while swiping some of my hair behind my ear. “Yup. I’m good.”
We sailed inside, and my eyes scanned the small space for Liv and Oak. Even with all the people seated and enjoying theirmeals over conversation, it didn’t take long for me to spot them. Of course, the moment I saw Oak, my heart stumbled out a frantic beat.Why the fuck does he have to look so good?
“There they are,” I told Pat.
I led the way over to the booth where they sat side by side, and I took the inside seat directly across from Liv. She shot me a quick smile before waving at Pat.
“Hey, Pat. This is my brother, Oakland. Oakland, this is Pat, Lex’s hubby-to-be.”
Pat flashed his award-winning smile at both of them, which somehow managed to settle my nerves a bit. “Nice to meet you, man.”
He outstretched his hand across the table, and Oak sat there with a straight face, hesitating for a second too long, to the point where Liv had to elbow him underneath the table.
“I’m sorry, he’s not house-trained,” she joked.
Pat and I shared a quick laugh at Oak’s expense. In fact, all of us laughed except him.
“Shut up,” Oak finally replied before his hand cordially met Pat’s. “Wassup, man?”
“I hope y’all are ready to eat because the way this food is smelling up in here has me ready to order everything off the menu,” Liv stated, trying to keep the conversation light.
She had a knack for things like that, and I’d never appreciated it more in that moment. The initial awkwardness at the table seemed to fade as we studied our menus in silence for a few minutes before our waitress approached the table for our drink and food orders. I made sure to order a margarita from the bar. I needed the alcohol to help mellow me out and get me through the rest of the evening.
Once the waitress left with our menus, there was nothing left to use to hide my face. Even with it, I could practically feel Oak staring a hole through it from across the table. What wouldhe say? How would he act? We had a past, but it wasn’t like I expected him to announce that at the table in front of everyone, especially his sister. Still, the unknown was eating away at me like a ticking time bomb.
Oak cleared his throat before zeroing in on Pat. “So, my sister says you fly planes?”
“Yeah. I’m a pilot.”
