She shrugged. “I mean, he’s not wrong. Try to call him again now. No need to beat around the bush.”
I sighed. “You’re right.”
I pressed his name and put the phone on speaker. Again, the call went straight to voicemail.
“You’ve reached Patrick Maxwell. I’m more than likely flying the friendly skies from coast to coast and can’t come tothe phone right now. Leave a message, and I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.”
*Beep*
Before I could end the call, Liv yelled into the receiver, “I hope a bird shits on your fucking face, you cheating beige bitch!”
I immediately ended the call. “Shit, Liv.”
“Sorry. I couldn’t help myself. And until we hear otherwise, it’s fuck that nigga for playing in your face like that.”
I huffed out a loud groan. “I hate life right now.”
“It’s going to be okay, girl. My birthday is this weekend. We’re going out, and we’re gonna drink all your cares away.”
The sound of drowning my sorrows and my liver in tequila brought a smile to my face. “That actually sounds perfect right about now. I need a ratchet ass night out. I’ve been a civilized bitch for far too fuckin’ long.”
Liv smiled. “That’s what best friends and tequila are for, to get us through the tough times.”
I couldn’t helpbut to overhear bits and pieces of Liv and Lex’s conversation whenever I marched to the bathroom or grabbed something from the kitchen. I had to blame it on my military training and enhanced hearing. I hated the fact that Lex had fallen for a fuckboy. Even more so, I hated the fact that I felt a strong pull toward her but was worried about the consequences of acting on my feelings. There was a mountain of reasons telling me to leave her the fuck alone—her friendship with my sister and her being engaged, even if it clearly was to the wrong nigga.
It was crazy how I was still mesmerized by her after all these years. Lex had the type of smile that gave a hard ass, militant nigga like me butterflies. The way her forehead creased when she was mad haunted my thoughts. I tried my best to convincemyself it was all a fleeting attraction—that I was just caught up in the nostalgia of seeing her again after so much time had passed. But the hold she had on my mind and body was out of this world. I couldn’t stop thinking about Lex or choking my dick whenever her beautiful ass ran past my mind. That had to mean something, right?
Saturday finally arrived, which meant it was Liv’s thirtieth birthday. She’d been running around all day with Lex, getting pampered with face masks, manis, pedis, and all that girly shit.By late evening, I sat in the living room, enjoying the peace and quiet while watching TV when the front door opened. Liv and her sidekick sailed inside, all smiles and loud ass giggles.
“Hey, Oak,” Liv greeted me.
“Sup, y’all? How was your birthday?” I asked.
My sister grinned from ear to ear. “Great. We had brunch, then had a spa day. Now, we’re about to get dressed and pregame before hitting the club,” she announced.
“Y’all old asses hittin’ the club?” I joked. “Y’all in your thirties now.”
“Nigga, who the fuck you callin’ old?” Olivia griped, her brows snapping together in disapproval. “I’m flirty thirty, okay?”
“But forreal, girl, when’s the last time we twerked in public? We haven’t been out in so long, I probably forgot how to dance on beat altogether.” Lex giggled.
Liv snickered. “Which is exactly why we need to live a little!”
“We’ve already lived so much today. Couldn’t we have gone to a comedy show or found a karaoke night? Anything that doesn’t require me to pack flip-flops as backups to my heels?”
“Quit your whining! It’s my birthday, and we’ll twerk if I want to! Now, let’s go get dressed!”
I chuckled at their banter while turning up the volume on the TV. “Y’all be safe out there tonight.”
“Your old ass should come out with us,” my sister suggested.
I swung my head in an immediate no. “That’s a hard fuckin’ pass,” I replied, waving off my sister.
I didn’t care if it was her birthday. We were five years apart, but to me, it may as well have been decades. I wasn’t hip to the latest music, didn’t know one damn TikTok dance, and I damn sure wasn’t one of those niggas posted up at the club every weekend trying to see who I could take home for the night.
“Pleaseeeeee? You can be our designated driver. It’ll save us money on an Uber! And I promise to let you scare off any creeps. Besides, you haven’t been out of the house since your welcome home party,” she stated, laying out all her key points one by one.
“Whatchu think, Lex? Should I come?”I questioned, letting her be my deciding factor.
