Page 17 of Sun Kissed Moments

“Why is it so easy for you to believe in love, but when I counter with the fact that I want the same, now it becomes complicated? Is it because I’m a man?” I asked.

“It’s because you’re you. You can have any woman you want. No, scratch that. You have had every woman you’ve ever wanted. None of them were able to love you?”

I chuckled. “See, that’s where it’s complicated.”

She grinned. “I bet.”

“It is. You think I’ve had every woman I’ve ever wanted. You think I’ve fucked my way through the industry and over the globe. What you fail to realize is that you have pegged me so wrong, baby. That is what’s complicated. Not the fact that there’s no woman out here who will love me.”

Skeptical, she shrugged. “If you haven’t done those things, why do you allow women to get on the internet and claim you’ve been with them? They’re not all lying.”

Sighing, I placed my fork down and peered at Justina. This was the side of fame I loathed. The media was good at painting whatever pictures they wanted. Sadly, people tended to believe that bullshit over the word of the person being dragged through the mud. Like I didn’t know where my dick went, and who it went inside of.

“If I address one bitch, I gotta address them all. I know they’re lyin’. They know they’re lyin’. If I ever have to address something, know it’s because I’m protecting someone else, not me.”

“So, basically, you just let people say what they want? How do you think that would work in a relationship? You’d always be explaining yourself. As much as you travel, it would be hard for any woman to continuously believe you’re being faithful.”

“You never have to worry about me fuckin’ around on you, Justina. If we’re together, then that’s what it is. My loyalty to you will be worn like a fuckin’ badge on my chest. It’s my honor to be the last nigga to ever have you, the last nigga to ever love you, and the last nigga to ever wake up next to you. I’m so fuckin’ serious about us, I’d marry yo’ ass today if it meant never letting you outta my sight.”

She snickered. “Yeah, right. You’d marry me today?”

“Now. No questions.”

“What about regrets?” she asked as her eyes smiled back at me.

“Everything I regret in life is tied to my mama. I regret not flying her with me to every fuckin’ show I had. I regret the nights I wanted to lay across her bed like I did as a kid just to bother her. I regret not bottling up her laughter, her hugs, her forehead kisses, and her I love you messages. I regret that, with all the fuckin’ money I have, I couldn’t give her another minute on this earth that wasn’t due her. I regret that I never gave her grandkids she could love on. I regret that she never got a chance to meet my wife.” I stared into Justina’s eyes. They’d softened the more I explained myself. “She never got a chance to meet you, Justina. That’s how fuckin’ serious I am about us.”

After a few seconds passed, she smiled softly. “That’s really sweet, Dane. If there’s one thing I like most about you, it is the love you’ve always shown for your mom. In my eyes, that’s your biggest flex.”

“Oh… So, you do like me?” I teased her. “And you had the nerve to wanna hide from me.”

She cracked up. As her neck arched, the sun beamed down on her and cast a glow on her skin that couldn’t be replicated with anything known to man. The breeze liked to play in her hair, like I loved to do. Her long, layered bangs fell in her eyes every few seconds just from the gentle touch of the breeze. It was crazy. I could see everything with Justina. If she let me, I would give her the world.

“Where are we?” Justina asked.

We were an hour away from Onyx Cove Resort and traveling through the streets of Pensacola, the city I grew up in.

“Pensacola,” I replied.

“You grew up here,” she said. “You talk about this place often.”

“Yep. Although I no longer live in Pensacola, it’s still home.”

“Where is home?” she questioned. “Speculations I’ve heard are L.A., New York, Atlanta... There are several others too.”

I chuckled. “While I have offices and houses in L.A., New York, Atlanta, Miami, Chicago, and Vegas, I don’t live in any of those places. I live in Colorado, and my base office is in Atlanta.”

She made a face. “What? Colorado?”

I laughed. “Why is that hard to believe?”

“Because I’m sure you stick out like a sore thumb,” she said. “As far as I know, no one’s ever spotted you in Colorado.”

“Not only did you confess to liking me, but you’ve just admitted to keeping up with me too.”

She shrugged her dainty shoulders. “That’s hardly keeping up with you. You’re talked about nearly every day.”

“Mm, hm. I’ll give you that.”