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“Fault?” He raised a thick eyebrow at me, and frowned. “Faultimplies that something is wrong. Is something wrong between us?”
“Us?” I propped my hands on my hips. “Usimplies that such a thing exists.”
He stared at me for a long moment before a slow smirk spread across his lips. “You’re upset about me not coming upstairs with you the other night.”
“What?No!” I snapped. “Why would I be pressed about that? I could have any man I wanted around here, and you think I’m hung up on you not wanting to fuck me?”
You definitely are …
“It’sexactlywhat I think,” he scoffed. “You areabsolutelytripping on that shit, and I… don’t understand why. It’s a problem for me to want to know you better before being intimate?”
“The intimacy will better inform if Iwantto know you,” I countered, not backing down even though I could feel myself digging deeper into an even worse space than we already were.
“I guess we’re at an impasse then?”
I shrugged. “I guess so. Can you leave now?”
“No, I’m not fuckingleaving,” he grunted, throwing up his hands. “I’m trying to bluff your stubborn ass into… shit, I don’t even know. You’re frustrating the hell outta me right now – I thought womenlikedwhen niggas weren’t trying to jump straight into bed.”
“I’m not this nebulouswomenyou speak of – I’m Tempest,” I told him. “I can’t speak for what anyone else likes, but no,Ididn’t like offering myself to you and getting turned down. It didn’t feel good. At all.”
He pushed out a sigh. “I get that. And I’m sorry for making you feel bad – that wasn’t my intention at all. It had nothing to do with me not finding you attractive, or anything like that. I thought I’d made myself clear.”
“Youdidmake yourself clear, as far as I’m concerned.”
His expression shifted back to a smile. “So we’re good then?”
I returned his smile. “You’re good. I’m good. And you can go now.”
“Wait, what?”
“You heard exactly what I said,” I told him, pulling the door open and gesturing for him to step out.
Was I making a mistake here?
Probably.
Would I regret it?
Probably.
Could I let go of my stubbornness long enough to accept his words, instead of my perception, as the truth, and move forward from there?
Absolutely not.
He let out another heavy sigh before he stepped out, turning to say something as soon as he was on the other side of my threshold.
I wasn’t trying to hear it.
I closed and locked the door, then moved back to my workshop, leaving him standing there looking dumbfounded.
Good.
I hoped he felt as confused as I had.
* * *
I couldn’t letit go.
