AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I dropped my chin. “Yes,” I whispered.
Then his big hand was at the back of my skull, gripping a fistful of my hair, forcing my face to him. “I said next time. Tonight, I need to see those cognac irises to be sure you stay with me all the way.” His brandy-scented breath hit my face, deluding me.
This was everything. No stress. No surprises. Yes, Tobias could freak me out in this “laboratory,” attempting to blow my mind. However, this wasn’t a fear that could disrupt my mental health. There was an exchange happening here. We were giving to one another. Here was peace.
There were no surprise traumas. No gut-churning discoveries. Four months after escaping my life in North Carolina, I’d begun to adjust to peace. Balance really did exist. Love did exist. And my fidelity followed behind it.
Tobias tsked. “Your eyes are closed again,” he droned thickly. “What are you thinking?”
I kept my eyes closed, but grinned contently. “How I may finally be experiencing what perfection in life is.”
“Oh, yeah?” His hand still gripping my hair, making a nod impossible.
“Yeah.”
I’d heard from Kelly-Ann two months ago. She tried stopping by the house in Raleigh to get a few tools from the shed just to learn it had been rented to a young, Haitian couple. Kelly-Ann felt she should have been notified and reminded me we were still family. Keeping the conversation brief, I assured her I’d send money for whatever tools she had in the shed. Everything in there had been put at the curb for the following trash day. It was gone.
Scott and I checked in with each other, at least, weekly. Terry and I spoke often, too. I made sure of it. So far, Scott had settled in well with his maternal family. Having a cousin his age, who’d recently moved in, may have been the trick to the quick adjustment. Mya had tried contacting me for weeks, back in January, through Nisha and Lisa. I guess it had taken her that long to truly understand she’d been blocked as I told her. Both Nisha and Lisa had agreed to not get involved with this one. I was grateful for their compassion.
School had been great for me. At first, I approached the need to appease the government in order to obtain a license simply to teach and provide a business plan for the industry with lackluster. Blame the snooty master’s-degreed girl in me. But learning something new had been intriguing. It had also been paramount to building a formative business plan and training model. I truly believed Jade was about to shock the industry with this business. I was thankful to have a hand in it.
“Yeah,” I breathed as my beam widened.
“How?”
“Everything. You.” My eyes opened. “The peace of my home. School’s been great—” A record scratched, and I took a step back.
Worry creased that space between my eyes. “What’s wrong?”
“Shit. Shit. Shit!” I covered my mouth. “My rent is due today. I forgot to pay it.”
“That’s no biggie.” Tobias dismissed, still in authoritative mien. But this was my real life.
I shook my head. “My mortgage gets paid automatically. But this rental is weird. The company usesZelle, so there’s no invoicing or automatic opt-ins.” I went looking for my phone. “Pretty weird.”
“Why?” he asked, still standing where I left him.
“Because, apparently, the entity I rent from is an LLC.”
“And?”
“And big corporations typically have their own electronic system set up for payments. This one does…Zelle.” I scratched my head, peering around the room. “Do you know where my phone is?”
Tobias’ head shook softly. “Don’t worry about it.”
I snorted, “Don’t worry about it, get evicted, and come live with you in Englewood Cliffs. Simple.” I started for the bathroom.
“Lennox, don’t sweat it. It ain’t important now!”
That shit grated at me. I’d been a provider for six years, solely responsible for securing boarding and utilities. My life may be freed of that overwhelming responsibility; however, I was still an independent woman about my business. I would never tell Tobias to blow off one of his many obligations just because it didn’t suit an agenda.
I swung around. “Who are you to say that?”
His eyes fell and mouth twisted as he switched the weight on his hips, exposing a corded vein going down to his nether region. Tobias shook his head. “Just let it go. Come on.”
I scoffed. “I have to pay my rent, Tobias. It’ll just take a minute. We have all night. Why are you bugging?”
“Because it ain’t important.”
