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“You don’t have to explain, baby, I get it. You were the one who physically had to go through that.” With a nod, she sniffled as she avoided my eyes. “If this will make you uncomfortable, we don’t have to talk about it.”
“I want to be there for you, even if I’m not ready to talk to my parents.”
“I don’t even know how this is going to play out, honestly. I do miss them, but I’m still upset with them. A part of me feels like I wish I could get over it because what they did happened so long ago, but seeing as we just found out, it’s still really fresh.”
“That’s where I’m at with it too. I want to forgive them but that’s a hell of a lot easier said than done. I’m just… feeling a lot of resentment, you know? I can tell myself we have good lives and made it back to each other, so all’s well that ends well, but still. I don’t want them to think that was okay.”
“I feel the same way. Even if they are remorseful now that some time has passed, I’m not sure that will be enough. I won’t know until I talk to them.”
“Well… I’m proud of you for taking that step. Who knows, maybe what happens will inspire me to do the same.”
She gave me a quick kiss before hopping into her car and telling me to have a good day. Even though she tried to make it seem like she was okay with this, she wasn’t. So if things did start to slowly transition into a sense of normalcy between my parents and me, I wouldn’t put that in Shalom’s face until she was in a better place with her own parents.
* * *
One Week Later
I couldn’t take my eyes off Shalom. She’d stopped by the office, bringing coffee and pastries. We hadn’t been spending as much time together since we were no longer working on the lawsuit together. Personally, we still spent our evenings together when we could, but she was working with a new client already, and that took up a lot of her time. I was focusing on clients who were on retainer, seeing to their needs before the trial started. We were in a more realistic place with our relationship, and though we were spending less time together, we felt closer—because it forced us to cherish the time we did have with one another.
She’d invited everyone on the floor to have some of the pastries, so Parker and I moved everything to the conference room. Amelia was talking to me, and I was trying to focus, but I couldn’t stop looking at my woman. She looked good as hell in a form-fitting black dress. The blazer she had on had been tossed over the back of a chair. Her feet were covered in heels, drawing my attention to the ankle bracelets I’d purchased her. I couldn’t wait to get home and have her ankles dangling while I dug deep inside of her…
“Mecca!” Amelia shoved me softly. “Are you listening to me?”
“Yeah, what did you say, Milli?”
Her eyes and neck rolled as she leaned against the table. “I said I want you to take the case for the client I met today. It’s a Black woman who’s concerned her doctor’s ignoring her complaints and requests led to her losing her baby. If there’s something to this, I know she’s not the only one. This has the potential to be another class action lawsuit. If this will trigger you, I’ll take it, but I think this will be a good look for you.”
“All right. Send me everything you have on it so far and I’ll meet with her to see.”
Amelia squealed and gave me a side hug before thanking me and walking away. I headed in Shalom’s direction, stopping at the sound of Amelia calling my name. Violet had made her way inside, so I figured she wanted to tell her about the case. Groaning, I headed their way. Quite frankly, I didn’t give a fuck about anything right now other than having my lady in my arms. After this, Parker and I needed to head to court. He asked me to be his second chair on an insurance fraud case and I agreed. It was going to be time-consuming, and I wanted to steal every chance I could to be with Shalom.
“Hey, so I wanted to clue Violet in to what we were just discussing,” Amelia said as I suspected.
I half-listened as she told Violet what she’d just told me. Violet agreed with the switch and called Shalom over. She asked Shalom if she’d be willing to do research for the case if I took it, and she said yes. I was surprised when Violet said…
“Is there anything I can offer you to bring you in permanently, or are you fully committed to freelancing?”
Shalom looked over at me before answering. “I would need to talk to Mecca first. If he was comfortable with me working here, you could make me an offer, and I would consider it.”
“I would love to have you here full-time, Lom. Absolutely yes,” I answered, not needing to give it a second thought.
“Good,” Violet answered, turning on her heels. “I’ll speak with the other partners and give you a call when we’re ready to make an offer.”
Amelia and Shalom gushed over the idea of working together for a few seconds before I was finally left alone with my heart. I wasted no time taking her by the hand and leading her back to my office. Once I had the door closed, I pressed her against it and devoured her lips. She moaned into my mouth, cupping the back of my head.
“Damn, I miss you,” I admitted before kissing her again.
“I miss you too. I didn’t realize how much until I laid eyes on you.”
I pulled her into a hug, which led to me picking her up and carrying her over to my desk. I sat down, keeping her in my lap. We were taking things slow, but I really wanted to discuss her moving in with me. That way, whether we worked together or not, at least we’d be able to start and end our days together.
“This shit ain’t working, baby,” I blurted. “I need to go to sleep and wake up next to you. We need some kind of schedule of where we’re going to sleep… my place or yours.”
She chuckled. “You know you don’t like being in my apartment. It’s a closet compared to your home.”
“It’s smaller but it’s cozy. It feels more like home.”
“Your home would feel more like home if you decorated.”
