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CHAPTER1
Brooklyn
I lock my jaw so hard I swear I cracked a tooth; it takes monumental strength not to go over to where Aryan is talking and cuss him out. It didn’t bother me initially, but it’s been years, and he still refers to me as his friend. But one thing about me: I will never let you know you have gotten under my skin; it’s time to plan and make moves. As my mother said, I can show you better than I can tell you.
“Are you okay?” Skai asks me, bringing me out of my internal monologue.
“Not really, but I will be,” I reply. I am glad to see Skai out tonight. She took her breakup hard, and even though she tried to pretend to everyone else she was okay, she revealed to me that she was, in fact, not okay. I was glad when she told me she had finally taken my advice and started going to a therapist after she confided in me that she was struggling with depression.
“Do I need to go over there and take his kneecaps out?” she asks, referring to Aryan, causing me to laugh.
“No, there’s no need for that. Besides, we don’t want to ruin Lennox’s big day. There is more than one way to skin a cat,” I tell her. We find our way over to where the rest of our family is seated. Leave it to Peter to buy five tables for the family to be present to see Lennox be presented with her award. I take a seat at the table between Skai and Shepp instead of sitting next to Aryan and ignore the look he is trying to send my way. I make the mistake of glancing at him, and I can clearly see the hurt on his face and I almost give in and sit next to him, but then I feel the steel begin to coat my spine when I think of all the times he has referred to us as just friends no matter how it makes me feel and I sit more firmly in my seat. I am not a tip-for-tap kind of girl, but I am becoming a match energy type of woman. My attention is pulled to the podium when the master of ceremony begins talking into the mic, garnering all of our attention.
Tonight is the who’s who of the medicine world, and I have been networking my ass off all night. I can remember the frown on Aryan’s face when he noticed me wearing the tattoo concealer; I have begun wearing it more often due to the backlash I have been getting at the hospital. When I was younger, I didn’t think about how my actions would affect my future. Hell, I never saw myself doing more than possibly being a baby mamma to one of the drug dealers in our neighborhood. It was a miracle I kept my virginity for as long as I did. My mother did the best she could, but her working as much as she did allowed me to be a fast-ass little girl like the ole heads call us. It didn’t help that I developed faster than I should have. I was built like a grown woman by the age of twelve. The only thing that made me not do more than I was already slipping around doing was the fear that my mom put in me. My first tattoo was the one I got for my mother after she passed away less than four months after she went to the dentist for a toothache. Because she worked so much, she waited too long to go to the dentist, so by the time she went, the infection had spread to her brain. They started an aggressive treatment plan in November; she was gone by February.
I was barely eighteen and the only child, my father was some married man who wanted nothing to do with me or my mother once she revealed she was pregnant. That was when he decided to share with her that he was married, had no intention of ever leaving his wife, and wanted nothing to do with her or me.
I slid down a bad rabbit hole, getting tattoos, piercings, drinking, and even dabbling in drugs. I blew through almost all the money that my mom left me and fell heavily into the drug world until I met Lennox. But now that I am a doctor, my former choices are coming back to bite me in the behind. There used to be whispers behind my back about my appearance, but now they have gotten so bold that they are being said to my face. So, it was a no-brainer that I would be covering my tattoos, knowing I would be in the room with the top doctors in the country. Lennox has already stated that she will probably be retiring soon; she does not want to continue working the hours she is putting in; she feels she lost so much time not being with Peter that she is ready to focus on just them. And what could I say to that? It took them over forty years to find each other again, but once she is gone, the protection she provides for me at the hospital will be gone too. So, it’s important for me to make some connections here tonight, and I need them to see past the tattoos and piercings to my qualifications as a doctor. I may have to consider the long and painful tattoo removal treatments if I want to continue to be a doctor. It’s crazy, I graduated top of my class and have been in or around medicine for more than ten years, but all anyone sees is my outward appearance. Sometimes I wish it was only the fact that I am a black woman doctor that I have to combat instead of that and everything else.
Lennox’s name is called, and the room explodes in thunderous applause; Peter, of course, is leading the charge, but the rest of us are not far behind. She looks extraordinarily beautiful tonight; her extra-long dreads are twisted in an intricate style, and her champagne-colored dress looks stunning against her dark chocolate skin. I hope I look as amazing as her when I am her age. She stands at the podium, waiting for the applause to die down, and I can tell she is blushing, even if her skin won’t allow it to be seen. Finally, after almost five minutes of applause and a standing ovation, the room is quiet enough for her to give her speech. I swear she and Peter are true relationship goals; when Lennox mentions her first husband in her speech, I look over to Peter to see his reaction and see him mouthing the words she is reading off of the paper she has. I realize he probably helped her with her speech, showing his confidence in his place in her life. He always gives Rich credit for supporting and loving Lennox when he wasn’t. Whew, not many men would be okay with that, but when she gets to Peter in her speech, the way she looks at him is nothing short of tangible love. She concludes her speech, and the standing ovation and applause are almost deafening again. There is not that much more left to the evening, and then I have to go home, and right now, that is the last place I want to be. I toy with getting a hotel room or asking Skai if I can stay with her tonight, but in the end, I am no punk. I gird my loins and prepare to go home with Aryan.
Aryan
She is avoiding me, and I don’t like it at all, but I keep my cool and decide to talk to her about it once we are on our way home. Imagine my surprise when a ride-share car comes to pick her up. By the time I make it home, she is in one of the spare bedrooms, and the door is locked.
I could be an asshole and open the door, but I will respect her wishes not to be bothered but for only so long. I know my brothers think I am being a dick and that I am mistreating her, but Brooklyn and I have an understanding, I made it crystal clear what I could and could not offer her, and she was okay with that. So, if she is expecting more from me now, I’m afraid she is going to be very disappointed. Unlike my brothers, who have gotten married after years of saying they most likely wouldn’t, I meant it when I said it. Marriage is not in my future; that ship has sailed, and I have had no desire to try to rethink it. Even though I truly care for Brooklyn, I could never marry her, no matter what. My brothers have made it quite clear how they feel about what they think I am doing to her, but what they don’t understand is I never lied, never led her on, or promised her more than I am giving her. How does that make me the asshole? I go to my bedroom and get ready for bed, but as soon as I cross the threshold, all I see and smell is her. I notice the special blanket that she wraps up in at night, like a security blanket. My body runs hot at night, so I like the room cooler, but she is always cold, so she wraps herself like a burrito. I have never seen her sleep without this blanket. I strip as I make my way to the shower and throw my clothes in the proper receptacle before stepping inside the steam. After I make sure I put on lotion, throw on some sleep shorts and my slippers, return to the bedroom, grab her blanket, and head towards the room Brooklyn’s in. I input the master code in the door lock, turn the handle slowly, and open the door to see her tossing fitfully in her sleep. Silently, I make my way over and place the blanket over her. I watch as she immediately settles as her hands find and grip the blanket in her sleep. Standing there, I am fighting with myself to not climb into the bed with her. We’ve shared a bed every night since the first night we gave into our attraction.
When Lennox suggested she care for Joseph after he had been hurt, I expected someone completely different from the woman who showed up at our house. Everything about her called to me: the short brush-cut hairstyle in her signature peach color, the tattoos on almost every visible piece of skin, and even the piercings. I wasn’t sure if someone who looked like her knew what she was doing, but she quickly proved me wrong and showed that she was an extraordinary nurse and would make an exceptional doctor. In some ways, I envied her. Her love for medicine hadn’t been tainted, and it hadn’t failed her. As for me, I would never practice medicine again, at least not willingly. I helped my brothers, Atlas and Joseph, and even my sister Megan, but those were extenuating circumstances. She refused to acknowledge her attraction to me until she was no longer caring for Joseph, but before we took things any further, I wanted to make sure she understood what she was getting into with me. She said she understood and was okay with it, and now I feel like that may no longer be the truth, and I don’t know where that leaves us. Ultimately, I left her alone and returned to my room, where I settled into a fretful rest.
I stumbleinto the kitchen the next morning, pausing in the doorway to watch Brooklyn move around in the kitchen, making her morning coffee to take to work. Aretha Franklin’sRock Steadyplays in the background, causing her to add a little shimmy as she puts her concoction together. Creeping up from behind, I slide my arms around her, pulling her back into my chest. I missed her in bed with me last night, and I release a deep breath once I have her in my arms.
“I missed you,” I tell her, resting my cheek on her head.
“Let me go, Aryan. I’m going to be late for work,” she says, wiggling out of my arms.
“Brooklyn,” I start immediately feeling bereft as she grabs her keys and walks out without another word. I let her go, but I plan on getting to the bottom of this with her before the day ends. Grabbing my favorite mug from the cabinet, I put it under the spout, open the top to put a pod in and realize there are none. Now I keep the kitchen stocked with my favorite brew from Joseph’s coffee shop, so I know Brooklyn must have done something with it.I guess I’ll be heading to Joe Momma this morning for my coffee,I think as I return the mug to the cabinet, and head back to my bedroom to get dressed for the day.
Brooklyn
This whole day has been full of shit, starting with waking up and not having Aryan there with me, to me dropping my entire cup of coffee when my bag got caught on the handle of the door. Then, a patient refused to let me treat them because I looked like a “gang banger,” so Dr. Dalton had to be called in instead. That led to Lennox being called to the floor to talk about what should be done with me, to which she responded ‘nothing.’ I am unsure what to do. Not only is my appearance hurting my career, but it’s also hurting Lennox’s reputation. Not that she cares. Peter offered to buy her the whole damn hospital.
“You know, Brooklyn, if you opened a private practice with me, none of this would happen,” Dr. Dalton says, walking up behind me so close that I can feel his hot breath on my neck. I move away, putting distance between us.
“I’m fine, Dr. Dalton,” I tell him again. He asks me at least once a week, and I decline at least once a week.
“Well, at least let me pay for your tattoo removal procedure. I mean, I love a good pull-yourself-up by your bootstrap story, but that doesn’t translate to the patients. They don’t know you as well as I do,” he says around a mouth full of porcelain veneers.
“And how well is that?” Aryan’s voice floats over to us, and I grit my teeth, willing my body not to have an outward reaction.
“Oh, Aryan, we didn’t see you there,” he says, intimating that there was more going on and that I want him to be here with me.
“It’s Mr. Gideon to you, Dalton. Get out,” he barks the order, never taking his eyes off me as he steps further into the room.
“I broughtyou a cup of coffee since I had to go get a cup seeing that all the pods mysteriously disappeared,” he says. I raise an eyebrow at him because I sure did take all the damn coffee, and I am not sorry about it. He places the coffee cup in my hand, warming my palms, and the scent goes straight to my nose, making my mouth water. I take a sip and moan from the flavor, and the caffeine goes straight into my veins; it’s perfect. I hear the door close as Dr. Dalton finally leaves us alone together.
“Sunni says hi,” he tells me, causing me to have the first real smile that I’ve had since yesterday.
“I have to go by there to see her,” I reply, drinking almost half the cup in the next sip. Sunni started as a freshman in college as a barista and ended up becoming a manager at the second Jo Momma coffee shop.
