Page 46

Navy BLEU

“Who comes all the way on vacation to sit and read? I read like the next person, but your head has been in that book since we got here.” He gently took the book from me, and looked at the spot I was in.

I tried to reach for it, as he flipped it opened to the chapter I was on. “Wait, she’s about to text Julian… let me read this chapter and then we can leave.”

“You really locked in with…” his eyes skimmed the pages, “Ella.”

I folded my arms. “Her name is literally on the cover, Landon. Was skimming necessary?”

He smirked. “I watched your book videos… freaky ass.”

“All I want is for my girl to get her HEA… and Julian is gonna give her that.” I paused, taking him in, and he looked at me weird.

“What, Navy? If that fucking wasp is back…”

“I’m trying to see if you are cinnamon roll material… hmm. You have some qualities.” I giggled when he tickled my feet and took a seat on the edge of the lounge chair.

He kissed the top of my feet and handed me back my book. “I made reservations for a restaurant with the best views on the island.”

“Really?”

“Uh huh… I wanna see you dressed sexy as shit, heels on and your hair curly. Pooh, I want you to smell so good that it makes me wanna suck your pussy in the car on the way to the restaurant.”

I maneuvered in my seat because it was the way he was staring at me that had me turned on. “Is that so?”

“Hell yeah.” He looked down at his phone that kept chiming. “Not ready to return back tomorrow.”

“Yeah, same… we got some time together though. Where are you headed to when we’re back?”

Landon checked his phone. “Might have some event I have to attend with my brother. Wanna be my date?”

“Eww, is that how you asking me?”

His phone continued to ping, and he stood up and came over, leaning over me. Tilting my head with his finger under my chin, he kissed my lips, sticking his tongue into my mouth, before pulling away. “Yeah, you coming.”

I was still hot from the kiss when my phone chimed. “Oooh!” I hollered, as I snatched my phone from the table beside me.

“What happened?”

“Turn the page sis book club is live right now… they’re discussing this book I finished last week.”

Don looked at my screen. “Shorty got a white board?”

I laughed and sat with my legs crossed. “Yeah, they get deep… shush.”

His phone started to ring, and he kissed my head, while he went to handle the call.

I noticed he took a lot of calls, and there were a lot of side private conversations he and Beans had.

Greene told me that Beans worked for his brother, but with the way they had been moving, it seemed like he worked for him.

Like he was his second in command or something. I watched the live while watching him going off on the phone. His vein on the side of his neck bulged as he hollered. Beans was back at the villa with Greene. They were going to attempt to make the snapper again, with Gera’s guidance.

“Don’t even worry about it. I’ll handle it when I touch back down,” I heard him say, as he ended the call and walked back over toward me.

Although he was calm when he said those words, his eyes told me everything wasn’t going to be alright when he touched down.

He checked his watch, then sat back down on the edge of my lounge chair. “Ready to head back?”

I put my phone down and smiled. “Thanks for this. I really enjoyed myself today.”

“We didn’t do shit except sit on the beach and read. I had a few shots, and you sucked down three smoothies.”

I laughed. “First of all, don’t clock how many smoothies I had… they were so good. Plus, we didn’t need to do anything, Landon. There’s beauty in doing nothing sometimes. It’s a privilege that not too many people get extended to them.”

He nodded his head. “You right, Pooh.”

There was always something happening, always something to do.

Even when you planned not to do anything, something always had to get done.

When I was younger, I used to hate to sit in the house doing nothing.

As an adult, I realized that not too many got that option.

I watched my father, on his days off, get dressed because he and my uncles had some contracting job in another part of the city.

There wasn’t such a thing as doing nothing and enjoying the stillness of the world.

Today, as I read my book on the most beautiful beach, I stared up at the sky and could actually see the clouds move.

The sun beating down on my legs, and the smell of sea water, were small luxuries of the day that I didn’t take for granted.

Inhaling a healthy dose of sea water while a crisp page from a book sat between your fingers was the perfect day for me. “Somebody said they wanted me to be sexy, so I need time to do that.”

“Don’t need that much time.” He helped me up and grabbed my beach bag as we trekked across the beach to the Jeep holding hands.

I looked at him as he stared straight ahead with a dark pair of sunglasses on. His facial expression was tense, and when he briefly looked over at me, he smiled. “Everything okay?”

Opening the door for me, I climbed in, and he sat the beach bag in the backseat. “Yeah.”

“You’re lying to me, and I understand. There are things that you cannot tell me. Greene has already been a vault.”

He chuckled. “It’s your birthday… none of that shit matters.”

“Okay.”

Soon as we got back to the villa, Don and Beans went somewhere to talk while I went to shower. When he had me speed packing, I had grabbed the dress I planned to wear on the trip with London.

A yellow V-neck crochet maxi dress with gold accessories and my mini knockoff Hermes bag.

I lathered my body up with Demosea’s Urban Romance body oil, then used the matching perfume.

It was a small woman owned business I found online and became obsessed with her things, especially this collection being named after my favorite things: books.

Spritzing some on my neck, behind my knees, and then my ankles, I stood up and tied my robe tighter so I could start my makeup and hair.

“Knock, knock, birthday girl!” Greene stood in the doorway with her arms folded, smiling at me.

Our moms really ate when they decided to have children around the same time. Greene had been my built in best friend, and no matter what happened, or where we went, we always spilled our deepest secrets to each other.

“Hey… I was just thinking about you.”

“As you spray your ankles with perfume… yeah, sure,” she cackled, sounding exactly like her mother, my aunt, whenever she laughed.

“You crazy if you don’t think I’m ending this birthday on his high.” I snorted at my own joke and started on my makeup.

“Just wanted to check in with you. How did the convo go with the whole abortion thing?”

“He’s supportive of what I want to do. Neither of us are ready for a child right now. It would be dumb to have one just because we can afford one.”

Greene nodded her head in agreement. “No offense, but babies ruin everything.”

“Greene!”

“I’m being real. They are blessings, but let’s be real… having one right now as you both are getting to know each other sounds like a disaster.”

“Girl, I live for a pregnancy troupe in a book, but in real life, I am crying on the inside. When that doctor told me, I flashed out.”

“Auntie said you did. Said you were quiet for like ten minutes.” She cackled again.

“Not too much.”

“Reasons I’m celibate and enjoying it. I’m not opening these legs until I’m married. Even then, that man has to prove that he’s worth me even giving him my hand in marriage.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll get enough dick for the both of us.”

We both started laughing, as she tossed the hand towel at me. “No for real… you need to stay off one another. Me and Beans were playing cards by the pool and y’all were going crazy.”

I shrugged. “Making up for lost time. Antwan was away at college, and even when he did come back home, we never had sex like that. Even when we did… it was never like this. Never , Greene.”

“I get it, bitch… damn. You and Don are both freaked out… got it.”

I tossed my blending sponge at her, as she came and sat on the second sink. “Just because you’re torturing Beans don’t be like that.”

“He is used to having any woman he wants with a snap of the finger. I can tell he had to go into his room and have a moment. I came out in my bathing suit, and he almost swallowed his tongue.”

I laughed. “And your body is sick, so I know he was struggling. Was it the pink one?”

“Yep… cheeks were out, and I took a few thirst traps, too.”

“Would you ever get serious with him?”

Greene shrugged. “I’m taking whoever takes me seriously – serious. I don’t have time for games with a man that wants to play games and pretend. Can’t be giving myself to these men that don’t want what I want.”

“Which is?”

“Marriage and eventually children. I want that life with the picket fence and a backyard big enough for our family to come over and hang out. My job affords me enough money to be comfortable. The Casellis’ make sure of that, but when I’m done for the day, I want to pull into a driveway and know my husband is waiting for me, or at least on his way to our home. ”

I rubbed her arm. “You will have that, Greene. Nana always said to talk about what we want out loud… talk like it’s already done.”

“I look at Menace and Stevie, and I can’t help but smile. Outside to the world, even to me, he’s this presence, and that he is, but when he’s with his wife… his new baby… it warms my heart and makes me want the same. If he could have that, then it should be a piece of cake for a normal person.”

“Not you saying that man isn’t normal.”

“Girl, he’s not normal and he’s fine with it, too.” She chuckled. “I guess I should listen to Nana more.”

“Woman is smart, and not because she’s our grandmother.”