Page 6 of Solid
I kissed her forehead and nose, not missing the sharp inhale of breath she took. With a smile, I left her apartment . . . for some reason, feeling accomplished. Getting a physical reaction out of her hadn’t been my plan but thinking about her desiring me and being frustrated because of it would definitely give me a good night’s rest.
Iwaited intently for Brooke to confirm if I was crazy or not. I’d told her about what happened last night with me and Kayne, and I wasn’t sure if he was flirting or not. I didn’t think he was. I think he was saying his dick was so appealing I’d want it. That wasn’t flirting, right? I mean, that could be considered a fact. So there was no reason for me to think too much into it. Except I had been thinking a lot into it—all night,andall morning. So much so that when it was finally time for me to have my lunch break while my little nuggets were napping, I almost raced to my car to grab a Frappuccino and call Brooke.
“Hmm . . . How was he looking?” Brooke questioned.
“Like normal but also sexier. I don’t know. Confident may be a better word. And his voice lowered and was huskier than usual. And he was standing so close to me I felt the heat from his body transfer to mine.” My hand slid down my neck as I squeezed mythighs together. “And he um . . .” Clearing my throat, I tried to shake the visual of him last night from my head unsuccessfully.
“Jayla?”
“Hmm?”
“Yeah, you want that man.”
Her cackling made me groan as I pulled up to the window to get my strawberries and crème Frap. “Oh, stop. That can’t be possible.” I smiled at the cashier and thanked her for my drink before pulling out of the lot and getting back into traffic. “There’s never been anything physical between us. No flirting. Nothing. I can’t . . . that wouldn’t change just because of one comment.”
“Except it hasn’t been just one comment. You might have reacted with arousal last night off one comment, but you’ve always had a thing for Kayne. You’ve just been too afraid to acknowledge it.”
My head shook as if she could see me. “No, that’s—I mean ofcourseI’m attracted to Kayne. He’s fine as hell. But I’m not sexually attracted to him.”
“Are you trying to convince yourself of that lie or me?”
Sighing, I nibbled my bottom lip. “Well, maybe I was turned on last night, but it didn’t mean anything. It can’t mean anything. Nothing can happen between us, so I’m glad he left when he did.”
“And that’s what I don’t understand. Why won’t you give something with him a try, JJ? Everyone with eyes can see there’s something between the two of you.”
“I don’t deny there’s something between us—love and friendship—and I will not risk that for anything. I can’t lose him. Just the thought has me feeling anxious with tears in my eyes.”
Though I smiled, I fought to blink the tears back.
“But why do you think you’d lose him? That man don’t play about you, best friend. I don’t think he would let you go easily.”
“Brooke, you know like I know that Kayne will not pursue me. I dated his brother. You can’t just wipe that from our history! That’s literally how we met.”
“Ugh, Kenya ruins every damn thing.”
The frustration in her voice made me giggle. “On to other things . . . What’s new with you?”
“Nothing really. Oh! Treasure and I went out last night and I met the owner of that new shoe store at the mall. He’s really cute but focused on his new location, so I don’t think anything serious will come out of it. We’re going out next weekend though.”
We continued to talk until I got back to school. I appreciated the brief distraction from my thoughts of Kayne. But as soon as we stopped talking, one glaring truth came back to mind.
Last night, I wanted to have sex with my best friend.
Later that Night
“Wait. We have to rewind it. This shit is hilarious,” Kayne said, grabbing the remote to rewind the movie again.
He’d come over with a few pre-rolls and Reese’s. We ordered my favorite pizzas from Domino’s and planned to spend the evening high watching our favorite comedies. I loved watching comedies or scary movies when I was high. Not only were the feelings and reactions elevated, but I often noticed things I didn’t notice when I was sober.
We were at the beginning ofThe Nutty Professorwhen Professor Klump was talking to the dean, and we were falling out laughing over his facial expressions. We rewound that same conversation about five times before moving on.
“Hold on!” I clutched Kayne’s arm as I wheezed from laughing so hard. “Did they put a few pieces of hair on the top of Daddy Klump’s bald spot? Why have I never noticed those three lil pieces of hair until now? OMG.”
“Are you serious?” Kayne paused the movie, and we both sat up in our seats on the sofa. We looked at the hair and then each other before laughing heartily. Our bodies were intertwined as we rocked and swayed. I damn near fell off the couch, but he caught me. “Yooo . . . They were wrong for that. They put a landing strip of gray fuzz balls on top of that nigga’s head.”
I laughed so hard tears fell, and he laughed so hard he choked, making us laugh even harder. With my knees on the couch, I patted his back as he alternated between coughing and laughing. It didn’t help that he was still trying to eat a slice of pizza.
“Boy! If you don’t put that pizza down until you stop coughing!”