Page 12 of Summer in London

chapter

seven

A week later, Naasson kissed the back of A’ja’s shoulder as they lay in bed. “Everything good?” he asked when he realized that she’d gone quiet after receiving a text message.

“Umm.” A’ja sat up and continued to stare at the phone. “My ex-husband. He said he’s on his way to London, and that we need to talk. He lands at midnight.”

Naasson sat up too. Clearly, A’ja felt some type of way, but he didn’t know what that way was.

He felt from day one that their time together was temporary, so he never gave too much thought as to whether or not she’d get back with her husband.

But after he’d just cum in her twice back to back, he would be lying to himself if he said he wasn’t perturbed at her husband’s decision to pop up like he still had it like that.

“You gonna see him?” Naasson wanted his voice to sound indifferent. Like he didn’t care one way or another, but he did.

“I guess.” A’ja didn’t sound too sure. “I mean, he is my husband. I’m not sure what he wants to say, but I guess I should hear him out.”

“Right. ‘Cus he’s your husband.” Naasson stood up and began getting dressed.

He didn’t want to act like a bitch. He didn’t want to throw a temper tantrum and show that he was in his feelings, but he’d rather be the one to walk away.

He would feel lame if A’ja let her husband come crawling back after all the nasty ass sex they had and all the time together they spent.

A’ja snapped out of the trance that she was in and looked over her shoulder. Naasson had a slight scowl on his face and while it made him even more handsome, she was sure that he was upset. “Naasson, I’m still separated.”

“Yeah for now.” He stuffed his feet into his shoes. “It’s cool, A’ja. I knew what it was when I met you.”

Her brows snapped together, and she stood up. “What was it when you met me, Naa?” she wanted clarification.

“You said you were going through a divorce, and you were still in the grieving process. All it’s going to take is some finessing from that nigga, and you’ll be back locked in. That’s cool. Do you.”

“Finessing?” A’ja drew back. She didn’t like this Naasson.

“It’s cool, A’ja. I wish you all the best, baby.” Naasson grabbed his keys and left while she stood there with a slack jaw.

Everything happened so fast that she was confused.

A’ja had no idea what Kenyatta wanted to talk to her about, but reconciliation was the furthest thing from her mind.

She was honest with Naasson because she had no reason to lie to him, but things had gone left fast as hell.

A’ja walked slowly to the front door and locked it.

She had fun with Naasson. She liked him, and the sex was absolutely amazing.

If it was up to her, things between them wouldn’t end just yet, but she’d had enough of begging.

Asking Kenyatta more than once to go to counseling seemed like begging.

Trying any and everything to make her marriage work seemed too much like begging, and A’ja was over that shit.

She’d never again beg another man to see her worth.

She’d never ever beg another man to fight for her or to act like he wanted to be with her.

If Naasson wanted to leave without even hearing her out, then he could go.

A’ja got in the shower, and her anxiety was kicking in full throttle.

Why couldn’t Kenyatta just text her what he wanted to say?

Why couldn’t he call her? His popping up on her was borderline disrespectful in her eyes.

How could he be so sure that she didn’t have anything going on?

They were still legally married, but he was a handsome man with a pretty healthy sex drive.

She doubted that he hadn’t had sex since they separated, and if he could do him, she could do her.

A’ja sighed and kissed her teeth immediately after.

The text message from her soon to be ex-husband had ruined her entire evening.

But maybe it was for the best. She had a little more than two months left in London before she’d be going back home.

She could squeeze a lot of sex into two months, but the longer she dealt with Naasson, the more attached she’d become to him.

A’ja wasn’t trying to fall in love. She’d simply been trying to get her groove back, and she’d done so.

Whether she had been ready for her summer fling to end or not, it looked like it was coming to an end, and she couldn’t do anything but accept it.

A’ja had attempted to boss up a little by telling Kenyatta that he couldn’t come to her flat.

She told him they could meet at a coffee shop.

She was headed there dressed in nude trousers, a nude, sleeveless, bodysuit, and crème heels.

A’ja didn’t want to meet him looking anything other than fabulous.

She wasn’t even sure why she wanted to impress him, but she couldn’t meet her soon to be ex looking throwed away.

A’ja arrived at the coffee shop first, and she ordered an iced coffee before taking a seat in the back of the quaint shop.

A’ja couldn’t believe that she was nervous and not in a good way.

This was a man she shared her life, her heart, and her bed with for many years.

Being unsure and unsettled at the thought of his presence was a concept that was foreign to her, but it was what they had become.

A’ja’s breath hitched in her throat as Kenyatta entered the shop.

He was dressed in black jeans, a red Polo shirt and black sneakers.

He was nothing short of handsome. As he always was.

The diamond and gold wedding band that she used to love to see on his finger was gone, and the sight made her heart sink.

A’ja swallowed hard. It was over. Really over.

Kenyatta’s eyes darted around the shop, and he spotted her in no time. With a lick of his lips, he headed in her direction. When he approached the table, A’ja offered him a small smile.

“Hey. You look good,” he complimented her as he sat down.

“Thank you.” She didn’t return the compliment.

“How have you been?”

A’ja shifted in her seat because she wasn’t up for the small talk. She wanted him to get to the point. “I’ve been okay, I guess. Why did you come all the way to London to talk to me? We were in the same city for a few months, and you had nothing to say.”

“What was I supposed to say? You said you wanted a divorce.”

“Okay, so what do you have to say now?” she peered into his face.

She still loved him. Love didn’t go away overnight, but she was annoyed.

He hadn’t wanted to communicate for months and now, when she was damn near sixty percent over him, here he wanted to come and set her healing process back over small talk. A’ja was more than annoyed.

“I just want to make sure this is really what you want. Once we sign the papers, we are legally divorced. Is this what you want?”

A’ja drew back. “I’m slightly confused. You were the one that contacted the realtor about putting the house on the market.

We’ve both packed our things and moved out.

You didn’t say one word when you were gathering your things and leaving.

But now, you want to check and make sure it’s what I really want? ”

Had he asked that question a month ago, she probably would have said hell no.

A’ja never really wanted a divorce in the first place.

She wanted Kenyatta to fight for her and when he didn’t do that, she was crushed.

There had been too many nights of her crying herself to sleep.

Too many times she had to sit on a therapist’s couch and talk herself off a ledge just so depression wouldn’t cripple her.

Many days, A’ja wanted her phone to ring, and she wanted it to be him saying he didn’t want a divorce.

But he said nothing. He let her be miserable day in and day out and when she finally felt like she was seeing some light at the end of the tunnel, he wanted to pop back up like he had it like that.

“I was angry at first, A’ja. I felt like if that was what you wanted, I wouldn’t fight you on it. I felt like if you were willing to throw away years of marriage over nothing, I wasn’t going to stop you.”

A’ja’s brows snapped together, and she jerked her head back.

“If I was willing to throw our marriage away over nothing. Wow,” she chuckled sarcastically and clicked her tongue.

“I’m sorry to hear that you feel I threw our marriage away over nothing.

I wanted to feel secure, loved, and appreciated in a marriage, but I guess that was too much.

You didn’t have an ounce of fight in you.

You acted as if you couldn’t care less one way or another if I stayed or if I left, and I don’t wish to be with someone like that.

I want to feel valued, loved, and seen. So if you think that’s nothing, I will let you continue to think that.

But I’m sure I made the right decision. I do want to go forward with the divorce. ”

A’ja blinked back tears. She refused to let him see her cry.

What in the hell was she crying for anyway?

This man had shown her time and time again that he wasn’t the one for her.

He wasn’t the worst person in the world, but he wasn’t the man she saw herself spending forever with.

A’ja never hesitated to express herself to him, to tell him how much she loved and appreciated him, and to let him know that she was willing to do anything to save their marriage.

Meanwhile, he was refusing therapy and telling her he didn’t want to have kids right now.

He was acting as if his heart wasn’t in it, and she had too much pride to feel like she was begging anyone to love her the right way.

“I hate that things had to end this way. Despite what you may think, I do love you. I’m sure I will always love you. We ha―”

A’ja pushed her chair back. “Respectfully, Kenyatta, I don’t want to hear it.

You could have told me this months ago. None of it really matters anymore.

You certainly didn’t have to fly all the way here to say that.

I’m not over you. I have no problem admitting that.

I’m not in the headspace where I can sit and chat and be buddy buddy with you.

I’d like to heal and move on with my life, and me sitting here with you is setting me back. I wish you the best.”

She got up and walked away with a tight chest. Kenyatta flew all the way to London just to irritate her.

He had wasted his time and his money. His presence in London was an absolute waste of time.

Naasson had gotten in his feelings over this shit?

Had he not acted the way he had, A’ja would have been ready to call him over, so she could ride his thick dick until she felt better.

If her marriage had taught her anything it was to stop ignoring red flags.

If she went to Naasson and pleaded her case, he just might get out of his feelings but then what?

They’d continue to sleep together until the season was over, or they’d sleep together until his movie was wrapped up, and then they’d part ways.

She wasn’t even legally divorced yet, so the fact that she’d already hopped on another dick was insane in her eyes.

Yet, she’d done it, and she enjoyed it. A’ja knew it wasn’t long-term, however, so she was going to leave well enough alone.

There would be no more getting her hopes up, getting attached to the opposite sex, or fantasizing about a happily ever after.

That clearly wasn’t in the cards for her, and she had to be okay with it.

A’ja went back to her flat, showered, and crawled into bed.

She’d worked so hard to come out of that dark place, and she had no desire to ever go back in it.

But the sadness was tugging at her. It had a hold of her, and it didn’t want to let up.

A’ja fought it for as long as she could, and then she erupted into tears.

She had a good, long, gut-wrenching cry.

A cry that came from the bottom of her soul.

Then, she wiped her tears away and closed her eyes.

She would sleep the rest of the pain away and when she woke up, it would be a new day.

A’ja vowed to herself that this was the very last time ever in her life that she would shed tears over a man and his actions.

This would be the last heartbreak that she ever allowed herself to have.

Everyone had to go through it at least once, and she was going to make damn sure that this one time would be the first and the last time that she ever let misery take up residence in her life like this.