Page 29 of Tangled Hearts

With a deep ache in her chest, she knew her mother was the only one who could help her.

Nakorea was the epitome of strength, and she needed to lean on her mother in hopes of borrowing some.

Usually, she would go to her best friend but knew Knycole had a lot of shit that needed to be handled on her own plate.

“What, girl?” Nakorea rounded the corner with a flora robe draped over her curvaceous body.

Noir burst into a thousand tears. “He had a baby on me.”

Rushing over to her, Nakorea hugged her daughter as tight as she could. “Aww, baby,” she said, rubbing her back soothingly.

Noir’s body shook as she sniffled and rattled shaky breaths, doing nothing to help calm her. “I don’t know what to do. Like, how could he do this to me?”

“Because he’s a young man.”

“So, you’re saying it’s ok because he’s young?” Noir looked at her mother once she’d pulled her face out of the crook of her neck.

Nakorea’s brows raised. “Did I say that? What I’m saying is, y’all are too young for that adult ass relationship.”

“I’m twenty-two, Ma.”

“And what the hell does that mean? You’ve been sneaking and creeping with that man since you were seventeen.”

Noir looked away.

“Oh, you didn’t think I knew that, huh? I know every damn thing. So, he cheated and made a baby. What you gonna do about it?” She placed her hands on her hips.

Shrugging, Noir plopped down on the couch. “If I decided to still be with him, I don’t want him to see the baby.”

“Like hell you don’t! The hell kind of shit is that? I didn’t raise you like that, Noir.”

“But, mama, I can’t take being around the baby.” Noir tried to reason in hopes of her mother seeing things her way.

“Then you damn sholl ain’t ready to be around its daddy.

How you gonna take the man back but make the baby suffer?

That shit is to backwards.” Nakorea drew a long breath, taking a seat beside her oldest child.

“Let me tell you something. Life ain’t easy, and relationships are hard, especially when you get into one young.

By no means am I saying what he did was okay, but that child didn’t ask to be here.

You’re either going to pack your shit and leave or put on your big girl panties and deal with the situation like a grown woman would. ”

She rubbed her forearms. “I don’t know what I’m gonna do.”

“And that’s fine too, but I advise you to think long and hard about it because that petty shit ain’t in our blood.” She patted her thigh. “But don’t forget about that skincare ad you have to do.”

Noir rolled her eyes. “Can I grieve?”

“Yea, you can, but make sure you’re able to wipe your eyes with franklins.” Her mama winked.

Noir knew talking to her mother would make her feel better.

And Nakorea was right, she had to think about what she really wanted and if she was able to be a stepmother to an outside baby.

A baby that was made while she was still madly in love with him.

Her heart started to ache when she thought of him giving that bitch what was supposed to belong to her.

To get her mind off the situation, she decided to do some work.

To the average person, what she did wasn’t considered a job, but for her, it was, and it was a lot of hard work.

Don’t get her wrong, posting on Instagram was fun too.

Ever since she got on stage with Cash five years ago, her social media had blown up.

With 3.5 million followers now, companies were paying top dollar to get some ads on her news feed and story.

Thinking of Cash, a smile danced in her eyes. They’d always kept in touch, and needing a distraction, she reached out to him.

Noir: Aye.

$: Pretty girl, what’s up?

Noir: I’m sad.

$: Still with that nigga, huh?

She giggled but decided to change the subject. Noir was never one to pillow talk.

Noir: What you doing?

$: Could be you. Where you?

Noir: The city. You?

$: L.A. Go to the airstrip and come see me. You know I’m gonna take care of you.

Noir: I don’t want to stop you from working.

$: A car is already coming to get you from your Ma’s house. Go there and wait. Don’t bring shit.

She thought about it for a few seconds before throwing caution to the wind and texting back, okay.

“Pretty girl!” Cash greeted Noir at the airstrip with his arms stretched wide. His dreads were long as hell, and he had more tattoos then she last remembered. One thing that was the same was the way her body blossomed when around him.

Grinning like a kid in the candy shop, she embraced him, melting like chocolate. “You’re still loud as hell.” She giggled.

“Ain’t shit changed.”

“It looks like a lot has changed. You’re flying me out on private planes.” Noir bowed to him softly.

“I don’t own that muthafucka, though,” he said humbly.

She followed behind him to a blacked out Rolls Royce. “But I’m still proud of you. You made it out like you said you would.”

He got in behind her. “And I’m proud of you, too. I see you doing your IG thing. That shit is dope.”

“You think so?” She shied.

“Hell yea. You’re a boss in your own right, so don’t let none of these hating ass hoes make you feel otherwise.” His gentle hands lifted her chin.

Her fingers glided through her naturally coiled tresses. “Thank you. I needed to hear that.”

“So what brings you out here?” he asked, trying to lighten the mood. Their interactions were both heavy and freeing. Being in L.A. was like being surrounded by superficial people, so having someone from home come visit was a treat for Cash.

“None of that matters. Show me your town,” she asked with conviction.

“Say less, even though my town is Jade City.” He winked before telling the driver to take them to his favorite restaurant.

The driver dropped them off at a tucked-away spot in the city, dim lights and soft music humming in the background. The air smelled like butter and grilled steak, the kind of place where the waiters already knew Cash by name.

“Oh my goodness! This food is so damn good. You eating like this every night?” Noir asked, stuffing her mouth with a spoonful of bourbon ice cream.

“Shit, not every night because I ain’t trying to be in the gym twenty-four hours a day, but I do eat good damn near every day. I haven’t found a good soul food spot yet though,” he told her.

“I feel you. I should probably stop eating,” she joked, silencing her phone again.

“You know you can answer that. I won’t say shit.” Cash nodded to her phone that was lighting up again, vibrating across the table.

Her eyes roamed around the room. “I don’t want to talk.”

“Then what you want to do?” He sat up in his chair.

She only shrugged because she didn’t know exactly what she wanted to do. All she knew was she didn’t want to think about or talk to Christian.

“Is it really that bad?” He tried again.

She nodded.

“What that nigga do? Cheat?”

Again, her head went up and down.

He waved her off. “That ain’t that damn bad, Noir. You can forgive him for that, can’t you?”

She sat stone faced.

Cash’s head cocked to the side because it was deeper than that. “He made a baby on you, didn’t he?”

Glossy eyes pierced his. “Y—yes,” she stuttered unable to contain the dam of tears from falling.

“Oh, shit,” he mumbled, running his hand over his face. “Come’re, man.”

She obliged, taking a seat on his lap. “He hurt me, Cash.”

“I know, pretty girl, but you can’t let him kill your spirit. Get you a good cry in so you can get the sad part out of your heart. Then throw some shit around. Hell, fuck shit up. That way, you’ll get through the mad part. Then you get to the reality of shit.”

Nodding, she knew what he was saying was what she needed to do because honestly she didn’t know if she was going to throw in the towel on what they had. “Let’s go fuck some shit up.”

He smiled, blinding her with his gold top and bottom grill. “Say less.”

“Oh my gosh! That was so much fun,” Noir bounced in her seat once they left a movie set where she was allowed to fuck shit up.

“Hell yea,” Cash agreed.

He had never done anything like that before and only came up with the idea because she needed it. Now, it was something he was going to add to his life at least once every few months. When you had money and connections, you could make anything happen.

She was still panting from exerting herself.

“Yea?” He answered his phone sounding so sexy to her.

While he talked on the phone, she watched his lips move. Even when he caught her watching him, she didn’t stop. Knowing what she wanted, she got on her knees not giving a damn about the driver. Also not giving a damn about just having Christian inside of her hours before.

Cash stopped talking, first looking at the ground then letting his gaze drift up to her face where he kept his gaze as she unbuckled his YSL jeans.

She licked her lips, preparing her mouth for a guest—a big guest at that. Her eyes bulged at his massive size. Never one to backdown from a challenge, she licked the tip and took his dick into her mouth.

“SSS.” He tensed from sheer pleasure. “I’m—aye I’m gon’ have to hit you back.” He ended his call. “Say, pull over to the beach, and um, go get some fresh air,” he told the driver.

While he talked, Noir kept sucking the soul out of him. During the short ride to a secluded part of the private beach, she kept her pace giving him sloppy toppy. Saliva dropped from her chin, but she had no reservations.

“Gah damn, pretty girl.” His hands dug into her scalp. “Get your ass the fuck up here,” he told her and the driver couldn’t get out the car quick enough.

She didn’t hesitate. Straddling him, she grabbed his dick before sliding down on it. “Cash.” She hissed, trying to adjust to him.

Her heart was broken.

Her body was reckless.

And still, she moved like he was the only thing that could hold her together.

She sank down on him, her walls tightening around him like her body remembered him. Cash gripped her hips, his temples pulsing from gritting his teeth. He was all the way in, and somehow she still didn’t feel full.

He slapped her ass. “Pretty girl, you’re tight. Oh. So. Fuckin’. Tight.” His tone was even, giving way to his pleasure.

She tugged at his shirt, lifting it over his head, never losing her rhythm. His body was a work of art. After she admired his chest, she gave a single kiss to his shoulder that turned into a bite when he dug into her center.

“You are too deep,” she complained.

His dick jabbed. “I want to be deeper, but you gotta open this little pussy up for me, pretty girl.”

The sound of his voice. The tickle of his voice on her ears. It was all too much. Her body quaked as she called out to the heavens.

Their bodies slapped rhythmically but there was nothing sweet about it. It was desperate and charged with everything she couldn’t say out loud. Her heart was hurting before, now with Cash, she pushed Christian’s fuck up to the back of her mind.

His lips pressed into hers, unapologetically sticking his tongue in her mouth. “You gotta quiet down.”

Still shaking, she nodded her head because that was all she could do. “Ahh!” She squealed as she found his body on top of hers.

Cash didn’t let up. He spread his legs, pumping up, to fuck her so good she stuttered and choked on her words. “You tryna be mine?”

“I don’t know,” Noir cried when he slammed her down on him. It was the most honest answer she had for him. If Noir wasn’t anything else, she was always real. “I don’t fuckin’ know.”

Noir kept riding him, the truck shaking and bouncing while she tried her best to muffle her moans.

Their chests collided, teeth scraped, and hands groped.

The windows fogged from their heavy breathing and body heat they seemed to make even when their clothes were still on.

Noir kept Cash in her back pocket like a keepsake.

She never thought she’d ever really get to take it out and ogle it— play with it— show it off.

Now, she wanted to carry it back to Jade City to flaunt. Maybe to be petty. Or maybe to be real.

Cash kissed her like he wanted to fight for her soul, and she kissed him back like she wasn’t sure she still had one left.

Sexily, he smiled then sucked on her neck, never letting her pussy breathe from its beating. Not long after her third release, he was ready to let loose.

“Where you want this, pretty girl?”

“In me.”

Instead of questioning her, he pulled out and let loose in his hand. He knew she was hurting, and although he had no issue with giving her his seed, he cared about her too much to do it. He would never take advantage of her pain.

Trying to catch her breath, she felt stupid for what she said.

She was ashamed by it and knew she had to get the hell out of L.A.

before she made more of a fool of herself.

She’d been naive to get on a flight and mistake his kindness for wanting her.

For all she knew, he had someone and was doing his girl the same way Christian had done her.

Noir wasn’t sure if this was love or just lustful muscle memory.

Whatever it was, it kept pulling them together. A text here, flirting there. The two of them had spent years creating secrets and a friendship that would stand the test of time. Somewhere along the way, Cash and Noir had knotted their souls in a way that it was too complicated to untangle.

Especially to people who never wanted it to unravel.