Page 18 of The Dating Prohibition
the issue even though he’s not afraid to keep stealing glances anytime we’re in the same room together.”
Kendra leaned against the bar. The cold stone cooled her forearm as she pressed it onto the surface. “Are you saying you want
to try this out? Why don’t you just do the direct thing and ask him out yourself?”
Lani swiveled her neck, grasping at air with one hand. “Bitch, what? What I look like to you, Boo Boo the Fool?” The scowl
on her face was accentuated by a pinch between her brows.
“What’s wrong with asking him out? I’m not seeing the issue. I didn’t say propose to the man—I just think it’s silly to dance
around the issue when you know what you want. Y’all act like the dudes in our circle have ever been good at taking hints.”
Shonda giggled. “Facts.”
Lani tapped her fingers against her chin. “If it were that simple, why wouldn’t you just ask BJ out?”
Just twist the knife... “He doesn’t want to date me.
It’s different.” Kendra shrugged. The last thing she wanted to do was rehash the feeling of being wanted but simply not enough to justify trying.
And it wasn’t as if she didn’t believe herself worthy—she knew she was.
And that was what made it so frustrating.
Her cousin and sister-in-law exchanged a glance and burst out laughing.
“Excuse me, but what? He doesn’t. I’m not understanding why y’all refuse to believe me,” she huffed.
“But then why does he look at you like he wants to dig for your buried treasure?” Lani smirked, slapping Shonda five.
“Right, he be scoping you out like you’re the five-course meal, the doggie bag, and the breakfast in bed the next morning.
Everything in his face says he wants to meal prep and savor your fine ass.” Shonda shook her head as Lani whooped and cackled,
waving her arms and snapping her fingers in affirmation.
Kendra scoffed and shook her head. “Nasty heffas,” she muttered, though she could feel warmth creeping up her neck to rest
on her cheeks. They don’t understand. “I can’t force something when he doesn’t want it to be anything. It’s like giving an ultimatum and forcing the situation when,
for whatever reason, he’s not ready.” Or maybe he was trying to save my feelings and just doesn’t actually want something with me.
Shonda’s shoulders dropped as she tilted her head and regarded her sister-in-law. “Well, honestly, I think it’s better off
this way,” she replied softly. “I don’t know if I ever told you this, but back when Logan and I started dating, BJ told him
he shouldn’t get too serious with me. I don’t even know why. Logan obviously didn’t take the advice, but I always thought
BJ had something against me. I never understood it––maybe he didn’t think I was good enough for Logan. Maybe there’s something
more to his decision to avoid anyone in the inner circle.”
A twinge of recognition burst within her, deflating hope like a chef knocking the air out of dough after its first rise.
She hadn’t mentioned to the girls how BJ referenced the loss of Amber.
Still, none of that explained the concern that Shonda had—she was permanently in the inner circle now.
“Or maybe he just didn’t know you well enough yet.
He loves you for Logan, sis.” Kendra rested a hand on Shonda’s shoulder. “My brother’s never been happier.”
“I shouldn’t still feel miffed, but I do.”
Strange. “Nah, BJ loves you. Whatever that was, I’m sure it was a misunderstanding.” Their interactions always seemed friendly and
positive, and BJ wasn’t the kind of person to hold on to any bad feelings—at least never in front of Kendra.
Shonda nodded. “You’re probably right. And I totally could have misread it.”
“You’ve never asked Logan about it?” Kendra eyed her curiously. I wonder how long she’s been feeling this way.
“I tried once, and he told me that there wasn’t anything to be worried about. So he answered me but it’s not like he was clear—sometimes
I think the man is speaking in parables.”
Kendra chuckled. “I don’t think he’d minimize something if there was anything to it... he’s not the type to be anything
but brutally honest.” Facts . She’d once made the mistake of asking her brother how she looked in a pleather jumpsuit as she prepared to go out on a date,
and when he replied that she looked like she was wearing baby seal pelts crafted by the finest taxidermist, she vowed to never
seek his opinion again. She’d rather poll random strangers on the internet than be roasted by Logan—his brand of honesty packed
a punch. Dude is ruthless.
Shonda considered that for a moment and shook her head and shoulders as if to break loose any remaining anxiety. “You’re right.” She clapped her hands. “Okay, now back to the matter at hand. Lani, Kendra has a point. You are obviously into him. Why not say something?”
“Because I want him to pursue me. Haven’t y’all heard that you should have someone that likes you more than you like them?”
Lani lowered her chin, staring at the two of them like it was obvious.
Kendra scrunched up her face. “Where do they say that?”
Lani held up a hand to ignore her cousin. “Remember, you’ve been gone for two years. Anyway, I saw this woman talking about
it on TikTok.”
“So that makes her an authority? Because she decided to post a video of herself speaking on social media? Does she have any
credentials or is she just talkin’ out her neck?” Shonda couldn’t hide the bewildered grin from spreading across her face.
“How does that make sense to you?”
“How does it not make sense to you?” Lani retorted. “Just think about it—if you like them more, then you’re doing the most, making all the
effort, ignoring the red flags, and allowing yourself to be a doormat, because they have you in a place of vulnerability.”
Kendra’s brow furrowed. “Aren’t we sort of conflating a bunch of different factors here? I mean, this is with the assumption
that this fictional man is looking to extort, rather than genuinely making effort to be in a relationship, that they’re exhibiting
red flags, that they’re making less of an effort, and that their level of like can actually be quantified. Sorry, Cuzzo, but
the math ain’t mathin’ for me.”
Lani’s eyes narrowed. “I’ll send you the TikTok. I’m probably just not explaining it right, but the woman made sense. I know
my worth, and I deserve to be pursued.”
“I mean, if that’s what you want, go off, sis.” Shonda shrugged. “I just thought maybe we could cut down on some of the lag time, since it seems like both of you are just tiptoe ing around each other until one of you folds and makes a move.”
“Well, when he’s ready to put it down, he can fold me like origami. Until then, the ball’s in his court.” Lani smiled sweetly,
stirring her cocktail with a metal pick speared through two lychees.
“Something is wrong with you.” Kendra squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head.
“Truly,” Shonda agreed, turning back to Kendra. Her eyes shone brightly as she laced her fingers together in front of her
chest. “So what about you? Want us to try and set you up with someone else? Get your mind off BJ for a while? Honestly, it’s
not a bad idea to try and play the field a bit so you don’t fixate.” She bounced a little to emphasize her desire to help.
“Nah, I’m good.” Even Logan was against Shonda continuing to play matchmaker. The last time Kendra had allowed Shonda to set
her up, she got stranded for hours with her date who refused to admit that his car was not equipped to handle snow. Logan
had to come bail them out when her date finally relented, but only because his car ran out of gas—he didn’t believe in filling
his tank before the light came on. It didn’t help that the dude lived thirty minutes away and the siblings had to listen to
him gripe bitterly about cars with four-wheel drive.
“You sure? What if BJ has chosen permanent bachelorhood? You know how these dudes are in DC. Now we got all these fine silver
foxes still refusing to settle down.” She wasn’t wrong. There was an entire movement going on—there’d been literal conventions
of salt-and-pepper fineness that had her longing to be in a room full of somebody’s sexy-ass uncles, but she’d been out of
the country when Lani shared some of the videos on social media.
Kendra shook her head. “I’ve got too much that I’m trying to work on right now for the business.
I’m not in the right frame of mind to try to start something with someone brand-new,” she sighed.
“Dating is a massive energy drain, and honestly, I’d just like to wake up and find myself already knee-deep in a situationship. ”
Lani snorted. “Not the entanglement angle!”
Shonda’s shoulders drooped. “Fine. Well, let’s put our heads together so we can nudge Stanley in the right direction since
our good sis is being a punk.”
“I am not!”
“How hard is it to say ‘hey, wanna get a drink sometime’ or ‘do you have any plans for your day off—let’s hang out’? Peak
punk behavior, Cuzzo,” Kendra added. “You want one of us to ask for you?”
“No!” Lani’s hands shot out. “Please don’t. You two would only humiliate me, and I can’t go out like that.” She pinched the
bridge of her nose. “I’ll ask him, okay?”
Shonda leaned against the counter. “But when?” she pressed.
Lani shrugged, glaring at Kendra and Shonda with a resigned look on her face. “I guess today,” she droned.
“Better,” Shonda replied and nodded.
“Let that be the end of the conversation—I don’t need to game-plan how I’m gonna do it, just trust me, I got it.” She rolled
her shoulders back and set her gaze with a determined glare.
“Shift’s going to start in a few. Let’s head upstairs,” Kendra suggested, fully amused with the level of peer pressure they’d
applied to get Lani out of her head.