She had heard that white guys were different in their approach, but this was unbelievable.
“That's it,” he stressed, “and your willingness not to be a tight ass bitch toward me too. So, do we have a deal? Starting tonight, you, me, and the kids for dinner. We can go out to a restaurant before I start cooking for you at home.” He noticed her expression of disbelief. “What's so hard to believe? That I cook, or that I don't want to waste any time getting under your skin?”
Trish's body had no trouble picking up on the change in his tone. His deep Barry White voice was sexy all by itself, but when he added the sexy smooth-as-honey tone to it, it made her pulse pick up its tempo. He closed the space that was between them, seized her by the hips, and pulled her into his embrace. It was the first time he held her that close. Her hands itched to touch his chest to test the muscles that she knew were hard under his shirt.
“The fact that you actually cook and you drive that,” she replied in a voice she prayed hid the effect that he was having on her.
“My car? Why does the fact that I drive a
Charger
baffle you so much?”
His full lips were begging her to kiss them as he towered over her.
“Brayden, you're too damn cocky, so full of yourself.”
“Oh, don't get me wrong. I have an ego, make no mistake about it, but the difference is I know how, when, and where to let it show. Everybody keeps a little, and shows a little when they're trying to catch a person's eye; you know that, Trish. I’m hoping I don't have to do that with you. I'm hoping you're mature enough to skip all that first few weeks of bullshit,” he responded as he eyed her closely.
He had already taken the time to reach out to a few of his friends that were in contact with Trish, and many of their old classmates. He was able to piece together many of the events of her past thirteen years. He knew what he was getting himself into, and he was hoping that he would be the one to change her life, and in turn get the woman that never gave him the time of day before.
“So, what is the end game?” she smirked.
“I want a wife.”
He felt her body stiffen from the shock of his admission. He was sure she had been expecting him to say something along the lines of wanting a girlfriend. She worked her mouth to say the word wife, but nothing came out.
“Yes, a wife,” he repeated for her as he nodded his head. “We both have children,” he pointed out. “I would never insert myself into your life or put you into mine if I didn’t know what I wanted. I want a family.”
“But, how are you going to say—”
“All you have to do is be
open
to all that I have to offer you, and everything else will fall into place,” he promised.
“I think you’re taking this a bit too fast. I…I haven’t even been single for that long, and there’s the issue of me being black and you’re—”
He lowered his mouth to hers, stopping her protest with a kiss. His lips were demanding, forcing her to give way to his seeking tongue. She knew she would never forget the way her body responded to him. It was instant. It was surprising. It was mind-blowing. The sound of her moan was strange, even to her ears, as he caressed the inside of her mouth. He broke away to stare into her wide, light brown eyes.
A wide, seductive smile formed on his moist lips.
“There is no fuckin’ issue with color, Trish, so you can lay that excuse down. I see your body really doesn’t care about the color of my skin, and as you can feel, mine finds your body to be fine as hell,” he whispered while he pulled her closer to ensure she felt his stiff cock pressing against her stomach.
He released her and took a step back.
Trish looked at the hand he held out, ready for her to take and shake to seal the deal. She stared at his long, strong tanned fingers and wondered how they would feel when she touched them. She reached out her hand and felt his callused palm as he gave her hand a firm shake. On contact, the butterflies in her stomach began to leap and dance. He reached into his back pocket, and retrieved a pen for her to sign.
Sometimes, all you need is an excuse
, she repeated to herself as she scribbled her name on the dotted line.
**
Hours later, she debated following her kids into the gym. It wouldn't have been the first time that she had decided to stay outside and watch a movie on her cell phone, but this time it would be for a different reason. It would be because she was trying to avoid him, and that wasn't part of the agreement. She felt herself walk into the large building. She saw her feet moving, carrying her across the concrete flooring, but her mind was miles away. That kiss he had planted on her, her first experience of being in his embrace, and the feel of his long, thick cock was all that she had been thinking about after they had gone their separate ways.
Could she really date this man? He was sexy, funny, confident, fine as hell, smart, experienced, and he had money, but he was just not the right shade of brown. What would her kids say? Their father was black. All of the guys she called just 'friends' were all black. Of course, there were some family members that had white girlfriends or baby mamas, but there weren't any female members that had crossed the color lines and frankly, that's how it always seemed the more she thought about it. You would see tons of white chicks hooking up with black men, but not too many black women seemed willing to date a white man.
Wait. There is Iman and David Bowie
, she reminded herself quickly, making a mental note of the list she had been compiling in her mind.
Not to mention, all the new shows on TV where there were black women with white men. Hell, it seemed as if more celebrities were also making it alright for black women to date outside of their race. It was just that
she
had never considered doing it. However, now at the age of thirty-seven, why the hell not? Sure, Brayden
said
he was looking for a wife, but she knew that men said whatever it took to sex you. She was sure he was no different.
“Damn, it must be really serious. I can see the smoke circling around your head.”
His deep voice shook her out of her deep thought and pulled her back into the present. Like always, he went hard when he was in the gym. The man didn't mess around. He was dripping with sweat, and the veins in his muscular arms were throbbing from his intense workout. The veins on his arms weren't the only ones that were throbbing; she realized this as she eyed a vein that ran down his taunt stomach and disappeared wickedly into his basketball shorts.
“Um, I was hoping to get at least three weeks in before I let him come out and play, but if you keep looking at my cock like that, I can't be held accountable for his actions,” he moaned.
Her light brown eyes widened at the sight of his imprint starting to grow under her curious gaze.
“Who's to say you're going to get that far?”
He smirked at her half-hearted comment.
“Let's just say my ego has told me so,” he smiled when she laughed at his words, relaxing her a bit.
“So, what had you so focused?” he asked. “No bullshit, Trish,” he pressed.
She took a second to think of a lie, and then decided there was no real reason to. If he really wanted to get to know her, then why not? She could use a good friend.
But he wants to be more...a lot more than your friendship. Let's test the water
, she decided.
“I was just wondering how my family and kids were going to take it when you showed up for dinner someday.” She leaned against the wall and watched him as he took in her words. She was surprised to see that he took a moment to consider her words as he unwrapped his hands from the white boxing tape.
“I take it this is very important to you. So, you've never dated a white guy?”
“And you have...I mean, a black girl?” she corrected herself quickly.
“Yes, I have. To be honest, I've always been attracted to darker skin. I like the way my hands look against it. I like the dark, large nipples, and the way that pretty pink stands out all nestled in between all that brown,” he answered truthfully in a thick voice as he acknowledged the strange look that came over her face.
“What are you thinking about, right now,” he demanded.
“You…you shock me. I think I must be horny or something because you’re affecting me in a very strong way.”
“And you find that odd. Is it because you're remembering the younger me from school, or because I'm white?”
“Maybe a little of both.”
“Well, let me tell you something. The boy from school has turned into a man, so don't confuse the two. And there are assholes in all races. There is no perfect race, no matter what the media tries to tell you.”
“But you have to admit that there are cultural differences,” she pressed.
“Oh yeah, like we like mayonnaise and you all use salad dressing on your sandwiches. That's something that's taught, Trish. I'm not going to wear gold chains, and walk with a side-limp just because I listen to rap and R&B. I think you're overthinking this thing. Try approaching it as a man and woman,” he suggested as he closed the space between them. “I find you sexy, and I can tell that you find me attractive.”
“And how do you know that?” she smirked as she tilted her head to gaze up into his face.
“The fact that you're trying to climb up the wall to keep me from touching you is a pretty good clue,” he whispered as he got closer still. He reached out his hand and caressed her low on her hip. “I like that sound you make when I touch you, like you've just been shocked. I see I'll have to make sure we're alone the first time I make love to you. You're going to be too vocal. Tell me what you’re feeling right now,” he demanded as his brown eyes locked with her light brown ones.
“I feel hot…and, I um,” she lowered her gaze in shame. “My stomach is churning, and my pussy is wet, and it’s throb—”
Something must have clicked in his mind because a second later, he took a quick step back as he glanced over his shoulder to ensure that the children were still working out across the gym. He ran his fingers through his dark hair as he exhaled loudly. His little flirtation had gotten the best of him. He saw now that he was going to have to have a hell of a lot more willpower when it came to her. All of the months of wanting her were starting to take a toll.
“I'm sorry, but to answer your original question, there are tons of women that date white men. And I'm not talking about just on TV,” he stated as he pulled out his phone. After a few moments, he handed his cell over to her.
Trish smiled at the many pictures that were posted on the Pinterest page that he pulled up. The women were of different shades of black, shapes, and ages. She wasn't stupid. She knew that these women were out there, but she just never really acknowledged them in her day to day life; then again, Janelle took no issue with it, and she didn't give a damn about it. In addition to that, her friend had to deal with being gawked at all the time due to her scars, and here she was worrying over something so trivial. She looked over at her kids and marveled at the way that they had no problem making friends, and finding beauty in other races. Maybe she could learn a thing or two from them.
“You need to get cleaned up if you're taking us out to eat,” she said with a firmness in her voice that wasn't there before as she passed his phone back to him.
Trish sat in her car the next morning with the air on full blast while she made a few phone calls. She had put up no complaint when Brayden had told her to wait in her car outside the house until the home inspector showed up, even though she still didn’t understand why he had told her to get the man back out there. She had put up a bit of a fight, as she mumbled under her breath, and told him her thoughts about his request, taking pains to make sure she didn’t embarrass him in front of his men. She had only been at the house for a few seconds before he began to question the list they had made just the day before. She didn’t know if it was because he didn’t take kindly to her being there with the heated, lustful gaze of his employees trained on her, or if he just didn’t like taking orders from her as she walked through the house pointing out issues. Whatever it was, he had finally turned to her and asked her to call the inspector out. She had doubted that the city worker would come. However, as she caught a glimpse of the truck creeping up the road in her rearview mirror, she figured that the words Brayden had told her to say actually worked.
“Good morning. You say that you have questions about the foundation of the house?” the short, bald man smile as he shielded his eyes from the direct glare of the sun.
The man took in her loose-fitting, yellow jumpsuit with matching sandals as she got out of her car. He never cared for the high-minded attitude she gave off whenever he inspected her houses. It wasn’t anything she said directly, but the way she would address him, and how she walked with a confidence that bugged him—that along with the way she questioned him as if he didn’t know what he was doing.
Well, the joke was on her dumbass,
he thought.
He focused his eyes on a blade of grass to make sure she didn’t see the sparkle in his eyes that was mixed with the malice he felt for the woman. He knew that he had been sucking up her profits with his overrated inspections. He got such joy in his heart whenever he drove by her homes, because he knew she was spending thousands more than what was needed to get her homes up to code. She might have the nice clothes and pretend to be more than what she was while she drove around her nice car, but he was the one was getting the last laugh every damn time.
“Yes, please…after the construction company got here, there was a little confusion about the report,” she answered while she began to lead him to the side of the large house.
“You wasted no time, I see. It’s good that you had the funds to get started so quickly.”
“Well, with that long list you gave me, I would have to be crazy to not to.”
The man turned his head to glance into the house next door to keep her from seeing the smirk on his face.
She might not have seen it, but Brayden had. When he had seen the man’s truck pull up, he had gone into the basement, ran into the room that was directly under the spot he had told Trish to take him to, opened the window, and was now waiting to listen. Half the shit that was given to her by the man was just that—a bunch of unnecessary bullshit. That morning, Brayden had told his two foremen to create a crack on the outside of the house. His brown eyes narrowed while he waited to see if the man was going to take the bait.
“I got a call about this,” she started, pointing to the crack in the concrete that ran along the side of the house and disappeared into the ground. “It wasn’t in your report, but the foreman said it’s a crack in the foundation. Please don’t tell me that I have to spend even more money reinforcing the damn foundation,” she whined.
She stood back and watched the man’s reaction closely. He bent down to get a closer look before he let out a long whistle.
“Oh, yeah...you got one hell of a structural issue going on for sure.”
“Son of a bitch,” she hissed.
She was sure that he thought she had made that comment because he had agreed with her, but that wasn’t the reason behind her statement. Trish clamped down hard and began to grind her teeth while she listened to the man go into his gloom and doom speech. She felt like a damn fool. She had done all of that arguing with Brayden when he had told her that the inspector was taking her for a ride with the long list of things he had told her was wrong with the house to jack up the price of the remodel, only to see now that he had been right all along. The worst part about it was that he had inspected all of her other properties in the past. Her head was swimming when she thought of all the countless dollars she had pissed away listening to the asshole; not to mention, the other contractors that had kept their mouths shut and laughed all the way to the bank on her stupidity. She continued to glare at the man as she followed him back to the front of the house. However, the man went deathly silent at the sight of Brayden standing in the front lawn.
“So, what did he say?” questioned Brayden.
“It was just as you said, a foundation issue,” growled Trish.
“Really?” drawled Brayden, his one eyebrow raised.
“Well...I, I haven’t taken a look yet,” the inspector began to stutter.
He had no idea that she had chosen
him
to do the remodel. Everybody in the home office knew who they could fuck with, and he wasn’t one of the persons on the list. He might come off as a clean-cut, hard-working business man, but the people in the industry knew the truth. The man had some powerful ties, and they weren’t the kind that wrote long, angry emails to get things done. They were the kind that waited for you in
SUVs
with dark tinted windows. The kind of men that knew how to get things done with a nod of the head and a stern look. The kind that would fuck you up without a second thought.
“No, actually you said that the entire foundation needed to be reinforced, and you were going over to your truck to write it up,” said Trish, correcting the man.
Brayden pinned the man with his cold gaze. He nodded his head slowly while the man began to stumble over his words as he tried to explain himself.
“Tell you what, let’s walk over to your truck and talk while you do that paperwork,” suggested Brayden.
“Well, I um...I have to get going. You see, I had to go out of my way to make this stop so I—”
“And I thank you for that, so let’s get it written up,” pressed Brayden, no longer giving the man the chance to protest.
He nudged the man in the back toward the city’s truck across the street. He gave Trish a warning stare to stay put.
“So, mister,” he paused, leaning forward to read the man’s name tag. “Mister Wyderbox…wait, is that your
real
name?” he chuckled. “Well shit, no wonder you’re a fucking asshole,” he growled.
Brayden shoved the man so hard against the truck that it rocked.
“Hey, I’ll file a complaint if you—”
“Oh, a complaint,” repeated Brayden as he slammed the man’s truck door closed, keeping him from getting in. “You must have some balls after all the shit you’ve done. I should kick your fuckin’ ass, then get you fired from your job.”
“Look, I didn’t know that you were—”
“You didn’t know that she’s my fiancée.”
“Your fi…fi...fian—”
“My
fiancée
,” Brayden mouthed slowly for him.
He could see the man beginning to shake out of fear. He stole a quick glance across the street at Trish. He knew he had to wrap things up quickly before she brought her nosey ass over there. He was sure that the inspector was so scared that he was going to piss his pants, but not before the man blabbed about him in front of Trish. He maneuvered himself to block Trish’s view of the frightened man.
“You obviously know who I am.”
“Yes, sir. I know who you are and about your—”
Brayden put up his hand for silence. The inspector quickly clamped his mouth shut.
“It would be most helpful to me if you don’t say that around her. It bothers her when people kiss my ass. Now, I don’t have to tell you this shit isn’t going to fly. We both know that there isn’t a damn thing wrong with this house, and half the crap on that list you made is a bunch of bullshit. So, this is what you’re going to do, Wyderbox. You’re gonna make that inspection you filed and all the others for her current homes pass. Do you understand? Look, I don’t need you to talk, just nod.”
The man stopped his stream of words and nodded his head forcefully.
“Now, if you try to fuck her over again, I promise you that I’ll break your damn kneecaps. Then, when I have your lying ass on the ground, I’m gonna kick your fuckin’ head in. I won’t kill you, but you won’t be right either after I’m done with you,” he stated as he took a step to the side, allowing the man to be seen by Trish. “Ok now, get yourself together, take my hand, shake it, and get the hell out of here,” he commanded. He held out his hand for the man to take.
The inspector painted a fake smile on his face, and shook his hand hard. Quickly, the man got into his truck and sped down the road.
“It’s all good,” cheered Brayden with his hands up in the air.
She tilted her head while she watched him walk across the street and up the walkway toward her. She wanted to ask him for an explanation. She could tell that he and the man were having a pretty intense conversation. However, she didn’t want to question his methods. Given the fact was he had been right and she had been wrong, she owed him a lot for whatever he had just said and done.
“Did you just threaten that man’s life?” she joked.
She appraised him openly. She liked the way his shorts hung low on his hips. She licked her lips and shifted her stance in an attempt to dull the sharp pain of lust that was coursing through her pussy.
“Damn girl, I didn’t know your hearing was that good,” he teased.
She gifted him with a smile. She shifted her gaze to look at the large oak tree that was in the yard. He could see the nervousness in her body overcome her. He glanced back at the house behind her. He could see some of his men standing by the window, watching the two of them. In spite of the fact that he was personally involved with Trish, he had taken great pains to set the tone on the job site. He slipped his hands into his pockets to keep from touching her.
“I’m really sorry about this morning,” she said, at last looking up into his handsome, tanned face. “I came here as if I knew everything, only to see that I’ve been walking around here like a damn fool the whole time,” she mumbled.
“You weren’t that bad, believe me. At least you were willing to listen to me. I promise you, Trish…I want to see you succeed.”
Once again, he was having a strange effect on her. She was so used to George. He never did anything to help or support her, even though her achievements would have benefited him too. He still chose to bad mouth everything she tried to do. She took a deep breath to replace the air that he was stealing from her lungs. He was just so damn perfect, in every way.
“Let me make it up to you.”
A wicked grin formed on his full lips. “You should never begin a statement like that with me.”
“It’s too early for that,” she regretted her words as soon as they left her mouth.
His gaze turned hot, causing her already aroused body to kick into overdrive. It took her a second to moisten her dry throat to speak. The way his eyes were boring through the thin material of her jumpsuit was causing her nipples to harden. She saw his gaze drop to stare knowingly at them. She wished to God she had worn a bra and didn’t care about the fact that it would have shown through the open back.
“I have a change of clothes in the car,” she offered.
His strong hands caught her when she tried to walk past him, stopping her in her tracks.
“And why are you changing?” he questioned with a deep frown creasing his forehead.
“To help out.”
His frown only deepened. He pulled her backwards until she stood in front of him.
“Why do you think you have to strap on a belt and help?”
“Are you saying that I can’t—”
“No, that’s not what I’m saying, Trish,” he cut her off quickly. “What I’m saying is that you don’t
need
to. Why the hell would I want my woman to get down in the mud and do all this grunt work when she doesn’t have to? Why would I want to embarrass you in front of my employees?” he responded hotly.
“Well, shit…I didn’t think that me offering to help would have caused you to get all pissy.”
“Damn right I am. You seem to think that I’m not capable of taking care of whatever you need,” he replied in a loud, deep voice. He saw her look over her shoulder towards the house to see if the workers were watching them, which only served to anger him more. He had told himself that he was going keep it professional on the job site. However, he found himself wanting to send a message to everyone, including her, that
he
was in control.
He brought his arm around her, grabbed a handful of her ass, and pulled her to his body. He heard her sharp intake of surprise, but he didn’t give a fuck. He lowered his head until his eyes locked with her light brown ones.
“I can’t wait ‘till I dominate your ass. I’m going to show you what being with a
real
man is like. I don’t need you to hold my hand to do a damn thing, and I don’t care who’s watching us either. I want all those fuckers to understand just who you are to me,” he growled.