Page 45 of All She Ever Wanted Was a Real One
“It’s late.”
Her statement made me take a glance from the nearest kitchen window. The moon hung low in the night sky. I scoffed. “Barely. It’s like nine o’clock. Where you at?”
“Home.”
“You want me to come get you?”
She rolled her eyes. “No. But you could at least give me a hint about what my gift is.”
“Why settle for a hint when you can come see it in person?” I questioned as a playful smirk formed on my lips.
I trekked back into the living room and handed the phone to Liv. I knew it wasn’t fair to bait her into coming to see me, but I needed to see her. It was like I couldn’t quite function right without her. All I could do was hope it worked. At least that way, both of us would get something we wanted.
Time seemed to fly by after playing a couple of rounds of charades. To my surprise, Lex pulled up about an hour later—right on time to join in on Liv’s next game, which worked better with an even number of people anyway. I noticed she was wearing her engagement ring almost immediately, and that shit hit me harder than I expected. I didn’t know what had changed between the cabin and now, but it was clear she’d had a change of heart. The petty side of me wanted to forget all about the charm I’d bought her—to return it and get my money back. But it was too late. She already knew about it, and her curiosity wouldn’t let her not at least see what it was.
After playing a couple more games, she volunteered to be on refill duty with me for the drinks and helped to take everyone’s glasses into the kitchen.
She set the two glasses she had in her hands onto the countertop before twisting her neck toward me. “Okay, Oak. I’ve been patient enough. Where’s this gift you speak of?” she inquired.
“It’s in my truck. We can go out and get it once we’re done with this.”
“Yeah. I don’t wanna get in between your dad and his whiskey sours. If I wasn’t driving, I’d definitely partake.”
Lex and I shared a quick laugh before returning the refilled glasses to the living room. We stepped outside onto the front porch. I drew in a deep breath, instantly filling my lungs with the fresh, crisp air. My thumb jabbed the key fob still buried in my pocket, and the truck unlocked. I opened the door and reached inside the glove box to grab the small, pink Pandora box with the charm nestled safely inside.
“Here,” I said, forgetting everything I’d rehearsed in my head, and practically handing her my feelings wrapped in a pink satin ribbon. “I saw it and thought of you.”
She outstretched her hand for the box, and after seeing the word Pandora written on the front of it, I knew she could tell that whatever was inside wasn’t a thoughtless gift. It was anything but, and I was nervous as hell that she’d think I’d done too much. I did my best to play it cool as I watched her intently, acutely aware of every reaction and facial expression she had, even if she didn’t know it.
The box opened, and her breath hitched as her eyes widened a little, then softened as a slow smile crept up her mouth. There was a slight pause as if something in the air had shifted. Lex ran her finger over the charm gently, almost reverently, and looked up at me with a look in her eyes. It wasn’t uncomfortable, but powerful, like an unspoken feeling that we were both on the exact same page. It was then that I realized she knew exactly why I’d gotten her that charm. Even if we never spoke about what went down at the cabin again, the charm would always speak for itself, serving its purpose as a silent but unforgettable memory.
“Why are you trying to get me in my feelings tonight?” she teased, but her voice was soft, almost too light to be joking.
“Does that mean you like it?”
She nodded while turning the charm over in her fingers as if she didn’t want to stop touching it. I didn’t want her to either. I stepped closer to her, maybe a bit awkwardly, or maybe even too fast as if I was scared I’d change my mind if I thought about it too much. To my surprise, Lex also stepped forward and wrapped her arms around my waist, hugging me longer than I expected.
She pulled away and smiled. “It’s beautiful, Oak. Thank you.”
“You’re welcome, Lex,” I replied before lightly kissing the top of her head.
The next few weeks seemed to zoom right past my black ass. By the time I looked up, I was already a little less than a month away from closing on my new house, which meant Lex’s wedding was right around the corner.
My phone dinged with a text just as I hopped out of my truck wearing a hoodie. I shoved my hands into the front pocket and pulled it out as I made my way to the construction site for the pre-drywall walk-through of my new home. It was a text from Yasmine.
Yasmine:
I’m free later tonight for drinks if you wanna meet.
We’d been texting here and there since our run-in at the mall, but I still hadn’t made time to solidify a link up. My mind and my heart had been too consumed with other things. One being my new house. It was hard to believe that I was getting closer and closer to calling it mine. I purchased the land over a year ago, and construction began six months later as part of a seven-home community, with four bedrooms and bathrooms and over three thousand square feet of living space. From the outside, I enjoyed the modern look with brick accents and oversized windows.
Inside were more large windows on every floor to let in natural light, a gas fireplace, and a chef’s kitchen that would have top-of-the-line appliances and custom cabinets. Upstairs were three bedrooms—two for guests, and the spacious mastersuite with two walk-in closets, an ensuite bathroom with a frameless glass shower, a freestanding tub, and heated floors. But my favorite part of the house’s layout was the top floor, which opened to a roof deck with an outdoor fireplace. It offered more privacy and shade from the sun or other weather elements with the built-in pergola. At move-in, even the basement would be finished with a wet bar, additional bedroom, and another bathroom with heated flooring.
Now that I’d seen the space in its entirety, the blueprints and all the months of waiting didn’t do it justice. Everything about it was perfect, and since I was about to have more space than I knew what to do with, all I had to do was find the right woman to share it with. But deep down, I knew I’d already found her. It was the type of place I could see Lex turning into a real home. All she had to do was unleash her womanly touch. With every room I drifted into, I couldn’t stop myself from thinking about what she’d say or the things we’d do in them. It didn’t matter how much I tried to fight it; I couldn’t stop thinking about her if a nigga had a gun to my head. She was the missing piece to my puzzle and always had been.
My phone rang, dragging me out of my thoughts. I fished it out of my pocket to see Liv’s name and photo on my screen. I hovered my thumb over the accept button before placing the phone to my ear. “Sup?”
“Oak?” Liv replied, sounding like she had a frog caught in her throat.
