Page 20 of Where Is the Love

He pecked my lips again and backed away from me, backpedaling until he no longer could. I turned and went to the bathroom to freshen my lipstick, then made my way to the box.Damn.Nate was everything I remembered him to be. This would be a great night, but the decision on who to choose would affect me a lot more than I anticipated.

* * *

The game had been amazing.Nate had scored twenty-eight points… four were three-pointers. Although he wasn’t the star player of the team, he’d significantly contributed to their win tonight. Noah had arrived at halftime, and several had asked him for autographs. He was a star rapper and producer and hall of fame inductee. He was definitely an A-list celebrity. I didn’t approach him because I was sure that Nate would introduce us.

Noah stayed inside the box while I drifted out to the hallway. When my phone rang and I saw my girl Tyeis’s number, I answered. “Hello?”

“Bitch! You at the game? I saw yo’ ass on TV. How the fuck you made it to the box?”

“Ty, you know how. Nate invited me out.”

“Aww shit. So y’all gon’ finally go to the next phase of whatever the fuck y’all doing?”

My mind immediately went to Brix. That was most likely a sign. He’d entered my mind more times than I could count tonight. “Not now, Ty. I still don’t know what direction I’m gonna go in. I reconnected with someone in my hometown, and it got intense last week.”

“Oh shit. You fucked him.”

I closed my eyes as I thought about the love Brix had shown me. “Yeah. I just don’t know. Maybe I should stay single for right now. I’m so damn conflicted.”

“You have to let go of fear, Jess. Who does your heart want?”

“That’s the problem. I don’t know yet. I get the feels around both of them. I haven’t been around Nate long enough yet, though, to truly compare the two of them.”

“Well, you should know after tonight then. When do you have another break?”

“Well, I guess I’m on somewhat of a break now. I make an appearance at a club tomorrow night, then I’m off for a week and a half before I leave for California.”

“Take me to your hometown. I gotta meet this dude. What’s his name?”

“Brixton.”

“Damn. That’s a sexy ass name. Maybe I can find me a country nigga while I’m out there.”

I rolled my eyes. That was where I went wrong. I met Lennox and thought that anyone associated with him was like him… had his morals and values. I was wrong as hell. “I have a couple of single cousins close to your age. They are a little younger, but not by much.”

“Girl, as long as they’re in their thirties or older, I’m good. I can’t be dating nobody closer to my daughter’s age.”

Tyeis was thirty-eight, but she looked young. I thought she was in her twenties when I met her. Then she told me she had an eighteen-year-old daughter, and I was even more amazed. She was a single mother, doing her best to make her way through life, taking care of her daughter. The modeling thing came up unexpectedly. She was working in human resources for Shylou’s businesses when he realized she needed to be one of his faces instead of working behind the scenes.

She told me she hopped on that opportunity so fast. She was giddy to show off her new body. She’d had a bariatric procedure to assist her in losing weight. I wasn’t sure which one she had, but she was down nearly one hundred pounds. She looked amazing. Her weight was affecting her health, physical and mental, so she knew she had to do something about it. I was so happy that she had progressed, especially mentally, from where she was prior to her surgery.

“I have two cousins, Decaurey and Jakari.”

“Oh shit. Don’t tell me they’re twins.”

“No. Technically, Decaurey is my uncle’s stepson, but we claim him as our cousin. He would probably be offended if he even heard this explanation. Jakari is my first cousin. Jakari is thirty, about to be thirty-one, and I think Decaurey is thirty-two or so. They both are businessmen. Jakari is running our family business with our uncle, and Decaurey owns his own cement company. Decaurey likes older women too. He was dating a woman like twenty years older than him.”

“Well, it seems I have the pick of the litter then. I’ll be in H-Town Saturday morning and ready to hit the road with you. Is there a hotel close?”

I chuckled. “Girl, naw. I’m surprised ain’t nobody in my family built one. But shit, Nome ain’t no fucking tourist attraction. Most people that visit are there to see family. You can probably stay at my parents’ house with me. I’ll check to make sure it’s okay, although I’m sure it is since my dad knows you.”

Tyeis knew that my biological dad was deceased and that Carter was my stepfather. However, she had no clue about my past with Joseph. “Okay, boo. Let me know. In the meantime, I’ll keep Decaurey on my mind, because he seems to be more my speed. What happened to the older woman he was dating?”

I noticed Nate heading my way, so I said, “I’ll let him cue you in on that. I have to go, boo. I’ll call you tomorrow.”

“Okay. Have fun.”

I ended the call just as Nate wrapped his arms around me and picked me up. When he spun me around, I laughed loudly. After lowering me to my feet, he said, “You were definitely my good luck charm.”