Maybe, Maybe Not

19. Friends Like Family

"You're dating what?"

"My lady friend, she's older. She's hot, she's everything."

He was trying to have this discussion at his place about Jakinda with his cousin and homeboy Eric, while they blazed one up. Jakinda was too busy working after hours, so now he had to spend his evenings alone. He missed her. He should drive over just to lay next to her, but he did not want to be so clingy.

"How old are we talking?" Eric was younger than him by two years. He was an artist like him, they met at his art show at UMSL a few years back. "Like old enough to be yo momma or grand momma? That's just nasty!"

He took a puff of his blunt and wondered if Jakinda smoked and would smoke with him. She looked too classy for that.

"Fool, none of the above. I ain't tripping about her age when she look da fuck good and we vibe."

Rafael added his two cents. "Let me be the judge of what she looks like."

He was tempted to pull his nude painting of Jakinda from the corner, where he kept it covered up, but he knew better. That was his eyes only. He captured the true essence of her soul in that painting, he felt it was some of his best work.

"Man, I just got lucky with her. She's just what I need. We connect, on a mental level-"

"Old pussy good? Like, it's not dry or anything?" Eric asked.

He would not answer that. Quite the opposite, Jakinda was so wet and juicy his mouth watered thinking about her. He took another puff. He needed to get faded if he was not getting fucked. He closed his eyes and imagined Jakinda sitting on his lap while he gripped her ass.

Even with those cornrows in her head, she was sexy.

With her scarf or bonnet on she was sexy. First thing in the morning she was sexy.

Oh, he had it bad.

"Naw, I heard them cougars are where it's at!" Eric cackled. "They want us young thunder cats to put it on them. Those old heads not hitting it right."

Eric was the ultimate player, worse than his cousin. Young and dumb, and only liked them young and dumb like him. He was a white guy who only liked Black girls, and they loved him because he was tatted up, had long dark hair, and a scruffy beard. A broke Jason Mamoa. Not that Eric was broke, his parents were wealthy and he had a nice apartment above their garage.

"Can we not talk about my lady?"

"Fine! Talk about mine." Eric pulled out another blunt. "Young and no kids. No baggage."

He did not think of Jakinda's kids as baggage. They were older, adults and not around often. He wondered when he would meet them. The family was important to her, just like him. As an only child, he envied anyone with siblings. Rafaelo was an only child like him. Eric had two older siblings. Jakinda had a few siblings he told her about but he lost track. A blended family she stated. Must be nice.

"So we should go on a double date for Valentine's Day. Me and the bitch I'm fucking and you and your old lady gang."

Why was he even having this conversation with his immature friend? There was no way he would dampen a special night like Valentine's Day on a double date with his homeboy, that called his girl a bitch. He already made plans for Jakinda and him and he knew she would love it.

He listened to her, watched her, and knew what she liked.

He was always a romantic at heart, so Valentine's Day was one of his favorites when he was in a relationship.

"I don't want you anywhere near my lady. I'm trying to impress her and show her I'm not immature. Hanging with either of your asses might set me back."

"Cuz, that's ain't right! We fam."

"Family is more than blood, man. And all family ain't friends."

"We're not blood Nikko, but we family," Eric added.

Still, he wanted neither of them near Jakinda anytime soon. They were too immature for someone like Jakinda. He was glad Amorica liked Jakinda from their first meeting.

Time seemed to go fast because it had only been a month since he made things official with Jakinda. Four weeks of blissful happiness and now next week was Valentine's Day. He was ready.

After Rafaelo and Eric departed, he aired out his place to get the marijuana smell out as best he could. He lit some candles and incense, then relaxed to enjoy his mellow mood. All smoking did for him was mellow him out and release some tension from the week.

He called Jakinda while he lay naked in bed rubbing himself. Anytime he lay in his bed now he had thoughts of her.

"What are you doing sweetheart? Thinking of me?"

"Finishing some work then about to get in bed." He could hear her typing away on her laptop, and he imagined there were papers strewn around her desk as she read off her notes.

But that didn't matter to him, he was feeling lonely. "That bed would be a lot warmer with me in it."

"It makes no sense for you to come all the way over here, then get up so early when you live so close to your job."

"You make it worth it. I miss you."

"What are you doing now? Touching yourself?"

"How did you know?"

Her laugh made him ache for her more. "Because you're a horny beast."

"Only for you."

"Tomorrow is Thursday. I have a meeting after work, but what if I pack a bag and come over Friday night and stay the weekend?"

"Even better if you stay the week." That would run into Valentine's Day and fall right into his plans.

"Nikko, with all these after-work meetings-"

"I got you baby. I will pick you up, drop you off...whatever you need me to do."

"I cannot ask you to do that."

"You're not asking, I'm insisting. Please, baby. I can make you dinner every night. Massage your body down. I'll run you a bubble bath at night and feed you chocolate."

She laughed at him but he was serious. What he was planning for Valentine's Day would take up seven days. Why celebrate just one day?

"Okay, okay. But you have to let me work when I need to."

"Sure." He did not know if he would be able to keep his hands off of her but he had to try. He did not want her to think the only thing he was into her for was sex.

But damn the sex was so good.

Since she agreed to come over for a week hopefully, he made sure everything was already in place for everything he wanted to do.

Yeah, he was about to go overboard.