Becoming Carter (The Carter Series) (Volume 2) (16 page)

“But what about everything Deshaun was trying to tell me before he died? He said that I needed to watch out for you, and that there were things about my dad that I needed to know. I can’t let that go just because he died. It meant something to him. I have to find out what it was that he was talking about.”

“I know. But, the truth will come to the light, Babe. Whatever it was that Deshaun was trying to tell you about, it’s gonna come out. Just don’t press it right now. You guys need to grieve, and then once you’re good, come together and figure out the best way to fix all this broke stuff in your family, and keep each other safe.”

Kelvin stared at me for a second, and I watched the aporetic expression on his face finally ease up as he smiled. “Have I told you that I love you?”

I couldn’t help but smile back at him. “Well, not today,” I joked.

Kelvin chuckled as he took my hand in his. “When I look at you, it’s easy to remember why I fell in love with you so quickly. But, when I talk to you, I realize why I’m gonna be in love with you forever. You’re everything I ever needed in my life, Baby. And, I love you more than words can say. Thank you for sticking by my side through all this bullshit. A normal girl would’ve ran by now, for sure. But, you’re so much more than normal. You’re so unbelievably special. There isn’t a woman in the world who could make me feel the way you do. You’re the best thing that ever happened to me, Lilliana.”

I felt the tears quickly climbing their way out of my eyes and I had to squeeze them shut to keep them from rolling down my face. I leaned in and gave Kelvin a kiss, my tongue gliding lightly over his. As we pulled away, I rubbed his face and looked him in the eye.

“I love
you
, Baby,” I said. “And, I don’t care how much craziness is going on with you and your family. I’m not going anywhere. You give me more than I ever knew I wanted in a man. You’re so stuck with me.”

“Good. I wanna be stuck with you.”

I leaned in and kissed Kelvin again. Just as I began to slide my hand up his leg, I heard my cell phone ringing from the nightstand behind me. I let out a frustrated sigh before getting up to check the caller ID. It was Lexy.

“I really should answer this, Babe,” I said to Kelvin. “She’s been trying to reach me for days.”

“I know. Talk to your girl. I’m gonna go take a shower.”

As he got up, Kelvin turned around to face me just as I answered the phone.

“Hello?” I greeted Lexy. Before she could say a word, Kelvin reached down and pushed his shorts and underwear down to his ankles and stepped out of them. Then, as he stood, he pulled off his t-shirt, exposing
all of himself
to me with a seductive smile spread across his face.

“Lily! What the fuck? Where the hell have you been?” Lexy screamed into the phone. Her voice was a combination of anger and excitement.

“Umm,” was all I managed to say as Kelvin walked past me, purposely grazing my hand with his cock as he stepped into the bathroom and closed the door behind him. “Oh my god,” I whispered a little too loudly.

“You’re damn right
oh my god
,” Lexy snapped. “What’s going on over there? Why are you avoiding me so much; and why haven’t you been at work?”

“Umm, shit. Hi, Lex,” I said, still trying to pull myself together. “I’m so sorry, Sweetie. I haven’t been trying to avoid you, or ignore you. I’ve just been really busy and really distracted.”

“Distracted with what? Kelvin’s dick? You better stop being all secretive, and clue me in. How are you gonna be my bestie if you’re little Miss Sneaky Shit? Talk to me!”

“Okay, okay!” I replied with a giggle. “It’s just been crazy. Kelvin’s been having a lot of drama with him and his dad, and then…” I stopped to think about how much information I should be giving out. I knew I needed to keep certain things about Kelvin a secret, but I was growing tired of keeping
everything
from Lexy. So, I decided to fill her in a little bit. “Kelvin’s uncle died yesterday.”

I heard Lexy gasp loudly. “Oh my gosh! That’s so sad. Is Kelvin okay? How’s he holding up? Are you okay?”

I sat down on the bed and put my feet up as I leaned back against the headboard. “Well, as you can imagine, he’s pretty beat up about it. He’s close with all of his uncles. It’s really been a tough few days. He’s got a lot on his mind, and I’ve just been trying to be there for him. I just want to help him get through it all.”

“Yeah. He definitely needs you right now. Well, I suppose that gives you a pass on being busy and hiding from me.”

“Oh please. You know I would never hide from you. I’ve actually missed you. How’s Mike and Amy?”

“There good. Mike’s been wondering what’s been up with Kelvin. He misses his boyfriend.”

“I bet he does,” I joked. “We need to hang out soon.”

“Well, why not tonight? We don’t have shit going on. You guys free for dinner? Anywhere except Red Lobster.”

I thought about what Kelvin had told James about us staying inside. He never said anything about us bringing people over. Kelvin had already jumped in the shower, so I made a command decision.

“Umm, how about we do dinner inside? Me and Kelvin will cook something up if you guys want to come over.”

“What? Dinner at the luxurious penthouse suite? Hell yeah! Count us in. What time?”

“Well, as soon as you’re free from work. So, let’s just say seven. That okay?”

“Absolutely. Seven it is. I’ll tell Mike. He’ll be so excited to see his boyfriend again.”

“Great! We’ll see you guys later then.”

“Sounds good.”

Just as I hung up the phone, Kelvin came strolling out of the shower with a towel wrapped around his waist. I took a second to examine the tattoos on his perfectly chiseled chest and stomach.

“How’s Lex?” he said, standing in front of me, still wet.

“She’s good. She says her and Mike miss us. We need to spend some time with them, Babe.”

“You’re right. We should figure something out about that.”

“Well, I kind of already did,” I said with a sneaky grin. “They’re kind of coming over tonight, and we’re kind of, sort of, cooking them dinner.”

Kelvin looked down at me, smiled, and shook his head. “Always making me bend the rules, Babe. That’s why I love you.”

“Well, look what the damn cat drug in. You know, I had to take on that bitch, Angela Bronson, all by myself today at lunch. Her, and her dumb ass Packers mug. What a bitch. And you were just nowhere to be found.”

I laughed as I leaned in and gave Lexy a hug, lightly rubbing her back. “You should’ve knocked that mug right out of her hand and broke that shit.”

“Girls are so violent these days,” Mike chimed in as he stepped off the elevator and the concierge pressed the button to ride the elevator back down to the lobby. Mike sauntered in wearing a white button up and black slacks, with the fanciest black shoes I’d ever seen him wear.

“Check you out,” I commented. “Looking all spiffy and shit.”

“So, you’re gonna compliment Mike’s clothes and don’t even acknowledge my sexy ass dress that I froze my ass off in just so I could look good. You’re already on thin ice.”

“Geez! You’re dress is
so sexy
, Lex,” I said sarcastically, pretending to inspect her wavy black dress. “And why the hell am I on thin ice? I explained everything, remember?”

“Ohh… yeah, that’s right. Whatever. Anyway, it’s nice to finally see you, Lil. You’re not looking too bad yourself. Red top, white skirt, red heels. Nice combo. So, where’s Kelvin?”

Right on cue, Kelvin came strutting into the hall wearing white slacks with black stitching, and a white button up with the top two buttons undone. He’d also decided to do me the honor of wearing my favorite white and black patent leather shoes tonight.

“You stealing shoes out of my closet now, Mike?” he said as he strolled in and shook hands with Mike.

“Whatever. These are a downgrade for you, bro,” Mike replied.

Kelvin looked over at Lexy and smiled as he leaned in to give her a hug. “Lily told me about your uncle. I’m so sorry for your loss,” Lexy said solemnly.

“Thank you,” Kelvin replied, looking down at the floor. It was way too soon to be talking about it.

“Alright,” I intentionally interrupted. “What do you say we head into the living room and get this party started?”

I led our guests into the living room where a bottle of Cristal was waiting in the center of the black coffee table, next to four wine glasses. The second Lexy eyed the bottle, I saw her face light up.

“Holy shit! You guys are doing it big with the Cristal over here. The casino business has been good to you, huh Kelvin?” she said, picking up the bottle and inspecting the label as if she couldn’t believe it.

“I do alright,” Kelvin replied as he took the gold bottle out of Lexy’s hands and popped out the cork. He poured four glasses, handing out each one to a different person as he went. When he finished pouring his own glass, he held it out in the air, signaling a toast. “I’d like to make a quick toast to begin our night, if you don’t mind. To life, love, and happiness. And, to preserving forever. Love is worth fighting for. It’s worth protecting. Here’s to believing in eternal love.”

“Here, here,” Lexy chirped as all four of us dinged our glasses together and took a sip of the expensive champagne.

“Alright, now that we’ve had our first sips, I believe the food is already ready to go. Who’s hungry?” I said.

“You know I am, girl. What’s on the menu tonight?” Lexy answered.

“Tonight, Kelvin and I have collaborated on a parmesan chicken and pasta dish. And when I say collaborated, I mean Kelvin cooked it,” I joked as I walked into the kitchen and took four plates out of the cabinet.

I uncovered the skillet and used a spatula to place the chicken on the plates, then Kelvin applied his perfect marinara sauce, and topped it with parmesan cheese. The aroma went swooping in and out of my nostrils and made its way around the room in a hurry.

“Holy shit that smells good,” Lexy exclaimed as she enthusiastically sniffed the air. “Where’d you learn how to cook, Kelvin?”

“I actually learned it from my mother,” Kelvin answered as he placed pasta on all four plates. “After my parents split up when I was nine, I went and stayed with my mom until I was eighteen. She was intent on making sure that I learned how to be a strong man, but she also wanted me to be sensitive and unique. She showed me a lot of shit that I wouldn’t have learned if I would’ve gone to live with my dad. So, I know how to cook, play piano, sing, and I wear my emotions on my sleeve. All thanks to my mom.”

“Aww, that’s so sweet. You’re a little momma’s boy. That’s cute,” Mike said with a sneer. “Did she teach you how to bake cookies, and insert your tampon… wait, she’s not dead is she?”

Kelvin looked up from his task of organizing the plates and smiled at Mike. “Luckily for you, my mom’s not dead. Asshole. She lives on the outskirts of the city. Now, imagine how shitty you would’ve felt if I told you that my mom was dead, after you started talking shit about tampons and whatnot. Tisk tisk.”

“Well, she’s not dead, so I can make all the fun I want. That’s the rules. So, about those tampons—did she show you how to use those to plug your little sensitive vagina?”

The entire room burst into laughter. “Fuck you,” Kelvin replied between chuckles. “Alright, enough talking shit about me and my mom. You all can thank her, because she was the one who taught me how to make this sexy ass meal we’re about to feast on. Dinner is served. Everybody head to the dining room and have a seat.”

We all walked through the living room and into the dining area. The giant glass window was letting the lights from the city seep right in. The orange glow of the street lights painted the entire room a beautiful amber that reflected off of the walls.

We all took our seats as Kelvin brought the plates over to the table. Once the four of us were all seated, we refilled our wine glasses and dug right in. As usual, Kelvin waited until I’d taken my first bite before he even started to cut his own food. As he put his first forkful in his mouth, I noticed Lexy nudge Mike with her shoulder as he chewed his own food.

“See there,” she snipped. “Why the hell don’t you wait for me to take my first bite before you start fucking pigging out on your food? Maybe you should’ve lived with your mom, too.”

Mike looked over at Kelvin and hit him with his elbow. “See what you did, being all sensitive and shit? You got me in trouble. Because you’re sensitive, now I have to be sensitive. Thanks a lot!”

“Hey, hey. Don’t get mad at me because your mom didn’t teach you how to treat a lady. See there, now you’re wishing you had some of this sensitivity. No tampon jokes now, huh?”

“Whatever! You’re still lame,” Mike fired back with a smile.

“We’re having a new rule in the house,” Lexy interrupted. “No one gets to take a bite out of their food until I do. Because I’m the queen, and that’s how the queen wants it.”

“What! Fuck that. I’m too hungry to be waiting for you, so that’s not gonna work,” Mike said.

“You’re an ass,” Lexy snapped.

“Whatever. You still love me though,” Mike fired back.

“
Anyway
,” Lexy said as she ignored Mike’s comment and turned her attention to me. “So, you’re not coming back to work until after the Christmas and New Year’s break?”