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  Talking about her past was something else Cris hadn’t intended on doing. Although, she wasn’t sure what Garrett thought tonight was going to be after the way they’d left things the start of their junior year. By that time, Cris had taken all that she was going to take from Garrett. And the fact that her ex-roommate Tisha, who coincidentally had been the one to tell Cris about Garrett’s last dalliance, had not only told Garrett she was back in town, but had also given him her phone number, was something Cris was determined to deal with as well.

  “Whoa. We’re adults now, Cris. Why do we have to go there?”

  He was right. She knew it. But she was still bristling from Dylan’s mysterious appearance. Had he known she was going to be there? And if so, how would he have known? And why the hell would he care?

  “We have a past, Garrett. Now, I can sit here and share this meal with you and we can talk about all the things going on in our lives right now, but that past isn’t going to vanish.”

  The waitress appeared with their entrees. Cris frowned at the grilled salmon she’d ordered and wondered if it would be rude to ask for a box and get the hell out of here right now.

  “We do have a past,” Garrett continued when they were once again alone. “I apologized for it back then and if it’ll make you feel better, I’ll apologize again now. I’m sorry I was a horny idiot. I should have cherished what I had. But that time has passed and I’m hoping we can start again, tonight.”

  “Start what again?”

  Cris needed to be perfectly clear about what Garrett thought this dinner was.

  “Our friendship. I’m going to help you get a job, find a place and get settled because that’s what friends do. And then, I’m hoping you’ll see how much I’ve changed, how much we’ve both changed, and then realize that we were always meant to be together.”

  She took another sip of the soup. It had grown cold and the cheese was no longer as tasty as she’d thought. Cris set the spoon down and picked up her napkin from her lap. She wiped her fingers on the napkin and dabbed it to her lips before setting it on the table beside the salmon.

  “Here’s the thing. I appreciate the leads you gave me and the gesture of helping me. But I can find my own job and place to live. And as far as how much we’ve both changed, you’re absolutely right. We are two very different people than when we were in grad school. Which is why, I’m going to get up and walk out of here right now. The young Cris that you declared your love to and disrespected every chance you could, is gone. The adult Cris who also graduated tops in grad and law school, has too much going on in her life to entertain your self-centered bullshit again. But thanks, it was nice catching up.”

  She stood, grabbed her jacket off the back of the chair, her purse and left Garrett sitting there with his mouth gaped open.

  6

  “Invite me in, Cris.”

  She crossed her arms over her chest and arched a brow. “What the hell are you doing here? You following me now?”

  “Invite me in so we can talk.”

  “Oh? Now we’re going to talk? Last night it was “here, take this money and get the hell out”.”

  “That’s not what I said.”

  “It’s what your actions said.”

  “I don’t want to have this conversation from the hallway.”

  “Then perhaps you should have called first.”

  “Cris.”

  “Dylan.”

  They stood in silence staring at each other for much longer than Dylan wanted. He could step forward and she would move back. Then he would be inside the room and she wouldn’t do anything but close the door behind him and continue her tirade. But he didn’t. She had to consent, even to him being in her room just to talk, Dylan waited for her consent.

  “Your food is going to get cold,” he said after a few moments more.

  Her lips tilted upward as she narrowed her eyes. “You’re not slick.”

  She turned and walked away, leaving the door open and him standing there. A silent consent. Dylan was going to go with that.

  He stepped inside the room and closed the door behind him, clicking the locks into place. She’d moved across the room to where a large green and white bag with Tony’s printed in block red letters sat on top of a table. A cup which he was certain was filled with a chocolate milkshake and chocolate shavings was a short distance from the bag. Closer to the cup was a container with a clear lid, a double cheeseburger with lettuce, grilled onions, extra mustard and pickles and a side order of fresh-cut fries was inside.

  Cris dropped down into the chair in front of her food. She picked up a fry and stuffed it into her mouth.

  “How did you know where I was?”

  Dylan removed his jacket and hung it on the back of the chair on the other side of the table. He eased down slowly into that chair and moved the Tony’s bag to the floor because it prevented him from seeing her face.

  “Fisher called you a cab while you waited at the far end of the bar for your food,” he told her.

  She chewed and nodded. “He didn’t want Garrett following me outside and causing trouble, but he willingly gives you the name of the hotel where I’m staying. He has no clue.”

  Dylan glanced out the window that was right beside the table. The hotel was in the Dupont Circle area of the city. A few of the restaurants lined on Connecticut Avenue were in sight, yet Cris had turned up at Tony’s on the same night that Dylan had decided to return there. Fate? Karma? Bad luck? A blessing?

  Dylan had no idea what this was, but he knew he had to get a handle on it before things got way out of hand.

  “Last night was a mistake.”

  She’d taken a bite of her cheeseburger during his silent contemplation. He watched her chew. Her hair was straight resting on her shoulders in dark strands. The make-up around her eyes was smoky and made her look a little older, more exotic. The raisin colored lipstick she’d been wearing at the restaurant was just about gone now as her mouth slowed its movements and she lifted the napkin to wipe her lips. She picked up her cup, sipped from the straw and then sat back in her chair. Not one of her movements or gestures was practiced or calculated. She was doing exactly as she would do if she were at her home, or his home, wherever she was comfortable. Because that’s how they were together, how they’d always been. Totally comfortable, relaxed, at ease, in tune with each other on a level that nobody else had been able to reach.

  Like a punch to the gut, Dylan realized how much he’d missed that feeling.

  “I paid for a date. I got a partial delivery of what I paid for and a full refund.” She shrugged. “I’m sure those types of transactions happen all the time.”

  “You didn’t take the money.”

  “It was given for a good cause.”

  “You always give away your body for free?”

  “Well, since I’m not a prostitute, I guess that answer is yes. And furthermore, the Southlake Restoration Project is a very good cause. I researched it and am actually interested in seeing if I can do more to help. So, sorry Dylan, your grand gesture is a no go.”

  He watched her sit up and reach for her burger again. She ate with a gusto that said she was absolutely enjoying every bite. Dylan was glad for her. He’d only managed a couple bites of his burger before he noticed she’d gotten up from her table, at which time he immediately got up to follow her. But a signal from Foster who’d been standing precariously close to both of their tables, said the other man had it under control. Still, Dylan had lost his appetite. His bigger concern had been for what had happened with Garrett and whether or not Cris was alright.

  “I know you’re not a prostitute, Cris. Don’t make it sound like I’m the bad guy in this.”

  “Aren’t you? I mean, I paid for something, I signed your crazy consent form and then you reneged. What’s up with that?”

  “You weren’t supposed to be there. We weren’t supposed to do that. None of it should have happened.”

  “But it did,” she snapped back. “We ha
d sex, Dylan. Mighty good sex even if a bit on the freaky side. I accepted some of your terms and was in it for the long haul, but you quit on me.”

  “I’m trying to save our friendship.”

  “Oh?” She finished chewing a fry. “I didn’t know our friendship was in danger. I mean, unless you’re considering the fact that you haven’t had a moment to return any of my calls since I’ve been back in town.”

  “You haven’t called since you left for law school,” he stated solemnly.

  She stopped chewing. Stopped acting as if eating was her biggest priority now and stopped giving him that I-got-the-upper-hand look.

  “I knew where you were but I couldn’t see you the way I was used to doing. And that was cool,” he told her. At first it had been hard when she was gone. But about three months after she left he reminded himself that this was how life was. People moved on. They went wherever they needed to go to do the things they needed to do to progress in their lives. Hadn’t that been what his parents had done, even with him in tow?

  “We both had plans for our future. I was going to stay here and go into law where I could help with future legislation without becoming a full-blown politician. And you were going to take the corporate world by storm with your quick analytical mind and no-nonsense demeanor. You were going to be what most feared, a strong and intelligent black woman who understood the law better than most lawyers currently practicing.”

  She shrugged. “We had big plans.”

  “And we needed the time and space to see them through. You not only passed the New York bar, but you went on to take Maryland’s bar as well and gained a high enough score to waive into D.C.’s without having to take another bar exam. Karpinski, Lee and Cross were lucky to snag you after you’d already received multiple offers.”

  Cris tilted her head and let her hands fall to her lap as she stared quizzically at him. “You kept tabs on me?”

  Dylan lifted his leg to let his ankle rest on his thigh. He propped one elbow up on the arm of the chair. “We had plans. I was following through with mine and wanted to make sure you were doing the same.”

  Which still equated to keeping tabs on her.

  “You did exactly what you said you would do,” she said. “Except—”

  Dylan knew exactly what she was going to say next. He hadn’t wanted to ever talk about this with her, but after last night, he’d known he had no other choice.

  “Except what?” Just because he knew what she wanted to talk about, didn’t mean he had to make it any easier for either of them.

  “When did you become a dominant?” The words rolled from her mouth as easily as if she said them every day.

  Dylan was intrigued.

  “I’m not a dominant.” It was a simple reply, one which he knew would never satisfy her curiosity.

  “I didn’t think so, at least not in the conventional sense. So what are you? What do you like and why?”

  He rubbed a finger over his chin. The goatee was still low cut as he hadn’t decided whether or not he liked it enough to keep. Cris hadn’t mentioned it at all so he wasn’t sure if she liked or disliked it either.

  “In sexual relationships, distance works for me. Over the years I’ve experimented with different activities that allow me to achieve the most pleasure for both myself and my partner, while maintaining the separation that I require.”

  “Sex is an up close and personal experience, unless you’re into cyber or phone sex. So how or why exactly is distance such a big deal to you?”

  She would dissect his words with the precision of a trial attorney.

  “I just like it that way.”

  “Did you like it last night?”

  “I did.”

  “Then why did you kick me out?”

  “I didn’t tell you to leave.”

  “You gave me a refund, Dylan. Short of saying “get dressed and get going”, that’s exactly what the money on the bed meant.”

  He was curious. “Why didn’t you take it?”

  “Like I said before, it’s a good cause. I actually plan on checking back with Mama Peaches and her lively friend Geraldine, whom I met at the auction, in the coming months to see how everything is going.”

  “You don’t know her or that neighborhood.”

  “But you do,” she replied. “I remember you telling me about the six months you stayed there during your senior year in high school. And after seeing the loyalty and devotion from each one of the men that Mama Peaches helped to raise, I figured she’s a good woman doing a great work.”

  Cris was an enigma. For as well as Dylan was sure he knew her, she could still surprise him. Why had she remembered where he’d been before she’d met him in college? And why wasn’t she more alarmed or offended about his sexual preference? Hadn’t that been one of the main reasons Dylan had kept it a secret, because he wasn’t sure how people would think about him if they knew? Not that he was one to care about other people’s opinions of him, he just didn’t like drama of any kind, and explaining the reasons for his sexual preference was definitely likely to bring some drama into his life.

  Cris stood from the chair while his silence stretched on.

  “I’m curious,” she said as she came around the table and stopped in front of him. “I guess you could say I’ve been wondering about you, in a sexual way, for a very long time.”

  Dylan’s gaze followed her movements. He watched her slim legs covered in navy blue leggings and the rise and fall of her breasts in the blue and white blouse that barely brushed her upper thighs. She was wearing flat shoes today for an ensemble that should not have been as outrageously sexy as it appeared. At the restaurant her hair had been pulled back to hang in a long straight tail. Now, it was free, falling around her shoulders in an alluring sheet of darkness.

  “We used to spend so much time together.” She stood about three feet away from him, one leg extended a little in front of the other, her arms folded across her chest.

  “I never had a friend like you,” Dylan admitted. Even though now he wasn’t looking at her as a friend.

  “I know.” The words came with a slight chuckle and a quick flash of her brilliant smile. “That was so weird. I grew up with brothers so confiding in a guy was the furthest thing from my mind while growing up. But then, I met you.”

  “And it was different.” He could totally relate to that because meeting her had been different for him too. Right from the start. So he shouldn’t be so surprised that now he wanted…but it wasn’t supposed to be this way. How many times had he told himself that?

  She tilted her head. “So very different,” she whispered and then took a step toward him.

  Her hands fell to her sides as she took another step, until her knee brushed against his.

  “Toward the end of our senior year,” she said softly. “That’s when I started to wonder if our friendship was something more. We’d both been single for months by that time and when we weren’t in class, we were together.”

  “Because that was safe. If we were together nobody else was trying to be with us. We wanted to remain single, free to pursue our careers and nothing else.” That’s what they’d told themselves. Dylan had been elated to find someone in such total agreement with the plan he’d come up with for his adult life.

  She nodded. “It worked perfectly. Except, I don’t think we paid enough attention to how much we were together, how well we worked together, how effortless our togetherness had become.”

  He knew where she was going with this. The insane thought had dashed through his mind a time or two after she’d left for New York.

  “And then we moved on,” he said with a finality that was meant to break whatever had started to weave its way around them.

  It felt like some unseen gauzy net that had been laid and was now closing around them, pulling them closer together. Inside Dylan felt like squirming. He wanted to break free before it was too late, but then she touched him. She put a hand on his knee and pushed his leg down unti
l his foot touched the floor. In the next instant she stepped between his now spread legs. Dylan could do nothing but remain sitting back in the chair, his hands falling to his thighs.

  “I had no idea I was following you to a place like The Corporation. I was on my way into your building when I saw you come out and get into that truck. There were two taxis waiting at the curb and I just hopped in one and told the driver to follow you.”

  “I didn’t see you,” he told her. “If I had I would have stopped you.”

  Cris began to move, until she was on her knees in front of him. “I’m glad you didn’t stop me.”

  Dylan’s teeth clenched tightly.

  “I will never forget watching her come between your legs and touch you. The look on your face was so stoic as if you were some type of god waiting to be serviced, to be praised and pleasured. I’d never thought of you that way before.”

  Her palms were flat on his knees now, moving upward past where his hands rested on his thighs and further. His dick was already jumping, had been since the moment she’d stood in front of him. It knew what Dylan’s mind continued to deny.

  “You don’t understand.” His words came through clenched teeth. “You would never understand.”

  “Make me understand, Dylan,” she said without hesitation.

  Her hand moved over the bulge of his erection before fingers quickly undid the button of his pants and pulled down his zipper.

  “Introduce me to the man you’ve become and the pleasures that you enjoy.”

  She had no idea what she was asking of him. No. Fucking. Idea.

  While he waited for the right words to register in his mind, the ones that would push her back once and for all, she watched him. Her hand was inside his boxers now, wrapped around his length, freeing the now throbbing erection.

  “Let me in, Dylan,” she said softly before dipping her head and touching the tip of her tongue to the crest of his dick.