Total pages in book: 62
Estimated words: 58947 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 295(@200wpm)___ 236(@250wpm)___ 196(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 58947 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 295(@200wpm)___ 236(@250wpm)___ 196(@300wpm)
“I’m so glad you came,” she says, drawing even with Catalina and me. “Thanks for helping out today and for coming tonight.”
“Hey, Hollywood party filled with beautiful people. It didn’t take much convincing,” I joke.
Actually I did have to convince myself to come. Seeing Naz changed everything. There’s still something magnetic between us, striking sudden and sure the same way it did the night he walked into my mama’s house on the eve of the big game. Loyalty to my brother, concern for his fragile recovery urged me to make my excuses, hightail it back to my studio apartment, and forget the random encounter with the man Cliff hates more than anyone else.
Yet here I am, planted by the pool and scanning the crowd for a glimpse of the towering man with intense eyes and a fresh haircut.
“I wanted you to meet my cousin Iris,” Lotus says, tugging forward a woman I’ve seen many times with her famous baller husband, August West.
“Thank you for helping out today,” Iris says, her voice low and even. There’s a tough kind of serenity to her. Lotus’s strength and power are so much a part of her it seems she was born into them. Iris, with her very public battle as a survivor, won her strength by walking through hell and coming out the other side whole.
“I loved every minute of it,” I reply to Iris. “I hope Harbor House got everything they needed.”
Excitement brightens Iris’s eyes, and she smiles so wide, it’s easy to see why her husband is notoriously devoted to her. Conviction makes her glow even more.
“We passed our goal, yes,” she says. “Thanks for asking. You live here in LA?”
“I do now,” I say. “Relocated from New York a while back to work on a movie and ended up staying on the West Coast.”
“The Dessi Blue movie,” Lotus pipes up.
“I can’t wait for that one,” Iris says, curiosity reshaping her expression. “So were you born in New York?”
“Oh, no. I was born in Trinidad, but my parents moved us to Houston when I was still a baby.”
“You ever go back?” Catalina asks.
“All dee time, gyal,” I say, slipping on my mother’s accent like a pair of familiar slippers. “My sister Janice and I go to Carnival every chance we get.”
“I’ve been a few times,” Lotus says. “I actually want to name my summer line Carnival, inspired by the vibrant colors and the flamboyant costumes. I’ve already sketched out a few things and talked to my team about maybe shooting the campaign in Trinidad.”
“Are you kidding?” I gasp. “That would be amazing. Maybe you could even connect with the tourist board. They’d love that kind of exposure with a brand as popular as yours.”
“You think?” Lotus asks, eyes wide.
“I’m sure.”
“It’ll have to wait until this little guy pops out,” Lotus says, touching her belly with obvious tenderness.
“It’s a boy?” I ask.
“Yes.” She rolls her eyes. “Can’t tell Kenan nothing. He has a girl, my stepdaughter, Simone, from his first marriage. He would have been happy no matter what, but getting a boy? Yeah, he’s over the moon.”
“August was the same way,” Iris says, kicking off her shoes and sitting on the edge of the pool.
“How many kids do you have?” I ask her.
“Two.” She lowers her feet into the water. “But some days it feels like twelve. August is amazing when he’s home, but he’s gone so much during the season. We have onsite daycare at my job for David. He starts kindergarten next year and Sarai’s already in elementary school, but it’s still a lot solo.”
“Can’t say I miss Kenan being on the road half the year,” Lotus says.
“I thought August would sink into a depression when Kenan left,” Iris says. “Thank God they brought Naz in.”
“That reminds me.” Lotus turns inquisitive eyes my way. “How did you say you and Nazareth know each other, Takira?”
The sudden silence encompasses our lounging circle, swelling with the three women’s collective curiosity.
“Oh, yeah, well.” I stall, staring into my now-empty glass. “He and my brother played ball together in high school. We haven’t seen each other in years.”
“He seemed mighty glad to ‘see’ you.” Catalina snickers.
I shoot her a sharp look but don’t say anything.
“And he’s never glad to see anyone,” Lotus adds, eyeing me. “I feel like there’s a story there. Come on. You can tell us.”
“There really isn’t,” I rush to correct them. “I literally met Naz once. He only transferred to my brother’s prep school senior year, so they didn’t have much time together before graduation. I’m surprised he even remembered me.”
Now that’s a lie. Even though we only met once, I have no doubt I left an impression on him, as he left one on me. Kindness and intelligence and curiosity. Hell, he was the first man to ever make me come. The way he made me feel, it lingered long after he had left Houston to follow his dreams.