Page 24 of King: Darker Than Romance

There was an undercurrent of something in his voice that gave me pause, but I didn’t debate it for long. I nodded, then pulled away and began the block long walk to the house. King had told me he’d told my mother I was touring the Florida State University campus to cover for me being gone and not contacting her for five days.

I had learned a lot about King those five days we’d stayed in his hotel

He was funny and had personality- We could talk about everything. He made me laugh. He was downright goofy at times. We liked the same movies. He even liked to read, but not like me. I liked erotic books, with lots of sex. He read the classics, like Poe and Dickens.

I found out that he snorted coke. He didn’t come right out and tell me. I caught him in the bathroom late one night. He shrugged it off saying it was something he only did occasionally. I’d always known he got high, he always looked it, but I never thought he used hard drugs. But coke explained his erratic behavior. When I asked him could I try it he told me he would kill me if I did.

Most surprising of all was that he had only had one girlfriend ever in twenty-four years. He said he fucked a lot, but never kept them around for long. That shook me a bit. I wondered,Why me?

Least surprising of all I found out was that he was into some very illegal shit. Every day four or five men his age would drop off duffle bags of money to the hotel.

When he thought I was asleep one time I heard him talk about someone owing money. He said they would pay him, even if it was with their life. He left that night for about an hour. When he came back, I pretended to still be asleep. I peeked just before he went into the bathroom and I could see the bloodstains on the white t-shirt he’d worn. The next day his knuckles were torn and bruised.

When I asked what he’d done, he told me to mind my business. So, I minded my business. I didn’t want to think about the possibility of him actually killing someone anyway.

It all made sense when I thought about it, though.

King and James did not get along, so I doubted his father was the one financing his lifestyle. He drove a BMW Roadster most days, but also had a Range Rover, and an expensive Ford truck. He wore four hundred-dollar jeans and expensive tailored suits. Somebody had to be paying for it.

Those days gave me a better perspective of King. They also helped me make my decision about school and Ellis. I knew I would be going to school in Georgia if Ellis still offered. I wanted a different type of lifestyle than what King was offering. I wasn’t emotionally or mentally equipped to handle him. It would take a woman with more than eighteen years of experience to do that. We wouldn’t work.

I was emotionally stunted. King was so intense sometimes. He got all moody and dark and would fuck me like he was trying to prove a point then accuse me of wanting to leave him. But even after learning the truth about him I still planned on fucking him until I left.

Sometimes I was convinced I was addicted to his touch. When it was time to leave the hotel, I was sad and angry. I would have liked to spend the rest of my summer just like that.

***

I was standing at our front door before I even knew it. I didn’t make it into the living room before my mother was on my ass.

She was sitting on the sofa, like she’d been waiting for me. “How fucking dare, you leave this house for nearly a week and not call?” She hopped up from the sofa. In confusion I watched her rush toward me. I saw her hand coming towards my face but didn’t have time to move before it connected with my cheek. I was flabbergasted and frozen in place.

What in the fuck was her problem?

She continued yelling not letting me get a word in edgewise. She didn’t calm down until about two minutes into her rant when King walked in.

Her face softened when she saw him.

“Thank you for bringing her home.”

I turned to glare at him.

“What the fuck?” I mouthed. I thought he had smoothed everything over. He never even looked my way as he made his way to the stairs.

“I found her and her boyfriend at a hotel in Tampa. I just parked her car in the garage. She left it unlocked in the parking lot of the park with no regard.” He told that lie without blinking, then disappeared upstairs, leaving me at the mercy of my very angry mother.

My mouth dropped open. It dawned on me in that very moment what he was doing. He was forcing my hand. I could face Momma’s wrath alone or I could say I was with him the entire time. Naturally, she’d ask what I was doing with him, he’d probably chime in and tell her the rest.

Motherfucker, the curse slipped.

Momma really went off then. Her face was twisted in rage.

“Your fast ass not going to end up pregnant under my fucking roof.” She reached out and smacked me right upside my head. It took everything in me not to hit her back. I just stood there holding my cheek, trying my best not to cry, thinking about what a manipulative asshole King was.

The only thing that saved me from more of her physical and verbal abuse was her phone ringing. She dismissed me before answering.

“Take your fat ass upstairs and you better not darken this fucking door for a month. Tell that lil’ motherfucker you spent the week with if you come up pregnant, he’s going to pay for the abortion.”

She was still yelling as I stumbled up the stairs in a state of disbelief. King was waiting for me, leaning against my bedroom door. I could feel steam coming out of my ears. I shoved past him and walked into my room.

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