Page 12 of Sparks Will Fly

“When I was in the kitchen, I looked up where I was. I don’t feel like driving home. I hate driving long distances, so unless you’re going to tow my car back where you found it, I’m staying here tonight.”

I laughed, realizing she was dead serious. I figured since it was my fault that she was so far away from home, that it was the least I could do.

“You can stay in one of the guest rooms, but it gets really cold upstairs. It might be best to just sleep down here. In my bed with me,” I teased.

“You wish I would get close to you.”

She side-eyed me like it was the craziest desire in the world when she was damn near sitting in my lap with how close she’d cuddled up to me.

“I’m the type of man whose wishes come true.”

The look in her eyes when she turned to face me froze me in place. She tried her best to resist, but she couldn’t stop her eyes from easing down my chiseled chest. Her breathing increased, drawing my attention to her breasts. They looked amazing in the low-cut shirt she wore. When she finally looked back at my face her chunky cheeks were damn near off her face. She eased my joint between her lips. They were so juicy and plump, this was the only time I hadn’t seen them coated in thick clear gloss I just knew was sugary.

“Are you the type of man who grants wishes too?”

I smirked. “It depends.”

I didn’t realize how close we’d drifted until her next words were a warm caress on my cheek.

“Well, I wish you would leave the community center alone.”

“What are you willing to do for it?”

When she eased closer, my dick couldn’t get any harder against my thigh. Everything about this girl was new to me. If I let her have her way, she would unravel me completely until the man who craved love deep inside of me was exposed. She took another pull from my joint and inched even closer. I was almost certain she was going to give me a shotgun when she released the thick cloud of smoke right into my face.

“Stand outside of your business and protest until I’m hoarse.”

I burst into a hearty laugh loving what she did there.

“Touché. We’ll see how tomorrow goes then.”

The most dazzling smile appeared on her face.

“Perfect. Now stop talking and start the show back up. I just know this nigga Zac not about to cheat on my girl Fatima.”

As I did exactly as I was told, I couldn’t stop my eyes from constantly drifting over to Lovie. Eventually, she stopped chiefing the joint, passing it back to me. The weed made my tiny obsession with her no better. If I wasn’t careful, this girl was going to do more than save a community center. She was going to save my heart too, and that was a scary place to be for a typically guarded man like me.

After Starbucks at home,we were in the back seat of a blacked out Eskimo truck headed toward the Caldwell Center. I’d only ever seen one of these trucks on social media. Being driven around in one was a luxury experience all on its own.

When I woke up this morning to find a selection of clothes laid out in just the right sizes, I could admit it softened me toward Romani. He was sweet and thoughtful. Despite the circumstances, I’d never felt safer with another man. Everything from the way he carried himself to the gentleness in which he spoke disturbed all the chaos raging within me.

I was much too damaged for him. That truth kept me on a tether with reality. Something about Romani had me believing in fairytales though. That was dangerous territory to be when I learned long ago there were no happy endings for girls like me.

I braved myself to steal a glance at him. He was buried deep in his phone, so I used the opportunity to admire him. I hadn’t noticed the small tattoo of a broken heart on the top of his cheek. There was an edge to him that told the story of a man who’d been through a lot. I couldn’t help but wonder what exactly his story was. He swore I was so wrong about him. The way he handled me suggested it could be true, but I still wasn’t sure. I needed to do real research on his business if I was going to get to the bottom of things and save the community center.

I smiled as we pulled into the parking lot. Lifting my wrist, I checked the time on my Apple watch. It was going on 8:00 a.m., which meant I had an hour to get set up. Glee filled my entire being knowing what to expect for my morning.

“Let’s go,” I said excitedly and reached for the door. In the blink of an eye, I was snatched back. I glanced down at Romani’s arm across my chest. “What’s wrong with you?”

“You don’t open doors when you’re with me,” he said plainly.

In the next second, he was out his door. I watched him as best I could through the tinted windows as he came around to open my door for me.

I giggled, accepting his hand. “Well, excuse me then. Didn’t realize you were a gentleman.”

He scoffed. “There’s a lot you haven’t realized about me.”

Rolling my eyes, I slowly eased my hand out of his. His touch was stirring things in me that I wasn’t brave enough to explore.

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