Page 59 of Divine Sense

“Before,” I pressed. “It wasn’t until after I went to that last minute meeting at her house that I figured out who she was.”

“Does her family know about you two?” To my surprise, it was Conrad who asked the question. He wasn’t one to normally care about the affairs of others. Shit, it took him months of Bailey coming around before he actually started to not make a big deal about it.

“No, and we would very much like to keep it that way.” I looked at him across the table, then to my other friends who flanked his sides. “I know it’s not ideal, our relationship with me working for her family and her family being…her family.” I swallowed hard thinking about how she’d told me her parents had a very set plan for her life and I knew that a guy like medefinitelywasn’t part of that plan. “And we’re sorry for keeping it from all of you but we just thought that the fewer people who knew, the less likely the chance of it getting out, you know? We wanted to keep it as ours for a little bit.”

“Aww that’s so romantic, like Romeo and Juliet,” Bailey cooed, shaking Hank’s shoulders as she swooned. Her eyes got round and she gave me a look that rivaled that of a puppy. “Do you love her?”

Without even skipping a beat I answered her. “Yeah, yeah I do. A lot, actually.” That warranted me another cry from Bailey who jumped up from Hank’s lap and flung her arms aroundmyneck.

“I’m so happy for you Kolbi. I can’t wait to get to hangout with her and get to know her. She seems really sweet and nice. Plus, if she makes you happy, then that makes me happy.” She tucked her lips close to mine and whispered, “You’re my favorite, you deserve this.”

“We’re sitting right here ya know?” Malcolm scoffed from his seat as Hank almost fell backwards in his chair laughing.

“Haha, fuck you guys. I’m Bailey’s favorite,” I exclaimed, pointing to my friends with a cocky smirk.

“Her favorite behind me, isn’t that right, hermosa?” Hank asked with an outstretched arm that she was moving towards again. She adjusted the ring on her left finger and placed a kiss on his forehead.

“Of course, soldier, you’re my favorite forever.”

“Alright, we good now?” I looked at my friends. “Can we start the game?”

“Please,” Conrad grumbled with an eye roll, grabbing the die from the center of the board.

“Hold on,” Malcolm interjected. “I have a question.” We all looked at him and waited. “Is the sex good?”

A groan from Conrad, a sigh from Hank, and the sound of my clicking tongue rang out in unison around the table. We all loved Malcolm, but I think we were all secretly hoping he would grow out of his playboy tendencies sooner rather than later. I was about to knock him upside the head when Bailey stood up, crossed her arms, and locked eyes on her target.

“You know what, Malcolm, one day you’re going to meet your match and she’s going to put you in your place. Then you won’t feel the need to make those kinds of comments anymore. You just wait until you feel the way your friends do about a girl, it’s going to knock you on your ass and I can’t wait to watch it happen.” She nodded her head at him and gave him a half-irritated look before dropping down to give Hank another kiss. Then, she walked out of the dining room having put Malcolm in his rightful place.

“Damn, I love that woman,” Hank stated in awe.

“I think I love her too.” I gave him a sideways glance from my chair as we watched her take her normal spot in the living room.

“Can we please play now?”

With Conrad’s request, my three best friends ended their cross examination and dove into the fantasy world I had crafted for us.

38

MAGNOLIA

“Hey, sorry I’m late,” I apologized as I rolled down the window. Margaret gave me an unamused smirk and reached to open the door of my car.

“Cutting it close much? We’re supposed to be meeting your parents at the club in—” She checked the gold watch around her wrist. “Ten minutes.”

“I know, I know, it’s my fault. I was running behind and had to go home and change and—” I stopped mid-sentence when I realized she was sniffing the air like a hounddog. Then, my lifelong friend leaned across the middle console of my car and did something I never expected she’d do.

She sniffed me.

“Were you just with him?” she interjected. I felt the heat explode in my cheeks and pulled my lips into a nervous smile.

“Maybe?” I confessed sheepishly, feeling my head sink into my shoulders and bracing myself for what she might say next.

“Mags, you reek of Tom Ford. What if Susan gets a whiff of you?” She rustled around her purse and pulled out some bodyspray, coating me in a layer of artificial scents, nearly causing me to hack up my left lung.

“Well now the entire club will get a whiff of me. Good god, Margaret.” I waved my hand in front of my face to dissipate some of the fragrance particles I could see floating in the air.

“What were you doing that caused you to run behind?” she chastised. I pulled my lips back and looked at my friend like a deer in headlights. I’d opened my mouth to answer when she lifted a hand to stop me. “You know what, I don’t wanna know.”

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