Page 50 of Honey Sugar
I put the second batch of cookies in the oven and sat down, pulling Ivy into my lap. “Let’s do it then,” I said, kissing her neck.
“You’ll help?”
“You sound shocked. When have I ever left you hanging, baby girl?”
“Never, but I didn’t know if you were going to stay here in the house or…”
“I’m not leaving you. Ever. We’re a package deal now.” I gripped her thighs and she used her fingers to trace the veins on the backs of my hands.
“What are people going to say about…us? Is there an us?” She flicked her earlobe then pulled on it a little.
I’d been wondering how to handle that question since the moment I knew my feelings for Ivy were deeper and more tangled than they ever should have been. It took chunks out of my mind some nights while I held her close, trying to mask erections.
Is there an us?
What are we?
What the fuck are we doing with each other?
Any form of the question tightened my chest with stress. It would have been easy to toss the ball in her court and say that we were whatever she wanted us to be but to me, that was cowardly shit. She asked me a question. She wanted an answer from me. Not one she had to think about.
“Yeah. There’s an us, Ivy. If that’s what you want. I want you and I want to be with you whatever that means. However awkward it might seem to everyone else doesn’t bother me.”
“Not right now,” she muttered, tugging her ear harder. I moved her fingers and bit them playfully. She snatched away from me and smiled a little. “But what about when people are saying ugly things about us. What if…what if we have…”
“Kids?” I asked knowingly. She nodded and let silence dance around us. “We’ll cross that bridge when we get to it. Right now, I know that I love you and I want you to be mine. I don’t want any other motherfucker looking at you…touching you. Kissing you. Fucking you.” I slid my hand between her thighs and the heat from her pussy greeted me.
“Titan,” she spoke my name like she had thousands of times before but this time there was more behind it. This time she spoke my name without a mask covering what she really wanted. I massaged her wet pussy through the fabric of her panties and she rocked back and forth on top of me. The way she moved her hips was like drum beats beckoning to my dick to stand up.
“Do you want us to be together, baby girl?” Kissing her neck was too soft and sweet. Too delicate. Right then I didn’t want delicate. I wanted rough and possessive. I wanted to show her that I wanted her and I hoped to God that she wanted me. Maybe that’s not who I should have been pleading to but I couldn’t help myself.
I bit her neck then sucked gently on the spot where my teeth were.
“Yes, Titan. So badly,” she purred. I was ready to bend her over the island and fuck her until she came all over my cock but the front door swung open. Ivy hopped out of my lap and I moved to the oven. I didn’t plan to look over my shoulder until my dick was soft again.
“Titan! You in here, nephew? I see your car is in the driveway.” Uncle Beau had never called me nephew so many times in my fucking life. I hated the way it sounded coming from him.
Uncle Beau’s stench came around the corner before he did. There was a specific type of smell that moonshine and cocaine gave off and he had it down to a science. He stumbled around the corner into the kitchen and looked around for a second like the room was spinning before his glassy, red eyes.
It wasn’t possible for my hate for him to match Ivy’s but damn sure came close.
“Y’all in here smoking?” He asked, tipping his nose toward the ceiling.
“Nah. I’m baking. You good?” I asked looking at him.
“I’m feeling good, man. Your boy Mario hooked me up. Said you’d foot the bill tomorrow when you went up to New Orleans. I only did a little bit. I was being considerate.”
“You shouldn’t have done anything.” Ivy’s voice was tense and pulled tight like one more word would make her pop and turn into a mess of strings.
“Mind your damn business, girl. I lost my wife and I had to watch her get put into the ground today. Let me live.”
“I wish you and Mama switched places,” she glared. I wasn’t used to Ivy lashing out the way she was but I was behind her one hundred percent and she knew it. Maybe that’s why she was confident enough to start standing up to her father. He wouldn’t lay a hand on her while I was there.
Uncle Beau looked at Ivy and tilted his head to the side. His eyes focused on one point. Her neck. I glanced at her over my shoulder since my erection vanished once I smelled Uncle Beau. I saw the bright red bruise on her golden skin and cringed inside.
I did that.
Fuck.
