Page 13 of Guarding Our Love
“Easy. It’s not as small as it looks. Trust me.”
She twirled her wedding band around, but I didn’t pay it any mind. She was nervous, and I understood it, but I wasn’t worrying about that shit. We didn’t know each other as adults, and she was married, so I was just trying to be a friend.
Sloan moved closer to the car and got inside. Once she was fully seated, I winked and closed the door. When I got inside, I turned the car on. I looked over at Sloan, but she had her eyes closed. I was surprised she didn’t react to the roar of my engine,but she seemed to be in a whole different world. I wouldn’t bother her. I assumed she needed a moment to process whatever bothered her.
I was in my thoughts the whole way to the lounge. I never thought Sloan and I would ever be in each other’s presence again. We were just going to have a friendly meal, but it was still surreal to me. When we arrived, I parked near the back entrance and shut the car off. I had a sports car and liked to drive as fast as legally possible, so it didn’t take long to get there.
“Sloan, we’re here.”
She looked around confused for a second before she noticed where we were. She had fallen asleep, and I prayed she felt a little better after her quick nap. Her eyes were still sad.
Back when we dated, I hated seeing Sloan sad or crying. I wanted to fix things for her but couldn’t sometimes. Just like when I broke up with her, that was the hardest shit for me to do, but it was the right thing to do. I would have fucked her up even more if I would have stayed with her and been on the shit I was on back then. At least I broke up with her before I could cheat on her.
Sloan stretched and grabbed the bag she’d placed on the floor when we got in the car.
“Are we going to run into paparazzi here?”
“No. We’re good here. I sent a message to the owner to make sure we could use the back entrance and that we weren’t bothered by anyone but the wait staff.”
“Okay.”
“Don’t you dare touch that door,” I told her when she reached for the door handle.
That gesture made me think Sloan married a clown because she should have known not to touch a door handle whenever she was in the presence of a man. The thought of her being with someone who treated her less than the queen she is botheredme. I got out and walked around to her side of the car then helped her out.
It only took a couple of steps before we were at the back door. I did my signature knock, and someone opened the door a minute later.
“Mr. Cooper, Mr. Thomas told us you were coming. Welcome to OG’s Lounge.”
“Thank you.” I stepped back so Sloan could enter first, then followed behind her.
I bit my bottom lip as I watched the sway of her hips in the black skirt she wore. She was going through something, and I shouldn’t have looked at her the way I did, but I couldn’t help myself. I couldn’t get over how much she had filled out over the years.
We were led to a table and given menus. The server told us he would be back to take our orders. Sloan looked around and leaned over the table.
“Where is everyone?” she whispered, and I chuckled.
“There is no everyone. It’s just you and me.”
“How, though? You didn’t know if you would even see me or if I would agree to eat with you.”
I picked up the menu even though I already knew what I would get.
“I had a hunch.”
My homeboy Aaron was the owner of OGs. We met years ago when his wife, Chelsea, did a tattoo for me. She was cold with it and had been the only person I let tat me up since. Aaron gave me an open invitation to his lounge whenever I was in town. It didn’t matter if they were open or not. Apparently, he always had a chef and a server or server on standby for VIP guests, and I was one of them. This was my first time using my special privileges, but I appreciated him for giving me the opportunity. I got VIP treatment wherever I went, especially in Woodlake, but I didn’talways use it. I didn’t want to be treated differently from anyone else, but this time, it came in handy.
Calil wasthe last person I wanted to see after getting those pictures. I knew the moment he saw me crying, he would ask questions. There was no way I would tell him what I saw. It was too embarrassing. I wasn’t sure if I would even tell Kendyll. The images were burned in my brain, and I hated the person who sent them. I hated my husband even more. I tried to call the number, but it was disconnected. I assumed they did what they needed to do then got rid of the number so that I couldn’t trace it back to them. No other pictures or messages came through, but what I saw was enough.
How could Roy do something like that? I knew things weren’t like they used to be, but having sex with multiple women was too much. Why couldn’t he just talk to me about what he’d beenfeeling? I was sure we could have worked out any issues before he resorted to having an affair. Bile rose to the back of my throat every time I thought about the pictures.
“You good?”
My gaze shot up to Calil. His concerned eyes studied my face. I wanted to tell him the truth, but I couldn’t.
“I’m okay,” I lied.
“I know we haven’t seen each other in years, and we don’t know anything about what either of us has going on, but I can be a friend if you need me to, Sloan.” His eyes traveled to the ring on my finger then back to my face.
