Page 22 of Through Treacherous Weather
The slick talking sometimes borderline rude part of Justice had always been around but once they became a couple, that was only his attitude toward others. He was always soft and delicate with Lauren. She wasn’t about to run her blood pressure up arguing with his simple ass. Instead, she was going to take a page from his book. At home, Lauren stormed up the stairs and went straight to her huge walk-in closet. After grabbing her favorite overnight bag, she began filling it with all the items she would need to be away from home for a few days. Let him figure some shit out. She’d been juggling getting the baby’s room ready, taking care of the kids, and trying to find time for herself for too long, and she was tired. Soon, there would be a newborn in the house and her me time would really be limited. Even though she had a great support system, Lauren knew the bulk of the responsibility would fall on her. Which, she didn’t mind, but Justice wasn’t about to be walking around treating her like the enemy.
The treacherous crew were no strangers to hard times. Being shot and shot at was damn near normal for most of them. She really hated that Calvin lost his life, but Justice had to snap the fuck out of it. Until he got his mind right, she was matching his energy. He could kiss her ass. The moment her bag was packed, she went into his safe and removed $1,000 for good measure. Lauren didn’t work full-time, but she had her own money.
There were times she helped Ireland out with her mobile bartending service, she also helped out at the group home sometimes, and Justice put money in her account monthly simply because he was rich, and she was his girl. She took the money because she could. In her opinion, he better be glad that she didn’t take more. Although, he wouldn’t have minded.
Lauren left the house and got in her car. Making sure the coast was clear, she backed out of the driveway and felt a sense of relief oozing off her. For one night hell maybe three or four,she wouldn’t have to do anything but take care of herself the way she’d been taking care of everyone else. Lauren stopped by her favorite seafood restaurant and ordered a seafood boil with Ramen noodles and extra boiled eggs. While she waited on her food, she went online and booked the presidential suite of Diamond Cove’s most luxurious hotel for four nights. That should be enough time to rest her body and soul.
One thing she always tried to be intentional about was never taking Justice or her life for granted. And she wanted that same respect in return. Lauren loved Shiloh, Sky, and Denim as much as she loved Truth, but she stood firm on the fact that she didn’t have to go above and beyond for the kids she didn’t give birth to. She did it out of love, but Justice not being appreciative was going to get his ass a reality check. He had three kids, and he needed to act like it. Staying out until the wee hours of the morning, missing dinner, bedtime, playtime, etc. was supposed to be a thing of the past. If he regretted transitioning into a family man that was too damn bad. It was his life, and it was a life that he chose. He better get with the damn program.
Mike reached out to Trinity sooner than expected and asked her if she would like to accompany him to R&B night at a popular lounge. She had a good time listening to the live band, so she was all for going to R&B night. Trinity listened to everything from rap, to jazz, R&B, and country music. The fact that Mike liked to go out and have fun was a plus in her eyes. There wasn’t going to be a love connection, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t have fun and pass the time. Some of the older men were worse than the young ones when it came to being horny dogs. Trinity knew that soonenough Mike would try her in that way, and that was when she’d have to break it to him that it wouldn’t be happening. She’d see if he still wanted to hang out after that.
The lounge was pretty full, but they were able to secure a table. She still hadn’t let Mike pick her up for the date. Opting to meet a man always worked better for her. Before she left the house, Trinity smoked a joint, so she was feeling loose and laid back. The dimly lit lounge and the smooth sounds of Jon B. had her in a zone. Trinity was all smiles while she ordered a mango Hennessy.
“Your eyes looking a little low over there. I didn’t know you smoked.” Mike observed.
One of Trinity’s shoulders hiked into a passive shrug. “You never asked. That’s not information that I offer.”
“I used to think that a woman smoking wasn’t lady like.”
Trinity’s perfectly sculpted brow hiked. “I guess it’s a good thing I smoke because I like the way it makes me feel therefore how anyone else feels about it is irrelevant. Whether I smoke or not, I’m a lady through and through. No points to prove,” she smirked.
“I said used to. I grew up around prim and proper women that didn’t smoke, drink, or curse. They didn’t have casual sex either. If they were single for ten years, then they didn’t have sex for ten years. For a long time, I thought that was the kind of woman that I was supposed to date. No offense to any of them because I grew up around some amazing women, but dating a Miss Goody Two Shoes was like being with a corpse. Especially when it was time to have sex. I learned real fast there wasn’t anything wrong with a woman that liked to let loose a bit.”
“Hmmmm.” Trinity acknowledged what he’d said while grabbing the drink that the server placed in front of her. Her mouth was watering for it.
Even if Mike still had an issue with women that smoked, she couldn’t care less. Trinity had no plans on changing for any man. Especially one she didn’t like in a romantic way. Trinity sipped her drink while letting her gaze roam over the room. Trinity swallowed just as her orbs zeroed in on a sight for sore eyes. Grey was standing beside a man that was equally as handsome as he was, but what made her chest burn was the woman in front of him. The way she was gazing up into his face, and the way he was smiling, Trinity knew the dialogue was more than likely a little deeper than friendly conversation.
Placing her drink back on the table, Trinity ground her teeth together as she watched Grey smile up in the woman’s face. Clearly, there were times that he could get away from his child and have fun that didn’t consist of him calling Trinity. They had never discussed being exclusive. As handsome as he was, of course he had plenty of women. She knew she didn’t have a right to be upset, but she was. Jealousy coursed through her veins and had Trinity so perturbed that she wasn’t listening to whatever it was that Mike was rambling about. His voice was like nails on a chalkboard as she picked her drink up and gulped down a large swallow.
Drumming her nails on the table Trinity attempted to calm herself down and focus on what Mike was saying. She listened for all of thirty seconds before her eyes snapped back toward Grey and the mystery woman. She was still smiling, and he was still standing entirely too close to her. Trinity downed the rest of her drink and flagged the waitress down so she could order another.
“What do you think about going to St. Thomas with me for my birthday next month?”
Forcing her gaze off Grey, Trinity locked eyes with Mike, and it was almost like she was seeing him for the first time. She didn’t want to be there with him. She wanted to be withGrey. She wanted his scent flooding her nostrils. His deep voice making her clit swell and his touch making her nipples hard. Okay, he had a small child. She could work around that. After all, she was good with her nieces and nephews.
Trinity’s words got stuck in her throat as she inadvertently looked over at Grey and saw him whispering in the woman’s ear. Forcing a smile, she glanced over at Mike. “I’ll be right back. I have to use the restroom.”
Trinity’s heart galloped in sync with her heels stabbing the floors as she maneuvered through the crowd and walked in the direction of the rest rooms. Inside the bathroom, she glared at her reflection in the mirror. “Remember who the fuck you are,” she murmured. “You don’t chase men. You get chased. And if they don’t have the good sense to chase you, then fuck ‘em.”
After the short pep talk, Trinity made her way into a stall and forced herself to use the bathroom. After washing her hands, she sauntered from the bathroom and almost ran right into Grey. The Universe was testing her patience big time. The moment they locked eyes, she kissed her teeth and rolled her eyes.
“Got damn. It’s like that? What I do to you?” Grey was truly clueless as he grabbed her arm to stop her from walking around him.
“It’s not like anything. Get back to your date, and I’ll get back to mine.”
Grey’s forehead puckered from his confusion. “Date? I’m not here on a date.” It dawned on him that she was more than likely jealous, and that was funny to him. “Trinity, act like an adult. Open your mouth and say what’s on your mind.”
Sucking her teeth, Trinity pulled her arm from Grey’s grasp. “I’m very much an adult. You can do what you want when you want. I couldn’t care less. Just focus on whoever it is that you need to focus on, and you can lose my number.”
Grey pushed out a slight chuckle which irritated her further. “Maybe you’re PMS’ing or something, but this is crazy. Holla at me when you’re a little less agitated. I haven’t done anything to you, and you remember I told you that I don’t do disrespect. I’ll let you calm down, and we can talk later.”
Though she was jealous of the fact that he was talking to another woman and acting like a brat because she was insanely horny, she knew she had acted out of pocket. She put her foot in her mouth and let Grey know that she liked him obviously more than he liked her. “I haven’t disrespected you and as long as you leave me alone, the disrespect won’t happen,” she snapped before walking away.
Grey shook his head and watched Trinity walk away. She had admitted to being there on a date, but she was mad at him. Women. Grey liked Trinity, but he hadn’t lied when he told her he knew women like her didn’t go for men like him. He took no offense to it. Grey did well for himself, and he had no issue with being the provider, but he was also grown enough to know that some things were out of his tax bracket. Most women didn’t like to date down and if they did, the man never heard the end of it. He wasn’t about to listen to any woman berate and insult him anytime that she got mad. He worked hard and was far from a bum. He didn’t care if a woman was a millionaire. He’d never let her ‘son’ him.
The moment she got mad, he’d be all kinds of broke niggas because he couldn’t afford to buy a Birkin bag or some shit. Grey didn’t have time to be super promiscuous, but he was single and keeping his options open. There were times that he wanted to hit Trinity up, but he didn’t because he didn’t want her to assume that he was catching feelings and being clingy. With the way she was acting it seemed as though that was what she wanted, but Grey didn’t have time for games. If she was interested in takingthings further with him, she would have to open her mouth and make it known.
Grey had no problem being the aggressor. He actually preferred to be the one chasing the woman, but he wasn’t a fan of wasting his time. Trinity was a different caliber. When he was renovating Winter’s boutique, he could have sworn he once heard her say she didn’t do men with small kids. Trinity had the right to date whatever kind of man she wanted, but Grey knew that he more than likely didn’t meet her criteria. Or did he? He was lowkey flattered that Trinity was jealous.
