Page 13 of Throw Away the Key
“I will admit that she's attractive. And Granny was right–she does have a really cool style. It's very simple, but it's kind of edgy and sexy. I don't know…”
“So, you said all of that and really you could have just said yes. Interesting,”
Zora teased taking a sip of the wine Emma paired with dinner.
Ugh, this heffa.“Well, whatever. I don't think she's interested in me, so none of this really matters. And besides, she lives directly below me. It's probably not a good idea. If something did happen and things didn’t work out…”
“Time will tell, baby. It always does,” Granny’s eyes sparkled. She wiggled her shoulders. “Now, what do you have for dessert?”
Emma chuckled. “I hope you don’t hate it, because it's not fancy, but I have a cheese plate with some sliced nectarines drizzled with local honey.”
“Well that sounds delightful,” Zora quirked a brow. “Who are you and what have you done with my best friend?”
“You know, it was something that came up at the farmer's market,” Emma shrugged.
“This is all new territory for you, but I'm into it. I'm liking this whole, ‘Emma on her own’ situation.”
“I think I am too.” Emma rose to pull a platter out of the fridge, removing the plastic covering. “I didn’t really get whypeople cared so much to have their own space, but I do now. It’s nice having a space that I get to change as I see fit, and no one can veto me on my choices.” She winked at Zora playfully.
“Yum.” Granny reached for a slice of nectarine. “I don't think I've ever drizzled honey on fruit like this before–maybe when I’m having fruit with yogurt–but it seems like an interesting combination.”
“I thought so, too. I wasn't sure if it would work or not, I just thought we'd try it. I ended up buying a couple of different kinds of honey. This one is a hot honey, because I thought it would be good with this smoked cheddar, which has a little bit of jalapeño. I don't know if I should have gotten this or something more like a creamy cheese, but you know, the other cheese that they gave me a sample of was goat cheese, and I want to throw that in a salad or something later.”
“You're a regular Martha Stewart over here,” Zora placed a slice of cheese on top of a slice of nectarine with honey and took a bite. She nodded as she chewed. “This works.”
Emma beamed as she and Granny followed suit, layering cheese onto the honeyed wedges and took their respective bites. The crisp white nectarines had a subtle sweetness, the hot honey building a sweet tingle on her tongue as the smoky creaminess of the cheese cooled everything down. “Mmm, this is good!”I wonder if Sadie would like this.She shimmied in celebration of her triumph. “And you know what? When it comes to Martha, the one thing I will say is she ain't no snitch.”
Granny giggled. “Period.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
“Fuck, I knew I was moving too fast. Oh God…. Shit, shit, shit!” She whispered to herself, as she sat at the top of the stairs of the apartment building. She pulled out her phone and looked up Sadie's contact information to send her a text.
Hey Sadie, this is Emma… I am so, so sorry. Are you home or near home? I locked myself out again. I swear I didn't mean to do it!! I was moving too quickly to get to work and I just… I'm so sorry. I apologize in advance, but if you happen to be around, I could really use your help. I'm already late for work.
After she sent the message, she bit her lip and stood to her feet, throwing her hands in the air. She began pacing back and forth, gesturing wildly as she spoke. “This is crazy. How do I keep doing this to myself? I literally looked at them and then what did I do? I must have gotten distracted….”
“Do you always talk to yourself? I could come back if you need a minute.” Sadie stood at the bottom of the stairs, the doorto her apartment wide open. Her arms were crossed over her chest as she watched with amusement.
Emma’s mouth dropped open as she pushed her braids behind her shoulder. “Oh, hi. Sorry, I didn’t hear you come out. I was just trying to recount my steps and see where I went wrong.”
Sadie’s head tilted to the side as she continued to regard Emma’s frazzled state. “Listen, this can't happen all the time. I really do have other things that I could be doing.”
“No, I completely understand. It won’t happen again.”I hope. Please don’t let it happen again.
Emma watched Sadie as she walked up the stairs. She wore a form fitting black V-neck t-shirt with faded blue jeans ripped at the knees. The shirt clung to the slight curve of her breasts, tiny orbs poking through the thin fabric, catching Emma's eye.
She swallowed as her lips parted slightly.
Sadie wore small hoops in her ears–the only jewelry Emma could see. Her hair appeared to be freshly cut. Her bare face had a dewy glow, and Emma noticed more detail of Sadie’s ink this time around–a thorny vine of flowers intricately wrapped around her forearm.
“I really like your hairstyle,” Emma thought out loud.We really could have done better than that, Em.
“Thanks.”
She pressed on, the clipped tone feeding her anxiety. “I just don't feel like everybody can pull that off, but it really suits you.” She glanced sideways again. “You have really striking cheekbones.”
Sadie slowed and reared her head back slightly. “Uh, thanks?”
