Page 31 of Lily In The Valley
“Nah, I’m tired and want to sleep in. You go ahead,” he replied flatly.
“Cool.”
Everyone started discussing logistics like which cars to take and how long we’d stay out. I tuned them out, the blood in my veins still humming from the words spat at my father. Khalil looked at me, something playful flickering in his eyes.
“What?”
He studied me before replying, “You good?”
“I guess,” I said, shrugging my shoulders.
“You sure?”
I craned my neck to release the tension in my shoulders. I did a quick right to left movement with my head, then used my fork to push around the remaining food on my plate. Khalil brushed his thumb over the back of my hand.
“You gon’ be alright. She know you didn’t mean it like that.”
I sipped the rest of the wine in my glass to clear the lump lodged in my throat. I looked around the table again. Vanessa and Xavier had made it back. She and Lynn recapped what had just happened in a corner with Lynn, while Xavier rubbed Vanessa’s back. Our mothers were helping Mama clear the buffet before we headed out with Uncle Doug and Mr. Ted’s help. And my father… He watched Khalil like he might spontaneously combust.
That simmer of tension between them hadn’t cracked all night. No words exchanged. Just a cold war of glances and smirks. Khalil never flinched, much to my father’s dismay. Hejust stood firm, his presence louder than anything his adversary could silence.
“He still can’t stand you,” I whispered, nodding between the two of them.
He shrugged. “That’s still not gonna stop me from loving you,” he said simply.
The words hit me in the chest and spread warmth throughout my body. I didn’t respond. I glanced around quickly, seeing that it was only Khalil and I left at the table. I leaned in close, brushed my lips against his, then kissed him, slow and soft, and whispered, “Thank you.”
He pulled back, rubbing our kiss into his lips. “Do me a favor tonight.”
“That doesn’t sound like a question.” I smirked.
“It’s not. Have fun with your mama and girls. Then come bounce on this dick later.”
I laughed from deep in my belly. His smile matched mine, big and bright. “You know I can’t stand you, right?”
He bit his lip as his eyelids lowered. “Yeah, but you love me, so it don’t count.”
You got me there.
“Come on, before we get left.”
By the timewe pulled up to Bar 5015, the night had finally shed its tension. That familiar glow bathed the block in a sultry promise. Yellow-orange streetlights buzzed low. A hum of various conversation interlaced with music spilling from the patio hugged my skin like it knew all my business. A small crowd lingered outside the entrance, dressed in varying degreesof grown and sexy. The bass from the DJ thumped through the sidewalk like a second heartbeat.
The parents walked ahead of us. My mom slid her arm into my father’s and tugged him closer. She whispered something in his ear that made him crack a rare smile. They looked good together, even if the foundation was rocky. Nyah and Lynn walked arm in arm, Lynn urging her to scope out the scene. Maverick hovered close behind them, hands in his pockets, a grin playing at the corner of his mouth like he already knew the person she’d end up with.
I pushed myself to take it all in. Be present. Enjoy the rare moment of everyone getting along. From the open-air patio strung with string lights to the polished concrete bar that gleamed with years of drunken secrets.
At our section, the drinks came fast–lemon drops, top-shelf tequila bottles, whiskey on the rocks for my father. Music pulsed around us. We laughed loudly. Talked mess freely. I was tickled watching my mother and her friends pass the hookah around, as if it were natural. It probably was. I’d heard their stories growing up.
Nyah leaned close to me. “This feels like when we all got back to Houston after college. Like the before times.”
“Girl, what before times?”
“When we were reckless and pretty and thought the worst thing that could happen was a bad eyebrow wax.”
Lynn laughed. “We still pretty. We just got better insurance.”
Khalil and Maverick sidled up with a platter of wings: lemon-pepper hot, fried hard.
