Page 3 of Love Me Now: Adrian & Kwamé
Adrian wasn’t just talking crazy. The diamond earrings in Jessie’s ears were a gift from him. Not to mention all the other gifts she and I received at random times over the months he’d been gone. Then, there were the flowers he sent me nearly every week. The last bouquet was still thriving and sitting in the middle of the coffee table.
“Okay, well, I’m going to see myself out,” Ari chimed in. “Kwamé, call me if you need me. Although, I don’t think you will,” she mumbled the last part. “Adrian, it was good to see you.”
“You, too,” Adrian said. “Be safe gettin’ home.”
Ari and I playfully glanced at each other and narrowed our eyes as if we were identical twins peering at another set of us. Adrian had us both stumped.
“Will do,” Ari replied.
I walked her out, hugged her goodbye, then took a deep breath as Russ took over helping her inside her car. I waited until she drove off. Now, I was left to go back inside where Adrian filled my house with his scent.
“I’m moving tomorrow, ya know,” I said to him when I joined him back inside the living room.
“Yeah, I know,” he answered. “I’m gon’ trail you back to the farm.”
“Russ is trailing me back.”
“We’re bothtrailing you back,” he emphasized.
Fighting a grin, I asked, “So, you’re just going to force your way into my life?”
“It’s more like a gentle nudge, baby. One way or the other, you gon’ take this attention I’m tryna give you.”
Oh, if it was so simple.
CHAPTER 2
ADRIAN BELL
Icouldn’ttearmyeyes away from Kwamé. A nigga was all in her mouth, trying to read her lips while she talked to Antonias. I stared so hard that I didn’t notice Adir standing at the nurse’s station, peering down at me ogling the fuck out of Kwamé.
“Damn,” he chirped. “Won’t you go crawl in her skin or something.”
I grilled my older brother. “I know you ain’t talkin’. You the same nigga who refused to hire ya now wife. Do we need to replay that shit?”
Adir chuckled. “Nah, mane. I’m just sayin’. You’ve had at least five women stalkin’ yo’ ass this year alone. You know Antonias ain’t right in the head. Leave his sister alone, before you fuck up the vibe ‘round here.”
I shooed Adir away. Neither he nor Adrian were going to get in the way of the love of my life. I’d give up every ho I fucked with to have Kwamé.
I’d been away for five months. That was five months I spent losing my shit over not physically seeing Kwamé and Jessie every day. My second year of medical school was complete. I still had clinical rotations ahead of me, but I was determined to do that shit with Kwamé and Jessie.
After discovering that Kwamé was moving back to the farm, I knew this was my chance to finally tie her ass down. She was running like I was after her with a knife, but I was really after her with my fucking heart.
I hated being away from them. School was rigorous and took up most of my time. They stayed on my mind, though. Between classes, I called. Whenever I was out shopping, I bought them something. Just because she deserved them, I sent Kwamé flowers as often as I wanted to. Now that I was back face to face with her, I was about to shower her with my attention and whatever else she fucking needed to see that I was the one for her.
“Dada!” Jessie’s squeaky small voice pulled me out of my thoughts. Kwamé, Jessie, and I were at a burger place not too far from her house.
Without missing a beat, I asked, “‘Sup, baby?” She was six months old the last time I was in her presence, and she couldn’t walk or communicate with her baby words at the time. Hearing her call me daddy caused my heart to bang against my chest. That shit sounded perfect.
As for her real daddy, it was fuck him. I still didn’t know who the nigga was and it wasn’t because I wasn’t trying to find his ass. Not once had she mentioned Jessie’s father. As close as I was to my own father, that shit was strange to me.
Jessie handed me a French fry that she’d already half-way eaten. “Thank you, mama,” I said anyway and placed the fry on a napkin.
“Daa daa,” Jessie replied with her version of thank you and kept eating her food.
Kwamé’s giggle brought my eyes to the amusement written all over her face.
“What’s funny?” I questioned. “You see how Jessie calls me daddy? She knows what’s up. Mind you, her mama acts like I’m hideous or something.”
