Make You Mine (10 page)

Tonight watching Mia and Jordan together after nearly thirteen years of marriage had caused a little envy in him. He saw that same connection between Tamara and Kendrick. Would he ever have that? Would he ever put in the work to have it?

“Don't be one of those whack ass fifty-year-old players still out there chasing Miss New Booty.”

Was he setting himself up to be one of those old players?

“I'm a girlfriend, committed girl kinda chick. You're not looking for that…but I am…”

Julius turned again, closed his eyes and let the spray hit his upturned face as he inhaled deeply. He placed his hands on the wall in front of him, the muscles of his arms straining.

Caress was getting to him.

He had to deal with the facts because he felt himself slipping. He wanted her. She aroused him without even trying, but did great chemistry and the promise of mind-blowing sex make for a good relationship—especially when he wasn't ready for a commitment and she made it clear that to get in her bed meant getting into her life?

Julius grabbed his washcloth and soap. He washed himself thoroughly, and rinsed off. He was just drying off with a thick and plush towel when his phone began ringing. Folding the towel to hang on the rack, he strode into his bedroom naked, his maleness swinging as he moved.

He checked the caller ID making sure it wasn't Karina.

Dwayne. He hit the talk button.

“Whaddup?” he said into the phone, pressing it between his shoulder and ear as he pulled back the covers and sat down on the bed.

“Your agent sent a package to the studio and since you left early I dropped it off at your house.”

Julius frowned. Dwayne had been to his house? “I'm sure it's here.”

“Yes, I see you have a lot of new things at your house,” Dwayne said.

“Good night, Dwayne,” Julius said.

“I will work for free if you let me tell Karina about the baby,” he pleaded.

“Good night, Dwayne.”

“Please, Julius. I am beg—”

Julius ended the call, setting the phone back on its base before reaching to turn on the lights. It was then he noticed the package in the middle of the bed. He already knew it was the contracts his agent wanted him to sign. He reached over and set it on his bedside table and then lay down naked enjoying the crisp feel of the expensive sheets against his body.

Although he was tired, sleep eluded him as he tossed and turned in the bed. His thoughts were full. Needing a diversion he thought of Jordan's new book. Flinging back the covers, Julius didn't bother covering up his nudity since Caress was fast asleep. Besides in the days before his roommate, Julius would roam around his house naked all the time—one of the perks of living alone.

He dashed down the stairs in the darkness and grabbed the book. Jordan was an excellent writer. Very descriptive without being long-winded. Realistic dialogue and situations. Lots of character development. Great mystery plot-lines that always surprised you with the whodunit. Julius couldn't wait to dig into it.

“Uh hum.”

Julius looked up just as he reached the top landing. Caress was walking out of the bathroom and her bemused expression took in his nudity with a twinkle in her eyes. “I thought you were asleep,” he said, slowly lowering the book to try and cover most of his jewels.

She pointed over her shoulder toward the open bathroom. “Potty called.”

“Oh, okay,” he said, pausing on the stairs and waiting for her to go into her room.

Caress covered her mouth with her hands and he knew she was hiding a smile. She was enjoying this. She thought he was afraid to walk to his room.
Shee-it. Well, let's see if this keeps the smile on her face
, he thought as he moved the book and looked her boldly in the eye as he walked across the floor with his rod swinging like a billy club.

As he passed her, it was his turn to smile at the way the laughter left her eyes, replaced by what he knew was lust. With one last look over his shoulder before he entered his room, he discovered her eyes squarely on his buttocks. Just for fun, he stopped, posed, and flexed the muscles of his firm rear and then walked in his room, softly closing the door behind him with a husky laugh.

 

The image of Julius's sculptured body was branded into Caress's memory. His body—those broad shoulders, hard chest, defined abs, square buttocks and all—was just as sculptured as it had been that night. Caress fanned herself as she lay in the middle of the bed. “Doggone shame to be that fine,” she said aloud to herself as she pictured his cocky bowlegged strut as he paraded past her as naked as the day he was born. She never guessed he would do it.

But why wouldn't he? The man had nothing at all to be ashamed of. Even at rest he hung with thickness and length. Once hard it only got better, thicker, longer, curvier. She knew that firsthand.

How much longer could they play this little game of pretending not to want each other? How much more time before she carried her little pregnant self into his bedroom and laid out all her goodies for his delight?

But her feelings for Julius were beyond the physical.

Her heart was betraying her.

Against reason.

Against common sense.

Against her better judgment.

Deep down she held hope that Julius would want more, but it was time for her to put away the fantasy and move on with her life. She had to free her heart of him before he took more of it.

Two Months Later

“So what do you think?” Caress asked Tamara as they ended their tour of the one-bedroom apartment.

“I like. I like,” Tamara said excitedly, grabbing Caress's hand on her way into the kitchen which was separated from the living room by a counter.

Caress folded her arms across herself, propping them on her belly as she looked around the apartment with excited eyes. It took two months to save up the first month's rent and deposit, but it was hers. It was even bigger than the studio apartment she used to have and in a slightly better neighbor hood, just ten minutes away from Julius's house. The six-unit apartment building was clean and free of loiterers. With it being early May she even drove through the neighborhood a couple of nights ago and if a block was empty at night in the summer, then that was a telling sign. Caress was pleased with her choice.

“Eventually I have to get a two-bedroom place, but God bless this child that has her own again,” she said.

“Has Julius seen it?” Tamara asked as she opened and closed the black refrigerator.

Caress shook her head. “He's not my man, Tam-Tam.”

“You want him to be.”

Caress's head whipped to the right as she pierced her friend with an angry look. “No,
you
want him to be my man.”

Tamara nodded as she walked back over to Caress, her footsteps echoing against the wood floors. “Humph, we have something in common,” she said, reaching to rub Caress's belly. “Godmother privileges.”

Caress laughed as the baby kicked. Tamara jumped back in surprise.

“My son is telling you to stop working my nerves about his father,” Caress joked as she placed her hands on her own expanded belly.

Tamara rolled her eyes and waved her hand at Caress dismissively. “Caress, you may fool yourself into believing you don't have feelings for Julius, but I can see it in your face whenever he is around and you think no one is looking. You've fallen for him, haven't you?”

“No,” Caress said emphatically. “You know Kendrick is right. You do have a hard head.”

“Damn, Caress, I thought you and I were better than that,” Tamara said in a rare show of seriousness as she leveled her eyes on her friend.

Caress shifted her eyes away hoping to hide the truth. In the last few months, her feelings for Julius had grown. Against her wishes. Against her better judgment. Bit by bit.

The chemistry between them was just as strong. Their flirting had never stopped. They learned to laugh together. They had learned to talk and share with each other. They even learned to understand one another.

And with all of that Caress had learned to love him. Yes, it stung a bit that he didn't want to be in a relationship, but she appreciated his honesty. A lot of men would have gone right ahead and slept with her, lied to her, taken advantage of her. And so far each time she tried to leave her loan payments for him, he would make sure he returned the checks uncashed. He was a good man and that was evident in his good friends and his charity work. He was a fabulous photographer. He was a great lover. Handsome. Stylish. Funny. Loyal. Compassionate. Passionate.

He was completely lovable.

Damn.

“Tell him I need him. Tell him I love him and it'll be all right,” Tamara sang softly in her best Lauryn Hill impression.

How astute her friend was because there were many nights she lay with her thoughts wrapped around Julius as she listened to the raw emotions of Lauryn's voice and the deep convictions of her lyrics.

“Love on a one-way street ain't fun,” Caress said softly.

“Ah-ha,” Tamara said in sweet satisfaction. “So you do love him.”

Caress pointed her finger at Tamara and her face brooked no argument. “I swear to God if you tell him I will never speak to you again,” she warned her fiercely.

Tamara reached out and softly placed her hand over Caress's. She entwined her fingers with her friend's and held them tightly. “I wouldn't do that, Caress,” she said with the utmost seriousness.

Caress let the tension in her body drift away. “Girl, if I knew your blind date would lead to an unplanned pregnancy and unrequited love I would have undone myself from that damn date.”

Tamara laughed as they headed for the front door. “Hey, I planned the date, not the sex. I am a friend, not a pimp.”

Caress just laughed and shook her head. “Girl, hush with your crazy self.”

“So when is move-in day?”

“Just as soon as PSE&G gets the lights on.”

“Well, I'm proud of you and I'm happy for you.”

“Thanks, Tamara.” Caress gave the place one final look before she began to pull the door closed behind them. “Let's go. I'm ready to sit my big ass down.”

“How far along are you?” Tamara asked.

“Twenty-seven weeks.”

Tamara quickly did the math in her head. “Wow, you are big for close to seven months.”

Caress nodded, feeling the additional pounds on her lower back. “I know.”

“Once he's born please stop the counting in weeks and months. Seriously, once he's a year just like leave it alone. It is crazy to say he's like eighteen months. No, he's a year and a half. Or he's fifty months. Oh God that works my nerve. I swear it does.”

“Girl, shut up.”

 

Julius followed Kendrick into his and Tamara's apartment. “Man, your game is falling off,” Julius chided as they moved across the hardwood floors to settle in the kitchen.

“Man, I can't ball like I did ten years and thirty pounds ago,” Kendrick said, as he reached into the fridge for two ice cold beers.

Julius cut his eyes up at his friend as Kendrick tossed him a can. “Tell me about it. To get those fleas off our necks, I had to pull out some tricks I haven't used since I was growing up in the projects.”

Kendrick laughed. “I'm glad as hell my woman wasn't there to see me.”

Julius took a deep sip of the beer, although he preferred brandy or cognac when he was in the mood to drink. Beer made him too tired unless it was lite. Just one can and he was somewhere sleeping with his mouth wide open—hardly an asset to his cool and suave persona. “Where is Ms. Busybody anyway?” he asked, pulling his basketball shorts away from his thigh where they clung because of the sweat.

“She and Caress went to look at Caress's new apartment,” Kendrick said. “I know you're happy as hell to get your house back.”

Julius didn't try to hide his surprise.

Kendrick paused, his beer can frozen at his mouth as he cut his eyes to Julius. “Caress didn't tell you she found a place,” he stated more than asked.

Julius shrugged. “Not yet,” he said, his eyes looking off into the distance at nothing as he let the news settle on him.

Caress was finally moving.

They'd both waited months for this to come to fruition. Now here it was.

“I love Caress like a sister but you should be celebrating…so why you looking all shell-shocked?”

Julius turned his head and leveled his eyes on the big and tall man across from him. “I'm just hoping she isn't moving into some roach-infested rat trap because she's rushing to get her own place.”

Kendrick spew beer out of his mouth as he looked at his friend. “Rushing? A roach-infested rat trap?” he said with comical emphasis as he used a paper towel to wipe the beer from his chin and the table where it landed. “Why the hell do you care?”

“I don't want my son growing up in the kind of crap I used to live in.”

The beer went flying again as Kendrick's eyes widened. “Your son? A first, ladies and gentleman. Julius Jones faces reality.”

“Shut up,” Julius growled. “I meant
if
he is my son and you know it.”

“Playa down! Playa down,” Kendrick hollered to the roof. “Call 911. A playa is down.”

Julius eyed Kendrick like he was a fool. “You and Tamara are made for each other.”

“Maybe you and Caress were made for each other,” Kendrick retorted.

Just then the front door opened and the ladies walked in laughing at something. Julius's eyes immediately shifted to Caress. His heart tugged at the sight of her. She frequently joked that her nose was now the size of a 747 and her neck was getting dark, but Julius thought she was beautiful. She never did the pregnant woman waddle even though her belly was fast expanding. She was wearing one of the outfits he bought: a deep fuchsia button-up shirt and fashionable dark denims. The color brought out her complexion and made her eyes come alive.

He took a deep sip of the beer as he forced his eyes away from her.

“Hi fellas,” Tamara said, setting her purse and keys on the kitchen table.

“Caress, my bad, I spilled the beans to Julius about your apartment,” Kendrick admitted as he turned and reached for another can of beer from the fridge. He offered one to Julius, who declined with a shake of his head.

Caress looked over at Julius as she took a seat at the small round table. Their eyes met. They both looked away quickly.

“Congratulations, Caress,” he said.

“I was going to tell you tonight,” she said.

Their knees brushed under the table and Julius felt that same awareness between them. It had become familiar to him. “So where is it?”

“It's just ten minutes from your house, Julius. It's nice,” Tamara said, easing the can from her husband's massive hand to take a sip.

Julius didn't move his knees from Caress's and he noticed she didn't move hers either. “So you like it?” he asked.

“Well, I would love a two bedroom better but I like it.” Caress smiled at him. “I'm just excited to be back on my feet, and I know you'll be glad to get your house back.”

Julius was acutely aware of Kendrick's and Tamara's eyes on him. He ignored them. “I'm more excited for you than anything.”

Their eyes met and held for a few seconds before they both looked away.

“Thank you, Julius,” Caress said softly, her hand rising to touch her neck.

The room fell silent. Both Caress and Julius slowly turned their heads to eye Tamara and Kendrick, who were both looking at them like they were putting on a play or something.

“Y'all are so cute together,” Tamara said with a big goofy grin on her face. “I don't know why you two don't admit—”

“Tamara,” Caress warned in a hard voice.

“What?” Kendrick said. “Julius was just in here—”

“Kendrick,” Julius warned in a voice just as hard and ominous.

Caress stood. “Julius, can I catch a ride home?”

“Sounds like a plan to me,” he said, rising to his feet as well.

“You don't have to go,” Kendrick said, as they walked out of the kitchen.

“I want to start packing,” Caress said opening the front door.

“I have to go over the proofs for my book,” Julius said, reaching in the pocket of his shorts for his keys.

“Bye!” they said in unison before Julius pulled the door closed in Tamara's and Kendrick's faces.

 

Later that night, Caress left her room in search of Julius. She had walked every square foot of the upstairs and downstairs before it crossed her mind to try his darkroom in the basement. She knocked, not knowing if opening the door would ruin his film or not.

“Come in,” he hollered up.

She opened the door and slowly made her way down the stairs. The red lights for developing were on, and Julius was removing dried photos from the line hanging across the rear of the darkroom. “I've never been down here before,” she told him as she looked around.

Julius smiled at her over his shoulder. “Welcome to my world,” he said as he continued to take down photos.

Caress walked around looking at the framed photographs on the wall. “You really have a way of pulling people into your photos, Julius,” she said, captivated by the picture of a homeless man asleep on the top of a subway grate.

“Photography has been my passion since I was a kid with a second-hand—or maybe even third-hand—Polaroid camera.”

Caress smiled and softened her eyes as she looked over at him. “I can't imagine you as a kid.”

Julius glanced at her over his shoulder again. “Oh yeah. Why not?”

“I don't know. Today was the first time I've seen you in shorts and sneakers,” Caress mused as she walked over to stand beside him at the waist-high table. “Guess, I imagine you twelve and decked out in a suit listening to Miles Davis.”

Julius laughed. “Far from it. When I was growing up I was always in patched-up clothes, and I promised myself a different life when I was grown.”

“Guess we both had it rough coming up,” she said sadly.