“So, this is a delicacy then. Good to know.”
“You’re going to love the salmon. It’s one of my favorite things on the menu apart from the steak. The bourbon sauce they use is quite magnificent.”
“Yet you didn’t order the salmon.”
“I wanted some meat.” I laughed and couldn’t even take myself seriously.
Armond shook his head and took another sip of wine as a smirk lifted the corner of his mouth.
“Do I even want to know what you’re thinking, Armond?”
“Naw. You really don’t,” he said.
“Think I can’t handle your naughty thoughts?”
“I think you can handle them just fine. Your sexy ass ain’t ready for it yet though.”
“I guess you have a point.”
I stuffed the rest of the roll into my mouth to stop myself from saying what I truly wanted to. I’d let him have his way with me anytime. My kitty needed to be awakened and he was the perfect candidate to do so.
My heart was racing. He wouldn’t stop staring at me. The lower his eyes got, the naughtier my thoughts became.
I shouldn’t have gotten this close to him. I was sure he could smell my kitty roaring at him to be devoured, roaring to get even the smallest amount of attention. I needed to chill. I wasn’t trying to be that girl, no matter how much I actually wanted to be.
“This wine is stellar, don’t you think?” I asked as I brought the glass to my lips.
“One of the best, but you already knew that, didn’t you?”
I nearly choked as his fingers brushed my bottom lip. I had just put the glass down, but a little wine was sitting on my lip. He strummed it then sucked his finger, eyes right on me.
It was clear the sexual tension between us was live and popping yet neither of us acted any further, partially due to the waiter always coming right when either of us started to act on our desires.
Once the waiter placed our meals before us and asked if we needed anything else, Armond dismissed him and said to only return with the bill. He was clearly irritated.
“So, Brandy… tell me about your past relationships. It’s clear you’re done with Jeffrey, but he’s not done with you. What’s that about?”
That made me choke on my water. Jeffrey was the last person I wanted to talk about while I enjoyed my time with Armond but that look on his face let me know he wasn’t going to take my silence for an answer. He was already upset. I didn’t want to add to it. Shit, maybe taking the attention off our mindless waiter would do him some good, channel that energy into the right person. I only hoped after I said what I had to he wouldn’t take his frustrations out on me.
“Well, I met him in New York. I’d just gotten my business management degree from NYU. I was out celebrating with my girls when he addressed us. He offered to pay for our drinks and all that. We got to talking and I agreed to a date. We clicked.”
I took another sip of water then brought my eyes to his. He was thoroughly interested. I didn’t want to continue but I forced myself. It was always hard talking about my relationship with Jeffrey, even with our humble beginnings.
“We dated for a year before he proposed to me. Up to that point things were going well. He was kind. Generous. Loving. Funny. That continued into our marriage until he started drinking after he lost one of his coworkers during aninvestigation. He was a detective for the NYPD at the time. Every time I tried to comfort him or let him know I was there for him, he’d dismiss me or start yelling. Then it turned into putting hands on me.
“I told him I was pregnant and that’s when it got even worse. We’d been talking about having kids during our courting phase and engagement, shit even after we got married. I thought he would be happy. That glint that was once in his eyes for me dimmed quickly and he started resenting me. He would tell me how I was getting fat, my face was blowing up, how I wasn’t taking care of myself. It was all bullshit. He just wanted an excuse to put hands on me.”
I sighed and Armond grabbed my hand. I hadn’t realized I’d been shaking.
“Hey,” he said, as the tears rolled down my cheeks. “You don’t have to continue. It’s alright. I see it’s a touchy subject for you.”
I smiled weakly and nodded but I needed to get it off my chest. I hadn’t spoken about it since I left New York and the more I spoke on it, the more I realized how much it still affected me. Maybe I could get some closure with this.
“It’s alright. Thank you,” I said as I squeezed his hand. I took another sip of water before continuing.
“I was six months along at the time. I’d come in from a yoga session with groceries for dinner and I guess he didn’t like what I chose. He completely spazzed on me. Beat me to a pulp. Said fuck me and our kid. I barely escaped him and tried my hardest to make it to the hospital. Thankfully Marsha and Stella met me there and helped me get inside. I was bleeding everywhere and leaving trails as I walked. Armond, that motherfucker was insane.”
I finally met his eyes and the anger was brewing deeply. His jaw was clenched and it seemed like he was holding hisbreath. He was so damn red. I swallowed hard and looked at my untouched plate. I didn’t know if I should tell him the worst of it. I’d lose my appetite and so would he. This date wasn’t supposed to get dark, so I needed to divert this conversation.
