"You look wonderful, Destiny," he stated, as we walked hand in hand to his car.
"You look quite debonair yourself," I said before stopping in my tracks to give him a once over, "Thanks for going to church with me."
"I haven’t been inside a church in years, and had no intention of going today, but for you—anything. All you have to do is say the word and I'm," he looked intently into my eyes, before spinning me around observing every contour of my body, "where you want me to be."
Smiling, he took my hand and we continued the walk to the car. I reached for the door handle and dropped my hands to my side when I caught his glare. "Don't you dare touch that door, not as long as I’m present," he said, opening the door.
"Yes sir," I said with a nod.
We filled the ride to the church with conversation, catching up on personal and business life. We hadn’t had a chance to talk over the past few weeks, so he let me know that the Wyoming office opening was a success.
"Yeah, we did our ribbon cutting in the forty-ninth state," he beamed with pride when he explained. "Opening that location is all I have been able to eat and breath lately."
"I'm happy for you. Your grandfather would be so proud, Jacob."
I could tell he was thinking about his grandfather and wondering what he would have thought about the new location.
"This is what he wanted. I'm honored that my father and I are keeping his legacy alive," he said.
"That really is an honor.” I squeezed his hand.
“Now that most of my big goals are so close to being accomplished, I can work on my biggest goal.” He brought my hand up to his lips and kissed my ring finger.
“Last night, you said you’d be in town for as long as I wanted you here. What did you mean by that?”
"I gave it a lot of thought when you left Miami. My grandmother is growing older and my mother doesn’t need to be traveling to Atlanta all the time to take care of her. You are here. I have offices in Atlanta. All roads lead here…to you."
"Are you saying that you’re moving to Atlanta?"
"I already bought a condo. All I need is decorating. I was hoping you could help me with that; that's if you don’t have a problem with me being in your city," he teased.
"I have no problem with it at all. I just want you to do what you want, and not something on an impulse that will end up making you miserable."
"I’ll be fine here," he said as the GPS directed him to turn right to St. Margaret Baptist Church. We pulled into the church parking lot and parked. He took off his seatbelt. His eyes devoured me whole, as he looked at me. "Make no mistake about it, you, alone, are worth the move," he said, took my chin into his hands and pulled my face to his for one of his signature passionate kisses.
I released myself from my seatbelt and wrapped my arms tightly around his neck, deepening our kiss. We sat there enthralled by the magic of our connection as his hands, which had so securely held my face, moved down to my waist. I had no doubt, that he would have pulled me into his lap right there in that church parking lot, if the construct of his car didn’t stop him.
"We’d better go inside," I said, noticing Mrs. Tyler pull up beside us and stare over her brown, rimmed glasses. Her grandson was looking out of the window with a big smile on his face.
Jacob released my waist and rubbed his hands over the burgeoning erection in his pants.
I smiled at Mrs. Tyler and waved. She waved back and placed her oversized red, church hat atop her flowing ringlet curls. The pudgy woman got out of her car with her cheesing grandson in tow, and briskly walked up the church steps, looking back at our car every few seconds with condemnation. Between her being nosey and Jacob's protruding erection, I shook my head and turned away coyly to fix my makeup in his passenger mirror.
"Well… uh, give me a few minutes to get myself together, and then I'll go in with you. Or, I can catch up later," he said.
"No, I'll wait," I said, giving his thigh a reassuring rub. "I want us to walk in together."
"Babe, if you touch me like that again, we will not make it inside that church today. And for the time being, look out of the window, so your beautiful face won’t excite me."
We laughed.
"Come on. Let’s go in, or we’ll be late," I said, reaching for my door handle a few minutes later.
His penetrating glare warned me not to touch the handle. He got out and rushed around to open my door. Glowing, we walked hand in hand into the church and sat in the fifth pew. I spoke to members I knew and gave nods to others.
The sermon was about faithfulness and the pastor was going hard on the message. I gave Jacob's hand a squeeze and he put his arm around me. We took in the riveting delivery of the biblical message. I hoped it would stay with us, because we needed all the faith we could get.
When we left church that day, Jacob promised, "Destiny, as long as I’m with you, I’ll never choose another woman over you again. I'm all yours."
"The past is the past. As long as you do right by me and, when the time is right, my kids, I’m all in," I confessed my feelings to him.
Relief marched across his face. "You don't know how much it means for me to hear you say that, Destiny. I will spend as long and as much as it takes to make up for our rocky start."
CHAPTER ELEVEN
DESTINY
No Time Like the Present
He meant those words. The days my kids were with their father, he stayed at my house and we began to connect fully. I was falling even more in love with him and felt his love flowing over me. We were becoming a great union and I didn’t want that to end.
"When do your kids come home?" he asked me, kissing me softly on the lips.
I lowered myself to his body and rested my chin on his chest. Our eyes locked together.
"Tomorrow and it’s going to be a sweet day, when I see my babies again. I miss them.” I smiled at Jacob. “And, I can’t wait for them to meet you.”
"I can’t wait to meet them," he spoke, causing my smile to widen. "Whenever you’re ready, that is."
Though I felt it would be perfect to get them together, the timing needed to be right. Montie Jr. and Montana had yet to come to grips with their father having a separate home. They weren’t ready to see me with another man.
"It’ll be soon," I replied and pulled myself up.
"Soon?" He asked, grabbing me around my waist and flipping me over.
I giggled as he nibbled playfully on my ear. He held my hands over my head, pressed down to the bed. His lips went to my neck and he fervently sucked my skin.
"Very soon, Jacob…" I whined, moving underneath him, trying to get my hands free from his grip.
He wouldn’t listen. He nipped at my chin a few times before trailing kisses down to my neck and chest. “How soon?” He was relentless in his movements, circling his teeth around my nipples.
"Oh God, Jacob…" I moaned, trying desperately to break from his hold. "Ugh…" I let out a deep sigh. Wetness pooled between my thighs, and I itched to have him inside me.
His tongue surrounded my breasts. He glided up to my lips, and I latched onto him, taking in the wonderful taste that was all Jacob. He shifted to push his ever-rising erection inside of my wetness. My hands remained pinned down, so all I could do was scream when he penetrated me.
"Ahhh…"
His hips moved against mine. His lips forcibly took over my mouth. His body crashed against mine over and over.
Blown away, I finally gave up on having my hands free and just went with it. That’s when the faint sound of my cell phone ringing interrupted the moment. I tensed and looked down at my phone, but his pounding into my aching pussy was enough to keep me in place.
Jacob moved fluidly inside of me until I floated away to ecstasy. I groaned deep within, when he gave one last thrust and his cum ravished my hole.
"Oh, Destiny, you’re so good, baby," he growled, jerking against me with his forceful thrusts. His ragged breathing accompanied a
scowl of pleasure on his face.
"Holy shit," I breathed out, falling back against the bed as an orgasm rendered me too weak to do anything else. "You…a…maze…me!"
"You amaze me more," he replied, kissing me gently on the corner of my lip and then covering my mouth.
My tongue slid inside, slowly and meaningfully. As I was about to deepen the kiss, I heard my phone ring out a text message. My eyes opened and I stared at him.
"Don’t you dare move," he rasped out.
"It could be my kids."
He released me.
I reached down to the floor where the phone had fallen, when we recklessly tore each other’s clothes off.
“Who is it?” he asked.
“Montie,” I answered as I read his text message.
Montie: Hey, I hope you’re home. I’m on my way over with the kids. I got called out of town for a meeting that I can’t miss. Be there in about ten minutes.
I stared at the phone, rereading the message.
"Get dressed. The kids are on their way home."
Jacob rolled over and sat on the edge of the bed. “Do you want me to leave?”
I read Montie’s message again.
“No, you don’t have to leave. I’d be honored for you to meet my children.”
*******
Jacob watched attentively as I moved about the kitchen, preparing for Montie Jr. and Montana’s homecoming. Ever so often, I'd catch his eyes drifting to my waist or admiring my breasts. That was flattering, but, when our gaze found one another’s, it lingered with understanding. I was in love with him, and I was ready for whatever came next.
By the time Montie knocked on the door, I was pulling a muffin pan out of the oven. I made twenty-four piping hot, delicious cupcakes for my little lovelies. I walked past Jacob and touched his arm. "This is a big step for us. Are you sure, you're ready to take it? You could always make a quick exit out the back door and meet them when you are ready."
"Come on, Destiny. Do I look like the kind of man that runs out the back door?"
"No, you don’t.”
“Okay, let’s do this."
We walked to the door and I opened it. Montie Jr. rushed through the door dressed like a little Transformer. He dropped his Transformers book bag in the foyer, and hugged me.
"Mommy! I missed you this much." He stretched his little, five-year-old arms far and wide.
"Mommy, me miss you much, too," Montana said in her toddler talk, stretching her arms like her brother. She was wearing a pink sundress with an oversized yellow ribbon shaped like the sun. Her wavy hair had a matching yellow ribbon, pulling it into a huge ponytail.
I hugged my lovelies close and said, "Mommy missed you too! Go put your bags up and then go to the kitchen. I have a surprise for you."
The kids scurried away with Montie Jr. in the lead. He did stop halfway to his room and look at his sister, and then went back to help her with her bag. He was such the little gentleman. Ever since I divorced his father, he'd been my little man of the house.
"Hi," Montie Sr. said, rushing in with his cell phone in one hand and Montana’s pink, polka dot overnight bag in the other. Just like when we were married, he had one hundred things on his agenda, and none of them included our family. He barely looked at me, much less Jacob, who was standing to the side observing our interaction. "As you can see, they both are wearing their favorite…" Montie started to say something but paused.
He put his phone back up to his ear and glared at Jacob.
"Let me call you back," Montie told the person on the other end and hung up. He erected his stance, showing off his broad muscles as a result of relentless gym workouts. "Excuse my manners. I'm Montie Brown, the father of Destiny's children, and the owner of this house. And you are?" he reached his hand out to Jacob for a shake.
"I'm Jacob Turner," Jacob said shaking Montie's hand.
"My boyfriend," I added firmly. "And this is not your house!" I fired back.
I was livid that Montie would even think of introducing himself as the owner of my house. We settled every detail of our assets in court, so whatever trick he was trying to pull wasn't coming off as cute.
Montie looked at me as if I was the one who’d lost her mind. “I know whose house this is, Destiny,” he shot back.
"So you do remember the details of our divorce?" I asked him.
"I do, and you are correct that you were awarded our house. Still doesn’t change the fact that we built it together," he said loud and clear.
For the life of me, I couldn't understand why Montie was acting like a drama king. He wasn’t the type to throw around his emotions.
"I'm sure there are some beautiful memories in this house. That's evident by your two children who’re in the kitchen, ready to put the icing on those cupcakes you cooked, baby," Jacob said to me, but it was more of a shot at Montie. He took command of the conversation and, like an expert captain, steered us out of an impending shipwreck.
"You're right, honey," I said with a pat on Jacob's arm. "Thank you for reminding me of what’s important. You can see yourself out, Montie. I’m not about to argue with our children in the next room. Have a safe trip," I tossed over my shoulder.
Montie fumed out of the house mumbling about how we would talk about this later.
"Thanks," I told Jacob as I lifted Montana up to the sink to wash her hands.
"No problem," Jacob said, waving me off. “I’m here for you now. It’s time Montie learned that, too.”
"Rub your hands together and wash them good," I said to Montana. Seeing the happiness in her eyes and a smile spread across her chubby, brown cheeks, erased all thoughts of Montie.
Montie Jr. used the step stool to wash his hands, and I sat two of the cupcakes on plates and placed them on the table in front of them. Then, I put the jar of icing on the table and watched as my two youngins' clumsily applied topping to their cupcakes.
"Mommy, who is your friend?" Montie Jr. asked, reminding me that I hadn't formally introduced them.
"Oh, this is Mr. Jacob. He is one of mommy's close friends.”
"Ah ya' nice?" Montana asked, licking her icing-filled fingers.
"I will be to you," Jacob said as he walked over to her. He stooped down so that they were the same height. "Are you nice?" he asked.
"I not nice to scrangers, but I nice to you." Montana immediately went back to the routine of dipping her hand into the icing and then cleaning it off by sucking her fingers.
"Well, that’s good, because I don't plan to be a stranger long. How about this? Finish your snack and we can go out to the park," Jacob said.
"Yay!" Junior said, squirming in his seat, which caused his little sister to do the same.
"Okay, the park it is!" Jacob said, and then out of the kid's earshot said, "I'm glad my first meeting with your ex-husband blew over with just a few words. I would hate to have Junior and Montana's first thought of me as someone who ripped their father to shreds."
"That would be terrible. I'm glad you knew what to say, because he drives me nuts! We hadn’t had one single exchange of words like that since the divorce. Now, when he sees I have someone over here, he wants to come out of his mouth with some craziness."
"I don't blame him. I’d lose my shit if I knew another man was putting his hands on you, too. It's a man thing.”
“He should have known what he had when he had it.”
“That’s his loss. Now that I have you, I’m going to show him that he messed up royally, and he’ll want to reclaim his territory, but it’s not going to happen." Jacob placed his arm protectively around my waist.
"Is that what you're doing now, reclaiming your territory?"
"I'm building territory with you. Our foundation has to be strong, because I want this to be forever," he said, as breeze blew through the kitchen window, causing me to rub my shoulders.
"Man, it's getting chilly," I said as Jacob reached over me and closed the window. "It's bre
ezy out there. Are you sure you want to go to the park?" I asked.
"I told Montana I was going to take her to the park. I have to be a man of my word," he said, and I thought any man that had my daughter's best interest at heart was a keeper.
We went to the park that evening. We got on the swings, merry-go-round, and sliding board, right alongside the kids. All four of us laughed, ran and played until there was no energy left in our bones. When we made it back to my house, I got Montana and Junior bathed and in bed. I plopped down on the sofa beside Jacob, exhausted.
He had his phone in his hand, watching a seminar on finance for construction. I didn’t even have the energy to ask him if it was any good.
I laid my head on his shoulder, and within minutes, my heavy eyes closed and I was sound asleep.
CHAPTER TWELVE
DESTINY
It's Okay
When I woke up the next morning, I was in the middle of my bed with my nightclothes on…alone. Somehow, Jacob managed to take me into my bedroom, dress me, and get me into bed. I smiled at his choice of an oversized Tweetie Bird gown. I heard the TV in the living room playing cartoons, which let me know Junior was up.
I stretched and yawned before getting out of bed. As I walked past my vanity heading to the bathroom, I saw a note from Jacob telling me he had an awesome time with the kids and that he would call me later.
After using the bathroom, I went into the living room and gave Junior a big peck on the cheek. I checked in on Montana and she was sleeping soundly. She was a sleepy head, just like me. I went into the kitchen to cook breakfast.
"Mommy, I need to talk to you," Junior said as he walked in the kitchen behind me.
“Sure Montie Jr. What’s up, honey?”