I could feel Ari watch me as I left the office and rounded the corner toward Greer’s office. I stopped midstride to face her. Worry was etched all over that pretty face of hers.
“It’s just dinner, Ari. Trust me, it’ll be fun.” I gave her a wink as I headed down the hall.
Chapter Nineteen
Ari
I handed Bella her favorite cup of pumpkin spice latte as I sat next to her on the bench at the park. She smiled, grateful for a cup of warmth as she watched the girls and her husband playing on the playground. At three years old, the twins were fast as lightning, and Zach was having a hard time keeping up. The October air was crisp, swirling the orange and yellow leaves all around them. It looked perfect, as if Bella had staged the outing. I looked around, waiting for a camera crew to pop out from the bushes. They all had on various shades of designer plaid prints and looked like an ad for laundry detergent or something. Bella, coordinated in a Burberry print poncho, dressed as the chicest mom of toddlers that I’d ever seen. I swear, the woman didn’t know the meaning of the word casual.
“Malia! Sasha! Slow down, loves!” yelled Bella, peering over her copy of Harper’s Bazaar.
I smiled. “You know, I still can’t get over the fact that you named your girls after the former First Daughters.”
Bella turned to me, pulling her shades onto her nose with a quizzical expression. “Name a greater duo of sisters? I dare you.”
“Hmm. Venus and Serena? Beyoncé and Solange? Debbie and Phylicia? Oh! I know! Tia and Tamera?”
Bella turned to me with folded arms. “Okay. Fine! I get the point!” We both let out a laugh as Bella nudged me playfully.
“So, what made you join us on a Saturday afternoon? Don’t you have a social life, girl? Work? Renovations?” asked Bella, taking a long sip of her latte. “Or some fresh man to get under? Didn’t I tell you to find a man to get under?”
“Can’t I just want to see my best friend and my gorgeous goddaughters? They’re getting so big. Maybe I’ll push them on the swings. Give Zach a break.”
Bella put her shades on top of her head and furrowed her brow. “Cut the shit, Ari. You hate playgrounds. You’d rather take the girls shopping and get them sick off Pinkberry. So…what is this about?”
I pulled the zipper of my insulated vest up and took a deep breath as it all came out like word vomit. “Maybe I willed this to happen. You did tell me to get under a man. Then I did. And I didn’t stop even though I said I would. It was, well is, so damn good. We probably, no, definitely, shouldn’t be doing this. And I…”
“Wait! What are you talking about?” Bella interrupted. Her face was obviously full of confusion at my rambling. Hell, my own ramblings confused me.
“I slept with Porter, Bella. Well. I take that back. Because slept with implies one time and well…there have been multiple times. So, I’m sleeping with him, I guess.”
Bella turned to look at me, silent as a stone. Bella’s mouth normally moved a mile a minute so clearly, she was beside herself.
“Bella! Say something! Anything. I made a mistake, didn’t I? I mean, I should have learned my lesson with Maurice. But…”
Bella’s lips turned up into a sly smile. “It was good, wasn’t it? Dick this good tends to make a chick ramble.”
Exasperated, I let out a sigh. “Oh my God, Bella. I lost count of how many orgasms I’ve had. But it’s just sex. Good sex, but just sex. He knows this. I mean, I told him I can’t be in a relationship. I’m not getting caught up like last time. He knows about Maurice and the shit in Chicago. He knows I can’t do it again.”
Bella took a sip of her latte. “But?”
“But my God, the man has skills. Girl, the things he did with his mouth are probably illegal in a few of the red states. And God, he can go nonstop rounds like a prize fighter.”
“Damn!” yelled Bella. The girls immediately paused in the middle of a rousing game of tag. Malia wagged a finger in her mom’s direction. Zach threw up his hands in confusion.
Bella held up her hand, apologetically. “Sorry, girls! Mama said a bad word! I’ll put a dollar in the swear jar.”
Bella scooted closer to me and began whispering at toddler-and-husband-proof levels. “Now, I need details, bitch. After I met Porter at Dunn’s River, I did some digging via the alumni networks. Nothing major. No real red flags. His family is loaded, though. Seems like his grandfather was a US senator from Louisiana. Very old money. Other than his very impressive pedigree, I have nothing to report. Porter was a couple of classes ahead of us at Hampton, so I don’t have any dick reports. Which is surprising because, man, do I know some hoes. Well, reformed hoes.”