“The last on the left,” I advised, feeling like a useless ass.
She got forks and knives and we sat down to eat. The omelet was delicious. I was grateful that she was able to pull a rabbit out of a hat for breakfast. I hadn’t planned on being at the house these few days and didn’t leave any notice for my housekeeper to stock it with food. We were lucky to find what we did. I’m usually in Philly during the season. Not much got me off schedule. Until…
I glanced across the island. Zo was quiet.
“You okay, kid?” I tried, adding a smirk to lighten the moment.
“Mmm-hmm,” sounded from her throat after filling her mouth with a forkful.
“Then why the hell won’t you look at me?” I was now getting a little irritated.
Her eyes slowly rolled up to mine. “Happy?” she snapped her neck.
There was my smart ass Zo. I chuckled and in spite of herself, so did she.
“You meeting up with the kid, Leo, when you get back?”
Yup, I’m sitting on a fucking maxi pad.
“That’s how I make my money.” Her sarcasm was thick.
“Talking about psycho-development…specifically sex?”
She shrugged. “You know what they say: those who can’t have sex, talk about psychosexual development.” More sarcasm.
I dropped my fork onto my plate. “Zo…” I called apologetically.
“I’m just kidding, you dork!” she giggled. “Calm down.”
I didn’t know if she was kidding about kidding or serious about both. Zoey was fucking with my head. I didn’t exactly know how to proceed with her after last night. I felt sexual tension, something I knew nothing about. Sex was never a big fucking deal for me; when I wanted it, I got it. And don’t get me wrong, I wanted it, but, I didn’t fuck friends. Problem was, Zo wasn’t a typical friend. I didn’t know what the hell she was.
When we were done, she took our plates to the sink to clean. I stood, resting my hip on the counter next to her, watching her like an idiot. I’ve fucked more women than I care to think of, but this young jawn had my fucking panties in a bunch.
“So, what are we doing today?” she asked, still not looking at me.
“I think we need to get some food in here. We can start with that,” I offered.
She grabbed the towel to dry her hands. “Fine, let’s go while it’s early. I know how you are with crowds. Don’t want to get you mobbed,” she mumbled.
“I can actually visit this local grocery store with little fanfare.”
“Okay. I’ll go grab my things then.” Zoey turned to leave the kitchen.
I grabbed her arm, yanked her little body into mine, took her by the face, and pushed my tongue in her mouth. It took her a while to kiss me back, but she did after some time. Her hands clutched my lower arms for balance. I didn’t stop until I felt she got the message.
“I don’t want to beef with you, Ni?a,” I whispered to her as I held her head in my hands.
She sighed and closed her eyes. “We’re not beefing, Stent. We’re fine.” And then she pulled away from me, leaving the kitchen.
Twenty minutes later, we were at the grocery store, and rolling the cart down the aisle. Actually, I was pushing it and Zoey was rambling about ingredients needed for things she would cook while we were out there. When she asked about my diet restrictions, I told her I eat everything, but just nothing too heavy during the season; I was still on the clock, so to speak.
“What does your chef usually cook for you?” she asked while we were in the produce area.
“I dunno, shakes, vegetables, lean meats. Shit with lots of protein,” I answered while reading scores on my phone.
“That doesn’t help,” I heard from just ahead of me. “But I think we have enough to survive these next two days.”
I glanced up to find her staring at me, I guess for an answer.