A Heart Not Easily Broken Read online

  Chapter 10

  c. u. n. 5

  No, I wasn’t dreaming. She was actually here.

  When Ebony refused my invitation, I scrapped the idea of going to the Pier and dedicated the day to practice. My phone had been set on vibrate in order to avoid distractions. I didn’t see her message until I stopped to take a break.

  And now, I waited with tickets in hand, unable to shake the nervous feeling in my stomach. I hadn’t felt like this the night we went out. But today was different. It wasn’t coercion that brought her here. She wanted to see me.

  I surveyed the crowd. Groups walked by on their way inside the park for a day of fun.

  And then, there she was.

  How did she do it? Never had I seen a woman manage to be so beautiful, so sexy, and fun at the same time.

  A deep purple shirt stopped at her midriff, drawing my eyes to the sexy flat plane of her caramel skin. Black fitted shorts hugged her hips and stopped mid-thigh like a second skin. Long, shapely legs ended in sandals with strings wrapping up her sexy calves. She wore her auburn hair away from her neck and face leaving her throat visible. I could imagine my mouth there, kissing her, whispering in her ear as my hands ran around the smooth expanse of her exposed flesh. My fingers ached, longing to slide along her narrow waist.

  And then our eyes met. Her eyes seemed to sparkle as luscious lips pulled up in a sexy smile.

  God, I wanted to kiss her.

  “You look good,” I blurted, the moment she got close enough to hear.

  “Thanks.” She tucked her hands into the pockets of her shorts. “So do you.”

  I looked down at my khaki cargo pants and blue t-shirt, my favorite pair of Converse on my feet. “I try.” I nodded toward the entrance. “Ready for some fun?”

  We headed into the park, taking in the sights, in no hurry to decide what to ride first. The lines were long which allowed plenty of time to chat about our jobs, likes and dislikes.

  Several hours later we had ridden nearly every ride in the park. It was time to take a break. We found a stand selling funnel cakes. Our snack in hand, we searched out a spot on the boardwalk to enjoy the sweet treat.

  “Oh, man, I can’t remember the last time I ate one of these.” She licked the powdered sugar off her fingertips. “I take that back, it was my senior year in high school. My sister took me and my twin to the fair to celebrate our birthday.”

  “You have a twin?”

  Ebony nodded. “Yes, my brother, Trevon. He lives in Atlanta and co-manages an Applebee’s. My sister, Lashana and her husband, live in Charlotte along with their daughter and my parents.” Her eyes lit up at the mention of her family. “My niece, Mia, is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”

  “Do you and your brother look alike?”

  “Oh, God, no.” A mischievous expression lit her eyes. “I always tell people he’s my younger brother.”

  I laughed. “Your younger brother? I thought you were twins.”

  “We are, except I’m the oldest. I was born five minutes before him, so we call him the baby.” She laughed. “It pisses him off all the time.”

  “Are you close to your family?” I bit my cake, savoring the powdered sugar and melted chocolate chips. I’d given up using my fork and went straight at it with my fingers.

  Ebony giggled. “You’ve got sugar on your nose. I’ll get it.”

  My hands were full holding the plate and the funnel cake.

  I focused on her tantalizing lips as she leaned closer, concentrating on the cleanup. As great as the funnel cake smelled with its various toppings, nothing compared to her exotic perfume. She wore the same fragrance as the night we danced. It was sensual and sexy, yet sweet at the same time. It reminded me of caramel and cream. I wondered if her skin would taste the same way.

  “Thanks,” I said when she pulled back.

  “You’re welcome.”

  Our eyes held before she cleared her throat and looked away.

  “My family is pretty tight. Trevon and I are close, but not just because we’re twins. It’s because­,” She giggled. “I’m a tomboy at heart. Dressing up used to be a pain as much as playing with dolls. My sister did all the girly stuff. I used to run away from her to play with Tre and his friends.”

  “You were a tomboy?” I licked chocolate off my fingers. It was hard to imagine her running away from the dress she’d worn the night we met. “You’re kidding right? There’s nothing about you that says tomboy.” I allowed my eyes to linger on her legs. When I looked back up, Ebony’s cheeks sported a pink glow.

  “I hated dresses. My favorite outfit was a pair of jeans and a t-shirt.”

  I could imagine Ebony in pigtails and jeans.

  “My Mom hated it though. Lashana did everything feminine. Fingernails always painted, hair always done. She never left the house without looking perfect.” Ebony shook her head. “For fun, she’d tell my mother Tre’s friends were making me play hospital, and I was the patient. Mom freaked out about me playing with a bunch of boys. She would make me stay inside all day with Lashana.”

  I howled with laughter.

  Ebony’s expression feigned irritation.

  “What did you play?”

  “Fashion show.” Her button shaped nose wrinkled at the memory. I continued to laugh, but toned it down.

  “That annoyed the hell out of me. My brother would be outside playing Star Wars, while I got stuck inside wearing a stinking dress.”

  “Let me guess, you wanted to be Queen Amidala.”

  “Nope. I was the doctor who worked on the Wookie.” She grinned.

  “An animal lover all the way, huh?”

  “Oh yeah.” She cut her way through strawberries and whipped cream with a fork.

  “When did you turn into a sexy vixen?”

  Ebony rolled her eyes. “I’m still a tomboy. I just know how to attract the opposite sex.”

  I allowed myself to appreciate the voluptuous curves of her body. Yeah, she definitely knew how to attract.

  “Did you have a lot of boyfriends in school?”

  “A few, but not like my sister. Every guy in school wanted her. She’s prettier than me.”

  “That’s not possible.”

  Ebony’s gaze turned to me. “You’re kidding, right?”

  Was she serious? “Ebony, you are a beautiful woman. It doesn’t matter what you wear by the way, because I’ve seen you as sexy as you want to be and in your work clothes.”

  “Brian, you have a great sense of humor.”

  To my surprise, she wasn’t sarcastic. Was it possible she was actually insecure? With a body built for sin, how could she not know how attractive she was?

  “Did you look into the mirror before you left home?”

  She squirmed. “Of course I did.”

  “Then you should know why men look at you the way they do.” I hoped she knew my words were coming from my heart.

  Ebony broke the connection.

  “You’re the first guy who hasn’t asked to see a picture of my sister.” A half-laugh followed.

  What kind of man would ask to see a picture of her sister? “They were assholes.”

  A bashful smile spread across her lovely face.

  “How many assholes have you dated?”

  “I broke up with the last one six months ago.”

  “Why?” I prompted.

  “Both of us had hectic schedules. We rarely saw each other except for…” she laughed. “You know.”

  Man, did I. If I had the chance, I’d spend every waking moment naked with her body wrapped around me.

  “After a few months, we realized we didn’t want the same things. He ended up wanting something I couldn’t give him. The last I heard, he had gotten engaged.”

  “Wow.” Lucky me.

  “The messed up part was, my mom found out I dated a doctor and damn near started planning the wedding.”

  “How long did you date?”

  “Eight months. If you co
unt time spent getting to know each other and didn’t involve sex…four months.” She sighed. “In my mom’s eyes, he made the perfect match. Smart, handsome, career oriented, educated…black.”

  I sat the remnants of my funnel cake aside and wiped my hands on a napkin. “What do you want, Ebony?”

  Her eyebrows furrowed as her attention went back to her plate. “What do you mean?”

  “What do you want? Good looking, intelligent, educated. Easy. But does he have to be black?”

  Shocked, her eyes widened as her attention came back to me. She studied me for a moment, obviously processing the question before looking away. “When my family says ‘a young black man is what you need’…”

  “Ebony.” I waited to get her full attention. “Is that what you want? Can’t you have those things regardless of what package it comes in?”

  Could you find it with me?

  The words burned in the back of my throat. I did my best to communicate it with my eyes.

  “I don’t know,” she said softly, but her gaze didn’t falter.

  Okay. She didn’t say ‘no’. ‘I don’t know’ was more like saying, ‘I’m open to trying something new.’ I could work with that.

  We sat in silence while she finished her funnel cake. When she was done, I decided to lighten the mood.

  “Have you ever been rollerblading?”

  She laughed. “Not since high school.”

  I stood up and extended my hand. “Come on, let’s give it a try.”

  She hesitated. “Are you serious?”

  “Yes.”

  “I will probably fall flat on my ass,” she warned as she stood.

  I made a show of looking at her lovely ass. “I think you’ll be okay. Besides, I’ll catch you.”

  Ebony choked out a laugh.

  “Come on, we’ll wear knee pads and helmets. It’ll be fun.”

  Twenty minutes later, we found a skate rental shop, padded up, and were ready to go. She asked the cashier to take a picture of us on her cell phone. She called it the ‘before’ picture. For some reason, she felt we’d end up covered in grass stains and bloodied knees.

  I had my fair share of sports related injuries over the years. I’d done everything from rollerblading to trick bicycle riding. My true passion was surfing.

  Staring out into the distance, I wondered if she would be willing to give it a try. Maybe not, but the idea of her in a bikini sent my imagination running wild.

  We reached the boardwalk and struggled to find an area where skaters and bicycle riders weren’t clogging up the space. It took a few minutes for Ebony to gain her balance. After many attempts, she laughed, a look of pure happiness on her face.

  “Let me help.” I slipped a hand around her bare waist. Her skin was unbelievably soft. The scent of strawberries and whipped cream from her funnel cake mixed with her perfume made it hard to keep my focus.

  “Don’t let me fall, Brian.”

  “If you fall down, I’ll protect you.”

  She didn’t seem reassured, but she took my hand and held on tight. “Believe me; if I go down, I’m taking you with me.”

  “Deal.”

  Once she found her balance, I moved in front of her. Ebony kept her knees bent and skates pointed straight while I pulled her along, skating backward doing all the work until she got comfortable.

  We started slow, navigating our way down the boardwalk staying out of the way of the more experienced skaters, bike riders, and skate boarders. I continued to glance over my shoulder, keeping our path clear.

  The happiness on Ebony’s face was a memory I would never forget. Her eyes were full of laughter. She smiled the entire time, and never once did she loosen the grip on my hands. No matter how hard her grip, the connection was what I savored.

  We traveled a good distance away from the skate shop. I mentioned it to Ebony, and she looked over her shoulder.

  A dog ran by chasing a Frisbee. The dog’s sudden appearance surprised Ebony who instantly moved her feet. Our skates tangled. Everything moved in slow motion as I started to fall, allowing me to live up to my promise to protect her body.

  “Oh, no, Brian, are you okay?”

  I lay on my back, closed my eyes, and took a moment to evaluate the situation. I could still feel my toes and fingers. My head was okay, thanks to the helmet.

  My butt on the other hand was a problem.

  An unexpected weight rested on my chest. I opened my eyes to the most beautiful sight: Ebony on top of me, staring into my eyes. Strange, I hadn’t noticed the light flecks of gold in her brown irises. Her lips were inches away from mine. My first thought was to feign unconsciousness so she’d perform CPR.

  “I’m sorry!” She fiddled with the straps of my helmet while I groaned. “That dog ran by…oh, man. Where does it hurt?”

  She sat up, straddled me, felt the back of my head, and then ran her fingers over my chest. Since her hand came away free of blood, I assumed I wouldn’t die today. She shifted her weight and ran her hands down my legs. The pain was worth having her hands on me. The feeling ignited my body. It wouldn’t be long before the growing bulge in my pants became visible.

  “Why don’t they make butt pads?” I struggled to sit up. “I’m okay.”

  Ebony aided me in the movement, genuine worry in her eyes. In the end, we were sitting facing each other.

  “Are you sure nothing’s broken?”

  “Yeah.” I massaged my neck and rolled my shoulders. I would pay for this in the morning.

  Ebony removed her helmet. Her hair was a mess, but it looked good. She reached to release the curly locks from the ponytail holder, allowing them to settle on her shoulders.

  Once our eyes met, she bit her lip. Her eyebrows shot up as she stifled a laugh. I smirked, which caused her laughter to burst out and me to join in. We looked like idiots.

  Ebony wiped tears from the corners of her eyes. She was beautiful. Unable to resist, I ran my fingers through the free strands of her hair. She didn’t pull away. I indulged, brushing my fingers along her cheek, and tucked the hair behind her ear.

  It felt like silk. As my fingers grazed her cheek again, her laughter slowed. Her eyes focused on me with just a hint of a question. Her lips parted, sending what I hoped was a silent invitation.

  I was aware of the people veering around us as they rushed by. The sound of the ocean, laughter, and dogs barking were no longer the focus of my attention though. Nothing else mattered. No longer thinking, I did what came naturally. My finger rested beneath her jaw as I leaned in to kiss her.

  I pressed my lips lightly against hers, inviting her to return the kiss, silently praying for permission for more. Her body tensed beneath my fingertips, so I stopped my lips from taking what they wanted. But, it was too late; I’d crossed the line.

  After a day spent talking, laughing, and getting to know each other, it all came down to this kiss. Ebony didn’t pull away, so I kissed her again.

  I was about to give up hope and deal with the consequences when her lips came to life.

  For a moment, I thought I imagined it. But then she did it again. The warm slide as her lips pressed harder against mine.

  I didn’t hesitate. I opened my mouth wider, slipping the tip of my tongue in and tasted…strawberries. Her hand came up and slid into the hair at the nape of my neck. If it were up to me, the kiss would never end. But this was neither the time nor place to explore the softness of her lips.

  Ebony moaned when I pulled away.

  “We’d better get up before we get run over,” I whispered, my voice thick with longing.

  She said nothing, only nodded. I stood first and pulled her back to her feet. We rolled over to the nearest bench and removed our skates.

  After wanting to kiss Ebony hours earlier, I had no idea I would be able to do it. She hadn’t said a word, and I didn’t know what to expect next. So I stood, holding my skates, and extended a hand. She took it willingly, and a smile played over her lips. Curi
osity and something else I couldn’t identify filled her eyes.

  We strolled back to the skate shop hand in hand.