“I’m starting to think there is no such thing. I’ve tried. I really have done my best to make things work between us, but . . .”
“Have you, really?” Harlem didn’t give a shit about Elaina, but she had grown to care about Carter. She wanted him to be happy. She had a feeling that his not knowing how to open up to someone was the real culprit in the demise of his relationship. “My guess is any woman in her position would need a little extra TLC.”
“True, but I don’t have a desire to give it to her. We’re not connected.” Even the sex had grown stale.
“You guys should still be in the honeymoon phase of the relationship. It’s only been a few months, right?”
“Honeymoon? We never really had that, and yeah, four months.” He signed heavily into the phone. “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking, and now that my mind is clearer, I’ve realized that I’m trying to live up to the man Damian thought I should be. I’m not Damian. I can’t do the relationship thing.”
“Damian just wanted you to be happy.”
Damian wanted us to be together. “He had a lot of crazy ideas and always thought he was the smartest person in the room.”
Harlem had to agree. “That’s a fact,” Harlem remembered the crazy idea Damian wrote in his letter about them.
“The bottom line is I’m not the kind of guy who should be in a relationship.”
Harlem laid down on her side. “I don’t believe that. Maybe you just need more time.”
“I’ve given it time.”
“You would know better than anyone. But Carter, if you are going to end things, don’t do it on her birthday.”
“I might be an asshole, but I’m not a dick.”
“That’s debatable,” She yawned.
“Sleepy?”
“These days, it just kinda falls down on me.”
Carter wasn’t ready to let her go, but it was obvious Harlem was exhausted. “Then, get some sleep.”
“Okay. G’night. See you tomorrow.”
******
Slowly, her eyes opened. Something was off. Harlem went to caress her stomach but felt the large hands of a man. That’s when she realized she also felt the weight of an arm draped over her body. Her eyes widened, and she stared into the darkness. Harlem blinked several times, not only to clear her vision but to make sure she wasn’t dreaming.
Harlem stilled. She was supposed to be alone. Her mind was racing. How do I get to my phone to dial 9-1-1?! She didn’t even have a knife anywhere close.
She tried not to breathe or make the slightest movement that would alert the person next to her that she was awake. Still, she managed to turn enough to see a sleeping Carter lying next to her. Carter? Why is he here?
He was shirtless, exposing one chiseled muscle after another. He looked good. Damn good. Harlem swallowed hard and stared at him until she realized she was drooling. What the hell? She was losing her mind. Harlem knew one thing, he had to get up and out of her bed!
Harlem used her index finger to poke at his shoulder. She touched him as if he were dirty trash. He didn’t respond. Finally, she pushed harder on the same shoulder. “Carter! What are you doing here?!”
He was groggy. “What do you mean?”
“What do you mean, what do I mean?” She was on the verge of freaking the hell out.
“You asked me to come, remember?” He tried to rub the sleep out of his eyes.
“No. That’s why I’m asking.”
“You had a craving and called. It was too late to go home.”
“I called you?”
“Yes.”
Perplexed, Harlem scratched her forehead. She did not remember calling him. She was going to have to talk to Dr. Jones about this one.
Carter made no attempt to move. She placed her hands on his shoulders and pushed hard. “You couldn’t find anywhere else to sleep except for my bed?!”
He sat up. “I got my ass up in the middle of the night to bring you black-walnut ice-cream. You were loopy, to say the least, and didn’t want to move. So, I brought you ice-cream and a spoon.” He lifted his chin in the direction of her nightstand.
Harlem glanced over at it and saw the container.
“I didn’t think about where I was sleeping. I just fell out. Now, will you take your ass to sleep?! I have an early morning meeting tomorrow.” Carter never even opened his eyes throughout their entire conversation. He just rolled over onto his back as if nothing about this was strange.
Harlem couldn’t sleep in the bed with Carter. Not when . . . She looked down at her body. Not when he surprisingly induced some sexual tension. Harlem was a little warm and moist. Her body was doing the absolute most! Harlem pressed her lips together and her thighs.
“Harlem?”
“Yes?”
“Are you squeezing your thighs together?”
Harlem’s entire body blushed. If a word was invented to describe total and absolute embarrassment, it would explain her current state. She couldn’t get her mouth to work for anything. Not even to deny the undeniable.
Carter finally opened his eyes. He smiled mischievously. “If you have a sexual need, I can certainly help with that. Just ask.”
Before Harlem could protest, Carter kissed a patch of skin just above her collarbone. He pulled her skin into his mouth and sucked.
“Y-you can’t do that.” She stuttered.
“Why not? You’re horny, right?”
“We can’t.”
“We can.”
Harlem was transfixed and unable to move.
Carter slid her gown off her shoulders, traced hot kisses down her shoulders, and licked her lower back. She could feel the smile on his face as
