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Imani

Before Imani could even knock, Ellie's front door sprang open.

"Hey." As soon as Imani opened her mouth to talk, her friend grabbed her and pulled her away. They hurried into the kitchen, where Imani sat at the counter. Vases filled the room with light from the windows, making it as bright as a field of flowers.

She looked at Ellie closely and noted her bright red lips, warm cheeks, and spiky blonde hair. It was clear that she and Brian had an enjoyable morning. Although her friend dressed like a peacock, one could see her pink underwear. This woman was Imani's closest and strongest confidant. That rare person who never casts a stone at others.

Ellie interrupted Imani just as she was about to speak by shaking her head and raising an emphasized hand.

"Stop. Caffeine before anything else." Ellie went to the fridge to get the creamer and then prepared two big cups of coffee. She sat down across from Imani and then jumped up and swore quietly.

"What now?"

"Hold on." Ellie took a jar of sugar from the cabinet next to the cupboard. After taking a quick sip, she sat down again, made their coffees, and then nodded to Imani. Her expression matched that of a child in a candy store. "Everything's okay. I'm all set."

"That's music to my ears," Imani said as she held the mug close to her body to stay warm. She woke up cold after wriggling out of Garrett's powerful arms and leaving him in her bed.

Bare. And alone.

"Speak up. You called an hour ago. What is going on?"

Imani put her mug back on the coaster after taking a small sip. Since the crack of dawn, the words have been scratching at the back of her mind. It was time for her to take another mental step back and clear her throat.

As Ellie's curiosity piqued, she inched closer. "You're right. This is going to be great, no matter what you say."

"I... I didn't say anything," Imani said, and Ellie laughed loudly.

"You didn't have to. Your expression said it all."

"Okay." She scanned the room and then met her friend's gaze. "Is Brian here?"

All right. That was a step in the right direction, but it wasn't the first thing Imani thought of when she woke up. Her mind had been somewhere else.

Ellie gave her a look that said, Are you kidding me? "Brian is in Millbrook with our kids and his sister. I told you that Zoe stopped by to get them. Hell, I had to make up the lamest excuse ever so that I could see you."

"I thought it was going to be later." Imani pressed her lips into a thin line.

"She showed up before seven-thirty, so I had to rush to get everyone ready. Brian wanted me to go shopping with them for Christmas presents."

A small line formed on Imani's lips. "What did you tell him?"

Ellie grunted. "Imani Ambria Washington. We're not doing that."

She chuckled and looked at her friend. "I know, and I will tell you."

"Good. Well..." Ellie hissed with a sly grin on her face as she sipped from her cup. "I told Brian that our sex was like a wild rollercoaster ride last night, so intense and thrilling that my female anatomy..."

"Okay," Imani chuckled. "I get it."

"Hope so. So, did you?"

"Did I do what?"

"Did you meet up with someone? After hearing everyone at the festival talk about it, I'm interested to hear your side of the story."

Imani relaxed her jaw and parted her lips. It was as if Ellie could feel the heat creeping up her face as she winced at her laughter.

Huh?

"I knew that once I'd seen you go outside, you weren't coming back in." Ellie leaned in closer and lowered her voice, which seemed silly since they were the only ones in the house. "Was the sex good?"

"My name is on everyone's lips?" Imani croaked as she held her coffee mug.

"I may have been exaggerating a little. Perhaps not everyone, but at least your closest friends."

As she proceeded, Ellie offered Imani a gentle grin. "Word is that Courtney Hawthorne claimed she caught a glimpse of you and Andrew Fisher standing by his truck."

Imani sighed in her seat. "Andrew?"

Ellie's sly grin faded, and she became quiet for a moment. "Everyone knew right away what was going on because you two were so close together on the dance floor, and then you left."

When the light bulb went off for Ellie, Imani caught it.

Her friend's pupils were on the verge of expanding. "It wasn't you and Andrew?"

"Not a chance in a million." Imani took a deep breath and narrowed her eyes. "I was with somebody else."

As Ellie watched her closely, Imani could make out the wheels spinning. Suddenly, her friend's mouth dropped open, and she stormed out of her chair.

"Hold your tongue." After snagging a bottle of Chardonnay from the fridge, Ellie made her way back to the kitchen island. The time of day held no weight. "This is the story of the century, so we need something powerful."

"Ellie, are you insane? I haven't eaten breakfast."

"Just have a sip. I need to hear more." She placed the bottle right under Imani's nose. "None for you?"

After mulling it over, Imani offered up her mug. After taking it, Ellie poured out the coffee, rinsed the mug, and returned to the counter to top it up with a splash of wine. Before settling down, she grabbed her stash of Little Debbie's fall cakes from the pantry. With a wide grin on her face, she devoured one of the sugary snacks. "Okay. I'm all ears."

"I asked Garrett to give me a lift."

Eh, it was more like she barged her way into his night and demanded he be her chauffeur. Garrett had cold feet, but in the long run, their past was water under the bridge.

"Yes!" Her friend reached for another snack. "Tell me everything!"

"We slept together."

To wash down the delicious treat, Ellie had to drink a large sip of coffee; even after she did, she stammered when she found her voice. "You took him to bed? You must be joking. It seemed like you were keeping him at arm's length. You were still nursing a broken heart when he walked out on you years ago."

The aroma of coffee nearly made Imani throw up. "I can't even drink coffee anymore."

"Forget about that. I need the dirty details. Did you two use protection?"

She scoffed. "Of course."

"Good. Just making sure."

A deep sigh escaped Imani's lips. Even though she grabbed a cake, she was too nervous to eat it. She shook her head and put the snack back down.

"I wish I could blame it on drinks, but I can't." She hesitated. "You know, I was enjoying myself, and Andrew was being so kind. It was a blast dancing with him."

In her pursuit of a third cake, Ellie nodded, her head bobbling erratically. "I noticed."

"Garrett's presence didn't bother me. I did not give a crap that he watched us dance."

Lies. Imani had planned to make him envious, and she succeeded. The way Garrett looked at her while standing at the bar made her heart skip a beat because it showed how much he still loved her.

"My mind was..." she stumbled out.

"Keep going," Ellie urged her. "You're getting to the good parts."

"Courtney was totally into him. It was like something in my mind told me to take action." She had a hard time finding the right words to describe how she felt. "I wanted to rip out her eyes. She was so close to him."

"Yep, this is Courtney Hawthorne, my friend. Every bed in town must smell like her. Not including mine and Brian's upstairs. Also yours. You haven't slept with her."

"Hell no. But I get what you're saying, Ellie. Courtney Hawthorne sleeps with a lot of people, whether they are single or in a relationship."

"Exactly," Ellie blurted out while munching on her cake. "Can't trust her with a ten-foot pole."

"It's silly. It shouldn't bother me that Garrett was talking to someone else. We're both twenty-six and out of high school."

"Again, we're not just talking about any woman. This is Courtney."

Imani shook her head. "I have no claim to him."

"Maybe not, but that doesn't imply he doesn't want to feel the same way about you. Both of you have a complicated history. You fell in love with him first. There is always going to be some kind of territorial thing going on."

A few seconds of quiet passed. "Last night, we became highly protective of one another. I don't remember what I was thinking when I watched him walk outside. Once he reached the parking lot, I rushed after him and threw myself at him. I have no idea what he thinks of me."

"I'm sure it's nothing bad."

"I was such a slut." Imani reflected on positioning herself next to Garrett's truck. She went in for the kill because she enjoyed it when men took charge, but he wasn't willing. "I urged him to take me home. Almost dragged him into my house."

Ellie consumed her last pastry and cup of coffee. "I noticed his mature attitude when he stared at you. Garrett didn't like seeing you with Andrew. It was pretty noticeable. Trust me. You never made him go anywhere he didn't want to."

Even though Ellie filled their cups with water this time, Imani still couldn't drink anything else.

Imani's face lit up with a soft smile as her friend sat down next to her.

Ellie smiled a little wider and asked, "How was the sex? It's been eight years, so it must have gotten better since then, right?"

That's the thing. Imani couldn't judge how she and Garrett's sexual relationship changed from when they were teenagers to when they became adults. She took a big breath and shook a little as she thought about the previous night. A long night of steamy sex had left her with a pleasant kind of discomfort. He made love to her beautifully, and his groin grew larger over time.

"It was everything I'd missed about him," she said under her breath as she tried to avoid Ellie's stare. "I didn't realize what that meant until last night."

"And what else?" Ellie got up. "Was it better than a perfectly cooked pot of noodles or a much-needed manicure? Were you tempted to overdose on caffeine later?" She folded her arms and eyed Imani. "I'm serious. No matter how much you want a connection, I'll take back the snacks and alcohol if you ignore what happened between you two. You deserve nothing."

Imani held the box while Ellie reached for it. "All right. You never give up." She grabbed the last cake and devoured it. "Garrett and I had the best sex. I came three times, and we went at it for over three hours straight before I dozed off. Does that suit you?"

Ellie returned to her seat. "Was that the most you ever orgasmed with him?"

"No, I don't think so. Well, it came very close to being a world record."

"That's amazing, girl."

"Only Garrett has ever managed to make me erupt like a volcano. There isn't another man like him."

"Even Mason?" Asking, Ellie extended a hand to take Imani's.

"Perhaps a few times with him. To be honest, I miss him even though our marriage only lasted seven years before he passed away. Like Garrett and I, we were madly in love."

"I know." Ellie touched Imani's shoulder and squeezed it. "He made me laugh with his jokes. When you guys visited town for the holidays, Mason always had jokes ready. Dylan truly worshiped his father."

With a sniffle, Imani nodded. "He was a great husband and a wonderful parent. My son still talks about him."

"I bet. Both of you are strong."

"I appreciate that, Ellie. We try to be brave everyday."

Her friend smiled as she nudged Imani on the elbow. "Let's get back to Garrett. Elaborate on how incredible the sex was with him."

Imani wiped her face with a napkin. "It was like having wings and soaring through the sky instead of just watching the sunrise."

Ellie leaned forward, her eyes locked on Imani's. "And what made that moment feel so cosmic?"

What explanation could Imani give? Garrett had not done anything out of the ordinary. Their passionate encounters were a fulfilling experience because of the way he stared at her and loved her while he was inside of her. It had been more personal. More intense. And... more everything.

And that was not acceptable. It spelled trouble.

"We were... It seemed as though we had stepped into a parallel universe. Like a transformation after eight years."

"Oh, I see. I will accept that answer. For now." Ellie furrowed her brow in bewilderment. "So, Garrett went back home?"

"I don't know. I left him in my bed before I came to see you."

Imani imagined his naked body wrapped in blankets, with his dark hair flying everywhere. Her body continued to react to him as she watched him. His tattoos were exquisite. Scary, but also appealing. His figure was sensational. A lean, powerful man. Even an angel could cry after seeing his peaceful, sleeping face. His large, masculine hands... What they did to her.

"You just left him there all by himself?" Ellie stared with astonishment.

Imani glanced out the window, feeling exposed. "I had to leave. I left a note and asked him to be gone before I came home for lunch."

"Imani, that's not classy. Even for you."

"You don't understand, El." Tears welled up in her eyes as she sniffed. "I shouldn't have let anything happen last night. Also, I don't want him to think he can fix our relationship. We can't go back to the way things were."

"Why not, Imani? With someone who loves you as much as you love them, this is your second chance at love. There's still something there between you two."

"I see your point. Garrett's love for me is eternal. But I can't concentrate on any of that now. We've broken up, and only alcohol brought us together."

"Are you sure about that?"

Imani nodded at Ellie. "Yes. My son and I don't need another heartbreaker in our lives."

"I'm sure Garrett has changed by now."

She shrugged. "Maybe."

"So, what are you going to do about him?"

Imani sipped her cold coffee. At that moment, she was as frigid as a winter wind, so she stayed perfectly still. "I will face the consequences of my actions."

"And that means..." Ellie said as she waited patiently.

Imani decided, licked her lips, and breathed deeply. "I'm ending things and letting Garrett go. It's the only way to protect ourselves from heartache."

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