Road to Love (Lessons in Love Book 1) Read online

The look on Roosevelt’s face was a mixture of disgust and amusement that I couldn’t help but giggle at.

  “I’m just sayin’, Rollo coulda got it. Heck, maybe still can get it if he’s aged like Dr. J.”

  “And this conversation has officially taken a turn for the worst, so I’m just going to pivot…I trust that your nap was good, I could hear you sawing logs all the way down here.”

  “Oh, you got jokes, huh?”

  “I’m just saying you sounded well rested.”

  “Hush!”

  “Aight now that you’ve had a chance to recharge your batteries, you ready to hit the stu?”

  “I can’t believe I’m really about to be a studio groupie.”

  “We could do something else if you want.”

  “I’m just giving you grief, Roosevelt. I absolutely want to witness you in your element.”

  Being in the studio was showing me a different side of Roosevelt that definitely had me in the mindset that I’d definitely lied to Rocki about not being more than this man’s friend. His single-minded focus was off the charts sexy, and that voice? I was completely gone. It didn’t help that in tonight’s session Roosevelt was recording a version of my favorite love song ever, “As” by Stevie Wonder. He’d taken a cue from the cover by Marsha Ambrosius and Anthony Hamilton and slowed the tempo of the song, but chose to sing it completely acapella, layering lush harmonies that showcased the depth of his range. After the last take, Roosevelt let the booth to come over and check on me. I don’t know why, it was just me, him and Rich in the space. His cousin Natalie was supposed to have been there as well, but she hadn’t shown up yet and I was kinda glad about that. It was a little overwhelming for me, coming here to his hometown and being introduced to everybody he knew, it seemed like.

  “Oh shit, the pen pal got parole,” a loud feminine voice boomed.

  And the reason for Roosevelt tryna make sure I was okay just walked through the door. If I didn’t know that they were cousins, I would have thought that Natalie was Roosevelt’s sister as they both possessed the same strikingly structured cheekbones and deep-set eyes that made every glance seem like the deepest penetrative stare.

  “Brat, can you behave for just five minutes?” Roosevelt groaned.

  “Unlike you my dear, RoBro, I didn’t take heed to MaDear’s etiquette lesson,” Natalie said, plopping down next to me on the couch, “Hey, you must Ro’s prison pen pal.”

  I turned to Roosevelt with a puzzled look on my face.

  “Please, don’t pay Nat any real attention. She gets off on it too much. And this prison pen pal shit is her idea of a joke,” he explained.

  “Hi, Natalie, nice to meet you.”

  “Ooh, please call me Nat, sweetheart. And the pleasure is all mine. Damn Bro, you coulda mentioned how fine she was. No wonder she had your ass on the ropes.”

  Rich snickered as Roosevelt rolled his eyes.

  “You refuse to have any chill, huh?”

  “I’m a taken woman, so you don’t have to worry about me cuffing your girl. But, damn I can definitely appreciate beauty when I see it,” Natalie said, giving me a suggestive look.

  I looked over at Roosevelt who looked like he’d forgotten Natalie was family and he was ready to knock her head off.

  “You’re so certain I’m easily taken?” I chimed in.

  “I like a challenge,” Natalie tossed back.

  “Trust me, sweetheart, there’s only one Ashe in this room who has a shot with me. Maybe in another life tho…”

  Natalie looked shocked then busted out laughing, “Yo, I like her, bro.”

  Roosevelt smirked, amused at our exchange as well.

  “Good, now, does that mean you’ll stop harassing my girl now?” he asked, squeezing next to me on the couch on the other side before draping an arm around my shoulders to bring me to rest against his side.

  At the sound of the words “my girl,” all of the rest of their back and forth faded to white noise. I turned over the varied meanings of those two words in succession, replayed his vocal inflection in my head, trying to figure out what exactly he meant. I must’ve looked like that meme of the woman staring into space in deep contemplation while mathematical equations swirled around her because after I few moments, Roosevelt saying “Earth to Emerson” finally filtered into my consciousness and I tuned back into their conversation. He informed me that we were done at the studio for the night and were going to head back to his place, order some food in, chill and watch the game. Which was just fine with me. I needed a little time to get my head together anyway, so him being distracted by sports would provide just the time I needed.

  Emerson had been acting strange since we’d left Rich’s studio—she was listless and distracted, as if she had something on her mind. She didn’t speak much on the drive back to my spot, noiselessly agreed to order pizza, with no particular requests or any other input about the order, which I found strange considering how particular I’d already witnessed her to be about her food. And now, she sat in a state that was damn near catatonic as we lounged on the couch in my den watching the game. I couldn’t tell if she was bored or what and it was freaking me out a little bit.

  “You good?” I asked, nudging her shoulder a bit to make sure my words penetrated her fog.

  “Huh?”

  “I was asking if you were good. You seem a little…not here.”

  “Yeah, no…I’m, yeah.”

  I shook my head at that non-answer and grabbed her by the chin so that I could turn her face toward mine. Our eyes met for the briefest of moments before she cast her gaze downward again, claiming that she was all right. I let it go, not wanting to press her and possibly have her retreat. Instead, I just brought my arm around her tighter, settling her even closer against my side before pressing a lingering kiss to her forehead, then turned my attention back to Kenny, Shaq, EJ, and Chuck’s halftime show. Through the rest of the show and the second half of the game, Emerson remained quiet, not even engaging when I was clearly losing my mind over LeBron going full LeBron and carrying the Cavs to yet another Game Seven in this post-season. At the conclusion of the game, Emerson was still radio silent.

  “Ready to shut it down?” I asked, “I know today was a bit of a long one, despite your earlier nap. I’ll try to not get us into too much tomorrow.”

  “Huh?” Emerson replied, distracted.

  “Are you sure you’re good? You’ve been a little strange this evening, Miss NoName.”

  My teasing usage of the nickname I’d given her finally garnered a smile. She shook her head before responding, “I’m good. I promise. You…this has been a good first day. You’re a great host.”

  “I try…” I replied, interrupted by a loud yawn from Emerson.

  “Ohmygosh, I’m so sorry, that was so rude.”

  “You’re good, sweetheart. C’mon, let’s get you up to bed,” I said, standing up, stretching a little before walking towards the stairs.

  Emerson followed after a brief moment of hesitation, then passed me so I could trail her up the stairs. Her room was to the right at the top of the staircase and mine was a bit further down on the left.

  “There are clean towels and everything you’d need in the bathroom, and just in case you get up before me, the coffeemaker is automatically set to begin brewing at seven am. Sleep well, I’ll see you in the morning.”

  Right as I turned to step away, Emerson grabbed my arm. I turned back, opening my mouth to speak and before I could get a word out, she’d placed her hands on the sides of my face, pulling me down into the softest, sensually charged kiss. It was unexpected, but it only took me a couple of seconds to react, pulling her into me as I deepened the kiss. Emerson’s hands left my face as she laced them behind my neck to regain dominance. I chuckled into her mouth and acquiesced. If she wanted to be in control, I had no problem letting her set the tempo. And when she abruptly disengaged, I had no problem letting her do that as well. I stepped back, to give her some space, but Emerson grabbed the bott
om of my tee, pulling me back flush with her. She stared up at me with her lower lip tucked between her teeth, chest heaving—a lust-filled question in her eyes.

  “Emerson, I didn’t ask you to come here to—” I started, but she silenced me by placing a finger to my lips.

  “Roosevelt, this is exactly what I came here to do,” she purred before grabbing me by the hand and dragging me into the bedroom I’d set her up in. With a sense of aggression that took me by surprise, Emerson pushed me onto the bed and tumbled after me, giggling.

  “Well damn, somebody’s eager,” I teased, nipping her ear.

  “Shhh, less talking,” she whispered, lowering her mouth to mine once again, brushing our lips in barely-there presses before shifting backward to unbutton her dress.

  She’d barely gotten to the second button before I rolled us over, pressing her into the bed as I took over the act of undressing her, unable to resist touching my lips to each newly revealed inch of skin. I pressed open-mouthed kisses along her neck, stopping to run my tongue along her clavicle before continuing lower. Emerson released a shuddering moan as I lazily dragged my tongue from her collarbone to her breasts, nibbling along the swell before curving my tongue around her nipple, suckling hard. I used my right hand to tease the other nipple to hardness before lavishing it with the same attention as I had the first. Emerson squirmed and murmured her pleasure as I went back and forth between her breasts, using my teeth, tongue, and hands to bring her pleasure.

  “Roosevelt, please,” Emerson whimpered.

  “Patience, sweetheart,” I replied, finally separating from her to remove my own clothing.

  Before rejoining her on the bed, I reached into the back pocket of my shorts to remove a condom from my wallet and tossed it on the bedside table. I took a second to take in Emerson’s curves, just barely visible, but backlit by the nightlight plugged into the wall along the left side of the bed. Her body was a lush playground, ripe for discovery and I couldn’t wait to immerse myself in everything she had to offer.

  “Hello? Earth to Roosevelt,” Emerson teased, a slight laugh in her voice.

  She had propped her head in her hand, resting on an elbow as she watched me from the bed. I shook off the fog of my reverence and rejoined her in the bed, pulling her against me as I attacked her mouth with vigor, hands on her ass, bringing her pussy into direct contact with my hardening erection. I kissed her with purpose, tongue ravishing her mouth as my hands roamed her body, one stayed on palming her ass and the other settling between her legs. She groaned at the first contact of my fingers in her wetness, slowly breaching her folds, matching the strokes of my fingers in her pussy with the strokes of my tongue in her mouth. Emerson’s vocalized sounds of pleasure increased in volume as she slowly rolled her hips, riding my fingers as her flesh quivered around me, signaling she was close to detonation. I pressed my thumb to her clit, circling once, twice, and that was all it took to send her careening into her orgasm on a sharp cry.

  I removed my fingers from her still quivering flesh, slowly licking the remnants of her orgasm from my fingers before grabbing the condom and quickly sheathing myself. Emerson’s breathing hadn’t quite leveled out, her stomach muscles contracting and releasing still as I pressed into her with teasing half strokes before burying myself in her completely. I slow stroked her back into a fever pitch, drawing moans and unintelligible gibberish from Emerson. I was unable to keep going slow for much longer, getting lost in how good she felt, clasping and releasing around me with every stroke I doled out.

  Before long I was slamming into her, intoxicated off of the sounds Emerson was making as she dug her fingernails into my ass, urging me to go even deeper. Shifting her left leg to settle around my waist, I somehow slid deeper into her, hitting a spot that made her arch up from the bed on a shriek, then freefalling into orgasm. I wasn’t far behind her unable to hold out with her milking the life force out of me on every downward stroke. I collapsed atop Emerson with a groan, feeling completely drained, yet wholly energized at the same time. Rolling off of Emerson, I pulled her close, our heartbeats synching almost immediately as I held her. I listened for the tell-tale sign of her breathing evening out before I spoke.

  “That was…”

  I didn’t even have the words to describe it, honestly. And didn’t even need the words because Emerson’s response to those two words was a soft snore as she’d already fallen asleep. I chuckled as I rose from the bed to dispose of the condom, then returned to slide right back into what was sure to become my newest obsession—cuddling with Emerson. She stirred in her sleep slightly when I returned to the bed but didn’t awaken at all. I tightened my hold on Emerson, closing my eyes and hoping to succumb to the same peaceful slumber as quickly as she had.

  I awakened to soft hands gently stroking the slight five o’clock shadow on my face that was the byproduct of a couple of days of not shaving. As if she sensed I was now fully awake, Emerson’s hands moved from my face further south, trailing over my chest then back up to my face to boop my nose.

  “I know you’re not still asleep,” she said, in a low throaty voice, “Good morning, sleepyhead.”

  I opened my eyes to see her gazing at me with a silly grin that I couldn’t help but return. She’d apparently been up awhile, her eyes shining brightly, and hair tied down in a colorful scarf that I knew was still in her bag when we’d drifted off last night. She was also dressed in a purple, silky nightgown that grazed her thighs as she was perched beside me, resting on her knees. The smell of coffee permeated the air, which let me know she’d likely already been downstairs and poured herself a cup. A quick glance over to the bedside table and the ceramic mug that rested atop it confirmed this assumption.

  “Good morning,” I rumbled, “Did you sleep all right?”

  “Mmmm, not quite. Some dude was all over me in my sleep last night, barely had enough room to breathe,” Emerson giggled.

  I sat up, bracing my back against the headboard and hauling her onto my lap.

  “Some dude, huh?” I asked before lowering my head to nibble at her neck.

  Emerson immediately inclined her neck to reveal even more skin for me to nibble and I took full advantage, kissing and sucking hard enough to leave marks. I sank my teeth into the side of her neck, eliciting a moan which immediately caused me to harden. I knew the exact moment she felt me begin to rise as she rolled her hips into my erection, stimulating me as well as herself with each rock of her hips. I placed my hands on her hips, stilling her motion before we ended up going a little too far with no protection in sight.

  She groaned in protest until I spoke directly in her ear, “Slow down, sweetheart. Unless you’re tryna make Roosevelt the Fourth this morning.”

  Her head dropped onto my shoulder as she tried hiding her face in embarrassment. She mumbled something in my shoulder that I couldn’t quite make out, so I asked her to repeat it.

  She lifted her head, denying me eye contact still, choosing to stare at the wall just behind my left should. She was quiet for a couple of seconds, then said, “You must think I’m sex starved or something between last night and this morning.”

  I cupped her chin, angling her head, so we were eye to eye, “Do you hear me complaining?”

  “No, but…”

  “No buts. You can be yourself with me, Emerson. No judgment, no restrictions, no fear…aight?”

  “Easier said than done,” she chuckled.

  “Well, give it a shot anyway,” I replied.

  She made a noncommittal sound, then switched gears entirely asking what I had planned for us to do today. The fact was, I had nothing planned at all, I preferred playing things by ear and seeing where the day took us. Emerson was used to structure and schedules, but these few days would be about letting her get used to rolling with the flow, not always having to have a plan and contingency plan in place just in case something happened to disrupt the initial plan. She’d mentioned not really seeing much of the city on her previous trips here, so I had ideas for
some of the touristy areas that we could visit to let her see the sites, but I had no bigger plans than ensuring that she and I got to spend some real quality time together. Her time here would be brief, and I’d hoped that since she would be in the general area for a little more time, this would be the first visit of many. We had plenty of time to worry about dashing about town later, for now? My focus was solely on making sure Emerson returned to Michigan feeling less wound up than when she’d arrived in Chicago.

  We showered and dressed, heading for The Diner once again. I liked to think that I kept my boy Pete in business singlehandedly since I ate there every morning since I’d returned home and plenty of mornings before then. We walked into sit in the booth that Pete had designated as mine indefinitely and Chantrelle poured us a couple of cups of coffee before disappearing for a bit to serve another table’s food.

  “What’s the deal with her?” Emerson asked, looking over to where Chan was greeting a couple that had just walked through the door, “Did you guys used to…?”

  Before I could help it, I pulled my face into a grimace, “Nah. Never. Not like that at all. I look at Channy like my lil sis.”

  “And she looks at you like she misses what I got last night?” Emerson replied, her voice a little tense, “I’m not…jealous or whatever. Just…it’s really in poor form to bring your new work to your old work’s literal job.”

  “Damn you took my ‘don’t hold back’ literally, huh? Things have never been more than platonic between Channy and I. Pete would beat my ass if I ever even thought about his little sis like that, anyway,” I laughed, “Also…she’s more of Nat’s type than mine if you’re picking up what I’m putting down?”

  A deep red flush covered Emerson’s face as she bit her lower lip, shaking her head. It was cute, how she was a little turnt up by how she interpreted what I knew to just be friendliness and familiarity. Hell, I’m sure Chan was being super friendly to me because she was trying to work her way up to asking after Natalie. She’d been skirting around the issue each time I’d seen her in the few weeks I’d been home.