had passed. Thought the poison was out of her system and the stone between them had rolled away. Thought it was over. She'd even made love to him once after that... he was sure, then, that she was cool... even though she was a little more subdued than he would have liked--which made him wary and a little nervous. But it was all too clear now, her ass was still mad as hell.
"I knew it would have to come out, surface, sooner or later," he finally said.
"You know what they say," she replied casually and still not looking at him. "A lie will always out, Carlos. The Light has a provision to ensure that happens sooner or later." "It wasn't a lie; I just didn't speak on it because I didn't want to--" "An omission of truth. Oh, that makes a difference." She looked up at him for a moment before glancing back down at the shea butter.
"I knew you'd have to let it run its course to get out of your system and all, and once it did we'd be back to normal. You know I wasn't trying to hurt you, baby." His voice was near pleading as he mentally fought with the harshness in her eyes. Yeah, there was something else going on than a regular argument. Had to be. Damali had never looked at him like that, and he'd never found himself feeling so totally unable to explain his position.
"I'd never intentionally do that, and you know it," he said after a pause to find the right words, his tone logical but containing hurt. "It wasn't supposed to go down like that. Of all the battles we've been in together, I know that more than a blade, something like this would cut your heart out and drive a wedge between us--so you know I wouldn't do that to us, boo. Right? You know that. So, this was their side just going for our foundation, our Achilles' heel, D. Don't let 'em mess with your head like that, all right?" He slapped the center of his chest to make his point. "It's me and you, baby. Always has been, right? Always will be, right?"
When she didn't answer the last and most critical questions he'd asked, he really began to sweat. "Damali, baby, listen, you can't stay mad about this forever. It was a demon transgression. You and I have a lot of road ahead of us... we can't be allowing nonsense to get between us like that. I didn't actually sleep with her--I mean, it was sex, but it wasn't sex, you feel me? It was more like foreplay, not real sex--"
"What?"
She'd looked up at him so slowly and had spoken so softly that he began talking faster and backing up.
"It wasn't the Full Monty, boo, like you know it can go down, and uh, what I'm sayin' is, mi tresora, you're my heart and treasure, girl, and you can't be concentrating on a lapse that wasn't really me. Right?"
"I'm cool," she said in a falsely upbeat tone. "It all checks out metaphysically. A dark entity overtook you, it was a spirit attachment, a parasite that made you do things to a lot of people you shouldn't have. The thing is over, so, hey. I'm cool."
He stared at her hard, knowing she was anything but cool. "Then why are you still leaving?"
"Because I've got things to do--like get back to my music? for one. For two, I don't live here and need to be in my own, unadulterated, unblemished, never transgressed by a foul deed, house. My space." She set the shea butter down hard on the edge of the tub and stood, bringing her hands to her hips. "And, three, because I feel like it and I'm grown. Do I need any more reason than that?"
"The Bible says to forgive and forget," he replied quietly, pain shimmering in his tone. "Don't do this, Damali."
"Now you're going to go biblical on me? About this? Puhlease." She shook her head and strode toward the door. "What does it say in the Bible about letting some sister suck your dick on my back deck after you defied a direct order from On High? Forgive and forget? Okay. I ain't mad, and it wasn't sex--so we cool, ain't nothing to discuss. Right?"
He was on her heels as she shrugged away from his attempt to grab her by the elbow. "How you gonna hold me accountable for-- "