cutlery, he chewed loudly, swigged wine, and went to town on his fried chicken, collard greens with smoked turkey and ham, sweet potato casserole, potato salad, macaroni and cheese, cornbread and snap peas. She shook her head and took a bite every now and again, but found him far too entertaining to turn away from for too long. He was a show to behold. Soon, there was nothing left on his plate but a few skinny bones. He fell back into his chair, then belched.
“’Scuse me.”
“I take it you enjoyed dinner?” Her lips twitched, fighting laughter once again.
“Yeah, it was good.”
Before she could ask another question, the big man was on his feet, empty plate in tow, and headed to the kitchen. She could hear some clinking noises and then, Aries returned with a new plate, this one piled far higher than the first.
“Aries…”
“Mmm hmmm?” He plopped down in his seat, doused everything with hot sauce, and began molesting, harassing, and attacking that food as if it had called his mama a bitch.
“Baby, have you uh… have you eaten in say, ever?”
At this, their eyes hooked and she burst out laughing.
“What?” he asked around a mouthful. “This is good! Shit! What do you expect me to do? Play with it? I came here to eat, and that’s exactly… what the hell… I’m gonna do.”
He winked at her, then started up again, a ravished animal, part two. Flashes of his obscenely long tongue crossed her vision as he went to town on that plate, showing it no mercy. She quickly dismissed the nasty notion her brain tried to concoct, traveling down the tawdry thoroughfare. She enjoyed the music instead, rocking her crossed legs to and fro, sipping her wine and leisurely eating her food. She’d been smelling it all day, and her appetite had suffered. As soon as she’d gotten back home from their morning fishing trip, she left out to the grocery store to purchase all the fixings for a big soul food dinner, per his request. I haven’t cooked for a man since my Nehemiah died.
“Lauren, I’m getting full, but I’m going to finish this plate. I’m not a quitter.”
“I hope you saved room for dessert.”
His brow rose – curiosity obviously piqued.
“Uh oh.” He smiled. “What did you wrangle up?”
“Pineapple upside down cake.”
“I’m allergic to pineapples.”
“Oh, no!” A wave of regret washed over her, then the man burst out laughing.
“I’m just kidding! No, I’m not.” She grimaced and shook her head at the fool. “I had a friend that was, though.”
“Well, thankfully, your friend isn’t the one here tonight.”
“Oh, I’ve got a friend here tonight.” Her cheeks warmed. “I didn’t mean you.” Her smile quickly faded. “We’re way beyond that now, baby. I’m talking about the friend in my pan—”
“Okay, so, uh, I will be right back!”
She got up from her seat, her stomach on fire from holding in laughter and her cheeks on fire. The man was clearly insane to fix his mouth to get ready to say such a thing. Completely out of control. But she refused to let him have the upper hand just yet.
She stood in front of the open freezer, trying to cool off and regain her composure. Her pussy throbbed with need. She ignored the heffa, opting to press her thighs hard against one another. There was a brief silence, with the exception of his phone playing songs, and then his fork and knife hitting the plate again. She grabbed the dessert, set two plates and utensils on top of it, along with a cutting knife, and brought it to the table, setting it in the center.
“Now doesn’t that look pretty?” He looked at it as if it were a baby, something to be cuddled. “You baked that yourself?”
She sat down. “Hell, no. Bought it from the bakery at Kroger.” He chuckled. “I didn’t have time for all of that.”
“Shit, I don’t care. Just glad you thought enough of me to cook a big dinner like this and buy such a nice dessert. I can’t even recall the last time someone treated me like this… probably at least ten years ago. Maybe longer.” Her heart hurt at his words. He offered a half smile, this one a bit less cocky than the last, and they talked a while as he completed his meal. She sliced up the cake and plated two portions, handing him the bigger piece.
“Now, there’s always room for dessert,” she quipped before sinking her fork into the moist loveliness. The