“Let’s just give her space to breathe, okay? We’ll figure everything out tonight. You have to get ready for the wedding.”
Fuck. He was right. I nodded and left the comfort of his arms and went to the bathroom door.
“Hey, Frankie…I gotta go perform but when I’m done for the night, can we please talk? There’s so much you don’t understand and…”
“Leave me alone.” Her voice was muffled behind the door but loud and clear in my brain.
Leave her alone.
I pressed my lips into a line and nodded curtly before going back to my room. Evander stayed behind, trying to talk to her through the door but I had to get ready for my first paid performance. The performance that was supposed to boost my career and gain exposure.
Now, my mind was going to be preoccupied with Frankie and how hurt and confused she was. I could deal with her being pissed but I didn’t know how to ease the hurt and betrayal I knew she felt.
I barely focused throughout the wedding. I couldn’t stop staring at Evander and Frankie. She was all folded arms and cold stares. I wanted to run over and talk to her when I took a break but I knew I wouldn’t get anywhere with her.
I played all my notes flawlessly and didn’t miss a beat but my heart wasn’t in it. I was just a body. My heart and mind were scattered. I hoped the Phillips couldn’t tell I was playing on autopilot.
The reception came and went, and I barely noticed any of it. I was too busy watching Evander try to coax a conversation out of Frankie while she focused on her phone. The venue was gorgeous and I smiled when people wanted to take pictures of me, I even managed to hold a few small conversations before I left but I was a fucking zombie. When I said goodbye to Damon, he assured me I would go viral online again and have opportunities galore. I hoped he was right. I knew later on the gravity of what I’d just done would sink in. However, while wrapped in the constricting ties of guilt, everything else seemed trivial.
At the end of the night, Evander carried my gift bag to my suite and looked at me apologetically. “I know this is tough,” he said.
“She hates me.”
“She doesn’t hate you. You know that.”
“I don’t know that anymore. I fucked you when I told her I wouldn’t be one of those women who got all caught up in how fine you were. What did I do? Get caught up in how fine you were.” I tossed up my hand and shook my head. “The dick was a bonus. Actually, with dick like that, your face is the bonus.”
“I have no idea if I should be offended or flattered.” He grabbed my ass and pulled me to him.
“Both.” I found a laugh somewhere inside my aching chest. “I just want to talk to her, Evander.”
“I know. You gotta make it through the silent treatment first. I tried talking to her at the wedding and she ignored the fuck out of me. I’m not going to force her to talk but I won’t let this shit go on for more than a day or two. We all need to talk.”
“Yeah…we do.” I kissed his cheek and stood up. “You better go in there with the ice queen. If you stay in here, I can’t promise I won’t end up on your dick again.” Even when I was down, talking shit with Evander made me smile.
“I mean…” He shrugged and bit his bottom lip before standing to look at me. God, he held the heat of the sun in his stare. “I wouldn’t be mad at that.” His long arms slid around my waist and he leaned down to kiss my lips. It was so soft and hot. I had to ignore the way my clit thumped for him and send him next door.
Once he was gone, I changed into my pajamas and called Navy. I knew she wanted to hear from me to see how the night went.
Her excited voice was in stark contrast to my gloomy mood. “How’d it go?” She asked.
“It was nice.” I smoothed my hand repeatedly over the comforter on the bed.
“Nice? That’s it, Xari? I expected you to be bubbling over with details.”
“To be honest, Navy I don’t remember much about any of it. I’m just glad it’s over and I didn’t fuck up.”
“What’s wrong with you? Something is seriously off. I can’t remember ever hearing you sound so…defeated. Did you and Senator Freeman stop messing around?”
“What? No. We’re in love. Why would we?” The words tumbled out before I realized what happened. Navy’s gasp made me realize my faux pas immediately.
“I knew it! I knew it! Not only are you fucking Senator Freeman, you’re in love with him?”
I pinched the bridge of my nose and groaned. How the fuck did I let that slip? It wasn’t a little slip either. That was a full-blown fucking slip.
“Goddammit, Navy.”
“Don’t goddammit Navy me. You’re so caught up in whatever has you down that you let your secret slip. I mean, it wasn’t that big of a secret. I knew from looking at you two that something was going on. It looked serious but I couldn’t be sure how serious because you were so hell-bent on keeping it a secret.”
“Ugh. Everything is out in the open now and I feel so exposed. I hate this.”
“Hate what, sis? Something is really bothering you.” Her tender tone made tears prick my eyes.
“Frankie walked in on us fucking and she had no idea we were even together,” I confessed.
“Oh no…” Navy sighed. “Is she okay?”
“No. She’s hurt. She made me promise her I wouldn’t get involved with Evander. She said she sees the way women look at him and she didn’t want me to be one of those women. I promised her I wouldn’t be. Now…look at me.”
“Have you talked to her?” Navy asked.
“I tried but she keeps telling me to leave her alone. She won’t talk to her father either. I don’t know how to tell her that dick is everywhere, but chemistry isn’t. I don’t know how to package that for a twelve-year-old.”
“Leaving the dick is everywhere part out would be a great start.”
“It’s so true though. I can’t tell you how many casual fucks I’ve had but Evander is different.”
“He must be because you’ve changed since working for him.”
“I have. In the best ways. He’s changed too.” A smile tried to inch across my lips but stopped once Frankie popped into my head.
“Now that you mention it, he has changed. He’s so laid back now,” she noticed.
“See, that’s all me. There’s no way to show Frankie how much we care about each other. All she knows is that I’m fucking her father. Evander and I wanted to tell her in a comfortable setting so she wouldn’t feel like either of us lied to her or hurt her but now…” My words trailed off.
“It’ll be okay, Xari. If you’re really in love with Senator Freeman…I mean, Evander then Frankie finding out like this isn’t going to kill the relationship. It’s a hiccup for sure but not the end.”
“Thanks, sissy. Are you mad at me for being with Evander?” I wanted to know what Navy thought. Her opinion meant a lot to me.
“I’m shocked. Well, I was when I put it together. I was never upset though.”
“Shocked?” A small laugh slipped out.
“Yeah. You and him are polar opposites. He’s so straight-laced and you’re such a wild child. I’ve worked with him for a year now and I thought he lived and breathed being a senator. I used to wonder if he went home and plugged himself in at night to recharge.” She laughed at the notion. I understood how she could have that perception of him because I had it too.