Page 37 of Set My Soul Ablaze

“Hmm?” I scratched his scalp as I leaned close to his ear.

“Don’t tease me.”

“I’m not trying to,” I sang into his ear, letting my lips graze his earlobe playfully.

“You keep poking the bear if you want to.” His warning made me giggle.

“I’m going to chill. I wouldn’t want our first time to be in the parking lot of my shop. Imagine my clients seeing me bent like a pretzel, taking dick. That would be crazy as hell for ratings and reviews.”

Flame let a deep laugh escape his lips as he set me back on the ground. We shared a glance before he pecked my lips again.

“I’m not going to be able to keep my lips off of you, but you can always tell me if I need to chill out.”

“Will do, but I enjoy the feel of your lips on mine.”

“Good. I know you got to get back to work, so I’ll head out. Text me.”

“Okay. Thank you for the surprise. I’m really grateful.”

“This is just the beginning, my love.”

He put my gifts in the back seat of my car before he walked me back inside and gave me a parting kiss. When he left the shop, Dominique, Kira, and Clareese squealed like schoolgirls.

“Grow up,” I mumbled as they approached me.

“Nah, nah. We’ve seen this new man more times in the last couple months than we ever saw Juda in the time we’ve worked here,” Kira commented.

“It’s so nice to see you being loved out loud. You deserve it,” Dominique added.

“As long as he treats you good and don’t have you out here in these streets looking dumb, he’s alright in my book.” Clareese finished.

“See, y’all too comfortable. Y’all know I’m y’all boss and not one of your little friends, right?”

“Oop. Let me get back to work.” Dominique pulled a nonexistent piece of hair behind her ear and began to walk away.

Clareese nodded and followed her movements. Kira, on the other hand, shook her head.

“Not y’all scared of Mali. I’ve been here since the beginning; we not friends, we family. We just are happy to see you loved out loud and want to celebrate it. If we overstepped, I’ll take full responsibility, though.”

“I was mostly joking. I don’t really care. It makes me feel good to be able to share my new love with the world.”

Lord, don’t let this backfire on me.

A few weeks later

The workday had gone by in a breeze. I decided to stay late and make some seasonal changes to the shop. I printed out new pictures to replace the current selection in the display frames. Otis was one of the most photogenic clients we had. I made sure his big smile was on full display.

After all the frames were adjusted, I cleaned out the wax burners and opted into a new scent, warm leather. Once all the wax burners were changed, I rearranged the waiting area furniture.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

My head snapped toward the front door. The sun had begun to set, so my nerves were heightened as I looked through the glass door to see Juda waiting on the other side.

“No.”

I turned to walk away, but he banged his fist against the door again. “Mali! Please let me talk to you.”

Why the fuck do exes pop up when you’ve finally moved on?It was like those niggas had a sixth sense for ruining their ex-girlfriend’s happiness.