AFRICAN AMERICAN ROMANCE: A Thug to Remember (Hood Alpha Male Pregnancy Romance) (African American Urban Contemporary Short Stories) (60 page)

As the kids were working on an activity she prepared, she caught Mikaela sneaking a look at her phone.  Aubrey stepped up behind her quietly and peeked over her shoulder.  She only glimpsed the words, “watch out when you come back,” from the sender Antoine. 

Aubrey’s heart plummeted right down to the pit of her stomach.  She immediately feared the worst.  Mikaela was in some sort of trouble with a major drug lord who scared everyone in this neighborhood.  His name was burned into her brain ever since her short conversation with Dave at brunch on Sunday.  How could such a young girl have gotten mixed up with someone like him?  What could Aubrey do to help her?  She knew it was a sensitive situation that had to be handled with the utmost care. 

She backed away quietly from Mikaela so she wouldn’t be aware she had looked at her phone and continue making her rounds in the room.  When their session was over and everyone was going home, Aubrey decided to take a more careful look at Mikaela’s file.

She wrote down the home address and phone numbers listed, deciding to drive by that address to check it out.  She knew it was risky but she could not fight herself on this.  She truly felt the need to go.  As she drove down the street she made sure to pay very close attention to all her surroundings.  It was then that she discovered Mikaela’s listed address was not all that far from the community center she met with kids at but the sharp turn also made a turn into one of the darkest and dingiest areas of the neighborhood. 

It was almost as if this area were blocked off from the rest and not even sunlight could penetrate into it.  She knew her car would stand out immediately so she made to turn around and head out.  As much as she wanted to know more about where Mikaela lived as a means to help her, this was far too risky. 

That was when she spotted him leaning against a vandalized street sign.  He was tall, very dark, and had a buzz cut.  He was wearing blue jeans and a white t-shirt with very clean white sneakers.  She noticed his clothes were much more fitted to his body than most of the men she had seen walking around the neighborhood.  A chill crept up her spine and she broke out into a cold sweat at the intimidating sight of this man. 

She gulped and turned her car around only to see him approaching her from the rearview mirror.  He did not walk in a threatening manner and he was not reaching for any sort of weapon.  She sat there, rooted to the spot, not knowing if she should flee or if that would make it worse.  She was in a car, after all, so if danger presented itself she could theoretically drive and get away.  But something in her kept her rooted there, waiting as the approaching man got closer and closer.  He walked around to the passenger side of her car, bent down, and knocked on the window.  She took a deep breath and put the window down just a crack, just enough for him to speak and be able to hear anything she might respond. 

“I’m not looking to hurt you,” he said in a gruff voice.  She swallowed and lowered the window a bit more and heard him scoff.  “What are you looking for?”

“Nothing,” she replied in a shaky voice.

“I can help you if you tell me.  You don’t have to tell me, of course.  You can just drive off.  But you didn’t look like you ended up her accidentally.  You look like someone who doesn’t belong here but is looking for someone or something.”  He leaned in closer and looked around before he very quietly said, “It’s not safe here.”

She looked around as well before turning back to meet his gaze.  The way he spoke and expressed his thoughts took her by surprise.  Everything about this man was very surprising.  He did not exactly look like everyone else in the neighborhood but he still looked like he belonged.  He was intimidating but not necessarily threatening.  He seemed honest.  She had no idea what to make from any of it.  She did not want to put Mikaela in any sort of danger so she knew she had to keep her name out of it at all costs. 

“I’m Antoine,” he told her.  It was right at that moment she questioned everything about her instincts.  “I have to go,” she said in as strong a voice she could muster.  He backed away from the car and threw his hands up in defeat before she sped off.

The following afternoon as everyone was going home, Mikaela timidly made her way up to Aubrey’s desk.  “Miss Aubrey,” she said quietly, “Did you go home after class yesterday?”

Aubrey was completely shocked.  She had never spoken to her this much and her voice was incredibly soft and small.  She also wondered why she would be asking her this so suddenly and then it dawned on her.  Maybe Antoine had brought it up or even questioned her.  Aubrey lowered her voice and asked, “Why?  Is everything okay?”

“My uncle said a strange lady came by and he described you and your car a little.  He seemed kind of worried.  I told him I thought I knew who it was,” she said sounding unsure, as if she was worried she had done something wrong. 

Aubrey took a leap of faith and placed her hand on Mikaela’s shoulder.  “Antoine is your uncle?”  Mikaela nodded.  “I did go by your area last night.  Nothing bad happened.” 

Mikaela nodded again and pulled out her phone, asking if she would meet with him.  Aubrey gulped and nodded.  Just a few minutes later, Antoine pulled up and walked into the gym.  “Good afternoon,” he said politely as he extended his hand out. 

Once again, Aubrey was completely surprised.  His demeanor and reputation did not match the way he spoke or behaved.  As he sat down to talk about why she was in the area last night, she had the bravery to ask why Mikaela was so shut down.  He explained she had a hard time trusting people because she had an extra difficult and traumatizing life.  He always tried to protect her and, luckily, he was very feared and respected.  But he still worried about her overall well being.  “I know this will seem strange but would you be free to have dinner here tonight?  We can talk about ways for you to help Mikaela.”

Aubrey was beyond shocked but she agreed.  She wanted to help Mikaela as best she could and she found Antoine to be someone quite helpful in that area.  So they ordered a pizza and set to work but it was not long before they ended up talking about other things in life and actually bonding.  Everything moved at warp speed and was all so surreal with Antoine. 

He was
nothing
like how people had described him, at least not with her.  He seemed to truly love and care about Mikaela.  He was as serious as Aubrey about helping her reach a better place in life.  It was nearly midnight when Aubrey finally looked at her watch and gasped.  “I’m so sorry!  I didn’t know it was so late!  How rude of me to keep you like this.” 

Antoine smiled softly and she felt something swirl in the pit of her stomach.  It was the first time all night he had looked at her like this.  She gulped. 

“You didn’t keep me.  I enjoyed being with you,” he said in his low, gruff voice.  Even when saying something nice he had rawness to the way he spoke, something that she found very attractive.  She resisted the urge to slap herself for finding him attractive
at all
.  It was completely inappropriate.  But that didn’t make her stop him from leaning forward and pressing his lips against hers. 

Her heart raced as she felt his lips mold to hers and their mouths begin to move as the kiss deepened.  She felt her breath catch in her throat as he shifted his body and got closer to her, the heat between them growing exponentially.  She knew this was all so wrong but she did not want to stop.  She could not remember the last time she was attracted to anybody, much less the last time she had been kissed.  Her heart rate picked up, beating faster and faster, until she felt it might pound right out of her chest.  She broke the kiss while drawing in a loud breath and looked at him in surprise.  “I’m sorry,” he said.  She shook her head and replied, “Don’t be.  It’s just…”

“Completely inappropriate,” he whispered roughly before grabbing the back of her head and pulling her in for a second, much more passionate kiss.  She let herself fall right into it, enjoying every second. 

It was all unexpected and inappropriate but it was something both of them wanted and seemed completely unwilling to fight.  He wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned back, pulling her on top of him.  She straddled him and felt a hard bulge press up against her, causing her to moan into his mouth.  He slipped his hand under her shirt and began massaging her breast, over her bra, suddenly stopping and pulling back from the kiss. 

“I don’t have a condom,” he told her with great disappointment.  His eyes widened and he let go of her saying, “I’m so sorry.  I shouldn’t just assume you’re going to have sex with me.  I’m messing this all up.  Please, just help Mikaela.”

Aubrey pushed her body off him and looked into his eyes.  She leaned forward and after giving him a swift peck on the cheek she said, “I would have had sex with you.  Don’t apologize.  And nothing will prevent me from doing everything I can to help her, don’t worry about that.”

It was Saturday evening and Aubrey had just finished getting ready as Mila sat on her bed flipping through a magazine.  “I can’t believe you’re really going on a date with this Antoine guy,” she mumbled.  Ever since she had told Mila what had happened with him, she did not entirely approve of it. 

She did agree it was inappropriate but she was also concerned about Aubrey’s safety.  She was still, in her own way, supportive because she could tell how much this meant to Aubrey.  She was not the type of person to go into dates or relationships easily.  She was not the type to break rules or even do something that was frowned upon.  So she had concluded there must really be something special about him.

And there was.  There truly was.  Everything about him was disarming and it was exactly what attracted her to him.  On their date, she found out exactly why he had such a mean reputation and some of the reasons did make her uneasy.  But they were also events that had occurred years ago and she knew why they had.  But the other side of him, the well spoken and caring side of him, was what she liked most.  It was not on its own that she liked it about him, it was in combination with everything he had gone through and been mixed up in to gain his fearsome reputation.  It was
Antoine
as a whole that attracted her so much. 

So she invited him over to her place after dinner and soon found herself edged between his body and the wall. 

He kissed her deeply and fervently, pressing his body against hers.  She could feel him getting hard through his pants and she thrust her hips outward to create some friction.  He groaned and broke the kiss, looking into her eyes as he thrust his own hips into hers.  She moaned out and every inch of her skin felt like it was on fire. 

He slipped his hands under her shirt and pulled it off her, tossing it off to the side as he looked down at her full breasts spilling from the top of her bra.  He pulled her forward into a kiss as his hands moved to her back, unclasping her bra and pushing it off her shoulders.  He dipped his head down and sucked briefly on each one of her nipples before dropping to his knees in front of her.  As he kissed her stomach, she felt him fumbling with the button and zipper of her pants.  He finally undid them and pushed them down off her hips, hooking his fingers under the waistband of her panties to drag them down with her pants. 

He stood back up and kissed her, running his hand down her side and over her lower stomach until she felt his index finger running up and down along her slit until she got wet.  He slipped two fingers inside her and she moaned out, letting her head fall back against the wall. 

“You’re so fuckin’ sexy,” he whispered in her ear as he continued to finger her.  She moaned out and panted, eventually crying out when she felt his thumb press down against her clit and bring her to orgasm. 

She had never experienced something like this and she was already ready for more of him.  He pulled a condom out of his pocket and waved it around until she snatched it away from him.  He took that moment to undress himself as quickly as he could, exposing his rock-hard and very large cock.  She gulped at the sight of it, knowing she had never slept with anybody so large.  She opened the condom wrapper and rolled it over his pulsing cock, feeling his thick girth between her two hands. 

She breathed heavily, feeling ready for him by how turned on she already was but still slightly anxious about his size.  He eased her down onto the floor and spread her legs, positioning himself at her entrance.  He held the base of his shaft and rubbed the head of his cock up and down her dripping slit.  Her hips rose up of their own accord and he took it as an indication she was ready. 

He pushed the head of his cock in first and already she could feel herself being stretched.  She grabbed tightly onto his arms and nodded, closing her eyes when she felt him very slowly slide in the rest of his thick, long cock.  She moaned out, half in pleasure and half in pain, from being stretched by him. 

He pulled out slowly and entered her again, just as slowly as he had done the first time.  He did this a few times, giving her time to get used to his size, before he began thrusting at a moderate pace.  She did not ease up on her grip of his arms but she did open her eyes and catching him staring at her boobs, bouncing with every one of his thrusts. 

In a few minutes’ time, he began thrusting a bit faster and grunting.  She knew he was about to cum so she let go of one of his arms in favor rubbing and squeezing her clit.  He took the opportunity to grab one of her breasts but he was already too close to the edge to do much more. 

His hips began to jerk violently, once again setting off mixed pleasure and pain in her, as she continued playing with her clit.  He grunted and held on to the hips as he finished and she lifted her hips in a gyrating motion until she reached her second orgasm.  When she was done, he pulled out of her and stood up.  He looked around until he spotted the bathroom door and walked over to throw away the condom and wipe off his skin.  He came back with a couple tissues and cleaned her off before lying on the ground next to her and pulling her in to cuddle.