The shrill sound of the phone ringing woke me from the most erotic dream of Erica riding me to orgasm. Oh, wait. That hadn't been a dream. I sighed with contentment as a myriad of images from the night before came rushing back. I savored my favorite, which had been her on the bed with her own hand nestled between her legs.
Erica stirred in her sleep and the soft swell of her breasts pressed against my ribcage. The incessant ringing inspired a growl and she pushed up onto her elbows, staring at me with bleary eyes. Disentangling her limbs from mine, she smoothed down her wild hair and glared at the phone on the nightstand.
"Who the hell is calling me this early in the morning?"
"It's not that early. It's eleven, babe."
"God, I hope it's not my mother," she grumbled as she lifted the receiver to her ear. "Hello." Her eyes narrowed. "No. I haven't spoken to him." She shot up in bed and turned away from me. "Really? He's there now? Okay... No... No. Please don't call the police."
What the fuck is going on? I sat up and inched closer, rubbing her bare shoulders. She glanced over at me and mouthed, Sorry. "I guarantee he'll pay for any and all damages. Yes. Thank you."
She slipped the phone back into its cradle and cursed.
"What's going on?"
"Apparently, my brother trashed his suite last night. He was supposed to check out this morning, but the janitorial staff found him passed out on his bed."
"Oh, shit."
"Yeah. I have to find out what's going on." The soft swell of her ass jiggled as she stumbled to the bathroom. I followed, enjoying her naked form, which was even more spectacular in the light of day. She dragged on jeans and a t-shirt, wincing with every movement.
"Are you okay?" I asked. My morning wood was impossible to hide and she licked her bottom lip before raising her eyes to meet mine.
"Just a bit sore."
"Sorry," I said with a grin.
"I can tell you're really torn up about it."
"Do you want me to come with you? I'm pretty good at taming the wild beast that is your brother."
"No, stay here. I have a feeling it has something to do with Janice."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah. Plus, I don't want Damian finding out about us, just yet."
I leaned against the door frame and smiled. "So, I'm the dirty little secret, huh?" That was a new one for me, but I could own it if I had to. Although it wasn't going to be easy keeping this from my best friend.
She watched me through the mirror as she splashed water on her face and tugged a comb through her tangled hair. "For now. I don't need my brother kicking the shit out of you. At least not until I get my fill," she said with a flirtatious smile.
"Mm, I like the sound of that. I'll fill you anytime, babe."
She giggled. "Order some coffee and breakfast. I shouldn't be too long."
"Okay." As she moved past me, I snagged her elbow and pulled her tight against me. "Barring the soreness, how do you feel?"
Placing her hands on my bare chest, she smiled up at me. "Other than that, I feel terrific. But, how could I not? You made me come like half a dozen times last night."
"I'm not done with you yet. Besides cleaning up Damian's mess, what are your plans for the day?" I asked. What was wrong with me? I should have been trying to make a hasty exit. Instead I was toying with the idea of spending the rest of the weekend with her.
"I didn't really have any. What about you?"
"I was thinking about renting a bike and doing the Haleakala Crater tour."
She groaned. "There's no way I can ride a bike today."
"Oh, right," I said with a chuckle. We had gone at it like two horny teenagers into the early morning hours. We had barely been able to keep our eyes open and had passed out from sated exhaustion when the sun was creeping up on the horizon. "I'll think of something else. I mean, if you're interested in spending the day with me."
"Are you asking me out on a date?"
I shrugged. "Yeah, I guess so."
Her eyes lit up with excitement and she dropped a quick kiss on my lips. "I would love to spend more time with you."
Worry nagged at my consciousness, but I pushed it aside. I didn't want Erica to get the wrong idea about my intentions. While I planned on continuing to sample her addictive pussy, there was little chance that anything more was going to come of our time together.
After Erica had slipped out, I hurried back to my suite to shower and change. While I was there, I called the concierge who gave me some great ideas about how to spend our remaining days on the island. I booked a room at the Travaasa Hana Hotel, dismissing the voice in my head telling me that I was making a huge mistake. I packed a bag and was about to head back to Erica's room when my cell phone rang.
I couldn't help the groan that erupted when I saw my mom's name lighting up the screen. I contemplated ignoring it, but she would make my life a living hell the next time I spoke with her.
"Hey Ma, how are you?"
"Please explain why I had to find out you were in Maui from your brother?"
"Does it matter?"
"I don't care how old you are, I need to know where my kids are." More like she needed to know where her money tree was. "And why the hell did you go to Maui?"
"I came for the Woods' wedding anniversary."
"When you gonna stop taggin' along with them stuck-up rich folks?" she huffed.
"Ma, what do you need?"
"Well, I'm a bit short this month. What with my cell phone bill and all the utilities, I'm running low on cash. This house sure does cost a lot to run."
I took a deep breath. I wasn't shocked that my mother had called to ask for money. The only time she bothered to contact me anymore was when she needed something. I had no idea where all her money was going. Granted, she only brought home a grocery clerk's wage, but she had no other bills. I had paid off all of her debt, purchased a car and the house she was currently complaining about, my first year in the NFL.
"Why don't you ask Dejon?"
"Yeah, uh, that's the other thing I was calling about. Your brother lost his job..."
"Again? You've got to be fucking kidding me." I sank down onto the bed and rubbed the dull throbbing in my temples.
"Don't you cuss at me," my mother chided. "Dejon does the best he can. He's gonna need a little bit to see him through for the next few months."
Footing the bill for my little brothers' college educations hadn't been enough, apparently. I was on the hook for the foreseeable future, since neither of the three men my mother had spawned children with were in the picture. My father included. But, unlike Dejon's and Darius' fathers, my father wasn't a deadbeat dad—he was just dead.
"Fine, I'll transfer some money into your account."
"It must be nice," she murmured in a wistful tone as she puffed on a cigarette. "Running off to a tropical island."
"Yeah, it is." I didn't care that I sounded like an asshole. My mom loved to make me feel guilty for enjoying the life I had worked hard for and sacrificed my body to obtain. "I gotta go. I have plans with Erica."
"Damian's little sister?"
Fuck. Why had I let that slip out? "Yeah."
"What are you doing with that girl? Isn't she ten years younger than you?" she asked, clucking her tongue.
"No, five."
"You need to find a nice girl like Keandra."
"Nice and Keandra don't belong in the same sentence."
"I hope you don't think you could ever have something with a girl like Erica."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Her caustic laughter turned my stomach. "Boy, it don't matter how much money you got now. Those people will never see you for more than what you were... and that's a poor boy with big dreams."
Sourness flooded my mouth. The woman had the ability to amputate my happiness right below the knee. After a quick goodbye, I hung up before I said something I might regret.
But, hell, maybe my mom was right. Erica and I came from opposite sides of the track, literally and figuratively. Even though I knew Erica didn't give a shit about any of that, it didn't bode well for the long-term.
I shook my head. Why was I even pondering this shit? There wasn't going to be a long-term. The furthest I could look into the future was today. Beyond that, it was anyone's guess.