Guy
“Jaxson. Jaxson, wake up. We’re here.”
I couldn’t believe my big boy had slept the majority of the flight from St. Louis to Miami, especially with the millions of questions he had about Miss. Nova who we had met during what must’ve been a layover for her considering nothing about her style screamed Midwest. It was more eclectic, like the kind of girl you’d find singing in a band at a hole in the wall bar in Los Angeles. But she wore it well, damn well, well enough to not only catch my baby boy’s attention, but mine as well.
Her face was just… pretty. Not a lot of makeup, just a hint of blush against her cheeks. Her hair was in locs, the top half pulled back with the rest hanging long over shoulder. But what fascinated me the most about her was the half-sleeve of tattoos on her arm, something that naturally made the artist in me go wild.
It was honestly a little crazy to me that I hadn’t seen her in the few hours the flight lasted, but I could still remember everything about her so vividly, making me wish I could actually make use of her apparently being in Miami all summer like us. But since that wasn’t what we were here for, my attention stayed on Jaxson as he finally popped up from his nap, rubbing his eyes and looking out of the window to ask, “Daddy, we in Miami?”
“Yes, Jax. We’re in Miami. Now we just have to go get our bags and find Auntie Kaylin,” I told him, laying out the plans knowing he’d probably ask me about them again in the next ten minutes.
But instead of focusing on that, I focused on double-checking his book bag to make sure I wouldn’t be putting out any fires later because we accidentally forgot something on the plane. And of course, tucked in between the seats was Jaxson’s favorite toy car, his Lightning McQueen, the same Lightning McQueen that had me peeking a few rows forward to find Nova with her headphones snug over her ears as she slid through the row to exit the plane.
For whatever reason, the sight made me feel a way since this would more than likely be the last time I ever saw her. But before I could really process that, along with my feelings about it, I heard Jaxson ask, “Where’s Uncle Lamar?”
Here we go with these questions again...
“He has practice, but he said he’ll come see us when he’s done,” I told him as I slid out of the row before letting him out to walk in front of me.
But he didn’t move right away, turning around to ask, “Daddy, when can we go see Uncle Lamar play basketball?”
“I’ll tell you when we get off the plane,” I answered, turning around to the group of anxious people waiting to deboard behind us and offering them an apology. And I was grateful when they only smiled in understanding as I nudged Jaxson to walk without straight up pushing him like I was tempted to do.
When we finally made it off the plane, I grabbed his hand and led us to baggage claim, Jaxson walking unbelievably slow as he took in everything around him like usual. And I was just about ready to say fuck it and pick him up when he asked, “Can Miss. Nova come with us to see Uncle Lamar play basketball?”
Wait… what?
I shouldn’t have been surprised that my little boy was still thinking about the same woman that I was since she had obviously made a good impression on him - on the both of us. Still, I couldn’t help but ask, “Miss. Nova? Where’d that come from, Jax?”
“That’s my friend, Daddy. I remember her name and everything,” he answered enthusiastically, making me laugh since apparently that was all it took to be friends with someone.
And while my first thought was, “I remember everything too, son,” I was sure to explain, “I’m not sure if we’ll see Miss. Nova again. But if we do, how about you ask her if she wants to come?”
I wasn’t usually one to use my child as a way in with women. In fact, it usually worked the other way around, women using my child as their way in, for whatever reason finding the whole fatherhood thing super attractive. And I definitely took advantage of that on occasion, talking about kid playdates that somehow turned into adult-only playdates. But something about Nova had me off my game, though I was sure the only way we’d see her was if she just so happened to be waiting on her luggage like us.
When I didn’t spot her in the area right away, I pretty much gave up hope on that idea until Jaxson pointed ahead and said, “She’s right there, Daddy. Talking to Auntie Kaylin.”
I looked up and sure enough, Nova was there, rocking Kaylin back and forth in a hug like she was her long-lost sister. Jaxson immediately took off running towards the both of them, my threatening voice not enough to make him stop. And I was just about ready to snatch his little ass up until I saw Kaylin’s eyes go wide as she opened her arms to pick him up.
“There’s my big boy!” she yelled, slinging him against her hip and sprinkling kisses all over his face that he only squealed against.
I made it over to them just in time to hear Jaxson ask, “Auntie Kaylin, how you know Miss. Nova?”
She cocked her head to the side, her face scrunched teasingly when she asked, “Excuse me? How do you know Miss. Nova?”
“That’s my friend, Auntie Kaylin. She likes my name too,” he answered proudly, making Kaylin burst with laughter as she noticed me approaching.
“Oh my God. Guy, what are you doing to this child?” she asked, giving him another quick kiss on the cheek before putting him down on the ground.
Then I leaned in to give her a hug of my own when I told her, “That’s all him, Kay.”
“Mmhm,” she groaned as she pulled away before asking, “Y’all ready to go? I already had Martin grab your luggage and put it in the car. But if y’all need to go to the bathroom or anything, I’d suggest you do it now just in case we hit traffic.”
While I was impressed by the special privileges as I bent my head to ask Jaxson if he needed to go potty, Nova was busy looking back and forth between the three of us before she finally piped out, “Uhh… I see you two know each other...”
Kaylin waved a nonchalant hand her way as she said, “Oh, my bad, Nova. This is Guy. Guy is Lamar’s best friend, from his hometown. Him and this little cutie pie are coming down for the summer to visit. I figured since you and Jaxson were already buddies that it must’ve came up in conversation.”
I could tell the information was all news to Nova as her eyes went wide with shock before settling into a more neutral expression. And while it was also news to me, it honestly made me excited since that pretty much meant getting to know more about Nova by default. Then again, it almost seemed impossible that I wouldn’t have met her by now if she and Kaylin were as close as they seemed.
As I tried to make sense of that, Jaxson’s little giggles stole the conversation when he said, “We’re not buddies, Auntie Kaylin. She’s my friend.”
“It’s the same thing, sweetie,” Nova quickly explained before turning to Kaylin with tight eyes to add, “It didn’t. I mean, it did, but… not like this. ”
“Well it’s not going to be a problem, is it?” Kaylin asked, her eyebrow piqued as if she was really communicating something else.
Nova was dead silent as if she was saving her real answer for when the two of them were alone. And since things seemed way more tense than necessary, I answered, “Not a problem at all, Kay. It’s always a pleasure to meet new, beautiful women.”
Kaylin rolled her eyes while Nova avoided eye contact altogether, though I could see her cheeks flush to a deeper shade of pink than they were already painted. If she blushed anymore, I’d be even more tempted to really try my hand at her. But now that I knew she’d be around all summer long, I figured it might be wiser to take my time.
Still, that didn’t mean Jaxson was at all interested in patience when he blurted, “Miss. Nova, can you come see Uncle Lamar play basketball with us?”
The question seemed to make her uncomfortable as she stammered, “Uhh… I mean…”
“Of course she will, Jax. We’ll all go together,” Kaylin answered, snapping her eyes at Nova before grabbing his hand to lead him towards the exit, leaving Nova and I to fend for ourselves.
I wasn’t sure why the coincidence had changed her energy so much, her warm appeal a lot colder now that we were meeting for a second go-round under altered circumstances. But since it seemed as if there would be plenty of time to figure that out, I extended my arm as I told her, “After you, beautiful.”
She gave a polite nod before taking the bait, following in Jaxson and Kaylin’s footsteps out towards the blacked out SUV that was obviously another one of those special privileges. When the driver opened the door for us, I was glad to see Lamar had remembered to snag a car seat for Jaxson to use throughout the summer. But its placement against the window also meant Nova and I would be forced to squeeze into the backseat together since Kaylin had already taken the front seat next to the driver.
Of course, I didn’t mind the closeness. Nova, on the other hand, waited on the sidewalk for me to get Jaxson situated before asking, “Aren’t you gonna sit by him?”
“You mean, sit in the middle?” I asked, my eyebrow almost reaching my hairline as I watched her nod before continuing, “Uhh… don’t you think I’m a little too big for that?”
The question seemed to make her uncomfortable like Jaxson’s did earlier the way she diverted her eyes before replying, “I just figured you’d… want to keep him close. You know, since he’s your son and all.”
I immediately brushed her off, leaning against the car door as I told her, “Same car is close enough. He ain’t goin’ nowhere. Now come on so we can make a Thompson sandwich outta you.”
The slightest smile finally broke on her lips as she slipped past me to climb into the truck, the wind blowing at just the right moment to give me a spectacular view of her upper thighs. They were thick, strong, the kind of thighs you could fall asleep on, or bury your head between like two pillows.
“Damn,” I whispered to myself as I shook my head before joining them in the truck, squeezing in as close as I could without making her too uncomfortable so that I could shut the door. But even then, my legs were already feeling cramped when Nova suggested, “We’d have a little more space if you’d close your legs.”
“I can’t.”
Her face was pulled into a confused scowl when she turned my way. “What do you mean you… oh. Nevermind,” she said, her cheeks flushing with heat as she realized the answer to her own question.
I could only chuckle as I wrapped my arm around the back of the seat to stretch out as much as I could just as Kaylin was turning around in her seat to ask, “So, Guy. What all are you and Jaxson getting into while you’re here? It must be top secret since Lamar had no idea when I asked him about it this morning.”
A grin immediately grew on my face as I answered, “Three b’s, Kay. You know how we do.”
“The three b’s?” Nova asked quietly, so quietly that I wasn’t even sure if she meant to say it out loud.
But even if she didn’t, I had no problem explaining, “Yeah. Beach, basketball, and bi…”
“Uh uh,” Nova interjected, snapping her head back to look at me just as Kaylin and I began to laugh.
Since Kaylin was usually the one shutting down the pretend plans Lamar and I came up with whenever I came to the city, she took great pride in telling her friend, “Relax, relax. He’s just playin’, Nova.”
I backed her up when I added, “Yeah, I’m just toyin’, sweetheart. Jax will be going to school three times a week, but on his off days we’ll definitely be out exploring the city. Learning the culture, take the boat out a few times, check out the Everglades, check out the art. So a little bit of everything.”
Kaylin nodded in understanding and Nova seemed relieved as Jaxson screeched, “Daddy, you forgot basketball!”
I reached over to give him a teasing tug on the ear, brushing against Nova by default when I told him, “That’s a given, little dude. Everybody already knows we’re going to see your Uncle Lamar hoop whenever we can.”
He giggled as he dodged my attempt to pinch his cheek before sharing the rest of his summer plans with his new friend. “Miss. Nova, Daddy said I get to watch Netflix when we get to Uncle Lamar’s!”
Even though she had been struggling through her smiles with me as of late, it was full blown when she told Jaxson, “That’s wonderful, honey. I like Netflix too.”
“Jax, maybe you should invite Miss. Nova to Netflix and chill with you,” I suggested, Nova quickly turning my way with a shocked expression as if she couldn’t believe what I had said; something she’d definitely have to get used to if we were going to be around each other at all this summer.
And it didn’t exactly help that Jax doubled down on my suggestion when he said, “Yeah, Miss. Nova. Netflix and chill with me.”
While she was obviously torn between her hostility towards me and her sweetness with him, she took the easy way out and focused on him as she explained, “Honey, don’t listen to your father. He’s just being silly.”
“Yeah. Netflix and chill is for grown-ups,” Kaylin added like the responsible adult she was.
I figured that would be enough to put us back in the clear, but boy was I wrong when Jax decided to put an extra two cents in, turning in his seat with an inquisitive expression before he blurted, “Miss. Nova, Daddy’s a grown-up. You can Netflix and Chill with him.”
I immediately burst out laughing as Nova’s eyes went wide and Kaylin released an audible, “Oh my God.”
Tears were already seeping out of my eyes by the time I shouted, “Whoaaaaa! Take your time, little buddy. We have all summer.”
And since he obviously didn’t understand the joke, he only shrugged before moving on to tell Kaylin about his plane ride which was a bunch of bullshit since he had been sleep most of the time. But I let him hoop, putting his imagination to use as Kaylin hyped up his details. Still, I couldn’t help but notice that Nova had fell especially quiet as if… damn, I know she’s not really offended?
Instead of letting any tension linger, I cleared the air when I leaned into her to get her attention before I said, “It was just a joke, Nova.”
She nodded convincingly. “Oh, I know. I was just… sending a text.”
“Just got in the city and you’re already lining up the potentials? Damn. I feel you, shorty. I gotta get like you. Step my game up or somethin’,” I told her teasingly as I pulled my own phone out, planning on doing nothing more than shooting Mariah the text she had asked for to let her know we had made it.
Apparently that was the exact kind of message Nova had been working on as well when she replied, “What? No. It was just… my boyfriend. Wanted to let him know I made it safely.”
The mention of a boyfriend made me tense up for a split second, crushing any and all interest I might’ve had since that was just something I didn’t fuck with. But once I peeked down at her phone I couldn’t help but notice, “That’s an… interesting way to tell him,” nodding towards her screen that was covered with a four page letter ass text. A text I knew was sharing a lot more than just a simple update. And she knew it too, quickly covering the screen before turning her attention to Kaylin and Jaxson’s conversation.
Since she obviously didn’t want to talk about it - and I shouldn’t have expected her to since I was really just meeting her - I decided to tune in on the conversation as well, shaking my head as I listened to Jaxson go deeper and deeper into his imagination about what he was going to do on our trip. But if this was a preview of what our summer was going to look like, then I was down for the cause.