Aaron - Day 17

“Megan!” I shouted for her because I was ready to go shopping before I drank another beer and passed the hell out. We were supposed to go shopping yesterday, but after our pantry episode, I kept my distance before my dick led me down a path I knew I wasn’t supposed to take.

Quick steps brought her into the living room, and she didn’t stop until she was standing timidly before me. “Yes.”

“Are you ready to go so we can get the things on the list?”

“You want me to go with you?” she asked as her brows lifted in surprise.

“Yeah. Is something wrong with that?”

She shrugged. “You’re not afraid of being seen with me?”

My face scrunched with confusion. “Why the hell would I be afraid of being seen with you?”

“When I rode with Jake, he made me climb into the back bed of his truck and duck down. He said he didn’t want to be seen with a nigger.”

For a moment, I didn’t know what to say to her. Some of my family didn’t understand that most of the world didn’t give two fucks about their racist views.

“My cousin is a fucking idiot. Do whatever you need to do. Fix your hair, straighten your clothes, or do whatever it is females do before you go to the store. Then, grab the list so we can go.”

My words sounded clipped, but it usually didn’t take people but a day or two to realize or pick up on the fact that it was just the way I was.

Megan returned a few minutes later with the list in her hand. Aside from making her high ponytail neater, she looked the same. She had on a pair of those pale blue, designer-looking sweatpants, an oversized, beige T-shirt that seemed not to want to cover one of her flawless brown shoulders, and black and white Nike tennis shoes.

I think she’d intended the outfit to hide that ridiculously seductive body of hers, but no amount of extra material could hide what my eyes were trained to see. She was the equivalent of a living, breathing representation of pure temptation. The only thing I could do was to see how much longer I could resist it.

* * *

Once we stepped into The Mart, I started to understand what my stupid cousin was getting at about not being seen with Megan. I noticed the funny looks right away, but other than that, people kept their opinions to themselves. They fucking well better had, if I had anything to say about it.

To avoid me cursing someone out, I suggested, “Hey, maybe we should split up. You work on that list, and I’ll grab some things I need from the automotive section. Make sure you get what you need and whatever else you think we need for the house.”

I hadn’t missed that she’d almost smiled at me, but she’d suppressed it and kept a straight face. “I’ll meet you at the registers?” she asked before I could walk away.

I gave her a quick nod before turning and stepping away from her. I could have helped her with the list, but I hated shopping and hated the way people’s eyes followed our every move. I was doing what was best to keep from cursing a motherfucker out for eyeballing us. The strong silent type—he was not me. I was the quick-tempered type, and there was only so much I could take before I lost my patience.

After taking a few steps away from Megan, two mean-looking black men approached me. Their expressions warned me to prepare for a fight, but their sudden smiles met me before my anger took over. One of the men reached out his fist in a gesture for me to give him a fist-bump. I bumped my fist with the man’s, wondering why he’d initiated this friendly gesture towards me. My questioning gaze remained on his until he expressed his comment.

“You a lucky man, bro. She’s nice.”

My gaze followed their eyes to find that I’d been offered their friendly gesture because they were referring to Megan. They must have seen me with her and automatically assumed she was my woman. She was unaware of what was happening as she read the label on an item in her hand.

I didn’t correct the men’s assumptions. Instead, I took their compliment before I moved the fuck on. “Thank you. Appreciate it.”

The men walked away shaking their heads like they’d told me something I didn’t already know. If there was one thing I knew, it was that Megan was definitely nice as they’d put it. She had no idea I had random men complimenting me because they thought she was my woman.

I rounded the automotive aisle and scanned for the wiper blades I needed for my truck. As my fingers grazed over blade after blade, searching for the model and size for my truck, male voices on the other side of the aisle confirmed that the conversation about Megan and me wasn’t over yet. The two brothers who’d approached me earlier were loud and unaware that I lurked near enough to hear them.

“Did you see what that white boy strolled in here with? Lil’ Momma was fine as fuck. A dime for sure.”

“Naw, brah, she’s one of them women that will break the scale. She a dime with sweats on, so imagine how fucking fine she is when she’s fixed herself up. White boy got him a platinum piece.”

My smile widened at their conversation. Was this how men viewed women? I leaned my ear closer when they continued their colorful conversation.

“I bet white boy catches hell from niggas mean mugging his ass over her. I was ready to give him shit, but after I saw her, I was like, nah, let me give this cracka his props for choosing wisely and shit.”

The men laughed loud. One cut through the laughter and added, “Man, she one of them women you’d kill a motherfucker over. Somebody look at her the wrong way, and you’ll be ready to whip a nigga’s ass or shoot a motherfucker.”

I bit into my bottom lip to stifle a grin. Now, I didn’t feel so bad for being attracted to Megan or for losing my shit when I was close to her. She affected men who’d never even talked to her, and here I was sharing a house with her.

After finding the blades I needed, I picked up some air fresheners for my truck and headed towards the registers. I smiled at the sight of Megan waiting for me. The half-filled basket of goods sat next to her as she thumbed through a magazine.

“Ready?”

She jumped at the sound of my voice.

“You got everything on that list?” I asked.

She took a quick glance into the basket before she answered. “Yes.”

“Okay, let’s go,” I said, tilting my head towards the nearest register. I placed my hands on the bar of the basket before she could and wheeled it towards the shortest line.

Judging by the way her mouth had dropped open in surprise, she didn’t expect me to help her unload the groceries onto the conveyer belt or load them into the bed of my truck.

I’ll admit, I’m fucked up in some areas of my life, can even be an asshole at times, but I’d never been one to abuse a woman, not even the poor white trash that hung around my MC’s bar all the time.

Therefore, I saw no reason to treat Megan any different because her skin was darker than mine or because of the warped rules my MC had in place. Besides, I’d decided from the moment I’d laid eyes her that I was not only attracted to her but would also fuck her if the opportunity ever presented itself.