Free Hornet's Nest by Jaycee Ford Page B

he would hurt Katherine, and there wasn’t much I could do without looking like a man in a fit of jealousy.
    How could I not be jealous over a woman like her? The way her forehead did that little crinkle when she scowled at me. The way her face felt in between my hands. The way our eyes met together as I thrust myself inside her. The way she let out a moan when I kissed her neck, under her ear. The way our bodies melted together as if we were the only ones that could ever perfect the act of making love, because that was what it was. It wasn’t sex… all five times. It was never sex. It was love. God, I sound obsessed. I think I am . No man could ever resist her. I decided I wasn’t going to give up on her. That was all I needed… just one more day with her. This weekend, the plan was being put into motion. I knew it was late, but I had to call in the reserves.
    The phone rang as I walked into my apartment. I hoped he wasn’t mad at the hour.
    “Lance! How the hell are you, man?” Tom asked as soon as he answered. It was so good to hear my friend, but I needed to get down to business.
    “I’m doing good. The city is pretty awesome, but I need to cut to the chase here. Can you get Jordan on speaker? I need to talk to both of y’all.”
    So I told them everything… the flirts, the sex, the phone number mix up, the baby, the miscarriage, the douchebag attorney… and the fact that I wanted Jordan’s best friend.
    “Ok, Lance,” Jordan said. “What’s the first move?”
    “Well, that’s easy. Y’all want to pack up the kids and come have a sleep over in the big bad city?”

GOOD MORNING! GET dressed. I have a surprise for you.
    I read his text three times. My heart thumped harder each time I read it. I glanced up from my phone and stared out of my window. I was going to see Lance today. I looked back down at the text and couldn’t help but wonder if this was a good idea. My chest clenched with anxiety. I shouldn’t reply back. Or maybe I should reply back and say no. It was a Saturday and this was short notice. I sighed. I had an opportunity. Should I take it?
    And what do I wear for this surprise of yours?
    I knew I would kick myself if I didn’t take the opportunity. I still didn’t know if it was in my best interest. But was anything concerning Lance in my best interest?
    Whatever you want. You always look good. ;-)
    I swore to myself that I didn’t like him. I swore to myself that I didn’t want to have anything to do with him. My cheeks ached like never before. There was an opportunity to be with Lance and I was going to take it.
    He didn’t give me a time for this surprise, but I went ahead and got ready, thankful I had already showered for the day. I dressed in a pair of leggings, a purple blouse, and flats. I decided to leave my hair down. I had no clue what was going on, but I assumed I looked nice enough for a daytime outing. I had just shut the drawer in my bathroom vanity when a knock rapped on my door. I exhaled a slow breath as I walked back through my living room. As I approached the front door, I placed a hand on my stomach to settle the flutter and breathed out one final time before looking through the peep hole. I leaned up and peeked through. I gasped upon sight and threw open the door. Not only was Lance standing in my doorway, but he was holding my godchild and my best friend stood beside him.
    “Oh, my God,” I said as I scooped Mary into my arms. I brushed past Lance and wrapped my free arm around Jordan as tears clouded my eyes. I glanced over at Lance as his cheeks lifted into a genuine smile, not the shit eating grin I had been accustomed to.
    “We need to talk,” Jordan whispered in my ear. I pulled back and looked at her. She knew. She knew everything. I thought I would have been mad at Lance, but a weight lifted off my chest. I was relieved that after all this time I was finally able to talk to someone and not hold it in.
    “Hey, Tom!” I said as I gave him a hug and