Belonging to Lust

Downstairs in the living room of the guesthouse, Zaiyia sat on the couch looking very zoned out in the quiet house. Since Heath had texted her that he would pick up dinner, she had nothing left to do when she arrived home after school. Normally, she’d be in the kitchen cooking them dinner, but right now she was plopped on her couch in silence, her mind racing over today’s events at school.

Alan was still in love with Alice and was determined to find a way to get her back. He’s had a taste of what it would be like to survive in a life without her in it, and it turned out the grass wasn’t greener on the other side after all.

Alice was still in love with Alan though these days the girl was always playing it off like she moved on from him a 1000%. It took some time to gather the evidence, but eventually Zaiyia was convinced that Alice would much prefer being with Alan and having the life they once had together…long before Zaiyia showed up with her gorgeous Nubian Goddess self.

So how the hell was Zaiyia supposed to get these two back together?

Alan was all for getting back together, that much was clear, but what about Alice?

Would the blond give in to her heart’s greatest desire in being with Alan again, or combat it out of fear of being hurt a second time?

Running her fingers over her many lengthy braids, Zaiyia didn’t know where to begin on figuring out how to make Alice see that Alan was a changed man. Yes, he was still a major idiot, that wasn’t gonna change overnight, but the footballer was a changed man nonetheless. Zaiyia spent several minutes mulling over it and seemed to be getting nowhere. Becoming discourage because she didn't know what move to make in this chess game when she couldn’t read her opponent, Alice, next move at all, Zaiyia threw her head back on the couch and let out a cry of frustration.

A moment later, the front door of Zaiyia’s guest house opened to reveal the muscular giant, Heath, carrying in their dinner. Just the mere sight of the towering man flushed all the stress weighing on her straight out of her system. Sitting up, Zaiyia smiled gloriously at him as she went to physically greet him by launching off the couch and racing over to him. “Baby!”

Heath had just used his boot to shut the door behind him when he heard her coming. Leaning down in time, he swept her up with one arm high enough so she could properly right her legs around his waist as much as she could. Heath blissfully groaned at the missed feeling of Zaiyia’s soft body against his. Tilting his head up, he sought a kiss that would end up plundering her mouth. “Mmm, hello to you too.”

Moaning into the kiss, Zaiyia plunged her fingers through his short hair as he walked them further into the kitchen. When she heard the crinkle of him depositing the brown paper bags filled with their dinner down onto the kitchen island, she waited with anticipation for his other arm to come around her next. With a hungrier moan, his arm encircled her tightly before his large hands set off to roam over her body through her clothes. They didn’t stop making out until the threat of their passion completely consuming them made them back off of that precipice. With a sigh, Zaiyia let him place her up onto the island beside their food. Pouting because they had to end their kissing, she confessed to him. “I missed you.”

“I missed you too, Zai.” Heath expressed, looking deeply into her eyes as his fingers continued to skim over her clothing. Lowering his gaze, he took in her bronze satin long sleeve top with matching shorts with a displeased frown. “Can’t say I miss this though.”

Following his gaze, Zaiyia arched a brow at her cute matching pajama set, not seeing an issue with it. “Why? What’s wrong with it?”

“It’s clothes.” Heath stated with a wicked grin, his green eyes more lustful as they returned to hers.

Laughing at his meaning, Zaiyia failed at shoving the boulder-like man aside as she looked to the brown paper bags beside her. “Whatever, man! What did you get us for dinner tonight?”

“Oh just the classic all American burgers, fries and milkshakes.” Heath listed out their order with a shrug.

“Yum.” Zaiyia nodded in approval as she slid one of the bags over to her and began to rummage inside.

“Can you set everything up while I take a shower upstairs real quick?” Heath asked her, wishing to wash the sweat and grime of work off of him like he typically did when he got home.

“You don’t want any company?” Zaiyia pouted at him, her hand frozen on removing a carton of small fries from the bag that was definitely hers.

Determined to wipe that pout off of Zaiyia’s face, Heath cupped her chin in his hand to make her look at him. “Hey, I’m starving to death on my feet even as we speak, baby. A man’s gotta eat.”

Withdrawing her chin from his loose hold, Zaiyia easily slipped off the island counter due to her slippery satin pajamas and began her duty. Before he left, she commented over her shoulder with a smile. “I remember the days where I used to be the one you were starving for all the time.”

Unable to resist due to her dramaticness, Heath came over with a grin to smack her behind before retreating to the stairs. “That’s cause tonight you’re the dessert, not the milkshake.”

“Mmm, okay.” Zaiyia laughed again. She set everything out on the island counter in the same spot they’d been standing moments earlier. Once she was done, she hopped onto one of the tall counter stools and began to eat her dinner.

Not long into her meal, a freshly washed Heath came down the stairs in a simple T-Shirt and long shorts. He intentionally left a few articles of clothing over whenever he slept over at her guesthouse. The ones that stayed behind were all stashed in a secret spot his own family couldn’t easily stumble upon if they decided to start snooping around. It was easier this way then coming up with an explanation as to why his clothes were found in the house she lived in separate from his own. Anyway, taking his seat beside Zaiyia’s stool, Heath leaned over to kiss her cheek in thanks. “Thank you for setting out my dinner.”

“No problem.” Zaiyia giggled with a smile. The couple didn’t speak as they ate dinner, too hungry to trade words on this and that until their stomachs were sated enough to grant them that privilege. When Zaiyia got to that stage she was slurping on her strawberry milkshake. “So how was your day?”

“Busy. We helped a team finish off their own building in a nearby county. Wasn’t exactly planned for the day, but hey, we’re happy to help wherever we can.” Heath recounted before glancing down at her and wiping his mouth of the last remnants of salty fries and his juicy burger. “Yours?”

“Oh, you know how it is. A little bit of this, a little bit of that. No more bullying which is still crazy to me. I’m literally starting to wonder if I dreamt the whole shit up, that’s how opposite this new life is for me now. Not a single trace was left behind.” Zaiyia shared before Alan’s face flashed across her mind. She hesitated for reasons she didn’t know before disclosing it to Heath after popping her straw out of her mouth. “Actually, Alan and I finally had a good talk today during lunch.”

Heath froze in his chair with a chunk of hamburger hovering in front of his mouth. Having stolen the last bite of Zaiyia’s burger with her nod of permission, he hadn’t expected to have Alan’s name taint their evening. The grip on his chocolate milkshake was tight enough to break the cardboard if he wasn’t careful enough, and so he carefully loosened his hold. Green narrowed eyes snapped to Zaiyia as he inquired. “And what the fuck did he want this time?”

Zaiyia was surprised Heath knew Alan well enough to predict he wanted something from her. With a careless shrug, she told him. “The same old problem. He wants help getting back together with Alice.”

Rolling his eyes, Heath shook his head in disapproval. “Well, I’m proud you told him to get lost. You don’t need any more involvement with those two and their mess.”

Now Zaiyia froze in her seat. She hadn’t expected for him to jump to that conclusion. Wavering for some time and letting silence stretch between them, Zaiyia gently confessed to Heath in hopes it wouldn’t pissed him off to know he was wrong. “Actually…I-I didn’t tell him to get lost.”

Having tossed both the wrapper from his burger and hers away in the brown takeout bag, Heath’s entire frame went rigid at what Zaiyia said. Turning his whole head in her direction, he stared at her under deeply furrowed brows. “What did you say?”

Oh, yeah. Heath was gonna be absolutely livid tonight. Loathing that that was coming, Zaiyia let out a sigh before facing the music. If she had to tear off this band-aid and stitching prematurely on this gaping wound, then she’d just have to do that. “I told Alan I would help him get them back together.”