Alert, Ganesha jumped to his feet. I rose too.
What the hell?
Ganesha growled as the noise continued and the doorknob rattled.
Someone is trying to get in.
I rushed over to the TV. Zora kept a big bat there. Corey thought it was an absurd safety measure, but if she had a gun, we all thought she might accidentally shoot herself.
I crossed the room with the bat in the air, ready to slam the person’s head in. All I could think about was my mother’s last statement about New York being full of serial killers and rapists.
Ganesha rushed in front of me and barked.
That’s right. Let them know. There’s a massive and very vicious dog in here. You’ve been warned.
Shadows moved underneath the door. The person was using a key to get in.
Who the hell is that? Can’t be her mom. She’s in Cali.
Zora told me that I had the only key.
The door swung open.
My gaze met familiar and very gorgeous brown eyes.
Kamal?
As usual, the first few seconds of seeing him caused instant nervousness and loss of words. I blamed it on his sculpted face and full lips. The broad shoulders and muscular arms. The way his hair hung in loose curls on the top and had been skillfully cut on the sides. Today, he wore a designer suit that fit his muscular body perfectly. A laptop bag danged on one shoulder. He held a bunch of bags in both hands.
What is he doing here?
Kamal stepped inside and set the bags on the floor. “Are you going to say hi or hit me?”
“I haven’t figured that out yet.”
He walked inside and put his laptop bag on the counter. “Have you eaten yet?”
I blinked. “No.”
“There are sandwiches in that bag.” He pointed. “You can have one. Maybe both. I don’t know. I lost my appetite.”
“What happened?”
“Life.” As he walked my way, he moved his gaze along the length of my body and stopped right in front of me. “You’re wearing Hello Kitty?”
I gazed down at my pajama short set. “I’m social distancing. There was no need to put on any special clothes.”
He took the bat from me, walked over to the television, and set it next to the wall. Then, he gazed at the screen and shook his head as Crystal Waters and her daughter wrestled on the ground. This time they were both dressed in black and looked to be choking each other. Near them, a man lay in a casket.
He frowned. “Zora still watches the Beautiful and the Deceitful?”
“Yes.” I walked off and shut the front door. “So. . .you came over to bring me food?”
“No. I actually forgot that you would be here.”
Ganesha trotted over to Kamal and rubbed his head against his leg. Kamal lowered and petted him.
“Okay. You didn’t know I would be here.” I headed over and placed my hands on my hips. “So. . .no disrespect, but why are you here?”
“I needed a place to stay for a week. With this virus, I’m not excited about being in a hotel. No matter how luxurious it is. I considered a few buddies, but they have fiancés or wives. It wouldn’t be right to bring anything their way. Then I remembered Zora would be gone for a while on her honeymoon and figured this would be the best place.”
“Um. . .” I gazed around that apartment. “I mean. . .sure. . .it’s just. . .”
“The place is small.” He stopped petting Ganesha, stood, and scanned the tiny living room. “We’ll make it work. We must. I’m not going back to my place until after seven days.”
“Why?”
He picked up the remote control and unmuted the tv.
“Ha!” Crystal Waters screamed. “I told you that Blake wouldn’t leave you anything.”
“I hate you!” Selene ran after her. A priest grabbed her waist and stopped the fighting.
“Good job, Father Samuel.” Crystal fixed her black blouse and adjusted the hat on her head. “Glad you caught that bitch. If I did, you would need to make room for her in that casket.”
The priest grimaced. “You must leave.”
Crystal batted her eyes and walked off. “No problem. I’ve been kicked out of better places.”
The show switched to commercials.
I stepped closer to the couch. “Kamal?”
With a weary gaze, he turned to me. “Yes.”
“What’s wrong with your place? Is everything okay?”
“No.”
“But. . .”
He left me there. “You want a beer or some wine?”
“Uh. . .it’s the middle of the afternoon, but. . .who cares, it’s a pandemic.”
“Exactly. We’re both stuck here. Might as well drink.” He picked up a bag. “I’ll put this stuff up.”
I watched him.
He pulled out a pack of beer and raised his eyebrows at me. “Why are you staring at me like that?”
“You haven’t really explained why you’re not staying at your place. It’s mega-huge—”
“How do you know that? You’ve never been.”
“Zora sent videos of your condo, when you bought it.”