Amended Hearts (Interracial Romance)

Chapter Two: And Then Our Lips...

“Really. I do a lot of entertainment law. As a matter of fact, one of the guys I help my boss to represent is here tonight. He’s a producer for that new teenage action movie.”

“You mean the one the kids were watching tonight?”

“Yeah, wasn’t that sweet of him? He brought it so that they would have something to do besides hang out with us, being miserable. He brought a few others for them to look at too, just in case.”

“I would think that with a setup like the one I saw in the entertainment room, there would already be a lot of first run movies available here.”

“Don’t let first impressions fool you. Most of the time when Derrick isn’t here, that TV stays off. He’s an architect with his own firm you know, and also does both interior and exterior design work. He’s a great big brother, and also the one who bought this house as a graduation present and oversaw its renovation, so he had a lot to say about what he wanted in a house. His original argument was, “What about when you get a man? Where are we going to watch the game?” When he saw that that wasn’t getting him anywhere, he decided to play hardball. He bought a copy of Kathleen Battle performing a beautiful aria and played it at his house, where there’s a similar setup. He won that round, and the TV was installed the next day.”

They shared a laugh that broke the ice between them. He was strangely pleased to find out that Derrick and Aaliyah were brother and sister. Yet, he was enjoying his time here with Kitty so much. They continued to talk and to laugh, as they shared the fruit and the cider.

Aaliyah’s head was spinning. She thought, “This can’t be happening. He’s never been interested in me before, and I’ve lived here over a year now. It seemed surreal, like a scene right out of a romantic fantasy movie.” She reached absently for another strawberry, biting into it and using her tongue to clean away any excess chocolate from her lips.

On the other hand, the sight of her tongue running unconsciously across her lips transfixed Gabriel. She was obviously not trying to seduce him, which made it all the more effective. She’d left a little fleck of chocolate just to the right of her mouth and he leaned in slowly, giving her plenty of time to withdraw. He looked into her eyes, witnessing both uncertainty and invitation there. Then, she closed them, offering her lips with an indrawn breath.

He began at the corner of her cheek by her ear, slowly kissing his way toward her mouth. When he reached the chocolate his tongue darted out, startling a gasp from her lips and parting them. That was all the invitation he needed. Capturing her lips with his own, he began to sip from her, first holding her mouth in position by cupping her face in his hands, then putting his arms around her to draw her into closer contact.

They both drew back as they heard footsteps coming toward them from the opposite direction than they had taken. Aaliyah used one of the napkins to wipe her lip-gloss from Gabriel’s mouth. Then they hurriedly stood.

Derrick came into view. “I thought you might be here. Mrs. Reardon’s been having a fit, trying to figure out where you went,” he said, speaking of the neighborhood’s biggest gossip. “I just came to tell you that the party is winding down, and people are starting to leave. I thought you might want to speak with some of them first.”

Aaliyah looked at her watch. She blinked. They couldn’t have been in here that long.

“Speaking of people we wanted to talk to, have you seen Aaliyah? I never did find her, tonight,” Gabriel interjected.

“But you…” began Derrick, shooting a bewildered glance at Aaliyah.

 “But I’m her,” Aaliyah choked out at the same time.