Quarantine and Chill (AMBW standalone Romance) Read online

  I walked on her right. “It’s a nice day.”

  “It is.”

  I wondered if she smiled under her mask. In that moment, I missed looking at her lips.

  What am I doing focusing on her mouth? I’ve had too many beers myself.

  I turned my attention from her. “Now that the city is going to be on lockdown, will you shorten Ganesha’s walks?”

  “Probably, but it was becoming my only exercise. Perhaps it will be okay as long as I stay away from people.”

  I caught a couple in front of us pushing a stroller. As soon as they spotted us, they walked across the street as if we might be infected. I didn’t blame them.

  We entered part of Prospect Park. It was a massive area. With the hustle and bustle of city life, green space symbolized a treasure to all. This was Brooklyn’s Central Park. Usually, bikers, joggers, and other dog walkers crowded the place. Today, only a few people scattered throughout the area. Everyone kept a good distance between each other.

  How long are we going to live like this? Can New Yorkers even deal with staying inside for too long?

  Jade pulled me out of my thoughts. “How big is this park? I tried going to the end. After a good hour, I gave up and headed back with Ganesha.”

  “We’re around Prospect Park West. It’s over 500 acres for sure. It’s shaped like a hexagon.”

  “I had no idea it was that huge.”

  “Yeah. There’s all types of entrances.”

  Three people waited by a huge tree and waved in our direction. Each held onto a dog.

  Ganesha increased his speed, yanking Jade forward and barking.

  I kept his pace. “This is his crew?”

  “It is, and as you can see your furry nephew takes this moment in the day very serious.”

  Jade introduced me to all of the dog owners.

  An older red-headed woman was named Brenda. She held tight to the Bichon Frise called Madonna. She was a retired nurse but was considering going back to her hospital if the pandemic became worse. Jade volunteered to take Madonna on walks if she needed.

  Patrick was a short man that had brought a labradoodle named Spencer. He owned three bars throughout Brooklyn. He spent most of the hour freaking out about the economy which caused Brenda to argue with him. She didn’t care about the state of the market. She worried about the strain on the health care system.

  And then there was Oliver who owned a big fitness center and spa near Zora’s apartment. He had a Spaniel named Elizabeth. Apparently, he worked out a lot and had no problem showing his body off. His arms bulged in the tightest shirt that I’d ever beheld in my life.

  Does he not know his size?

  Not as tall as me, I towered over him and enjoyed that fact.

  Still, he flashed Jade smiles the whole time and constantly whipped his long sandy blonde hair around as if one flip would make her panties wet. He had a spaniel named Elisabeth—who Ganesha was totally captivated with. This meant that Oliver remained close to Jade the whole hour.

  I bet he doesn’t even like spaniels. That dog is a total chick magnet.

  When Jade and I had first walked up to them, Oliver was the only one who frowned at me. Then, Jade introduced me as Zora’s brother and a smile appeared on his face.

  “I’m telling you.” Patrick pulled out a bag and picked up the poop that Spencer had dropped on the grass. “This virus will not only disrupt our lives, but it’s going to be trouble for all small business owners.”

  “A smart business owner maintains a good savings account for emergencies.” Oliver winked at Jade. “That’s what I did. I have around a year’s of savings worth for disasters like this.”

  “Good for you.” Jade nodded.

  Brenda waved everyone away. “This may not be a big deal. If everyone stays home, less will get infected. Then we can flatten the curve.”

  Oliver nudged Jade’s arm. “On any given Friday night, I’ve been known to flatten a few curves.”

  Jade gave him a weak smile.

  Did he have to touch her? Has he heard of personal space?

  Being guided by their dogs, Brenda and Patrick headed several feet away, deep in their heated debate.

  Oliver looked my way and noticed me watching them. “What do you think, Kamal?”

  You need a bigger shirt.

  I grinned at the thought. “Think about what?”

  “What do you do? Are you affected by this situation?”

  “I’m in tech security. Most of my employees can do their jobs from home.”

  “Your employees?” Oliver chuckled. “We’ve got a Mr. Big Shot over here.”

  Jade shook her head and walked Ganesha over to the other side of the tree. There, my furry nephew did his business. Jade took a bag out and cleaned it up.

  Oliver watched her walk off, definitely gaping at her behind. It was hard not to in those jeans. Still, I didn’t appreciate him ogling her.

  Oliver turned back to me. “It was nice for you to come out here. Will you be coming out here more often with Jade?”

  “Yes.” I put my hands in my pockets. “Every day.”

  “So, you’re moving to the area or something?”

  “Or something.”

  “Jade is a nice woman.” Smiling, he continued to watch her. “Very shy, but—”

  “Shy?”

  “She won’t let me take her out.”

  I glared. “It’s a pandemic.”

  “We can keep our distance.”

  “She’s taken.”

  He frowned. “She is?”

  I nodded. “Trust me. You don’t want to deal with her man.”

  “Oh. I had no idea.”

  I shrugged. “It probably never came up.”

  He ran his fingers through his hair. “Oh well. There’s no ring on her finger. He’s probably a sucker. She’s still free in my book.”

  I stepped closer to him and kept my voice low. Still, an edge filled my tone. “It doesn’t matter. Stay away from her.”

  Oliver widened his eyes. “Okay, buddy. Do you know the guy or something?”

  “I don’t like people who don’t have respect for other’s relationships.” I pulled out my hands from my pockets and fisted them.

  “All right.” Oliver stepped back and raised his hands in the air. “I was just saying she’s not married so—”

  “Doesn’t matter.”

  “I get it, but—”

  “She’s still taken. Stay away from her.”

  His forehead wrinkled. “I’ve got it.”

  Jade headed over with Ganesha. “Hey, guys. Is everything okay?”

  “Yeah. Are you ready?”

  She nodded. “I drank a little too much. I need to get back to the house and have some water.”

  “Sounds good to me.” I waved at Oliver. “Bye.”

  He frowned. “Bye. And. . .see you later, Jade.”

  “Okay.” She waved goodbye. “Stay safe.”

  We left the park.

  After several feet, Jade glanced my way. “What happened?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “It looked like you wanted to hit Oliver.”

  “He was ogling you and talking about how he didn’t care that you had a boyfriend, he would still go after you.”

  “I have a boyfriend?”

  “I told him you did. He didn’t seem like your type.”

  “He’s not, but I would rather you not tell people I’m taken.”

  “Why not?”

  She shrugged. “It’s a lie and you never know. He might’ve had a cute brother or something.”

  “No. He’s a muscle head moron. His brother would probably be one too and also have on an even tighter shirt.”

  She laughed. “His shirt was pretty tight, but I’m not mad at that.”

  I shook my head.

  “What? Women can be shallow too.”

  “Apparently.” I considered how she gazed at me in T& T earlier today. I had to admit I enjoyed her attention and her
agreement with Ross on having women ride me. The only thing I wondered was if she would be interested in grabbing a ticket and hopping on. Not that it mattered. The last thing I needed to do was make a move on my sister’s bestie. Especially right after this crap with Amber. Many times I’d left a relationship, gotten drunk, found a female, and had a quick fling based on nothing but hot sex.

  I actually liked the sound of that now, but Jade couldn’t be the female. Those flings always involved women that I never had to see weeks later. Whereas Jade came to all family gatherings—Thanksgiving, Christmas dinner, Easter, and other celebrations. She’d even been at my college graduation, partying right next to Zora.

  I could make no move on Jade. Mom would be disappointed if I broke Jade’s heart. Zora would lose her mind.

  “What are you thinking about?” Jade asked when we hit the building’s front door.

  “Nothing.”

  “I was thinking that maybe we should buy an air mattress or something because the couch is going to be uncomfortable for me.”

  I shook my head. “You’re not sleeping on the couch. I am.”

  “Sure, but it won’t be enjoyable.”

  “You let me worry about that.”

  “You should be comfortable.”

  Warmth rose in my chest. It was nice to be around a woman who thought about my needs, instead of complained and demanded. “I’ll be fine, Jade.”

  “We still should order one.”

  So much had occurred today—from the state lockdown, Amber cheating, and Jade being at my sister’s place—I hadn’t spent much thought on the sleeping arrangements.

  “Maybe, you’re right. I’ll order one later.” I opened the door for her.

  Ganesha trotted through first. She followed. “Hopefully, it will come in time.”

  “If not, then I’ll deal with the couch.” I walked behind her as we headed up the stairs, doing my best to not study the curve of her ass.

  Flatten the curve. I bet Oliver thought he would be flattening a lot with Jade. He better stay away.

  His not caring that she had a man made me angry. It struck a nerve with Amber’s cheating earlier. Granted, it wasn’t the other person’s fault. The deceitful significant partner was the problem.

  Anger rose in me.

  To get rid of it, I went back to the lovely curve of Jade’s ass, feeling guilty as my cock jerked in my jeans.

  It’s just a little look. How can I not? It’s right there in my face.

  “Worst case scenario,” Jade’s ass wiggled as she climbed the stairs. “We can maybe share the bed. Of course that’s until the air mattress arrives. But that’s only if the couch is giving you trouble.”

  My cock jerked again. Sharing the bed with Jade would trigger nothing but trouble. Although my mother, sister, and I loved her like family, she wasn’t my relative. She was a sexy, fun, woman. So warm and soft. If she lay next to me in those damn little Hello Kitty shorts, I wouldn’t get any sleep. I would be thinking about yanking them down and playing with her pussy.

  She glanced over her shoulder. “What do you think?”

  I licked my lips. “Sounds good. We can share the bed, if necessary.”

  What the fuck? Why did I say that? We can’t.

  I cleared my throat. “However, tonight I’ll sleep on the couch.”

  “Okay. I can grab you some extra blankets and pillows.”

  I went back to watching her ass, knowing I should stop, but it was the best moment of the day.

  “Just let me know if you need anything.”

  I need a lot right now, Jade. A whole lot. I need a nice wet distraction away from this crisis.

  When we got back inside, I took a cold shower to get me out of the rising lusty fog. It helped. I put on new sweatpants and a white shirt, getting as comfortable as I could. I preferred to sleep in the nude. There was no way I could do that this week.

  Jade took a shower after me.

  I explored the cabinets and fridge, realizing that we would have to get food supplies tomorrow. Usually, I had them delivered. Hopefully, my sister’s apartment was in an area that served.

  I checked my phone. There were ten missed calls from Amber. It appeared she would not stop bothering me today. For a minute, I wondered if there was some emergency. I checked her text messages.

  Amber: Where are you staying? Why won’t you answer the phone?

  Amber: You better not be with anyone else. I know that I messed up, but we have to talk.

  Is she serious?

  I let out a long breath and typed back.

  Me: In the morning, you’ll have six days. Use that time wisely.

  After that message, I shut off the phone, sat on the couch, and noticed Ganesha sleeping on a pile of folded blankets. His pink kitten lay next to him. “Really, buddy? Jade put those out for me.”

  Several deep snores left him.

  I grabbed the remote, put the tv on the sports channel, and leaned back on the sofa. I hoped for any news besides the coronavirus, but even this network had remained on the topic. All sports events would now be canceled not just in the US, but all over the world.

  I turned the volume up.

  The sports analyst spoke, “Since the opening of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896, the international sports competition has only been canceled three times: once during World War I which was in 1916 and then twice during World War II which was 1940 and 1944. Now in 2020, the Summer Olympics will be canceled due to the COVID-19 outbreak.”

  “Holy shit. No Olympics this summer?” Jade walked out in a hot red cotton bodysuit. It hugged her body and had a low-cut V-neckline.

  I grunted.

  She stood near the couch and stared at the screen.

  At this point, I had blocked out the analyst’s words. That outfit had my full attention.

  I kept the hungry growl out of my tone. “Where are you going?”

  “What do you mean?”

  I gestured to her enticing frame. “The bodysuit.”

  “Bodysuit?” She laughed. “It’s my new pajamas from Ross.”

  I frowned. “He picked those out.”

  “Yeah. He called them Love Me A Lot long johns.” She walked off to the kitchen. On her ass was a back flap with several button snaps. It didn’t look like she had panties on. I couldn’t find the outline of them under the thin material. With one quick tug, I could bend her over and ram my cock into that ass.

  My length grew in my sweatpants. I grabbed a pillow and placed it over my lap.

  She opened the fridge and bent over. “Do you want a beer?”

  I lifted my head and gawked at that round ass.

  “Kamal?” She rose and looked back at me. “Do you want a beer?”

  I changed my view. “Yes. Thank you.”

  “Do you mind if I have one of yours? I’ll get you some more beer tomorrow.”

  “Don’t worry about it. You can have everything you want.”

  Including my cock deep inside of you.

  Groaning, I rubbed my face with both hands.

  Chill out, man.

  Her sweet voice sounded close to me. “Are you okay?”

  “Yeah.” I moved my hands.

  She stood right in front of me, looking so delicious. Holding a beer in each hand, she did a twirl, showing me more of her body. “So?”

  I licked my lips and growled out, “Yes.”

  “Do you like these long johns better than the pajamas?”

  My cock jumped. “Yes. They’re very nice.”

  “Good because I’m not taking any more complaints about my clothing for the rest of this week.” She handed me my beer.

  “I promise I won’t complain.”

  “Good.” She headed back to the bedroom.

  “You’re going to sleep?” I could hear the pleading in my voice.

  Calm down.

  “No. I was going to read a book in the bedroom. I didn’t want to take up your space.”

  “No way. Hang out with me.”r />
  “Okay.” She twisted around. Her breasts bounced with the movement. That V-neck revealed a lovely visual of perfect cleavage. I didn’t know if I should tip Ross or curse him out.

  You knew what you were doing, Ross. You could have easily found more appropriate sleepwear.

  She sat next to me. Her lovely scent filled the space and I found comfort in it. “So, what are we going to watch?”

  I handed her the remote. “Zora has Netflix on here. I know because I hooked her system up when she first moved in. Let’s find a movie.”

  “Oh, I’m down for that.” She smiled.

  I loved the joy on her face.

  “Oh, and there’s popcorn in the cabinet. I can do that—”

  “No. You find the movie. I’ll do the popcorn.” I considered rising but needed to wait a few minutes for my cock to go soft. “Just give me a minute.”

  “No problem. It’ll take me forever to find a good movie. Any categories you don’t want to see?”

  “Nothing about outbreaks or pandemics.”

  “That’s a no for me too.” She pressed some buttons on the remote. “How about a good comedy?”

  “Sounds good, but not a Romcom. I can’t take romance right now.”

  “Due to the breakup? What happened again?”

  I frowned. “Nice try.”

  She glanced at me and then returned to the TV. “Sorry.”

  At the inquiry of Amber and me, my cock instantly softened. I moved the pillow, rose, and went to the kitchen.

  “How about an action-comedy? Two spies—a guy and a girl. Both hot. They have to stop some evil—”

  “You had me at spies.” I opened the cabinet and pulled out the popcorn. “Let’s go with that.”

  “Alrighty. Movie night is in effect.”

  Chapter 5

  Jade

  Caramel Macchiatos

  The movie played in front of us.

  Kamal grabbed a handful of popcorn from the bowl. “This is becoming a romance.”

  “Kind of, but I love Ace and Brooke. They’re perfect for each other.” I tossed some popcorn in my mouth.

  “Netflix tricked us. This was only supposed to be an action movie.”

  “Not really. In the end, if it is a guy and a girl on a mission together, they’re probably going to fall in love.”

  Kamal turned my way. “It’s unnecessary. Why can’t they both be professionals and take care of the task at hand? Why have them fall in love?”