Melted

Alijah didn't know how she had ended up on her parent's doorstep with Kieran beside her for Thanksgiving dinner. Actually, that was a lie. She remembered exactly how it had come about.

*Alijah could hear her phone ringing in the living room. Sliding out of Kieran's arms, she picked up one of his shirts, putting it on as she exited the bedroom. She padded down the hall quickly. Picking up the phone, she answered it without looking at that caller-id.

"Hello,” she spoke, bringing the phone to her ear.

"Nicolette."

Alijah groaned internally but managed to keep it from escaping her lips. "Hello, mother."

"I hadn't heard from you, Nicolette. I decided to give you a call since you don't believe in calling your parents.

Alijah rolled her eyes. For the oddest reason, her mother had always called her by her middle name. As far as Alijah was concerned, if her mother liked it so much, she should have just named her that. She was also rolling her eyes at the fact that her mother wanted to play the victim in the situation. Without a doubt, Alijah called her parents far more than they called her. Hell, they hadn't bothered to call and wish her a happy birthday a few months ago.

"I've been busy working, mother. You know that."

"I know that's what you say,” her mother responded with condescension. Alijah reached up and gripped her hair, remaining silent. "However, that isn't the reason for my call. We are having Thanksgiving dinner this year at home. Taila and Chayse will be here."

Alijah stopped for a moment to think. She wasn't sure if she could trust her mother. After all, the woman was a habitual liar. She would tell Alijah anything to get her there. She hadn't been home much since she had left for college.

"I'll see, mother. I may have to work."

"What kind of boss would make you work on..."

"I have to go," Alijah stated, cutting her off. "I'll talk to you later." With that, both women hung up the phone.

Heading back down the hall, she laid her phone on the bedside table before sliding back into bed with a sigh. Kieran wrapped an arm around her waist, and he pulled her close to him.

"Everything alright?" He questioned.

"Yeah. It was just my mother." Alijah told him. She thought for a moment. "She wants me to come home for Thanksgiving. Apparently, there will be a family dinner at my parent's house."

"The office will be closed for the holiday. You should go."

"I don't want to go. I've told you that my parents and I don't get along. What's the point in going and being miserable?"

"I recall telling you something along those lines when the old man showed up at my office,” he told her. Alijah sighed, knowing he was right. "I'll let you take the company plane." He tacked on.

Then an idea hit her. Turning to face Kieran, Alijah kissed his chin. "Will you come with me?"

"Alijah, I..." He stopped when she gave him that look he found increasingly harder to resist. Leaning in, he kissed her gently. "If you want me to."

She nodded. "Thank you."*

After that, she called Chayse and asked if she and her mom were going to dinner at her parents. Her cousin informed her that they were, so Alijah decided to go. She called Erin to see if she wanted to go as well. Figuring as many people as she could have in her corner would help, but Erin informed her that she was flying out to visit her Dad and grandmother for the holiday.

So, Alijah had called her mother back and accepted her invitation, telling her she would be bringing someone with her. Her mother had been a bit shocked at first. Probably because she never brought people home. Not even in high school.

They had flown in the night before and stayed at the hotel. Now, they were waiting for her mother or father to answer the door and let them in. It was eleven in the morning, and the food wasn't due to be served until three, but her mother wanted everyone there before noon.

When the door opened, it was her father standing there. He greeted her, looking past her to Kieran before nodding in greeting to him and letting them in.

"Father, this is Kieran. Kieran, Cornelius." Alijah stated, making the introductions. Her father nodded before going back into the living room.

"Your mother's in the kitchen." He called over his shoulder.

Alijah rolled her eyes. For as long as she'd been alive, that's where her father thought all women should be, in the kitchen. He wasn't that old, so she didn't know where he got that way of thinking. His parents, her paternal grandparents, had not been that way.

She took Kieran's hand and led the way into the kitchen, where she found her mother mixing something in a bowl. She waited until she placed the bowel on the counter. Her mother was dramatic. So, Alijah knew that had she tried to get her attention with the bowl in her hand, she probably would have dropped it...on purpose.

"Mother,” she called, gaining her attention. Her mother looked over her shoulder before turning to face her fully. "Kieran, this is my mother, Anya. Mother, this is my boyfriend, Kieran,” she introduced again.

The word boyfriend felt weird rolling from her tongue. She had never called him that before. Though she knew it was technically what he was. She watched as he held out his hand, and her mother placed hers' daintily in it.

"A pleasure to meet you,” he told her, and her mother gave him a small smile.

"Did you need any help?" Alijah questioned.

"Not in the kitchen, no. If you could go upstairs and check in on Carter for me, that would help."

"Carter?" Alijah questioned.

"Yes, Nicolette." Her mother stated as if she hadn't just thrown out some random name to her. "He's in your old room."

Alijah looked at Kieran before turning and leaving out of the kitchen. She headed up the stairs with him behind her. When she got to her old room, the door was opened, and she noticed that everything had been changed around. It had been transformed into a little boy's room and said little boy was lying in the middle of the floor smashing Transformers together as if they were fighting.

She knocked on the door, and he stated for her to come in without looking to see who it was. When she entered the room, she walked around him to stand in front of him.

"Hey, Carter. I'm Alijah. My mo..."

Alijah didn't finish her sentence. The child looked up at her at that point with a massive smile on his face, and she felt she was kicked in the gut.

"You're my new sister!" He exclaimed, jumping up and hugging her.

Her shock had her paralyzed, and she couldn't even hug the little boy back, but he didn't seem to notice as he beamed up at her with that smile again before going back to his Transformers. Alijah made her way out of the room and past Kieran.

"Baby, what's wrong?" Kieran questioned.

Alijah didn't answer him. She made her way back into the kitchen, where her mother was checking on something in the oven.

"Mother, who is that little boy?" She questioned.

"I told you. That's Carter."

"Why is he here?" Alijah then inquired.

"Your father and I are adopting him. His biological mother is having a hard time caring for him."

Alijah wanted to call bullshit and flip out and fire off something smart. She even felt it coming. That is until Kieran placed his hand on her back and steered her from the kitchen, telling her mother they would be right back. He led her outside and to the car they had rented. He pushed her against the passenger side door — his hands on her waist.

"What is it? Do you know that little boy?" Kieran questioned.

Alijah shook her head as she crossed her arms over her chest. "No. But I know who his father is,” she told him. When Kieran raised an eyebrow, waiting, she continued. "Cornelius. I'm not his new sister. I'm merely his sister. And I can promise you my mother didn't give birth to him.

Kieran stared at Alijah for a moment before blinking slowly. He processed what she had just said to him, and simply put, she believed that her father had cheated on her mother, had another baby, and now he and her mother were going to adopt and raise the boy. That was Jerry Springer/Maury type shit if he'd ever heard any.

"Are you sure?" He questioned.

"Yes. He's the spitting image of Cornelius when he was that age."

Kieran nodded. "Do you think your mother knows?"

"Of course, she does. She and my father grew up in the same neighborhood. They've known each other since they were in diapers. She knows, but this is what she does. Spins things so they fit her needs."

Just then, a car pulled behind theirs. He watched as Chayse got out of the driver's seat, and another woman got out of the passenger side. He watched Chayse smile at him before her eyes turned to Alijah, and she rushed over.

"What did your parents do?" She questioned, and Kieran wondered if her parents doing something to her was a regular occurrence.

After Alijah filled the women in and Kieran was introduced to Taila, Chayse's mother, they all headed back inside the house. He watched the two sisters interact, and though they were cordial, he knew that there was some friction between the two older ladies. While Kieran knew they were blood sisters because of their resemblance, Taila housed a slight French accent. He made a mental note to ask Alijah about that later.

At three o'clock, the food was served, and everyone gathered around the table. Kieran watched as Anya doted on Carter, cutting up his food, poking him softly in the side now and then, causing him to laugh, and running her fingers through his hair. He knew it was bothering Alijah by the way she gripped her silverware. He dropped his hand to her knee and massaged it gently.

"So, Kieran, what do you do?" Taila asked him, striking up a conversation.

"I guess you could say I'm in sales."

"Meaning what exactly?" Cornelius inquired. "Because I don't need my daughter with some drug dealer wannabe."

"Father," Alijah stated.

Kieran lifted his brow at the older man. From what he gathered, neither of her parents seemed particularly interested in what she did, so he wondered why the man was putting on a show for him. He was just about to ask him that when he opened his mouth and spoke again.

"A drug dealer can't do anything for her but get her sent to jail."

"I can assure you. I sell many things. Drugs are not one of them." Kieran replied calmly, taking a bite of his food. He figured it wouldn't be wise to get into it with her father.

"So, you sell stolen goods. Hot stuff. That's no better."

"Seriously, father. Kieran doesn't-"

"No, baby." Kieran cut her off. "That's okay."

It was quiet for a moment before Talia spoke up again.

"Well, if you don't mind me asking Kieran, what kind of things do you sell?"

Kieran smiled at her. "It honestly does vary. I own Cayman Industries. We deal in all sorts of products and business ventures. Whether it's investing in a start-up, creating a new product, or buying rights to an invention a creator has an issue with."

He could hear Cornelius choke on his food, and Kieran held back his smirk and a laugh. Taila and Chayse, however, did not and proceeded to.

Kieran knew his reputation preceded him. Everyone may not have known his face, but they knew his business, knew his name. He had his hands in many things. So, there was bound to be something that people associated him with.

Turning back to his food, he began eating like Cornelius had not just almost died from choking on ham. It was quiet for a while until Taila again broke it. He was starting to see she didn't like quiet.

"Alijah, I saw the photoshoot you and Erin did. It was amazing." Taila told her.

"Only because Chayse took the pictures," Alijah responded with a smile.

"My baby girl is talented," Taila stated, pulling gently on Chayse's ear. He watched as Chayse rolled her eyes playfully at her mother and turned to Alijah, and saw a look of longing pass over her face. She wanted that with her mother. It wasn't hard to tell.

"Chayse, when will you get a real job and stop running around taking pictures?" Cornelius questioned.

"When you decided to stop cheating on your wife. So, never,” she told him in French.

Taila burst into laughter along with Alijah, and Kieran almost spit out his drink. He had conducted enough business in France to pick up on the language, and he knew from their trip there that Alijah understood and spoke it pretty well. Cornelius and Anya seemed confused, and it simply served to piss them both off.

"What's so funny?" Carter questioned, looking around at all the adults.

"Nothing, sweetheart," Anya responded before running her hand over his hair.

After they had eaten, Cornelius had walked back into the living room, and after helping clear the table, Kieran had followed him. They sat in silence, watching the game for a few moments until Cornelius spoke.

"How did you meet my daughter?"

Kieran debated telling the man the truth or lying but decided he didn't care how he felt about it. "I hired her."

"She works for you," Cornelius confirmed as he turned to look at Kieran, who simply nodded. "So, when you're finally through with her, she'll be out of a job." The older man stated as a matter of fact.

Kieran clenched his jaw. "I don't plan on ever being through with her." He gritted out.

Cornelius only snorted. "What could a man like you possibly want with a young, black girl? Other than what's between her legs?"

Kieran knew that he shouldn't say it. Hell, he even tried to swallow it down, but he had never proclaimed he wasn't an asshole, and he didn't care that this was her father. He was about a sentence away from putting the man on his ass.

"There's a lot of things I want with Alijah. Hearing her moan my name every night is just a bonus."

Kieran watched as the older man's jaw clenched and his eyes bore into him. He wasn't fazed, though. He was the master of that look, and nobody pulled it off like he did. For a moment, he thought the older man would lung at him. Hell, he was hoping he would. But he simply sized him up before pushing from his chair and walking out of the living room.

Kieran smirked to himself, but it fell a minute later. If Alijah found out what he had said to her father, he would be in trouble.

A few minutes passed, and Kieran heard hushed voices from down the hall since he was sitting in the seat closest to it. His curiosity got the better of him, and he followed the whispers, making them out as he got closer.

"How could you do that to her?" He heard Alijah ask.

"You don't know what you're talking about, little girl." He then heard her father respond.

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. You cheated and had a baby."

"I deserved at least one. I still don't know if you're mine." He heard her father snap back, and Kieran was pissed off.

They came into view as he rounded the corner. He could see that Alijah was holding back tears. Then those emeralds sparked with fire.

"Fuck you, old man!" She snapped.

Kieran had expected her father to have something to say to her. Probably something else hurtful. What he had not expected was for him to lift his hand and backhand her.

All Kieran saw was red as he surged across the hall and his fist connected with Cornelius' jaw. He stumbled to the floor, and Kieran snatched him up by his collar, hitting him again.

"Kieran!" Alijah called.

Yet, he couldn't stop himself. The man had put his hands on Kieran's woman. Father or not, he was going to be taught a lesson. He hit him again and felt the cracking of cartilage. Only when Alijah stepped in front of him and pushed him backward did he realize the other women had entered the hall, and Anya was yelling.

"Get him out of my house! See what you've done! You should have found a good black man like your father!"

"Like her father?" He heard Taila question as Alijah drug him towards the door. "The only quality he has from that sentence is black."

The door closed behind them, and Alijah walked over to the car. She waited for him to unlock the door before getting in. The ride back to the hotel was quiet. However, when they entered their suite. Alijah turned on him.

"How could you, Kieran?"

Kieran looked at her as if she was slow. How could he? Had her father not put his hands on her, Kieran wouldn't have beaten his ass. However, being who he was. He had to be a smart ass.

"The mechanics are simple, really. I just allowed my fist to collide with his face repeatedly."

She glared at him. "I'm serious. He's my father. You can't just go haul off and-"

Kieran cut her off by crowding her space. "Yes, I can. Any man that decides he's brave enough to put his hands on my woman needs to be brave enough to take the ass whooping I'm going to give him." He placed his hands on her waist and his forehead against hers. "I'm not going to stand by and watch someone disrespect you or put their hands on you. Father or not. If the Grim Reaper came for you right this second, he'd have to fight me to get you, baby."

His words brought Alijah to her tiptoes, and she pressed her lips to his. He moved his lips in sync with hers as he felt her unbutton his shirt before pushing it off of his arms. Her hands then went to his slacks and worked to release the button and zipper.

Kieran broke the kiss momentarily to pull her dress over her head. He undid her bra and pulled it down her arms throwing it to the floor. Kieran stepped away from her to remove his shoes and the rest of his clothing. He watched as she did the same. He grabbed a condom from the nightstand where they'd had them last night, opening it and sliding it on.

Grabbing her waist, he pushed her backward until she hit the bed and sat down. He climbed over her, moving her backward until they were in the middle of the bed. He placed his lips back to her and reached between them to see if she was wet enough. Usually, he would have spent time devouring her, but he felt overly eager to join his body with hers for some reason. Positioning himself, he slid in slowly. His lips still pressed to hers.

Kieran slid in and out of her slowly. Unlike other times, he fought to control himself and not get lost in the moment. His strokes were long and slow, massaging her canal. Each time he entered her, he swiveled his hips—his pelvis brushing against her clitoris.

He continued this way for almost half an hour before he neared release. He had gotten her off twice. He had been giving her soft kisses the entire time, but he sat up slightly and looked into those green eyes when his release hit him.

Removing himself from her slowly, Kieran rolled to his side and discarded the condom before laying on his back and pulling her to him. He held her as she slowly skimmed her fingers over his abdomen.

He had half expected her to ask him to speed up some time doing their sex. However, she hadn't. It was as if she knew he specifically needed it. Something had changed, and he wasn't sure if she had noticed it, but he had. He didn't know when it happened, and he honestly felt like an idiot for just now realizing it, but she had managed to melt the block of ice he had around his heart and situate herself in it.