An Unexpected Turn: That's A Trope, #1

By Meka James

Some detours can lead you to unexpected places…

 

May Benjamin takes her role as Maid-of-Honor very seriously and wants to ensure her best friend's dream wedding goes off without a hitch. Getting the wedding dress from Georgia to New York without incident is her top priority and she's up for the challenge until she finds out she won't be making her planned two day trip alone. Now she has to figure out how to spend hours alone, in confined quarters with a woman she can barely make eye contact with.

 

Best Woman Cicely Thompson hasn't had a lot of time for family due to her job as a freelance photographer, but she's committed to being present and involved in her brother's upcoming nuptials. When asked to accompany the somewhat standoffish Maid-of-Honor on a short road trip, she's happy to do her part. It doesn't hurt that she finds the other woman intriguing and attractive.

 

Fourteen hours in a car, plus a hotel hiccup just might send them veering off course and taking an unexpected turn.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jazen Ink Press
• Release date: Nov 11, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223286110

Meka James

Meka James is a writer of adult contemporary and erotic romance. A born and raised Georgia Peach, she still resides in the southern state with her hubby of 20-plus years. Mom to four kids, she also has four fur-babies of the canine variety. Leo the turtle and Spade the snake round out her wacky household. When not writing or reading, Meka can be found playing The Sims and making up fun stories to go with the pixel people whose world she controls.

Book preview

1

MAY

The knock on my door made me pause mid-brush. It was seven in the morning, and I didn’t get guests this early, especially not unplanned guests. Maybe the person had the wrong door. After a few seconds, I went back to brushing my teeth, staring at my reflection as I mentally went through my travel checklist.

Hotel confirmed. Route determined including timed stops for food and bathroom breaks. 

The knock sounded again. I frowned. Who the hell? I rinsed out my mouth and set my toothbrush back in the holder then quickly wiped my mouth on the hand towel before exiting my bathroom. My friend and neighbor Rodney was going to check in on Nyx while I was gone and I’d given him my key yesterday. I let out a dry laugh, he probably wanted to give me the latest scoop on his dating adventures. He’d again matched with the perfect guy and they’d had their first date last night. The events must have been something if he was up early to tell me all about it. At least one of us had some sort of social life.

As I started to remove the chain, I popped up on my toes to peer out the peephole, just to be sure. My breath caught and I quickly turned, pressing my back against the barrier separating me and the woman who seemed to amp up my ever-present, low-grade self-consciousness to level one hundred. 

How did she even know where I lived? 

She knocked again. May?

I quietly groaned. Every time she said my name it had this sigh at the end that sent my head spiraling into fairytales that would never come true. Taking a steadying breath, I turned and unlocked the deadbolt. 

Cicely, what are you doing here? And how did she look so put together so damn early in the morning?

We’d only seen each other a handful of times, but at each instance, Cicely Thompson looked like she’d stepped right off the page of some fashion magazine. Even when she was dressed casually like she currently was. Her dark hair was done neatly in two braids with the ends resting just past her collarbone. Cream linen shorts that stopped mid-thigh were a stark contrast against her smooth deep ebony skin. The loose-fitting green V-neck T-shirt was tucked into the front of the waistband, and I had to force myself not to stare at the tease of cleavage. It didn’t help that she wore one of those fancy fanny packs crossbody style and it rested right between her breasts. 

A broad smile stretched across her face. Good morning to you too, she answered, stepping forward which forced me backward. A soft citrusy scent tickled my nose as she walked past me.

Cicely Thompson, the groom’s sister and best woman, was standing in my apartment. 

She turned to face me, her eyes traveled the length of my body, and I was suddenly hyper-aware of how I was dressed. My unruly hair remained contained beneath my bonnet. I still had on my pajamas which consisted of my favorite, and well-worn Georgia State T-shirt and a pair of sleep shorts that barely covered my ass. 

Great, now I was going to have to walk out of my living room backward otherwise I’d basically flash her. 

Are you going to close that? She lifted her chin in the direction of the door, which was still open. 

I nodded quickly, shutting the door too fast and damn near slamming it. Shit! Why did this woman fluster me so?

Um… sorry. But, I’m confused. How are you here? Why are you here? I don’t usually get visitors unexpectedly.

Cicely moved further into my space and set the drink carrier she’d held on my coffee table. She straightened and slipped her hands into the pockets of her shorts. Yolanda didn’t tell you I was coming? She said she’d call you.

I bit the inside of my cheek and shook my head. With the wedding drawing closer, she has a lot on her mind, so she probably forgot. After work hours, my phone went into do not disturb, with Yolanda’s number being the only one set to ring through so I know I wouldn’t have missed it.

Huh. Okay, well. I’ll just hang out here while you finish getting ready. She glanced at the watch on her wrist, then back up at me. We’re set to go at eight, correct?

My confusion magnified. As maid of honor, I’d kept a meticulously detailed agenda for all things wedding and bride-related. People were not my strong suit, and my stomach roiled at the idea of the speech I’d have to give on the big day. But organization, lists, following plans, those things I excelled at. But Cicely’s question had me wracking my brain, worrying I’d somehow missed something important.

Um… go? Go where exactly?

She shifted her weight to one leg, hands still firmly in her pockets, and a deep frown graced her face. You are driving to New York today, right? That’s what Yolanda and Sid told me when we spoke. They said you were leaving this morning, and needed a co-pilot.

All air evaporated from my lungs at her statement. I stared wide-eyed attempting to process the words that had just crossed her lips. Lips I’d spent too much time wondering about on a woman I had no business wondering about. Yet, she was here, this morning, to do a two-day car trip with me. And Yolanda had sent her. Without calling me? I knew she had wedding brain, but… she wouldn’t deliberately not give me the heads up. 

But two days. In a car. With Cicely. 

There was no way I’d survive that. Hell, as it stood, her being here was the first time we’d been alone together and I was currently lingering near my front door, damn near on edge in my own apartment, desperately worried I was going to say something completely wrong and leave an even worse impression.

May? Here. She turned and pulled one of the to-go cups from the cardboard tray and held it out towards me. Maybe a little caffeine will perk you up.

I shuffled forward, gingerly taking the cup, making sure to grasp it near the bottom to avoid contact with her. My comment about not drinking coffee sat on the tip of my tongue, but the string from a tea bag swung into my view. I ran my fingers over the tiny square piece of paper.

Thanks.

You’re welcome. Yolanda told me you aren’t a coffee person, so hope the tea is to your liking. She gave me another soft smile and my stomach did a flip.

That was very thoughtful. Thank you. I clasped my hands around my cup, making sure to not squeeze too hard and send the contents spewing everywhere. The warmth radiating from it helped ground me as I was still trying to process the new information. Make yourself comfortable. I’m gonna go get dressed.

I started to walk down the hall but remembered my shorts situation. I could come off as a bigger oddball by walking backward, or I could hope she’d not pay attention. Just play it cool. I took measured steps toward my bedroom while resisting the urge to look back to see if she was watching me.

Once in the safety of my room, I shut the door before quickly stepping over to my nightstand to retrieve my phone and set down the tea. Yes, it was early, but I needed to know what the hell was up. The more I thought about it, the more uneasy I became. Why wouldn’t Yolanda call or at the very least text me? Did she not trust me to get her dress to New York safely on my own? I knew she thought I was off my rocker to choose a fourteen-hour drive over a two-hour flight, but she knew planes weren’t my friend. If given the option, I’d drive or take a train. Flying was a last resort. And one I’d managed to avoid so far in my life. Georgia to New York was an easy enough trip, especially since I broke it up into two parts. Was she doubting me? Even after Sidney had agreed, my driving would take the stress off Yolanda since she’d feared the airline would damage, or worse lose her dress somehow. The idea of her not trusting me set my stomach in knots.

Hello? Her voice was groggy, and I instantly felt like shit for calling. 

Um, hey Yo-yo. Sorry for waking you.

Everything okay?

Uh… yeah. No. I don’t know.

I heard rustling on her end and the muffled voice of Sidney. What’s wrong? She sounded much more awake with that question.

Cicely’s here. She said you and Sidney wanted her to ride with me. Why? And why didn’t you tell me? But I didn’t voice that question. I put my thumbnail into my mouth and removed it just as quickly. 

I couldn’t mess up the damn French tips all the bridesmaids were wearing. I’d had them for only a day and was already tired of them. They made me feel clumsy. I couldn’t properly type, or open small things and I’d gotten them as short as I could. Honestly, I