go.â
  *  *  * Â
Soleil lay in my lap as we watched some sappy love movie she had been dying to see. I was more of an action kind of person, so the movie wasnât holding my attention whatsoever.
I bent down so I could give her an upside-down kiss while my hands traveled from her stomach to her breasts.
âBaby, watch the movie,â she said, pushing my hands away.
âIâd rather watch your sexy ass in the bedroom than this horrible movie right now.â
I maneuvered around so I could be on top of her. She giggled as I covered her face with more wet kisses.
âCut it out, Onyx. Letâs watch this movie for once.â
The phone rang. I let her go saying, âSaved by the phone.â
âYou want me to get it?â
âSure.â
She answered, âHelloâ¦â She frowned while she listened to whoever it was on the other end.
âWho is it?â I asked, reading her dazed expression.
âYour mother.â
I took the phone from her. âMother?â
âOnyx?â
âYes.â
âHave you seen Rain?â
The panic in her voice startled me. âI havenât seen him since I left the club. Whatâs wrong?â
âI canât find him. Legend thinks he may have gone to the university to look for Essence.â
âWhat? I thought you told him to stay away from the campus right now.â
âRain hasnât been himself lately. This is the second time heâs been to her dorm since I gave him direct orders.â
âIâll go find him.â
âGood. Let me know what happens when you return.â
I hung up the phone and rushed to the door.
âOnyx,â Soleil called after me.
âIâll be right back.â
âWhere are you going?â A worried look covered her face.
I kissed her forehead. âI have to go find Rain.â
  *  *  * Â
I waited in the shadows on the rooftop of the dorm where Essence and Colette stayed. It was close to 9 p.m. and I spotted Rain following Essence. Why was he stalking this woman?
As soon as Essence disappeared inside of the building, I jumped down from the roof and crept up behind Rain. He felt my presence and turned around.
âHowâd you know I was here?â he asked.
âMother called me. What are you doing here, Rain?â
âIâm here to make sure Essence is safe and I need to make sure that sheâs not seeing anyone else...â
âYouâve got to be kidding me. What are you going to do if she is seeing another man? Then what?â
âI will rip him to pieces.â
âThatâs not in your character, Rain. You might as well let her go.â
Rain stepped close to me and got in my face. âI wonât ever let her go. I love her too much.â
âThereâs nothing you can do about this. Rain, you might as well let Mother kill her.â
âI wonât let Mother kill her, Onyx. Are you not my brother? I need you to have my back on this. What if this were Soleil, we were standing here talking about? I donât see you killing your child and I donât see you killing her.â
I understood once Rain put it that way. I would pay for it later to go against our parents, but I had to trust him and have his back. âLet me know if you need my help.â
CHAPTER 20
RAIN
I knocked on Essenceâs dorm room right after Onyx went back home. He needed to trust me to handle my situation. I didnât need any one of them holding my hand through my own mess. Iâd created it, so I was going to fix it. If Essence didnât want to be with me, then I was going to have to deal with letting her go.
Essence opened the door for me with a look of surprise. âRain⦠What are you doing here?â
âI canât go another day without seeing you. Can I come in?â
She opened the door wider, so I could walk in. âYou see me, so what
C. J. Cherryh
Learning to Kill: Stories
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