Page 16 of The Wrong Reciprocation

And it would. It was a simple matter of allowing her feelings to run out. She was no longer feeding them—not intentionally—so eventually they would go away. That's what she told herself over and over as the week of the trip loomed closer and closer. Maybe it would have helped to see Arturo moving on. If he developed an office crush or allowed one of the many women who crushed on him to have a moment of his time, then Twyla could take that and move on too.

But it didn't happen. Arturo didn't hold conversations with anyone in the break room over his morning coffee—as a matter of fact, he started taking his coffee straight to his desk. He didn't engage with those bold ones who leaned over his desk and tried to pry a smile out of those lips. Not that Twyla was watching, but Arturo seemed to have shut down just as she had. That didn't please her, though. It made things worse. It confirmed that their little office romance had been just as meaningful to him as it had to her and she just didn't know what it would take for them to come out on the other side of this thing.

The day before she was due to fly to Tennessee for a long overdue, but dreaded ten days away, she moved through work like a zombie. She was torn between wanting the vacation and wanting to burrow in her sheets and turn off the world. Her only consolation was that the cabin was so large that there were multiple places that she could hide out from everyone and—most importantly—avoid Arturo.

After her lunch break, she shuffled into the rest room to relieve the pressure on her bladder. After she washed her hands, she stared down into the sink, wondering why her feelings wouldn't wash away as easily as the suds from the soap washed down the drain. Wondering why things couldn't just be simple. Twyla had no idea how long she had been standing there, staring into the washbasin before she heard a question called out to her.

"You okay sis?"

Blinking, she looked toward the door of the restroom and noticed that the question had come from one of the team leads in her department.

"Seraph, hey. My bad, am I blocking the sink?"

The other woman's brows furrowed and she took a step toward Twyla.

"I asked if you were okay."

"I'm—" The lie was stuck to the roof of her mouth like peanut butter. Finally, she shook her head and chuckled self-deprecatingly. "No, I'm not."

Closing the gap of space between them, Seraph quickly assessed Twyla from head to toe before meeting her eyes, the concern in her own clearly evident. "What's wrong?"

Twyla swallowed hard. "Um, I'm in love with the only man on the planet that I cannot have and I am drowning under the pressure of it."

Her neck jerking back, Seraph's eyes widened in surprise. "Oh."

This time, Twyla's giggle was genuine, and she was grateful to even feel humored by anything. "Yeah. Well…it's shitty but it's life, I guess. I'll get over this eventually. Hopefully. I just wish I had a magic wand to wipe away all of these feelings in one swipe."

Canting her head to the side, Seraph observed her thoughtfully. Then she lowered her voice and said, "I don't know about a wand, but I do know where you can get some magic."

6

THE ORDER OF THINGS

That evening, Twyla stood on the sidewalk outside of Zing's Sweet and Sour and contemplated whether or not she wanted to enter the seemingly innocuous candy store. Seraph had told her that the women inside might be able to help her, and although she was skeptical, she was even more desperate. Taking a deep breath, she tried to suck up some courage and release her fear. It didn't work but at least she tried. Pushing open the door, she entered the building and stopped in the center aisle, letting the door swing close behind her as she glanced around and observed her surroundings.

"Welcome to Zing's Sweet and Sour."

Twyla turned toward the soothing voice infused with warmth until her eyes landed on a woman who was standing behind the counter straight-ahead, at the back of the store. The woman said nothing else, seemingly waiting for Twyla to speak. Twyla headed in her direction. She had to be one of the two women that Seraph had told Twyla about.

As Twyla approached her, the woman folded her bare arms on top of the counter and offered Twyla a small smile.

"Good evening, sistah."

"Hello.” Twyla greeted cautiously. “I need your help."

The woman lifted an eyebrow and stared at her. "Well, you have made a smart choice, coming to a candy shop to cure your sadness."

Twyla blinked several times. Seraph had warned her that her emotions would somehow be called out, but to experience it was something else entirely. This woman must be Zing.

"My friend, Seraph, recommended you to me. She said you might be able to help me with my…issue."

The curtain of beads behind Zing parted and an older woman came to stand beside Zing. She slipped am arm around Zing’s waist and pressed a kiss to her cheek before turning her warm brown eyes onto Twyla and giving her an indulgent smile.

Mama Sari. This was Zing's mother.

"Hello, dearest. Did you say Seraph sent you?"

Twyla nodded. "Yes ma'am."