"Nah, I’m not, but," he stopped, adjusting the boxes in his arms.
"Look, Bria, I'm moving back to my hometown in Virginia, and I'm taking Love with me."
"What?" My voice projected instantly.
"No. Why?"
"That's where all my family is. I need help with her. "
"You have help here. I'm here," I said, stepping in front of him. "I told you that you can stay here for however long without payment until you're caught up. I told you that I would help out with Love. I want to be there for her."
He placed the boxes down, rubbing his hand over his face. "Bria, come on. You and I both know that taking care of Love is afull-time job; you don't have time for it. Stopping by with snacks every day for a few hours isn’t raising her. My mama and sister back home are both on disability, and they said they'll keep her every day while I work."
"Nathan, that isn't how this has to be. We can find her a good daycare, split the time, and figure something out here. She's the only family I have left now besides my brother, and he's locked up for God knows how long. I want to be a part of her life. I need her, and she needs me. Come on. Don’t do this."
He shook his head, jaw tightening.
"Bria, you and I both know that one day you might have your own family. Your own life, so the time you're offering right now won't always be there. I already told my boss I'm not coming back in two weeks. I'm just packing early to stay ahead. Ain't nothing left for me in New York anymore. Your sister was all I had, and even we didn't have what I thought we did. She couldn't even be honest with me about where she was fuckin working."
His voice broke a little on that last part, and I felt my stomach twist. Ever since Ryan died, I could tell he was holding onto anger more than grief by the way he couldn't look at her in that casket, the way his nose flared any time her name came up. I understood why he felt betrayed, but still, she loved him. She was just trying to keep them both afloat by working at that club. Ryan obviously wanted easy and fast money.
"Look, all I'm asking is two weeks. Let me prove I can be there for her."
He let out a long breath with tired red eyes. The look on his face said he wanted to do anything but explain himself to me, but I wasn't letting this shit go.
"Bria, you could be in there visiting her now while you can, instead of treating this stoop like a courtroom. No amount of arguing is going to change my mind. It is made up, alright. Love is my daughter, and I make the decisions for us. Ryan is gone so you no longer have that control."
He grabbed the boxes from the ground and went inside, closing the door behind him with a soft thud that felt heavier than it should've.
For a moment, I stood outside, having a silent panic attack on the steps. I then convinced myself to just leave because right now I was way too mad to have a conversation with Nathan. I was taught in law school to keep a clear mind when making a point, so I could formulate the right things to say to prove it. Hot heads are always the worst at arguing because they can’t stop all the thoughts running through their heads to think of just one good one.
Once I got back inside my car, I exhaled deeply to attempt to clear the frustration I had before going inside to talk to Love. My phone then started, ringing, and I answered it, masking everything I was going through right now because on the phone was my boss.
“Hi. Big win today, council. I am so proud of you. Phenomenal work. You are an excellent attorney, and we see a very bright future for you ahead.”
“Thank you so much.”
I smiled because just that moment of validation was a relief to me.
“But.”
He spoke, and the smile cleared off my face. I never liked the word but because it was a sign that the conversation wasgoing to take a turn. Most of the time a turn in the wrong direction.
“The partners and I have been discussing your future here at the firm, and we do not know if it’s best for you to move forward with us at this time.”
“Wait, why? Is this a joke?”
“Listen Abria. We love the work you have done and hired you because we felt you could be an excellent partner one day, but after everything that has transpired with your personal life and the videos circling around, we don’t think you would be a good representation of the law firm.”
“What? Why?”
“Because our motto is Grit, Skills, and Resilience, and unfortunately, those videos of you show a bit too much emotion, if you will.”
“I had just found out that my sister was murdered. How was I supposed to react?”
“With Grit and resilience.”
He threw back that lame ass motto again.
