Loh waved me over to the Italian ice stand. Ace and Poppa joined us soon after. The boys were recapping the morning’s events. I couldn’t help but rest my head on Poppa’s shoulder when he pulled me into his side. Ace was on his right side with his arms folded over his chest. Loh was on my left side with his hand wrapped in mine. Everything about this moment was so perfect.
Poppa might not have been the man I laid down to make them with, but he was the father they needed. For the first time, I truly felt we were a family. I knew my boys could tell the difference between what I had with Poppa versus their father. At this point, they didn’t even ask about him at all. I was completely okay with that. We were finally healing, and I wanted more of that for us.
Chapter 22
Lyrix
Leaning over, I placed a kiss on Loh’s forehead. He was lightly snoring, already fast asleep. Walking over to Ace’s bed, I whispered, “Don’t stay up too late,” because I knew he was about to pull his phone out to look at comics. It was our little secret, so long as he didn’t stay up so late that he was dragging in the mornings.
“Promise,” he whispered back. I smiled, quietly closing their bedroom door behind me.
It was crazy to think a day would come soon when they didn’t want or need us to tuck them into bed. Like Grai, I was enjoying these fleeting moments, but a part of me yearned to feel it again. I couldn’t describe the joy I got from helping raise my boys, but I did know it was a feeling I craved a little more every day that passed.
I jogged down the steps, headed for the front door to make sure it was locked. After alarming the security system, I walked to the kitchen, where Grai was wiping down the counters. While I got the boys ready for bed, she opted to clean up the mess from dinner. Tonight, she’d made seared salmon with a honey garlic lemon glaze, loaded mashed potatoes, broccoli, and corn for Loh. He sighed in relief when she set his broccoli-free platein front of him. When he said, “Thanks, Broccoli Head,” we all spent a good five minutes laughing.
My mother called herself having a little boyfriend that she was hiding from me. She wasn’t here as much, so the four of us developed our own routine. We ate dinner together, then we’d either do a family activity, or everyone chose to unwind in whatever way they wanted. I always loved ending nights curled up on the couch with Grai tucked into my side. I should’ve known it was her all along. No woman made me feel the way she did by simply existing. I swear, Grai didn’t have to do anything but exhale too hard, and I was looking for a way to make it better.
I didn’t realize my love for her could grow roots any deeper, but they had. Drey kicking them out of the house was the best gift he could’ve ever given any of us. No one had seen or heard from him in months. Grai and I were praying it stayed that way. We had conversations about me officially adopting them too. The boys never asked for him, and honestly, they were way better off. As far as I was concerned, I was Solace and Shiloh’s father.
I wrapped my arms around the love of my life, instantly feeling grounded. I placed a kiss in the crook of her neck. Inhaling her amber scent was one of my favorite things to do. It smelled just like home. “Wassup, Bubbles?”
I knew she was smiling without having to look at her. I could just feel that shit, and it always made me smile too. This woman turned me into a fucking simp, but crazily enough, I didn’t care. I’d be the simpiest nigga to walk this earth about my woman.
“Hey, baby. The boys good?”
“Always. You ready to head out?” I’d promised to help her take down her weave so she could have a new one installed tomorrow.
Grai had beautiful, thick hair that she faithfully kept tucked away. She said her natural hair was too much of a hassle, and it was easier to keep it in protective styles. It wasn’t like I could really argue with her about it or cared to. She looked amazing in whatever hairstyle she wore, in my opinion.
Taking the dish towel from her hand, I slammed it down, then pulled her behind me. “Oh, wait. Let me get some wine.”
“Aight, hurry up.” I missed her ass already, and she only took two steps in the opposite direction.
I headed out back to get ready. Going into the hidden compartment in the table, I pulled out the rolling tray, jar of buds, and cigarillos tucked inside. Grai came out seconds later with a bottle of wine and two glasses. She placed them down, then put pillows on the ground to support her butt. After pouring glasses for us, she took the tray and began to roll us a blunt.
“Brielle, play music for me and bae!” I hollered to my virtual assistant system.
The system chimed before her voice filled the speakers. “Now playing you and bae’s favorites.” Jay-Z’s “Part II (On The Run)” began to play. “Brielle, lower and isolate to backyard.” She lowered the volume of the music and made sure only the speakers in the backyard were active. I didn’t want to disturb the boys sleeping upstairs.
Turning my attention to the back of Grai’s head, I leaned around the side of her to kiss her neck. She giggled while deflating at the same time. I loved that she could keep her guard down around me. She was and always would be safe with me.
I picked up the scissors I hadn’t first noticed her set down beside me. Very carefully, I began to cut the thread, keeping her bundles secured to her big head. She sat in front of me, rolling up a fat blunt that I couldn’t wait to spark up. I’d gotten somemoon rocks on my last run to Vegas and had been waiting to put one in the air with my baby.
She hummed along to the song while I worked. This wasn’t my first time taking her hair down for her, so I moved pretty fast. I had a rhythm that worked well for me. I followed the trail of the thread first, then pulled off the tracks as I went. A huge pile of hair began to pile up on the cushion beside me until all that was left were her jailhouse braids. Even though she was giving Cleo, I would still get on my knees and devour her pussy. Nothing about Grai turned me off, because she was perfect as fuck.
A thick cloud of smoke curled into the air after she sparked the tip of the blunt and inhaled deeply. I waited for the coughing fit to follow. I smiled with a shake of my head. She was always chiefing the blunt, only to regret it seconds later. The music continued to shuffle through songs that had us both singing along.
Grai turned slightly to place the blunt between my lips. I drew in a mouthful of smoke, inhaled it, then did a dragon exhale. She rolled her eyes and turned around with an attitude. She lifted the blunt for me to take. “Show-off,” she mumbled.
I accepted it and leaned back in my seat. My eyes drifted to the diamond-littered sky. The land I’d bought was perfect for sky lovers. I could spot all the constellations out here and could even see the planets when I pulled out my telescope. The longer I stared into space, the more I began to think about my father.
I hadn’t truly gotten the chance to know him. One thing I could say about my mother was that she was a realist. She had no problem letting it be known that my father was a good man, but he wasn’t perfect. His mistakes ultimately cost him his life, and that broke her. She wanted more for our family, but she played the hand she was dealt and never complained about the weight.
It was the reason I never thought twice to provide for her. A lot of the time, she didn’t even have to ask. I was always aware ofher needs and worked my ass off to take care of her the way she took care of me. There was a moment when I wasn’t sure where my choices would lead me. I’d gotten mixed up with the wrong crowd, given my mama a few grey hairs and heart attacks, but I figured it out.
Sometimes, I liked to think that it was my father in me. He’d caught himself before he went too far off in the deep end, like to that point of no return. Unfortunately for him, he’d fucked with the wrong bitch.
I got my shit together by using the illegal money I made from scamming to buy my way into CDL school and purchase my first eighteen-wheeler. Shit was only up from there. Being on the road was good for me because once I started to get a taste of life outside of Solaire, I began to desire more.
