“Louisiana might be last in education but a nigga be reading. Don’t underestimate my intelligence just because I don’t display that shit. Keep muhfuckas guessing cause I ain’t ever gone show my hand.” He grinned and I just laughed harder because this man didn’t have a serious bone in his body.
“I’m glad you can put your guard down with us, Twan.” Jacoby gave his shoulder a squeeze as he tried to keep a straight face.
“Y’all need to stop paying Choo’s ass any attention, he gone keep acting a fool the longer y’all follow him up.” Anthony hadwandered out when his brother was clowning and he should’ve known better than to think we were going to keep his brother in check.
“You act like he wouldn’t do it even if we didn’t follow him up.”
Anthony paused slightly the glowing orb he carried giving off a fire-like glow. He told me that he and Aphrodite were going as Yoruba gods since she was so annoyed that her parents had named her after ones for the white folks. “You right. Carry on, that nigga ain’t about to change.”
“You really talking like I’m not your blood, Ant.” Antwan was looking at his brother like they were about to shoot the dozens on each other and I was ready to find the food and see my girls.
“Choo, you know you're a fool.” They had a stare-off, both of them waiting for the other to break character.
Antwan broke first as he laughed. “You right I’m just fucking with you. But again, you know you do this shit for y’all as much as the kids, so stop fronting.”
“Yeah. Mina had those good memories from growing up and I didn’t. So I get double the pleasure watching my kids get to see this shit, knowing we provided it for them and doing this shit myself.”
I looked at the grin on his face, and I had to tease him. “You not about to get your big ass in the bouncy castle, Murda.”
“Did that shit before y’all got here. We fuck it up we can replace it, fuck you thought? Pops was in that shit too. You think he was gonna tell his grandbabies no? Please. He don’t say no to me and my ass is grown as hell.” He shifted his son in his arm and mostly Ascher just hung out like an old man observing us and his surroundings.
“You asked somebody for something?” Antwan was now the one to joke because Jacoby was notorious for extending himself and his resources to his teammates and not accepting anythingback. I was shocked myself with his saying that. I’d offered to pay for Sterling and Ami’s seats on the planes but he told me he didn’t want the money and Mac wouldn’t either. When I pressed him on how he knew his dad wouldn’t, he said that he’d already tried to pay him for his family and Mac just hung up the phone on him.
Jacoby’s eyes narrowed at Antwan who just laughed harder and harder. “I didn’t say all that did I? I just said he hasn’t ever told me no. Come on, I got to feed my boy. I hope you’re hungry, Money. Samp and his people pulled out all the stops as usual.
My stomach was grumbling just thinking about what they’d had. It was crazy that Sampson was now Coby’s brother-in-law. He’d married Billy’s little sister so I knew he was going to show as Uncle Samp. Ascher’s birthday was also in the fall but he didn’t like parties and after his first, they never gave him another one.
We walked in and Jacoby went into host mode, showing me where everything was set up. I was still looking for Sterling but she’d disappeared with my baby into the crowd of costumed guests.
The array of food was impressive and I could tell they had two different buffets for kids and adults. A lot of people from the team and from Billy’s business were inside so most of the faces were familiar. I loaded my plate up with ribs and sides before I found a spot near the end of the kitchen island.
“What’s good with y’all? I ain’t want to ask in front of everybody cause that ain’t my style to put your shit out there for people to question, but y’all good?” Jacoby’s big ass damn near scared the shit out of me because I’d zoned out looking for Sterling while I ate. I was going to grab Ami from her and fix her plate so she could have a minute to relax.
“Yeah why wouldn’t we be?” I wiped my mouth and wondered if there was something he knew that I didn’t.
“We've been cool for a minute man and I can tell your energy ain’t quite right. And if I can, so can she, so what’s up?” He folded his arms across his chest, which was difficult since it was covered with the plate of his armor and body paint.
“I’m serious. Super serious. Sometimes I feel like maybe more than she is.”
“You mean the girl that’s taking care of your kid and you like it’s more than a job? That’s who you think might not feel the same as you? The one that you’ve integrated into every part of your life without a question? That’s who you’re doubting?” He was reading me like I was missing what was right in front of my eyes but there were factors Jacoby wasn’t aware of.
“Yeah.”
“Bruh, you got concussed last weekend and we didn’t know? Do I need to tell Stew your ass should be in the protocol?” He had the nerve to put the back of his hand to my forehead like I was one of his kids and I had to swat his hand away. Stew wasn’t attending because Rachelle had given birth to their son, Douglas Stewart III, on Tuesday. We’d stopped by to drop off a gift outside the door because Ling said new babies and mamas wanted naps, not visitors.
“Nah I ain’t get hit, I just don’t know how to approach that shit with her. Like you and Billy had your shit, right? But we still have hurdles that we've gotta cross. I don’t even know the extent of everything that is gonna come for us.”
“Not to play counselor but what makes you think that something ain’t going to work in your favor?”
“Despite how I feel about her, I pay her for everything she does and hell she still goes above and beyond her job title. Like I hate her thinking that I still see her as the nanny.” I caught that glimmer of brown that I knew was my girl because my eyes were immediately drawn to the color. My eyes locked on her and I watched as she joked and laughed with everyone.
“But?”
I’d forgotten all about Jacoby standing there because I’d been lost in staring at my girl. “But it feels wrong giving her money for what I’m sure she’s doing freely. Like she spends her money to get stuff for Ami. And gets annoyed if I try to run the money back to her. But I don’t want her to feel like she’s not valued or that I take the labor she does for the family for granted.”
“The solution is simple. Wife her up for real and then put her name on an account. How hard is that?” Jacoby made it seem like I could just ask Sterling to marry me and shit would work out perfectly. I mean, that’s where my head was going but I knew more had to happen before she felt that comfortable with me.
“I hate that people had the nerve to say something negative about her. Like that nigga with the Stars calling her the help. I know technically she worked for me and she still does but it wasn’t like that.” Honestly the people were making it seem like I took advantage of my position as Ling’s boss. Like I was a fucking creep. And with the shit that I’d experienced in life, even if I couldn’t actively remember it, that was the last way I would ever behave with anyone.
