“Because she was the first person Xoey ever killed,” Xayne answered.
Chapter thirty-six
Yale
“Baby sis,” Pyrite said as soon as I answered his FaceTime call. “You look good, girl!”
“Pyrite Stone.” I leaned back in my chair and swayed. “The man, the myth, the CEO.”
“The pain in your ass,” he finished, and all I could do was smile. While most people thought Amethyst was the most spoiled of the Stone brothers, I always thought they shared the title, and on any given day, one would outshine the other.
“You said it, not me,” I replied with a nod. Spelman walked into my room, held up a bag of chips, and I shook my head. She sat on the bed, eating her chips while working on her laptop. “Now answer my question.”
“I can’t just call my baby sister and check in?” he rebutted, and I rolled my eyes. “You act like I haven’t texted and called you weekly since all this shit went down.” He gave me a pointed look, and I shrugged. “You were the one not answering for me, not theother way around, even though those other niggas call and text you and you reply with no hesitation.”
“I answered the last time,” I said.
“Because mama asked you to,” he countered, and I shrugged. “It was good seeing you, though, legit, and I appreciate you making that food for me and Itty Bitty. It was good as fuck, and she can’t wait to meet you.”
“Pyrite,” I sighed and shook my head. “We had this talk.”
“We did,” he nodded in agreement. “You said you would think about it. The fam misses you.”
I didn’t have a real argument for him because he was telling the truth. I answered for everyone else because they didn’t remind me of the man who’d shipped me away. It was the only way I could protect the little peace of mind that I had at times.
“I feel a certain way, so that you know,” he said, and I nodded. “I needed sisterly advice, and you left me to rely on Plus Twelve and the DeCortes. I needed sound advice.”
“You had Spelman, Berkeley, and Clarke around too,” I replied, and his face twisted. “What’s that look for?”
“I said sound advice,” he kissed his teeth. “You’ve met your sisters, not one of them is wrapped any tighter than Plus Twelve.”
“Spelman can hear you.” I picked up the phone and turned the camera so he could see her.
“I don’t give a damn!” he laughed. “She’s off and knows it, which is why her crazy ass didn’t say shit just now.”
Spelman looked up, smiled, shrugged, then went back to work. After I found out that they were doing business together, I asked her to keep an eye on all the Stones. Somehow, Berkeley and Clarke started tagging along whenever she went to do business, and they were accepted into the Stones’ fold. Mama Diamond called me every Tuesday, and we caught up, but she was the only one I spoke to.
“Stop insulting my sister and tell me why you’re calling, Pyrite.” I turned the camera back onto me and set the phone back on the stand. I sat forward, resting my elbows on the desk and my chin on my hands. “Because I know it’s a reason you’re calling.”
“I saw the ring you did for Hood,” he said, nodding. “I want something like that.”
“No, sir,” I said, shaking my head. “That was a one-of-a-kind ring. Think of something else.”
“Man, come on, Yale,” he groaned. “That fucking ring is nice as hell.”
“I know, it took me almost two weeks to get it right.” I moved back, adjusted my t-shirt, and shook my mouse to wake up my computer. It took me a few seconds, but I found the design and looked it over. “Givens and Hood stressed me out with their designs. You won’t be doing the same thing.” I looked at the phone to see him mugging me. “I don’t care about that look either, and you know it.”
“I need your best, nothing else will do for Itty Bitty,” he said, shaking his head. “I know you can do me this solid even if you’re mad at Am.”
“I’m not mad at Am, not anymore,” I said, shaking my head. I switched to my design software and typed Pyrite’s name into the label. I gave him shit, but there was no way I was going to do anything less than everything in my power to make sure the engagement ring he wanted was beyond what he imagined. “I have a million other things to deal with.”
“Like?”
“When do you need the ring by?” I asked, instead of answering his question.
“You think you could have it to me by Hood and Legacy’s engagement party?”
I opened my calendar and sighed. The party was in a few weeks, and I still hadn’t RSVP’d. Hood texted me about it last night, and I told him I’d think about it. I wanted to go home, see everyone, and celebrate with my friends, but that also meant there was a chance I’d see Amethyst. As much as I told everyone I wasn’t upset with him, I wasn’t sure how I’d respond once I finally did see him. “I will not rush my damn process because you are that sprung. I don’t even know what she looks like, and you expect me to pull a ring out of thin air. What’s the rush?”
