Ellie laughed, and Loyal placed a hand to his heart.“You right. Can’t offend Santa,” Loyal stated.
“Loyal…”
“Umm, let’s call him Mr. Brier,” Ellie interrupted.
“Mr. Brier is my stepdad,” Loyal said, frowning.
“Well, she can’t call you by your first name. Where’sthe respect? She’sa kid,” Ellie frowned.“What do you want her to call you?”
“If you would quit bullshitting and take that ring off your finger, I could replace it and put a real title on it,” Loyal said, smirking as he picked up the ax. Ellie gave him a warning look.“I know, I know. Your pace. But come here.”
She begrudgingly obliged, dragging her feet slowly as she made her way to him. He pulled his gloves off and then lifted her left hand.“You stop me if I’m crossing a line,” he said as he took her ring off her finger. It felt like her hand was lighter, and she squeezed her fist closed.
“You want to keep it?” he asked.
She thought about it for a beat before shaking her head.“No.” Loyal threw that bitch clear across the field, and she gasped before laughing.
“I can’t believe you just did that!” she said.
“On to bigger and better,” he stated.“Now, back to our business, li’l mama.” He focused back on Tessa.“Can I be your OG?” he asked.
Ellie’s heart melted.The way he uses his words is incredible, she thought, in awe of him. His love language had to be words of affirmation because he made her feel so loved every time he spoke. Even her daughter felt at ease when he spoke to her. He was so passionate and intentional with what he said. The nickname was simple enough, but she knew the significance it held in their culture. It was respectful and meaningful without trying to fill the place of the word daddy. It was perfect.
“What is an OG?” Tessa asked.
“It’s somebody in your life who’s older than you, who you respect. Somebody you can trust. Someone who has lived and experienced a lot, so they give good advice. Somebody who protects you. Somebody who you can go to for anything. Somebody who loves you no matter what. And this is the most important one of all; somebody who is very, very, very, handsome, and who your mommy loves enough to let them be a part of your life,” he explained.“Don’t forget the very handsome part.”
Tessa giggled.
“Does that sound like anybody you know?” Loyal asked.
“You’re my OG, and Brooklyn’s OG, and mama’s OG too?” Tessa asked.
“I want your mama to call me something else one day, but I got to work real hard on that one. Yougon’help me?” Loyal asked.
Her Chiclet-sized teeth beamed as she nodded her head in excitement.“A’ight, that’sa bet,” Loyal stated.
“How are you this good with her?” Ellie asked.
“It’seasy to be good to people you want in your life,” Loyal stated.“A’ight, y’all, step back. You still want this tree, right?”
“Yes! That one is perfect!” Tessa shouted.
“A’ightthen, OG gon’get you this tree,” he said. He wielded the axe in both hands, and then swung it again and again, until the thick trunk threatened to break.“Come on and use those muscles to chop down this tree,” he said, letting Tessa take the final swing. He had done all the hard work, so when he let her help with the last swing, the tree fell.
“I did it! I did it!”
Her glee was contagious, and Ellie was appreciative. She recognized his effort. He was out here in Timberland wheats and expensive everything, chopping down trees for her and her child, just to make up for the failures of another man.
The attendant came and helped Loyal strap the tree to the roof of his Cybertruck and then Loyal paid and they headed to get hot chocolate before departing.
“Mommy, Mommy, can I go play on the sleds with the other kids?” Tessa asked as soon as they sat down at the picnic table. Ellie eyed the mini activity station that was set up for kids and assessed in seconds that it was low risk.
“Sure, baby,” Ellie said.“Finish your hot chocolate first so you warm up a bit.”
Tessa was so excited she couldn’t contain herself. She took a few sips, then she jumped up and down, spinning around in circles before coming back to take a few more sips. She drank it all, then darted off.
Loyal smiled.
