Nia bit her lip, thinking. I could see the conflict twisting in her face. "I don't even know what I need anymore," she admitted. "Peace? Passion? Somebody to listen? All of it? Shit... probably." I reached out and squeezed her hand. "Then find your way back to you first. Once you do that, the rest gon' make sense."
We sat in silence for a moment—three women with different paths but the same kind of storms. Jezel's laughter drifted across the wind like a melody, grounding us back to the moment. "I just wanna be happy," Nia whispered like it was a secret. "You deserve to be," Amina said. "We all do."
All of our phones buzzed at once, vibrating loud enough on the park bench to break up the moment of silence like an alarm. Amina glanced down at hers first. "Now what in the group chat is this?" she muttered, squinting behind her sunglasses. I pulled mine out too, my brows lifting the second I saw who it was from. "Wait... is this from Ms. Evie?" I asked, damn near in disbelief. Her name glowing on my screen was already a plot twist.
Nia leaned over to peek. "With all three of us in the same thread? Oh, she messy today." It was a message from her, plain and unexpected:
Ms. Evie:
"I really wanna show y'all girls to a good dinner, for holding down my boys the way y'all do. Drop Jezel off to Jules and meet me at the house."
I blinked. "Y'all... Evie full of shit."
"Full to the brim," Amina said, lips curled in a smirk. "But I ain't missin' this dinner. I need to see what the hell this really about."
"She tryna feel us out," Nia added, waving her hand. "Probably got some new drama she wanna stir up over appetizers."
"I'm convinced she just bored now that they got her on casino lockdown," I said, shaking my head but laughing. "This her version of phone time in prison."
"I ain't gon lie—we goin'," Nia said, standing to call Jezel over. We dropped Jezel off at Jules' house and barely had time to blink before Ms. Evie was rushing us back out the door like we was on the run. "Come on now, y'all! Don't have me late for my own damn plans," she said, jingling her car keys like they was a weapon. The second our feet hit her porch, she was hustling us into the car, no small talk, no pleasantries, just all business.
Amina slid into the front seat, adjusting her seatbelt like she didn’t trust Evie's driving, while me and Nia climbed in the back. The car still smelled like black ice air freshener and whatever she'd been cooking earlier—probably smothered something. By the time we pulled up to the gas station, Evie was already out the car, She strutted into the store. I took a deep breath, pulling out my phone as I leaned back in the seat. "Who you calling ?" Nia asked, scrolling her phone. "Juste," I murmured, unlocking the screen. "Didn't tell him where we was going."
I knew how Juste got when he didn't know my whereabouts—especially these days. I hit his name and brought the phone to my ear. It rang once, then twice before his deep voice came through the other end. "Wassup, Chi?" he answered, voice low and thick like he was halfway handling business. "I'm in the middle of somethin'. Where you at?"
"Yo mama hit me and the girls up," I said. "Said she wanna take us to dinner." There was a pause. "Ma?" he repeated. "Evie invited y'all to dinner... willingly?"
"Yup," I said, watching out the window. "Yeah... that sound like a setup," he said, laughing. "Keep your phone on. I'ma call you later. And don't let her talk you into nun. Love you."
"Love you too." We hung up just as Ms. Evie strutted out the gas station like she was late for a hot date. She climbed in, adjusted her mirror, and threw the car in drive like she had somewhere important to be. Except, it was too quiet. I glanced at Nia, who had this slow blink going like she was running calculations in her head. Amina leaned forward, tapping her acrylics against her thigh. "Uhh... Ms. Evie?" Nia finally asked, lifting her sunglasses onto her head. "Where we eating at?"
Ms. Evie didn't miss a beat. "We ain't." The car swerved slightly as she made a left—off the main road, headed straight toward the river. "Wait... the hell you mean we ain't?" I said, squinting as we passed a big-ass billboard for Lucky Roux Riverboat Casino. Then it clicked. "Oh no. Uh uh. Ms. Evie, are you takin' us to the damn boat?" Amina's head whipped around. "You tryna gamble?!" Evie sucked her teeth. "Y'all so damn loud. I just need an hour. One lil' hour on the penny slots. That's it."
"Ms. Evie you know you not supposed to be gambling! Saint gon lose it," I said, crossing my arms. "Saint can lose whatever the hell he want. He ain't said a damn word when I was pushin' his big-headed boys out my coochie," she muttered. Amina choked on air. "Ms. Evie!" Nia gasped.
I covered my face. "I'm not getting caught up in this." She turned around so fast. "Chiana ain't no snitchin' ass bitches in this family." I stared at her like she had me hostage—because technically, I was. "Y'all gon eat good," she continued. "They got crab legs and crawfish on the buffet tonight. My player's card will cover it. All I need is an hour, a cold Sprite, and to hit on number seventeen. I feel it in my spirit."
"Your spirit needs deliverance," Amina mumbled, folding her arms. "Your half ass relationship needs deliverance," Ms. Evie shot back. Nia burst out laughing while I just leaned my head against the window. It was over. We was in it now. "You know what?" I said with a sigh. "I hope you hit on seventeen and lose on eighteen. Just so God keep you humble.” Ms. Evie grinned like a villain. "God favor the bold, baby." And just like that, the car rolled into the casino parking lot.
_
An hour had turned into four and we'd spent the last hour and a half looking for Ms. Evie. We had lost her in this damn casino and couldn't find her anywhere. "Jules don called me six times, Chiana it's only a matter of time before...." She said as my phone started ringing with Juste's name showing on the screen. I looked at both of them before answering. "Why the hell y'all in the casino man?" He questions. I sucked in a breath. "Your damn mama kidnapped us." I said.
"Look up" I lifted my head slow and sure enough—there he was. Striding across the floor like somebody just dared him to show out. Saint was with him too. They cut through the casino crowd, heads turning in their direction. Juste was in all black, his gold chain peeking out under his collar, jaw tight, brows low. When he reached me, he didn't say a word at first. Just pulled me into him, one hand on the small of my back, the other palming my ass.
Then he leaned back, eyes locked on mine with a smirk. "How y'all let mama manipulate y'all, man?" he asked, the laughter sitting right there behind his voice. "She said we was goin' to dinner," I muttered, folding my arms. "Next thing we know, she drivin' full speed toward the boats," Amina added, her arms crossed and attitude full-on.
"Y'all some grown-ass women," Juste said, laughing now. "How the hell y'all let a sixty-two-year-old woman in orthopedic sandals run y'all?" We didn't even get a chance to finish cracking jokes before Ms. Evie's voice cut through the casino like a switchblade.
"I said let me go, damn it!" Heads turned as Saint came storming through the main floor, gripping Evie by the arm. Her shoes scrubbed the ground and struggled to keep up as he dragged her toward the exit like she was one of the kids that got caught stealing gum. He didn't look at any of us. Didn't say a word—just glanced once at Juste, eyes cold, mouth pressed into a line. Then he kept moving. We followed in silence, the mood shifting like someone hit the wrong light switch. The elevator ride down to the parking deck felt like it took forever, the tension thick enough to chew on. By the time we stepped outside, Saint had Evie hemmed up against the side of her Lexus like a cornered suspect. The night air wrapped around us, but the fire in his voice cut straight through it.
"I'm sick of this shit, Evie!" he snapped, slamming his palm against the hood of the car with a loud crack. "You think this some damn game? You out here runnin' wild like you ain't got a name to carry!" Evie stood there stunned. No slick comebacks. No rolled eyes. Just her mouth slightly open, eyes glassy like she couldn't believe Saint was talking to her like that in front of people. "You take your ass to rehab," he said, voice lower now, but no less dangerous. "Or I'm done. I want a divorce."
Amina's breath hitched. Nia grabbed my arm. Even I was frozen. I'd never in my life seen Saint like this—controlled, but deadly. The kind of fury that only came from years of biting your tongue for love. "Hol' on now, Pops..." Juste finally stepped forward, trying to ease between them, one hand out like he was talking a man down from the edge. Saint snapped his head toward Juste, eyes wild. "Juste. Stay outta this." His voice cracked slightly. "Get them girls home." Juste didn't move at first. He just stared at his father like he was seeing a version of him he'd never met before.
"What's it gon' be, Evie?" Saint asked, turning back to her. His voice dropped to a whisper, but that made it worse. "You keep choosin' to gamble or you choose me." Evie swallowed hard. She looked smaller than I'd ever seen her. The gloss on her lips didn't shine no more. Her shoulders curled inward, and her mouth opened—then closed. She didn't answer. Juste turned away first. "Let's go," he muttered under his breath, brushing past me. His hand found mine automatically, warm and strong. He didn't look back. I glanced over my shoulder one more time before we slid into the truck. Saint still stood in front of her, staring her down like a man at the edge of a cliff waitin' on someone to pull him back—or give him a reason to jump. And Evie looked like she'd finally run out of reasons.
We all loaded into Juste's truck in silence, the weight of what happened in that parking lot still thick in the air. Nobody said much. Juste gripped the steering wheel tighter than usual, his jaw clenching every few seconds like he was holding back words—or feelings—he didn't trust himself to let out. By the time we dropped Amina off and made it over to Nia's place, things had shifted a bit. The air felt lighter in her house. Not by much, but enough to breathe again.
