Piece of shit.
He walks toward the door, adjusting his clothes, swaggering a little like he’s the little king of everything.
Yeah, we’ll see about that. If he walks out with a bitch, it’s game on.
My phone buzzes again. Since I’m probably gonna be here a while, I move my seat back and recline slightly, getting comfortable.
It’s Vanessa, answering my email.
I open it, eager to see what the Taylors had to say about my helpful suggestions.
Raya,
Thanks for getting back to me. You know, it’s so funny to me that you sent the email you did. I didn’t forward it because I knew it would be taken badly. Instead, I relayed it to my family in a more palatable way.
But what’s funny to me is that as harsh as it was, it kind of showed me that you and my brother are probably made for each other. Below, I pasted the email response he sent me a few days ago:
Hey Van,
You know I wanna be there. That ain’t even a question. But I need to make sure shit is cool for Raya before I bring her over there. That’s my wife. I’m not about to subject her to some bullshit just so I can enjoy myself.
So I need everybody to understand a few things before I commit to anything.
First off, Mama gotta be nice to Raya. And I don’t mean that nice nasty shit she does. I’m talking about actually welcoming her and talking to her like she does every other guest.
Second, Kam gotta be cordial. They might never be friends, but if she starts with the mean girl shit, I’m dubbin all y’all.
Pop gotta control himself. That’s all I’ma say.
And speaking in general, wipe the mf slate clean. We're gonna start this over, and y’all all gotta treat my wife with dignity and respect. Yall don’t have to love her, but I love her, and that should be enough.
Alright then, sis. If we can all agree on this, y’all will see us for the holidays. Love you, bighead.
-A
A slow smile breaks out across my face. I can't believe I’m sitting here on a stakeout looking stupid because I just read my husband’s words.
That man really loves me. He loves me enough to take a stand against his own family. My stomach flutters as tears well up in my eyes.
I wasn’t expecting that.
But I understand my reaction. He’s the first man, and theonlyman, who hasn’t disappointed me. He’s the first man to actually protect me. To keep his word.
I close my eyes for a minute, savoring the feeling, letting the giddiness bubble up inside me.
But it ends up being short-lived. The sharp, shrill sound of a horn honking next to me startles me out of my bliss. I open my eyes and look to my left, and there he is. My husband.
I roll the window down and try to play this off with a smile. But he doesn't look amused at all.
“I’ma ask you one time, and one time only," he says. "What the fuck are you doing, and who the fuck is Sisco?”
9
Ace
Raya looks like she’s seeing a ghost.
I pull up on her, shrouded in darkness, my face twisted in anger. She’s seen me like this before. In truth, she’s theonlyone who’s ever seen me like this, because—and I hate to admit this—she’s the only one to bring this intensity out of me.
