I stood there waiting for my daughter to come downstairs when something dawned on me.
“Aye, I only saw her cars outside. How did you get over here?”
“I caught an Uber over here. She usually lets me drive one of her cars when I need to make a run or something.”
I honestly wasn’t even sure what to say. Personally, I couldn’t care less about her having a man, but I wasn’t cool with the fact that she hid it and had him around my daughter without mentioning it to me.
“Look, I don’t know what you have going on with my baby momma, and I honestly don’t give a fuck. All I care about is my daughter. You seem young as hell, so I don’t expect you to be doing any parenting, and she doesn’t need another daddy, anyway, because she has one. Respect my child, and we won’t have any issues. My baby momma doesn’t pay any bills in this mothafucka off of the strength that my child rests her head here. I don’t have a problem with her dating and shit, but y’all not gonna be laid up in the house I paid for. Now, if you want to startkicking in and paying bills around here, then by all means, do your shit.
“Tiana, you already knew the rules when I bought you this house. I’m not tryna control you, because I don’t care what you do, but we might need to recalculate some shit since you got a man staying here every day. If you have time to lay up, you have time to get a job.”
“Are you fucking serious?” Tiana shrieked.
“Daddy!” Keyami squealed as she leaped into my arms. I instantly relaxed. She rambled on about her day as I carried her out to the car, with Tiana following. She didn’t say much until after Keyami was inside, and I shut her down.
“What the fuck was that about? You didn’t have to talk to him like he was a child,” she snapped. I burst out laughing because the shit was too funny.
“He is a child. That boy still has breast milk on his tongue, and you want me to treat him like my equal? You really have gone off the deep end.”
“Why do you care who I fuck with? It’s not like you wanted to be with me.”
“You are damn right, I didn’t. Please don’t misunderstand my concern for feelings. You can fuck a whole gang of young niggas, and I wouldn’t bat an eye. My problem is that you brought him around our daughter without mentioning it to me. You don’t need my permission, but you could have at least given me enough respect to give me a heads-up. Either way, what’s done is done. You just make sure you take care of our daughter, and we won’t have any issues. You can fuck all the teenyboppers you want in peace.”
Tiana glared at me, but I had nothing else to say. I was sure Cocoa and the kids were on their way, and I was ready to spend some much-needed time with my family.
I probably looked crazy as I stood by the door waiting. The moment my cameras alerted me that someone was pulling up, I stepped outside to greet them. My anxiety was higher than usual, and I needed my folks around me. Keyami stood next to me, just as eager as I was to see her siblings. I loved the bond developing between them, because family was important.
Kiaya and Keyaire got out of the car and raced past me to Keyami. I chuckled as I watched the three of them interact. They might have been younger than she was, but she treated them like her best friends. They were all laughing and talking all at once, and it warmed my heart.
I glanced over toward the car and realized Naiari still hadn’t gotten out, so I decided to see what was going on.
“Aye, y’all go in the house. We’ll be in there shortly,” I called out to the kids. They wasted no time racing inside, closing the door behind them. Lil’ mama still hadn’t emerged from the car, so I swaggered over with my hand gripping the front of my jeans. I lightly tapped on the window, but she seemed to be out of it.
“Aye, you good? What’s taking you so long?” I quizzed, examining her through the window.
“Sorry. Here are their bags. I know you told me not to send them with anything, but I can’t help it.” Her voice sounded defeated, which confused me because it wasn’t like that when I spoke to her earlier.
“Alright, cool. Come on, let's go into the house. I already ordered dinner.”
“What are you talking about?” She frowned, causing me to mirror her reaction.
“I’m waiting for you to get out of the car so we can go inside.”
She sat there quietly, and for some reason, it made me nervous.
“I thought you asked me to bring the kids because you wanted to spend time with them. I’m confused as to why you’re asking about me going into the house.”
My jaw flexed, but I tried to remain calm.
“No, I asked you and the kids to come over. I thought you understood what I was asking.”
“No, I didn’t. Why would I assume you were asking me to come, too? You and I aren’t together, and most co-parents don’t have movie nights. I figured you wanted me to drop them off, and you were gonna bring them back in the morning.”
I sucked my teeth, trying to understand why she wanted to play with me.
“Cocoa, get your ass out of the car. I’ve had a long ass day, and I don’t feel like arguing with anyone else. Don’t make this shit difficult,” I warned. She raised her eyebrows before opening the door. She tossed the bags into my hands, then stormed off into the house.
I chuckled as I watched her ass bounce. Baby girl was fine as hell, and she still hadn’t realized how bad she really was.
