He chuckled. “Why do I get the feeling you don’t want to talk to me?”
I glanced in his direction but looked away quickly when I realized he was already watching me with those dreamy eyes. “How did you come to that conclusion?”
From my peripheral I was able to see him lazily shrug his shoulders. “Just a feeling.”
I nodded because if only he knew what I was truly feeling, he wouldn’t have been questioning whether I wanted to talk to him. “I guess I just don’t know what to say.”
He swiftly walked ahead of us. Turning toward Iylah and me, he used his back to open the door so he could keep talking and watching me. “You could start with sumn likeOMG, Sym!It’ssogood to see you. I missed you so much; all I could do was think about you for ten years.”
“Eleven, . . .” I said, quickly correcting him when we walked by. My stomach hardened when I realized I made a grave mistake in doing so, but the damage was already done. “It’s been eleven years.”
The biggest grin appeared on his face. “Let me find out I really been on your mind.”
I rolled my eyes. “Oh, please, you’re like fucking Chris Brown. Everyone knows who you are.”
He frowned, slowing down his steps. He stuck his arm out, forcing me to stop walking. “Aye, don’t compare me to that nigga. We not on the same level. He wishes he could dance like this.” He started doing the hammer time dance, and I couldn’t hold my laugh captive if I wanted to. He beamed with pride, even puffing his chest out a little because he’d successfully pulled a reaction out of me. “Ah, so she laughs.”
“She does. Also, I’m not one of your groupies, so please don’t expect me to fan-girl you. Your music is alright, at best.”
He placed a hand over his chest and flinched. “Damn, what you coming for my jugular for, Leigh? You got beef with me or something?”
I giggled with a subtle shake of my head. “I do not. I’m just saying you should lower your expectations when it comes to your interactions with me. Considering you stick around.”
As we neared the purring, black Eskimo truck, I saw Rhap sitting in the front seat. He looked like he was in a trance, buthis mouth was moving as if he was talking to someone. My steps slowed as I observed him deeply immersed in a one-sided conversation because the driver looked horrified on his side of the truck. “Um, is he alright?” I asked, changing the subject.
Sym glanced in the truck and shrugged. “Shit, I hope so. When I popped up at his house earlier, that was our first time seeing each other too. It took me all this time to track this nigga down.” The wind kicked up, dousing us in a gust of frigid air. “It’s a little cold out here. Let’s get her strapped in, then I would like to holla at you for a minute.”
I was shaking my head before he could even finish getting it out. “Oh, no. I don’t want to give you the wrong impression.”
He chuckled. “I mean, you fine and all”—He licked his lips for emphasis—“but it’s about Iylah.” He nodded down to his niece.
I smiled. “Oh, that’s a topic we certainly can discuss.”
“Cool.” He opened the door, then picked Iylah up to help her inside.
“Bye, Ms. A,” she said with a wave. Her father didn’t even turn around to acknowledge her presence.
“Bye, Butterfly. See you next week.”
I took a step back and folded my arms over my chest while I waited for him to strap her safely in the car seat in the back. When he was done, he closed her safely inside, then returned his attention to me. “Um, so I was wondering if he’s done something like this before?”
I nodded. “Yeah, it’s gotten pretty bad over the last month. We’re up to him forgetting to pick her up multiple times a week.”
His eyebrows folded in as he began to rub his jaw in thought. “You’re worried?”
I nibbled on my bottom lip, debating on how honest I should be. I studied him and only found genuine concern in the depths of his eyes. “I am becoming concerned. If this keeps happening,I will be forced to involve law enforcement, and we know what will happen.”
“She’ll get put into the system,” he grumbled.
I nodded. “Yes, exactly.” Glancing at my watch, I saw another hour had come and gone, along with the last rays of the sun. “But, now that you’re here, maybe you can find out what’s going on before it reaches that point.”
“Yeah . . .” He licked his lips and dropped his arms. “Well, I’m sure you have somewhere to be. Thank you for waiting.” He paused, then continued, “It really was nice to see you, first love. I’m hoping it won’t be the last time though.”
I shrugged innocently. “If you stick around, I’m sure we’ll be seeing each other.”
A smile crept on his face, so I guess he was satisfied with my answer. “Guess I’ll be seeing you around then, Ms. A,” he teasingly mimicked Iylah’s little voice. “Do you need me to walk you to your car?”
I slowly began to back away with a shake of my head. “No, I have to run back inside for my things. Goodnight, Sym.”
