“Okay well you have a good night toddler nuts. I’m going to bed, and you aren’t invited in.”
I heard Huncho’s feet hitting the pavement as he ran up behind me. “Chill man,” he chuckled grabbing me from behind. “You know I like yo’ old ass.” He placed his face in the crook of my neck. As much as I didn’t like the old jokes, the feel of his soft lips on my skin made me shiver.
“Get off me,” I snapped hoping he didn’t notice the effect he’d had on me.
“Never,” he mumbled and started sucking on my earlobe as I unlocked my door.
“You haven’t talked to your brother?” I asked crossing the threshold of my home.
“No, why?” I turned around to a confused looking Huncho.
Shaking my head I flopped down on the couch. “Somebody had to have called you. I just got back from the hospital with Brion and Hymn.”
“The hospital? Why?” I could hear the panic in his tone and see it in his eyes.
“No one reached out to you?
“Bro,” he groaned. “My phone was face down in the seat on silent. I didn’t even pick it up until I called you, and I didn’t look at it.
I ran the story down to him exactly as it happened and when I was done talking, Huncho was looking at me like I’d sprouted another head. “What’s that fuck nigga’s address?”
“As much as I can’t stand Corey you have to know I wouldn’t even do that. It’s cool because Hymn got him good and so did your uncle.”
Closing his eyes briefly, Huncho cursed under his breath. “Corey better be glad my brother has a whole lot to lose because Hymn ten years ago would have sent that nigga to the Lord. I put that on my mama. Shit, a year ago, I would have sent him.”
Pulling his phone from his pocket, Huncho sat down beside me and called his brother. While they talked, I washed the makeup off my face and took a shower. I was so tired. As good as Huncho looked, I wasn’t even sure I was capable of having sex. That was how exhausted I was. When I was done in the bathroom, the smell of marijuana greeted me as I eased into my bed. Huncho would get the hint.
I closed my eyes and had started to drift off less than five minutes later. I wasn’t sure how much time passed when I felt him getting in the bed and wrapping his arm around me.
CHAPTER 16
BRION
Hymn was setto leave for training camp in three days, so we chose not to go on a honeymoon. We had traveled during his off time anyway. Plus, the wedding and reception had depleted me of every ounce of energy I had. Even if the doctor hadn’t ordered me to stay off my feet for a few days, I probably would have slept for an entire day anyway. My mother still had the kids, and she was going to keep them one more day. I facetimed the girls at least three times a day. They’d been with her for two days. I was surprised when they asked me where Hymn was. I knew my girls and though they liked him, for a good five or six hours they were probably ready to jump his ass ‘bout their sorry ass daddy.
I had decided to stop being nice and take him to child support court. I didn’t need his money but the nicer and unproblematic I was to him, the more he showed me why he didn’t deserve it. That man literally crashed my reception and made a fool of himself in that expensive ass hotel. I was only embarrassed because the hotel staff had to witness the fuckery. I didn’t want to feed into the black people stereotypes. Plus, that wedding and reception cost a cool $625,000. He was a bitch for that shit.
Not to mention the cameras were rolling, and I knew the producers were going to show the footage of him getting beat up. So damn ghetto. I was texting Josie when Hymn entered the room with a bag of food he had gone and got for me.
“Do I need to come downstairs?” I asked him while peeking inside the bag. “Play referee?”
“Yo ass isn’t breaking up anything. Stay right in that damn bed. If my mom, Divine, and Huncho start acting an ass, I’m putting them out and going on about my business. Those grown ass people aren’t stressing me out.”
First, Hymn’s mother showed her ass at the reception, and then Corey’s lame ass came in and picked up where she left off. It was sad as hell, but I still had my dream wedding, and ninety-seven percent of the day was perfect. I would have just rather been drunk when the circus started. The lawyer Hymn hired for Huncho had gotten the judge to agree to sentence Huncho after the semester ended which was three weeks away. Before he went to do his time, Hymn wanted to try to get him and his siblings to all be on one accord with their mother. He was still scared that she was going to relapse and go back to using heroin.
“Aye man, say man,” I mocked one of my favorite rappers from Memphis. “Who you cussing at like that though?” I angled my head slightly to the left and studied my fine ass husband.
Hymn pushed out a chuckle as he neared the bed. “Fine ass Mrs. Monroe.” Leaning in, he pecked my lips three times. “My bad, baby. I’m letting them do what I said and borderline stress me, but you are my priority. You and these babies. I’ll fight them niggas myself before I let you get involved.” He pecked me again, and I melted.
I loved that man something serious. “All is forgiven. I still might have to break up a fight when my babies come home because I’m not one hundred percent certain the triplets aren’t gon’ be on yo’ ass.”
Hymn’s head fell back as he pushed out a hearty laugh. “Aye yo, I swear I’m going to be sleeping with one eye open. I’m going to bribe the hell out of them. Whatever they want they can get. Ponies, puppies, unicorns.”
“They will not be getting another dog,” I frowned as the doorbell rang. “One is enough.”
“Yes ma’am.” Hymn kissed me again before leaving the room to deal with his family.
His issues made me think of my own. I absolutely despised Corey, and it was warranted. But even if we dealt with one another through a third party, I still had to deal with him on some level while our daughters were still minors. Him and all his fucked up ways were not about to keep traumatizing my daughters. Something had to be done. I wasn’t sure if his ass needed an intervention or what, but he needed to get it together. I spent my children’s entire lives trying to protect them from toxicity and since Corey and I separated, they had witnessed too much drama for my liking.
