He walked to the backseat and opened the door, grabbin’ the diaper bag first before carefully liftin’ My’Love out in her car seat.
She ain’t move at all. She just laid there sleepin’ peaceful like nothin’ around her could touch her, and for a second I just stood there lookin’ at her, takin’ that in.
We walked inside together, and Kwame was already standin’ by the door waitin’.
He pulled me into a hug first, warm and solid, and then his whole attention shifted straight to his granddaughter.
He took the car seat from Kay’Lo, set it down, and gently lifted My’Love into his arms like she was made outta glass. Theway he softened right there in that moment made me pause without even thinkin’ about it.
He always carried himself strong, and serious, like nothin’ really moved him, but with her, it was different. His whole face changed, his hands was careful and his attention locked in like she was the only thing that mattered.
I stood there watchin’ that for a second, takin’ it in, ’cause it was one of them moments you don’t really forget.
Kay’Lo stepped closer after that, lookin’ down at his baby like he was tryna memorize her all over again before he left.
He reached for her, and when he got her back in his arms, he started kissin’ all over her face, her cheeks, her lips, under her neck, like he needed one more moment before lettin’ her go.
“My baby,” he murmured again, softer this time.
I leaned in and kissed her forehead, smilin’ at how she ain’t wake up through none of it.
Eventually, he handed her over to his mama, even though I could tell he ain’t want to.
Treasure took her easy. “You two go enjoy yourselves,” she said, lookin’ at both of us. “We’ve got her.”
“I got two weeks worth of milk in the bag,” I added, noddin’ toward it. “Most of it frozen, so just put it back until she need it.”
Treasure nodded once. “We’ll handle everything.”
And I believed that without a doubt.
We ain’t drag the moment out. It was just one last look, one last kiss, and then we turned and headed back outside.
Soon as we got back in the car, Kay’Lo sat there for a second before pullin’ off, and I could feel it sittin’ on him even though he ain’t say nothin’ right away.
I reached over and rested my hand on his thigh, givin’ it a light squeeze. “She good,” I said.
“I know,” he replied, his voice low.
“And we good too,” I added.
That made him glance at me, and this time his expression changed just enough.
“Yeah,” he said. “We good.”
As he drove toward where the jet was waitin’, I leaned back in my seat and let everything settle the way it was supposed to.
For the first time in a long time, we wasn’t dealin’ with no stress, no court dates or no bullshit tryna break us apart.
We had space. We had time, and most importantly, I had my man.
I looked over at him, takin’ in the way his hand sat on the wheel, the way his jaw was set and the way he still carried that weight even when shit was finally over, and I knew one thing for sure.
This trip wasn’t just about gettin’ away. It was about us gettin’ back to us.
And I was more than ready for that…
Port Laurent
