“Handled him how?” Daisy asked.
“He just roughed him up a little. I ended up leaving with Russell, and?—”
“What happened to Gayle?” Rue asked.
“Gayle?” the rest of my sisters chimed.
“Gayle was Russell’s date,” I told them.
“Oh hell. You and Russ play all day,” Blossom said, shaking her head.
“Whatever. Let me finish. Gayle hopped her happy ass in the back seat because Russell was her ride home. When he got to her place, she had a few choice words for him, but y’all know he didn’t care. I ended up coming back here with him, and we made up for lost time.”
“You were coming from here this morning?” Daisy clarified.
“Yeah. I left while Russell was asleep because I needed some time alone to figure out how I would tell him.”
Rue, Daisy, and Blossom knew what I needed to tell Russell, but Sage and Violet were clueless.
“Tell him what?” Sage asked while Violet looked confused.
I slowly inhaled and exhaled from my nose to calm my nerves. Although this had been on my mind until Preston ruined my day, the thought of saying it out loud made me feel nauseous.
“Sage, Violet, this will be the first time you’ve heard what I’m about to say. I didn’t keep this from you because I didn’t want you to know, but you two were babies when it happened. I was in an accident when I was eight years old, and I was injured pretty badly. Mommy waited several years to share how much the injury truly affected me.”
“You’re scaring me, Rose,” Sage said.
“Me too,” Violet added.
“It’s nothing you need to be afraid of. It’s just something I’ve been carrying for ten years.”
“Ten years?” Violet questioned.
“How did it affect you?” Sage asked.
I nodded before continuing. “I can’t have kids, and I think I’m ready to tell Russell.”
Sage and Violet gasped, covering their mouths with their hands. Rue, Daisy, and Blossom didn’t say anything, but their expressions showed their surprise because I’d vowed never to tell Russell my secret.
“Are you sure?” Rue asked.
“He won’t let me go, and I don’t want him to. I’m in love with Russell, but I’m afraid he won’t want to be with me anymore when he finds out I can’t give him the family he wants.”
“And I keep telling you that Russell isn’t that kind of man. He loves you, and I’m positive that won’t change when you tell him,” Rue assured me.
“I don’t know how he’ll react, but I’d rather tell him so he’ll understand why I couldn’t fully commit to him. Once he knows, he can make an informed decision about how he wants to move forward.”
“Russ has been miserable since y’all broke up. He’s literally been a shell of himself. Mama Rush has been trying to talk him into going to therapy. He’s been sick about it, and the only cure was you,” Rue shared.
“That man cares about nothing but being with you. As long as he has you, nothing else will matter,” Daisy added.
“I hope y’all are right because after last night and today, I can’t go back to living without him. I may have hidden it better than him, but I’ve been miserable too.”
“Aww, Sissy,” Blossom cooed.
They all came in for a hug before continuing our conversation.
“I’m glad you and Russ are working things out, because like Rocky and Rue, y’all were made for each other,” Sage said.
