“You can’t control her tho, Love.”
“You’re right, I can’t. But I can control what’s around me, and I did.”
I went quiet.
He watched me for a second, then reached out slow, like he was giving me time to pull away.
I didn’t.
“You can’t tell me that you haven’t thought about me, or us.”
I went silent again, that’s most all that’s been on my mind.
I shook my head. “You are making this harder than it has to be.”
“Nah, he said. “I’m not, you are makin’ it harder because you are scared.”
That hit a nerve.
‘I’m not scared of shit, Love,” I shot back.
“You are, you are scared of what comes with me,” he shot back.
He was slowly starting to press my buttons.
“And what all comes with you, Love? A baby mama that break into your house and can’t let go of the past.”
He didn’t flinch; he smiled.
“I’ma nigga that’s gonna stand by you, protect you, provide for you, and don’t fold when shit gets real.”
“And the rest?”
He paused for a second. “Any issues will always be handled in a timely manner; you will never have to fight my battles, but I will fight yours.”
I looked at my watch, it was getting buzzed.
“Give me some time, Love,” I said as I walked away.
“I will see you later,” he said back.
I didn’t even have time to question him.
I went back to work, helped my girls with a patient who was coding, then we went to lunch, and I told them what happened with Love.
They each voiced their options, but all agreed they loved the way Love stepped. And I couldn’t lie, I liked it too.
I finished my shift and went straight home. My girls wanted me to go out to drinks with them, but I just wanted to chill alone.
Once I got home, I took a shower, changed into an old T-shirt, slid on my granny panties, and went to the kitchen. I had the music playin’, and my glass of wine poured, fixing me a ramen bowl when I had a knock at my door. I picked up my glass, went to the door, and when I opened it, I froze for the second time that day because of Love.
He was standing there with weed, a bottle of wine, some more flowers, a teddy bear, and a few Gucci shopping bags.
“Are you serious?” I asked, trying not to smile.
He steeped inside like what he was doing was normal.
“I told you I would see you later.”
