Page 95 of Mia

She stared at me, chest heaving.

“Fine. You don’t wanna fight me? Booker. Get in here. Make her hit you.”

Booker frowned. “Nigga what?”

“We family, right?”

“Yeah.”

“You love my wife, don’t you?”

“You know that’s sis.”

“Then make her fight you. We’re all here to push her to be the Mia we know. She’s holding back and that ain’t how we do shit. It’s all or nothing.”

“Just so we’re clear, you’re giving me permission to hit your wife?”

“Nigga, get in here before I hit you.”

Booker shook his head as he stood to his feet. He took off his shirt and stepped up to the mat, and I handed him my gloves. He grabbed a helmet.

“Sorry about this, sis,” he said, pulling on the boxing gloves.

“Just shut the fuck up and let’s go, Booker.”

I could tell she was mad now, and that’s what I wanted. Booker was sure to get her going. I promised Dr. Baxter I wouldn’t intentionally try to hurt my wife for any reason. The only real ammo I had against her was our daughter, and I would never use her as a pawn to make her mother mad. If anybody could get under her skin, it was Booker.

The bell chimed once they were ready. Mia threw the first punch and missed.

“Oooo, that’s all you got, buttercup?” Booker taunted. “Weak shit.”

He threw a jab, hitting her in the shoulder. She threw one back, but he blocked it.

“Gotta be quicker than that.”

They moved around the ring with fluid movements.

“We dancing or what, Mia?” Booker asked, with a laugh after hitting her with a hard jab to her helmet. “Whatchu got? Salsa? Merengue?”

He started dancing, and I fought back a laugh. I could see Mia’s brows furrow as she stared at him. Her punches became a little more forceful, but he was still blocking them.

“I’m getting bored, baby,” Booker sang. “Come on, give me a real fight.”

The next thing I knew, Mia gave him a roundhouse kick to the head. He stumbled but didn’t fall.

He chuckled. “That was real cute. You almost got me. You think I’m gonna let you beat my ass in front of my baby?” He nodded at Ms. Maddie, who rolled her eyes. “Once I get that lil’ boyfriend out of the way, Ima be your new stepdaddy. We might even give you a new sibling. I’m thinking BJ for a boy and Bookiesha for a girl.”

Mia started swinging harder. This time her licks were connecting. If nothing else about him got on her nerves, it was Booker talking about her mama.

“Oh, shit!” He said laughing as he moved around the mat. “You mad? You don’t wanna picture me bumping uglies with your mama? Ima give it to her real good too. I’m talking ‘bout in it that muthafucka, legs to the ceiling.”

He started humping the air. I watched as Mia’s orbs grew dark. Booker was mid-hump when she kicked him in the stomach. His stumbling was at her advantage because she started lighting his ass up with head shots. Her strikes were hard and quick, not giving him a chance to recover.

If his head hadn’t been protected, she would have done real damage to his face. She gave him another roundhouse kick, knocking him on his ass. Quickly, she moved to put him in a submission hold. Grabbing his arm, she bent one back and locked her legs around his neck, making it impossible for him to get up.

The way he was yelling, I knew she was about to dislocate his shit.

“You gon’ fuck whose mama?” she asked him. “Talk that shit now.”