Page 45 of Senior

“If they throw up, that’s on you,” Mia said.

“Y’all throw up on me and we are gon’ have a problem,” I said as I lifted them like I was bench pressing weights.

“Don’t drop my babies, Daddy,” Jaeda said, stretching her arms to catch them.

“Girl, ain’t nobody gon’ drop these two knuckleheads. Tell her Pop Pop got this.”

“Pop Pop got it!” Lil’ Stanley said.

“Him got it, TiTi!” TJ agreed.

My mood lifted as I rough housed with my boys. Shar, Salima, and Romi ended up coming over with all the kids and the little ones took turns running my ass ragged. They had me all on the damn floor, running all over that house and the backyard. This was the reason I worked out every morning. Next to being a father, I took the greatest pride in being a grandfather. I wanted to be around for this as long as I could.

I sighed heavily as I entered my house. My uber had dropped me off after a four-day trip to the beach. After I left Deuce and Salima’s house and the conversation with my girls, I had to get the hell away. True, I was grown, but I knew I was gonna have smoke with my son about his daddy. I guess I should say his daddy was going to have smoke with him about me.

Deuce was overprotective of me, especially when it came to Senior.

He’d been old enough to understand the many break up to make up acts we’d done in the past. He’d seen the tears of me leaving the man I loved, not because he wouldn’t do right, but because he couldn’t balance work and life. It wasn’t that I wanted him to give up a good cause.

I didn’t.

The street game, yes. But his organization, no. I loved that he took protecting those who didn’t have protection so passionately. There were too many sick muthafuckas in this world that got away with despicable things. Somebody had to hold them accountable.

I just wanted him to scale it back some. He didn’t need the money because money was always good and plenty. He had a team and he could delegate. He chose to be in the field because it gave him a rush. I couldn’t handle him being gone so much or out all hours of the night as we got older.

We had a son. He had other children. We needed him and while he was very much present for the kids, it just wasn’t enough for me. That’s why I turned down those six proposals. Until he was ready to be a family, he couldn’t have me as a wife.

I wasn’t hurt that when he started dating Tavia or Allison because I was dating too. He was a single man, and I was a single woman doing whatever the fuck I wanted during that time. I didn’t have beef with either of them because why? People loved to call us sister wives because of the way we chose to raise our kids together, but that never fazed me.

Those kids didn’t ask to be here, and they deserved to be raised together with love. That’s what we did. Tavia and Allison became my best friends, my comfort, my sisters. They had been that for umpteen years, and it wasn’t going to change.

It was no surprise that they supported Senior and I possibly reconciling. Shit, they didn’t want his ass. Deuce was another story. He was and had always been vocal about that never happening. The day I went over there after sleeping with his father, my son kept staring daggers at me any time we were in the same space.

It was like he knew something was up, but he didn’t say anything. Salima knew for sure and she let me know that the moment we were alone. No surprise, my daughter in-law approved. She was sweet like that and a hopeless romantic. She was the one kicking us under the table when we got too friendly.

It was too easy to fall back into old mannerisms with that man. We hadn’t even made things official. I told him he had to date me. He wasn’t mine just yet, but I had the strong urge touch and kiss him every time he came near me. We were so close to giving ourselves away at dinner and Deuce noticed it.

Not only that, he called his father out on it. Senior played it off in a joking manner like he always did, but we both knew Deuce was serious. Him finding out was something I wasn’t looking forward to. Still… what was done in the dark would come to the light. Secrets didn’t stay secrets forever.

My daughter in-law was the only person that knew where I was the last four days. Why? Because she knew how to keep her mouth shut about shit. She understood needing space to get your mind right. Her husband didn’t and that was a proven fact by the way he broke into her apartment when she tried to break up with him. I mean, it wasn’t really breaking in if he had a key, but still. He didn’t let my girl breathe.

I turned on the lamp in my living room and damn near jumped out of my skin.

“Hey, baby,” Senior said, from my recliner.

“Senior, what the fuck are you doing in my house!”

“You’ve been ignoring me, so I had to see what’s up with you.” His gaze dropped to my suitcase. “Where you been, love?”

“Away.”

“Stephanie.”

“Stanley.”

He chuckled as he pushed off from the chair and stood to his feet. Slowly, he crossed the room until he was in front of me. Cupping my chin, he forced my eyes to meet his.

“We playing games?” he asked, stroking my hair. “That’s what we doing, my love?”