Page 3 of Beacon Grove Chronicles 1: Hassan & Sylvia

I drove off kicking up the gravel that was lingering because his stupid ass was standing behind my car. He was lucky I didn’t pull a Terry and throw this shit in reverse and hit him. I kept waiting for the grief to come. For the tears to drop and for the tightness in my chest to consume me.

But it didn’t.

It didn’t because I had already mourned what this marriage was and had been holding on for the sake of holding on. I would’ve kept trying to revive something that had long been dead if I hadn’t gotten that email earlier today. The familiar cadence of life as a wife and mother had been a weighted blanket. Not exactly a comfort but something that was routine enough that I let it keep me stagnant. Paralyzed. Trapped.

There was no turning back now and I was almost kicking myself for not pushing through five months ago.

Nothing to do about it now.

The drive back to the house happened in a daze. I had recounted the steps I needed to take a dozen times. My phone had been buzzing constantly in the center cupholder but I ignored it. I was sure it was my parents, my grandparents or my brothers and their wives trying to reach out to me to get information on what was going on. I’d told Dave to pick up the kids to give me time to get the hell from by the house. I was sure he was going to take them somewhere and then attempt to come and talk to me. Like his brown eyes and tearful excuses about doing better would move me this time.

I parked in the driveway because I truly was going out tonight. Before I exited the car I put a message in the family group text so they would leave me alone for right now.

With that done and confirmation that Dave wasn’t on his way home, I walked into the house with less eagerness than when I left. Despite him living here for so long, this place held memories beyond those of my marriage. It was a family home and I’d grown up coming here. The house was a blue Queen Anne style with a huge wrap around porch that still retained its original features. My great aunt deeded it to me when she passed away and as a new mother I was thankful for it. Her only requirement was that Dave’s name was never put on anything that had to do with the house so that it stayed in the family.

I trotted up the wide steps to the second floor where my room was located and headed straight for the closet. I needed to pack because staying here tonight wasn’t on the docket. Not until I could get a new mattress and a new bed in here. I’d have to have someone come and get rid of the remnants of him in the house. I wasn’t sure what oil or herb got rid of fuck nigga but they’d need the extra strength version to cleanse this place.

Walking by Dave’s shit pissed me off again but I was giving myself tonight before I packed this shit up. My brain and my body needed a respite and I was going to take it. Tomorrow would still come, my life would still be in shambles and I would still need to start over. Self-care for one night in the form of drinks and a good meal at a very public location would show everyone I was unbothered and refusing to be embarrassed. I also knew that being in public meant that Dave wouldn’t bother me even if he got word of where I was. He’d be too afraid of the public embarrassment and of my brothers or their friends coming to dole out another dose of karma.

I tossed toiletries and underclothes into the bag before grabbing an outfit from the back of my closet. It was a dress I’d purchased when I knew I was done. It was still in the dress bag and I was going to wear it and the shoes I’d gotten to celebrate my new life. The divorce was a procedure by the state but my heart was already gone.

Tonight I was single and ready to get back to loving me. Nobody would blame me for how I reacted so I wasn’t worried about the police. My self-care and self-reclamation started now.

Fuck these niggas.

HASSAN

SHE WAS GETTING to’ the fuck up.

And if the news that had been traveling ‘round the Grove was accurate, I couldn’t blame her. To find out that your man had cheated was one thing. But for the bitch to have smiled in your face and have been one of your kid’s teacher? Whole other kind of violation. I had to admire her for the way she didn’t give a fuck about any of the rumors and was sitting her pretty ass at the bar enjoying herself.

I’d only been back in Beacon Grove for a little while and honestly hadn’t planned to stay as long as I had. My return was to ensure that one of my brothers hadn’t needed back up but his ass had upped and fallen in love. He’d been the main assassin on the most recent mission but we always had someone watching our backs in case something went wrong or incase we went rogue. It was a failsafe to ensure The Order was always protected. I’d wondered why Priest had sent my ass to cover Smoke but I could only assume it was because this was my home town. My attempting to go undercover even with a disguise would’ve been too difficult so I showed up as myself and blended right in. Questioning my boss and his decisions was something I would never do. That nigga Priest might know the word but he wasn’t wrapped too tight. He was much better than his damn daddy though. Working for a righteous psychopath was much better than working for a man who was happily depraved.

I was different from the others in The Order. I’d come in much older and was recruited because of my military career. When the assignment came up to work security for a wedding for the head of another family I had no problem coming back home. I’d gotten the penthouse suite in the hotel after the newlyweds had left and had finally reconnected with my people once the heads of each Consortium family left town. They’d caused a huge buzz that I felt would be the talk of Beacon Grove for weeks but unfortunately, Sylvia Montrose, well Thompson now, was who had everyone talking.

My cousin Cass wanted me to meet him here for a drink tonight but he’d apparently found someone lonely enough to accept his crumbs on Valentine’s Day. I was already headed down when he said he’d need a raincheck. It might’ve been a blessing since the girl I’d crushed on since second grade was sitting at the bar looking like her world had fallen apart behind her smile. Probably because it had.

I assessed the situation noticing that she’d thrown on something cute probably to save face for anyone who saw her. The slump in her shoulders and the way she was solely focused on her drink gave away the turmoil she was battling.

Instead of wasting anymore time thinking or even worse talking myself out of speaking, I moved toward the bar and leaned over so I was slightly in her space.

“Is this seat taken?”

She looked up at me her annoyance clear and I was struck by how fucking beautiful she was. It was easy to be pretty when you were young. The whole youth thing did a lot of heavy lifting with some muthafuckas. But not Sylvia Thompson. She had deep brown skin that always smelled like cocoa butter and looked so soft. A broad, rounded nose and bone structure that was a testament to her ancestors being very proudly Black made her look like a deity. Even now her arms were still toned as they were when she wrestled. I loved a woman who was athletic and Sylvia had been my type then and was even more so now. Age and I’m sure kids had rounded her hips which made her look like a grown ass woman.

“All the seats that are here and you want this one? I swear today is just trying to piss me off something serious.” Sylvia muttered that last part but I heard her and her annoyance brought a smile to my face.

“You doing okay?” I was sure she couldn’t tell who I was but I wanted to see how far she would open up to someone that she thought was a stranger. It had been a minute since I’d called the Grove home so I guess I was a stranger again.

She scoffed and picked up the heavy crystal glass that we served all of our drinks in. She swirled the amber liquid around unhurriedly. “I’ve beat two people’s ass today, one of which was a man I was with for almost twenty years. Please do us both a favor and leave me the fuck alone.”

She tossed back the rest of her drink and shot me a look that screamed I’d be victim number three if I kept bothering her. Since I was a man who loved combat, verbal and physical, I had no problem with risking it.

“You don’t remember me, Sylvie?” I let a playful smile ease onto my face knowing I looked a hell of lot different than the last time I’d lived here. I’d put on over eighty pounds and grown six inches so she could no longer look me in the eye when we talked.

To her credit, I could see her immediately go on guard as she began to catalogue my features. Either her memory was fuzzy or I had changed just that much.

“No, why would I? Didn’t you hear me say I’ve had my fill of fuck niggas for the day? Why are you still over here talking to me?”