Page 31 of Hired By My Rich Baby Daddy 2

Iput the car in park and just sat there for a second, my hands resting on the steering wheel.

I looked in the rearview mirror to see Oaklynn was knocked out cold in the back seat, head tilted to the side, mouth wide open.

“Girl.” Nourah’s voice was soft. “It’s gonna be okay.”

I wiped underneath my eyes real quick, trying to catch it before it fell.

I sighed. “Like, the thought of being a nanny, getting us on our feet, that sounds good in my head. It sounds smart. But actually, dropping my baby off right now? Physically doing it?” My voice cracked. “It’s hurting me, Nou Nou.”

She leaned over the console and wrapped both arms around me, rubbing my back slowly. “Listen. We already knew this wasn’t gonna be easy. From the jump, we knew that. But you got this. Trust me.” She was crying a little too, mainly because she knew how bad this was hurting me.

I was a wreck, the worst kind.

We sat in that hug a second longer than we needed to, and then we pulled apart and both wiped our faces.

“Girl, now you got me crying! And you know I don’t even do that! I’m a pretty Gangsta. So really, I’m a Prangsta.”

I cut my eyes at her and said, “No, you’re really a Wanksta. Now get out.”

We burst out laughing.

I grabbed the two bags I’d packed—diapers, clothes, her favorite blanket, a few toys she couldn’t sleep without—and Nourah came around and tried to take one off my hands.

“I got it, sis. Just let me grab her, and you grab her car seat, please.”

I opened the back door easily and lifted Oaklynn out, careful not to wake her, and she just melted right into my shoulder, still asleep.

After Nourah grabbed my baby’s car seat, we walked up to the door, and I rang the bell.

I could hear feet shuffling on the other side, then the locks turning, and then the door swung open.

My mama stood there in a housedress with an apron tied over it, her hair pulled back, a little more gray at the roots than the last time I saw her. But her face was still smooth, still pretty, and she still had that youthful glow that made people not believe her age when she told them. Slim waist, and yeah, I got my ass from somewhere, and it wasn’t a mystery where. Carolyn-Ann was stacked!

A rare beauty, and honestly, her house was like a time capsule because she was low-key a hoarder. She held onto anything and everything you could possibly think of over the last couple of decades. I honestly think the ’80s were her favorite era because if you walked into her house, you’d know exactly what I meant.

“Oh my God, my babies!” She reached for Nourah first, pulling her in for a hug and a kiss on the cheek.

“Hey, Mama.” Nourah smiled.

“Hey, suga.” Then she turned to me and gave me the same, a hug and a kiss, before her eyes landed on my sleeping baby against my chest and her whole face lit up differently. “Oh, my wittle grandbaby.”

She reached out and took her right out of my arms before I could even brace myself, and Oaklynn twisted a little, fussed for a second, and then settled right down against her grandmother’s chest.

“Come on in, come on in.” She waved us through the door.

“Wow, it smells so good in here, Mama. What you cooking?”

“Smothered pork chops and rice. Got some greens on the stove too.”

She led us into the living room, and we sat down together on the couch, setting the bags and car seat at our feet, while she lowered herself into the chair across from us with my baby still sleeping against her.

“So,” she said, looking at me. “Congratulations on the job. I know from our last conversation you were stressed about money, so this is a real blessing.”

“Yeah,” I said. “It is.”

She was quiet for a second, looking between me and Nourah, and then she leaned forward a little.

“I wanna say something to you, Noree. I know I wasn’t the best mama growing up. I was gone a lot, working, and y’all had to get bounced around to different people watching you while I was trying to keep the lights on. It was just me. I did what I could do with what I had. And I do apologize that I wasn’t around more, that you girls basically had to raise each other.”