“Just go get in the bed, Caya.”
Finally, she sat up and wiped sleep from her eyes. “What time is it?”
“Four. I’m about to spit with Rem for a minute, then we can go back to sleep.”
She shook her head. “You know I gotta get back to the city to get Adonis and I have two heads. I gotta get a rideshare.”
I shook my head. I wasn’t ready to be without her. I was still very much fucking attached at the hip. “Lemme grab some stuff and we can leave by six. That’s cool with you?”
“No, because you need to rest, not drive back to the city and be moving around.”
“I’ma rest at your spot while you do them heads.”
She sucked her teeth. “You’re so hardheaded.”
“He damn sure is, but we all just learned to accept it.” Reminisce’s voice filled my living room.
My eyes finally parted from Caya and landed on my twin. He looked like he was carrying the weight of the world. He was carrying the fear of almost losing me and not being close enough to act, true Reminisce shit.
Before Caya could exit the room, Rem gave her a side hug. When it was just him and me, he walked over to the couch and took a seat. “Sit down, Rennix.”
“I am, it’s just too fucking hard to get up. I never realized how low this fucking sofa is.” I glared at the couch I loved at one point in disdain.
He chuckled, rubbing his hand down his face. “I ain’t had a lick of sleep. G called me and I was on a plane less than thirty minutes later. I was on pins and fucking needles wondering what the fuck happened. I knew you were alright, but I had to see it, to make sure you were good.”
“Shit happened so fast, man. I was on my way in and felt that shit. I don’t know who shot me, but I know I dropped them. G said there is no body or yellow tape. I ain’t harpin over it, but that doesn’t sit well with me.”
“You sure you dropped them?”
I nodded.
“Then that means whoever shot you wasn’t out there alone.”
Chapter 8
Caya
A few days later
When Rennix was shot, I dropped everything to get to him. When G told me he lost a lot of blood, I felt the air leave my body and blood rush to my heart. Had he said anything other than Rennix was fine, I probably would have died right there in my suite. The cause of death would have been simple:cardiac arrest.The thought of this man bullying his way into my life and heart just to die didn’t sit well with me. Rennix belonged to me now, so it was too late for God or anybody to start playing take backsies. My heart wouldn’t be able to take it.
“Damn girl, you did this shit nice and quick. I was sure we’d be here for a couple hours, but you got in here and did your thing. What put pep in your step?”
“That wasn’t my normal time?” I quizzed, knowing damn well I had worked extremely fast because I was trying to get home to my man. It was just that simple. He hadn’t all out rushed me, but the six calls and constant social media video sharing let me know he was bored and staying in had done nothing but made him a fat ass and delirious. The man sent me several recipes with the caption, “this too, bae”.
“Hell nah, girl you ate and left no crumbs. Thank you,” Bernice, one of my normal clients who came in every so often to either refresh her braids or get a new set, said. After she paid, I dipped my head into the office section of my suite and spotted Adonis lying on the sofa asleep with his iPad on his chest. Though Rennix insisted I leave my baby with him, I didn’t feel right. It wasn’t that I didn’t trust him, it was more of the fact that he had just gotten shot and didn’t need to be babysitting a five year old because he could barely get up and the meds they’d given him had him on his ass.
My body was tired, but after I cleaned up after myself and packed up all of Adonis’s toys, we left. My first stop was a grocery store. I didn’t know anything about the inside of places like this, but I figured it out. It also dawned on me that maybe I needed to stop at the supermarket to grab something to cook more often. Tonight I told myself I’d make him and Adonis one of those damn recipes he sent. I didn’t know how it would come out, but for them, I was willing to try.
I was walking through the store talking to Harlem, the only person I knew who could cook. Shit, she could do that shit with her eyes closed, which was one of the reasons I called. None of the videos he’d sent had any sort of breakdown on what I needed and where the hell I was to get that from.
“Mommy, I get us cookies. Me and Rennix.” Adonis walked over to the cart, holding a clear container of chocolate chip cookies.
“Damn what about me?” I peered down at my little munchkin with a fake pout.
“Mommy, you don’t like cookies… not like that.” He shrugged like it just made sense in his little mind.
“Not only are you going home to make that injured man some grub, but you’re taking your mushy ass home to lay up with your man.” Harlem laughed into the phone.
