"Fine, hurry up and don't wake my baby."
He smirked. "So you're mad at me and now she'syourbaby like my nut didn’t help get her here?"
"Yep."
Omiri chuckled and leaned down to kiss me again but I pulled back. "Bruh, you doing too much."
"And you're not doing enough. Go do whatever you gotta do so you can tell me why you were at a strip club and I can decide how pissed I am about it."
He grinned, shook his head, and left the living room. I unmuted the TV and occupied myself while he was gone, and about twenty minutes later he was back, smelling like bergamot and citrus bodywash, shirtless in basketball shorts. He dropped down on the sofa then grabbed my feet, pulling them into his lap, but I snatched them back until he glared at me.
"Kari, don't fucking play."
I lifted my feet and dropped them down on his thigh. He placed his hand on my ankles, dropped his head back and turned it in my direction. "My father was on his bullshit today. He got drunk at Poles and Pastries, started showing his ass, then demanded special treatment. When he couldn't get what he wanted, he started throwing shit around."
"They called you?"
He nodded. "He goes there a lot. I know the owner and he hit me up, figuring I wouldn't want things to get out of hand or end up a story. By the time I got there, my father was doing the most so security had him contained. We had to drag him up out of there."
"They didn't post that."
Omiri snorted. "Nah, ’cause nobody gives a fuck about my father being an alcoholic."
"But they do care if you're in a strip club when you're supposed to be a reformed playboy."
He nodded. "I apologize for having your name out there again. We're still dealing with that other shit."
"You don't need to apologize."
He grinned. "Based on the way you were grilling me when I walked in, I do."
"I didn't react. I gave you a chance to explain."
"While you were hitting me with all kinds of theories in your head. I know how you get down."
I smiled and rolled my eyes. "Where is he now?"
"Hotel room. KP is with him. I took his wallet, phone, and keys so he couldn't make this any worse than it already is. He's passed out for now. I'll deal with him tomorrow."
"That sounds exhausting."
"It is but I'm used to it. I'm also sick of fixing his shit so I'm gonna have to figure out something."
"Why do you show up for him?"
"Because if I don't, things get worse than they are. It's bad enough they're on my ass. I don't need them adding his bad decisions to the chaos we’re already dealing with."
"I guess we both had crazy parent days."
"What you mean?"
"My mom was blowing up my phone all day and when I finally answered she made sure to let me know my life choices make it appear that she's a bad parent. When in fact, she's not necessarily a bad parent but more or less a horrible person because me deciding to have Avi was reason enough to abandon us."
His expression turned hard. "The fuck did she say to you?"
I sighed. "It's not important. I can handle my mother, and whether she accepts Avi or not, she and I are just fine and will be just fine."
"You damn sure will be."
