I looked him over before nodding for him to continue. Even up close this motherfucker looked so much like Sora.
“I cared very deeply for your mother, but we were young and both so torn. She was torn between a family that wouldn’t accept where I reveled. And I was torn between the streets and her. When you were born, she had already chosen Memphis and told me he was your father, the same with Kinga, even though we were still intimate. I wasn’t aware of Sora until I saw you. I have done business with Kinga for years, and maybe I should have known, but the coward in me chose to ignore the features of mine he shares. But deep down I knew, I just couldn’t believe it. Then, when I saw you here and we locked eyes, all the convincing I had done, telling myself that it couldn’t be, came crashing down. The three of you are my sons. I don’t know where to start with that, but I must start somewhere.”
I paused, eyes searching his. They were clouded with emotion and sincerity.
“I must atone for my absence in your lives, as I should have been there.” That thick ass accent was throwing me, but I understood enough of what he said.
His words were heavy, but I heard them. I stopped what I was doing and moved toward the cabinet to grab two glasses, then moved to the bottom cabinet for the bottle of scotch I kept there. “You don’t have to atone for shit. I believe you when you say you didn’t know. How could you? Unlike my brothers, I remember how my mother was when she put her mind to something.” I poured the liquor into one glass before reaching for the other. I set the bottle down and used my glass to push one in his direction.
He grabbed the glass from the metal counter then put it to his lips. From there, we talked. As much as I wanted to ask him why now, I already knew the answer. He couldn’t make up for his absence, but we had now.Shit, Kinga was right. I did have some of that soft hearted shit going on.
When I left the restaurant for the evening, I found myself at Kinga’s house. I needed to talk to him. Even though I knew he had everything handled with the utmost that day, I still felt the need to tell him that a detective dropped in on me at the restaurant. Her random ass popup bothered me more than Wiley’s impromptu visit.
I wasn’t shocked when I pulled up and heard Jeezy bumping through the closed garage. Specks of light escaped through the bottom of the door. Leave it to him to be out here while his whole house was probably asleep.
Instead of possibly getting my ass shot, I dialed his number as I exited the car. The music paused inside and his voice came spilling through the speaker of my phone.
“Yo, don’t your old ass supposed to be sleep?”
“Hell yeah, but instead I’m here to talk to you. Open the fucking door.”
He sucked his teeth. “Nigga, don’t you have a key?”
“Yeah, but you had your music blasting. I wasn’t trying to catch a bullet walking in the door.”
His laughter spilled through the phone. “Yeah, you right, you damn sure would have.” He then lifted the garage door and met me right in the driveway. We hung up.
He exited the garage, wiping his hands on the rag he was holding, eyes trained on me. “You just left the restaurant and didn’t bring anything to eat, but your mind is heavy as hell.”
I tilted my head to the side. “How you know my mind is heavy?”
“It’s in your eyes, now what’s up, nigga? I got about an hour before Harlem comes out here bossing up.”
My eyes went from him to the house. Though all the lights were out, I knew he was right. A quick chortle later, I was spilling my guts. I gave him the whole rundown of the detective dropping by the restaurant and he didn’t flinch. If anything, bythe time I was done, he was looking at me as if to ask if that was all.
“Just like I told you that day, yeen got shit to worry about. It was handled. There was nothing you had to be worried about then and nothing to be worried about now. Them fucking pigs are always looking for something to do when the mud is dried up.”
Chapter 15
Jade
Almost a week later …
Overthinking was my specialty, but when I woke up this morning, I was done doing it. I told myself that my second store would be opening this month and nothing would stop it. So I geared up and went to work, taking over the kitchen table and working on the event. I had allowed this so-called stalker to dampen my spirit long enough, now I needed to get back to what was me, and most of all, what made me who I was. The entire morning, I had spoken with various venues and service providers for everything I’d need. I wanted this grand opening to be only half as big as the store and all that I had put into it.
“Even though there is nowhere for me to put breakfast down, that shit is sexy as fuck.” Oden’s voice made me turn around.
“What is?”
“You in here with these thick ass glasses wearing shorts you know I have no problem helping you out of.” He winked.
I giggled. “Nasty ass.”
“Not nasty at all, just stating facts. Come on over here and eat.” He found a place on the counter next to the fridge and set the cartons down.
“Um, let me just move all of this.” I began to collect my papers.
“Nah, you are good. Come here.” He moved the papers I had next to the cartons into a different space, which let me know what was up.
