Page 4 of Smoke

“Okay.”

I walked her back to the storefront and to the door. We said our goodbyes, and I watched until she made it to her car. Shorty was beautiful. The whole time I spoke with her, I couldn’t help but admire her. It was too bad she had a fuck nigga on her ass. I should have gotten a name from her. I decided I’d pump her for more information on Monday. If curiosity got the best of me, I’d just have Jaeda pull her info.

Turning from the door, I bumped right into Kaylynn’s ass. She stood with her arms crossed and a smirk on her face.

“What, man?” I asked.

“Here you go.”

“Whatchu’ mean!”

“You found a new conquest.”

I kissed my teeth. “Nobody is thinking about that woman, Kay. She’s pregnant?—”

“She has a pussy. That’s all you need.”

“Take your ass back to work.”

Her laughter echoed as she walked away. I didn’t like that she thought a nigga didn’t have standards. I’d never take advantage of a vulnerable, pregnant woman… even if she was fine as hell.

I heavily sighedas I pulled up to my parents’ house.

Today had been a long day, starting with my visit to the gun shop. I never imagined I would be in this space. I never thought I’d end up with a man like Patrick LaStrange. He went from Prince Charming to the devil, all within a year’s time. Now I was being harassed and stalked.

It was sad that my baby had to stay with her grandparents because she couldn’t be safe in her own home. Growing up, I was always a good girl. Aside from getting pregnant at eighteen, I did what I was supposed to. I never hung with the wrong crowd or disrespected my parents. I got good grades and graduated with honors from high school and college, despite having a child. Korri changed my life.

She gave me even more of a reason to go harder for myself. When I found out I was pregnant, I was devastated. I was terrified to tell my parents because I was convinced they wouldkick me out of the house and disown me. When I finally came clean, it went so much better than I anticipated. Of course, they were disappointed that I’d gotten pregnant so young, but they told me that life wasn’t over, and it didn’t stop with a baby.

They committed to helping me every step of the way so I could still go to school and work. Sarah and Carlton Mitchell were blessings to my baby and me. Korri’s father, Corey Jeffries, had been so excited for her birth. I didn’t think I’d ever seen him nervous about having her, and never once did he mention not wanting her.

He was my high school sweetheart and graduated a year before me. When I told him I was pregnant, he was away at school. That man transferred to a school closer to home so he could be here for me and our daughter. He was at every doctor’s appointment. He made sure I was comfortable and taken care of throughout my pregnancy.

When she was born, it was love at first sight for him. My entire hospital stay, he was right by my side, feeding, changing, and just loving on her. The four years that he was a part of her life, nothing about that changed. She was a true daddy’s girl, so much so it was like I didn’t exist when he was around.

Tragedy took him from us.

He was on his way home, after working a double shift, when he fell asleep at the wheel and ran into the back of a semi-truck. The coroner said he died on impact, and it gave me a little comfort knowing he didn’t suffer. Still, my heart ached for years after losing him. My daughter lost her father, and I lost the love of my life. It took me three years to even open my heart to dating again, and the first thing I did was hook up with a man like Patrick.

This couldn’t be life.

A knock on my window broke me out of my trip down memory lane. I looked up to see my older sister Renay standingat my window, beckoning me to get out. Grabbing my phone and keys, I opened the door.

“Come on here, baby mama,” she said, reaching for my hand to help me out.

“Hey, Nay.”

“Hey, boo.” She stooped to rub and kiss my stomach. “Hi, auntie Nay’s baby! Did you and mommy have a good day?”

I smiled softly. “She had a good day. Mommy… not so much.”

“What happened? Patrick still on his bullshit?”

“Not today, sis. I uh… I went to buy a gun.”

“A gun! Romi, did something happen that you aren’t telling us?”

“No. I’ve told you everything. I’m just… I’m scared, Nay. Patrick has been on this kick for months now. What if he actually hurts me? I can’t leave Korri. She’s already lost her dad. She can’t lose me too.”

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