Page 27 of Love Set Me Free

“You know how close the three of us were.”

Tiana rolled her eyes. “Duh. You used to barely let me hang out with you guys.”

“That’s not true.”

“Felt like it.” Tiana pouted. “I used to want to be a part of the trio, you know?”

Paisley offered a weak smile. “I know, and I loved you and Nasir. I hope you guys know that. You’re all I have now, and that was never in question. It was just that… Janelle and Kydrick, we just clicked, you know? From day one, we were thick as thieves, and being with them was exciting.”

“I can understand that,” Tiana murmured.

“I think I’m having a hard time now that Kyd is out,” Paisley admitted as she gave Tiana her watery gaze. “It’s like I’m mixing before he went to prison with present time, and that’s a problem. Those two times really don’t mix well. Before, our business was always up for grabs between the three of us. We didn’t have many boundaries.

“When Kydrick and Janelle lost their virginities to each other, I knew about it. When I managed to have a crush on someone other than Kyd, they both knew. I guess seeing them together with no prior knowledge and then him being so tight-lipped about it triggered me. It reminded me about how hurt I was when I found out they were dating. I felt blindsided and like there was a new duo in town that I wasn’t a part of.”

“Yeah, you have to stop that,” Tiana said, finally letting go of Paisley’s hands after giving them another gentle squeeze. “Y’all aren’t kids anymore, and honestly, you need to climb out of Kydrick’s ass and let him breathe. He has a lot he needs to figureout now that he’s out, and he might need to spend some time with people from his past in order to move on. Did you ever think of that?”

Tiana always told Paisley how it was. She got that bluntness from their mama. Over the years, her family tried reminding her to rest and to take time for herself, but she never could. Not until Kydrick was okay. Hearing Tiana say it so bluntly made her wonder if she clung too tightly to him. That made her wonder why. She had so easily been able to block Janelle out of her life. Why couldn’t she leave Kydrick in the past? Better yet, why couldn’t she allow him some breathing room?

While questions raced through her mind, a knock on the door sounded. Tiana called out, “Come in!”

Alyssa poked her head in and smiled at her girls. “Dinner is ready. Tiana, go wash up. I need to talk to Paisley for a second.”

Tiana hopped up, patted Paisley on the shoulder, and said, “Think about what I said. Let that man breathe.”

Paisley didn’t pay her any mind as she allowed her thoughts to consume her. A moment later, the bed dipped, causing her gaze to land on her mother.

“Now what did she mean by let that man breathe?”

Paisley scoffed. “Take a guess.”

Alyssa chuckled. “You know your sister is smart. All of you are, but that doesn’t mean she has all the answers.”

Paisley let out a long breath, tired of people giving her their opinions when she didn’t ask for them but knowing her mother was going to say what she needed to despite Paisley’s irritation.

To speed up the process, she asked, “And what do you mean by that?”

“I mean that only you and Kydrick know what’s best for y’all.”

“I kind of doubt that,” Paisley admitted. “I thought things were finally looking up, but they came crashing down pretty quickly.”

“Does it have anything to do with him meeting Janelle yesterday?”

“You knew about that?”

“Chile, of course I did. Linda was the one that gave Janelle his number after she begged him for it. She’s been wanting to talk to him for a long time now. Let me guess. You don’t think she has that right?”

“You do?” Paisley asked as she stood up and paced the length of the room. The pink wallpaper and two double beds always transported her back to her teenaged years.

“That’s not my place to judge. What I know is Kydrick accepted her invite, so apparently he thought she did.”

Paisley stopped pacing and looked at her mom with genuine confusion written all over her face.

“Butwhy, Mama? I don’t understandwhy. She left him. What could she possibly say to him after all this time?”

“Why don’t you ask her yourself?”

“What?” Paisley’s head cocked to the side as if she didn’t comprehend that combination of words.

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