Page 40 of Cherry's Jubilee

“No, he didn’t,” I argue back.

“He did. It was a messy situation, but he did his best with it. Now, DJ’s mom would have cut my manhood off and ground it in the garbage disposal.” My head snaps up when I look at him, but all he does is laugh.

Daniel covers his face and shakes his head. “Dad, come on.”

My phone buzzes at the same time as Daniel’s, and it’s a text from my dad.

Dad: Come over. I’m grilling out.

Daniel: We’ll be there.

I look up and roll my eyes at him, but he’s not looking my way. His father is standing over him, looking down at his phone.

“Damn, I wish I could go. Your parents are fun, Cherry, but I have meetings all day. You two go and have fun. Don’t be upset at my son, and don’t cut off his manhood.”

I’d have to get close to it to cut it off, but I keep those comments to myself.

When I stand, Mr. Jubilee takes both my hands in his. “Your grandfather was an imperfect man. He made lots of mistakes, but your mom is not one of them. Between us, Cora was a witch. He always took care of your mother financially, and he spent as much time with her as possible. Your mom’s grandparents didn’t make it easy for him to see her, so it’s not all your grandfather’s fault. Let me give you some advice.” He squeezes my hands. “None of the stuff that happened decades ago is your responsibility. You don’t have to deal with any of it. You don’t have to fight old feuds that have been around longer than you’ve been alive. You’re a beautiful, smart girl with your whole life ahead of you. Do you hear me?” When I nod, he says, “Now, give me a hug and come over to the house on Sunday. Bring a cake.” He kisses my cheek and leaves the office.

I follow him, eager to exit. I don’t get very far before Daniel wraps his arm around my waist, lifts me off the ground, and dumps me on the couch again. He sits next to me and puts a hand on my lap.

“I’m sorry you walked in on that, but you have to know I would never do anything to ruin what we have.” He takes my chin and slowly turns me to face him. “I’m in love with you, Cherette Martine Cross. You are it for me. You’re my girl.” He puts his arm across my shoulders. “Tell me you know.”

“I know,” I admit, and he exhales. “I’m still pissed off about it.”

“That’s understandable, but can you not be pissed off at me?”

“I guess.”

“Can you kiss mebefore we go?”

“I will, but you must brush your teeth, gargle, and wash your face. In fact, take a shower and change out of those clothes. They’re contaminated.”

Chapter 25

Daniel

“Sometimes an ass whooping is a dish best served piping hot,” some crazy female radio personality says. Cherry sits beside me and throws air punches, but at least she’s no longer angry. “Beat a bitch’s ass so she’ll know not to mess with you ever again. Beat that bitch’s ass so good, you’ll only have to do it once. I don’t care who it is. Don’t talk to me about them being family because family can be the most disrespectful.”

“Preach, Mandy,” she says as I turn on her street.

Despite our plans not coming to fruition, I’m happy to spend the rest of the day with her family.

“Let me tell you something,” this Mandy person says, “I had to beat down my own sister once. She got a little too disrespectful with my man, and I’ve never regretted it. My motto is, don’t mess with my man, my mama, or my money. If you do, you’re gonna catch these hands.”

Cherry offers me a high-five. I roll my eyes, but I slap her hand anyway.

“I don’t condone violence, Cherry. You can’t go around fighting like some—”

“Those bitches had it coming,” she says.

I let it go, turn down her family’s street, and park in their driveway.

“It’s about time you two got here,” Cal says moments later. “Cherry, your mom’s inside attempting to bake a cake. Go help her, please. Yoursister and Kirby are on their way,” Cal says the moment we walk in. He hands each of us a drink.

Cherry slowly sips and looks through the sliding glass door. Michelle has her back to us. She finally turns, smiles, and waves before coming to hug us.

“I think I’ll have Solange pick up dessert on her way. Cherry didn’t get her baking gene from me. Dad’s gonna start grilling and then—” Her words die in her throat, and I think it’s because of the loud screeching sound of car tires. Michelle’s head cocks to the side and she goes outside through the sliding glass door.

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