Page 30 of Walk Thru The Fire

“I’m leaving now.”

“Okay.”

After hanging up, I looked at Jackson, who was still frowning. I pulled his face down to mine and placed a kiss on his lips. “I’ll see you when I get back.”

“Man, don’t be gone all day and don’t get too drunk. I got something planned for us tonight.” I blushed because I loved when he planned things for us. It displayed his romantic side, and I loved it. I kissed my man once more before leaving to meet the girls. Had I not, I would’ve never left.

***

“Look who finally made it,” Mel commented with a smirk on her face.

“Don’t do that. I’m pretty sure Nic just got here, and that’s only because she drives like a bat out of hell.” I took my seat at the table just as the server came up to take our order. We ordered a pitcher of passionfruit mimosas, along with an order of ham and cheese sliders and fruit.

“So,” Mel started. “How are things with you and Stacks?”

Blushing, I responded. “They’re better. I didn’t think we would ever get to this place, but here we are.” It felt good to be with someone who loved and appreciated me as much as I did them. Lance only cared about himself.

“I’m happy for the both of you. You can tell he really loves you,” Nic added.

“And I love him, even after I tried so hard not to,” I confessed.

“Was it because of his age?” Mel asked as the server came back and placed our drinks on the table.

“I mean, at first it was. When Jackson started flirting with me, he was twenty-three years old. I was thirty, with a ten-year-old son. I thought,what could he possibly offer me?I had too much going on at the time to be involving myself with my boss’ baby brother.” I took a sip of my mimosa.

“You couldn’t resist that DeLuca charm, huh?” Mel instigated with a smirk on her face.

“You’re the last one to talk.” Nic pointed her finger in her sister’s direction. “You’ve been fuckin’ on this nigga for years and no one knew, so I’m gone need you to be quiet.” I still couldn’t believe Mel and Kilo were a thing. I don’t think nobody did.

“How did that even happen?” I questioned. Hell, I needed to know.

Before she spoke, she refilled her glass. Once she took a sip, she explained she started messing with Kilo while they were still in high school. Even though they went to different high schools, everyone knew the DeLuca brothers. Both she and Kilo were seniors, while Buck’s menacing ass was a sophomore but hung out with his older brother a lot. She let us know he approached her one day while she was at the mall. He introduced his self and asked for her number. Damn near star-struck, she rambled off her number, and they started seeing each other on the low. It was on the low at the time because he had a girlfriend. That didn’t stop him from spending time with Mel, though. When he got locked up, they lost touch until she started working at the prison a few years later.

“So, you didn’t know he was at that prison when started working there?” I asked. She shook her head no. “Well, damn. Talk about the Universe working overtime.” I took a sip of my mimosa because this story was getting better than an urban fiction novel.

“Yeah, that’s how that happened. I didn’t say anything then because I was young and didn’t know any better. Now I’m quiet because my job could be at stake.” She shrugged.

“You’on even care about that job like that. You know Kilo got you. Hell, this whole time I was thinking you were some well-kept side chick. Who time you fuckin’ the leader of the pack.” Nic was never gone let her sister live that down.

“Girl, hush. You got the most ignorant one, so you need to chill,” Mel shot back.

“I still don’t know how you did that,” I joked. “When he called and asked for your information, I knew my boy had it bad.” I laughed at the thought of how desperate Buck sounded when he called me for Nic’s address and phone number.

“He should have. Acting like I was some hoe he could play with. I told that nigga to kiss my ass one time, and he been on me since.” She stuck her tongue out and twerked in her seat.

“Whatever, hoe. Back to you.” Mel pointed her finger at me. “You ain’t off the hook. Spill it.”

“Anyway.” I playfully rolled my eyes. “He was persistent and showed me he was wise beyond his years. He let me know he was serious about being with me. I figured he was calling bullshit, so I had him call every bitch he was fucking on and tell them it was a wrap. He did.” I simpered. “Knowing that he was young and his hormones were raging, I purposely didn’t sleep with him again. Not only did I torture myself, he’d proved himself worthy.”

“He not only proved to me he wanted a relationship with me, but with my son, too. Even when I wasn’t sleeping with him, he’d come play the game with him or take him to the barbershop to get his hair cut. I couldn’t help but fall in love with his young ass.”

“Then why you played him like that?” Nic asked. Yes, me and her were close, but she and Jackson were as well. They were closer in age, so they really did have that brother-sister dynamic.

“I really thought I was protecting him.”

“Did he show you he needed protecting, though?” Mel chimed in.

I sat and listened to them and by the time brunch was over, they had convinced me I needed to go home and apologize to my man…again.

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