Page 65 of Pieces of Us

“He wanted to press charges on you, Nehemiah. If my mom hadn’t threatened him, you’d be in jail right now.”

I chuckled. “Mo, I’m not scared of going to jail, baby. I told you I was going to beat his ass. He kept me away from my daughter for years, making me miss experiencing all of her firsts because of some stupid ass beef he has with my father. If I’m being honest, he deserves to be lying in a casket looking up at the roof of his church. He’s lucky I spared him.”

She walked up to me, wrapping her arms around my waist.

“I just got you back. Why are you trying to leave me again?”

“I ain’t going nowhere, Morgan. Ain’t shit else going to stand in the way of me having you and my daughter in my life. Ever again.”

“That’s not all.” She pulled her phone from her swimsuit, clicked around on it, then handed it to me. It was a text thread between her and fuck boy about what occurred between us today. He was calling her all kinds of names and threatening to take Mariah from her. I handed her the phone back.

So, I see gotta introduce this nigga to these hands too.

“I see these niggas want to keep testing me.”

“Nehemiah, what did you say to him? You know I’m trying to make things less complicated for everyone.”

“Listen. I know I only showed you the nice side of me. That’s all I ever want you to know and see. But when it comes to the people I love being fucked with, I’ll go to hell or jail about them. I wasn’t trying to step to homie, but when him and his side bitchstood in the line at the bakery poppin’ mad shit about my wife thinking he was about to take my daughter from her party, I had to address it.”

“He was with Jolie?”

“I don’t know who the broad is. The fact of the matter is he cheated on you first. So, all that shit you saying about us being careful is dead. If I want to stand in the middle of Downtown with a bullhorn to let motherfuckas know that you’re mine, then that’s what I’ll do.

“Also, you work as a receptionist at my practice. I’ll have Shani draw up some fake check stubs or whatever we gotta do to move this process along faster because I’m getting very impatient.”

She sighed and kissed my lips. “I know. Whatever you have to do to get me back to you, I’m here for it. I do want to brush up on my physiology degree. I really allowed myself to be reduced to…nothing.”

“You are something. You’re a dope ass mom, a beautiful soul, and got some bomb ass pussy. Now that’s a whole lotta something, baby.”

She mushed me and laughed just as Shanise came rushing inside the room.

“What happened?” I asked.

“Gio is here, and your dad, my dad, and Loon are about to act the fuck up.”

“Shit.”

“Oh, God!” Morgan exclaimed, rushing out of the room as I hurried behind her.

This nigga had to have a death wish.

“Keep the kids out back, Shan.”

“Okay.”

Once we made it to the front, I saw Mrs. May standing in between my pops and Gio. The stare down between them couldhave dropped a million men. Morgan rushed over to them, assisting her mother.

“No. Hell no! Y’all are not doing this at my daughter’s birthday party! Dad, I asked you not to come here.”

“That is my granddaughter, and it’s her birthday. Am I not allowed to celebrate with her?”

“You weren’t invited here,” I told him.

“So get the fuck out,” my pops added.

He was pissed. Even though he didn’t show it, I’d known the man all my life to know when he was about to turn up.

“Please, everybody just calm down. This is my granddaughter’s birthday party. Do not embarrass her with this foolishness,” Mrs. May said. “Gioni, I told you not to follow me here—”

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