Page 72 of No Remedy for Love

“What do you need?”

“Book me a hotel suite for a few days.”

“What!? Why do you need a hotel suite?”

“I just feel like some shit is about to pop off and I don’t want my Nana in the middle of it. Knowing Zita, she already told her pops and he probably called a family meeting by now. I just need to wrap my head around all this mess. I don’t even think I’ve fully processed it all.”

“Seriously, Blaze? Don’t insult me like that.” Remi frowned as she shoved the card back into his hand.

“How did I insult you?”

“I have a four-bedroom house and I live alone. Does wasting money renting a suite really make sense to you?”

“I wasn’t trying to impose on you like that though.”

“Are you my man or not?” Remi asked angrily.

“Shit, I’m divorced now, a nigga trying to be your husband.”

“Okay, nigga, well act like it then. Let’s go get y’all some clothes and head to the Northshore,” Remi replied, making him smile.

Truthfully, Blaze started to ask her if they could chill by her for a few days but he wasn’t trying to be a burden. His relationship with Remi was still kinda new but he appreciated her for offering.

“Remi LaRue. Shit sound good, don’t it?” Blaze looked down at her and smiled.

“Let’s just get through the next few weeks without one of us going to jail or sending somebody to hell and we’ll discuss everything else later.” Remi knew that Blaze’s family was a mess, but he had the right one for a girlfriend. They seemed to think she was a pushover because she never spoke up for herself. She really didn’t have to since Blaze always did it for her.

“Man, I still don’t feel like this shit is real.” Bertha had been saying she was gonna hit the jackpot ever since he was a little boy. He was still baffled that she actually did. It broke his heart to know that she probably wasn’t gonna be around long enough to even enjoy it.

“What is Kela cooking down there? I’m starving,” Reanna said as she got up from the bed and stretched.

Ferris turned his head so he didn’t have to looked at her weirdly shaped naked body. He didn’t understand why Reanna couldn’t see what everybody else saw.

“Man, put some clothes on and go down there and ask.”

His grandmother was on yet another cruise with Lollie and Marva. That was the only reason why he didn’t care if she roamed the house. Remi hadn’t been over there in a few days and she more than likely wouldn’t come since their grandmother wasn’t home.

Ferris had just purchased his last bit of work and he was giving up the dope game for good. His bank account was nice and he had just acquired his fourth piece of blighted property. His first one was occupied and his second and third had just got done being renovated. He knew that the dope game had an expiration date and he was getting out before his came.

“I don’t feel like it, baby. Go see and fix me a plate, please,” Reanna whined. “You need to be doing everything in your power to get back on my good side.”

Ferris wanted to snap and tell her how he really felt but he had to be smart about it. He had just come back from another two-week hiatus and he was once again kissing silicone ass to make sure he got what he needed from her. He had gone to Arizona by Monique again and blocked her from calling him altogether. He was pissed when Monique told him that she couldn’t get the six month contract to work in New Orleans. The hospital didn’t need the help anymore but another one reached out seeking assistance and the pay was better. It was only four months but he was good with that. If all went well, Monique would be back in New Orleans in another month or so. Ferris had just put in for a three-bedroom townhouse for him and Shiva to move into. He wanted to have his own place before Monique got there, even though the hospital was providing her with one.

His cousin, Kimmie, had finally gotten a section eight voucher and her and her kids had moved out. Kela had put in for one as well but she was still gonna be living with their grandmother until she got it, if she ever did. Ferris wasn’t leaving his grandmother there alone, which was why he put in for a three-bedroom townhouse. Viola was gonna be living with him if or when Kela ever left. It didn’t make sense to hisgrandmother but it made perfect sense to him. God forbid if anything ever happened to her; Remi wasn’t gonna let them stay in the house, so he had to prepare himself now. He didn’t know if Marva was gonna want her house back or if she would want to sell it. Either way, he wasn’t gonna get caught up at the last minute.

Reanna had just moved into her own apartment and she’d been trying to get Ferris to come over there since she moved. The area wasn’t the best, but he wasn’t interested in going over there anyway. He really didn’t want her by him either, but she always used his cousin as an excuse to come over. Either that or she threw in his face what she was doing for him to get her way. He needed one more big batch of ketamine from her and it was a wrap on whatever they had. That was the best part of it all to him.

“You better call down there and ask. I’m tired just like you.” Ferris pulled the cover over his head, so she didn’t have to watch her get dressed.

“Whatever and don’t think I’m fixing your greedy ass a plate either. You better get up and come get it just like you told me to do.”

Reanna put her fitted maxi dress back on and went downstairs to see what was smelling so good. Kela could cook her ass off and she always had a hot meal for her kids to eat. As usual, Shiva was sitting at the kitchen counter with her face buried in her computer. She acted like she was studying to be a doctor with how much her face stayed in the books. When she saw Reanna walk into the room, she got up and went to the stove.

“Let me get my food right now before we have a problem.” Shiva grabbed a plate and put two lobster tails and some pasta on it. She wasn’t even ready to eat but she didn’t want Reanna to get too comfortable.

“Alright Kela, bitch, we got lobster tails and shit.” Reanna grabbed her a plate and got ready to dig in. She ignored Shiva, just like always, because she didn’t want to get into it with Ferris.

“You can help yourself to some pasta and garlic bread, but the lobster tails are accounted for.” To make her point, Kela covered the pan and put it in the oven.

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