Chapter 11
ELEVEN
Man, the minute that list hit my phone, I already knew what time it was.
Jream had texted it over like she was still tryna run point, but I beat her to it.
Soon as that “dinner game plan” came through, I dropped the sockets I was organizin’ in the garage, wiped my hands on my sweats, and fired off a mass text to the family group chat:
Read this carefully: in TWO DAYS, y’all asses are REQUIRED to show up to my house. We cookin’ this together. Jream on bed rest, which means if you tryna eat good, you gon’ have to contribute more than just your appetite. Bring yo own apron. Don’t ask dumb questions.
Then I copied the menu and hit send:
Holiday Dinner Menu – Jream’s Bed Rest Boss List
· Brown sugar glazed lamb chops
· Honey bourbon roasted turkey wings
· Seafood mac and cheese with garlic truffle crumb topping
· Smoked collards with turkey neck
· Dirty rice with a Creole twist
· Cornbread muffins with hot honey drizzle
· Roasted root veggie medley
· Sweet potato soufflé with pecan praline crust
· Brown butter peach cobbler with vanilla bean ice cream for dessert
I dropped the phone on the counter and looked over at my girl, laid out on the couch with her fuzzy socks on, silk press in a bonnet, and belly just starting to give the slightest curve I could feel if I laid my hand just right.
“Handled,” I told her, leaning over to kiss her cheek.
She smirked, eyes still half-closed. “You told them not to ask dumb questions, huh?”
“Exactly. I’m not repeatin’ myself when the lamb chops need to marinate and the soufflé crust gotta rest overnight. They wanna eat like royalty, they better show up ready to move.”
Jream giggled, soft and sleepy. “You gon’ be okay with them in your kitchen?”
“Hell nah,” I muttered. “But I’m gon’ be alright long as you stay your pretty ass laid up like the queen you are. I got this.”
We ended up curled up on the couch, her legs slung over mine, my hand rubbing slow circles into her thigh while the holiday movie she picked played low in the background. She smelled like cocoa butter and ginger tea.
Her skin felt warm against me, still holding on to that low-grade fever, but she wasn’t shivering or complaining, just resting, like she was supposed to.
Jenie's soft coos were coming through the baby monitor, but she was sleep, and Lucky Jr. had knocked out with his little nightlight projector spinning stars across his ceiling. It was rare we had moments like this; quiet, still, peaceful. I didn’t realize how much I needed it until I had her tucked under my arm and her breath hitting my neck like she was scared to let me go.
“You alright, mama?” I asked, brushing her hair back from her face. That silk press was tryin’ to revert just from the warmth of her forehead but she still looked so damn beautiful.
“Mmhmm,” she mumbled. “Just tired. Think I’m finally feelin’ everything I been fightin’ through.”
“I know, baby. That’s why I’m not lettin’ you lift a finger.” I kissed her temple, then paused for a second, fingers twitching a little like I wasn’t sure if I should say it.
But I did.
“I been thinkin’… after these twins come… I might get a vasectomy.”
Jream sat up a little, brows raising, eyes searching mine like she wasn’t sure if I was joking or dead serious.
“You for real?” she asked, voice still soft but more alert now.
I nodded. “I mean, yeah. I am. We already got a house full. Lucky Jr., Jenie, and now we got two more on the way. That’s four, mama.
You know I love you in every version; pregnant, postpartum, feelin’ yourself or not but I can see how much this been weighin’ on you.
I don’t wanna keep puttin’ your body through that. ”
She blinked slow. “Lucky…”
“I’m sayin’ it don’t make me less of a man. I done proved I can fill this house up with love and kids. I just don’t wanna be reckless with your peace or your health. You my everything, Jream. I’d rather have you whole and healthy than chase some dream of a football team.”
Her lip trembled, and she tried to cover it with a laugh. “You tryna make me cry again, lover boy?”
I pulled her closer. “You already cry every other day lately.”
“Shut up.”
We laughed together, but it was the kind that came from relief and being seen. She kissed me, slow and deep, like she was tryna memorize the man who would cut his own bloodline short just to protect hers.
And I meant that shit. I’d give her the whole world, then take the weight off her shoulders so she could enjoy it.
Jream didn’t say anything for a minute. She just stared at me, her brown eyes shinning in the low light, full of emotion she didn’t have to say out loud. I knew her silence like I knew her curves intimately, with patience, and love.
She finally exhaled and tilted her head with that soft smirk she always gave when she was about to say something smart but meaningful.
“Two more,” she said, her voice low but steady. “Then you can get one.”
“Two more? Like… after the twins?”
She nodded, looking serious. “Mmhmm. I want a big family. A loud one. The kind that never runs outta love or leftovers. We already halfway there.”
I laughed, full and deep, leaning in to kiss her neck. “You tryin’ to turn this house into a daycare.”
She shrugged like it was nothin’. “You the one who keep sayin’ I’m too fine to keep my hands off. This what happens when you touch me like that and don’t pull out.”
“Here you go blamin’ me for that good-soul connection we got,” I said, making her laugh as I kissed down her collarbone.
“Nah, Lucky. I’m serious,” she whispered, holding my face in her hands.
“You made motherhood feel like luxury. Even with my body doin’ the most, even when my hormones were fightin’ me, you never once made me feel like I wasn’t still her.
If I’m gonna do this again and again, I wanna do it with you. ”
I just looked at her for a second, heart full, throat tight. This woman really wanted to build a whole legacy with me. Not outta obligation. Outta love.
“Alright,” I murmured, kissing the inside of her wrist. “Two more. Then I’ll go sit on that damn table and let them snip whatever they need to snip.”
She grinned. “I’ll be right there holdin’ your hand.”
“You better,” I said, pullin’ her into my chest. “But don’t think this mean you off limits till then. If we makin’ two more, I’m startin’ the blueprint now.”
She giggled into my skin. “You always tryna build somethin’.”
“With you?” I said, stroking her back. “Always.”