Chapter 1 #3
I leaned over, shut the passenger door, and eased away from the curb. I didn’t look back. What the fuck did she think this was? I wasn’t in the business of begging for love I didn’t feel.
Not anymore.
I’m not that nigga.
I needed to link up with Guap and Cash, but first I had to keep my word and pull up on my momma and my sister.
I entered Tieranee’s address into the GPS.
She wasn’t too far from where I had dropped Adrienne off.
I was on parole for the next year, so I had to be paroled out to my sister’s address anyway.
About thirty minutes later, I pulled into the driveway. Damn. This was a nice spot. It was low-key, quiet, and tucked away. A long way from Edgewood. Exactly how my sister liked it. I put the Porsche in park, killed the engine, and sat for a minute.
No bars.
No gates.
No fucking count time.
Just silence.
A nigga was finally free. This time, I planned to move differently. I’d spent so many years juggling hoes that, truth be told, the shit didn’t excite me the way it used to.
Money still mattered.
Loyalty still mattered.
Family definitely fucking mattered.
Everything else, I’d figure it out, one day at a time. I finally climbed out of the Porsche and walked up to the front door.
Before I could knock a second time, my momma swung the door open, her face lit up with the biggest smile.
“Hood…”
Damn. I missed my old lady.
“You finally made it.”
My momma pulled me into a hug, and I wrapped my arms around her as tight as I could. I’d dreamed of this moment more times than I could fucking count.
“It’s good to see you, Ma.”
“It’s good to have you back home.”
When my momma finally let a nigga go, Tieranee stood behind her, hands on her hips. My niece stood beside her. Another little one was growing inside her belly.
Damn… I’d really been gone a long time. Tieranee had offered to visit me many times, but I wouldn’t let her make that drive alone.
Adrienne even offered to ride with Tieranee a few times, but Tieranee declined each time. My sister loved Fumi. There was no way she’d ever get cool with Adrienne after everything that happened.
I stepped inside the house. The smell of fried chicken hit me before the door even closed.
“Damn…”
My momma had cooked for a nigga. I scooped my niece into my arms, then dropped onto the couch. Tieranee sat beside me.
“So… where Joog at?”
Tieranee rolled her big-ass eyes. “Damn. Can you at least say hey first? He’ll be here in a minute.”
I looked at her stomach. “What the fuck are you doing? Pregnant again?”
“Hood,” my momma called from the kitchen. “Watch your damn mouth.”
I laughed. “So why she ain’t married yet?”
Tieranee smirked. “Nigga, I ain’t married because I’ve been waiting for my favorite felon to bring his ass home. Joog knows what’s up.”
“Huh?”
“I wanted my brother to give me away.”
That shut me the fuck up.
“I could’ve been married,” she continued, “but I wanted you to stand beside me.”
“Aiight…” I nodded. “I was finna say I need to holler at Joog. My sister ain’t finna keep carrying his babies without being his wife. The fuck, this ain’t that, nigga.”
“Hood…” Tieranee laughed. “Relax, nigga.”
“I can’t.” I pointed at her. “You still ain’t told me how y’all ended up together. I’ve heard a few stories.”
Tieranee shook her head. “It’s complicated.”
“Nah.” I leaned back. “I need the full story.”
“You’ll get it,” she said, smiling. “Just not today.”
Then she looked at me.
“So…” Her grin widened. “Where is Adrienne?”
I laughed. “Aye, stay out of my fucking business.”
“Nah.” She folded her arms. “I’m in it now.”
I shook my head. “I had to cut that crazy girl loose.”
Tieranee’s eyebrows shot up. “Already?”
“She started hitting me with ultimatums and shit about the relationship.”
“And?”
“Shit went left.”
She stared at me. “For real?”
“Hell yeah.”
“Why?”
“I ain’t committing to Adrienne.”
“Why not?”
“Cause she ain’t the one; she ain’t never been the one.”
“How do you know if you never gave the girl a fair chance?”
I smirked. “The same reason yo ass never came to visit me with her.”
Tieranee laughed. “That’s different.”
“Shit, it ain’t.”
“Hood, yes, it is.” Tieranee pointed at me. “You strung that poor girl along.”
“I ain’t promise Adrienne shit.” I shrugged. “I told her years ago she could leave.”
“And?”
“She stayed.”
“Maybe because she loved you.”
“Adrienne stayed because I took care of her.”
Tieranee shook her head.
“You’re too damn old to still think that money fixes everything; it doesn’t.”
Damn. She sounded just like our momma. Then she casually dropped the bomb.
“I saw Fumi a couple of weeks ago.”
My ears perked up. “Oh yeah?”
“Yeah.”
She smiled. “Nigga, Fumi ain’t thinking about yo ass. I don’t blame her.”
I leaned back on the couch and laughed. “We’ll see.”
Before Tieranee could fire another shot, Momma walked into the living room with a platter of fried chicken.
“Come on.” She smiled. “Let’s eat.”
She looked at Tieranee. “Fix your man a plate.”
I looked toward the kitchen. My momma fried chicken and baked mac and cheese. We had collard greens, cornbread, and strawberry pound cake for dessert.
Yeah, a nigga was finally home.