Chapter 9 Rhapsody
Chapter Nine
RHAPSODY
One year later…..
I was ready for Blaze’s ass this Valentine’s Day.
Every single month on our anniversary, he did something amazing for me.
The month before, he bought me a BMW. No one is perfect, but Blaze was as close as it got.
We rarely even argued. I could count on one hand how many times he’d pissed me off.
He was laid back, thoughtful, and didn’t do too much.
My nail salon was doing very well, and I was able to show out for my man.
He always said he didn’t want anything, but I wasn’t listening to him.
He had been so intentional with the way he listened to, loved, and respected me.
I paid the application fee and the membership fee for him to be accepted into the Millionaire Boys’ Club.
A local country club for black, male, millionaires.
I also got him season courtside tickets for the Diamond Cove Cougars, and a chocolate Rolex.
I wanted to spoil my man the same way he spoiled me.
We had decided we didn’t want to be out among the crowds, so we were doing Valentine’s Day at his house.
He hired a chef, and we were going to watch a movie in his theatre room.
As I was finishing up for the day, the shop door opened, and one of my biggest pet peeves walked in.
None other than Jeremiah, and he looked terrible.
There were bags underneath his eyes, stubble from needing a shave, and he hadn’t had a haircut in a minute.
The moment he saw the look on my face, he sighed.
“I swear I’m not here on no bullshit. I just want to ask you a favor, and I respect it if you say no.”
My frown deepened, and I drew back. “Okay. No.”
“Rhapsody. I have a daughter. She’s two months old, and her mother dipped out and left us.
I’m raising her by myself, and daycare is expensive as fuck.
Plus, I don’t trust everybody. I know what I did was fucked up.
I know it was, but I also know despite how you feel about me, you’re a good person.
Until I get a daycare voucher, can I pay you $150 a week so my shorty can chill up here with you while I work?
” The pleading tone and the sad look in his eyes did nothing for me. In fact, I laughed in his face.
I laughed so hard that tears rolled down my cheeks. The jokes were literally writing themselves. For a little while, Jeremiah stood there mean mugging me but finally, he turned and walked out of the shop. That nigga had me fucked up.
My heart swelled later that evening, as Blaze opened his gifts. He was happy, and that made me happy. When it was my turn, he showed me his phone. There was a ticket for a trip to Turks and Caicos. My eyes widened, and I looked at him with a slack jaw.
“I’m not going. I know you like your solo trips. This is just for you, but I’m not comfortable sending you alone. Doc is going, but he’s not going to bother you.”
The way I cried a person would have thought Blaze proposed to me. I was so lucky. He hugged me tight and when the tears stopped flowing, I planted kisses all over his face. “I love you,” I sniffed.
“I you too, baby.”
When Jeremiah broke my heart, it literally felt like my world was ending.
But the blessing that came from his cruelty was worth every tear that I cried.
And while I loved Blaze with everything in me, if we ended that day, I’d be sad.
But I wouldn’t feel like life was over because I knew better.
Love comes in all forms and the absence of love from one person doesn’t dictate our worth or our value.
I had truly learned that when you love yourself and have people around you that respect you, Valentine’s Day is just a bonus.
*** I saw this dope ass cover and had to write a cute lil’ novella for it. I hope you enjoyed, and my second Valentine’s Day novella: Love Jones: Rage and Leighton drops Feb. 17th!
The end.