Chapter 9
The way Tatti respectfully checked my moms for coming in my house and acting crazy with me, I wasn't expecting that at all. She didn't hesitate but she still wasn’t disrespectful wit it. She stood up and said exactly what needed to be said. My mom’s cared about her appearance more than anything that’s why the shit was so damn funny to me.
Tatti calling out the fact that she was half stepping, while standing in my house talking shit, that was cold as hell.
I couldn't stop laughing thinking about it, but underneath the laughing was something else. Something that made me want to pull her onto my lap and give her ass what she was begging for this morning. Today showed me that no matter who I was up against, she was gone stand beside me. She was defending me even when I ain’t need it.
Not attacking my mom to be disrespectful.
Just standing up for her nigga. And that shit turned me on in a way I wasn't ready for. Shit, I was still scared that I was falling for ass in the first place, and here she come, making a nigga fall harder. Anybody that knew me could tell you that Kaseem Carter did not fall in love. Never have. I couldn’t tell you what the shit felt like, so whatever this shit was that was growing inside of me for this muthafucka I had just met, it was foreign to a nigga.
I watched her across the table as she finished eating, not really paying attention to the food anymore. Just watching her mouth move, watching her hands as she picked up her napkin and wiped her lips. She felt me looking at her and looked up.
"With everything you got going on right now," she said, setting her fork down, "I'm not in a rush to say our vows today. I don’t mind if we have to push it back. With your brother and all, I promise I understand."
I set my fork down too and looked at her straight in the face.
"You saying that because you're really not feeling the wedding and changed your mind about saying yes?" I asked, and I needed to know the answer. "Or you saying it because you know all the drama and shit I got going on and you really putting my situation first.”
She leaned back in her chair and folded her hands in front of her.
"I want you to be ready," she said. "I want you in the right headspace. Not just doing it because we both said we would. I don't need the wedding to happen today if you're not ready for it. And I have no regrets about my answer, so don’t start.”
I watched her face as she said it and I could see she meant every word. She wasn't saying this to play games or test me. She was saying it because she actually cared about whether I was okay and needing to handle other shit first.
"But I want you to know," she continued, "that right now, I really do want to be with you. For real. Not because I was forced to marry you or because I'm scared of you or any of that. I want to be your wife and see where this life takes us. Maybe I’m crazy as hell for it. But I want it.”
Something in my chest shifted hearing her say that.
"I want you too," I said, leaning forward slightly. "And everything that comes with you."
She smiled weakly and tilted her head a little.
"Everything?" she asked, and there was a challenge in her voice. "You promise?"
"I swear," I said. "On everything I got."
I stood up from the table and walked around to her side. Leaned down and kissed her, tasting the honey from the crescents on her lips. When I pulled back, she was looking up at me with something soft in her eyes.
"Everything is already set up for you today," I told her. "All the wedding shit is handled. All you gotta do is let the driver take you around. You don't have to do nothing but be ready to leave the house."
I kissed her one more time.
"I gotta go handle some shit for my brother," I said. "But I'll see you tonight. And Tatti?"
She looked up at me.
"You already my wife," I said. "Whether we say the vows today or tomorrow or next week.
None of that matters cause you already mine.
" I spoke and almost choked on my damn words. I ain’t know how to do this soft ass shit, but dammit I was trying.
A nigga wanted to be nice to Tatti because I knew she was dealing with some heavy shit right now.
Her family was being fucked up towards her, then her pops secret had been exposed, on top of her dealing with my family shit.
She was dragged into this life, but she still was choosing to stay by a nigga side.
I headed toward the door but stopped and turned back.
"Any problem you ever have, I swear I’ll eliminate it.
That shit I asked you about feeling safe last night, your silence really hit me hard.
I gotta fix that. I don’t know what the fuck I’m doing with you as a husband, but a nigga really wanna learn how to be what you need.
I know your shit been hectic these last few days too, but anything you need from me, ima do it.
” I added, watching her smile spread across her face.
"You my family. I’ll lay down my life for mine.
Don't let nobody tell you nothing different.
" I called out to her. Something in her face told me she was holding something back.
As much as I needed to know what it was, I needed to get my brother out that bitch ass jail.
I had a lot of shit to handle. Zaire needed to get out.
Brick Boyz needed to understand what happened when they came at the Carters.
Tyree needed to start working the legal angle on the case.
My father and I needed to have a conversation about the next move.
I couldn’t deal with my moms right now. Her ass had been trippin. Hard.
But right now, walking out of that house knowing that woman was waiting for me to come back to her, knowing she chose me not because she had to but because she wanted to now, that changed something in me.
Made me move different. Made me think about building something real instead of just surviving day to day.
This shit happened so fast, it was hard for me to believe that it was real.
As I got into my car, I called one of my security, Neil.
I told him to call and have it set up to get Tatti’s car towed to my house on Monday.
By then we’d be done signed those papers, and I wasn’t about to hold my wife hostage.
I felt like Tatti knew better and I also felt like she was where she wanted to be so she had no reason to try anything crazy.
I wanted her to be able to move around freely without having to feel like I had control over her life.
I only snatched her ass up because I had a feeling that she was gonna try and leave town.
When her pops told me how their meeting went, and the things she said when he told her about the marriage arrangement, I knew that I had to kidnap her to stop her from skipping town.
I was right about that too. Her ass was just about to dip when I pulled up. We were past that now, though.
Now Tatti wasn’t my main problem anymore, it was Zuri’s ass.
My mom was trippin. That much was clear.
She'd been acting different ever since my father started stepping back and I started stepping up.
But that wasn't my problem to solve right now.
My problem was protecting my family, putting niggas that has crossed us in the dirt, handling my business, and building something with the woman I signed my life over to.
—
I pulled straight up to Tyree's house without calling ahead.
His wife answered the door and greeted me polite enough - she knew who I was and what I was about, but she wasn't scared of me. Her ass looked more annoyed that I popped up unannounced. She didn’t say it though.
She just nodded and told me Tyree was in his office.
I followed her through the house, past the living room where family photos hung on the walls.
Photos of Tatti as a kid, Tyree with his arm around her.
I could tell that she was a daddy’s girl and in those pictures, it looked as if he really loved her too.
Photos of a life that looked normal on the surface but was built on murder, lies and secrets underneath.
I was starting to despise this nigga, but at the moment, we needed each other.
I hated that Tyree had broke Tatti’s heart and that it wasn’t shit that I could do about it.
He was a cold ass nigga who’d do whatever it took to get what he wanted.
That included killing people close to him, so I’d never let my guard down around this nigga or trust him past a business arrangement.
When I got to his office door and knocked, Tyree looked up from his desk.
The color drained from his face so fast I thought he might pass out.
Showing up at a man’s house, on the weekend, unannounced with the history we have, shit, that’s borderline disrespectful. I didn’t give a damn. I meant business.
"Good Afternoon, sir.” I sarcastically said, stepping inside without waiting for an invitation.
He stood up, his whole body tense. The look he gave me was full of hate. He knew that I had him by the balls and that he needed to stay on my good side. That shit ate him up too. He couldn’t even have peace in his own home without me showing up.
"I'm not here to blow up your spot," I said, closing the door behind me. "Your wife don't need to know what you’ve been hiding from her. Not yet.
But right now, I need to get my brother out of jail. And you're just the man that's gonna make that happen."
Tyree's jaw clenched. He walked around to lean against his desk, trying to look like he had control of the situation.
"It's Saturday," he said. "Getting Zaire out isn't as simple as it sounds. Even with connections, these things take time, especially with the charges on him. As his newly appointed lawyer, you know I’ve been doing everything in my power to speed things up since you put me on his case.”
I stepped closer to him.