Chapter 14
(A little earlier)
S evyn strolled through the mall with Harper by her side, indulging in some much-needed retail therapy.
Between the heartbreak with Braxton, the chaos at her parents’ house, and the emotional grip Hassan had on her days ago, she needed the distraction—badly.
Dorian was slammed with clients, so Harper happily tagged along, needing the escape herself.
Hassan had told her Hendrix was moving back, and she’d been low-key spiraling ever since.
He hadn’t made his presence known yet, but she knew it was only a matter of time.
“You like this purse?” Sevyn asked, holding up a brown Louis Vuitton. Harper eyed it, then nodded.
“That is cute.”
“Well, I’m getting it,” Sevyn grinned, tossing it over her arm like she wasn’t already holding three bags.
“Hey, Sev… can I talk to you about something?” Harper’s tone shifted, instantly grabbing Sevyn’s attention.
She side-eyed her with a slight smirk. “You're not using me to ambush any more of your family into therapy, are you?”
Harper chuckled but shook her head. “No… this time, I’m the family member who needs therapy advice.”
Sevyn paused, her attention snapping from the Louis Vuitton boots she’d been admiring. “Okay… what’s up?”
Harper hesitated. “You remember how I told you Madea gave Hassan a task before she… you know…”
Sevyn nodded, instantly serious. “Well… she gave me one too.”
Something about the way Harper said it—how soft and uncertain her voice became—made Sevyn stop in her tracks and turn toward her fully.
“Alright, let’s sit. I don’t like the way this white woman’s been watching us anyway,” she muttered, side-eyeing the sales associate who hadn’t stopped tracking them since they walked in.
“I got money to buy this whole damn franchise, Becky. Don’t play with me,” Sevyn snapped loud enough for the woman to hear.
Harper cracked up as they walked out. She always loved how Sevyn never missed a beat. And truthfully, Sevyn was one of the wealthiest peopl e Harper knew—and the realest.
They found a table in the food court and sat down, bags at their feet and emotions heavy in the air.
“Okay, so… Madea wants me to sit down and have a conversation with my dad,” Harper said, her voice low.
Sevyn raised a brow, unsure why that carried so much weight— until Harper kept going.
“I never told you or Dorian this, but… my mom was a prostitute. My dad was her pimp. I’m the product of their mess.”
Sevyn’s eyes widened. That wasn’t something she ever saw coming.
Harper didn’t look like anything she’d been through.
She always carried herself like royalty, like confidence and beauty just ran in her DNA.
But Sevyn was starting to realize—Harper and Hassan’s upbringing?
It was darker than anything she could’ve imagined.
“Damn,” Sevyn muttered, not out of judgment, just sheer disbelief.
Harper nodded slowly, her tone tight. “I never met my mom. And my dad? He popped in and out like a roach. Now Madea wants me to have a sit-down with him before she dies. She thinks we should have some kind of relationship.”
Sevyn felt her chest tighten. She heard the conflict in Harper’s voice, saw it in the way her eyes refused to settle.
“And what do you want?” Sevyn asked softly.
“I don’t know,” Harper admitted. “I want to give Madea everything she wants before she goes. But talking to that man? Trying to build a bond with him?” She shook her head. “I don’t see it. I don’t want to.”
“Did you tell her that?”
Harper shot her a look. “You haven't met my grandma. You tell her no and she’ll have you doing it twice just to prove a point.”
Sevyn smirked, but it faded quick. She could see Harper was barely holding it together.
“Look, Harp,” she began gently. “I can’t pretend to understand your pain, but what I do know is… healing doesn’t always mean revisiting the people who broke you.”
Harper’s eyes welled a little, but she held them back.
“Do you have unresolved questions?” Sevyn asked. “Things you need closure on?”
Harper shook her head. “No. I’ve heard enough. He called me a mistake to my grandmother’s face—on top of other things he did to me. That was all I needed to know. I’ve lived my whole life without him, and I plan to keep it that way.”
Sevyn’s heart clenched. Her relationship with her own father was the complete opposite. Loving. Safe. And it hurt knowing Harper never got that.
“I’m really sorry,” Sevyn said, reaching for her hand. “That your first example of love let you down before you were even born. But if this conversation with him is going to reopen wounds instead of healing them? Don’t do it. You don’t owe him anything.”
Harper nodded slowly, her eyes still stormy.
“I should be cold like Hassan,” she muttered. “But I’m not. I hate that I’m still thinking about everyone else’s feelings before mine. The niggas who made me ain’t give a damn about me, yet I’m over here trying to play peacekeeper.”
Sevyn squeezed her hand tighter.
“But you have people who do give a damn about you. Me. Dorian. Ms. Helen. Hassan. And we’re not going anywhere.”
That finally brought a small smile to Harper’s face, even if it didn’t reach her eyes all the way.
“Thanks, Sev.”
“Anytime,” Sevyn said. “And if your dad shows up? Just let me know. I’ll drag his ass back into the gutter he crawled out of.”
That earned a real laugh from Harper, and for a moment, things didn’t feel so heavy.
“And your cousin is not cold,” Sevyn said, brows raised as she sipped her drink.
Harper burst out laughing. “Girl, please.”
“What?” Sevyn asked, feigning offense, one hand on her chest. “I’m serious.”
“You stay defending that man,” Harper rolled her eyes, but the corner of her mouth curled up. “But it’s good though. He needs someone like you in his corner.”
Sevyn smiled, warmth creeping into her chest. “Well… as his therapist, I kinda have to be.”
Harper’s eyes snapped to her. “Wait. He actually agreed to therapy?”
Sevyn laughed, covering her mouth like the words slipped out too easy. “Yes. But don’t you dare tell him I told you. I already pushed my luck keeping it a secret this long.”
Harper leaned in like she’d just been told state secrets. “Hold up. How long we talkin’?”
“First, you gotta swear you won’t mention therapy around him,” Sevyn warned.
“Girl, I ain’t sayin’ a thing. Now spill.”
Sevyn smirked. “Right after Roman’s birthday party.” Harper’s eyes bulged. “Damn! That long ago?”
Sevyn nodded, lips curving with pride.
“So… has he opened up about anything?” Harper asked, her voice softer now, almost hesitant.
“I can’t tell you specifics—therapist-client confidentiality. I like my li cense,” Sevyn teased, making Harper groan in frustration. “Okay, okay… just tell me this. Is he opening up?”
Sevyn took a breath, remembering every guarded look, every wall Hassan tried to keep up—and how each one started to crack when she was around. “He is. Slowly. It’s like pulling teeth, but he’s trying. He’s got more heart than he lets on.”
Harper’s face softened. “I’m happy to hear that. Thank you, Sevyn.”
Sevyn shook her head. “No thanks needed. But he’s not the only one who needs healing. You out here fixing everybody through fitness and wellness, but you got some wounds too. And don’t think I don’t see them just because you smile through it.”
Harper nodded slowly. “I’m working on it.”
Sevyn’s lips curved into a knowing smile. “Good. I’m sure Xavier plays a part in that too.”
Harper’s eyes damn near bugged out. “Wait, how do you know Xavier?!”
Sevyn’s grin widened like she’d been waiting on that reaction. “None of your business. Just know he really likes you—and you need to stop giving that man such a hard time.”
Harper huffed. “He is cute, I’ll give him that. But I don’t need a man who gets knocked around for a living. He got more bruises than I got clients.”
Sevyn cracked up. “Girl, you strict.”
“I’m realistic. I’ve had my fair share of crazy-ass dudes. And thanks to my even crazier cousin, half of them six feet under.”
Sevyn nearly choked on her drink. “Not you lowering the population.”
“I’m just sayin’—I’m not trying to date someone who gotta bob and weave through life and relationships,” Harper said with a shrug.
Sevyn shook her head, smiling at how different they were— yet how much they both carried.
Harper was guarded with barbed wire; Hassan with ice.
But underneath it all, there were wounds still bleeding.
And Sevyn? She was determined to help them both heal. Even if it meant thawing out the coldest heart in Memphis.
???
Sevyn was back behind the wheel, music blasting through the speakers as Harper rapped every word in the passenger seat, phone out, recording both of them.
“Bitch, we look good,” Harper grinned, adjusting the camera angle. “We need to go out tonight!”
Sevyn laughed, shaking her head. “You and Dorian are always tryin g to hit a damn club.”
“And you always trying to turn it into a therapy circle,” Harper shot back.
“We not sipping no damn wine and crying over playlists again.
You only twenty-five, but swear you pushing thirty-five the way you be acting.
No, we getting dressed, getting lit, and getting you into some fine-ass niggas' faces tonight.”
Sevyn rolled her eyes but couldn’t help the smile tugging at her lips. “The last time a fine-ass nigga rolled up on you, your cousin bodied him in cold blood. I’m not trying to relive another crime scene.”
Harper groaned dramatically, tossing her head back. “Girl, see—I said you! And hopefully, Hassan’s crazy ass ain’t even there tonight.
Sevyn’s head snapped in her direction with a sharp glare.
Harper froze, hands up in surrender. “Damn! I’m joking. You stay looking like you wanna fight when somebody say something about that man. I swear, you look at him like he your best friend, not me.”