Chapter 32 #2
My grandma watched me over the rim of her glass for a second before speaking again.
“I wasn’t expecting to see Chauncey tonight. It was nice of you to bring him by.”
There it was.
“My plan was to come alone,” I muttered. “I ain’t think he was gonna be tagging along.”
“Mihm.” My grandma rocked slowly. “Well, he looks well. And judging by how close y’all were at the front door… something changed.”
I looked down at my plate for a second.
“We changed.”
“How so?”
“We’re trying to figure it out one day at a time.”
“Umm.” My grandma narrowed her eyes at me. “Ya momma said you ain’t been to her house in weeks.”
Lord.
“I know where yo ass been.”
“Grandma.”
“No, I’m serious.” She pointed at me with her lemonade glass. “I’m trying to figure out why you’re going back to Dallas if y’all are figuring things out.”
I sighed quietly and leaned back in my chair.
“Because I have a career, Grandma. And I need to handle this the right way instead of just walking away emotionally.”
My grandma nodded slowly but ain’t say nothing right away. Just kept rocking while the fire crackled between us.
That silence felt so damn intentional.
As if she were waiting for the real truth.
Dallas wasn’t just about work anymore; it was distance, breathing room, and a little space to think without Chauncey’s touch clouding my judgment every five minutes.
It was also the place where I still had something unfinished with the grown-ass man I met there.
And if we were really changing, then this had to survive more than chemistry and late-night apologies.
“And what about this man in Dallas you were seeing?”
I took a long sip of my lemonade before answering because I already knew this conversation was about to get deeper than I wanted tonight, and Dallas was the part I still hadn’t dealt with.
“I plan on handling that too.”
My grandma’s rocking chair creaked softly against the deck wood while she studied me over the flames.
“So, Dallas more about him than work?”
“It’s both.”
“Mihm.” She nodded slowly. “You can do all this by phone.”
“I can,” I admitted quietly. “But I owe him more than that.”
“You don’t.”
Her answer came quick and firm.
“You don’t owe anybody anything but yourself, Rhy.”
Damn.
That sat heavy on my chest because deep down, I knew she was right.
The grown-ass man I met in Dallas had been good to me.
Stable. Patient. Safe. He came into my life when I was rebuilding after Chauncey shattered me into pieces I barely recognized, and now Dallas felt like the place where I had to choose between staying safe and facing what I’d left unfinished.
The grown-ass man I met in Dallas had been good to me. Stable. Patient. Safe. He came into my life when I was rebuilding after Chauncey shattered me into pieces I barely recognized, and Dallas was where that unfinished choice was waiting for me.
“I know.”
My grandma leaned forward a little, the firelight flickering across her face.
“I want you back home in this city,” she said softly. “But I want you happy more than anything. Even if happiness ain’t with Chauncey.”
I swallowed hard.
“I want you to choose you, Rhy.”
That one almost made me emotional, because women like me spend so much time choosing everybody else.
Sometimes we forget to choose ourselves at all.
“I don’t want you changing your whole life for somebody who ain’t willing to change for you. Let Chauncey do the bending this time around. Make that man work for you.”
Whew. Grandma is clocking tea tonight.
“If you move back home… what would that even look like?”
I stared out toward the pool quietly while the fire cracked between us.
And honestly, I still didn’t know what that looked like yet.
Not really. The pool lights shimmered across the water, the fire crackled low between us, and for a second, I just sat there, staring out into the dark, feeling the weight of everything I’d been trying not to name.
Maybe that was the problem. Maybe I was standing at the edge of a life I hadn’t figured out how to choose.
I didn’t know.
Because moving back home sounded beautiful in theory—being close to family again, familiar streets, familiar food, familiar love. And Chauncey… unfortunately, Chauncey still felt woven into every soft part of me, even though I knew that love could pull me back into the same hurt.
But home also came with memories, temptation, history, women, lies, public humiliation, and cycles I fought hard to escape. Coming back meant risking the patterns I had worked to leave behind.
“I don’t know yet,” I admitted finally. “That’s what scares me.”
My grandma nodded like she understood more than I was saying out loud, because the truth was, I wasn’t deciding between Dallas and Teflon Hills, or between two men. I was deciding whether to protect the life I rebuilt or risk it for what my heart still wanted.
I was deciding between the version of myself that learned to survive heartbreak… and the version still hoping love could heal it.
“I’m going to continue to nurse here,” I said firmly. “I’m not giving that up.”
“Good.” My grandma nodded instantly, as if she'd been waiting to hear me say it. “Don’t you dare give up your career for anybody.”
I smiled softly into my cup.
“I’ll make some calls,” she continued casually. “I still got a few connections in this city.” She shrugged like she wasn’t basically Teflon Hills royalty. “I served on the city council for years, so let me know about the hospital and I’ll make it happen.”
See… this is why I love my grandma.
She believed in making moves quietly. No bragging. No theatrics. Just influence and results.
“Thank you, Grandma.”
“You welcome.” She took another sip of lemonade before cutting her eyes at me. “Now tell ya, husband, to bring his ass out here.”
“Grandma.”
“Nope.” She pointed toward the house dramatically. “He finna catch it tonight.”
I started laughing because, Lord… once my grandma made up her mind to give somebody a lecture, it was over.
“And stop laughing,” she warned. “I’m serious.”
“You’re about to embarrass me.”
“Good.”
I shook my head, smiling while standing up from the table. Then I headed back inside, the fire pit crackling behind us, and I slid the screen door open.
The second I stepped into the living room, Chauncey looked up from the couch immediately.
Yeah… that man had been tracking my movements all night.
My grandaddy was still watching the game while Chauncey sat there with his plate balanced on one knee, looking entirely too comfortable in my grandparents’ house. Like he already knew he belonged here.
“Grandma said, ' Come outside.”
His eyebrows lifted instantly. “For what?”
I folded my arms, trying not to laugh.
“She said you finna catch it.”
“Aw, hell.”
My grandaddy busted out laughing so hard he almost dropped his drink.
“Boy, good luck,” he muttered without taking his eyes off the TV.
Chauncey looked genuinely nervous as he got up from the couch, and honestly, it was the most satisfaction I’d felt all night.
The second I walked back into the kitchen, Chauncey followed right behind me like he’d been waiting for a moment alone. Before I could even open my mouth, he backed me into the corner beside the refrigerator and pressed his lips against mine.
Lord, have mercy.
That man kissed me like he was trying to calm a storm and start one at the same damn time. Deep. Slow. Apologetic. Possessive.
My hands instantly grabbed his hoodie while his palms slid down my waist. Then he lifted me up effortlessly like I weighed nothing, and I wrapped my legs around his waist on instinct.
The heat between us shifted immediately.
Dangerously immediate.
My stomach tightened, and my insides got warm so fast it honestly irritated me a little. Because why was my body still this weak for him after everything?
Chauncey pulled back just enough to look at me, his forehead pressed against mine while both of us tried to catch our breath.
“You’re trying to drive me crazy tonight,” he muttered against my lips.
I rolled my eyes softly even though my heart was racing.
“Come on,” I whispered. “My grandma is waiting.”
“Aiight.” He kissed me one more quick time before finally setting me down.
I smoothed my clothes and fixed my expression while he stood there looking entirely too satisfied with himself.
Men really think kisses solve world hunger.
We walked back outside to the deck together, and the second my grandma looked up from the fire pit, her eyes narrowed immediately.
Yup. She knew.
Older women always know.
I tried to sit in the chair beside Chauncey, but before I could even fully sit down, he grabbed my wrist gently and pulled me straight onto his lap instead.
“Chauncey,” I muttered low, instantly aware of my grandma watching us.
“What?” he asked innocently while wrapping one arm around my waist like he couldn’t help himself.
My grandma just rocked slowly in her chair, staring at us over the firelight.
“Mihm,” she hummed. “That’s exactly why y’all can’t think straight now.”
I wanted to disappear immediately.
“I was trying to get out here sooner, Grandma, but my wife had me hemmed up in the kitchen.” Chauncey chuckled.
I cut my eyes at him immediately.
Why would he tell that damn lie?
“Oh really?” my grandma asked, dragging the words out while trying not to laugh.
I instantly tried to get up off Chauncey’s lap, but his arm tightened around my waist.
“Chauncey,” I hissed low.
“Sit down, Rhy. It’s okay,” my grandma waved off casually. “It takes two.”
Lord. Not her taking his side already.
The fire pit crackled softly between us while my grandma rocked back and forth in her chair. After that, the whole mood shifted—less teasing, more serious.