Chapter 1
Three days later…
The steady beeps from the monitor inside the hospital room kept him awake.
Seated beside her in a chair, Ambrose fingered his mustache, pensively watching her sleep.
Minx had been out for days. The night she was brought in the doctors said she suffered from some kind of post-traumatic shock.
She was stuck in a state of instant replay.
It got to the point where they had to sedate her to keep her from harming herself.
Nothing really shook Rose, but seeing her like that threw him.
Arm resting on the chair, he sat watching every breath she took.
He needed her to wake up and look into his face.
Even if she was cussing him out or bawling her eyes out, she just needed to wake the fuck up.
He turned his wrist, checking the time before taking a deep breath and bringing himself to his feet.
It was late afternoon, and he’d been there since the morning.
Standing at the window, he drifted off to the many times he and Minx spent together.
Had it all led up to this? He didn’t know.
What he did know was that this girl was his fucking world, and he didn’t want to lose her.
Thinking he had, on top of losing Max, it would’ve gutted him for sure.
He was keeping his feelings tucked away on that one.
Max might’ve been like his father, but he was hers.
There was no way that he could even fathom how she felt watching his car explode.
“I need to hear your voice, Minx. This shit ain’t right, shorty.” He bowed his head and sniffled a bit before he moved back toward the bed.
Grabbing her hand, he brought it closer to his chest and eased himself onto the edge of her bed. Rose reached out and tucked some of her hair from her face. Staring down at their hands intertwined, he took in a deep breath. He wanted to crack, but he had to keep his chin up.
“What a nigga supposed to do without you around to nag him all the damn time about something? We got unfinished business. So if this is your way of avoiding that shit—“ He listened to the rhythm of the monitors connected to her increase.
Bringing his somber eyes up, Rose froze when he realized she was coming to.
“Rose?” she asked, confusion clouding her caramel-coated face.
“Shit, you had a nigga worried.” Releasing a sigh, he scooted closer to her.
Emptiness rested in her stare and she made no attempt to move. Rose watched her eyes flood with tears. He hated seeing her like that. The shit tore him to pieces knowing that she was in pain and he couldn’t do anything about it.
“My daddy… he’s… he’s gone.” She sobbed, and Rose brought her closer to his chest.
With her face buried there, she let it all out.
He couldn’t do or say anything. Allowing her to work through the agony ripping through her, he held her tighter.
Eventually, her sobs turned to whimpers, and then it stopped.
Arms still locked around her, Rose only pulled back when his phone went off in his pocket. Ignoring it, he focused on Minx.
“If you got somewhere to be, you can go, Rose. I’m awake. I’ll be okay,” she said, voice hoarse like she’d been shouting at a concert all night.
“Whatever it is, that shit can wait,” he insisted, cupping her cheek.
Her eyes closed, and she accepted his warmth.
She hadn’t forgotten what they talked about before she watched her father be taken right before her eyes.
Now she was also left with her world upside down.
She was going through one of the most-horrible phases of her life, and her warrior was nowhere in sight.
“I’m gonna go get the doctor and let them know you’re awake so they can come and check you out.” Rose stood, and Minx reached for his wrist.
“Rose, I need to go home. Where is my mama? How is she? Have you seen her?” she questioned, watching his head sink.
“You know Mila. She’s standing ten toes down. She’s in the field, making sure everything is running straight. Jonah is on his way in with his people,” he mentioned, referring to her father’s younger brother that lived on the west coast.
“You need to be out there with her, Rose,” Minx chimed in.
“Finn is there right now. I got her. She knows that, but she the one told me to be here with you. She said I had to be the one sitting here with you when you woke up, and I’m glad I was. We got a few people guarding you, but I wasn’t about to leave it to chance.”
“I wanna go home.” She pouted once again.
Rose nodded, leaned forward, and pecked her lips gently. “I’ll go talk to the doctor,” he said, standing tall beside her. “Stay put, a’ight?”
Fighting more tears as she watched him go to the door, Minx bobbed her head.
While he was gone, she noticed his phone on the table beside her bed.
It kept going off like someone was trying to get his attention.
Frowning, Minx sighed heavily and reached for the device beside her.
Seeing Nadia’s name flash across the screen instantly spiked her blood pressure.
She let it ring once more before rejecting the call and sending her to voicemail.
She wasn’t about to go there with the bitch today.
The sound of her voice alone was sure to make her spaz.
A text came through next. Blowing out a harsh breath, Minx read what showed up.
Nadia: So now you can’t talk?
Minx started to talk some shit back to her, pretending it was Rose.
But since she held his phone, she was curious about the conversations between them.
It was clear from what she’d been reading that Nadia had been talking to her damn self for days.
Rose hadn’t replied once. When she got to a particular message, she paused.
Tears mounted in her eyes as the door swung open to her hospital room and Rose let himself back inside.
He froze when he saw her with his phone in her hands, and she brought her saddened gaze to his.
She tossed it to the foot of the bed for him.
“It kept going off. Seems like Nadia has some things to say.” Veering her attention away from him, she shook her head and bit into her bottom lip.
“Minx— “ He inched closer to her bed, regret searing his eyes as he paused at her side.
“Maybe you should go deal with that. I have a lot to take in myself,” she whispered.
Reaching for her chin, he forced her to turn back to him.
When she looked into his eyes, she saw how much he loved her.
For the first few months of their friendship they were non verbal, at least she was.
He was known to ramble occasionally, and she’d let him.
Rose’s eyes always said exactly how he felt, especially for her.
She never doubted her place in his heart.
“I ain’t leaving you, ever. So don’t try pushing me away. I was going to tell you about this shit. As you can see, I just found out myself. Yes, eventually, I need to talk to her. Now ain’t the time for that. You need me. And you come before everything.”
“Even your potential child?” she asked, tilting her head while choking on her words.
She didn’t want to be that way or break down like that. It was a little too much for one person to take in.
“Minx… you number one, baby. That’s on everything,” he vowed, taking a seat on the edge of the bed.
He pulled her into his arms and held her, but Minx was nonreactive. She didn’t even hold him back when the doctor stepped into the room. Nothing felt right at the moment. Her father was gone, and she didn’t know how to deal with that.
A couple of hours later, Minx’s doctor agreed to release her and gave her a prescription to help her sleep if needed.
He also referred her to see a therapist so that she could work through her grief.
She sat there stoic, barely reactive, and waiting to go home.
As if she was going to crack, Rose studied her.
They’d been through the thick of it before.
The last thing he wanted was to watch Minx slip again.
She’d been to dark places before, and if she ever returned, he feared she might not ever come back.
After gathering most of her things and getting them packed in a duffel bag for her, Rose took a minute and watched her.
Head down, removed. She barely spoke when the doctor talked to her. Rose laid her clothes that had been packed on the bed once he left. Minx was still out of it with her legs dangling over the side. She brought her eyes up to meet his.
“You wanna go ahead and get dressed and I’ll bring the car around?” Rose suggested.
Silence. She nodded, and he slid in front of her. She lifted her lost, glossy eyes to his. Rose grabbed her face in both hands, thumbs caressing her cheeks.
“You’re going to pull through this, Minx. I got your back through it all, shorty. A’ight?” he queried, lifting a brow.
Reaching up, she held on to him before nodding. Rose knelt over her, kissing her forehead gently.
“I’ll be right back.”
“Okay,” she whispered, watching him go.
Minx got dressed, and somehow felt slightly normal.
After checking her reflection, she limped from the bathroom and found Gannon letting himself into her room.
Dressed down in jeans, a t-shirt, and a Pelle Pelle jacket over his large shoulders, their eyes met.
She noticed the bouquet of flowers in his hand as guilt plagued his face.
“What are you doing here?” Minx questioned, going over to stuff her toiletries into her bag.
“I wanted to check on you. I called up here, and they said that you were awake.” He offered her the flowers, setting them on the bed.
“I’m awake,” she muttered, zipping her bag shut.
“How are you feeling?” Gannon asked her next.
“Gannon, why are you here?” She stopped, hand on her hip and looked him up and down.
“Damn, Minx… a nigga can’t show you some condolences?” Gannon grimaced.
“I didn’t ask for it. We are done. Keep your fucking kind gestures and leave me the fuck alone.” Minx faced him.