Chapter 9
CHAPTER 9
KARIMA
“S o I guess you forgave that nigga. He been at your house every day for the past week,” KJ said as I sat with him on his couch.
“I forgave him a long time ago. However, I decided to quit running from what my heart wanted. Despite what he did, I love him, KJ. I couldn’t keep fighting it. I know he loves me too. He had a severe lapse of judgment, but that was caused by fear and desperation. No one’s perfect. I wanted a family, so apparently, it was in God’s plans for that to happen now; otherwise, I wouldn’t have gotten pregnant.”
“If you say so. As long as you good, I guess I can be good too.”
“Yeah. He told me he gives you a head nod whenever he sees you.”
“Mm-hmm. I don’t acknowledge it though.”
“He told me that too. It’s not gonna stop him from speaking.”
“Good.”
I slowly shook my head as I leaned against my protector. He’d just gotten home from a rodeo in Sulphur, rooting Rylan and Milana on. Kingsley and Kane were working on team roping. Kane had been doing great with his arm. It was like he’d never been shot. They planned to enter the Easter rodeo in Liberty. It was coming up in a couple of months. However, ever since that incident, I noticed he got a little more… loose. I supposed that was a good word for it.
Kane used to be a little uptight and reserved. It was like he was Kenny Henderson as a young man. After that, he became more vocal and a little more hostile. I believed he was angrier about what Rhodes had done than Kendrall was. Kingsley only got pumped up when the people around him were that way.
“How are you and Cassie?”
“We’re good. Looking forward to our son making his way into the world.”
“What about the whole family dynamic thing? Y’all okay about it now?”
He shrugged. “It seems like we just pretend we don’t know. It doesn’t fuck with me or anything, but I can tell she thinks about it sometimes. She’ll shy away from me touching her at times. I know she loves me, but for someone who always wanted to know where she came from, I can understand that this is hard for her.”
I closed my eyes briefly. “Yeah, I can understand that. I’ll be praying for her. If God gives me anything to say to her, I’ll talk to her. I just… it seems His voice has been a little fainter since…” I said, allowing my voice to trail off.
Kendrall put his arm around me. “I don’t think His voice has gotten fainter. I think you’ve just had a lot of noise in your ears lately. You’ve had a lot going on, especially mentally. You don’t talk about your problems a lot. That means you internalize a lot. I need you to talk more, just like you encourage us to do. Take your own advice. If you don’t talk to us, talk to somebody. I know we can be loose cannons at times. Aunt Jen or Aunt Chrissy will listen without judgment. You know that. So will Nesha. Well… I don’t know about Nesha. She getting a lil rough around the edges.”
I chuckled. Ever since she started working with the family, she’d gotten a little rougher, but I truly believed she was still the same Nesha she’d always been at heart. “I might talk to Mama or Daddy. Mama gave me great relationship advice last time.”
When my phone started ringing, I knew it was Rhodes. No one else called me like that. Pulling it from my pocket, I saw his name and smiled. KJ rolled his eyes as I answered.
“Hey, Rosewood.”
“What’s up, baby? You busy?”
“Just sitting here talking to KJ.”
“Oh. Tell that nigga I said what’s up,” he said and chuckled. “Well, call me when you leave. I got something for you.”
“Okay. I’ll call you back in a little bit.”
“I love you, KD.”
“I love you too.”
I ended the call. “Rhodes said what’s up,” I said then chuckled as he had done.
KJ rolled his eyes. That all came to a halt when Cassie walked through the door though. She was still working at Integrity in Beaumont. Mrs. Gardener, formerly Ms. Taylor, was Uncle WJ, Aunt Chrissy, and Aunt Jen’s counselor. I believed she counseled Jakari also. Her sister was one of the family’s attorneys. Integrity was her center for girls that taught etiquette and promoted self-love. It taught them about having morals, encouraged them to further their education and follow their dreams, and to also have self-respect.
I hadn’t had the opportunity to visit, but I often wondered about it and if I could fit over there. The family considered me the family counselor, especially my cousins, but that wasn’t a paying gig. I didn’t feel right charging them to talk. I loved them and cared about their well-being. Now for people I didn’t know, it would be different.
Cassie came to where I was, so I stood and greeted her. After kissing her cheek, I said, “Hey, sis. How are you?”
“I’m okay. Those lil girls got on my fucking nerves today. I swore, if this one girl would have said another word, I would have knocked her fucking teeth out. Then I would have been sitting my ass in jail again.”
I chuckled as KJ slowly shook his head. Cassie had a slight temper, and her patience was almost nonexistent. She fit in with the Hendersons perfectly. The fact that she was tight with Uncle Storm said it all. Between her and Mekayla, I didn’t know who was worse. I hadn’t seen Mekayla in action, but her mouth promised a hostile environment when provoked.
“I’m sorry, Rima. How are you?”
“I’m good.” I chuckled. “Well, I’m gonna go and give you two your privacy. We’ll talk another time, sis.”
“Okay, boo.”
I kissed her again then hugged and kissed my brother. He followed me outside and said, “I’ma try to do better, Karima. You look really happy, baby.”
“I am, Kendrall. It would mean the world to me if y’all could get along. He’s rough on the exterior, but he’s really a good guy… kind of like Uncle Philly.”
He smiled slightly. Uncle Philly’s actions had ruined Aunt Kema’s career. Their situation was way worse than ours. Aunt Kema almost died because of his bullshit, but here they were, years later, together and making the shit look easy. My career wasn’t ruined… just a little delayed. I could still do everything I set out to do after the baby was born. Just like Uncle Philly, Rhodes could be an asset to the family business as well, with degrees in agriculture and animal science. He was smart as hell, and I was glad he put those brains to use on something that mattered.
After getting in my car, I put the window down and said, “Now go help my sis calm down before she have the baby stressed out.”
He opened his mouth to say something, but I put my window up. I could tell by the smirk on his lips that I wouldn’t want to hear whatever was about to fall from his lips. He laughed loudly as I smiled and waved. Backing out of his driveway, I headed to Cheek. Rhodes always came to me, so I decided I would go to him. Grabbing my phone, I called him.
“Hey, baby,” he said as soon as he answered.
“Hey. You at home?”
“Yep. I wanted you to come out here because I have something to show you.”
“Well, guess who’s on their way?” I giggled. “After I left the diner, I went to KJ’s house and chilled out. The minute I got in my car, I decided I would go to you this time. Besides, I’ve never been to your house.”
“See, we on the same wave. I got something planned for you. I been working on this shit all day, so I hope you love it.”
“If you put that much time into it, I’m sure I’ll love it. Send me your address.”
“You don’t need it. I’m gonna stay on the phone with you while you drive. The easiest way with the least amount of turns is to go to Pine Island Road, but I can direct you from China if you want.”
“Whichever way is quicker. I want to get to you ASAP.”
“Oh yeah? You tryna be on the Rhodes to sexual devastation?”
I giggled. “I just want to be on the Rhodes to limitless cuddles right now.”
“I got you on that front too, wit’ yo’ pretty ass.”
I was waiting for him to say it. I giggled. Whenever he said it, my face heated up like it was the first time I’d heard it, and he’d been saying that since we first met almost eleven years ago. My heart felt light, and this was the feeling I was chasing when we were in Nashville. Maybe I was supposed to stay home, and that was why the Lord allowed that to happen so I would come back. Whatever the reason, I was grateful.
When I ended the call and turned into his driveway, I was amazed. He’d never told me just how beautiful his place was. He had a lot of land on each side of his house, along with a barn, horses, and cattle. I would have never guessed Rhodes had gotten into country living this deep. His long driveway reminded me of my grandparents’ place. I sometimes went there just to feel close to my grandmother. Grandpa had moved out and was living with Aunt Jen and Uncle Carter. He hated being there alone. Plus, his health was failing as well.
When I got close to the house, Rhodes was standing there in some tan Carhartt overalls without a shirt, looking sexy as hell. Jesus Christ. I parked and killed my engine, about to halfway break my neck trying to get to him. He walked to the car with a huge smile on his face. After opening my door and assisting me out of my seat, I practically fell into him. It was like I hadn’t seen him in weeks, and I’d just seen him this morning when he left my house.
“Hey, KD. You look beautiful, baby.”
“Hey, Rosewood. You look so damn sexy, baby.”
He bit his bottom lip and winked at me. I swore, I creamed in my panties. I was so turned on from looking at him. The movement in my belly halted me though. I grabbed his hand and put it to my belly. This was the first time her movements were strong enough where I thought he could feel them. His eyes widened, and he brought his other hand to my belly while going to his knees.
“Hey, daddy’s little princess. You making your presence known, baby girl?”
He glanced up at me and winked. My eyes watered as he continued talking to our baby. Somehow him rubbing my stomach turned into him rubbing my butt. I licked my lips as I stared at him. “She’s not back there.”
He chuckled then stood from the concrete. He pulled me in his arms and kissed my head then leaned over to kiss my lips. Grabbing my hand, he said, “Come out back. I got some shit for you to see.”
I was excited, wondering what he’d done. I looked around at the cattle and the horses, seeing how perfect his piece of heaven really was. When we got to the barn and I saw the dinner table situated right in the middle of it, with bales of hay for us to sit on, my eyes watered. String lights were hung inside, and flowers and candles were spread throughout. I swallowed the lump in my throat, trying not to cry.
“Rhodes… this is beautiful.”
“This is only the beginning, baby.”
He helped me sit on the hay, then he went to the other side and sat as a chef came out with food. When I saw the lamb and mashed potatoes, my eyes darted up to his. He chuckled as another chef came out with grilled shrimp, broccoli, and dinner rolls. This was so amazing. Once the chef lit the candles, he brought back a bottle of wine. I assumed he saw my facial expression, because he said, “It’s non-alcoholic, ma’am.”
I smiled at him as he showed me where it said so on the bottle. Once he poured our wine, he left us alone to enjoy our meal. Rhodes grabbed my hand and said grace, thanking God for this moment in our lives and to bless the food. We indulged in dinner, not talking as much. The silence wasn’t awkward in the least. It felt like the passion was only building in our silence.
As we were finishing up, the chef reappeared with slices of cheesecake. That was one of my favorite desserts, and I couldn’t believe he remembered that. He gave me a smirk as the chef bid us a good night. I practically inhaled my dessert because I was anxious to see what else he had prepared. When I heard the horse whinny, my heart sank a bit. I was hoping he didn’t want to take me horseback riding. That could be really risky. Although I was a professional, I didn’t know his horse’s mannerisms. If he bucked me off, it could really hurt our baby.
Instead of saying anything about that, I allowed him to lead me out of the barn, only to see a horse and carriage. I was so damn excited. I jumped right onto him, and he caught me in his arms. “Calm yo’ pretty ass down, KD,” he said through his laughter.
After helping me onto the carriage, he joined me and circled his arm around me. “Rhodes, this is so beautiful, baby. Wow.”
“I wanna cater to you like this all the time. If that shit mean I don’t work another day in my life, then so be it. I want you to have as much of my time as you need. I’m thankful for my parents, because it gave me hella options. Tell me, though, can you see yourself being with me forever?”
I turned to him and said, “Absolutely. We just have to get my family on board. KJ said he’s going to do his best. It will definitely be harder to get the men on board than the women. Their opinions mean a lot to me. It won’t stop me from being with you, but it will make me happier if y’all were able to get along.”
“I think I know a way.”
My eyebrows lifted slightly. “How?”
“I was checking out some of their cattle, and they are a little too thin. Whatever vet they got seeing after them is slacking. Their diet is off. I can develop somewhat of a diet for the animals for them. Who do I need to speak to?”
“Well, Uncle WJ is over everything, but maybe you can talk to Jakari first. He’s right under Uncle WJ. I mean, you could talk to my dad, too, and he would bring it to the siblings. I honestly think you should talk to my dad first. It would be weird if you didn’t.”
“You’re right. So we need to confirm a day for me to get reacquainted with them.”
He kissed my forehead, and I smiled big. Happy wasn’t the word to describe what I was feeling. Roselynn was obviously happy with as much as she was moving around tonight. Leaning into him, I enjoyed the rest of the carriage ride. It was filled with words of love from Rhodes and kisses to various parts of my face and neck. Tonight had been so beautiful. When the ride ended, I realized we were right in front of a beautiful pond. There was a blanket on the ground with flowers and wine on it. Rhodes helped me down, but instead of me placing my foot on the ground, he scooped me up into his arms, cradling me like a baby.
As he walked to the blanket, I couldn’t help but place soft kisses on his neck. The way he was taking care of me emotionally overwhelmed me. Once we sat, I wiped the tears that had fallen down my cheeks. I always liked ponds for some reason. It was like they brought me a sense of peace. We had one at the family barn, and Uncle Marcus had one on his property, along with Aunt Jen and my grandparents. I didn’t have enough property for all of that. There was a small one in the middle of Henderson Village though.
Rhodes held me in his arms and kissed my head. “Karima, I want this to be us all the time. I can’t wait until baby girl gets here so I can cater to both of you. This shit seems so unreal. I didn’t think I had a romantic bone in my body, but you pull all that shit out of me. I don’t know how you do it, but your aura will have me doing anything to assure your needs will be met. I love you so much. A nigga can barely function away from you unless I’m doing something for you.”
I turned to face him as he wrapped his arms around my waist again. “Had I known back then that we would end up here, I would have given you a chance back then.”
He slowly shook his head. “Naw. It happened just the way it was supposed to. Not having you forced me to level up. It forced me to realize that I needed to do something with my life… make something positive out of it instead of running the streets with niggas that either meant me no good or wanted nothing out of life. When I started school a little over five years ago, eventually being with you was the driving force behind that.”
I wiped my tears and brought my hand to his face. He lowered his lips to mine and allowed his tongue to take me far away from here. We were on the Rhodes to euphoria once again, and it would suit me just fine if we never came back.