Chapter 11
Damien glanced at Skylar, who sat in the passenger’s seat with her arms crossed over her chest and a pout on her face.
“Man, what’s been up with you, Sky?” Damien asked, reaching over and nudging her.
Skylar pulled away from him and, without looking his way, mumbled, “Nothing.”
“Something,” he said, parking his car in front of a small home in a neighborhood that had seen better days. After he turned the car off, he turned toward her and gently pinched her arm. “Talk to me, baby. Your stank ass attitude is getting really old.”
Skylar let out a heavy sigh. “I already told you I was sorry for how I talked to your lady friend.”
She had. After Kenna left his house the morning prior, Skylar was quick to apologize, but he knew she only meant it so they could move on from the topic. Now, before he went into Ms. Annalise’s home and spent some time with her and Alanzo, he wanted to make sure Skylar was really okay.
“You know I really like my lady friend?” He decided to rip the Band-Aid off.
He had never been the type of parent to beat around the bush, and the only reason he didn’t have the conversation yesterday was because he wanted to give Skylar space after finding him in bed with another woman.
Of course, Jendaya didn’t help matters at all.
She teased him relentlessly until he had to kick her out with a warning to start calling him before she popped up at his house.
Things were definitely about to start looking differently around his home, and he wanted everyone to get on the same page.
Skylar scoffed. “I guess.”
“Aye, look at me,” Damien demanded. When she did, he said, “Shoot it to me straight.”
Skylar rolled her eyes. “Do you have to like her ?”
Damien chuckled. He was used to the dramatics of females. If Jendaya didn’t give him all the practice he needed, raising Skylar definitely did. “Why not her?”
“ Why her?” she pressed.
“You don’t even know her. What’s the beef?”
“I don’t know, Daddy. Can we just go do whatever it is we’re doing here so I can go home and call Kelly back?”
Damien stared at her for a moment. “Her name is Kenna, and I really hope you give her a chance, Sky. You know if I have to choose between y’all, I’ll choose you in every lifetime, but it just might break my heart. I’m asking you not to put me in that position.”
Skylar stared out the window for several long seconds before looking at him. “Fine.”
A smile tugged at his lips. “You gon’ apologize to her next time you see her?”
Skylar clenched her jaw before releasing a breath. “Yeah.”
Damien pulled her to him and kissed her head. “Thank you. Just give her a chance.”
She offered him a small smile before they got out of the car. Damien walked around the back of the car and opened the trunk. When he pulled the large box out, they walked to the front door.
“What are we doing here again?”
“Spending time with some good-hearted people I met,” Damien replied.
It had been on his heart to check in with Annalise and Alanzo since he met them.
He was glad he had some time off to swing by, and he wanted Skylar with him.
He felt it was good for her to see him doing good for people less fortunate financially than them.
Prayerfully, she would do as she saw when she grew up.
Before they could knock on the door, it swung open, and Kenna stood there looking like she had seen a ghost. The three of them froze, and the moment filled with an awkward silence.
Finally, Kenna’s pretty eyes found his, and he saw the way her skin brightened when she saw his slow smile spread across his face.
“What a surprise.” Damien adjusted the large box, allowing it to rest on the ground.
“I… I was just leaving,” Kenna said before her eyes landed on Skylar again. “It’s nice to see you again, Skylar. I’m Kenna.” She held her hand out, and Damien could tell she was nervous as hell.
Damien nudged Skylar forward. Skylar thankfully caught the hint because she quickly mumbled, “Nice to meet you.” Damien nudged her again, and he could practically feel her eyes rolling to the sky. “And I’m sorry for calling you a… a whore yesterday.”
Kenna’s cheeks flamed, but she gracefully shook her head and quickly said, “No, no. It’s okay. I don’t blame you. I mean, it isn’t nice to call people out of their names, but I can imagine the shock you must have felt. Thank you for the apology. Really.”
“Yeah, sure,” Skylar replied dully.
Annalise appeared behind Kenna with a bright smile. “There you are. How are you, Damien? And who is this beautiful young lady?”
“I’m well, Ms. Annalise. This is my daughter Skylar. I bought Alanzo a basketball hoop. I know you mentioned the one you have is just okay, and I couldn’t have that for my boy. Is it okay if I set it up in your driveway?” Damien grinned at her.
“My goodness. You two have really spoiled me today,” Annalise said with a hand over her heart.
“I’m sick of being treated like chopped liver!” Cam shouted from within the house.
Damien chuckled. “Y’all been over here giving my boy hell?”
“He’s been giving me hell.” Kenna corrected him.
Annalise squeezed Kenna’s shoulder and looked at Damien.
“How about we set it up in the back?” Then she gazed at Skylar.
“I made some double chocolate cookies. Would you like some?” Skylar quickly nodded.
Chocolate was the way to her heart. “Come on in, and you might as well stay a while,” she said to Kenna.
Skylar and Annalise disappeared into the house, leaving him and Kenna alone. “Were you about to leave?”
Kenna looked down at her black and white dunks. The sweats and long sleeved fitted shirt she had on looked good on her. He loved that she wasn’t overly girly but still the prettiest woman to walk the planet.
“Yeah. I should get some work done or something.”
Damien gazed down at her in amusement. “No.”
“No?” One of her eyebrows rose.
“No.” He nodded. “Come home with me.”
Kenna glanced behind her. When she faced him again, she lowered her voice. “What about Skylar?”
“She’s going to her mama’s after this. I have a game tomorrow.”
“What about curfew and no distractions?” she quizzed.
“We’ll be in the house well before curfew,” he teased.
“And the distractions?” she asked with one brow arched.
Truth be told, he no longer gave a damn about distractions. He’d had a taste of Kenna, and there was no way he would pass up an opportunity to have her again… and again.
He pulled her into him by her waist, allowing the box to stand on its own while he tended to his new obsession. “Fuck a distraction. I need you up under me tonight.”
Kenna chewed on her bottom lip before exhaling. “Okay, but let me go home and pack a bag first.”
“Bet. I’ll call you when I’m on my way home.” Damien leaned down and stole a kiss from her. “Now let me go set this up and play a game with lil man real quick so I can get home to you.”
Kenna giggled before stepping aside to let Damien in. “Tell Cam to bring his ass.”
Damien poked his head into the house and chuckled. It seemed Cam and Skylar got comfortable with each other fast because they each had one end of a plate holding a mound of cookies, fighting over them. He glanced at Kenna’s retreating back before heading further into the house to play referee.
In the back of his mind, he knew before he left that he also needed to convince Annalise to take the check in his pocket to cover Alanzo’s basketball expenses and anything else they may need. That was the true mission of the day, and he hoped she didn’t give him a hard time about it.