Chapter 9
“So, you and Nico, huh?” Jia questioned, the sneakiest of smirks fighting to take over her lips.
Before I could even respond, Jianna added her two cents.
“And I had to hear it from Jia.” She mugged me. “I never hear things about you from Jia. Jia hears things about you from me.” Jianna tapped her chest with her finger.
“You and your pregnancy hormones.” I tried cracking a joke.
“Don’t play with me, Juli,” she warned.
I held up my hands in surrender as I leaned against the one of the two islands in Jia’s gourmet chef’s kitchen. The three of us were there to bake and decorate cookies and cupcakes. Plus, my sisters threatened to kick my ass if I didn’t make time to hang out with them. Since Jia’s home had the kitchen of my dreams, I asked them to bake with me.
Nico had decided to host an open house of sorts at the body shop for members of Faith in Harvest. It was an opportunity for them to be introduced to his shop and his offerings while he gave them a slight discount for coming through.
It was early June, and the weather had warmed up enough for him to host a really cool event outside in the shop’s parking lot. He was doing bouncy houses, food trucks, a few vendors, and a pop-up shop featuring my cupcakes and cookies. I’d spent the last four or five weeks getting branding done on cellophane bags, paper bags, business cards, cupcake liners, and more.
I’d locked myself away, only making time for Nico and the baking and pastry courses I’d enrolled in. It was the first time I’d ventured out to be social in more than a month. Clearly, my sisters had been awaiting their chance to get in my ass about my disappearing act. I would let them have it because I knew they were only mad because they loved me and missed me.
“Sorry,” I offered. “Yes, it’s me and Nico. Being with him makes me happy.”
“Looks like he makes you more than just happy.” Jia observed, taking a long sip from her coffee mug. “You’re glowing as much as this one,” she said, gesturing toward Jianna. “Do you have some news you need to share with us?”
I had to laugh at the sparkle in my big sister’s eyes. “I’m not pregnant, Jia.”
“But you’re in love,” Jianna commented.
“I might be. I’m definitely very into this man. All I want to do is be around him and his energy.”
“He seems like a good guy. Langston likes him, and you know that Langston doesn’t like anybody.”
We all laughed at Jia’s joke.
“What did Langston say when he found out?” Jianna asked. “Did he try to kick Nico’s ass? Did he put a contract out on him?”
“You’re so dramatic.” Jia shook her head. “I think he was shocked, but he appreciated the fact that Nico brought it to him and put it out there. All he could do was respect it after that.”
“Nico’s a good catch, little sis.”
“He is,” I agreed with Jianna’s words.
“And you two are going to make some pretty babies,” she teased. I used to tell her the same thing about her and Dolton.
“No time soon.”
“Whatever.” She waved me off with a giggle. “Hill men tend to keep their wives pregnant. Just saying, boo. I mean, Dolton and I are on number four in as many years. Dominic and Brittanie have the twins plus two more. Dorien and Kyndall have Bryson plus three more. Once you and Nico get started, it’ll probably be hard to turn him off.”
“Nobody asked you.” I shot her a frown, even though I was fronting. Nothing could make life sweeter for me than spending it with Nico, and our children. I definitely wanted that in the future. “Umm, can we get on to baking? We have a lot of cookies and cupcakes to bake and decorate before tomorrow’s event. Less talking and more working.”
* * *
“Why are you in your bag? I thought you would be in good mood after spending the day with your sisters.”
“I’m in a good mood.” I took a final bite of the slice of pizza I was eating. Baking and decorating went on well into the evening. When I got back to Nico’s house, the last thing I felt like doing was cooking. So, we ordered pizza. “I think I’m just stressed about tomorrow.”
“Let’s talk it through. The shelves and the two display cases were delivered today. They’re under the tent, waiting for you to fill them with your products. We’ll start setting you up at eight. Tell me who’s on the set-up team?”
I took a deep breath. “You, me, Ravyn, Jia, Jianna, and Jianna’s best friends, Ginger and Ambrie.”
“Set up goes until 9:30. The festivities start at ten. I had Donovan come by today and set up your payment device, so you can take electronic payments. Did you stop by the bank to get change for people who pay in cash? Otherwise, we’ll stop in the morning.”
“Jianna and I got the change before we went by Jia’s.”
“Cool. The truck is loaded. What am I forgetting?”
I stood from my chair, moved to the other side of the table, and deposited myself in his lap.
“Nico, I really love the way you take care of me.”
He wrapped his arms around my waist and buried his face in my neck, which I loved.
“I really love the way you let me take care of you,” he mumbled, his lips causing a vibration against the skin on my neck, causing me to giggle and pull away slightly. “Making you happy, seeing you happy…that makes me happy.”
His arms dropped from around me. I took that opportunity to shimmy out of the short shorts and panties I was wearing. Nico always understood the assignment, and his dick was free mere seconds later. I slid slowly down on it, humming and moaning until I was fully seated. I stared into his dreamy brown eyes, unmoving as we were connected in the best possible way.
“You are the best thing that’s ever happened to me, Domenico Hill.”
“Shit,” he gritted out through clenched teeth. “Ditto. I love your little, pretty ass.”
I rocked slowly in his lap. “I love you, too.”
* * *
The members of Faith in Harvest Christian Church showed up and showed out for Nico’s event. The parking lot of the body shop was filled to capacity with people moving through the space to tour the body shop, to let their children play in the bouncy houses, to partake in the offerings from the food trucks, and to patronize the vendors.
Rather than stress myself out trying to pre-determine how many cupcakes and cookies I should make for the event, I just made a flat amount—200 cookies and 240 cupcakes. Nico and I decided that whenever I sold out of product, I would be done for the day. The event went from 10:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. I was sold out by 1:00 p.m.
Everybody except my sisters went to enjoy the festivities while we cleaned up. We were almost done when Briscoe Hill wandered over to where my shop had once been set up.
“Hello,” I said cordially. I wasn’t his biggest fan, but I didn’t personally have anything against him. He’d been one of my father’s best friends, so he’d been around my family since before I was born.
“Hey, Briscoe.” That was Jia.
She was all smiles.
“Hey, Mr. Hill,” Jianna said dryly.
“Hey, ladies. Jianna, I see that you and my son can’t keep your hands off of each other.”
I cringed internally.
“Congratulations on baby number…what?” He probed.
“Four,” she deadpanned.
“Jia, you’re looking beautiful as always. How’s Langston?”
“Good, Briscoe. How are you?”
“I’m good. I came down here to support my son because they like to tell me that, over the years, they never felt seen by me. Whatever the fuck that means. Sounds like some shit a daughter would say, and they’re all sons, so I don’t know. They whine and complain and shit like women. But what am I gonna do? It’s a different generation. I mean, back in my day, no man would ever invest in a pass around woman. Couldn’t even take a woman seriously that I knew all my boys had their way with. I mean, I might take a turn with her, but never in my life would I claim her or make her mine.”
I was literally frozen to my spot. Briscoe Hill, the king of all fuck boys, the prince of all deadbeat daddies, was trying to ruin what had been a fabulous day for me and insult me in front of my sisters.
“What did you say?” I asked incredulously.
“What the fuck did you say?” Jia asked.
Jia liked to do her “prim and proper” thing, but what she didn’t do was play about Jianna or me.
“Not you over here, on my baby sister’s big day, trying to talk slick. And in front of me, too? You must’ve forgot who the fuck you were dealing with. Just because my father died doesn’t mean you can’t be touched, Briscoe Hill. My sister is fucking off limits. You will not treat her like shit, and you damn sure won’t do it in front of me. I’ll have your fucking lights put out.”
“I’ve never been passed around in all my life.” I finally spoke up for myself. “For years, you, as a grown fucking man, believed the word of a teenaged drug addict over the word of your own son. Dorien told you that those rumors weren’t true, and here you are in your damn fifties spreading rumors about somebody who’s young enough to be your own daughter. But why am I even surprised? You don’t give a damn about hurting your own children. Why would you care about hurting somebody else’s? Fuck you. And just so you know…your goat ass mama is a pass-around.” I flounced away from my sisters and Briscoe Hill.
Domenico
From my vantage point, I definitely couldn’t hear what was said, but I could tell by the body language of all three Outlaw sisters that it wasn’t good. I watched Julianna practically sprint away from the pop-up shop set up then made it my business to intercept Coe before he got away. I led him into the shop, which was way less populated than the parking lot.
“Aye, Dawg, what’d you say to my girl?” I asked him, and I could feel myself already getting mad, even though I didn’t know why.
“That. That right there.” He gestured around. “I know you didn’t grow up around my people and their kids, but you should’ve asked me before you started claiming somebody who’s damaged goods.”
“Damaged goods?” I repeated in confusion.
“Your little friend, the Outlaw girl, the youngest one, the one that you’re sponsoring pop-up shops for and shit, she has a reputation…as a pass around. Every one of my friends’ boys has had a turn with her, and after nobody would look at her seriously anymore, she started dating chicks.”
My face had to show my utter disbelief. “Nigga, you’re the biggest pass around in this damn city! How many women have had your community dick? Shit, I feel like I’m meeting new siblings every time I attend an event.”
“That’s different. I’m a man. She’s a woman. She was a young teenager who was hot in the ass, and let everybody who wanted to hit it, hit.”
Of all the Hill brothers, I wasn’t known as the violent one. It was probably a shock to people when I two-pieced my biological father in his shit. I had to admit that my dad wasn’t a slouch. It wasn’t a one and done. He punched back at me, and a full-fledged fight broke out.
I wasn’t sure where Dominic came from, but he separated us, grabbing Coe. Both Dolton and Dorien stood between us, while Donovan appeared at my side.
“Stop spreading rumors about my girl, nigga!” I told Coe. “She was a kid who was lied on by a kid. Adults took the story and ran with it.”
“Wait.” Dorien spoke up. “Is this that bullshit story about Julianna again? How many times do I have to say that shit never happened. None of those dudes ever had sex with her. Her clothes were on when I got to the room. I was in the fucking room. If anybody knows what happened, I know. Santana’s ass was out of it, and I don’t think the rest of those dudes even knew she was in the room. That shit never happened, and Julianna is still dealing with a lie from fifteen years ago?”
“That was a rumor?” Dolton probed.
Dorien sighed in exhaustion. “Yeah, bro. It never happened. Do you think if those dudes ran a train on Julianna that Gianni would’ve let them live? Make it make sense. That was his baby princess. You think he would’ve let that ride?”
Coe ignored everything Dorien said and turned his ire on me. “Don’t you ever put your fucking hands on me again, you little bastard.”
“Fuck you. Eat a dick, you bitch ass trick.”
I turned to walk away, but the voice caused me to stop.
“I can’t believe you.” She sucked her teeth. “Waiting in the corner to spit venom to your son about his choice in women when you’ve…Well, you know what you’ve done. You fathered children in every corner of this city and beyond and done nothing for any of them but use them for your own gain. You low-life motherfucker, you’re lucky Nico isn’t my son because I’d slap you across your stupid face on his behalf.” Natalya Hill’s head shook back and forth with her disgust for her former husband. “Keep your mouth off of Gianni’s daughter. He was more of a man than you’re immature, infantile ass could ever be. When I saw him go down that day, when I saw him clutch his chest, all I could think was, Lord, they say you don’t make mistakes, but why are you not taking this no-good motherfucker?”
A silence fell over all of us.
“Amen!” My mother’s voice broke it.
I had no idea when she arrived.
“And if you ever put your hands on my son again in life, I promise to put your ass under the dirt.” She mugged him. “Son, let’s go find my daughter and make sure she’s all right.”
As I began to walk away, my mother reached back, took her cane, and popped Coe in the head with it.
My brothers and I were clearly immature because all five of us were like, “Ooh! Dayum!”
* * *
We looked all over the parking lot and even in the shop, but we couldn’t find Julianna. I wondered if she’d gone home, even though I knew we rode together. I figured she’d taken a rideshare, and I wanted to punch Coe’s ass again for running her off.
I helped my mother into the passenger’s seat of Donovan’s truck and thanked them for coming. Then I lumbered into my office. I was caught off guard when I found Julianna sitting at my desk. The security camera feeds were pulled up on my screen.
“You rocked his shit,” she told me with a straight face. She was able to hold it for all of five seconds before she broke out into giggles. “You rocked his shit, babes. I don’t think I’ve ever dated a man who was willing to fight his dad for me.”
“Fuck his dumb ass,” I said through chuckles. “You all right?”
“I’m all right. Those rumors don’t hurt my feelings anymore. I mean, I know the stories are fabricated. It just caught me off guard. When I was young and going through it, I knew to prepare. If we were going to an event, I could steel myself, put on my armor, and be ready to face the bullshit. All these years later, I don’t get ready for it anymore. I don’t expect it. So, to have him say that…in front of my sisters and on my big day…that was fucked up of him.”
“He’s fucked up, lil bit.”
“He is,” she agreed. “And for a moment there, I really wished my dad was alive because there is no way he would’ve said that shit if Gianni Outlaw was here on earth.”
“Agreed.”
“But Jia ate his ass up. Then you ate his ass up. But the kicker was your mother eating his ass up.”
We both laughed.
“I thought Mrs. Hill…Natalya was gonna box his ass,” I confessed.
“Me, too. She was so pissed. I told you she was always nice to me.”
We were both quiet for a few moments.
“You sold out of your cupcakes and cookies,” I reminded her.
“I did.” She grinned at me.
“Aye, after whooping my father’s ass for you, I’m feeling like you might be my person.”
She couldn’t stop laughing. When she finally pulled herself together, she said, “After you watching you mollywhop that dude, I’m thinking I might be your person, too.”
She stood from the chair, moved around the desk to me, and wrapped her arms around my waist. I draped my arms around her shoulders.
“And you are definitely my person.”
I lifted her chin then placed my lips on hers. I kissed her deeply.
The little former hellion, the party girl, the prettiest of the Outlaw sisters… this girl had my heart.