Chapter 4
Antsy. That was how Boogie felt ever since he left Sweetie at his place earlier that afternoon. After sampling that good ass pussy of hers that morning, all he wanted to do was lay in it.
Instead, his family kept calling him back to back to remind him of Sunday dinner. He knew there was no way he could get out of going to his parents’ house. Tandy DeLuca didn’t play that shit. It didn’t matter how old her sons got.
So, he got Sweetie situated at his home and left to hit a lick with his brother real quick before they went to their parents. Denzel, the pussy-whipped ass nigga he was, just had to make a pit stop at NellanNem’s corner store so he could get Chloe a sandwich from the deli.
“This shit don’t make no sense. We ’bout to get some good home cookin’ from Mama.
Why do Chloe need a roast beef sandwich from here for?
” Boogie grumbled as he watched the store owner, Habib, make the sandwich.
Only reason the old man was behind the counter making the shit was because Denzel slipped him a fifty-dollar bill to do it himself.
Everyone knew Habib made the best sandwiches.
“Because my wife wanted the shit, so she gon’ get it,” Denzel said as coolly as a cucumber.
“And don’t diss my sandwiches like that, young boy. You know ya mama’s cookin’ ain’t got shit on my skills,” Habib joked with his thick accent as he looked at Boogie from behind his glasses. He added horseradish sauce onto the toasted bread as he grinned.
“Shiiiiit.” Boogie dragged the word out dramatically.
“You a mothafuckin lie.” Denzel agreed with his brother. Habib was a legend in the hood, but Tandy DeLuca held the torch for best food. Even Habib knew that. He’d sampled her food through the years during cookouts and whatnot and fell under her spell just like everyone else.
“Yeah, aight. See if I finish this sandwich,” Habib said as he halted his movements and peered playfully at the brothers.
“Aw, come on, man. I’ll slide you another twenty,” Denzel begged as he pulled out another bill from his pocket.
Habib, motivated by money since he was young, nodded and continued building the sandwich. “Leave it on the counter up front.”
Boogie chuckled as Denzel turned and walked through the store toward the front.
“Ol’ whipped ass nigga,” Boogie muttered.
For an old man, Habib had excellent hearing. “You’d do some good to find a woman like your brother has. ’Bout time for you to settle down.”
“What you know about settling down, Habib? Don’t you got like six baby mamas?”
Habib stuck his middle finger up at Boogie after he cut the sandwich and threw it in the bag. “Learn from my mistakes, young boy.”
He handed Boogie the bag and walked around the counter slowly.
Habib was from Palestine but came here when he was young.
From there, the hustle was on. He opened up this store when he was in his early twenties, and it had been a staple in The Bay ever since.
Boogie had been coming to this store with his parents since he was little, so Habib really was like extended family for him.
When they got to the front of the store, Boogie handed Denzel the bag.
“Good lookin’, Habib,” Denzel said as he threw his hand up in salute.
“Where the fuck you think you goin’? You ain’t paid yet, young boy,” Habib snapped with a frown on his face as he went behind the glass where the cash register was.
Denzel halted and Boogie chuckled. “Fuck you mean, Bib? I just gave you seventy dollars for this damn sandwich.”
“Yeah, that was for me to make it. That ain’t cover the cost of the damn sandwich,” Habib said as he sat in his chair behind the counter and propped his feet up. He nudged his employee next to him. “Charge him for a roast beef deluxe.”
“Man, ain’t this some shit?” Denzel mumbled as he pulled another twenty out of his pocket and handed it to the employee.
“Costs to be in love, my nigga,” Boogie teased. Truth be told, if Sweetie wanted a ninety-dollar sandwich, he would fetch it without a thought.
When they finally left the store, Denzel was still grumbling. They got into Boogie’s truck and took off toward their parents’ house.
“You ain’t never told me how last night went. You thought I wasn’t gonna ask?” Denzel said once he stopped complaining about the damn sandwich.
Boogie couldn’t help the grin that plastered on his face. “What about it?”
“Don’t play dumb, nigga. I can tell by yo’ goofy ass face you still feelin’ her.” Denzel shook his head in disappointment. “Pops ain’t gon’ like this shit.”
Boogie shrugged. “When have I ever gave a fuck about what anyone else had to think? Shit, if Sweetie’s pops ain’t cage her up all those years ago, I would have been fuckin’ wit’ shorty all along. We all know that, even Pops.”
“You gonna be the downfall of this empire,” Denzel warned.
Boogie waved him off. He knew Denzel was only half serious when he said that. It wasn’t in his big brother’s nature to be cruel, at least not toward family. He meant it more as a warning, which definitely went in one ear and out the other.
“Look, I’ll take it up wit’ Pops when I’m ready. And I won’t take too long, I promise. I just want to make sure she’s comfortable with everything before I jump in and do it. She’s already tryna pull away from me.”
Denzel looked at his brother’s profile. “You serious about this? You really gonna keep her around?”
Boogie shrugged. “She moved in.”
“Nigga, what?” Denzel shouted.
Boogie’s face twisted up. “Aye, chill with all that. It ain’t that big a deal.”
“You ain’t seen her in twenty years and she’s already shackin’ up wit’ you? I don’t know, Bro. This shit don’t sound right. You sure this ain’t a setup?”
Boogie’s good mood immediately soured. He knew nobody would understand his love for Sweetie, but he didn’t need anyone questioning him or taking digs at her character.
He didn’t even justify that with a response.
He simply turned the music on as he drove and turned it all the way up.
Denzel turned it down just long enough to say, “Tell Pops soon. He can deal wit’ y’all. ”
He turned the music back up, and they rode the rest of the way to their parents’, just like that.
Boogie hopped out of the car as soon as he cut it off and made a beeline for the front door. He didn’t want Denzel to say shit else to him. In fact, all he wanted to do was eat real quick to pacify his mom and then get back home to Sweetie.
“There are my boys,” Tandy said as soon as she spotted them walking through the door.
“Hey, Mama,” Boogie said. He reached her first and wrapped her up in a hug.
She was short and plump and gave the absolute best hugs. Don’t get it fooled though. She was a firecracker. This was her domain, and everyone bowed to her.
She patted his back and pulled back with a smile. “Hey, baby.”
Boogie moved out of the way to let Denzel greet their mother.
He moved further into the large home, toward the dining room, where Chloe and his father were already seated.
The food on the table smelled mouthwatering, and he made a mental note to make Sweetie a to-go plate.
There was no telling how long it had been since she had a home-cooked meal.
“Where’s my sandwich?” Chloe asked.
“Hi to you, too, nigga,” Boogie said as he leaned down to hug her and kiss her cheek.
Zander, Boogie’s dad, chuckled. “Don’t mind her, Son. She’s hungover. Apparently, the only thing that can cure it is a sub from NellanNem’s.”
“Yeah, so where is it?” she asked.
“Ask yo’ nigga,” Boogie said as he took a seat across from her.
“It’s right here, baby,” Denzel said as he and his mother entered the dining room.
“Chloe, I know you fuckin’ lyin’. You conned my son into bringing you food to my family dinner?” Tandy asked with her hands on her wide hips and her eyes cut into slits.
Chloe pierced her with a sweet smile. “Come on, Mama. You know I’m about to tear this food up and take home a few plates. I just needed a little somethin’ extra only Habib could satisfy.”
“Aye, girl. Watch out with talkin’ ’bout another nigga satisfying yo’ needs,” Denzel warned as he sat next to her and then kissed her neck.
Chloe giggled. “Okay, y’all need to ease up off me. It’s still my birthday weekend.”
With that, she tore the wrapper off her sandwich and took a big bite.
Everyone stared at her for just a moment before they carried on with dinner. Chloe had been a part of the family for so long, she was like the princess. Right behind Tandy, she pretty much ruled everyone around her.
“Y’all had fun last night?” Zander asked once all their plates were piled high.
“Chloe sure the fuck did.” Denzel grinned at his wife, who was doing her best to eat up all the carbs to soak up all the liquor she consumed the night before.
“Shut up. I wasn’t the only one that had fun. Boogie left early with the finest girl in the place.” Chloe cheesed at Boogie, and he stiffened.
Tandy’s brows rose. “Really?”
Here we go, he thought.
“I ain’t really leave with her, Ma,” Boogie said before he cut his eyes at Chloe.
“You know, it’s about time for you to settle down . . .”
Boogie drowned his mother out as he shoveled food into his mouth. He didn’t need a lecture on this shit. Not again, and especially not since he found Sweetie. Little did they know, his future was secured. It just may not have been with the woman they wanted.
Luckily, Tandy eventually moved on to bugging Denzel and Chloe about when they were going to give her some grandchildren.
When they finally finished eating, Boogie quickly helped with the clean up out of respect for his mother. She always taught him to be a good guest and a good host, and he never minded helping her out, but he was more than ready to get home.
With a to-go plate in his hand, he announced, “Aight, fam. I’m out.”
“So soon?” Tandy asked with her brows drawn in.
“Yeah. I’ll call you tomorrow, aight?” he said as he bent to kiss her cheek.
“Alright, but don’t forget, Boogie,” she warned.
“I could never.” Boogie looked at his pops and his brother. “I’ll get up wit’ y’all tomorrow too.”
“Yeah, we got some things to talk about,” Denzel said, and Boogie didn’t miss his hidden meaning.
Boogie ignored him and looked at Chloe, who looked like she was about to fall over into a full-blown food coma. “Bye, bighead.”
She lazily waved him off. Boogie chuckled. He knew her ass was low energy if she didn’t have a comeback for him.
When he got outside, he walked up the driveway and hopped into his truck before pulling off. He made quick work of getting home. His place was pretty big for just him, but the thought of Sweetie living there now made it feel more like a home than a house.
He grinned as he got out of his truck and walked through the garage door.
“Bae,” he shouted. When he left, she was going to take a nap in his room. Their room. His smile widened. Lil baby was worn out from the night before. Maybe he would run her a bath. “Bae!”
He called out to her again but got no response.
His smile slowly turned into a frown as he went from room to room.
When he checked everywhere, he realized she wasn’t there, and irritation had officially hit him.
Now he had to spend his night searching for her ass because there was no way he was about to let her go that easily.
Like mentioned before, he was a bit touched in the head, so jumping to conclusions was his specialty, and poor Sweetie was about to learn that the hard way.