20. Saint
Today drained me. I recorded the podcast episode with Stats she doesn’t deserve all this extra shit.”
“Moo, gifts don’t always fix everything. Money doesn’t move women like Blessing. She has her own money. You’re going to have to come harder than that.”
“Well, help me out, Ma. What should I do?”
She shrugged, “I don’t know. Take her on a little road trip or something. You have a bye week coming soon. Use that time to show her you care. I’m sure she’ll love it. Oh, take her to the cabins in Willow Creek.”
I nodded, pulling my phone out to write the idea down in my notepad.
“Thanks, ma, I think I’ll look into that.
Now… I want to talk to you about Pops. Just listen, okay?
And please don’t get upset with me.” She sighed and nodded for me to continue, “I reached out to a private investigator to look into Pops’ disappearance.
It took a minute to find anything, but she’s come up with two possibilities.
Around the time he went missing, there was a serial killer targeting truck drivers.
Pops’ route matched his profile. Remains were recently found, and I can do a DNA test to see if any of the remains match.
” I watched her eyes fill with tears. “The other possibility is a man in Georgia who was admitted into a mental hospital under the name John Doe. He wandered there by train. They think he had an accident that caused him to lose his memory. He ended up there around the same time Pops went missing. We can go there and see if it’s him.
Whatever you want to do. It’s up to you, Ma.
I’m sorry I went behind your back and did this, but I needed to know something.
” By the time I was finished explaining, she’d broken down into full-blown sobs. I pulled her into me, rubbing her back.
“You know.. I had a dream about your father a few weeks ago. I can feel it in my heart that he’s still alive.
That has to be him in that mental hospital.
I know it is. Oh God. I’m going to get my husband back.
” She mumbled, placing her hand over her heart.
I prayed that it was him. It had to be. Nothing would hurt me more than getting my mother’s hopes up for nothing.
We agreed to make the trip to Georgia on Friday.
I went and spoke to my grandma before heading up to Serenity’s room to check on her.
I knocked on the door before peaking my head inside.
She was lying in her bed, scrolling through her phone.
“You good?” I asked, looking at her. Her face looked kind of pale, and her eyes were watery.
She sniffed and nodded. “I’m fine, Moo. Thanks for the flowers. You can leave now.” She rolled her eyes and turned away from me.
Instead of pushing further, I left. She clearly wanted to be alone, and I respect her boundaries.
After I said goodbye to my mother, I headed to Blessing’s house.
I hadn’t seen her since she left my house yesterday, and I was missing her something crazy.
An incoming call from Dru appeared on my dashboard.
I pressed the green icon to answer the call.
“Wassup nigga?” I answered.
“Shit. You good? How was the podcast?”
“It was straight. They paid me some good ass money to come on there too. I think I’m just gonna give it all to Bless, though.”
“Nigga you love to trick. You need to stop before Chanel starts expecting that shit from me. She already got me buying hair from vendors and shit, so she can start selling hair.”
I laughed, “You callin’ me a trick, but you doing the same shit. Nigga done got bit by the love bug.”
“You the only one in love, Moo. I’m chillin’.”
“And is,” I said, mocking Blessing. “I might not be in love, but I do have love for her, though. You know how long I’ve been waiting for her. This time next year, that’s going to be my wife. Shit, I hope she lets me put a baby in her.”
“Damn, she got you down bad for real,” He chuckled. “But look though. Messiah wants that Mariah shit handled asap. He really ain’t feelin’ all the mess she’s been causing. You know he only has one solution to problems. So, whatever you gone do, do it before he handles it.”
“I hear you. This shit is going to be handled by the end of the week. Give Messiah my number. I got some other shit I need to run by him. I just pulled up to my lady’s crib.
I’ll get up with you later.” I said before ending the call.
I rolled my window down and entered the code to get into Blessing’s neighborhood.
I grabbed the roses, gift bag, and bottle of wine before heading to the front door.
I used my thumbprint to let myself in. The smell of well-seasoned food filled my nose.
I could hear pots and pans going in the kitchen, so I followed the noise.
Blessing was at the sink, washing dishes with her earbuds in.
I set the gifts down on the island and wrapped my arms around her waist. She jumped, letting out a scream.
I chuckled, turning her around to face me.
“You scared the shit out of me!” She said, slapping my chest.
“My bad baby.” I placed a few kisses on her lips and squeezed her ass. “I missed you,” I said against her lips. I pulled away from her and took a seat at the island.
“I missed you, too, love bug. Ooo, what’s in the gift bag?
” She asked, peeking in the bag. She pulled out the box of homemade chocolate turtles and a small box.
I’d gotten her two new pairs of Tiffany earrings.
A couple of days ago, she’d complained about how she’d lost her first pair, so I decided to replace them and buy an extra pair just in case.
“Thank you, baby!” She squealed. She picked up the roses, taking them to the sink to cut the stems.
“You’re welcome baby. I just want to apologize again for the shit Mariah been on.
I hate that you had to lose your job behind it.
I had my assistant reach out to my realtor to start looking for properties so you can get your own shit.
In the meantime, Coach Charles said you can come work at the training facility.
Once you open, he’ll sign a contract with you, so all injured players will always come to you.
Y’all can talk about pay if that’s what you want to do.
” I explained, watching her place the roses in a vase filled with water.
“I’ll reach out to Coach Charles later this week. I think I want to just relax until after all the holidays. While I’m not working, I’ll look for buildings and work on finding employees. I deserve some time to relax.” She sighed.
“C’mere,” I motioned her to me, spreading my legs. I pulled her into me as she stepped in between them. She wrapped her arms around my waist and looked up at me. “I have a bye week in two weeks. Can I take you somewhere for a few days?”
A smile spread across her face as she nodded. “Yes! I would love that. Where are we going?”
“It’s a surprise. It’s somewhere close, though, so we’ll drive. I just want some time with you. No distractions. We’ll come back just in time for Christmas.” I leaned down, repeatedly kissing her lips and grabbing a handful of her big, soft ass. Shit felt like putty in my hands.
“You guys are so disgusting.” Journey gagged as she walked into the kitchen with Sage on her hip.