WHAT ABOUT ME?
Aquatic Wonders had interactive exhibits for the kids to participate in.
The young man giving the tour was nice, upbeat, and patient with Breeze and Bijou, teaching them about certain fish and allowing them to touch them.
Breeze had a million questions, and he was so patient in answering them.
Each group consisted of about six kids, and he was one of four giving them a walk through.
It was like walking underwater seeing the many sharks and other fishes swimming around them.
Breeze talked a mile a minute with excitement.
He walked a couple of steps ahead of Bijou as she clung to her daddy’s hand and pointed to a fish every now and then.
Toni snapped pictures of them, enthralled in the colorful sights surrounding them.
She got a few close ups of Bull with the kids while they oohed and aahed over their sightings.
After about an hour and a half, and circling the place twice, Toni was starving.
When she checked the time, she saw that it was time for Jou to have a nap.
If she didn’t get one, that little girl would give them hell until bed and then wake up at the crack of dawn.
Bull strapped his daughter in her car seat, and Toni did the same with Breeze before they climbed inside and headed toward home.
“If I didn’t know any better, I would think you enjoyed yourself today too.” Toni swiped through the pictures she snapped, stopping at one with him kneeling between the two kids while they all watched a stingray swim by.
Bull had this peaceful look on his face with a half-smile while watching his babies.
“It was cool.” He leaned against his door and drove with his other arm flexing as he steered them along.
“Jou Jou is so smart. It’s so cute the way she looks up to Breeze. I envy that.” Toni stared out her window.
“What you mean?”
“Having a sibling,” she answered, turning to him as his eyes locked on her.
“I had stepsisters, but they treated me just like that. When my stepfather moved them in, they kicked me out of my own room. I had to sleep on the couch. I was Cinderella around that bitch before Bronx came along,” she whispered, then paused.
She never knew what kind of reaction he would have to his brother’s name. Bull didn’t know about how she grew up. She didn’t talk about her life at all. This was the first time she’d even brought up her childhood.
“What your mama do about it?” he queried.
“Nothing,” Toni responded. “She didn’t want to piss Urso off, so she rolled with it and told me to play nice since we were all family. Oddly enough, I was the only one who had to play nice while everyone shitted on me.”
He stroked his beard, and minutes later pulled into their driveway and parked. Killing the engine, he turned to Toni while she studied their home. His eyes pierced her, leaving her rattled when she shifted in her seat to check on the kids. With their heads tilted to the side, they slept soundly.
“It’s safe to say they enjoyed themselves.” She smiled at Jou holding a stuffed seahorse that she begged Bull for before they left.
“I’ll get ’em. You get the door.” Bull hopped out, and Toni did the same.
She used her key to step inside, pulling off her coat and hanging it up while kicking out of her shoes.
Bull stepped in with a child in each arm.
Toni closed and locked the door behind him and tossed her keys into her purse before slinging it on the small bench near the door.
Bull carried both kids up the stairs so he could tuck them into their beds.
Starving, Toni started toward the kitchen to see what she could put together quickly for dinner.
She had chicken marinating and decided to roast it with some potatoes and vegetables.
With the kids napping, she poured herself a glass of wine too.
Once everything was in a baking dish, she covered it with the glass lid and popped it in her roaster.
“Alexa, play Free Fall,” she called out, and Tems came over the speakers scattered throughout the bottom floor of the house.
She loved this song, and oddly, the lyrics reflected so much of her current life.
Tipping her wine to her lips, she stepped around her kitchen, snapping her hips and throwing her head back like she could sing.
She loved being a mother, but when the kids went down, it was damn sure a relief.
Bull gave her time to herself, but he was protective and always wanted to know her whereabouts.
Most days, she felt like she was in a fancy ass prison.
Life damn sure could have been worse, but it never stopped her from wondering if she would have gone right instead of left, where she would have ended up.
She thought about Bronx a lot because everything felt so unfinished.
Being thrown into this situation with Bull left her with little time to process any of it.
One minute, her man was dead. Within a week’s time, she was pregnant and married to his brother.
She became a mother twice, nearly back-to-back, and it felt like she was just now finding some normalcy within it all.
Memories of Bronx also made her mad, sad, and confused.
Especially with how things transpired with Bull and how she felt about him.
Sometimes she couldn’t tell if it was just a proximity thing or if she really did want him.
While dinner cooked, she sipped her wine and decided to watch a movie while she had the uninterrupted time. Settling on one of her favorites, Jeepers Creepers, she curled her feet under her and focused on the screen while facing the hallway entry.
“Breeze woke up and demanded a damn story before he fell back asleep.” Bull’s voice made her jump in the darkened room.
“Shit!”
He glanced at the TV screen then swung his head back to her as she caught her breath.
“The fuck you jumping for? You the one sitting here in the dark, watching this shit.” He went to join her on the couch, and she quickly swallowed the rest of the wine in her glass.
With a blunt that he’d rolled in his hand, he sparked it. After a few puffs, he held it out for her. Hesitant, she pinched her fingers together to grab it, and he swung it from her grasp.
“I thought I was tripping when I saw my stash getting low. You been smoking my shit.” It was more of a statement than a question as he watched her turn red.
“Maybe,” she muttered, reaching for the wine bottle to fill her glass. “You try dealing with two kids under five all day and all their tantrums and attitudes. When Breeze is in a mood, it’s like dealing with a mule. He stands on business.”
“You didn’t have to sneak around like some kid to smoke. All you had to do was ask,” Bull assured her.
“No, ’cause that would have been too easy.” She brought her glass to her lips, and his dick twitched.
Bull was a hard man. Other than anger or irritation, showing emotions was rare.
It was how he was raised. It was easy to fly off the handle on a motherfucker, but trying to break down how somebody hurt your feelings was some shit he couldn’t relate to.
Oddly enough, he did his best to teach his kids the complete opposite, so they knew how to express themselves.
His parents didn’t hug him or be affectionate.
He and Bronx were taught not to cry or show weakness in front of anyone.
Braxton was big on sticking your chest out whether you felt like shit or not.
You could front for the world and fall apart behind closed doors.
He and his brother both knew not to ever expect comfort from that man.
Brenda was worse. Wasn’t a motherly bone in her body, in all honesty.
She was hard and sharp like nails. Anytime Bull even attempted to hug her, she would go rigid.
He was glad that he and Toni were raising their kids different.
“Here.” He offered her the blunt again.
She cut her eyes his way but gladly accepted because she needed something to ease her mind.
After a few puffs, she passed it back to him, and they kept it in rotation until it was nothing but a couple of inches.
Bull kicked his shoes off and sank comfortably into the couch cushions to get into the movie.
He wasn’t a horror fan. In general, he didn’t really fuck with movies.
It was nothing for you to find him in a library or somewhere tucked, reading a book.
If it was a book adapted film, he would give it a try.
He and Breeze liked to kick back and watch the comic flicks, but that was different.
Between her long day, the wine, and weed, Toni eventually drifted off. When her head slipped against his shoulder, Bull didn’t budge at first. He was into the movie now as Denny fell down a hole full of bodies. Glancing down, he smirked when he saw she was on her way out of there.
“Lightweight.” He kissed the top of her head, and Toni stirred some, but the rest of her soft body melted into him.
Having her so close, the fragrance of her body mist blending with his own pheromones, Bull couldn’t stop his dick from stretching.
Whenever he was close to her, his man had a mind of his own.
He remembered what those snug walls felt like and stayed ready to bust it open.
Often he had to talk himself out of it. Shifting on the couch, he hoped the shit would go down as his thoughts spiraled.
Only half sleeping, Toni let her own desires get the best of her.
She knew his sudden tension had to be the presence of a stiff one.
Reaching down, she gripped his dick and innocently craned her neck to look at him.
Bull’s hooded eyes were blazing. He pulled her chin, so she could meet his warm stare and brushed his thumb over her bottom lip before drawing her closer.
She let him wrap his arms around her, pulling her onto his lap where she straddled him.