Chapter 25
Cayla
When we got back to the apartment, the smell of fresh carpet filled the foyer space before we even fully stepped inside.
The Stanley Steemers crew was wrapping up and rolling their machines out.
I stood in the doorway just… taking it all in.
The new gray plush carpet stretched wall to wall, like it belonged there all along.
It felt like a small piece of my life was finally coming together.
The carpet represented all the things I wanted for myself, something clean and something new.
Kassidy stood beside me with his hands tucked in his pockets.
He was wearing that same easy smile that he’d had since high school.
“Looks good, right?” he asked.
“It looks amazing,” I said honestly, turning to him. “Thank you again for doing this. You didn’t have to.”
He shrugged. “I wanted to. You deserve to have nice things, Cayla. You and little mamas both deserve good shit.”
His words hit a spot I didn’t expect. Nobody had said something like that to me in a long time.
His compliment didn’t feel like it came with strings.
He made it easy for me to accept these kind gestures and not feel guilty about it because I knew it was coming from a genuine place.
I came out of my sneakers and set them by the door.
We watched as the four workers made their exit.
Once the door closed, I felt the need to tell him how much I appreciated this again.
“Thank you,” I whispered again while running my toes into the soft carpet.
Oriana had dozed off during the ride back from the movies.
Surprisingly, she’d been so good for the whole experience.
She was laughing at the previews and trying to talk to the characters on screen.
Watching her and Kassidy together had done something to me.
It pulled at something soft that I had tucked away a while ago.
“You know,” he said after a moment of brief silence, “since she’s worn out from the movie, how about we make tonight our official first date?”
If he’d never said his intent before, he damn sure was doing it now. I had a butterfly feeling because this man was really interested in me. I hated that I felt this way, like I couldn’t get this happily ever after, but honestly, Orion had done a number on me. I looked up at him, surprised.
“Like, tonight tonight?” I asked nervously.
He grinned before letting a slight chuckle out. “You deserve to get dressed up and just breathe a little. I can come back and pick you up.
I smiled before biting my bottom lip.
“Let me call Zynea first. She’s supposed to be home today, so maybe she can keep Oriana for a few hours.”
With all the traveling that Zynea was doing, I just caught her between flights, mostly. Lucky for me, she was coming back right when I needed her.
“I’ll take that as a…” he turned his head to the side and then smiled at me, which made me smile, “yes, then?” he said in a questioning tone.
“Yes,” I giggled out.
He looked like a happy boy when I gave him my final answer.
“Okay, bet. I’m gonna head to the barber shop, home, and then I’ll be back here to scoop you up.” He looked at his Apple Watch. “Is nine fine?”
I looked into the kitchen to glance at the time on my microwave. I remembered Zy telling me that she was supposed to land at six, and it was already one.
“Yeah, that’s fine.”
“Cool.”
He walked over and gave me a light hug before kissing me on the forehead.
That small gesture sent a chill down my spine that wrapped around and went straight to my pussy.
It had been a minute since I’d had some tender, loving care, and honestly, the next time I took that step, I wanted to take my time with it.
Oriana started to fuss a bit on his way out, so once he was out the door, I put her down in her playpen and pulled out my phone.
“Girl, I need a favor,” I said when Zy picked up on the second ring.
“Anything. What’s up?”
I filled her in quickly. While I went through all the clothes I had just unpacked, I had to tell her everything. I quickly shared about the carpet, the flowers, the Target trip, the movie, and the date that was scheduled for tonight. Zynea let out a squeal loud enough for the whole block to hear.
“Not you out here living again! Okay, Caylaaa! Yes! I’ll watch Ori. Go get cute! I’ll come straight to your house from the airport.”
I laughed, feeling a warmth spread through me.
“You sure? It’s just for a few hours.”
“Positive. Go pick out something sexy but not too revealing. You wanna make him nervous a bit, not have him nut in his pants once he sees you.”
We both laughed, and I hung up feeling lighter than I had in months. I was so thankful for Doc McStuffins because it had Oriana sitting in one spot long enough for me to get myself together. Hours later, I was in the middle of curling my hair when my phone started buzzing again. It was Zynea.
“Hey, you here?” I said, still looking in the mirror.
Her voice came through, sounding frustrated. “Girl, no. I’m stuck at the airport. My flight home got delayed another three hours. They're talking about weather issues in Atlanta.”
I paused while staring at my reflection.
“So, you can’t make it?”
“I’m so sorry, Cay. I know you were excited.”
My shoulders slumped. I looked over at Oriana, asleep on the couch with her thumb halfway in her mouth. I didn’t want to leave her with just anybody, and I knew Kassidy had been looking forward to tonight.
“It’s fine,” I said softly. “I’ll just call Kass and reschedule.”
“I’m sooo sorry, girl.”
I didn’t want Zy to feel bad. This kind of shit came with being a single mother.
This is what I signed up for. After telling her I loved her and that I would call her back, I called Kassidy immediately after hanging up with her.
When he picked up, his voice had that same warm tone that tugged at the corners of my mouth.
“Hey, beautiful. You ready?”
I sighed. “That’s what I called about. Zynea’s flight got delayed, so she can’t watch Ori. I’m gonna have to take a rain check.”
There was a pause. Not a long one, but just enough for me to picture him processing.
“That’s cool. My grandma’s home tonight. Bingo got cancelled, and I’m sure she’d love to watch her.”
I blinked. “Wait, for real?”
“Yeah.” He chuckled. “She loves kids. Oriana can hang out with her while we go out for a few hours. I know it’s been a while since you saw her, but you can bring her in to make sure you’re comfortable.”
I hesitated. “Kassidy, I don’t want to impose—”
“Cayla,” he said, his voice firm but gentle. “You’re not imposing. Let me do this. I got y’all.”
For a moment, I couldn’t say anything. My throat tightened.
After all the ways I’d learned not to depend on a man, hearing that kind of assurance again felt foreign.
I wondered if he was saying all the right things now and would turn on me in the end, just as Orion did.
I didn’t know, but I wanted to give him a shot, a fair one.
One that didn’t have my insecurities or my baggage attached to it.
“Okay,” I finally said. “Let’s do it.”
“Good,” he said, his smile practically audible through the phone. “I’ll be there in an hour. And wear something that’ll make me forget how to breathe.”
I laughed, shaking my head as I hung up.
Butterflies started to wake up in my stomach.
Briefly, I wondered if this is what a mature start to a relationship felt like.
Kassidy had all his ducks in a row; he had his shit together.
He was a totally legit man, who, so far, was stepping hard as fuck.
I washed Oriana up and put her on something cute before packing her diaper bag.
I then checked how I looked about four times before heading downstairs with her, her bag, and her car seat.
I hoped I didn’t sweat and mess up my makeup on the way down.
When Kassidy pulled up, I was standing outside with Oriana on my hip.
The little barrettes in her hair were bouncing with every little movement she made.
He double-parked, got out, and smoothly walked over to us.
He was dressed casually, yet he still showed off how he was on his grown man shit.
He wore straight-leg pants and a button-up with a dark blazer that matched the pants.
Loafers graced his feet, and that damn haircut was sharp as hell.
I could tell his barber took his time when he moved the blades around his goatee.
“Hey, beautiful,” he said, leaning in and kissing my cheek softly before greeting Oriana. “Hey, little mama.”
She gave a shy smile while clutching the top of my dress.
She was so wishy-washy at times. Just earlier today, she was feeding the man popcorn at the movies, and now she was acting funny.
Kassidy led the way to his car and then opened the back door to put Ori’s car seat in.
Once he had it buckled and secured, he turned around and smiled at me.
“Ready?” he asked.
“As I’ll ever be,” I said, settling Oriana into her car seat.
Once I had her nice and strapped in, he closed her door and then opened the passenger side for me.
It took me a while to get comfortable in the seat, but once I did, he closed the door.
I couldn’t seem to find my spot in the car because sitting with this dress on made me feel stuffed.
I tried not to let the fiddling I was doing on the leather material become noticeable.