Seventeen
Ace
We’d been back in the States for two weeks, and those two weeks had a nigga feeling like he was floating.
I was at Kema’s house or she was at mine every damn day.
I was sleeping in that pussy every night.
I was glad she was on birth control, or we were goin' to be parents. That shit didn’t even sound bad when I thought about it.
I could see a little girl walking around with Kema’s whole face and attitude. I wanted to be a girl dad so bad. I knew better than to tell Kema that shit, though. She was just getting comfortable calling me her man. Mentioning babies might have had her changing the locks on a nigga.
I was sitting outside her job with her lunch and a bouquet of flowers. She texted me earlier saying she was having a hard day. And I hoped I didn’t have to beat anybody’s ass behind my baby.
When I walked inside, the receptionist pointed me toward Kema’s office. Her face lit up when she saw me. “Baby, why are you here?”
“You ain’t gotta tell a nigga you need him for a nigga to know you need him.”
She smiled as I placed the flowers on her desk. “Thank you.”
“You ate?”
She frowned, “no, I'm starving too.”
“I figured.” I set her food down and pulled the chair closer to her desk. “Now, what’s going on?”
Kema sighed before opening the container. “My boss is getting on my fucking nerves.”
“What he do?”
“He gave one of my listings to his nephew after I did all the work to get the client. Then he told me I needed to train the same nephew because I have more experience.”
“They paying you extra?”
“Nope.”
“Did you ask?”
“He said I should be grateful he trusts me with more responsibility.”
I sat back in the chair rubbing my chin. “Lemme get this straight... He wants you to do more work while anotha nigga gets paid from it?”
“Exactly.”
“Where his office at?”
“Ace.”
“I just want to talk to him."
“No, you don’t.”
She was right. I didn’t wanna talk. And her boss better be glad Kema was in here asking me not to go beat his ass.
Kema picked at her food before putting her fork down. “I got my broker’s license the week before Cancún. I’ve been asking about moving up, but they don’t want to pay me what I’m worth. They want me to train people, fix everybody’s mistakes and keep bringing in clients while they make the money.”
“Open your own shit then, baby.”
She looked at me like I suggested she buy the moon. “It’s not that simple.”
“Why not?”
“Because businesses cost money. I would need an office, insurance, systems, marketing and enough saved to survive until I started making a profit.”
“You know how much you need?”
She hesitated. “Not exactly.”
“Then that’s the first problem we solve.”
“Ace, I can’t just quit my job.”
“I didn’t tell you to quit today. I said open your own shit. Make a plan first.”
Kema stared at me before slowly picking up her fork again. “You really think I could do it?”
“I know you can.”
“You haven’t seen me work.”
“I’ve seen how people call you all day asking questions they should be asking your boss. I’ve seen you answer emails at midnight and close deals on weekends. You already doing the work. You just letting somebody else put their name on it.”
She looked toward the flowers. “What if I fail?”
“I would never let you fail baby." I said walking over to her to kiss her on the forehead.
“That’s such a rich-person answer.”
I shrugged, “I'm finna connect you with my attorney and accountant,” I continued. “They can tell you what you need to do. And I ain't tryna hear you don't want me to make this happen for you. Cause you got two choices lemme do it or lemme beat your boss ass."
“That’s it?”
“Nah. We figure out how much you need, find you an office, and get your shit running.”
“You make everything sound easy.”
"I really don't I just put things in motion.”
She stared at me. “Why are you doing all this?”
“Because I love you.”
Her eyes softened. “You only told me that on the plane because I was sucking your dick.”
“Nah, the head made me say it out loud. I already felt that shit.”
Kema laughed and covered her face. I pulled her hands down and kissed her.
“I love you,” I repeated.
“I’m falling in love with you too.”
“I'll take that for now."
She rolled her eyes and pushed me in the chest. “Don’t start your shit."
I chuckled before grabbing a notebook from her desk. We spent the rest of her lunch making a list of everything she needed. By the time we finished, Kema looked excited instead of defeated. “I can really do this,” she said.
“Yeah you can baby."
I could’ve bought her a building today, but Kema didn’t need me taking over. She needed a plan and somebody in her corner. I could give her both.