Chapter 2
Maliah
Itook a deep breath as I stepped inside. My heart was thumping so much that I could feel it in my ears. The house was quiet, too damn quiet, and I knew Mom was probably in the living room sitting Indian style, scrolling her phone.
“Ma?” I called softly.
“Hmm?”
Her voice came from the sofa. Just like I expected, she was sitting cross-legged with her robe wrapped snug around her curves.
When she was relaxed, a robe always graced her frame.
Her face was clean of makeup, and her hair was up in a messy bun.
Her eyes lifted to me, and I knew instantly she sensed something was up by the way worry coated her face.
I knew that she could tell by just the tone in my voice that something was bothering me, so I forced a small smile.
“Can we talk?”
She tilted her head slightly to the left and held this look of curiosity.
“About what, Mali?”
My hands were sweaty, and my chest was tight. I rubbed the palms of my hands down my jeans before I opened my mouth.
“It’s about someone I’ve been seeing.”
Her eyes narrowed ever so slightly. The kind of look that made my stomach flip.
“Someone?” she questioned.
“Yes… His name is Tahari, but everyone calls him Trigga.”
The moment I said his nickname, her eyes flinched just a fraction.
My chest sank. I could tell she didn’t like it.
Maybe the name triggered a memory or a warning.
She didn’t say anything, but I could tell that it bothered her.
Instead of expressing her obvious disdain, she simply studied me.
Her silence caused me to continue to plead my case.
I was finally coming clean, and I needed her to understand that this thing with Tahari was very serious.
“He’s really good to me, Ma,” I rushed out. “I like him a lot. I just… I didn’t want you or Dad to be mad, but I’m tired of sneaking around.”
Mom leaned back, her gaze softened, but was still sharp.
“Maliah… I’ve been where you are. I know what it’s like to be in love at your age, to be reckless and full of fire. I understand that feeling.”
I blinked repeatedly because her words surprised me. There was a tenderness there I hadn’t expected. With me being the oldest girl, I guess she sort of always knew that this day was coming.
“But,” she continued, her voice was firm but gentle, “Trigga? That name tells me he’s connected to things in the streets.
You don’t know what you’re walking into.
The streets aren’t kind. And just because I understand doesn’t mean that I like it.
And it damn sure doesn’t mean that I will ever want you getting hurt. Do you understand that?”
“Yes, Ma. I’ll be careful,” I said, my voice barely above a whisper.
Her gaze softened even more as a small smile touched her lips.
“I get it, baby girl. You’re eighteen now. You’re going to make your choices, fall in love, mess up, and learn from mistakes. Just don’t forget who you are, where you come from, or what’s important. And remember this, sometimes I know more than you think.”
The way she stared at me after her statement eased me in a way that I had never felt with her.
I couldn’t believe that I was once scared of opening up to her.
I nodded slowly as relief washed over me.
She didn’t scold me. She didn’t panic. She just understood.
Somehow, that made me feel braver about what I was about to do.
I swallowed hard while still trying to steady my racing heart.
Mom’s eyes were soft, but I could tell she was thinking.
The pause made me realize that I hadn’t even considered how I was going to tell Dad.
“Um… Ma?” I said hesitantly. “Now that I told you… How do I tell Daddy?”
She arched an eyebrow and chewed on her bottom lip in thought.
“You didn’t think that far ahead, did you?”
I shook my head while my cheeks had risen in temperature.
“I was just thinking about you. I didn’t think past that.”
She patted the sofa beside her.
“Come sit. Let’s figure it out together.”
I sat comfortably, although now, my heart was racing just thinking about the next step I had to take.
“I don’t want Daddy to flip. You know how he gets.”
She nodded slowly.
“I know, baby girl. He can be protective, but that doesn’t mean he won’t listen. You have to make sure you’re calm, honest, and clear about your feelings. He respects direct honesty more than anything else.”
I bit my lip nervously. I was Maliah. Mali.
His baby girl. I knew that this would surely be unsettling for him.
More importantly, my dad was overprotective to the point of being controlling and had always been.
I’m not sure if losing a baby of his own had done this to him or if it was just because I was his first girl.
Maybe he just had an overprotective soul.
Some men just walked around with that hero energy.
Whatever the reason, I was nervous about breaking the news to him.
“I don’t even know what to say. I want Daddy to understand that I really like Tahari and that he’s good to me.”
Her hand found mine, and then she squeezed it gently.
“Start there. Don’t overthink it. Just be honest and tell him what Tahari means to you and why he makes you happy. And don’t forget that sometimes the way you say something is just as important as what you say. Presentation is everything, baby girl.”
“Okay, I need your help with that. The what to say part,” I admitted, nodding slowly.
She smiled softly with thoughtful eyes.
“Of course. We’ll plan it together. Once we go over it a couple of times, you will be good.”
I let out a shaky breath as relief washed over me. My mother’s calm made me feel braver.
“Okay.” I nodded my head up and down reassuringly because her words of affirmation helped for sure.
She squeezed my hand one last time before letting go.
“Alright, Maliah Browne… let’s get you ready to tell your father that you got yourself a little boyfriend. Just remember, whatever happens, I’ve got you.”
ETERNITY brOWNE
The kids were tucked in their rooms for the night.
I stepped out of the shower, wrapped myself in my bathrobe, and sat at my vanity.
The soft glow of the lamp illuminated the small water droplets I missed while drying off, still clinging to my skin.
I picked up the lotion and rubbed it over my arms. I was enjoying the warmth and the moment of calm before the chaos of my thoughts took over.
I heard the bedroom door creak open, so I looked into the mirror to get a glimpse of who was entering the room behind me.
Malik slowly stepped inside as if his footsteps would disturb me.
He lived his life always wanting to put me at ease, and even after all these years, my chest constricted the second I saw him.
His presence always had a way of grounding me.
He paused when he made it through the doorway and just looked at me for a moment before closing the door behind him and then making the space between us become nonexistent.
His eyes were soft as he leaned in to kiss me gently on the lips.
His hand brushed my cheek as if we were the only two people in the world. To me, it always felt like we were.
“Hey,” he murmured at the end of our kiss.
His low voice still carried that steady, calm weight that I’d grown up loving.
“Hey, yourself,” I whispered while smiling.
He moved to the dresser to gather his things, presumably heading for a shower, and I watched him as he moved around the room, tall, strong, and effortlessly.
Even now, he made my heart race. I let my mind drift, as it sometimes did late at night.
And where did it end? No place other than on my firstborn daughter’s step.
I thought about her immensely, about how stubborn and fiery she could be, just like I had been at her age.
And then my thoughts wandered back to nights when I was eighteen and fresh out of juvie—trust me, that’s a story for another time.
That precious age could be oh so deadly if you let it.
Back then, at that age, is when love made you reckless and when your heart didn’t care about rules or consequences.
I remembered my time too well. It felt like it was just yesterday, but in all actuality, it was decades ago.
In those days, I lived my life consumed with danger.
I could remember the rush, the thrill, and the fear, all in the name of love.
My childhood and Maliah’s were totally opposite, though.
She would never possess the street smarts that I did because, well, Malik and I had raised our daughters sheltered.
With MJ, things were different. Malik felt like he could know certain things about our past just because he was a boy.
To put it plain, my daughters were green to the game.
Maybe that is why Maliah felt the need to sneak around for so long before even coming clean.
I thought about the security cameras in the house, the ones I’d quietly deleted footage from whenever Maliah snuck out.
She was never in any real danger. My stalking her location from her phone assured me that.
Most evenings, she was at the nearby ice cream shop or sitting in the Walmart parking lot.
So, as a mother, what did I do? I covered for her sometimes without her even knowing it.
Nobody had to know. I understood exactly what it was like to be young, to love fiercely, and to do what your heart told you, even if your parents forbade it.
I hadn’t told her, and she didn’t need to know. My job was to protect her.
I shook my head to push the intrusive thoughts aside and return to the present.
I hadn’t even realized that Malik was already out of the shower.
He turned toward me with his towel slung over his shoulder, and his low-cut hair was still damp.
The water beads sat gently on his waves.
He caught my gaze with a calm intensity that always made me forget the world.
I looked down below his waist and was greeted with the most beautiful sight ever.
You would have thought that this was my first time seeing such beauty.
Strong chocolate dick lay in between those toned thighs.
When I made eye contact with him, he smirked at me.
“If you want it, just say that.”
Him flashing his pearly whites at me caused me to involuntarily blush. When he started to slowly walk in my direction, I quickly shifted my body in the chair I was sitting on.
“I have to tell you something,” I said carefully. I was trying to steady my voice.
He raised an eyebrow as the corner of his mouth lifted slightly.
“Should I be worried?”
I laughed softly while shaking my head.
“No, just promise me you won’t get mad.”
His eyes softened, and he reached out to take my hand.
“Eternity, I’m not going to get mad. Just tell me.”
In the past, we had our fair share of secrets. All of which we had overcome. He looked nervous about whatever I was about to say. I took a deep breath because my heart was pounding in my chest.
“It’s about Maliah… She’s in love.”
Malik froze for a split second and then gave me that quiet, measured look that I knew so well. It was the one that said he was listening, thinking, and processing all at the same time. He walked over to his nightstand, got a pair of underwear, and then put them on before opening his mouth.
“In love?” he questioned.
“Yes, with a little boy named Trigga.”
Once I saw my husband raise his bushy caterpillar eyebrow, I quickly fixed my statement.
“Tahari, the boy’s name is Tahari.”
Malik’s jaw tightened slightly, and I could see the protective instinct flicker in his eyes. But I held his gaze without saying a word because I was allowing him to take it in slowly. When his brows furrowed in confusion with a tad bit of anger, I spoke.
“We’ll deal with it,” I whispered, more to myself than him, “together. Just like we always do.”
He crossed the room, leaned into me, and brushed a kiss against my temple.
“Alright,” he said softly, “together.”
And just like that, the weight of the secret felt lighter.
Lord knows I hated keeping things from my husband.
It didn’t even matter that it was only for a couple of hours.
As we both got ready for bed in the quiet of the bedroom, the memory of our own youth danced at the edges of my mind.
I didn’t know this Tahari boy, and I can honestly say I had no idea if he and Maliah would end up how Malik and I had.
So now, my focus is on keeping our daughter safe and her heart intact.