Chapter 12 #5
It had been a long day. Since things had settled and Don had asked me to stand down about the Rodríguezes for now, I was back to my regular schedule.
With Ezio and Vello on unofficial paternity leave, and Nel having to take Pia to an appointment today, I’d been tasked with making sure all our buyers were straight on product and picking up money from those who owed us.
I’d even stopped by the cabin and dropped off food for Hobo.
He was asleep when I got there, so I left enough for him for a few days and then met Tunan at the bar.
Hobo had calmed down since he realized he was there for a long time and not for a good time.
His ass still tried me every other visit, so I was happy he was asleep when I pulled up.
I didn’t have the energy to go back and forth with his ass.
I’d been liable to kill him and betray the promise I’d made to my nephew.
One thing that wasn’t regular was the sight in my kitchen.
Standing at the doorframe, I watched the scene before me.
A fat ass was eating up a pair of tan shorts that jiggled each time she mixed something in the pot.
Loud screams broke my stare, and off to the left of the kitchen, which was way too big for just me, was an irate toddler.
Baby Shya was on one. A few strides later, I was in her space.
Her cheeks were dark plum, her nose was running, and her tears were endless.
The little beauty was screaming like someone had stolen her candy.
“Hey. What you doin’ all this fussin’ for?”
Picking her up from the table that she was sitting on, surrounded by cut-up strawberries, it was clear she didn’t give a damn about the fruit.
“Hi, Shio.”
I could feel Bahati’s eyes on me when I didn’t respond and continued to move from the kitchen to the nearby half bath. Flipping the light switch, I grabbed some Kleenex and slowly wiped Shya’s little nose.
“It’s okay. You ain't gotta be like that, Shya.”
Her cries grew louder.
“Aite, aite, aite. Come on, pretty baby.” Bouncing her in my arms, I dried her face completely. Once her face was clear, I tossed the Kleenex in the trash and continued bouncing her. “You too pretty for all that cryin’. Too pretty, little Shya. Come on… Let’s get you somethin’ to drink.”
Walking back into the kitchen, I made her a fresh cup of milk as Bahati watched me. I wasn’t sure if she was watching me because I was holding Shya or if she was watching because I was giving Shya more attention than I’d given her ass since they’d gotten here.
Handing Shya the cup of milk, she turned her head from left to right frantically while pushing the sippy cup away.
I placed the cup on the counter and stared at the little girl in my arms. I wasn’t sure what the issue was, and I was starting to grow concerned.
She was a crier. She was crying when I got up to work out this morning, and again when I left before Bahati and her emerged from the room they’d been occupying.
The doctor had said she was okay, but now I was starting to believe otherwise.
Giving her a visual assessment to see if there was anything missed, she looked up at me with wide, upside-down-turned eyes, long wet lashes, dark chocolate skin, and a head full of curls that were pulled into two ponytails.
She was a doll. The way her eyebrows were naturally spiky reminded me so much of my mother.
The first lady never had to get her eyebrows arched or lash extensions, as she told it.
She’d always get complimented on them. Shya had similar ones.
She was darker than Bahati and me, so her deep chocolate skin had to come from somewhere.
I was inclined to believe it came from my mother, who shared the same skin tone.
They shared so many features that it was uncanny, almost. I still hadn't told my mother that I was a father. Before I made that move, I needed the results. Although now, looking at her, it wasn’t really necessary.
She was literally my mother in baby form.
But I ain’t no dumb motherfucker.
Finally calming from her cries, she blinked, slid her thumb into her mouth, and placed her head on my chest. The cocoa butter on her skin and the oils in her hair from the style Solana had done were just as soothing to me as her thumb was to her.
My heart jerked against my chest as she heaved, signaling she was done with her crying session.
I rubbed a hand down her back as I watched her in the mirror.
It was a sight—me holding a baby. I felt like I’d skipped chapters in my own autobiography.
I hadn’t experienced the bliss of the positive pregnancy test, witnessed the pregnancy, or felt the anxiety of labor before Shya was born.
Yet, I had a child in my arms who needed care, love, and guidance.
When she’d been asleep for at least twenty minutes, only then did I turn the light out and walk back through the kitchen.
Bahati was on her tippy toes, reaching for a plate with her one arm, so I stopped beside her and got the plates down that she was reaching for.
Her ass grazed my dick, which had just come down from the sight of Uriah.
Unlike her, it didn’t get hard for Bahati.
“Thank you,” she said, giving a closed-lip smile.
Looking over her, my chest grew tight. Leaving her standing there, I walked to their room and placed Shya in the middle of the bed.
The TV was already on Gracie’s Corner, and I noticed how the bed was made, and nothing was out of place.
Making sure Shya wouldn’t wake up now that she was solo, I turned the TV down but left it on and cracked the door.
As I walked down the hall on the way to my bedroom, I paused at Solana’s door. It had to be the liquor that had me reaching up and rubbing my chest. My pulse was going haywire. Grabbing the knob, I closed the door, then did an about-face and detoured back to the kitchen.
On the kitchen island was a plate and the matching cup. Bahati stood behind the counter chair that she’d pulled out. “Come sit.”
Taking the offered seat, I didn’t bother pushing the chair up to the table.
Bahati tried and kept failing because there wasn’t shit she could do with all the muscle and weight on me that held the chair in place.
Not bothering to assist her, I turned and grabbed her good arm carefully, bringing her between the table and me.
Her long, thick legs were on display and oiled down in a familiar scent.
The matching tank top she wore did nothing to hide her hardened nipples.
Bahati was a beauty—a sight for sore eyes.
And if she’d kept her shit up, I knew the pussy was still good.
Her braids fit her face perfectly, and back then, I loved it when she wore them.
“I cooked what you had in the fridge; salmon, asparagus, and roasted garlic potatoes.”
The stuffed salmon not only looked amazing, but it smelled delightful. However, my attention wasn’t on the food. It was on Bahati.
Noticing my glare, her smile fell. “What? Is it Shya? Shio, she does that. She’s spoiled rotten.
That DNA test scared her too. She likes to be held all day, and as you can see—“ She lifted her broken arm as far as she could. “I’m not able to do so at the moment. She needs to grow out of it anyway. I take the blame. It’s been her and me for so long… ” Bahati blinked her glossy eyes.
“Aite, cool. I can understand that.” Licking my lips, I paused, letting my eyes roam Bahati’s frame again. “But what I can’t understand is why in the fuck you in her shit.”
Bahati drew her head back with a frown. “Who?”
Letting her arm go, I rubbed the sides of my mouth. “You know who, Bahati. Why the fuck are you wearing her clothes and in her bath oils?”
Bahati propped her hand on her hip, poking it out, which made the shorts rise. Her pussy print had that dangerous-ass V, and although it wasn’t the fattest, that motherfucker used to hit just the way it was.
Used to.
“You talking about the crackhead bitch?”
My jaw flexed. Bahati’s accent was always deep until she cursed. That’s when the Chicago came out of her.
“How the fuck you know the drugs weren’t mine?” I cocked my head.
Her frown deepened. “Because she was the only one to hold her. This is your first time acknowledging Shya, remember? You hadn’t had any contact with her prior.”
Bahati cocked her head to match mine. We held each other’s glare until I exhaled.
“I got a lotta shit goin’ on, Bahati. But that ain’t no excuse. I’ll be ’round more. I’ll be present.”
The last thing I wanted to do was be my father and create another fucked up generation of Cuppacios. No child deserves to feel unwanted.
“She looks like my mama, but we need the results from the DNA test before I can fully invest myself. But I ain’t plannin’ to be less to her for the time being.”
I watched Bahati to see if she showed any signs of that flaw shit she used to be on. Still staring, she didn’t blink or flinch.
“And we did that. I complied because I have nothing to hide, Shio. I was snatched up from my apartment. I didn’t come looking for you.”
“I know that, Bahati, damn.”
I sat back in the dining room chair and stretched my right leg in front of me. Using my thumb, I began twisting the ring on my finger. Bahati’s eyes went from my face to the ring, and then her expression softened.
“So when will we get the results?”
“Soon,” I replied.
“I’m sorry about everything, Shio. I didn’t want to burden you.
You had enough people to take care of. I don’t mean to rub it in, but I was genuinely scared of you.
I… I thought it was safer if we stayed away.
But had I known you were a part of the mob, I wouldn’t have done it.
I know how easy it is for enemies to target family and loved ones.
Shya and I should’ve been in your care.”
Letting Bahati’s words simmer, I thought of the Rodríguezes Cartel.
Them being across the border was a dangerous game, especially now with the trafficking, and we not being able to touch them quickly if needed.
I told Don I would fall back, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t look into it.
Jagoda Bay had over four hundred women and children missing, all in a two-month time span.
The city was trying its best to keep it on the hush, which is why I hadn’t been privy to it at first. When Don revealed their connection to Jagoda Bay and Chicago, he couldn’t have thought I wouldn’t do my own digging.
The shit I’d found out needed to be displayed everywhere.
Jagoda Bay didn’t want the attention, though.
They don’t want to scare off the tourists since the city is popular year-round, especially in the summer.
I was going to continue doing my recon while I waited for Don to do what he needed on a larger scale.
Either way it was sliced, the Rodríguezes had violated, and if they thought I was on their asses when Felipe tried to roll up to the club on Solana, they truly didn’t understand my character when they went after Shya.
She sighed at my silence. “Shio…”
I looked up at Bahati, who placed her hand on my shoulder.
Solana’s fragrance hit me like a tidal wave, and I gently grabbed Bahati’s hand and pushed it away.
I could smell Solana, but I couldn’t see her, at least not right now.
The oils waft in the air, and I realized the aroma didn’t let off the same pheromones as it did coming from Bahati’s skin.
I could tell me removing her hand hurt her feelings, but I wasn’t into pacifying them.
We had a daughter, who was a full-on fucking crybaby. We’d be pacifying her enough.
Bahati sighed again. “Eat. It’s my peace offering. I can't do much right now because I have to figure my life out if we are to live in this city, but the least I can do is keep this place clean and let you come home to a hot meal. And I promise I won't make any Kenyan dishes unless you request it.”
I looked around her and inspected the dinner. The shit looked five-star worthy.
“Bahati.” Reaching into my pocket, I pulled the card I’d already planned to give her and placed it near the plate. The black metal hit the table with a clank. “Stay out of Solana’s shit. It’s plenty of money ’round here. Go buy your own shit. Get Shya everything she needs too.”
Standing, I pushed the chair back, towering over Bahati. I licked my lips as I watched her still, the only thing moving was her chest, slowly rising and falling. I wasn’t fucking with Bahati, no matter how sexy she looked. After one more once-over, I exited the kitchen.
I had a long-ass day tomorrow, and a cold shower was calling my fucking name.
I should have taken Uriah down just for the hell of it, but my hands were full enough.
There was no future with her, and her feelings were starting to show with her questioning my absence.
I had no intention of leading her down a path that would land her nothing but a dead end and broken heart.
God first
Make sure the family good
Eye them Cuppacio boys, the little and the big ones
Build a relationship with my brother
Get my brother rich
Health and wellness (ALWAYS)
Stay on top of my mob shit
Keep Hobo alive (DOING)
Get through the meeting with Ines Ledesma
House a random
Find the true reason Solana is here
Figure out if Solana is supposed to be my wife, again
Find a wife that isn’t Solana
Kill every breathing Rodríguez Cartel member (URGENT)
Fuck Bahati up (TBD)
Get my fucking daughter
Get Bahati’s arm fixed
Get to know my daughter (DOING)
Figure out what the fuck I’m going to do with Solana
Leave the mob entirely or Marry Bahati or Solana
Get DNA test
Spend time with my daughter (TRYING)
Tell my mama about Shya
Keep Solana in real nigga rehab until she clean