Chapter 15
A Couple Days Later
It was Sunday, and I hadn’t seen Ma in a while, so I invited her to come out to dinner, giving her a break from making Sunday dinner.
Normally, I would’ve gone and seen Daddy and Liliana beforehand, but I’d been trying to figure out the best way to handle this situation without them exploding.
The last thing I wanted was to become the enemy again.
Ma wasn’t the best when it came to giving me advice, but I think that talking to her first before dealing with the family was the best option for me.
Grabbing my purse and phone, I left out of the room. I saw Geneva sitting at the island in the kitchen on my way to the door. “You okay?” I stopped in the doorway and asked her.
“Yeah. I was just waiting for my pie to get ready. You’re heading out?”
“Yeah. About to go meet my mama for dinner.”
“Speaking of dinner, I think that you should join us one of these days. I think that it would make Savion happy to see you at the table.”
“Why should I care about making him happy?”
“Sweetie . . .” Geneva shook her head. “When Savion’s happy, your life is much better. Trust me.”
“I’ll think about it.” I’d been trying to spend as little time with Savion as possible. I knew that wasn’t working out in my favor, because how could I fall in love with him if I wasn’t around him? Every day, Imani was checking in with my progress, and she always got the same answer—nothing.
What I wasn’t telling her was that I knew Savion was watching me in the bedroom, so every chance that I got, I did something to keep his attention. If anything, he was gon’ be the one in love by the time the sixty days were up. Maybe by then, he wouldn’t even want to kill me.
“I’ll see you when you get back. Be careful.”
“I will,” I tossed over my shoulder as I opened the door.
This time, I closed my eyes and grabbed a pair of keys off the hook. Tesla. Hitting the fob, I watched as a hot pink Tesla lit up. I couldn’t lie. Having all these cars to choose from was kind of nice. With it being so many, I could drive a different car every day of the week if I wanted to.
Hopping into the car, I drove out of the garage.
I cruised to Gold Bistro Café, just enjoying the scenery.
People were so wrapped up in their lives that they didn’t notice the small things.
One thing I did learn after being stuck with Savion was that I needed to take time out and appreciate everything because it could be taken from you within the blink of an eye.
Gold Bistro was one of Ma’s favorite restaurants, which was why I chose for us to have dinner here in the first place.
Ma’s Maserati was already parked in the parking lot when I arrived.
Ma didn’t work. In fact, she hadn’t worked a job since she tricked Daddy into sleeping with her.
Yes, Ma flat out tricked that man. She ran into Liliana at the gym and befriended that woman just because she loved her lifestyle.
She set Liliana up and had Daddy thinking that she was cheating on him. Whole time, she wasn’t.
When Daddy decided that he wasn’t leaving his wife and left her ass in the dust, she had a fit.
She did everything in her power to break them up.
I guessed it bruised her ego to know that he wasn’t in love with her, and she was just something to do.
Lucky for her, she ended up pregnant, and Daddy had funded her lifestyle for the next eighteen years.
Once I turned eighteen, he didn’t hand her over another dime.
Ma was bitter and made it her mission to fuck up everything every chance she got.
After dealing with Daddy, all the men Ma dated had to have some form of money, because she’d made up in her mind that she wasn’t working another job again in her life.
So far, she’d been successful. The men weren’t really shit, but she was living her best life. That was all that mattered, I guessed.
Entering the building, I stopped behind the couple that stood in front of me. The hostess took them to their seats and then came back. “How many?”
“I’m meeting someone here. She should already be in here.”
“You’re more than welcome to look around and see if you see her,” she replied with a warm smile.
“Thanks.”
I rounded the wall, and my eyes skimmed the restaurant in search of Ma. She sat at a table with some guy standing next to her. He had on some Gucci loafers and a matching belt. Knowing Ma, she wasn’t about to let him leave that table without getting his phone number.
Shaking my head, I neared the table. I waved at her before taking my seat across from her, not wanting to interrupt her conversation. “This my sister right here,” Ma said, and I pursed my lips.
Ma looked young for her age, but she didn’t look that got damn young.
This man knew she was a cougar and just wanted to take her ass for a spin.
She didn’t have to lie to him about her having kids.
A lot of them didn’t even care. It used to bother me at first when she disowned me in front of men, but I grew accustomed to it.
I didn’t know if she thought that helped her get men or what, but it was lame as fuck in my eyes.
“I’ll let y’all get to it,” he said and strolled away from the table.
“That don’t get old?” I wasted no time getting straight to it.
“Solei, why don’t you mind your business?” Ma frowned.
“That is my business.” I mumbled underneath my breath. My phone vibrated in my purse. When I pulled it out, I saw it was Daddy calling. I’d been avoiding him and the entire family, especially after I found out that Grim had found Savion in my apartment. I knew he went back and ran his mouth.
“Who is that?”
“Daddy,” I replied and faced the phone down on the table.
“Why you didn’t answer?”
“Don’t feel like hearing his mouth right now.”
“Lord, what have you done now?”
Ma knew all about the Savion situation from the first time.
She was mad as hell how they were treating me.
Ma always thought they treated me differently because I wasn’t Liliana’s, but they treated me fine to me.
My brothers and sister loved me. They didn’t care that we didn’t have the same mama.
They stepped behind me the same as I did them.
I think Ma tried to put those negative thoughts in my head because she knew they outcasted her.
No one wanted Daddy’s mistress around, especially Daddy.
I couldn’t blame them, though. Ma tried to destroy their family, but that didn’t stop her from showing up to family functions to cause chaos.
“I asked his ass for some money the other day, and he wouldn’t even answer the phone.”
“That’s not his job, Ma. He has no reason to be giving you any money. What you need money for anyway?”
“One of my lil friends took care of it, but that doesn’t matter. If I asked his ass for something, he supposed to give it to me.”
“He’s not your man.” I rolled my eyes. Ma fell into the delulu department. Daddy was gon’ have hell on his hands ’til the day she or he died.
“Whatever. You ain’t told me where you been at, though.” She lifted her hand in the air for the waitress.
Fiddling with my fingers, I tried to figure out how I was gon’ explain this, especially after it didn’t smooth over with Imani when I told her.
“I’m married, Ma,” I said and grabbed my ring out my purse and slipped it onto my finger. I wasn’t sure why it was so important for people to know that Savion and I were married, but I was gon’ play along with his stupid games for now.
Ma frowned. “To who? You ain’t been dating anyone. Your last husband ain’t even cold yet.”
“Ma, that was two years ago.”
Lord, rest Zayden’s soul. His family just thought that he’d disappeared after his cousin’s death, but that nigga was fish food. He got exactly what he deserved for fucking with me and my family. I didn’t know why he thought I was gon’ let him live after he shot me when trying to shoot Wicked.
“Who the hell you married?”
“His name is Savion Corvo.” Ma choked on air after I said his name. “You okay?”
She patted herself in the chest. “I’m fine.” I knew that was a lie from the moisture in her eyes. “Did you really just say Savion Corvo?”
“Yeah.”
“Just wanted to make sure you said that right.” For whatever reason, I didn’t believe her. Ma got up from the table and went over to one of the waitresses.