11. River #2
“Bet. Dealing with you is plenty.”
“I’m glad they couldn’t come, because it smells good as hell, and that means more food for me. What’s on the menu?”
“Wait and see. You ready to meet your niece?”
The question was rhetorical, and I wasn’t expecting him to respond. I lifted Riverlynn from her stroller and held her in front of me with her back against my stomach.
“This is Riverlynn. Baby girl, this bigheaded nigga right here is your uncle Jaxon.”
“That was the worst introduction ever, but let me hold my niece,” he requested, reaching for her.
She went willingly, giggling as he held her in the air.
“Wassup, niece? You had your pops going a little stir crazy for a minute. How’s he treating you?”
She smiled and stuffed her fist in her mouth.
“I still can’t believe you’re somebody’s daddy, man, but she’s a cutie. She must look like her mother,” he teased.
“I wish I could tell you if that was true. You’ll meet Erissa in a few. Let’s head to the patio.”
“Ooh, the nanny-chef herself,” Jaxon joked.
“Chill, man.”
Jaxon held Riverlynn, and I grabbed her stroller, following him to the kitchen. Before I made it, the security system sounded. While he continued to the patio, I went to open the door, fully expecting the people on the other side to be my family.
“Ma! Ry!” I shouted as soon as I opened the door, wrapping them in a hug.
We embraced while the driver removed their luggage from the car. Rylee was the first to take a step back, and my mother and I followed suit.
“Damn, I missed y’all,” I confessed.
“It hasn’t been that long, but we missed you too. Where’s my grandbaby and Erissa?”
I grabbed their luggage after they stepped inside, closing the door behind me.
“Jaxon just walked off with Riverlynn, and Erissa is—”
“I’m right here.”
I turned around just as Erissa entered the vestibule area, and I was speechless. She wore a flowy, yellow dress that stopped just below her knees. It was fitted at the top, and I could tell she wasn’t wearing a bra, which made me wonder if she’d decided to go without panties too.
My eyes followed her as she walked past me to greet my mother and sister. When I saw that the dress exposed her entire back, I bit into my bottom lip to stifle my words because they were sure to be inappropriate.
“It’s nice to officially meet you both. I’m glad you made it here safely,” she continued.
“Oh my God, Erissa. You’re even prettier in person. I love your hair!” Rylee exclaimed, pulling her into a hug.
“Thank you so much, and so are you. I can see you get your beauty from your mother.”
Erissa and my mother exchanged what looked to be a genuine, heartfelt embrace.
“It’s nice to meet you, too, sweetheart, and thank you for the compliment. My son can’t resist a pretty woman, but I hope he’s been a gentleman and has kept his hands to himself.”
Erissa’s eyes found mine, but she quickly looked away and lied to my mother’s face.
“He’s been a complete gentleman. I’ll leave you two to get ready for dinner while I prepare a few last-minute things.”
She headed to the kitchen, leaving my mother, sister, and me in the vestibule.
“Jaxon is on the patio with Rivvy and Erissa’s best friend, Shakira,” I told them.
“You should’ve greeted us at the door with my grandbaby, but we need to wash the plane off before we handle her anyway, so I’ll give you a pass this time. Bring our luggage up.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
I followed my mother and sister up the stairs, taking my sister’s suitcase to her room first. When I made it to my mother’s room, she popped me on the lower part of my neck because that was as high as she could reach.
“Ouch, Ma. What was that for?”
I rubbed the back of my neck as I frowned at her, confused.
“You think I didn’t see how you and Erissa looked at each other? She is your nanny, and I told you not to mess with her!”
I smacked my lips, trying to play it off.
“Ma, I didn’t do—”
“If you lie to me, my hand will land on your lying ass lips next time.”
I held up my hands and took a step back.
“All right, Ma. I won’t lie. Some things happened, but it’s cool. Neither one of us is tripping.”
“You’d better not mess this up.”
“I won’t, Ma. I swear, we’re good.”
She looked at me with disdain, which really made me want to laugh, but if I did, she’d pop me again. I left her in her room to freshen up and went back downstairs, heading straight to the kitchen.
I grabbed Erissa’s waist from behind, pulling her against my body and kissing her neck.
“What are you trying to do to me, baby?”
She wiggled out of my grasp, turned around, and pushed me away.
“River, chill out.”
“How do you expect me to chill with you wearing this sexy-ass dress?”
She looked down as if she’d forgotten what she was wearing.
“This dress isn’t meant to be sexy. Why didn’t you tell me we were eating outside? I need to transfer the food into serving dishes. Do you want to use paper plates or—”
“E, chill, baby. Take a deep breath,” I encouraged as I held her hands.
She closed her eyes and slowly inhaled and exhaled a few times. When she opened her eyes, I used my index finger to lift her chin, forcing her to look at me.
“You don’t need to be nervous.”
“I know, but I can’t help it.”
“I’ll be right here, okay? I gotchu.”