Page 58

“I thought I was finna get my happy ever after.” I hiccuped. “But who am I kidding? This lifetime isn’t meant for me. People only want to walk over me and use me.”

“Naw, we ain’t bouta have no pity party. We will find the silver lining in this shit of a mess, so don’t you dare act like you gon’ give up?” my sister said as she moved my locs that had fallen out of my face. Lift your head up, Justice,” she demanded, so I did slowly.

“You know,” Sage said as if her curiosity was piqued. “I think Chance was on to something when he gave you the nickname, Trouble.” That made me smile and cry a little harder.

“Why you say?” Jamie asked her.

“Well, because that’s exactly what she is.” Sage squatted in front of me to look me in the face. “You’ve always been a shit-talker and fiercer than your average. You always defended yourself to the best of your fuckin’ ability. As I said, this is just a hiccup, a small step back, but it doesn’t have to be. Boss up and put your big girl panties on. Call Chance and listen to him; if you still believe he’s lying, take everything from him. He already lets you get away with murder, but if you want to cause him more trouble, then take his ass for child support. You don’t have to take other people’s bullshit. That’s not the Justice I know,” she whispered the last part.

I swallowed the lump in my throat.

“She’s right, sis, and you know we always got your back. And from here on out, I promise not to be secretive about who I’m dating. I feel like all of this came from my need to keep things private. If I had shown you a picture of who I was dating, or if I had ignored him and introduced y’all when you first came home, none of this would have happened,” she confessed.

“You damn right,” Sage said sarcastically. “But also, Justice wouldn’t have found Chance. Everything happens for a reason. Stop punishing y’all selves. What’s done is done, so moving forward, we know how to carry shit.”

That was new for Jamie and me. We’d never seen Sage so serious or actually give solid advice. We all held hands and stood to hug one another.

“Now, go get your funky ass in a shower,” Sage instructed me as if she was the older sibling.

“Jamie, you clean up, and I’ll head to the corner store to pick up a test. If the results come back positive, you’ll call Chance. You two need to talk. No more hiding out. This isn’t you, bestie.”

With that, everyone had their orders, and we did just that. She was right. I spent too much time there, drowning in my sorrows. Enough was enough. It was time to focus and face the hand life had dealt me. Being pregnant by my ex’s estranged brother was nothing compared to the ordeal of jail for a crime I didn’t commit.

CHAPTER 24

Chance

Trouble: Hey, if you’re not busy, can you come over?

Trouble: We need to talk

Trouble: You already know where I’m at. Stalker.

Ismiled at her smart ass because she knew I’d been far enough to give her space but close enough to be available if she needed me. I had checked into the same hotel as her but stayed in the room right below hers. I hadn’t stayed home since the day she left, since I had to pay for renovations from the fire.

Last week, I started dropping off different flowers with notes at her hotel room door. That was my way of letting her know I respected her request for privacy, but she still belonged to me… with me.

I would listen to her pace back and forth. My baby hadn’t been getting much sleep lately, and I wanted to fix that so badly, but I had to soothe the hole in my heart by letting myself hear her footsteps above me. But, today I heard extra footsteps; it took everything I had in me not to go up there.

I chose not to reply to her message; instead, I got up quickly, put on basketball shorts, a wife beater, and my slides. Soon after, I stepped off the elevator and headed toward her suite. Jamie and Sage were approaching me, exchanging glances before bursting into laughter. I simply shook my head.

“Nigga! Did you fly here?” Sage asked as I gave her a side hug.

I gave Jamie a hug next. With suspicious eyes, she asked, “Or are you staying at the hotel?” She looked me up and down as she asked. “She only just agreed to reach out to you.”

I smiled, and they both shook their heads. “I may have been in the room below hers. I just had to make sure she was safe.”

“Good. Now, I’m not helping you, but here’s my one piece of advice. Be honest, Chance. About everything,” Jamie said.

“Of course.”

We shared our goodbyes. They both wished me good luck, and then they were gone, and I stood in front of Justice’s suite.

Knock. Knock.

“Seriously, what y’all forget? My legs are…” Her sentence cut off when she opened the door and found me, not her sister or her best friend.

“There’s my girl,” I said. I felt so much relief at finally laying eyes on her. Two weeks was far too long without seeing the gorgeous ass face.