Page 15

The ballroom door opened behind me, and I glanced over, thinkin’ it was Ni. It wasn’t. Juicy stepped out, phone in her hand, lookin’ down at the screen. She was still walkin’, about to run into me, and I ain’t even stop her.

“I’m sorry⁠—”

I caught her before she fell against me. When her eyes focused, shock flashed across her face, then somethin’ guarded, but the confusion was what fucked me up.

“Damn. Twice in one night, Juvie. I’m starting to think you’re following me.”

“Yeah,” I said, starin’ at her like she wasn’t real. “Seems like that. You good?”

She smoothed her dress and smiled. “Yeah. I’m fine. Sorry about that.”

“You straight. Congrats on Mercer Sports. I ain’t know that was you. You movin’ shit.”

“Thank you. I worked my ass off. Congratulations on signing with the Blackhawks. Glad to be back home?” she asked.

“For sure. It’s been a long time comin’.”

And it had been a long time. Fifteen fuckin’ years. Same amount of time as it had been since I’d seen her. That awkward silence didn’t even bother me. I was too busy tryna see how much she’d changed, and what stayed the same. She finally cleared her throat and stepped further away.

“Well, it was good seeing you again, Juvie. I’ll see you around.”

As bad as I wanted her to stay, I let her walk away. The ballroom doors closed behind her, and I stood there starin’ at the wall in front of me. Why the fuck would they put me in the same room wit’ Juicy? This shit had to be intentional. Nothin’ else made sense. I dragged my hand down my face, then fixed my tie.

I stepped back into the ballroom, and my eyes went searchin’ for somethin’ I shouldn’t have even been thinkin’ about. When I found her, she was already starin’ at me. I wasn’t even payin’ attention, and I almost bumped into Ni walkin’ toward me.

“You can’t even think when she’s around,” she whispered, then grabbed my hand. “We still have an hour to be here. Try to control yourself.”

I looked down at her hand wrapped around mine, then back across the room. Juicy was already laughin’ at somethin’ Emery said like I wasn’t standin’ there watchin’ her.

“I’m straight.”

Ni laughed under her breath. “Yeah. Sure.”

I ignored her ass and let her pull me back toward the table. For the next hour, I did exactly what I was supposed to do. Smiled when somebody spoke to me. Shook hands, and took pictures. I let Ni hang off my arm like we hadn’t been goin’ at it all night. But every few minutes, my eyes found Juicy again. At the bar, talkin’ to Dice, kissin’ that nigga, fixin’ her dress. I ain’t even realize I was keepin’ track of her until Ni squeezed my hand.

“JuMarion.”

“What?”

She just stared at me, then rolled her eyes. I knew what she meant, and honestly, I didn’t give a fuck. No matter what she said, or how many times she gripped my hand, I’d look across the room again. But the last time I looked, Juicy was already lookin’ at me. Neither of us looked away. Fifteen years, and I still knew what she wanted to say without her having to speak.

That was a problem. And now that she was this close, I knew Juicy would be a problem.

I was almost a week late getting to my mom’s house. The day after Shaina and I did happy hour at Nue Sun, I had to fly to Florida to deal with Jevan and his mess. He was refusing to sign the termination. I had to get lawyers involved and all kinds of shit. Then, when I got back, my man told me to pack and get my ass right back on a plane. Emery held me up in Chicago for two days, but I wasn’t complaining because we had a good time. His team won, but he was the star. I told him he was really showing out because I showed up. But the date night he set up really made me realize how much he cared.

Loving me was one thing, but actually caring about my hobbies and interests—that’s what made me fall harder for him. He knew painting was one of my hobbies. I had a whole room at my place dedicated to it. Emery didn’t say much, but he noticed everything. He blindfolded me while we were riding to the date, led me into the building, and when he took off the blindfold, he had a whole studio set up. The instructor was so nice and knowledgeable, but all I could do was look at Em the whole time. Seeing me happy genuinely made him happy. I couldn’t wait for his off-season, so I could spoil him. Trick on him a little because he deserved it.

I sat in my parents’ driveway for a few more seconds because I knew Mommy was about to dig in my ass. Especially when I was coming to her with a basket full of pants I needed taken in. The good thing about this was, I was the baby, so she was never mad at me for long. I shut off the engine, grabbed my basket, and walked up to the front door. Whatever she was cooking seeped through the door, and my stomach growled. I rang the doorbell and waited.

When Mommy swung the door open, she held a joint in one hand and a glass of wine in the other. She looked me up and down and rolled her eyes. “Oh, so my baby girl finally comes to see her mommy, huh? I coulda been dead and gone, and you damn near a whole week late.”

“I’m sorry, Mommy. I had to fly to Florida at the last minute, then get ready for the gala. I brought you something, too. A peace offering,” I said, lifting the pants from the basket and revealing her favorite bottle of wine.

“Hmm….” She grinned, then stepped back to let me in. “Well, if you got that, I might be able to forgive you. Bring your lil’ yella ass in here, girl.”

I pranced in, smiling and walking behind her toward the kitchen. Coming to my parents’ house was always warm. It always felt like home. No matter what house I had on my own, nothing compared to being here.

“Where’s Daddy? I didn’t see his truck outside,” I asked, dropping my basket in a chair.