Page 15 of Fallynn West

“Keondra.”

“Keondra. Please, let me know if this is overstepping, but I don’t mind taking Kehlani off your hands while you work.”

That was like music to Kehlani’s ears. Her entire mood shifted as she shuffled closer to me and eagerly bobbed her head which seemed to radiate down her entire body. Keondra looked back and forth between Kehlani and me before scrubbing his hands down his face.

Hesitantly, he expressed, “I don’t know, Ms. Miles.”

“Colony.”

“Colony . . .”

The way my name rolled off his tongue sounded so damn good. His voice was low but rough, giving off Robert Riley vibes. I could only imagine how good he sounded talking a woman throughit.

“I can sense you’re hesitant,” I started and laced my fingers with Kehlani’s sweaty ones. “If you want, I will sit here with her all day to give you a peace of mind.”

Kehlani stomped her foot. “But I don’t want to sit here.”

“I know, but we need to make sure your father is comfortable, Kehlani. I want to help him and spend time with you, but it needs to be okay with him.”

“We spend time together at day care.”

“We do, but that’s a little different, sweet pea.” I glanced back up at Keondra who was intently watching my interaction with Kehlani. He placed his glasses back on, and I could see the wheels turning in his mind. His gaze went to Serenity, so I quickly introduced them. “This is my sister, Serenity. We came here to celebrate my father’s clean bill of health.”

Keondra held his hand out to Serenity. “It’s nice to meet you. That’s a big thing to be celebrating.”

“It’s nice to meet you as well, Keondra. And yes, it is.” Serenity agreed, beaming. “Uh, do you mind if I chime in on this conversation?”

“Sure.” Keondra shoved his hands in his pockets.

I held my breath, unsure of what Serenity was about to say. She could be a bit forward, and not everyone was a fan of that. While I didn’t want her to mess up anything, I wasn’t going to silence her.

Serenity stepped closer to me and connected our arms. “It’s obvious you’re a little stressed, Keondra. It’s extremely busy in here, and you can’t successfully multi-task like this. Your daughter will be in great hands with my sister. She was blessed with the gift of being an angel to children, and she adores your daughter. I know it’s different with it not being at Center of Love, but I can assure you, Kehlani will be fine.”

Thankfully, Serenity summed up everything I wanted to say as well. I could only imagine how hard it was for Keondra to even consider trusting me outside of Center of Love, but he had nothing to worry about. I loved all the kids, but his daughter held a special place in my heart.

After seconds of silence, Keondra agreed. He stared me square in the eyes and said, “Thank you. I need this help but know I don’t play when it comes to my daughter. I don’t just allow anyone this close to her, so know I am basically trusting you with my life. Where will y’all be?”

“I can take her to the center for the day if that will ease your mind,” I offered.

“It would, but it wouldn’t be fair to either of you. She’s already there all week. I wouldn’t want to do that to her.”

“Can we go to your house, Ms. Miles?” Kehlani inquired.

“Only if it’s okay with your father.”

“That’s fine,” Keondra decided and breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you. Y’all have a seat. I’ll be back out to check on y’all and bring y’all some food.”

With that, Keondra kissed Kehlani’s forehead and disappeared to the back. Serenity and I sat at the table, and she wouldn’t stop staring at me with a goofy grin. I tried ignoring her, but she got all in my face.

Giggling, I playfully mushed her head. “Get out my face, Serenity.”

“Sister girl. I know I’m married, but my eyes work very well. That man is fine, fine. Is he single?”

“He is.” I quickly ran down the story Olive told me before Kehlani came back over to us.

“Oh, wow. That’s so messed up.”

“Tell me about it. It’s no wonder I’ve always gravitated to Kehlani.”