Page 10 of Fallynn West

Visions of him flashed in my mind. He was intriguing to me, and I had a feeling he’d be crossing my mind more than I’d like him to.

“Wait, where was her aunt?”

I shrugged as if Olive could see me. “I’m not sure. All I know is that Keondra told me he’d be the one doing the pickups and drop-offs for the rest of the week.”

“Hmm. She must be out of town or something. He’s always at his restaurant, so I’m not surprised he was late.”

“What’s his deal? I mean, it’s obvious he’s a single father. Where’s Kehlani’s mother?”

“Oh, Colony. You don’t know?”

“Would I be asking if I did?”

Olive gasped. “Oh, don’t get an attitude now. I heard all that sarcasm.”

“Now, you know I wasn’t getting an attitude, Olive. I was simply stating the obvious.”

“Mm-hmm. Well, if you must know, Kehlani’s mother dropped her off on Keondra’s doorstep when she was two and never looked back.”

“She did what?”

“Girl, that’s what I said. As a mother, I would never. I can’t even imagine my life without Parker, but apparently, she could. From what I heard, she wanted to live her life without the responsibilities of being a mother. Keondra’s mother and aunt have been helping him raise her ever since. He’s extremely protective of her, so it took him a while to warm up to her being at the center. Do you remember me getting agitated about a father who would call numerous times of the day checking on their child?”

I nodded. “Yes.”

“It was him. It took his aunt talking to him for him to stop. I mean, I understand why he is like he is. The one woman who was supposed to love and protect their daughter didn’t. I’m glad he has help, or he’d be a complete wreck.”

That explained everything, and my heart truly broke for Keondra and Kehlani. I could only imagine how upset I’d made him by throwing up legal services. For the last few months, he’d trusted us with Kehlani, but I worried that would change. The thought of reaching out to him and further explaining myselfcrossed my mind. I wanted to comfort him, give him a peace of mind that my intentions weren’t to remove Kehlani from his care, but I knew it was best to leave it where it was.

Maybe he’d keep his word and not be late again.

“Oh, wow,” I mumbled after a few moments of silence. “That’s a lot. Kehlani is the sweetest girl, so I hate that for her. Not being in her life is truly a loss for her mother.”

“I agree. It is, but she’s blessed to have her father and his family in her life. They show up for her always.”

Hearing that made me feel better, but Keondra and Kehlani lingered in my mind for the rest of the night. I went to sleep thinking about them, asking God how I could be a positive force in their lives. With Kehlani and I having a special bond, I was more than willing to go above and beyond to make sure she was good.

Only thing was, I wasn’t quite sure her father would let me.

It wasthe last Friday of the month, which meant it was family dinner, and I couldn’t wait to unwind. I’d been on go all week, so a good time with my family was exactly what I needed. For the first time in forever, I’d given myself a weekend off to spend with Kehlani. My baby girl had been secretly begging for one-on-one time, and I’d been too busy trying to make sure she was good and fed.

I didn’t have all the aspects of being a single father down pat, but I made it a point to work on it every day.

Since Aunt Faith was back in town, I dropped Kehlani off with her super early to get to the restaurant. Whenever I could, I would make it a point to get to Daily Fix before everyone else. To show my appreciation, I wanted to have some things done for Qto make the day a bit easier on him. Once that crew got in a good flow, I would do the same for my dinner chef, Alec.

At least twice a week, I took my boss hat off and got in the kitchen to do what I loved. When I was a kid, I lived in the kitchen with my mother and grandmother. There was nothing like getting that quality time in with them. I learned all the old family recipes and created new ones. The ones I cherished the most were the ones my Nan taught me.

“Oh, this recipe is bomb, Key. When are we adding this to the menu?” my general manager, Alivia, questioned with her hand over her mouth as she chewed the cinnamon apple roll I made her.

“I’m thinking soon. Hopefully, the beginning of next week. I need to get with the chefs so they can have it mastered. I’m debating on whether we should add it to the brunch or dessert menu.”

Alivia waved her finger at me as she stabbed another forkful of the roll. “It gives brunch vibes, but with some vanilla bean ice cream, it could be a dessert too. I think we should take a poll. Give out some free samples to our regular customers and let them vote. Regardless of what they choose, this is a winner.”

“And that’s exactly why I trust you to run the restaurant, Alivia. You know what you’re doing. I meet with the chefs tomorrow morning so we can give out the samples then. I say we give it until Friday for the polls and go from there.”

“I’m with it. I’ll add it to my to-do list and let the assistant managers know what’s going on. Anything else you need me to do?”

“Nah, you’re good. I appreciate you, Liv.”