Page 68 of The Impossible

Otto didn’t even bother to turn and respond. He continued out of the space.

I shook my head. “Because believe it or not I don’t believe you were ignorant to all that was going on. I don’t think you’re as lost or stupid as you act. I think you enjoy having people to blame and people to hide behind on your decisions. Now you don’t have that and you damn sure don’t get to play unknowing or oblivious. For once in your fucking life, you get to be a man and own up to your shit. Oh, and also, once the feds go through all the fraud your pops put in your name, you’ll wish you were dead.” I turned to leave but stopped once more. “Stay the fuck away from my wife and Paige.”

He didn’t respond, just looked at me. I needed no response, punishment for not heeding the warning I had just given was clear.

When I made it outside, my brother stood near the truck talking to Tylon.

“You good?”

I nodded.

“Good, ’cause this nigga is tryna get at your sister-in-law.”

It took a second for me to flip the switch from what had just happened in there to the playful moment happening here. “Nah, you be on bullshit. I ain’t finna have my wife on my back about you and her little sister.”

Tylon laughed. “I ain’t even like that. I really be chilling.”

Otto laughed hard as hell and so did I.

When I left The Oak, my first call was to Nic. She was heavy on my mind, and I needed to hear her voice.

She answered on the first ring while laughter spilled from her lips. “Hey baby, what’s up?”

“Just needed to hear your voice. I’m on my way home to you. What are you laughing at?”

“Your mother. She se⁠—”

“Yo, she over there? She ain’t never come by the spot this much.”

Nic laughed. “She isn’t here. She sent me one of your baby pictures. You were adorable.”

“What she be on with me?” I laughed, sitting back in the seat.

Nic laughed. “It’s not like you were an ugly baby. You were handsome with a few questionable moments.”

I chuckled. “Yet you were straight feenin’ for and crushing on a nigga. Yeah aight, Nic.”

She continued laughing, the pitch and joy she expelled brought a smile to my face.

For the duration of the call, I just listened to her babble, only offering input if she asked a question. Listening to her calmed my nervous system. Everything that had just happened was obsolete. All that mattered to me was her peace of mind, her safety, and most of all, her.

CHAPTER 17

Sometime later ….

Patience

My eyes lived on my daughter, a toddler with every piece of her father in her. She looked nothing like me except those storm-colored eyes. Everything else was Hondo Dominic Carter. I had absolutely nothing to do with it and I knew it. Then, to make matters worse, she wasn’t a mommy’s girl or even a daddy’s girl. She was the apple of her uncle’s eye from the moment he first held her and Hondo told him he was also her godfather. Shoot, who was I kidding? Honey was everybody’s love, including her grandparents. Long story short, they played tug of war with my baby, because they all wanted to keep her and nobody wanted to share her.

The idea that I had gone from nearly passing out when I found out I was arranged to be married to obsessed with everything about this man was kind of baffling. Then all the other factors came into play.

“Do you want me to take the cupcakes out?” Alysia asked.

“Uh yeah, thank you. Someone is in diva mode.” I tossed my head in the direction of my toddler. Today was her first birthday and her father elected to throw her a small backyard party. Small meant family and a few others.

Alysia smiled. “Pretty little princess.”

I grinned. “And the fact that she knows that is the problem.” I once again tried brushing her now wild mass of curls to the front of her head.