Page 46 of Dissolving Prejudice

“We’re having a BBQ this afternoon, so I came to help.”

Fuckers. They didn’t invite me.

Reaching their kitchen, which had a panoramic window to the ocean, I paused and took a moment to appreciate the view. It was breathtakingly beautiful, much better than the view I had from my crappy place of an old shoe factory.

After putting the basket down on the kitchen island, I stretched my arms and looked around the room. I bet Shay-Lee had been here a lot of times because of how close he and Soren were.

Hearing the sounds of nails scratching the floor, I turned in time to see Puma and Pooh running at me. Fuck. I missed them. Bending down, I spread my arms to give those puppies a bear hug. Their fur was as soft as I remembered, and their breath stank just like always, which was adorable.

“Hold on girl,” I snorted while Puma tried licking into my mouth. “Where’s Pacha?” I asked Andrei, still busy petting the dog.

He coughed before letting out a deep sigh that made me look at him. “He passed away two years ago. Right before June was born. Chief was so heartbroken, and still is, so it’s better not to mention him.”

Sorrow washed through me as I slowly got up from the floor. Pacha was one good friend. “Well, he’s in heaven now,” I said, smiling to myself.

“I guess.”

The two dogs suddenly left our side, and a moment later, someone spoke.

“Diesel, what a nice surprise.”

Recognizing Chief’s voice, I turned to look at him. He wasn’t alone, and I wasn’t talking about Pooh and Puma, who wiggled their docked tails while walking around his legs. Surprised, my eyes latched on the baby girl Chief was holding in his arms. She was the girl from the photo Andrei showed me, June. Her light brown hair was pulled into two adorable ponytails, and she wore denim overalls with a striped shirt underneath. She was the single most adorable thing I had ever seen, with the way she snuggled in her dad’s embrace, half hiding from me, half studying me with a child’s curiosity.

Snapping out of my shock, a smile spread on my lips as they stopped before me. “Hey there, princess,” I said, bending down a bit so I’d be at eye level with June. “Aren’t you gorgeous.” I stroked her chubby cheek with the back of my finger.

She snuggled closer to her dad, so with a chuckle, I moved my hand away. I didn’t want to scare her or something.

“June, do you know him?” Chief asked his kid, and the little angel shook her head. “This is Diesel. He’s a good friend of Daddy’s, just like Andrei is.” June’s brilliant green eyes moved to Andrei, who was standing beside me, before a smile spread on her lips.

“Yeah, baby girl. Diesel’s my best friend in the whole world. Did you know that?”

June giggled, her sweet voice like a bundle of joy that melted my heart.

“June also has a best friend,” Chief said while jumping her in his arms. “Isn’t that right, sweetheart?”

June then pulled up a stuffed animal she was hiding, showing it to me. It was a jaguar with black spots all over.

“Wow. Who’s that?” I asked, acting shocked.

“Tigy,” she said in a cute little voice while showing him to me.

“Tigy? He’s so cool, June.”

Her smile grew before she pointed at my neck.

She was looking at my tattoos.

“Diesel has spots like Tigy does?” Chief asked while June giggled. Her joy filled the room with a purity I wasn’t used to. It made me think back to the time I was a kid and watched my sister dancing. The room was always so bright while she was in it.

“Does that mean we can be best friends, too?” I asked to distract myself from those memories. After all, I didn’t want to ruin this moment with my shitty past.

She nodded her little head.

“How old are you, precious?” I asked her because by now, she wasn’t as startled by me and seemed curious enough.

“Two,” she said loudly, and the confidence with which she spoke made me smile like a jackass.

Looking up at Chief, I couldn’t stop smiling. “She’s precious.”