Page 27 of Know Your Place

I bet it did. Keegan’s crazy ass had snatched Chyna up quick as hell once they got into that groove, but they’d at least known each other for three years before that happened. I’d known Beretta’s crazy ass for six months, and 90 percent of that time we spent going at it like we couldn’t stand each other.

“What am I gonna do?”

“Play dinosaurs,” KJ said firmly.

I blinked up at the ceiling. I had almost forgotten the rug rats were here. I looked at him and raised my brows. “Yeah? You think that’s going to fix my boy problems, kid?” I ruffled his hair.

KJ shrugged. “Boys like dinosaurs. Maybe if you learn to play, Uncle Retta will like you so much he will kiss you.”

“Gross. You wanna kiss, Auntie?”

I looked at Liam and laughed when I saw his little nose all scrunched up. I poked him in his side, and he laughed.

“I do way more than kiss that man.”

“Okay, enough. Boys, bring your cereal to the living room. You can watch TV.”

The boys cheered and then very carefully got down from their stools, collected their bowls full of cereal, and dashed out of the room.

“What?” I asked as Chyna eyed me like I did something wrong.

“Really? You wanna talk to my kids about all the nasty shit you and Beretta do? Just gross.” Chyna’s nose scrunched up just like her son’s had seconds ago.

I giggled. “Can’t be nastier than what you and Kee be doing. Probably right here on this counter.” Chyna’s face went from one of disgust to one like she daydreamed about the shit she and her husband had done right here on this center island. I scooted back in my chair. “Okay, yuck.”

Chyna snapped out of her daydream and cut her eyes at me. “Okay, enough of that. Talk to me. Why you so worried about this relationship?”

“Have you met me?” I threw my arms up in the air dramatically.

“Known your ass since we looked like some damn potatoes fresh out the womb.”

“First of all, I ain’t ever looked like a damn potato,” I argued.

Chyna’s brow arched. “I have photos that suggest otherwise.”

I huffed out a breath. “This isn’t helping. I shouldn’t have come here.”

I made a move to hop off the stool, but Chyna rounded the counter quickly and stopped me. “Okay, okay, Ice. Chill. For real, I get it. I know how you feel. It’s scary falling in love. I remember it well.”

“Duh, you remember it. It was only six months ago. You act like it’s been a lifetime.”

She shrugged. “Feels like it.”

We stayed silent for a moment before I asked, “You really think this is love?”

Chyna kissed her teeth. “I knew that from the moment y’all met right here in this damn house. I’ve never seen you light up like that. I just wasn’t sure if Beretta felt the same, but I quickly saw that the feeling was mutual. You two just haven’t understood it. Low-key, Keegan and I have had a bet on how long it would take you guys to admit your feelings for one another. Thanks, by the way. I won. He thought it would take three years.” She snorted.

I just shook my head. I couldn’t fathom three full years of the toxicity between Beretta and me. Someone would have ended up dead, that was for sure. Now, it felt like something had shifted between us. Suddenly, we no longer had to arm our attitudes toward each other.

“I don’t know how to be in love. I wasn’t wired this way, Chy,” I whispered.

My whole life, I was fine with having the upper hand and not allowing men to have any kind of control over me. I knew what love looked like. I saw it with my parents, but I just never felt the need to have it for myself. I’d seen Chyna have terrible relationships, my sister, my cousin . . . I never needed to go through all that myself to hopefully find true love. I had true love from my family. That was always enough for me.

Chyna squeezed my hands. “Yes the hell you were. You may have pretended you weren’t or convinced yourself you weren’t, but you are definitely wired to love and receive love. And if you want my honest opinion, nobody but Beretta can love your crazy ass. Y’all are a match made in hell.”

I chuckled. “We ain’t that bad.”

“Yeah, okay. You two leave devastation in your wake wherever you go.”