Page 21 of Trading In A Broken Heart

“I’m married.” My mouth slacked because I couldn’t believe this myself, especially after I had already told myself that I’d never get married again after Zayden’s death.

“Did you get an annulment, or is it too late for something like that?”

“I’on even think I can do that if I wanted to.”

“What the fuck you mean? You’re a grown woman. You can do whatever you want. This don’t sound like the Solei that I know.”

“I kinda made a deal with him.”

Imani scratched the side of her head and asked, “You did what?”

“I made a deal. He told me that if he can make me fall in love with him in sixty days, then he won’t kill me.”

“And you fucking agreed to that bullshit!”

Eyes in the restaurant shifted to us. Imani didn’t care because, at this point, she just knew that I’d lost my mind.

“Wait, see, you didn’t hear the rest of the deal and why I agreed to it.”

She tossed her hand into my face. “I don’t need to. All I heard was that you might get killed if you don’t fall in love with some man. We’re talking about you here. You’re one of the pickiest people that I’ve ever known. I might as well gone and pick out my black dress.” Shaking her head, she grabbed her drink from the table and sipped from the straw.

Imani was right about that. I wasn’t easy when it came to relationships. Men really had to apply pressure behind me to get anywhere with me. Most of them didn’t stand a chance. I didn’t care how fine they were or how much money they had in their bank account. Money didn’t move me. I had my own motion. If another man ever locked me down, he had to be a big dawg. A mufucking shark.

“I told him the only way I’d agree is if he fight a lion.”

Imani’s drink sprayed all over my face. I grabbed a napkin and wiped it off. “So that means that you’re free to go, right?”

I shook my head. “That crazy-ass man went out and fought a fucking lion. I’m in trouble, ain’t I, friend?”

Imani swiped her phone from the table, and the light illuminated her face.

“What are you doing?”

“Bitch, I’m shopping for my black dress because you’re for sure dead.” I sank in my chair, mind going a mile a minute. “I mean, you can poison his ass. I’m pretty sure the agreement is void once he’s dead.”

“I’m not even sure if I want him dead.”

“Come again? Don’t tell me you caught feelings for him already.”

“No . . . I mean . . . I don’t know. When he was in there fighting that lion, I was scared as hell. I really thought he was about to die, and that did something to me.”

“See . . . I just don’t know.” Shaking her head, she sipped from her drink. Imani was gon’ be drunk as hell, trying to figure out what was going on with me.

* * *

I made it back to the house and sat in the garage for a while. After spending time with Imani, I knew I was in over my head. The real issue was gon’ be when I had to sit down and tell my family what was really going on with me. The way they treated me when they thought I was working with Savion to kill Wicked, I thought they were really gon’ cast me out the family for the rest of my life. I could only imagine how they were gon’ react once they found out that I was married to that man.

The passenger door opened on my car, and I looked over and saw the woman that had been bringing me food. She never told me what her name was, and I never thought to ask. In my mind, she was the enemy too. What woman in her right mind would be fine with a man kidnapping a woman?

“I think we got off on the wrong foot. I’m Geneva, Savion’s mom.”

Ah, now it all made sense. She birthed the lunatic. Geneva slipped into the passenger seat and shut the door behind her.

“You’ve been the one cooking my meals?” She nodded. “That food really be bomb, for real.”

“Thanks.”

“I don’t blame you for helping him. I understand now.”