Page 29 of A Minute Past Midnight

He chuckled. “Never that, my love. I just want you to know that the amount of money I spend means nothing. I don't want you to worry about shit, a’ight? I like you, and I take care of people I like.”

“Okay. But you have to let me pay you rent or something.”

“Why would you pay me rent on a house you’ll already own, beloved?”

“Samir.”

“Juliana.”

“You can back out of this at any time. You don't owe me anything.”

Samir pulled over inside the parking lot of a restaurant and parked. He looked over at me as I looked at him.

“You want to stay at Grand Haven? I don't want to force you, baby, but I’m telling you now that if you’re keeping my baby, you only have two options: Either we go look at the houses I have lined up today, or you can move in with me. You can't raise the baby in that environment, love. I’ll give you free rein to choose whatever it is that you want to do, but when it comes to where our child will be raised, I'm standing on that.”

I folded my arms and looked out of the windshield. This was too much, but he was right. Why wouldn't I accept the help when I knew I needed it? I was still undecided about keeping the baby, but at least I’d have something to call my own.

“Fine. We can go look at the properties.”

He smiled. “Good choice. Kiss me.”

I laughed and leaned over the console, pecking his lips a few times before he slipped his tongue into my mouth, deepening it. I swear I didn't want to fall for him, so I fought against my feelings and won, . . . for now.

We ended up in a city called Royal Oak. It was a little far from my job, but the house we pulled up to was beautiful. Samir pulled in the double driveway on the side of a white Mercedes and got out. He slapped palms with the guy who emerged from it before coming around to my side to open my door.

He helped me out, then walked me over to the guy who had the same dominant energy as him.

“Messiah, this is Juliana. Cin, this is Messiah Crawford.”

“Nice to meet you,” I said, extending my hand. He took it.

“You as well. You ready to check out your new space?”

“Sure.”

“A’ight, follow me.” We followed him to the door, and once he opened it, the first thing I appreciated was the glossy red oak floors.

“So, let me give you a rundown while we walk through. This house has five bedrooms with one being the master suite. An open kitchen with smart appliances and a Sub-Zero fridge. There's a finished basement and also another room down there that you could either turn into an office space or another bedroom. Two and a half bathrooms and a full deck out back.”

We walked into the kitchen, and I fell in love. The frosted glass cabinets, an island with a built-in stove and dishwasher, and enough space to move around and not feel crowded.

“This is dope,” Samir said.

“It is.” I agreed.

Messiah smiled. “Glad you like it.” He then opened the shutters to reveal the patio doors, and I envisioned my own little oasis, a place where I could find peace, sunshine, and solace.

Messiah continued to show us around, and I grew more and more fascinated with the layout of the home. When we finally made it back outside, Samir turned to me and took my hand.

“What do you think?”

I looked around. “It's beautiful.”

“Do you see yourself living here?”

“I don't know. It's kind of big for just one person.”

“I got other properties that are smaller, but they're near Detroit and Southwest,” Messiah informed me.