He put his phone back into his pocket and reached for her hand. “Come on, boss lady. Let’s get you back to work. I’m sure you got some shit to clean up.”
She snorted. “Fuck you.”
That surprised him. He threw his head back and laughed.
In due time, Thicka. In due time.
Devyn had worn the floor in Koren’s living room all the way out from all the pacing she had done.
Her mind wouldn’t allow her to sit still. Or maybe the guilt she felt clawing to get out of her caused her to want to try to outrun it. Whatever it was, Koren and Emilia were clearly over it.
“Will you tell us what the hell is going on? We were supposed to be having a girls’ night, and you haven’t had a glass of wine or even eaten a piece of gotdamn cheese off the charcuterie board I slaved over. You’re pissing me off, Dev.” Koren placed her wineglass on the wooden coffee table in front of her and crossed her arms over her large chest.
Devyn cut her eyes at her cousin and then glanced at Emilia, who sat next to Koren on the couch with a worried expression.
“She’s right, Devyn. You’re making me anxious with all that pacing. Did something happen?” Emilia’s gentle voice and obvious concern grounded Devyn, and she sighed heavily.
Forcing her legs to stop moving, she stood in front of her best friend and cousin and tried to find her words. Finally, she blurted them out and hoped for the best.
“I saw Haze.”
Emilia’s mouth hung open, and Koren snickered.
“I know you fuckin’ lyin’.” Koren was the first to speak.
“When?” Emilia asked.
“Earlier today. He showed up at the dealership, of all places. He bought one of those cars I was telling y’all about. The ones that are basically plastic and junk on wheels? He came in there raising hell because it broke down on the side of the road. Of course, I had to come deescalate the situation. Never thought I would come face-to-face withhim.”
“No offense, love, but I knew this day would come. Desmore might be a big city, but it ain’t that big. Plus, God and Karma weren’t about to let you off the damn hook,” Koren said as she eyed her cousin with a cross between sympathy and an Itold you soexpression.
Devyn couldn’t even be mad at Koren’s truth, because it was just that—the truth. Deep down, Devyn knew she would have to deal with the consequences of her decisions. Whether it was to tell Haze about their daughter or to answer Hazel’s questions about her father as she got older. She knew how she went about things might not have been right, but her instinct to protect her daughter had consumed her. She needed Hazel in a safe environment at all times. End of story. Deep down, she knew that didn’t justify her actions, though, and now that Haze had popped back into her life, that guilt only multiplied.
“What happened after he saw you?” Emilia asked. Her empathetic friend, who felt sympathy for everyone, peered at her with glossy, beautiful brown eyes.
“He wants me, like for real. He wouldn’t take no for an answer. He took me to lunch and made me give him my number . . .”
Her words trailed off as she thought about Haze and all his fineness. Truthfully, he really didn’t have to fight all that hard to get her number, and that was the problem. Two for two, Devyn’s brain turned to straight mush when in his presence, and she made insane ass decisions.
“Damn,” Emilia responded before she zoned out and chewed on her lower lip.
Devyn instantly plopped down next to her best friend and put her head on Emilia’s shoulder. “Talk to me.”
Emilia shrugged. “Hard not to think of Haze without thinking of that night.”
“Trust me, I know.” Devyn nodded in agreement. Emilia getting shot was the gist of why she never reached out to Haze. She couldn’t allow the same kind of fate to come to her or her family. Haze oozed danger. He exuded trouble. And for some reason, her heart still did a funny ass dance whenever he was around. It baffled her.
“So, what you gonna do?” Koren asked as she grabbed her wineglass and took another sip.
Devyn shrugged. “I don’t think he’s going to let up, K.”
“How do you feel about that?” Emilia asked.
“How doyoufeel about that?” Devyn countered. Emilia’s feelings mattered to Devyn.
“Girl, what?” Emilia asked with confusion written all over her face.
“I mean, how do you feel about Haze popping back up?” Devyn clarified.
