“Umm, where’s Solana?” a dark-skinned beautiful lady stated with attitude, and the look on her face was as if she had smelled something sour.
“Baby, please.” Her husband, an attractive chocolate man, groaned.
“I’m just saying… Who the fuck is she?”
Shio either didn’t care that we were getting crazy stares or was used to his people’s indecent behavior because he guided us to our seats without replying.
I was seated next to Vello’s woman, and knew that in order to make tonight go in my favor, I would need to say whatever to get on these women’s good side.
“Hi. Your ring is beautiful… So is your dress.”
She turned slightly in her seat and planted a fake smile on her round face. “Thank you. I appreciate the compliment about the dress, especially since I’m postpartum.”
“Baby, I told you that you look good.”
“I know, but it’s different coming from a woman, Metavello.”
She smiled again, this one not as forced. “You know how babies can make you feel insecure…”
“I’m afraid not.”
She reared her head back. “You do have a child, right? You and Shio? You must have snapped back the same day you gave birth then.”
I choked on my spit. “Oh, no! I meant, yes… We have a daughter. I just didn’t think he’d told the family yet.”
“They know, Bahati.” Shio pushed my chair in before walking behind the woman’s chair.
“You look beautiful, Discover. You carried my nephews well.” Shio leaned over and kissed the top of her head, making her blush before Vello shoved him off.
“We told you ’bout all that romancing our women and shit.”
“Facts!” Nel backed his brother.
I picked up the glass of water and sipped it. “But to answer your question, my labor was terrible. I gained a lot of weight but lost it by the time she was six or seven months.”
“Um…”
To keep the conversation going, I asked, “You have twins?”
She nodded. “I do. A daughter, too, but she’s my big baby. Here…” Discover pulled her phone out and showed me a set of twins that had Renello and Metavello’s whole faces as a beautiful little girl held them while sitting on a huge sofa.
“The one on the left is Explore, and the one on the right is Adventure. Their sister, Discovery, is holding them. Althoughsomebodykidnapped my baby,” she said the last part out loud.
“Discover, don’t start, man. She internin’ with Daddy for the summer.” The man across from us, next to a lady wearing a long weave, smirked. I had to do a double-take because it was Essex, Shio’s childhood friend.
“Oh! Hi, Essex!” I waved as his woman mugged me.
“Hey,” she spoke for him, sarcastically, causing the dark-skinned girl from earlier to snicker.
“Wait…” I turned to Discover. “You are married to Metavello and have kids by Essex? Their childhood friend?”
Discover locked her phone and turned away from me.
“Yo, you nosy as fuck. But she had Lil’ Chef before she knew me,” Metavello answered for his woman, and with that went the only ally that I possibly could’ve had amongst the women.
I would win them over before the night was done. I had no other option if I wanted Shio to marry me.
“Aye,”—The one with the half-Asian wife stood—“Gentleman, let’s step out back to smoke.”
