LARISSA
“Okay, Rissa! Come through!”
I stepped into the sunroom at his mother’s house. The family was there, kids running at full speed around the play structure, Papa Stew putting balls into the yard. Asa was at the play structure, pushing Ezra on the little baby swing.
“I’ll let Asa know you’re here,” Bliss said, rolling her eyes at her twin.
I stopped her. “No need to do that. Ezra looks happy out there.”
After I left Jax, I spent a little time with my niece and nephew. Then, X drove me to the airport the next morning. While I was waiting for my flight to board, I received a call from Joyce Batchelor.
Apparently, Jax had spoken with her at length about me and she wanted to touch base as soon as possible. When I informed her of my plan to move to the area, she invited me to visit the Batchelor Corp offices in Downtown Detroit. Tomorrow.
Tyn handed me a tall glass of lemonade. Mama Vicki had a small procedure on her foot, so she was in town helping out. “Have a seat, sis.”
I took a sip of the juice. “Yum.” I eyed the peach cobbler on the table and pointed at it. “Did you make this?”
My bestfran knew how to throw down in that kitchen and I loved eating her cooking. Back in the day, we’d lived together for a short stint when she was interning at a nonprofit near me. I nearly ate myself into a coma on her peach cobbler.
“Yeah, girl.” Blake carved out a huge scoop and dropped it on her plate. “This shit slaps.”
“How many pieces of that are you going to eat?” Dallas asked, licking her spoon.
Demi giggled. “She’s already had two.”
“She made it for me,” Blake said.
“I made it for Mom.” Tyn cut me a piece and handed it to me. “You’re just greedy, Sissy.”
“Whatever,” Blake groaned. “Before you leave Michigan, I need one of them for my house.”
I laughed at their antics. They had always been a vibe, and solid. “Y’all are crazy.”
Blake snorted. “Y’all? I’m not the one who hid a whole ass relationship for two years.”
I paused, fork midair. Setting my plate on the table, I sat back in the chair. “Alright, let’s hear it. How long have you known?
“I promise I didn’t tell them,” Bliss chimed in.
Dallas smirked. “Girl, we been knew.”
Tyn shook her head. “No, you didn’t. You just found out.”
“Exactly,” Blake agreed.
I wasn’t surprised. After all, itwasthe worst kept secret. “Who told you?” I asked
“Demi.”
My friend sank in her chair. “Sorry, sis,” Demi said. “It just came out.”
Now thatdidsurprise me. Usually, Demi stayed out of other people’s business. “I can’t believe you carried the bone.” I chuckled. “That’s not even like you.”
“In case you haven’t realized, Dallas is a witch. She conjures up ways to figure shit out. I stepped in it last month when she was talking aboutBlissacting weird on the phone while she was at Asa’s house.”
Bliss frowned. “Don’t put that on me. I didn’t tell Dallas anything.”
“Whatever,” Demi said with a hard eye roll. “She caught me slippin’.”
