Page 60 of What I Needed

Sleep overcame us, and when I opened my eyes, the sun had risen. Our bodies were intertwined in the best way, and if I could, I’d stay this way for the rest of the day.

“E, wake up,” I whispered, then kissed the top of her head.

“Hmm.”

“Wake up, baby. I need to get ready for practice.”

“Hmm.”

One of her legs was thrown across both of mine, while one of her arms was draped across my chest. Instead of rolling over and releasing me, she adjusted her body and moved closer to me, if that was possible.

I smiled as I lifted her arm and placed it at her side, then eased the top half of my body away from hers. When her head fell onto the pillow, she finally turned over and got comfortable on the other side of the bed, freeing me.

After pulling on the shorts I had on last night, I slowly opened the door, looked down the hallway to make sure I was in the clear, then slipped out of Erissa’s bedroom, praying I didn’t run into my mother or sister.

When I made it safely to my bedroom, I grabbed my phone to look at the time, and it was dead, which explained why my alarm wasn’t going off. I cursed under my breath as I connected it to the charger, then looked at my watch. I needed to leave within the next fifteen minutes to make it to practice on time, so I rushed through my morning routine.

I was in such a rush that I didn’t realize I hadn’t heard Riverlynn on the monitor. My eyes went to where I kept her monitor, and it wasn’t there. I scanned the room to see if I’d inadvertently moved it, but it was nowhere to be found.

There was no need to panic because I knew my mother was the culprit. Before heading downstairs, I went to Riverlynn’s room, and her crib was empty. Again, I was certain my mother was behind all this, so I left for practice.

When I arrived, Jaxon, Boris, and Desmond were waiting for me, grinning like damn Cheshire cats. Obviously, Jaxon had already filled the other two in about the previous night’s activities. I walked right past them, as if they weren’t there, because I knew exactly the kind of time they were on.

“So, when is the wedding?” Desmond asked, and all of them laughed like he’d told the joke of the century.

“Haha, real funny. Nobody is getting married.”

“I don’t know, man. I never thought I’d see you like you were yesterday,” Jaxon said.

“And we know she let you hit it,” Boris said.

Boris spoke with more confidence than he should have about something that didn’t concern him.

“Y’all don’t know shit.”

“I do, because you told me, and I saw how you are with her with my own eyes, but I ain’t say shit to them,” Jaxon pointed out.

“You’ve been different since you hired her,” Desmond added.

“Different how?”

“When was the last time you hooked up with somebody, old or new?”

I waved him off. “Y’all need to chill. That don’t mean shit. It’s not even like that. Don’t get me wrong, Erissa is cool as hell, takes great care of my daughter, and I can admit that I like having her around, but y’all taking it too far.”

I closed my locker and left them in the locker room. This conversation would be tabled until the end of practice. By then, maybe I’d have the courage to stop lying to them and myself.

“It’s final, River. Rylee and I are staying here with Rivvy while you take Erissa out for a nice dinner. It’s the least you can do to show your appreciation. Not only does she take good care of my granddaughter, but it also looks like she’s been taking good care of you,” my mother said.

The plan was for us to go to dinner as a family, including Erissa. I wasn’t sure what happened while I was at practice, but as soon as I came home, my mother told me the plans had changed.

“I thought the point of you visiting was to spend time together.”

“No, I came to see and spend time with my first and only grandchild.”

“Did you tell Erissa?”

“Yes. She’s out shopping with your sister.”