Page 10 of A Beast Captured My Heart

He smiled and I smiled on the inside. It was a beautiful thing to see a black father so in love with their child.

“Hi, daddy’s baby! You having fun with Ms. Yori?”

Yori? He just gave me a nickname as if we had known each other for years. I just smiled as she nodded her head yes. Stepping back and sitting down in the lawn chair, I gave them their space.

“You look so pretty, Tea and you smell so good!”

He buried his nose in her neck as she giggled. He placed kisses all over her and that explained why she was so spoiled. She didn’t let me out of her sight. Those gray eyes met my eyes causing me to become nervous as hell. When he smiled, I felt a calm come over me. Damned this cocky ass bastard!

“Thank you, Ms. Yori. I’m glad I hired you. My baby girl hasn’t looked like this in a while.”

I really didn’t know what he meant by that but I returned his smile and told him that he was welcomed. Vegas sun was making me hot as hell. It beamed down hard on us. I was desperate to get back into the house under the AC. So when he walked towards the sliding glass door, I followed right behind him with a good distance between us. I sat on the couch while Praise got comfortable about three feet away from me on the floor as he played with the blocks with Mattea. I didn’t want to watch them that much because it would force me to watch him. I liked about a hundred pictures on Instagram before he started making conversation with me.

“How did you get those scars?”

Sighing, I realized he just wouldn’t let the shit go. I got tight whenever someone asked anything about my scars.

“Why did you get those teardrops underneath your eye?” I shot back. His face stayed unmoving and I cursed myself for giving him a comeback so hard. I tried to clean it up a bit. “Look, my apologies. I just don’t like talking about my scars…”

It was often very hard for me to hold back and bite my tongue. I spoke my mind. I didn’t like people feeling like they were entitled to knowing my personal life.

“Understandable.” He dropped the subject and put his focus back on his baby girl. “You can take off early if you would like. We will see you back here the same time tomorrow.”

Nodding my head, I felt happy as hell to be leaving two hours early. Praise made me feel so nervous so uncomfortable to be around him. He was just too damn fine for his own good. Men like him just knew they could get and have whatever female they pleased.

Grabbing my purse, I told Mattea bye and she started to cry. Praise had a look of shock on his face as I stopped in my tracks and picked her up and consoled her. I couldn’t just leave baby girl crying for me.

“Bye, bye?” She asked with tears in her eyes. Her sad voice pulled more of my heartstrings as well. Seemed like she was used to her parents leaving her and probably had attachment issues.

“I’ll stay a little longer with you pretty girl, then I’ll have to leave. I’ll come back tomorrow, okay? I promise.”

Praise looked on with amusement dancing in his eyes.

“So, I see Quanna got you playing the nanny role. I still need to teach you about firearms and safety in case you ever have to leave the house with my daughter. I decided to give you Thursday and Friday off so we can go to the gun range. Does that work for you?” His deep voice spoke with so much authority. I nodded my head as Mattea sucked her thumb and laid her head on my chest. He stared at me like my head nod was not enough.

“Yeah, that’s good,” I answered as I swallowed down and continued to make eye contact.

“You don’t have to be nervous around me Kayori. I never bite unless I need to or a pretty lady like yourself wants me to.”

My eyes bulged out of its sockets. I searched my brain for a comeback instead I found the corniest shit to say.

“Pretty?”

I questioned him like he was crazy. Didn’t he see my scars? I was pretty sure he would never look twice at a woman like myself.

“Yes, pretty. Why you questioning that like it’s…”

The door opened and I was saved by the fucking bell. Laquanna walked in with an entourage behind her. They talked loud as hell and had a pungent weed smell that followed. I broke eye contact like I had been caught doing something I was not supposed to and put my eyes on Mattea. She was happy her mom was home, so she hopped out of my lap like it was on fire.

“Mommy, mommy! Up,! Up!”

Those were her favorite words. Praise stood to his feet and without wanting to, I noticed the big print in his basketball shorts that caused my yoni to clench.

“Hey, baby! Did you have fun today? Oooo girl you got my baby looking fly as fuck!”

She looked at her daughter and smiled with hooded eyes that were a light pink from getting high. She threw the doll head that she had in her hand along with the small school duffle bag and picked Mattea up and hugged her tight.

“Watch your mouth, Laquanna.” Praise warned as her three other friends looked at him with heavy lust.