Page 54 of Betrothed To Love

She’s too excited to pay me any attention. So I place my hand on her chest. “When you calm down, we will go back upstairs.”

While nodding fast and still breathing hard, she says, “Okay. Okay, I’m calm.”

“I doubt that, but let’s go,” I tell her, then grab her hand.

If she had the power, my baby girl would drag me up these stairs because I can tell I’m not moving fast enough for her. There’s a little scowl on her pretty face. She looks so cute I can’t even be mad.

When we walk into the room, Mireya is standing at the wall examining their work. There’s a huge tree taking up most of the wall on the left side. She has a little skills because it doesn’t look as bad as I thought it would.

“See, Daddy. The tree is all the way up there. I drew the birds and that’s my sun and boat under the tree,” Niya proudly points out once she rushes to the wall. “You like it?” she asks, beaming.

“I love it. The birds and the boat are my favorite,” I tell her.

“And the tree too, Daddy,” Niya says.

“Yeah. The tree is beautiful too,” I say and Mireya smiles.

“But I agree with your daddy. The boat is gorgeous and so are the birds. We need more though. Don’t you think?” Mireya asks Niya. “Like up top here,” Mireya says while pointing up at the wall.

“Yeah, we do,” Niya answers quickly.

“Daddy,” Mireya says and damn. I like hearing her call me that. I guess she sees the change in my expression because she shakes her head and grins. “Quintus, grab a marker and help. We need birds up top,” she says with a smirk.

“Nah, y’all got that. My birds might mess this up.”

“Yeah. He don’t know how to draw,” Niya says, turning on me right in my damn face. Mireya laughs. “He don’t,” Niya says, then shrugs. “Daddy, hold me and I’ll draw them.”

“Even though you clowning me, I can do that,” I say ,then tickle her sides from behind her. She giggles. “I’m going to remember how you played me when you ask me to draw again.”

“Mireya gon’ be here. You gon’ spend the night?” Niya asks. Mireya’s whole face changes. Her eyes widen, her eyebrows tent, and her teeth pull in the side of her bottom lip.

“She can,” I add and my wife’s eyebrows become more tented.

“I didn’t bring anything to stay,” she says, almost apologetically.

“You can use my soap and stuff. Daddy buy me stuff for girls,” Niya offers.

“Aww, that’s so sweet of you. We’ll see,” Mireya says. She’ll concede; it’s two against one.

“And you can sleep in my room,” I whisper in Mireya’s ear before scooping Niya up.

Mireya grins as she hands Niya the marker. After Mireya agrees with Niya’s location of the additional birds, I hold her as she draws her wide Ms—the birds—on the wall. Once their work of art is complete, Mireya and Niya walk into Niya’s bathroom and I hang back and watch their interaction.

My wife is so attentive and Niya is all ears. She hangs on Mireya’s every word. I even catch her mimicking some of Mireya’s actions ,like how she put the soap in her hand and how she dried her hands. When they walk out, Niya informs me of our evening plans.

“We going to the movies to watch Bluey and then the princess,” Niya says, referring to our theater and game room here upstairs. “Come with us, Daddy.”

Because I’m curious about her new favorite princess with the green dress, I follow them down the hall to the entertainment room. We have a pool table, foosball table, six leather theater chairs, a mini bar, and 180” zero edge television. Once we are inside, Niya rushes to the bar to rummage through her snack basket.

“This is beautiful. Your entire home is beautiful actually and her room is adorable. When I was a little girl, I wanted a canopy bed so bad but my ma wasn’t having that,” Mireya says with a grin. Her face usually lights up every time she talks about her grandparents.

“Thanks. It looks better with you in it though. I’m glad you are staying tonight.”

“Is that what you heard? Because I said we’ll see,” she counters.

“Niya’s not letting you leave and neither is your husband.”

“I thought it was so cute when she offered her soap to me. She has the sweetest little heart and she’s so talented. I love that you are cultivating her love of art. She’ll probably end up being an artist.”