Page 199 of 4 Corinthians

“Because Cori did,” Uri answered. Tulane turned his attention to me, and I smirked.

“Told you fragile wasn’t the right word,” Tulane said. “Not even close to the right word.”

***

"Mama?" Judah called my name as Uri drove. My head spun, and my stomach turned, but I was here. Present, actively going to an engagement party when I'd rather be at home. Robert hadn’t made his move yet. It’d been a few weeks since the announcement through the church that Amethyst asked me to make. We’d invited the members of the Kilmore church to ours. Some showed, some didn’t. We weren’t surprised by the ones who hadn’t. They were loyal to the Kilmores. The ones who did were either nosy and wanted to see how Granddaddy did things or were looking for a new church home. The nosy ones were on their last strike. They were getting on Madea’s nerves, which meant she was going to cuss them out. Church would be entertaining that day. "Mama?"

"Yeah, baby?"

"Legacy doesn't know Hood is going to ask her to be his wife?" He asked.

I turned around in my seat to look at him. His face was twisted in confusion, and I couldn't help but laugh. "No, baby, she doesn't know. It's a surprise."

"What if she says no?"

"Then she says no," I answered with a shrug. "She can do that if she wants."

"Will Hood cry?"

"Probably," I replied. "But let's hope she doesn't say no. Legacy loves Hood, and he loves her."

"Love is why you get married?"

"Partially."

"You love Four & Four loves you. So does that mean you're going to get married?" His eyes ballooned at the possibility of a future that, truthfully, I thought about as well.

"We umm...I ummm." I stopped talking and glanced over at Uri, who was trying not to smile.

"Do you want to marry Four?" Judah asked.

I turned back to him, held my index finger to my lips, and gave him a quick nod. I was scared to say the answer. Not because I didn't think Uri wanted to get married. He mentioned it all the time. I was more scared to admit it out loud because life was good right now, and whenever it was good, something went wrong.

A slow smile spread across my baby's face, and I couldn't help but return the gesture. For him life was simple. Things made sense because they aligned with whatever questions he needed answered.

The car slowed down, and I turned around to see us turn down a long road. Hood and Legacy's engagement party was being held at a private venue. Kansas City had a lot of hidden gems. Mansions turned into businesses, some as simple as Airbnbs, others into venues for parties hosted by people with money to spend. Hood was in the latter. Legit money made by his profession and street money from before he had letters before and after his name.

Uri parked in the driveway, turned off the car, and got out. He rounded the car, opened Judah's door to help him out, then mine. By the time I was out, Judah was running up the steps and heading towards Deuce, who was waiting for him. We'd already talked about what he could and couldn't do tonight, as well as his plans. Hood had planned for children to be at the party and set up a playroom equipped with everything their hearts could desire. I wasn't worried about my child behaving; I knew he would.

"Hey," Uri said, stepping into my space. I looked up to see him watching me. His eyes searched mine like they always did, and like every other time, I wondered what he saw. His hand went to my jaw, and he cupped it, then kissed me. "You know I love you, right?"

"I do," I answered with a nod.

"We need to talk after the party," he said, and I nodded. "I need to show you something too."

"It's serious." It was a statement, not a question.

"Yes."

"Let's talk now," I told him. The thought of him not saying something bothered me. We didn't keep secrets; even if we thought the truth would hurt the other person, we still said it.

"I'm not trying to ruin the party before it starts," he said, shaking his head.

"Oh, then it's real bad," I laughed humorlessly and shook my head. He looked away and sighed. I cupped his chin and turned his face to me. "Baby, just tell me."

"It's about my brother," he said, and I let go of his face. My left hand tapped against my thigh. We hadn't discussed Kenbral in months. From our last conversation, Uri said he was keeping his distance. The fact that Kenbral had a daughter changed everything for him. Uri couldn't make himself kill his brother, knowing he would leave his niece without a father.

"What about him?"