AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“You know she loves you, Loyal,” I told her.
The minute I said it, the operator came on, letting us know that we had one-minute remaining.
“Let me tell my daughter bye before the call ends,” she said, not even bothering to respond to what I had just said. She always did that whenever I brought up our mother.
I sighed and handed Dream the phone. They used up the remaining minute to talk for a little bit, and afterward, Dream kept my phone to play games. More than likely, her tablet had died, and now she was going to use up all of my battery with those games that she had downloaded on my phone, taking up a lot of my space.
We pulled up to our destination, and I wasn’t even surprised that there were so many damn cars in the parking lot, making it hard for me to find a spot, but I eventually found one. Dream had fallen asleep on the ride over, but the second we pulled up, I swear her eyes popped open. It’s like she had radar and could smell fun from a mile away.
In no time, the two of us were getting out of the car, and I’d already texted Billion to let him know that we were here. As we were walking up the stairs to get inside, I saw him coming out of the double doors, and Dream took off running in his direction. Dream was really just getting to know Billion because when he went in to serve his sentence, she had just been born. She loved her big cousin, though, and she jumped in his arms.
“You like my nails?” was the first thing I heard her ask him.
I laughed because this little girl was going to show everybody her nails all day long. Usually, I would play around and paint her fingernails for her, but today was her first time actually having a professional do it.
“They pretty. Now watch, Khari gonna see your nails, and she’s going to ask if she can get hers done. Girls, man. I swear they’ll break a nigga’s pockets,” Billion told me as he lowered Dream to the ground and gave me a hug.
“You allow Khari to break your pockets, with her little spoiled butt,” I joked to him.
Billion laughed because he knew it was true.
We eventually made it inside, where he went to the front of the line and paid for all the activities and things that Dream told him she wanted to do. In less than five minutes, we were walking into the room where the fun was. Dream spotted her cousins, Lil Bill and Khari, and she ran over to them.
“How you feeling today, though? It’s good to see you out the house,” Billion said as he looked down at me.
“I’m better. I’m much better. Am I to a point where I’m fully recovered mentally from what happened? Nah, not at all. In fact, I had a break down this morning in the shower, but I’m nowhere near as bad as I was last week, so that’s all that matters. Between you calling to check up on me, my mama, and Normani, you all have been keeping me sane. Normani comes over to the house, bringing me dinner and stuff, and she calls every day, just to see how I’m feeling. I tried calling her this morning because I wanted to know how the two of you enjoyed your date last night. So, how was it?” I asked with a big smile on my face.
When Normani told me that she was going to dinner last night with Billion, I was so happy. I had been trying to get the two of them together long before they were even attracted to each other. Now, look at them. They complemented each other well, and I knew that if they ever got into a relationship, they would definitely be goals for a lot of people.
“Shit, right when I was about to walk out the door, she canceled on a nigga. For good reason, though, because she told me that her sister was in labor and about to have the baby. I invited her to come to grandma’s surprise party in two weeks. She said she’s gonna come,” he told me.
“Oh, wow, so it’s serious then. Please talk to your crazy ass baby mamas before the party. I know how simple-minded the two of them are, and I can see them trying to say something to Normani to scare her and run her off. I’m sure you already know that Normani lives a peaceful life, no drama. If your baby mothers start with Normani at that party, I wouldn’t want something to end before it even has the chance to begin,” I told Billion, and he nodded.
“Yeah, I’m already on it. Denim and Sidnesha pretty much already know that I’m entertaining somebody. They probably don’t think it’s serious, though. On some real shit, Twink, I fuck with Normani, like on some real shit. She’s so different from a nigga, and that’s one of the things that I actually like, which is so crazy because, in the beginning, I ain’t wanna fuck with her. I felt like she was too different, and she wouldn’t be able to relate.
“With the business that I’m in right now, with two baby mamas that keep me stressed the fuck out, I feel like I go to her, and that’s where I find my peace. I already know that when I come to her, I gotta come correct, which is why it’s so important that I have a sit down with them both. I ain’t about to let the two of them fuck up what I’m trying to build,” he told me.
I nodded, agreeing with everything he said. When it came to my cousin’s baby mamas, it was just a hi and bye thing. I was never really close to either of them. At one point in time, you could say that Sidnesha and I were somewhat cordial, especially when Billion brought her around. But when they broke up for good, and Khari came from Denim, she pretty much just started acting funny toward the whole family.
“Are you going to her book signing next week? You know it’s a big deal for her, right? I went to the one that she had last year, and so many people came out to support her. Make sure you get there early, too, because I know last year, the line was wrapped around the building. Cherish her, Billion, because she’s definitely a catch,” I told him.
“Shit, don’t I know it! I’ll be there to support. I was kind of contemplating if I wanted to go or not because I know her folks are going to be there. The way she talks about her daddy, I know that nigga is going to hate me,” he said and let out a chuckle.
“Prove him wrong. That’s all you have to do. Let me find out that Mr. Bad Ass is scared of somebody’s daddy,” I joked.
“Fuck no! That nigga better be scared of me,” he boasted.
All I could do was laugh and pray that next week, nothing crazy happened between Normani’s father and Billion. For at least two hours, we stayed at the arcade with the kids. We let them tire themselves out, which was a good thing because I was sure that Dream would get back to the house, take herself a good nap, and I would be able to take one as well.
“It’s only 11:30, Normani. The line is already wrapped around the building. Last year, it didn’t really get like this until the event was starting. We still have thirty minutes before the doors open and look at the number of people out there. I’m going to take a video of the crowd, then come back and send it to you,” Twinkle said in excitement.
Yes, I was happy that so many people came out to celebrate the launch of my new book, Jesus’ Princesses and Princes, and purchase copies of some of my older work. At the same time, I was trying to make sure that I had everything in order, so I was feeling a little nervous. I had been planning for this big day for months. This was my third annual book signing, and each year, the goal was for me to outdo myself compared to the previous year. I was hosting this year’s event at a beautiful ballroom in downtown Miami. The space was big enough to hold at least five hundred people.
I was selling hardcover copies of my books today, audiobooks, t-shirts with my books on them, bookbags, notebooks, and I even had little goodie bags for the kids. Last night, I got two and a half hours of sleep at the most, so the only thing keeping me up and alert was this coffee that I had been drinking. I was so thankful for Twinkle because she’d come over last night and helped me prepare for the event. So far, everything was running smoothly, so I could just calm down and let everything flow, but it wasn’t like me to not overthink something.
The DJ that I’d hired for the event was off to the side, testing the levels to make sure the sound and everything was working. I had this event catered, so people could come in, shop, and even have something to eat.
To the right of me was the step and repeat where I would take pictures with all my supporters once they started coming through. It was only right that I represented my sorority, as the theme for the decorations was pink and green. I was dressed in a hot pink pants suit, and it fit my body perfectly. I wore nude heels with the outfit, which had me standing up a little bit taller. Because this event was so huge for me, I wanted to do something different with my hair, so I woke up extra early this morning to flat iron my hair myself. I hadn’t worn my hair straightened in almost a year, so I was shocked to see how much my hair had grown. It was almost to my butt. My make-up was done perfectly. I felt so pretty, but I was a nervous wreck.
