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He blew out a heavy huff of air as he obliged her request. With his eyes shut, he trusted Britain to lead him safely toward the surprise. They walked slowly to keep him from tripping over anything in the backyard. She led him to the lounging area, where she pulled out a chair for him to take a seat. Once he was settled, Britain excitedly clapped her hands, signaling for him to open his eyes.

He cautiously opened his eyes, unsure of the surprise and how well he would take it. Before him was an abundance of balloons that were all tied together to keep them from floating off. They varied in different shades of blue, matching the small circular cake that was decorated with thirteen candles. Once Priest counted the candles, he immediately caught the notion of what Britain was surprising him with. He felt the strings of his heart tug as he pursed his lips to suppress some of his sadness.

"Surprise!" Britain exclaimed as she sat her MacBook down before him. On the screen were Tasha, King, and Jaden on FaceTime. They all had beaming smiles on their faces, glad they were able to catch Priest's reaction to the surprise.

"Oh, y'all got me," Priest laughed as he shook his head.

Britain was glad that she was able to deliver such a great surprise. "They've been on FaceTime with me all morning. I'm glad you didn't give me a hard time about coming down here." She let out a sigh of relief, causing them to laugh.

"We didn't think it would be fair to celebrate without you," Tasha smiled. "You played such a big role in Jamari's life. It would be silly if you weren't a part of this."

Priest was touched, and the sadness that weighed down his heart seemed to be alleviated immediately. "‘Preciate that, Tash. You don't know how much I thank you for allowing me to be a part of his life," he expressed his gratitude as he rested his hand over his heart.

Britain made her way around to rest her hands on his shoulders so she could be a part of the FaceTime call as well. "Miss Britain set all of this up," King spoke up, causing the adults to join in laughter.

"She did, didn't she?" Priest took ahold of Britain's hand to bring her down into his lap. He applied a kiss to Britain's cheek, bringing a smile onto her face.

"Yeah, we stayed on the phone with her the entire time. We actually picked the balloons and the cake," King went on to explain.

It was refreshing seeing King take on the role of the older brother to Jaden now that Jamari had passed. He was only nine years old, so Tasha found it difficult to explain the situation to King without exposing him to the harsh reality of what his life was to be as he grew older. Priest took on that obligation and had a lengthy talk with King, who seemed to be taking on the responsibilities that were left behind by Jamari just fine. Priest wanted to be that person of guidance for both King and Jaden just as much as he was for Jamari. The boys loved him to pieces, and the fact that Jamari admired him so much made them love Priest even more.

"You guys were a great help," Britain gushed, beaming her beautiful smile. "You guys were quick with the Google translate too," she complimented them while snapping her fingers.

Priest couldn't help but laugh. "You really had the kids translating for you?" he asked her.

She nodded her head confidently. "Yeah, they got a free little Italian lesson.”

"How are things out there?" Tasha asked. "I caught up with Jeremy, and he made sure to highlight that you popped the big question to his baby girl," Tasha revealed with a smile. She knew far before Priest even knew that he was going to marry Britain. She sensed it, and now that he finally made the move, she couldn't have been happier for him.

Priest chuckled as he nodded his head. Reaching down, he grabbed ahold of Britain's left hand, holding it up so Tasha and the boys could catch sight of her engagement ring. Because she had two to choose from, she switched them out from time to time. Today, she was sporting the first ring, which happened to be a bit larger and lest modest.

"God damn!" King’s eyes widened in shock at how big the diamond was.

Priest and Britain couldn't help but to double over in laughter as Tasha lightly smacked King upside his head for his foul language. "The ring is beyond gorgeous, but you still need to watch your mouth," she chastised King.

"How much you buy that for?!" Jaden exclaimed, his jaw still agape just like King. This reminded Priest and Tasha so much of Jamari. He was always so invested in the cost of things just to turn around and say what he would have done with that type of money. All of his what if's always included a big mansion for his moms or some sort of sports car.

Priest glanced down at Britain's ring before shrugging his shoulders lightly. "I think Brit and I could go without having that conversation for now," he dismissed the talk about the cost of her ring as smoothly as possible.

She side-eyed him, earning some laughter from Tasha. She and Britain were one in the same with money. Just because you had it didn't mean you needed to spend it all crazily. The ring was no doubt overly expensive, but that was just more of a reason why Priest would never tell her the exact price. "Well, congratulations to you both. You two are visibly in love, and it's a gorgeous sight. I'm happy for the both of you," Tasha wished them well.

"Thank you so much," Britain smiled. "We really appreciate it."

"How are things holding up out there on your end?" Priest asked Tasha.

He watched as she shrugged her shoulders with a sigh. "Things are the same. I actually got that promotion, so I think you can cut down on those bills, and I can handle it from here," Tasha assured Priest, no longer wanting her and her boys to be dependent on him.

Priest smacked his lips as he waved Tasha off. "C'mon! What kinda man would I be if I moved you all the way out to TriBeCa just for you to be responsible for those bills?" he asked Tasha, who simply rolled her eyes, knowing that she would never win this fight with Priest. "You, King and Jaden are good no matter what," he asserted.

"Priest—" Tasha attempted to get out, but he quickly interjected.

"I don't wanna hear nothing else about it. I gave you my word, and I gave Jamari my word. I'm not going back on that," he declared, remaining firm and refusing to go back on the promise he made to Jamari.

Tasha had to admit that living rent free and bill free for the past couple of months had helped her and her children tremendously. She had managed to fix her credit, pay off some debt, and finally make her children happy. They were living in a high rise in TriBeCa, New York with concierge, a gorgeous view of the city, and way more space than their prior home offered. It was nice seeing her children in a space she'd always dreamed of occupying. They were finally out of the neighborhood that had taken one of her sons away from her. Since moving to TriBeCa, Tasha had finally been able to get a night of peaceful sleep. So much had changed for her, but there was still that small part of her mind that kept telling her not to get too comfortable in this position.

Tasha opted to put the conversation to rest, just for the moment, though.

"Priest, I have a question," King spoke up since he had been meaning to get to the bottom of the confusion that had been his life for just a little over two weeks now.