Page 35 of A Kingpin’s Weakness

“Stormi, look who remembered she got a mama. Been laid up somewhere with that man, huh?”

“Jo, don’t start.”

I dropped onto the couch beside her, RJ flopping down on my other side.

“I ain’t startin’ nothin’. I know what good dick does to a woman.” She smirked, eyes twinkling with mischief.

I rolled my eyes and looked away, refusing to give her the satisfaction.

“Where’s Noah?”

“He should be here soon. I sent him to grab me some cigarettes.”

My jaw clenched. “He’s seventeen, Jo.”

She waved me off. “Girl, you the only one still worried about that boy's age. Where’s my son-in-law?”

“Who?” I blinked, caught off guard.

Jo raised a brow like I was slow. “Obviously not the dude you walked in here with. The rich one.”

I exhaled, tired already. “That’s all you care about? Money?”

Before she could answer, the door opened and in walked Noah with a friend taller, older, with that street-smooth swagger that made you instantly suspicious and just a little curious.

“Stormi.”

His voice pulled my eyes to his face and softened everything inside me.

“Hey baby.” I got up and wrapped him in a hug, kissing his cheek. “I missed you.”

He shrugged like it didn’t matter, but I felt the weight in his voice. “Yeah, you out the country with that nigga Seth.”

“Don’t start. I needed a break. Too much was goin’ on.”

“It’s cool. You deserve it. Just take me next time.”

“I got you.”

“And me too!” Jo chimed in, like I was about to book her a flight to Bali.

All I could do was laugh. Take Jo out the country? We'd be locked up before the plane even landed.

“Damn, bro, you not gon’ introduce me to your sister?”

Noah’s friend looked me up and down like I was dessert he wasn’t supposed to touch. Young. Maybe 21. Just old enough to get in trouble.

“My bad. Stormi, this Dre. Dre, my sister Stormi.”

“Nice to meet you,” he said, extending his hand.

I shook it. “Same. How old are you?”

“Stormi, don’t start,” Noah groaned. “I don’t question your friends.”

“I’m grown.”

“So am I,” Dre said, smiling just enough to annoy me.

“You’re a child.”

He laughed like he heard that often. “I’m 21. I know Noah's seventeen, but I look at him like a little brother. Try to keep him outta trouble since it always seems to follow him.”

“Well... thanks. I need somebody watching him while I’m not here.”

“You could always move back,” Noah said quietly.

That guilt hit me in the stomach like a sucker punch. I didn’t answer.

“Alright now, hush,” Jo cut in. “My movie about to start.”

She turned the volume up on Eve’s Bayou .

Classic. We’d seen it a hundred times, but Jo acted like it was a premiere every damn time.

I slid back down into the couch, RJ still scrolling on his phone, Dre pulling up a kitchen chair, Noah sitting on the floor in front of the table.

And just like that, we were all quiet. Watching the screen.

Watching a story we already knew but still needed to feel again.

For a second, I wished I wasn’t leaving. For a second, it felt like home.

Knock! Knock! Knock! Knock!

“Damn, who knockin’ like the cops are ‘bout to raid the spot?” Jo’s voice was sharp, cutting through the quiet like a whip.

I held my breath, heart thudding loud enough to be heard in the next room.

Noah stood, tense as hell. Dre’s hand slid behind him, fingers tightening on something I didn’t wanna imagine.

“Boy, you ain’t caught up in no more trouble, right?” Jo’s tone was teasing but sharp like a blade.

“No, ma’am,” Noah answered, voice steady but quiet.

“Yeah, sure.”

Noah went to the door. “Who is it?”

Nothing. Just silence. He peeped through the little window, then clicked open the lock.

“Stormi. It’s for you.”

Seth stepped in like he owned the place; calm, cool, and still dressed in that funeral black fit that made my insides twist. Damn him. Damn him and the way he looked so goddamn good, like he didn’t owe me a single apology.

My body betrayed me the moment our eyes locked that sharp lick of his lips, that confident stance. I felt my pussy get wet, a heat rising up that I hated but couldn’t deny. I wanted to hate him, but my body said otherwise.

“What’s up, everybody?” Seth’s voice cut through the tension like it was nothing.

“Hey, Seth,” Jo said, eyes tracing every line of him like she was reading a damn novel. “If you weren’t fuckin’ my daughter, I’d be all over your handsome ass.”

“Jo!” I snapped, but Seth just smiled that slow, knowing smile, never taking his eyes off me.

“Can I talk to you for a minute?” Seth’s voice was soft, but firm.

I wanted to say no. Hell, I needed to say no. But I knew him.

“Yeah, we can talk in my room.”

I got up, heart in my throat, footsteps heavy as I walked down the hall. Seth was right behind me, his presence thick and overwhelming.

Jo’s whispers floated after us like smoke I didn’t wanna know what crazy shit she was saying.

“What happened?” Seth’s voice broke the silence the second we shut the door.

“Nothing.” I lied, trying to steady my voice even though it cracked inside.

“What did she say to you?”

“Who?”

“Imani. S3’s mom.”

“Nothing.”

“We lying now, Stormi?”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

“Mama said she saw you two talking. Southside said the same. S3 said his mom wanted to talk to you. Rich said the last time he saw you, you were headed to the parking lot to meet RJ.”

I swallowed hard.

“So again what did she say?” Seth stepped closer, eyes darkening, searching mine like he was trying to see if I was lying.

“It doesn’t matter.”

“If it didn’t matter, you wouldn’t have left.”

“She just wanted to tell me you two were still fuckin’ and that maybe you had a baby on the way. Congrats.” I spat the words, voice sharp, biting back the scream inside. I wanted to punch him. I wanted to scream. I wanted to fall apart but I refused to let him see that.

“I haven’t touched Imani since S3 was conceived. You think I’d be stupid enough to put another kid in her? After what she did?”

“Like I said I’m just telling you what she said.”

“And you believed it?”

“Did I say that?”

“But you left.”

“I was tired.”

“So why not come to me?”

“Because I knew you had to be there for Rich.”

“Being there for my brother don’t mean I can’t be there for my woman.”

“Seems like you got a lot of women in your life.”

“Not a lot. Just two.”

My phone rang sharp and sudden, like a reminder that life didn’t wait for us to figure this out.

“Sorry, work.” I grabbed the phone, trying to sound professional.

“Hello, Ms. Johnson.”

“Yeah, I was gonna call you tomorrow. Flights booked. Back Monday.”

I kept my eyes down, not ready to face Seth. I hadn’t told him I was leaving tomorrow. That was my secret, a last-minute decision after talking to Imani earlier.

“You leavin’?” He didn’t care I was on the phone.

“Yes. Thanks. See you Monday.”

I ended the call fast, afraid he’d say something else.

“What was that, Stormi?”

“That was my boss. I gotta get back to work.”

“No, you want to get back to work.”

“Same thing. You already knew.”

“What if I wanted you to stay?”

“I can’t. I got a life. A career.”

“And where do I fit in that life and career?”

His voice dropped, soft and close like he was finally showing me a crack in the armor. He grabbed my hands, pulled me close, turned my face to his.

I couldn’t. I didn’t want to. I was scared. Afraid to be that woman who left everything behind for a man who might break her. This was my last chance to get it right.

I was leaving. Seth and I? We couldn’t be. Not with all the ghosts, the secrets, the lies. My mind spun with all the reasons we wouldn’t work; all the times I tried to convince myself it was love but it was something else.

“Seth, this was real. And I appreciate you being there when I needed someone. But maybe… maybe we rushed it.”

He laughed, shaking his head like he didn’t recognize me anymore. “So what is it, Stormi?”

“I think we both know.” That was all I said before he opened the door, and I followed behind

We could hear their footsteps pounding back to the living room as Seth and I made our way down the hall.

“Just stupid,” Jo muttered, staring me down, shaking her head like she couldn’t believe what she’d just heard.

RJ and Noah tried to act like they were deep into their phones, scrolling like nothing was going on, but Dre? Dre kept glancing between Seth and me like he was trying to piece together some puzzle.

I let out a breath, voice low but sharp. “Thanks for the privacy.”

I walked out the door behind Seth, ready to leave it all behind, ready to shut the door on whatever that was.

But then Seth stopped cold. He spun around, grabbed me, pulling me close like he was afraid I’d disappear, and then he kissed me.

Not just a quick peck, but a deep, hungry kiss that swallowed up all the pain and words we’d just shared.

For a moment, the anger, the doubts, everything else it just vanished.

In that kiss, Seth made me feel safe, like the world outside didn’t exist. Like when we were together, nothing else mattered.

But then reality came crashing back because loving a man like Seth wasn’t just complicated, it was dangerous.

I’d spent my whole life guarding my heart, building walls so high no one could get in.

I didn’t want to be like Jo, always chasing the next man, never catching real love.

I wanted more than that. I wanted to find the right man the one who’d be there for me and build a family.

The one who’d give our kids the kind of father’s love I missed so damn badly growing up.

It was everything I wanted since I was a little girl.

Finally, Seth pulled back, his breath heavy against my lips.

“Bye, Stormi. I’ll bring your stuff in the morning.”

And with that, he broke free, got in his car, and drove away, leaving me standing there with my heart pounding, caught somewhere between wanting him and knowing I had to let go.