Page 50 of A Kingpin’s Weakness

Stormi

“Seth! Seth!”

I damn near lost my mind when I saw the notification on my phone. My ribs… my Smokey’s ribs had been delivered to some random ass house that wasn’t ours.

I stormed out the bed like I was being chased.

Belly heavy, feet swollen, eyes already starting to water.

I was seven months pregnant, hormonal, and starving.

This wasn’t just about food, it was about the one thing I’d been dreaming about since last night.

I had imagined those ribs in my sleep. I could smell the sauce.

I could hear the crunch of the fries in the bag.

I could feel the warm bread in my palm. And now…

Gone. Delivered to some stranger who probably didn’t even appreciate them.

“Seth!”

He came flying into the room like I’d screamed fire. His eyes scanned my face, already panicked. And right behind him came S3 with a toy hammer still in his hand, wide-eyed.

“Yeah, baby? What’s wrong? What happened?”

That was it. The moment he asked, my voice cracked, and the tears dropped before I could stop them. My ribs were gone, and I felt betrayed by the universe.

“I ordered ribs, and they delivered them to the wrong address!” I cried, my words coming out all broken and wet with sobs.

Seth looked at me like he didn’t know whether to laugh, hug me, or grab his keys. “Stormi you’re crying about ribs?”

“No! I’m crying because I’m hungry!” I snapped, clutching my belly like it could feel my pain. “And I was being patient. I didn’t ask you to stop building the crib. I didn’t ask for a foot massage. I didn’t even ask you to come eat with me! I just wanted my damn ribs!”

“Okay, okay, baby. I’ll go get them. I’ll drive to Smokey’s right now”

“No!” I shouted, dramatic as hell. “Go find those ribs. I waited forty-five minutes for those . If you go to Smokey’s, that’s another hour. I can’t wait another hour.”

Seth blinked once, twice, then nodded like a soldier heading to war. “Say less. I’ll find the ribs.” He grabbed his keys, slipped on some shorts and his Nike slides, and was halfway out the room when Bray buzzed us from the gate.

Seth checked his phone and frowned. “Wait, someone just pulled up.”

“Is that the ribs?!” I gasped, hope flooding my chest so fast it made me lightheaded. I wobbled down the stairs as fast as my swollen feet would take me, Seth trailing behind me like my shadow.

Bray was already at the door, holding my Smokey’s bag like it was a holy offering.

Seth took it from him, but before he could even turn toward me, I snatched it out his hands like a mama bear reclaiming her cub.

“Yes, Lord!” I mumbled, doing a little two step dance as I waddled back upstairs, clutching the warm bag like it was my firstborn.

Seth followed me up, quiet and smiling, laying across the bed like he was watching the best show on earth.

I sat down, popped that Styrofoam open, and didn’t even offer him a bite.

He just stared at me, amused, chest rising and falling like he was trying to hold back a laugh.

“Nah,” I said, mouth full. “Don’t even look like you about to ask for none.”

He held his hands up. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Good. ‘Cause this baby and I are sharing these, and you are not invited.”

“Marry me?”

Seth’s voice hit my chest harder than I expected.

I blinked twice, thinking maybe I ain’t hear him right.

He was serious. eyes locked on mine like he already knew my answer, but needed to hear it anyway.

I lifted my left hand slowly, letting the ring he gave me a few months ago sparkle under the light.

“Ummm… I am,” I said, a little confused.

He didn’t flinch. “No, today.”

I sat up, rib bone still in my hand. “Huh?”

“Let’s go get married.”

I stared at him like he was crazy, like maybe the waves I had my fingers all in earlier messed with his brain. “Where, Seth?”

“Vegas.”

I blinked again. “Vegas? Like hop on a jet, say our vows, come back married today, Vegas?”

“I don’t wanna go another day with you not officially mine. Not when I know you already my forever,” he said, leaning in and kissing me like he meant every damn syllable. “You already act like my wife, might as well be her.”

I couldn’t help it I laughed, shook my head, damn near cried. I was sitting in sweatpants, a sports bra, hair wild, stomach full of ribs and baby, and this man was trying to wife me right now. Not in some future fantasy. Not when the baby came. Not after some big-ass wedding. Now.

“Can I finish my ribs first?” I asked, voice cracking through a laugh.

He smirked. “Yeah, baby. Finish your ribs.”

I looked down at the plate, then back at him. “Seth you deadass right now?”

“Deadass. I’ll get the jet fueled, pack up the fam, and we out. Me, you, S3, Mama, Jo, Noah, Rich, Southside, RJ, Ari that’s all we need. Nobody fake. Just our real ones.”

“But I can’t fit nothing, Seth. What I’ma wear?”

“We’ll find you a dress in Vegas. I just need you in white, with my last name on your tongue by midnight.”

That’s when my heart melted all the way down to my damn toes. Ain’t no man ever loved me like this. Ain’t no man ever seen me like this. My flaws, my crazy, my broken pieces and still wanted all of it. I bit down on my lip, trying to play it cool but feelin’ like a damn kid inside.

“We getting married?” I whispered.

“We getting married, baby,” he said, nodding slow, serious as hell. “Ain’t nothing else I want more.”

I damn near jumped out the bed, belly and all. “I gotta get in the shower!”

He laughed and smacked my ass on the way to the bathroom. “Go ‘head, future Mrs. Green. I’ll handle everything else.”

I stepped into that hot shower, let the water hit my face, and the tears fell.

Not ‘cause I was sad. But because I was happy in a way I ain’t never known.

I was about to marry the man who never gave up on me even when I tried to push him away.

A man who didn’t just want a wedding he wanted a forever.

And I was about to give it to him, ribs, belly, stretch marks and all.

This ain’t no fairytale they write in them pretty-ass books.

Ain’t no prince, no glass slipper, no perfect ending waiting around the corner.

This the hood fairytale —where love don’t come easy, but it hit harder when it’s real.

We came up out the mud, bruised but breathing, learning how to love each other in the middle of pain, pride, and survival.

We fought. We healed. We built this shit from the ground up with cracked hands and tired hearts.

And now? I ain’t dreaming about no happily ever after.

I’m living it— our way.

So yeah… I’m ready to say I do .

To the man who held me down when I ain't even know how to stand up.

To the love that wasn’t perfect, but sure as hell was worth it.

“Stormi, you look beautiful.”

I looked up from the mirror and saw Jo’s reflection standing behind me. Her voice was soft, but it carried that weight the kind that comes when someone means what they say.

“Thank you,” I said quietly, brushing my hands down the sides of my dress to stop them from shaking.

We touched down in Vegas late last night.

Everything had been moving so fast from the jet, to getting the dress, to the salon appointment, to right now.

I found this ruched off-the-shoulder white gown that hugged my belly just right.

It was simple but elegant something I didn’t even know I needed until I put it on and saw myself.

My hair was freshly blown out, straightened bone-slick, falling past my shoulders.

I wore silver earrings, and around my neck was the dainty necklace Ms. Serena had slipped in my hand this morning when she said, “Your something new, baby.”

Jo looked me over, eyes soft.

“You ready?” she asked.

I exhaled slow, nerves and joy fighting inside me. “As I’ll ever be.”

She smiled, but there was something in her eyes. A mixture of pride and maybe a little pain, too. She reached into her purse and pulled out a small gift box.

“So, Serena gave you something new. I figured I’d give you something old and something blue.”

She opened the box and pulled out a silver bracelet with a sapphire stone in the middle. It glistened like a quiet promise. She fastened it on my wrist without saying a word. Then she reached back in and pulled out something else. I gasped when I saw it.

“Mr. Teddy…?”

The beat-up little teddy bear looked just like it did when I was a little girl worn, one eye missing, but still whole.

“Mr. Teddy,” Jo repeated, nodding. “He never left. I couldn’t throw him away. I told you I did but I just couldn’t.”

Tears welled up fast. I tried to blink them back I really did but the moment she stepped in and hugged me, I broke. I didn’t care about the makeup. I didn’t care about the dress. I just needed that hug. She held me like a mother holds their baby the kind of hug I used to dream about.

“Thank you,” she whispered into my ear. “For letting me back in. For letting me be part of this moment your joy.”

I pulled back, looking at her with tears streaming down my face. “I’m glad I get to share it with you. I never thought this day would come and you’d be here.”

Right on cue, Ari and Ms. Serena walked in. Ari froze when she saw my face.

“Fix her makeup, child! Don’t just stand there!” Jo snapped, wiping her own eyes and making me laugh through the tears.

“Damn, y’all got my girl crying like she not the bride,” Ari muttered as she rushed over with the touch-up kit.

Ms. Serena stepped close and took my hand, holding it gently.

“You ready?” she asked.

I looked around the room at Jo, Ari, Serena, the reflection of myself in the mirror, belly full of life, heart full of love and I nodded.

“I’m ready.”

“Me too,” Serena said, squeezing my hand like she was passing strength into me. “Let’s get you down that aisle, baby girl.”

“Hey, is the beautiful bride ready?” RJ’s voice came through the door like sunshine. I turned around from the mirror, grinning.

“Yes.”