Page 90 of Cuffed By Your Love

Back in the hallway, Elias turned to me, his hand on my cheek. “You need anything, baby? You want Leila, Nell, or your pops to come sit with you?”

As if on cue, my phone buzzed.

Leila:

We’re outside the station. You need me, I’m coming in.

Daddy:

Just heard what happened. Baby girl, I’m praying. You call me if you want me up there.

I teared up. “Lei and Jas are outside, and my daddy just texted me. I’ll give him a call later.”

Elias kissed my knuckles. “You want me to bring ’em in?”

I shook my head. “Not yet. Just… stay.”

He nodded, his eyes looking like they held oceans and wildfires all at once.

Outside the interview room, he finally cracked.

“I keep replaying it in my head, baby. What if I hadn’t gotten there sooner? What if I lost you?”

I touched his cheek. “But you didn’t. You came.”

He closed his eyes, inhaling sharply. “I can’t lose another woman I love to violence, Jonay. I won’t. I swear to God, anybody try you again… They better pray I don’t find them first.”

I leaned into him. Felt his heartbeat. Matched it to mine.

In that moment, all I could think was he doesn’t just protect me like a cop. He loved me like a soldier who came home from war and realized what he almost lost.

And I was never gonna let that go.

“Umm… excuse me? Y’all gon’ just leave me outside like a broke baby mama at a paternity hearing?”

Leila’s voice sliced through the tension like hot butter, and before I knew it, she strutted into the hallway with box braids swinging, hoop earrings dancing, and a purse big enough to hold a full set of regrets and a taser.

“You alright, sis?” she asked, already closing the space between us with a hug that smelled like SheaMoisture and lemon pepper trauma. “You look like you just went twelve rounds with God’s ghetto cousin.”

I let out a half-laugh, half-sob. “I’m hanging in.”

“Nah,” she said, pulling back to look at me. “Hanging good enough. Your brother is on ten. He said if Kam even breathes in your direction again, he putting his soul on layaway to stomp him out. Daddy lit candles. Real candles, Jonay. Not votives. I’m talking hood Santería vibes.”

Elias gave her a small nod. “Thanks for coming.”

Leila smirked. “Thanks for not catching a charge today, Mr. Detective. But keep that same energy if Kam ever thinks about popping up again.”

The station was still and heavy until Leila broke out into a full-blown DMX impression, stomping her foot like she had Timberlands on and throwing her voice rough.

“These bitches wanna ride, but they can’t?—

These haters talkin’ slick—but they ain’t?—

We gon’ pull up to the store—who we be!

Jonay and meeee!”

A couple of officers peeked out from behind doors. One of ’em started clapping. Another added, “She got bars, yo!”