Page 38 of Emani's Way
I laugh loudly because my Mama has absolutely no filter.
“No, ma’am. There aren’t any tramps here. I went to Dr. Jackson’s church.”
This gets my father’s attention. He sits up, and his blue eyes, which are identical to mine and Zane’s, narrow at me. Dr. Jackson has been a special client of my father for years, the problem is, I have no idea why.
I know about their business arrangement to a degree, but I have no idea how it came about. I don’t know why a preacher needs a secret lawyer. As far as I can tell, Dr. Jackson doesn’t have any special files, but there’s definitely something going on.
“How is Miles? I haven’t seen him around the course lately.”
“He’s fine. I’m actually…”
“Babe? Hey, I feel better, and I’m kinda hungry. Do you…” Emani interrupts, but her words abruptly stop when she sees my parents.
The cute flush of her cheeks and the way she tugs at the shorts she’s wearing tells me that she’s embarrassed. Meanwhile, I’m trying to figure out if she’s wearing a bra under that shirt.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize you had company.”
“Come on in here, Sugar, and meet my parents.” I get up so I can usher Emani into the room.
When I reach where she’s standing, I give her a reassuring kiss to her temple. She smiles up at me, and I kiss her lips softly.
“Wait. Did you say, parents? Oh my God! I need to go change,” she whispers with wide eyes.
“No, you don’t. You’re at home relaxing. You don’t need to change.” I pull her into the living room, where my parents are watching us.
My Mama has a huge smile on her face, and my father tilts his head with a curious expression. Before, his eyes widen slightly and he smiles.
“Emani, this is my stepmother.” Sarah gives me the side-eye, and I correct myself. “What I meant was, this is my Mama, Sarah, and my father Joseph. Parents, this is my girlfriend, Emani,” I introduce them.
“Nice to meet you,” Emani greets as she shakes my father’s hand, but my Mama engulfs her in a big hug, rocking her side to side.
“I knew there had to be another reason Maddox was going to church all of a sudden.” Sarah takes in Emani then winks at me.
“If you ladies will excuse us, I need to speak with my son for a minute,” my father says.
I go to Emani and kiss her lips once more, “I’ll be right back, Sugar. There’s food for you in the kitchen.”
Emani nods, and I follow my father to my home office. I shut the door behind me and sit on one of the couches that faces my desk. My father sits beside me and takes a deep breath.
“Alright, what’s going on? You’re scaring me,” I state, looking at my father.
If there’s one thing about Joseph Reid, he is never at a loss for words. The man could talk the ears off an elephant. The hesitancy and deep breathing have me worried. If he says something crazy about Emani, I have no idea how I might react.
“So, you’re dating Miles’ youngest daughter, huh?”
“Obviously. Is there a problem with that?” I ask, my guard going up.
“No, of course not.”
I feel like my father wants to say something, but when he shakes his head and smiles, I know whatever he is thinking will stay in the vault of a brain of his.
“I heard your mother…” he stops talking when I narrow my eyes at him, “Elizabeth came by the firm the other day.”
“I should’ve known. You already knew. Why didn’t you come save me?”
My dad chuckles, “I didn’t know she was there until later. What’d she want?”
“She wanted me to talk to you about giving her shares in the firm.”