Page 58

CREED

A s I left physical therapy at the Clippers' facility, my muscles sore but my mind clear, my phone buzzed in my pocket. I pulled it out, frowning when I saw the unknown number flashing across the screen.

I hesitated for a second before answering.

"Yeah?" I said, keeping my voice neutral.

"Creed…" her voice was strained, almost desperate. "I need your help."

I exhaled, already knowing where this was going. "What do you want, Gi?"

"Money for a lawyer," she said immediately. "Creed, I’m damn near broke. All my money is gone from paying for these legal fees, and the court-appointed lawyer ain't doing shit for me. I just need help getting a good attorney—one that can actually fight to get me home."

"And then what?" I shot back.

She was silent for a moment before sighing. "Then I fight for the chance to see my son again."

I gritted my teeth, my grip tightening around my phone. "You do realize even if you get out, you won’t have access to Gio without my permission? You lost custody, Gianna. And it wasn’t because of me—it was because of you.”

"I know that," she muttered bitterly. "I fucked up. I made bad decisions, I own that. But Creed, he’s my son too. I can’t just let this be my life. I need to get out, get my shit together."

I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck. My first instinct was to say hell no—she made her bed, now she had to lay in it. But then I thought about Gio, how just last night he had asked when he could see his mom again.

"He misses you," I admitted.

Her breath hitched. "I miss him more than you know. Please, Creed… just help me get home to my baby."

I was silent for a long moment before finally relenting. "I’ll find you a lawyer and I’ll pay for it out of my own pocket."

"Oh my god, thank you, Creed. I swear I?—"

"But there’s one condition," I cut her off. "You need to leave Nate alone. That nigga is out here free, living his life, while you’re in jail because of his bullshit. And if you even want the possibility of being in Gio’s life again, you need to cut ties with him—permanently."

There was another long silence before she finally whispered, "I know. I see it now, Creed. He was never good for me."

I nodded even though she couldn’t see me. "Good. Because if I even hear that you’re back on some dumb shit after I help you, that’s it. No more chances, Gianna. You’re done."

"I get it," she said quietly. I was about to end the call when she spoke again, her voice softer this time.

"I know we got a messy history," she started.

"And I know I’ve done some foul shit. But I gotta be real about something…

Nate and I? We were messing around for a minute—even before you and I broke up. "

I clenched my jaw. "I know."

She exhaled sharply. "You knew?"

"Nas saw you sneaking out of his room one morning. He told me a while back." I admitted. "I never said anything because, honestly? I didn’t give a fuck at that point. We were already done."

She hummed softly. "Guess it doesn’t matter now. Either way, I always knew Gio was yours the moment I saw his face. And whatever happens, I’m glad he has you. You’ve been a better father than I could’ve ever asked for."

That caught me off guard.

"I appreciate that."

"Oh, and before I forget," she added, her tone shifting. "I saw the news. You and Serenity." I didn’t say anything. "I thought that would be me one day," she admitted. "But even though I still can’t stand her ass, I respect her. She loves my son like he’s her own, and for that… I’ll back off."

That, I wasn’t expecting. "Good to hear."

"And Creed?"

"Yeah?"

"Glad you got rid of Jailah’s triflin ass too."

I actually chuckled. "Yeah. Me too."

With that, we ended the call just as my car service pulled up to the house.

“Martin, I need a favor,” I said entering the house and immediately going into the office. I walked to the desk, sitting in the swivel chair before turning around.

“What’s up, what do you need from me.”

“Gianna needs a lawyer. I told her I would pay for it. Can you take care of that for me?”

“Doesn’t your wife’s family own an attorney’s office?”

“Yeah, but if I wanted to ask my wife, I wouldn’t be on the phone with you now would I?”

“So, you’re on bullshit?”

I didn’t respond to that, instead I ignored him. “Can you get it done or not?”

“I’ll handle it.”

“Good,” I replied before disconnecting our call.

Rubbing the bridge of my nose I could feel her presence before I even saw her. "What the fuck was that?"

I turned around to see Serenity standing in the doorway, arms crossed, her face set in a look that told me she was pissed.

"Serenity," I sighed, already knowing where this was going. "Don’t start?—"

"Oh, I’m startin nigga," she snapped, stepping further into the room. "Why the hell are you paying for Gianna’s lawyer without even talking to me about it first?"

I let out a deep breath, not in the mood for this fight right now. "Because it’s my money," I said evenly. "And she’s the mother of my son. If I wanna help her get out, that’s my decision."

Her bitter laugh filled the room. "Oh, so now we’re making big ass financial decisions without consulting our spouses? That’s how this works now?"

I clenched my jaw. "This is about Gio, not her."

She shook her head. "I get that. But last time I checked, I have been raising that boy with you for years. I love him just as much as you do, and I would do anything for him. But her? That’s different.

She’s made her choices, Creed. You bailing her out without even discussing it with me first is not okay. "

I exhaled sharply, already tired of this conversation before it even fully started. "Serenity, I’m just trying to do the right thing. I’d help you the same way if it were you in this situation?—"

Her head snapped back as she scoffed. "Do not put me and Gianna in the same category. That lady made her bed. You shouldn’t be bending over backwards to fix her mistakes."

My patience snapped. "It’s not about fixing her mistakes," I shot back, my voice firm. "It’s about making sure Gio’s mom is at least trying to get her shit together so he can have both his parents in his life."

“Yeah, because it’s like you said; that’s your son right?”

“Serenity, you know?—”

“Save it.” Serenity’s nostrils flared, her brown eyes flashing with anger. "Creed, I am trying so hard to be rational about this, but you just made a major decision without even considering how I’d feel about it. That’s the issue."

I pressed my tongue to the inside of my cheek, frustration boiling under my skin. "I don’t know what you want me to say, SB."

She shook her head, her voice softer but no less hurt. "I don’t either, Creed. But this? This ain't it."

Before I could say anything else, she turned on her heel and walked out, slamming the door behind her.

And just like that, the air felt heavier, the walls closing in on me.

I ran a hand down my face, exhaling sharply.

I was just trying to do the right thing for Giovanni and for Gianna. But instead, I had fucked up, again.

The house was too damn quiet as I tucked the kids into bed later that night.

Cree was already knocked out, her cast-covered arm resting against her stuffed animal. My baby girl was so damn strong, barely even letting her injury slow her down.

Gio was a little harder to settle. “Where’s Mommy?” he asked sleepily, his little hands rubbing at his eyes.

"She’s not here, kiddo." I ran my fingers through his curls, tucking the blanket tighter around him. "She’s still… away."

He frowned but nodded, clearly too tired to press further. "Tell her I miss her."

My throat tightened as I nodded. "I will."

After kissing both kids goodnight, I finally made my way down the hall to the master bedroom, knowing another battle was waiting for me inside. I sighed and said a silent prayer before going in.

Serenity was sitting on the bed, her legs crossed beneath her, reading through a stack of scripts.

Even in full-blown pissed-off mode, she looked so damn beautiful.

The soft glow from her bedside lamp illuminated her deep brown skin, her hair pulled into a messy bun on top of her head, the silky material of her robe sliding down her shoulder.

Her eyes flickered up for half a second, acknowledging my presence before going right back to her script.

Damn. Still mad.

I sighed and kicked off my sneakers, pulling my shirt over my head before sitting on my side of the bed. I watched her for a moment, hoping she’d say something, but she just kept flipping pages, acting like I wasn’t even in the room.

Fuck this.

I ran a hand over my face before finally saying, “You really not fuckin with me?”

Serenity scoffed, not even bothering to look at me. “I don’t have anything to say to you.”

"Bet," I muttered, throwing my legs onto the bed and leaning back against the pillows. "You gon’ be mad forever, or we gon’ handle this like grown folks?"

She let out a humorless laugh, finally setting her script down. "Like grown folks?" She raised a brow. "You mean like how you handled shit earlier? By making major-ass decisions without talking to your wife about it first? Or when you were saying yes to yo baby mama, did you forget you had a wife?"

I exhaled sharply, already tired of going in circles. "Come on now, I ain’t forget that fast. It’s just I was just trying to help her for Gio’s sake?—"

"And I told you, that’s not the damn point!" Serenity’s voice echoed in the room, her frustration boiling over.

I opened my mouth to argue, but she snatched up her scripts, swung her legs over the bed, and got up. I watched as she stormed toward the closet, clearly done with this conversation. I couldn’t let her just walk away from me like that.

“Come here, SB.” I reached out, grabbing her wrist just before she disappeared inside the closet.

Serenity sighed, irritation thick in her voice. "What, Creed?"

I pulled her closer, letting my hands graze her waist. "You still mad at me, huh?" I muttered, my lips brushing against her temple.

She rolled her eyes. "Obviously."

I dipped my head lower, my lips grazing the curve of her jaw. "You still mad enough not to let me make it up to you?"

Her breath hitched for half a second before she snatched herself away from me. "Oh, so that’s what this is?" She raised an eyebrow, looking me up and down. "You think I’m just gon’ forget how you played in my face today cause you wanna fuck?"

I shrugged, smirking. "Worth a shot."

Serenity let out a bitter laugh, shaking her head before folding her arms. "You know what?" She tilted her head, her expression pure pettiness. "Go ask Gianna to fuck you."

My smirk widened, knowing exactly where this was going. "You sure? Your feelings gon’ be hurt when it happen."

Serenity’s eyes narrowed, and before I could react, her long freshly manicured nail dug into the side of my face mushing me. "Try it if you want to, dumbass. I’ll beat both y’all asses—again."

I barked out a laugh as she grabbed her pajamas and stormed into the bathroom, slamming the door shut with enough force to shake the walls.

I shook my head, amused as hell, but underneath all the playful back-and-forth, I knew I was in deep shit with my wife.

And if I wanted to get back in her good graces? I had a lot of work to do.