Page 26 of ‘Til I Say When

W alking into Wilde’s kitchen, I tried to act like I didn’t see three bottles of cough syrup on the table.

I walked straight to the sink and peered out of the window.

I wanted to say the sight of the syrup completely disgusted me.

While I didn’t have the urge to grab a bottle, I wasn’t so confident that I’d last in the same room as three bottles and not have the desire to grab one.

I had been doing great. I still thought about it on occasion, but I made myself think about all the pain and discomfort I went through while I was going through withdrawals, and it was enough to direct my focus on something else.

I had spent the night with Wilde, and I was going to wash his hair for him before I left for work. He ambled into the kitchen. “Damn G, my bad. I forgot those were in here. I’ll take them out.”

I turned around to face him. It was still shocking to me anytime Wilde did something kind or thoughtful. “Thanks. I haven’t had the desire to drink any lean, but I won’t lie and say I’m confident enough to be staring at bottles of syrup.”

Wilde bobbed his head. “I got you, G.”

I smiled as he walked out of the room. I was proud of myself.

And I was feeling him. I was also ecstatic that he told me he’d already wiped my prints off the gun that was used to murder Mazi.

I believed him, and that was a huge burden off my shoulders.

There was plenty going on in the hood. Every time I got on social media, I saw news of shootouts, fights and all the other craziness that people in the city gossiped about.

It was an eventful summer for sure, and no one was focused on me, Drew, and Wilde, and our so called love triangle anymore.

When Wilde came back into the kitchen, he walked up on me and peered down at me lustfully as he gripped my waist. I could feel his manhood poking into me. “Your hair, sir. We’re supposed to be doing your hair. I have to go to work in twenty minutes.”

“Damn,” he mumbled and gripped my booty. He acted like a man deprived. We’d had sex once at my shop and two more times since then. He was backed up for real. Or just a nympho.

As I massaged shampoo into his thick curls, I found myself wondering what a little girl made from the two of us would look like.

Would she have his cinnamon skin and curly hair?

Then I swallowed down a lump as I remembered him saying he didn’t want kids.

Maybe that was for the best because I couldn’t seem to carry a baby to term anyway.

After my third miscarriage, my doctor did an extensive exam, an ultrasound, and she did bloodwork in an effort to find a reason that I kept miscarrying.

She found nothing, which made the situation worse.

It seemed that I was basically losing the babies for no logical reason.

That damn sure didn’t make me feel good.

I pushed thoughts of children to the back of my mind.

Whatever was supposed to happen would happen.

Just because Wilde and I were together for the moment didn’t mean he was my forever person.

But got damn, I was already thirty. If I didn’t find that person now, would I ever?

I had too many thoughts running rampant in my brain.

One thing the lean did was slow down my thinking.

It gave my brain a chance to relax because calling myself an overthinker was an understatement.

I had to over analyze everything, and it was mentally exhausting.

Wilde rolled a blunt while the conditioner sat in his hair.

When he was done, I washed it out, put in leave-in conditioner, and blow dried it halfway.

He told me the rest of it could air dry.

Wilde walked me out to my car and tongued me down so good and nasty in the process that I almost got out of the car and went back inside so we could get a quickie in.

I would have to get on birth control for sure, messing around with him.

Glancing at the clock on my dash, I saw that it was 9:56, and my first appointment was at 10.

It was also KoKo’s day to help out at the garage, and that 10:00 appointment was Nina.

I broke the speed limit the rest of the way to my garage, and I arrived at 10:08.

Sure enough, a gorgeous Range Rover was parked out front.

I hurried out of my car and almost ran into the check-in area.

Nina was standing a few feet away from the check-in counter, and KoKo was on the phone.

The tension in the room was thick for sure.

KoKo was dressed in leggings and a sports bra. She was dressed all the way down but still looked cute. Her natural curls were pulled back into a ponytail, and she smelled amazing. I wasn’t sure what fragrance she was wearing, but she had the entire lobby area smelling like money.

“I’m so sorry I’m late, boo. Come on to the back.”

Nina followed me into my garage area. “You’re fine. I’ve literally only been here for a minute. But um, I’m assuming that’s KoKo.”

“Why do you say that?” my heart began to race.

“Listen, I’m not a petty bitch. I promise I’m not.

And if I was the old Nina, I probably would have spazzed on her, but I’m so over that shit.

The entire time that I stood there, she didn’t acknowledge me once.

I assume she’s KoKo just from her attitude, but this is your place of business.

I should have been greeted or acknowledged in some kind of way, even if she only held her finger up while she was on the phone.

Attitude with me for what? I’ve had enough Pierre induced drama to last a lifetime. I’m good on that shit.”

“I feel you, and I’m so sorry. I told you from the beginning that I didn’t want to be in the middle of anything. But you are absolutely correct. This is a place of business, and you are a paying customer. You should have been treated better than that. I’ll take a hundred dollars off the service.”

Nina waved the comment off. “Girl, you don’t have to do that. I’m good. I promise.”

I told her she could pull her car into the garage, and it was taking everything in me to remain calm. I loved KoKo, and I was trying real hard to be neutral in the matter, but she was starting to piss me off. Someone came to pick Nina up and as soon as she left, KoKo ran into the garage.

“What that bitch say?”

I shot her an evil glare that made her brows hike. I didn’t want to talk to her at the moment because I was angry. KoKo was my friend, and Nina was the last thing I wanted to argue about, but bringing her shit into my place of business was a no no.

“I know you don’t call yourself being mad at me?” KoKo drew back.

“Yes, I’m mad because she didn’t even know who you were for real. She assumed you were KoKo because of your attitude. How was she standing in there for a minute, and you didn’t even acknowledge her? This isn’t the streets. It’s my place of business.”

“So, now that bitch is so bothered that she’s snitching?”

“She’s actually not bothered at all, which is the reason the two of you didn’t end up into it. And she had every right to say something to me, because in here, I don’t give a damn ‘bout her being Pierre’s girl. She’s a paying customer.”

“You have your head so far up that bitch’s ass it’s crazy. You don’t have to worry about me being unprofessional anymore. I’m out.”

Now she was quitting in the middle of a shift.

Lesson learned. I would just hire a stranger off the street because hiring friends and family was dead.

Pierre had KoKo about to lose her mind, and I had my own damn problems. I was going to make a post on social media and just have a day for open interviews.

Other people’s drama wasn’t going to stress me out and as far as the friendship, if KoKo calmed down and she wanted to talk, we could.

I wasn’t about to kiss her ass. She wanted me to have an issue with Nina, and I wasn’t doing it.

I had known KoKo for ten years, and we’d never fallen out.

She was dead wrong, however, and I wasn’t folding.

I was even willing to give her grace because maybe pregnancy hormones had her acting a fool, but I was still going to check her about being professional.

I was paying her to work for me, which meant I upheld her to the same standard I would anyone else.

Tyrese came in about an hour after I got started on Nina’s car. I knew he was going to be late because he told me he had child support court. “Oh damn, I thought KoKo was going to be here today. As soon as I walked up front, I heard the phone ringing.”

“She had to leave. I’m going to hold open interviews Friday, so I can get someone in here on a full-time basis.” That was the only explanation I gave, and he was cool with it.

Even though I was mad, it wasn’t his business what went on. I hated that KoKo felt I was more loyal to Nina than her, but I knew my character. She should, too, but shit happened. It was what it was.

Later that night, Wilde wanted me to spend the night with him, but I wasn’t comfortable being in the house with cough syrup.

I told him to come to my house, and that’s what he did.

When I woke up the next morning and smelled bacon, I thought I was tripping.

I wasn’t sure who I thought would have been cooking if it wasn’t Wilde, but I still looked over on the other side of the bed.

He was, in fact, missing. I had to pee, so I got up and went in the bathroom.

After washing my hands, I also washed my face, and brushed my teeth.

In the kitchen, I saw Wilde at the stove, scrambling eggs and singing along with the Mary J.

Blige song that was playing from his phone on the counter.

I sniggered as I watched him from behind. Even though I couldn’t see his face, I admired what I could see – his inked back, wild curls, and tall frame. I watched him for a good two minutes before he turned around.

“You like what you see?” he licked his lips, making me grin harder.

“I just want to know if you can cook or if you’re in here wasting good food.”

“Oh, I can cook now. My mama was a hoe. All she did was sell pussy and drink, so my grandma raised me. She used to make me sit in the kitchen and do my homework while she cooked. I was around her so much in the damn kitchen, I can probably bake a cake with my eyes closed.”

“What about your father?” I sat down at the table while he fixed my plate.

“He’s a pastor. We don’t talk because after he fornicated on Saturday night, got up to preach on Sunday morning, and tried to tell me right from wrong on Monday, I wasn’t going for it. He’s a hypocrite that plays with God and he can’t tell me nothing about nothing. What about you?”

“I’m a daddy’s girl. I got my love for working on cars from my father. I wanted to hang with him and do whatever he was doing. I’d watch him work on cars for hours. Me and my mom are cool, but I’m closer with my father. For a while, I think my mother was jealous of our relationship.”

“Oh so your daddy is the reason you have rough ass man hands?”

I jumped up from the table and punched him in the arm. Wilde laughed and put me in a bear hug. “I’m playing with you. I’d never let you touch on me with rough hands.” He placed a kiss on my lips, and I sat down at the table.

“What is it that you do exactly? I mean, I know you sell syrup, but is that it?”

Wilde’s shoulders hiked into a shrug. “I do a little of this and a little of that. I don’t sell drugs.

Well aside from the cough medicine, but that’s about to stop.

” He joined me at the table. “The connect that I have at the pharmaceutical company doesn’t want to take anymore.

I might have sold guns here and there. Maybe stolen a car or two,” he stated casually.

I stared at him with raised brows.

“I’m buying a truck today, though. Me and my cousin are going to do a handyman type business. Move furniture, put things together for people, do junk removal, mount televisions, hang pictures, all that good stuff.”

That made me smile. “Congratulations. That’s a big deal. I know you two are going to be successful.”

“That’s the plan. You never know, though. I just don’t want to keep taking penitentiary chances. I don’t want to be broke, either.”

“You’ll do good. I’m sure of it. Have you talked to your baby mama?” I bit a piece of bacon and scooped up some eggs. I wasn’t surprised when Wilde frowned.

“Don’t call her that.”

“That’s what she is. I think you should go talk to her. I know you don’t want a baby but it’s coming. Pregnancy is hard on a woman. At least support her a little bit.”

“You serious right now? That hoe is having a baby to spite me. You want me to support that?”

“Yes I do, because regardless of why she’s having the baby, you helped her to make it and that child will be a part of you.

If she’s stressing and unhappy, the baby will feel it.

I’m not saying you have to rub her belly and cook for her.

At least have some conversations and put a plan in place for when the baby comes.

You already told me you’d never do your child dirty.

Stop being stubborn and talk to the girl. ”

“Mannnn,” he drawled.

“You’re not close with either one of your parents, and you seem to be thriving. But didn’t that affect you just a little? At some point in life, haven’t you ever wished things were different with your parents?”

“I hear you, man.”

“You’re going to go over there?”

“Yeah, and I hope her trifling ass tries to rape me. I’m not even gon’ stop her since you want me to talk to her so bad.”

I shook my head. “You’re way too old to be so childish. If she succeeds in raping you and I find out, you’ll wish you never met me.” I smiled, and he shook his head.

“Fuck did I get myself into?”

“The best situation of your life,” I smiled knowingly.