Love Don't Live Here Anymore (The Love Collection Book 3) (21 page)

At 10:53 p.m. Summer’s phone rang, jolting her awake. She peeked at the cable box and the baby and realized that they must have fallen asleep while watching TV because they were both fully clothed.

“Hello,” she said, trying to clear her sleepy voice.

“I miss you and I’m sorry,” a male’s voice said.

Summer sat up slightly on the couch, careful not to wake Akia and spoke again. “Excuse me?” She wasn’t sure whether she’d heard the person correctly.

“I said I miss you. And I’m sorry. I need you, Miss Lady,” Braxdon said.

Summer grasped her chest when she heard him call her by a name that only he used.

Tears came pouring out of her eyes, and for the first few seconds she couldn’t speak; so Braxdon did. “That was my little man, yo. I never, ever, ever felt a pain like that before. That shit cut deep, man, real deep. My heart hurts like crazy. It feels like someone reached in my fucking chest and placed a clothes pin or some shit in it. And you know the crazy part? As much pain as I feel, and no matter how hurtful this is, it doesn’t overshadow something else I feel: love. Every memory of my boy brings pain, but … you … When I think of you, Miss Lady, a little bit of the sting drifts away and shimmers of hope shine through. I need you in my life. That’s the only time things seem to be right,” he confessed.

“Oh Braxdon, I wish I could erase your pain, make this all go away. I am so sorry this happened to you. I’m sorry,” Summer cried.

“Me too, Miss Lady, me too. I know I can’t come to your place, but I want to see you. No … I need to see you. Can you come to me?” Braxdon asked, more as a plea than a request.

“Uh, um …” If it were just her, she would have jumped up and went to see him, but Akia was fast asleep and she didn’t want to bring her out in the cold.

Braxdon took her silence as a denial. “It’s cool. I didn’t mean to bother you.

I—”

“No, no. You didn’t bother me at all. Let me just get myself together. I can hear you aren’t at home, so text me the location and I’ll be there shortly.”

“Aiight, bet,” Braxdon said, sounding a little more uplifted.

“Oh, and Braxdon, I have someone with me.” Summer ended the call. She brushed her teeth and washed her face. She awakened Akia and did the same to her. Summer changed into some jeans and a sweater, threw on her Ugg boots and got both their coats.

She sent Braxdon a text message and told him she was outside. When she saw him coming down the stairs, she stepped out of her car and he walked to the driver’s side. When she exited the rental car, Braxdon scooped her into his arms and held her close. He sniffed her hair, smelled her neck, and looked into her face. He held her gaze for a brief moment and then kissed her sweetly.

“I missed you so much, Miss Lady,” Braxdon confessed after he pulled away from her face. He hugged her again and rested his chin atop her head. At that moment, he noticed the small body in the back of the car, and tilted his head down to get a better look. He then looked at Summer quizzically.

“Oh, um, I didn’t have a chance to tell you that I have custody of my ex, uh, AJ’s daughter now. Too much to get into right now but I’ll fill you in later,” she promised.

Braxdon nodded and told her to get the baby and bring her inside. He placed his hand on Summer’s lower back as he walked next to her up the stairs. When she entered the house, she wasn’t surprised by the number of people there. When Braxdon had called her and now as she walked into the hallway, she could hear the chorus of voices. 

“Yo, B, hurry up and take ya hand, man. Auntie over here reneging and shit. She done cost us three books and probably the game,” a guy yelled over the music and the other people talking. It was after eleven o’clock at night and Summer wondered if any of them had to go to work the next morning and if the neighbors upstairs cared. But that speculation quickly went out the window when she heard a woman say she was going upstairs to get some more ice. The smell of weed and cigarettes were quite prevalent throughout the apartment. Little kids were running back and forth, until one of the adults yelled for them to get back into the bedroom. About seven guys were sitting in the living room, watching a standup comedy show. Five of them had cups in their hands and two of them were smoking what looked like weed. Eight more people were gathered in the dining room, while four of the eight sat around the table, playing a card game that seemed to be quite competitive because they were either yelling at one another or slapping fives.

Summer wanted to run back out but decided that it wouldn’t be the best move. She followed Braxdon as he made introductions and she exchanged pleasantries with everyone. He brought her to the big room, where all the kids sat watching a big screen TV or playing on the floor with random toys.

“This where we stash the kids when we have get-togethers. If little mama comfortable, she can chill in here while we mingle,” Braxdon offered.

Summer took a good look at all the kids and took in their ages. She knew big kids could be rough and she wouldn’t be comfortable leaving Akia alone with them behind a closed door. But because all the kids appeared to be between the ages of one and four, she felt a little better. She did a quick but thorough once over to make sure that there was nothing that could be harmful within their reach or vision. Once she felt comfortable with her assessment and made sure Akia was okay with the kids, she cautiously left the room but asked Braxdon if they could leave the door cracked and of course he agreed.

He offered her something to drink and she settled on a rum and Pepsi to help ease the nervousness of being around so many people that were strangers to her. Braxdon took his seat back at the table and offered Summer the seat next to him. He tossed out cards, grabbing the pile and placing them neatly next to him.

“You know how to play Spades?” Braxdon asked Summer.

“No,” Summer said.

“What? Oh, damn. We got to change that.”

He continued throwing out cards and told Summer why he played certain cards when he did. One of the opponents got a little annoyed and told him to save the lesson for when she wasn’t playing. The room erupted into laughter and Braxdon snickered.

“That’s my cousin. She takes Spades very seriously, to the point that only a selected few will actually play with her,” Braxdon explained to Summer.

“And I will only play with a selected few,” she retorted as she slammed her card on the table.

“Oh, shit! Let’s go!” Braxton yelled as he slammed down his last card. “Stuck ’em. That’s game.” He asked who was next and two more people sat down. His serious-taking spades-playing cousin bickered with her teammate, letting him know where he went wrong.

Summer laughed at the antics. “If people act like that, I don’t think I ever want to learn the game,” she admitted.

“Nah, it’s cool. Not everybody takes it that seriously. Most players do, but others like to play for fun. Don’t worry, once you learn, you gonna wanna play all the time,” he told her.

It was one o’clock in the morning and surprisingly, Summer wasn’t as sleepy as she thought she would be, but she did yawn a few times. “I’m sorry.”

“I know you have to work in the morning, so if you gotta bounce then I understand,” Braxdon said as if the yawn had burdened him. His expression revealed a pain that reflected through his eyes.

“Nah, I’m good. I took tomorrow off. I have some things I need to take care of. I haven’t told you but—” Summer started to say, when some people walked through the door and were louder than necessary.

Braxdon turned around to see who had entered. He dropped his head and shook it.

Siyahna and her loud-mouthed sister had entered the room. He kissed Summer on the forehead and continued talking to her to offer a little distraction from what was about to unfold.

“I’m back, bitches,” Siyahna announced. “I got next on the card table too,” she added.

“Oh, you my partner then, because I need a rematch against Braxdon. Ya boy just caused us an L and you know I ain’t leaving until I beat they ass,” his cousin said.

Braxdon heard Siyahna walking in their direction and turned around so she could meet his gaze. He was hoping his eyes silenced her before her mouth had a chance to say something she shouldn’t.

“Every time I turn around, this bitch is in the picture,” Siyahna seethed.

Summer shook her head. For the life of her, she couldn’t figure out why chicks had to be so ignorant. For once and for all, she wanted to know what beef Siyahna had with her. Granted, this was a tough time for them and she respected that. Had it not been for her love for Braxdon, she never would have agreed. But this was his side of the family and he’d asked her to be there. A part of her trusted that he wouldn’t let the drama happen.

“Listen,” Summer said, “I don’t know what problem you have with me, but I don’t think there’s a need for one. I’ve never done anything to you, yet every time our eyes meet, your mouth gets real reckless.”

“That’s because I don’t like you.”

“But you don’t even know me. I’ve never done anything to you. My friendship with Braxdon shouldn’t be a reason to dislike me,” Summer tried to reason.

“Friendship? Please, bitch, you know you fucking him. Talking about that
friend
shit. Braxdon and I will always be together,” Siyahna spat.

The room had gotten uncomfortably quiet. Summer felt her adrenaline racing. The conversation was going nowhere and she didn’t like the fact that she was serving as entertainment for people she didn’t even know. She decided that it would be best for her to get Akia and leave. She had never been a sucker or a sucker for love and she wasn’t about to start. When it was all said and done, Siyahna was Sirad’s mother and deserved peace with family and friends after such a devastating loss. Summer stood up to go.

Bernice, Braxdon’s cousin, spoke up. “Yo, won’t you chill with that dumb shit? You always talking that bullshit. Braxdon don’t want you.” Clearly, she must have disliked Siyahna because she didn’t waste any time coming to Summer’s defense.  

“Whatever!” Siyahna said, but that was the extent of her engagement with the girl.

Summer tried moving to get Akia and their things so they could leave but Braxdon wouldn’t let her. “Nah, B, I got this. She always doing some dumb shit. Siyahna! You really getting on my nerves. I ain’t your man and you damn sure ain’t my woman. Every time you hear about me seeing someone else, you try to throw a wrench in my shit. I just buried my son; can’t you give me some peace.

“No,
we
just buried
our
son, Braxdon. Mine and yours!” Siyahna corrected him.

“Whatever man, but you at my peoples’ place acting a fool. Summer is my company and if you can’t handle that then bounce.”

“Oh, now you kicking
me
out? You telling
me
to get out? Fuck you, Braxdon!” Siyahna said. Everyone could tell she was emotional, but she did a great job of holding back the tears.

“Braxdon, no, don’t do that. I’ll leave. It’s late anyway,” Summer said.

“Well, I’m leaving too,” Braxdon said and that drew sighs and teeth sucking from the people in the house.

“Oh, hell no, cuz. You ain’t got to leave. Siyahna can get her shit together or she can leave. This is our way of coping with Radi’s death. We need to be together as a family and no one needs to be here more than you,” Bernice said.

Siyahna looked around as if she felt stupid. She had just embarrassed herself and she looked like she wanted to leave. But her pride got in the way. “Well, I ain’t leaving either, unless Aunt Barbara Jean kicks me out,” Siyahna said, knowing that wasn’t going to happen.

“Then sit yo’ ass down and get ready to kick some ass in Spades,” the cousin who had just lost interjected.

Siyahna walked back to the kitchen and glared at Braxdon and Summer on her way. She returned with a cup and went into the living room until it was their turn to play. Summer was going to get up and leave but quickly decided against it. She felt like she would be giving Siyahna exactly what she wanted and there was no way she was going to boost her ego anymore. So she stood right there next to Braxdon and even pinched his butt out of fun. He looked at her and smiled.

Braxdon leaned down and whispered in her ear, “Thanks for not leaving and not kicking her ass in front of everybody.”

Summer burst out laughing. She excused herself and went to check on Akia. She thought she would be laid out, sleeping along with a couple of the other kids but she and Brenda were playing nicely and it made Summer smile.

“You girls okay?” Summer asked. Brenda said yes and Akia nodded.

As if on cue, Siyahna came in there, like she was checking on Brenda. Summer stood. She wasn’t trying to seem confrontational but she wasn’t about to be caught off guard either.

“Hey, Mommy’s girl. You okay?” Siyahna asked Brenda.

“Yeah, I playing with my friend,” Brenda said and her statement drew a scowl from her mother.

Having peeped the whole scene, Braxdon had followed Siyahna into the room and stood at the door. Both Summer and Siyahna noticed his presence at the same time and Braxdon felt that it would be a great time to officially introduce the two. Siyahna may not have been receptive to the introduction, but she had no choice but to respect it.