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On top of that, it created issues with her mom and her man. Not only was Roger providing for them, but she planted a seed in her mom’s head and heart against him by not speaking up and telling the truth. I didn’t agree with things getting physical between Brooklyn and Denise, but I did understand Denise’s frustration. She had three other kids to think about and take care of, and had she not demanded a DNA test, Brooklyn wouldn’t have come clean.
What broke my heart most was the fact that Brooklyn didn’t seem to have a grasp on the importance of communication and telling the truth. Even with her being seventeen, those things should have been taught young, right along with the difference between right and wrong. I held her parents responsible for that and hoped things would work out for her and her baby boy.
“Who has she been staying with?” I asked.
“Her godmother.”
“Oh.”
“But she has to leave.”
“Mhm.”
He sat on the side of the bed next to me. “Apparently, they had a disagreement over the baby’s crying, so they have to go. I told her they can stay here.”
There it is.
“Peyton…”
“It’s just for a little while. Her dad was trying to move back to Memphis, but he’s having some issues with his wife. She doesn’t want to leave Chicago. They are just now getting grounded with the new church, which I understand.”
“I get that. They can’t help her in any other way? There’s literally no one else she and the baby can stay with?”
“They’re going to stay here with us. Just until her eighteenth birthday. After that, she will legally be able to go wherever she wants. Brooklyn wanted to get emancipated before then so she could make her own decisions, but her caseworker didn’t see the need for that, so they are making her wait until her birthday.”
Nibbling my cheek, I processed what he was saying. Technically, Peyton could bring whoever he wanted in here. It was his home, and he paid the rent. I appreciated him discussing it with me, but I also felt like he had made the decision already and wanted me to go along with it.
“I’m cool with it as long as we understand our role and responsibilities. I don’t have children, and I don’t want to take care of hers. You know how attached I get to babies. I don’t want that to be the case. What is she expecting from us financially? How is she getting to school? Does she have a job? What about the baby’s care? Who will watch him while she’s at work and school?”
Peyton confidently answered all my questions. She was working at McDonald’s, but it was the one on the other side of town by her school and godmother’s house. She paid a hundred dollars a week for daycare while she was at school and work. It sounded like Brooklyn had a good routine in place, but it also sounded like she needed to be back on the other side of town for it to work. Peyton hated driving and wasn’t the most dependable person. I honestly didn’t see him waking up to take her to school and work or keeping the baby for her. He worked overnight doing security at a hotel.
How was he going to rest with a crying baby in the house?
It sounded like he was putting far more on his plate than he could handle. Them being here temporarily was one thing… but for an entire school year? That sounded like a bit much. I didn’t want to seem like a heartless woman, so I agreed, but my intuition was telling me this shit was not going to work—at all. I was going to strongly urge she moved in with someone closer to her school and job or worked things out with her godmother after the dust settled. For now, it looked like we had two underaged houseguests.
2
Aspen
That Weekend
It didn’t take much to convince Enjell to tell me where Malaysia worked. I’d texted her last week, and she didn’t respond. That obviously meant she wanted to talk to me face to face. Enjell reminded me that she had a boyfriend, but I didn’t give a fuck about that shit. I was used to getting what I wanted, and that wouldn’t be any different with Malaysia. She was fine as fuck, but it wasn’t just about her looks. There was something about her aura that drew me to her. I wasn’t sure what it was yet, but I wanted to find out.
Malaysia worked for Denali at her clothing store. Already, I loved that about her. She showed up for her sister to help her at the kitchen, and apparently, she’d been working for her friend since Denali opened her store. I’d been around Denali a couple of times because of her husband, Elite. Elite and Supreme were brothers, and Supreme was cool with my brother.
I made my way through the store in search of Malaysia. She wasn’t hard to find. Her elbows were resting on the glass counter with her face in her palms as she pouted. For a second, I just stood there and took her in. Even with her looking all sad, she was beautiful. Her cocoa brown skin was wrapped around a short, slim-thick frame. I usually went for curvier women, but there was just… something about Malay.
She had slanted brown eyes and round lips. Her hair came down to her bra. It looked like it was all hers, but you could never be too sure these days. I didn’t care about that kind of shit, though. As long as she kept it looking nice, that was all that mattered to me.
As I headed over to the counter, it was like she sensed someone else was around. She stood upright and looked around until her eyes landed on me. Malay smiled softly and made her way around the counter.
“Hi,” she spoke with a wave.
“Wassup?”
Her smile dropped quickly, replaced by the sad pout that was on her face previously.
“You need help finding anything?”
