Page 42 of Meet Me at the Altar

“Do you like it?” I asked, laughing.

“Drè!” She squealed again and turned to throw her arms around my neck. She kissed me all over my face and cried. “I love it, baby. I love it so much.”

She released me, and I watched as she walked away from me and took in the daffodils, daisies, hyacinths, and tulips.

“They are so beautiful, baby,” she declared as she kneeled to sniff several of the flowers.

My heart thundered in my chest at her approval. I walked up behind her and pulled my fingers through her beautiful red hair. “I wasn’t lying when I told you that I would be a thoughtful and generous provider, baby. You deserve nothing but the best. I will never stop rewarding you for saving your heart for me and not taking another man’s last name but mine. That shit is fiya, baby.”

She extended her hand, and I pulled her to her feet. I wrapped my arms around her waist and slowly kissed my woman. My dick instantly reacted, and she pulled back and laughed.

“Mm. Garden sex, that’s a new one.”

“We’ll def’ try that one out.”

“No, sir. Not with all these bugs and butterflies and bees hanging around. I don’t want anything wiggly inside me that isn’t you, and I don’t want anything fluttering that’s not caused by my reaction to you. God forbid that I should get stung.”

“I’m the only one who’ll be doing a little stinging,” I replied, smacking her on the ass.

“Oww. That stung.”

“See what I mean?” I smirked as I pulled out my ringing phone. “It’s Silas. I gotta take this call, baby.”

“Okay. I’ll just be out here enjoying my garden.”

“You do that. Oh, the furniture should be delivered in an hour. If the men pull up and I’m not out front, just call me.”

“Okay.”

“Silas, what’s up?”

“Just checking in on you, man. Has she seen the garden yet?”

“Yeah, we were just out there checking it out when you called. The hell you doing up this early on a Saturday morning? It’s ten over here, so I know it’s only seven in L.A.”

“We had a leak at the new facility that happened overnight. Got a call this morning around four, and I’ve been here with the contractors since. We’ve just about got it wrapped up now. I’ll be taking my black ass back home and getting straight in bed after this.”

“You sure everything’s good? You need anything from me?”

“Yeah. We’ve got it handled, but thanks, as always. How did she like the garden?”

“It’s perfect, man. She’s still out there.”

“So what are we looking at?”

“Two weeks from today is still a go. Make sure that you have everything out there handled so you don’t have any reason not to be standing by my side.”

“You already know I’ve got you. What about that other shit?”

“Nigga, I’m not on that bullshit. I was very clear about where I stood. My mother is my world, and there ain’t a damn thing that I won’t do for her, but I won’t force her to make decisions that she doesn’t want to make. I’m so on the edge about fucking that nigga up.”

“I know, but you and I both know that he ain’t worth it. Give her some time. She’ll come around. In the meantime, hold it down.”

“Always. Take it easy, my nigga.”

I ended the call with Silas and stared at my phone a minute longer. A part of me wanted to call my mama, and the other part of me told me that it would be a waste of time. She had married that man years ago, and he had always been the same nigga he was now. Besides, I was moving ahead with my life and living it. At the end of the day, she still had to go home to that man. That was who she spoke her vows to, but still, she was my mama.

I inhaled deeply and sighed loudly before I made the call.