Page 86 of Love At Close Range

“Hell yeah!” He cheered causing me to snap my head in his direction.

“Boosie, watch your mouth before I go in it,” I warned him.

“Sorry, Mama.” He tried to calm himself down, but the smile on his face wasn’t going anywhere. “But I wanna go. I could see Dad all the time, right?”

“As much as you want,” I admitted.

That was enough for him. He started asking when we would move and whether he would still get to see Lennyn when she was at Lennox’s house. I had to remind him more than once that I hadn’t made a final decision yet, but I could tell he had already made his.

For the rest of the drive, I thought about how easily he had accepted the possibility. Rhyse wasn’t worried about changing schools or starting over somewhere new. All he heard was that his father would be there and was all that mattered.

The move still came with things I needed to figure out, but one by one, the reasons I had been holding onto were becoming easier to work through. Tasha could handle more at RÉIA. My girls supported me and Rhyse wanted to go. And if I was being honest with myself, I wanted to be with Lennox too.

***

A little while later, I was back in Cannon Hills looking at office space for RÉIA.

Once I agreed to move, I started making plans instead of just talking about them. Tasha was preparing to take over more of the day-to-day operation in Arbor Point, and I had been looking at spaces that could work for a second location in Cannon Hills. I wasn’t trying to duplicate everything overnight, but I wanted something here that belonged to me too.

The space I toured that afternoon was the first one I could actually see working. It had enough room for a reception area, two offices, a small conference room and storage area. The location was good… the parking was decent, and the numbers were within the range I had already set for myself.

The realtor went over the lease terms with me before we walked through the space one more time. I asked a few questions about improvements, signage and how soon I could take possession if I decided to move forward.

“I really like it,” I told her when we made it back to the front. “I want to go over everything again before I make a final decision, but this is probably the strongest option I’ve seen.”

“That’s fine. I’ll email you the updated terms and everything we discussed today,” she confirmed.

“Perfect. I’ll get back with you soon.” She smiled.

I thanked her and headed outside feeling good about how the meeting had gone. I was already reaching into my purse for my phone to call Lennox when I saw the one person I could’ve gone the rest of my life without ever seeing again… my mother.

For a second, I just stood there. It had been years since I had seen my mother, but none of the distance between us had softened anything. Seeing her brought back feelings I had gotten used to not having to deal with, and judging by the way she stopped when she noticed me, the feeling was mutual.

“I see you still got that same nasty-ass attitude. I guess some things don’t change,” Reina laughed humorlessly.

“Neither does knowing when somebody doesn’t want to be bothered, apparently,” I countered.

“I wasn’t bothering you. I asked a question.” Her eyes moved toward the building again before settling back on me. “But I heard you were back messing with Lennox, so I guess I shouldn’t be surprised to see you over here.”

The fact that she knew anything about me irritated me more than it should have. We hadn’t spoken in years, yet somehow she was all in my business.

“Who I’m with and why I’m in Cannon Hills has nothing to do with you,” I spat.

“Trust me, I’on give a damn who you’re with.” Her mouth curled slightly. “I just find it interesting that after all these years… you still haven’t learned that everything you want doesn’t end well.”

I stared at her, and something in my chest tightened. She didn’t have to say another word for me to know where she was going.

“Don’t do that shit, Reina.”

“What shit?” she asked, even though both of us knew.

“You haven’t laid eyes on me in years, and the first chance you get, you’re already trying to bring Daddy into it. Leave him the fuck out of whatever problem you have with me,” I argued.

Her face hardened at the mention of him. “You don’t get to tell me when I can talk about my husband,” she snarled at me.

“And you don’t get to keep using my father’s death to punish me,” I shot back.

“He wouldn’t be dead if you hadn’t been such a brat!” She pointed her finger at me.