Page 2 of Certified to Handle You 3

I already knew what was comin’ before he answered.

“Hey, Ma,” he said as he put the call on speaker.

“Good mornin’ to my engaged son,” Ms. Emoree said through the phone, and I could hear the happiness in her voice.

Couture laughed and looked at me. “You still excited?”

“Yes, I’ve been up looking at wedding venues since seven this morning,” she replied. “Where Sha’Nelle at?”

“She right here.”

“Hey, baby!” she said louder.

I smiled even though she couldn’t see me. “Hey, Ms. Emoree.”

“I hope you got some rest because we got a lot to do. This is your wedding.”

My eyes moved back toward my ring while she talked.

Couture sat beside me and wrapped his arm around my waist. “You got two people ready to spend money now.”

“Okay,” I answered like a damn fool, tryna keep my voice normal. “We can do that.”

Ms. Emoree kept talkin’ about colors, flowers and people she already knew would try to invite themselves. Couture laughed beside me while adding his own comments, and I sat here listenin’ to two people build around an answer I wasn’t sure I should’ve gave.

Chile, I ain’t have it in me to ruin they happiness this mornin’.

Maybe that made me wrong, but it wasn’t ‘cause I wanted to play with Couture. I was scared of hurtin’ him, and every hour I waited probably made that worse. I knew that. Still, knowin’ what I needed to do and havin’ the heart to actually do the shit was two different things.

By the time the call ended, Couture needed to leave for work.

He grabbed the rest of his things before walkin’ me out of the apartment. We went down together, and when we reached my car, he opened my door before pullin’ me against him.

“You good, baby?” He asked while lookin’ down at me.

“Yeah,” I told him as I rested my hand against his chest. “It’s just a lot happenin’ at once.”

Couture nodded. “We ain’t gotta rush nothin’. We engaged. That’s enough for right now.”

That almost made me cry right here.

Instead, I leaned into him when he kissed me and let myself feel the comfort that came with bein’ held by somebody who loved me. When he pulled away, his thumb moved across my cheek.

“I love you,” Couture told me.

I nodded before answerin’ him. “I love you too.”

And I did…

I got into my car, and Couture waited until I was settled before closin’ the door. I watched him walk toward his own car, then started mine and pulled away.

I made it out of his apartment complex before Renza came back into my head.

Truthfully, that nigga had never left…

For almost three months, I had been tryna live around the space he left in me. I blocked him ‘cause I knew myself. I knew all Renza had to do was catch me at the right moment and I would start forgettin’ every reason I was supposed to stay away from him. That man could piss me off until I wanted to throw somethin’ at his head, then pull me against him and somehow have me forgettin’ half the argument before I finished cussin’ his ass out. Then, the whole situation with him puttin’ Couture in a trunk. After he did that crazy ass shit, I knew I had to be done.

I hated how controllin’ he could be. I hated how he always thought whatever he decided was supposed to become law for everybody else. Renza ain’t ask enough. He told. He pushed. He loved with both hands wrapped around everything, and sometimes bein’ loved by him felt like he wanted to swallow my whole life just to make sure nobody else could touch it.