Page 69 of Love Sanctioned

She laughed. “Believe it or not, even then I had every intention of coming back, but it got kind of easy being here. Got me a lil spot and a lil shit. I’ve kind of made a life here and the only thing missing is my son. But he loves Briar South; he loves his father and his stepmother. I can’t force him to move here and I won’t try. I just ask that you at least make him come see me for some vacation, Psy.”

I laughed. “He’s damn near grown, Carla. But that’s fair and I’ll talk with him about it.”

“I know, right? Where the hell did all the time go? One minute he’s a little squirt and the next he’s taller than me and his voice is deep. Tell Karsyn y’all have to share your little boo with me because I swear I’m not trying to have any more.”

A chuckle escaped my lips as I continued to eat.

“You’re laughing, but I’m so serious. You’re starting all over. Junior is about to be seventeen. As a matter of fact, you’ll probably have a two-year-old when your son goes off to college.”

“You tryna make me feel old, right?”

“Nope, not at all. I’m trying to guilt you into sharing your baby with me.” She laughed through her statement. “It’s okay, I’ma ask Karsyn.”

We talked for a while longer, going back and forth before I had Killah on my line talking mess. At that point I was on my way to the restaurant, so he said he’d see me there.

I pulled up in front of the brick dwelling around ten, which gave me several hours to get some things done. I wanted more for this space, so I couldn’t allow all of the things I was currently dealing with to overshadow that.

“You must’ve come to work.” I looked at the jogging fit he was wearing as I opened the door.

“Damn sure did. We’re about to get this paint on the walls and whatever the hell else you’ve been slacking on.”

I laughed. I had definitely been dragging my feet, but only because it felt like everything was going on at once. Not to mention I was walking around here with a hole in my chest for what felt like forever. I had gone from not having my baby to not being able to have enough.

“You know Unc would be proud. Seeing you stepping into your own space.”

“You think?”

He nodded. “I know. Unc showed us the streets, but I don’t think he ever intended for us to stay in them, you know? He was always giving me these mini talks when I came over. Lowkey used to avoid them, but now I could use one.”

I nodded. “I feel you.”

Killah then attempted to transform his voice to mimic Unc’s. “‘Nephew, get ya shit together. Don’t be out here walking around with a neck and no head.’”

“You know I still don’t know what the hell he meant by that either.”

“I thought it was just me. I think he just used to say things he thought would be profound.” Killah shrugged, picking up the bucket of paint.

We both busted up laughing.

“Yo, that ain’t my uncle. You’re around here sounding like Morgan Freeman.”

He laughed even harder.

For several hours we painted, talking mess back and forth while listening to music. We did more than I thought we’d be able to, starting in the main dining room with a deep indigo then to the hallways. The first one leading down to the private dining area was a deep denim, then my office ending up an even darker blue. The washrooms, kitchen, and other miscellaneous areas still needed paint, but that much I’d handle later. Being that I was no contractor, I couldn’t handle everything, but it was a big deal to me for me to be a part of every part of this process. I was the same way when I bought my home. I was meticulous about every detail.

“We got a lot done today, brother. I’ma head out, but I’ll definitely be billing you for my time.”

I laughed, cleaning up after us. “I got you for a free meal when we opened up.”

“All my meals should be free here. You heading out or staying for a while longer?”

“Staying a lil longer, probably let my wife in on what I've been working on.”

He nodded. “Aight, come lock me out.”

I grabbed my phone off the bar as I moved behind him to lock the door. When he was gone, my first call was a FaceTime request to Karsyn. I hadn’t really heard from her today, which meant she was pretty busy or on that selectively mute stuff.

She answered the FaceTime on the second ring. I immediately noted she was in the car.