Page 274 of When a Soul Cries

I didn’t.

This was her first entire weekend away from Halo.

She trusted Sugga. I knew that. But trusting somebody and actually driving hours away from your baby were two different things. Sol’s hand tightened around the strap of the bag while her eyes stayed on Halo.

I stepped closer to her. “She good.”

Sol nodded, but she still hadn’t taken her eyes off her daughter. “I know.”

“If you change your—”

Sugga sucked her teeth so loudly both of us looked at her.

“Would y’all GO? Why is y’all still standing here?”

“Mama!”

“She ain’t changing nothing. Halo is fine.” Sugga’s expression softened when she looked at Sol. She reached out and touched Sol’s arm. “Baby, you deserve two days where somebody ain’t hollering Mama in your ear. Go be twenty-four. I got my grandbaby.”

That brought Sol’s smile back.

A real one this time.

Sugga kissed Halo’s cheek. “And we got stuff to do, don’t we, baby?”

Halo babbled something nobody understood and slapped both palms against Sugga’s chest.

Sugga nodded seriously like they were holding a full conversation. “Exactly.”

I shook my head, watching the two of them.

As Sugga started closing the door, she pointed at me with one hand while balancing Halo with the other. “And Roman?”

“What?”

Her eyes narrowed. “Act like you got some sense.”

I frowned. “What the hell that supposed to mean?”

The door shut in my face.

For half a second, there was silence.

Then Sol lost it.

I slowly turned toward her. “That shit funny?”

She nodded, laughing harder as she headed back toward the truck. “A little.”

I followed her, shaking my head while she tried to get herself together.

I couldn’t even be mad.

I liked hearing her laugh too much.

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The first hour of the drive was quiet.