“You checked homework?”
“I checked homework and made sure everybody ate. We good?”
“Yeah. We good.” I paused and exhaled because I knew for a fact this wasn’t exactly how Drake wanted to spend his last year of high school, parenting kids who weren’t his. “I appreciate you,” I added.
“You good.”
“Alright.” I hung up and immediately went to my account and moved a hundred dollars to his.
He texted almost immediately.
Mini Me:
Thanks.
I liked the message but didn’t respond and tossed my phone back on the bed.
“Do you need to go?” Selle asked.
“Yeah, actually.” I sighed. “I?—”
She cut me off. “You don’t owe me an explanation.”
“I know but I don’t want you to think I just wanted to fuck you and dip because that wasn’t what this was.”
“I know,” she said simply. She collapsed back onto her ass. “You don’t get far selling fantasy to men without knowing when they’re selling fantasy to you.” She shrugged. “I think you had every intention of staying until you got that phone call and it’s cool.”
“But we’re going out soon.” I pushed forward to kiss her. “I promise.”
“Promises, promises,” she sang as she pushed onto her back.
“You’ll see.” I hopped up, walked around her bed, and kissed her one more time just because it was still surreal that I had that ability now.
“We’ll see,” she corrected.
“Bet.”
I nodded and grabbed my shirt, quickly sliding it on while I collapsed at the foot of her bed and pulled my shoes on.
Selle walked me to the front door and I looked down at her once I was on the opposite side of the doorway.
“Call me after you get some sleep and I’ll get you to your car.”
“I’ll get an iDrive.”
“Selle—”
“Bye, Stone.”
She tiptoed, kissed me, then pushed me away with one hand. I took a step back, even though we both knew she couldn’t actually push me backward, and she slammed the door in my face. I listened to her slide the lock into place, shook my head, and headed out.
When I got home, the house was mostly dark except for one upstairs bedroom light I knew was Drake’s. I parked in the covered area beside a car I didn’t recognize and took my time hopping out of my truck.
The five-bedroom, two-story house I lived in with my entire family looked like a piece of fucking junk on the outside but the inside was well maintained thankfully. The front door opened to the living room, the door right beside it leading to my bedroom. I quietly shut the door behind me and locked it in place before doing my rounds.
There was one other bedroom on the first floor that belonged to the third oldest of the family, twenty-two year old Morocco. Since he had a kid and his baby mama, Leann, staying with us, it made sense for them to have the biggest bedroom. I knocked lightly then peered inside. Leann was sleeping sitting up with my niece laid on her chest and also sleeping, rainforest noises coming from the television.
I shut the door quietly then headed upstairs. The door nearest to the stairs belonged to my older brother Elijah who was currently doing a ten-year bid behind some stupid shit. I checked his room anyway just to make sure it was empty and everything was still where he’d left it.