Page 51 of The Best is Yet to Cum

“I want you to—go ahead,” I encouraged.

“No, you go first.”

“I want you to stay with me.”

“Oh, thank God. I was about to ask and was hoping the offer still stood. All I need are my clothes. We can put my furniture in storage, and I’ll use my savings to buy out the lease. I don’t feel safe here.”

“Baby, you don’t have to convince me because I’ve wanted you with me since we reunited. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of everything.”

“Didshe find out how he got her address?” Evander asked.

I took a few days off from work to move Mona into my condo. He knew about the situation, but we hadn’t talked, so he didn’t know all the details.

“Not yet. We thought he might have been following her, but that wouldn’t explain how he knew her apartment number.”

“Damn. I hate that shit happened, but look at the bright side. She’s living with you and no ultimatum was needed.”

“True, but I’ll always wonder if she truly wants to be there.”

“Don’t overthink the shit, man. She could’ve gone to stay with her mother or one of her friends until she found another place. She had options if she didn’t want to be there.”

“You’re right. She actually asked if we were turning the guest room or the office into the nursery.”

“Oh yeah, she’s feeling right at home with no plans of leaving.”

“You know I’m the king of takeout. Man, we went grocery shopping last night and stocked up. This is the most food I’ve had at the crib since I bought the place. I can’t wait to see what we’re having for dinner.”

“I told you, being a bachelor ain’t got shit on having a good woman by your side.”

“You were most definitely right about that. Let me get to work. I’ll probably work through lunch and stay late to see if I can put a dent in this paperwork. Thanks for holding it down for me while I was out.”

“You know that’s never a problem.”

Evander left and I got straight to work. However, my cell phone interrupted me with a call from an unknown number.

“This is Clinton,” I greeted cautiously.

“Hello, Clinton. This is Tyla Blackwell, Mona’s mother.”

“Oh, hello, Mrs. Blackwell. Is everything okay?”

“Yes, everything is fine. I called to find out if you’re available for lunch today.”

“Lunch?” I looked at the documents on my desk. “Yeah, lunch is cool. What time and where?”

“I’ll text you the details, and it’s not necessary to mention this to Mona. See you soon.”

She ended the call before I could respond. I leaned back in my chair, wondering what Mona’s mother could possibly want to discuss with me. I’d find out soon enough, so I pushed it to the back of my mind and finished as much work as possible before leaving for lunch.

A few hours later, I showed up at the restaurant that Mona’s mother had chosen. To my surprise, Karla, Lariah, and my mother were also there.

“Hello, ladies! I’m sorry I’m late. I got caught up at work. Umm, Ma, what are you doing here?”

They stood as they greeted me, and I embraced each of them, my mother for a little longer than the others, before sitting in the open seat next to Lariah.

“It’s not a problem. We know you’re a busy man, but we didn’t want to delay this meeting any longer,” Mrs. Blackwell stated.

“What’s this about?” I asked.

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