Page 44 of Rocky

“Slow down, Rue. We aren’t having sex, and we promise to come to you before we do. Can we stay?” Sage pressed.

“Y’all can stay because I’m not about to talk about sex. What I will say is me and Rocky are dating?—”

“And fucking!” Rosemary cut in.

“Rose!” I exclaimed.

My other sisters thought Rosemary was hilarious, and I did too…most of the time. She let everything that came to her mind come out of her mouth, and sometimes, I wanted to pop her in it.

“Am I lying?”

I rolled my eyes. “Anyway. Now that I’ve allowed myself to acknowledge my feelings, I really like him…like a lot.”

“Okay, sis. Rocky is the real deal. I think he’s good for you,” Blossom said.

“And now that you’ve gotten your back blown out, you’ve been so much more relaxed,” Rosemary added.

“Girl, I’m sick of you. Stop talking to me.”

We had a good laugh, and they continued drilling me about Rocky. I didn’t think it was a secret, so I shared with them what he told me about his upbringing, being raised by his grandparents, the loss of his brother a few years ago, and Safe Haven.

“Damn, no wonder he has such strong feelings about Deacon putting his hands on you. That shit hits too close to home,” Daisy commented.

“And losing a sibling?” Blossom shook her head. “I’d crash out if something happened to one of y’all. I couldn’t imagine how him and his brother feel.”

“They’ve suffered some huge losses in life. It sucks, but they’ve really turned out to be great human beings. I can’t imagine a sixteen-year-old boy volunteering at a shelter for abused women. That’s so commendable,” Rosemary said.

“He’s a good man, Savannah. You’d better hold on to him,” Violet said, causing us to look in her direction.

“Girl, what are you doing quotingWaiting to Exhale?” Daisy asked.

“What? That’s a good movie, and I’ve seen it multiple times.”

I shook my head at my youngest sister but had nothing to say. My phone rang, pulling my attention away from my sisters. When I saw an unknown number, my gut told me it was Deacon.

“Hello?”

“Unblock my fuckin’ number, bitch.”

“Who is this?” I asked unnecessarily.

“I see you’re still playing dumb. The next time I call you from my phone, my number better be unblocked.”

“And if it’s not?”

“You don’t wanna find out.”

The call ended, and I sat in disbelief for a moment. It had been almost two weeks since I last heard from Deacon when he called to make demands from the hospital. I ignored him then but wasn’t sure if I should continue to do so.

“Aww, shit. I know that look. That was Deacon, wasn’t it?” Rosemary asked, and I nodded. “What did he say?”

“Basically to unblock his number or else.”

“Or else what?” they all questioned in unison.

“He said I don’t wanna find out.”

“Call Rocky,” Blossom suggested.

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