Page 60 of Intercept My Heart

“How do you know?”

“I’m not religious, but you can’t tell me this doesn’t feel like fate. What are the odds this man meets his own sons at a football camp? In my heart, I believe this is all happening for a reason. You just have to stay the course and allow things to work out the way they are supposed to.”

“You always know the right things to say.”

“Oh, please, Rae. I would never have made it through life or school without you and your words of encouragement. I know this isn’t the way you envisioned things unfolding, but if I’ve learned nothing else in life, it’s that you’ve got to trust the process.” I nodded, realizing her words were true. I never had much control over the things I’d experienced in my life, but somehow, life had begun to fall in place for me. Dinero’s return would be a blessing to my children, and I refused to believe anything else.

“Alright. Well, I’ve taken enough time in your therapist’s chair. I’m sure you have real clients to tend to. I’ll call you back if I hear anything else.”

“Okay, boo. I’m here if and when you need me.”

I pulled into my driveway, but my mind was so preoccupied that I missed the figure sitting on the front steps outside of my house. Hurriedly, I turned off the car, hopped out, and raced over to where he was.

“Hey, where have you been?” I kneeled to see his face. Dinero had bags under his eyes, and it looked as if he hadn’t slept in days. His body smelled like a mix of liquor and cologne.

“Are you okay?” My hands cupped his face as he stared everywhere but at me.

“Everybody lies,” he uttered, catching me off guard.

“What are you talking about?”

“Everybody lies. All of you. All of the people I’ve ever trusted have lied to me. I’m always the person coming to everyone’s rescue, and y’all can’t even tell me the truth.” He scoffed. I wasn’t sure who else he was referring to, but I recognized that he was drunk and needed to sleep it off.

“Let me get you in the house.” I reached for his arm, but he moved it back.

“Don’t touch me. I don’t need to be babied or helped right now. I want to know why everybody lies.”

“I can’t answer that. Every circumstance isn’t the same. Some people lie because they are selfish. Some lie because they know the truth will hurt the people they love, and they want to protect them.”

“Oh yeah? And which category do you fall under?”

“I ask myself the same question often. All I can say is that I’ve never intentionally tried to hurt anyone. Nor have I ever lied to save my own ass. What happened between us was a case of young people dealing with grown-up situations, I guess. There were a lot of things I didn’t know then that I know now.”

“And what’s that?” Even under the influence, his eyes pierced through my soul.

“Can we talk inside?” I held my hand out for him to grab. He ignored me, but he got up from the step to follow me into the house. I turned the air down because the temperature in here constantly changed.

“Do you want some water?”

“No. I only came here for answers.”

“Well, in order to get the answers you’re looking for, you’re gonna need to drink this water. I need you sober for this conversation.” Dinero glared at me, and I responded with a smirk.

“You’re bossier than I remember.”

“Yeah, well, I had to learn to be more assertive since I no longer had my protector.” His eyes softened, but he remained silent. It was crazy to be sitting in a room with him after all these years. When I looked at him, all I saw was my hero, the person who helped me at a time when I didn’t have anyone. Dinero held my hand during some of the worst moments of my life, and now here we were in such a weird space.

“Why are you staring at me like that?” Nero inquired.

“I don’t know. I guess I’m taking it all in. These last two weeks have been a wild ride, and I’m still wrapping my mind around the fact that we have children together.”

“Who are you telling? I went from one kid to three overnight. I haven’t had much time to process it.” I flinched when he mentioned having another child. Since our split, I made it a point to stay away from anything concerning his personal life because I didn’t think I would be able to handle seeing him with the family that should have been ours. We sat awkwardly as I watched him chug the bottle of water I’d given him.

“Do you want to take a shower? You can use the guest bathroom if you need to.”

“You tryna say I stink?” Nero chuckled.

“I wouldn’t necessarily say it in that way. I’m just used to you being… fresher, if that makes sense.” The boys would be home in a couple of hours, and I wouldn’t want them to see him in this condition.

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