Page 58 of Truce Of The Matter

Tears are streaming down her face and I don’t give a fuck. She brought this nigga to our parents’ anniversary. This nigga. The one who beat her into a coma. The one who took everythingshe had and the one who landed Dax in jail for three fucking years.She can’t be serious.

“Dax! Baby! No!” Chantel yells and I glance over my shoulder.

Dax is storming toward Romelo. Chantel’s running behind him, trying to keep up with his long strides. I turn around and step directly in front of my brother. I’m not letting him go back to prison for this muthafucka.

“I got this. You are not going back for him,” I say sternly.

“That’s right, son. Let your brother handle this,” my pops says. He’s consoling my mother with his arms wrapped around her as he speaks.

“I got this,” I repeat.

“Then get him out of here,” Dax warns, then glares at Lyra. He opens his mouth to say something but nothing comes out; he just shakes his head. He’s angry and hurt and he has every fucking right to be.

Hell, I am too.

Chantel looks at Lyra and I can see the anger and utter disgust on her face. She rolls her eyes hard as hell then says through gritted teeth, “You are wrong as hell for this shit. Dead ass wrong.” She turns to Dax then wraps her arms around him. He latches onto her and they walk out of the back of the solarium.

“My nigga you got to bounce. Right now too. They are sparing your bitch ass but not me. Sorry, Auntie,” Mere says. “In ten seconds, I’m going to forget where the fuck I am and your peoples won’t know where you are. You feel me?” Romelo tries to stand again but fails. “Get up nigga!” Mere yells.

“He can’t; he needs help,” Lyra cries.

“He don’t need shit but to get up. He had all the strength he needed when he put his fucking hands on you or did you forgetthat shit? He can move and he better before I drag his bitch ass out of here.”

“I’m leaving,” he utters.

He gets on all fours like a damn dog. Then, he uses his hands to push off of the floor. Again, Lyra makes an attempt to step to him but I shake my head and she stills. When he’s standing, I crowd his space and get all up in his face.

“Your best bet is to go the fuck back from where you came. The threats on your life are real and this is our city. Leave before you are shipped out in a body bag and don’t even look at my sister when you leave,” I warn.

He nods then turns to his right to avoid Lyra. When he opens the glass door, she actually begs him not to leave.

“Lyra! Enough! Just enough. I have had enough. You might as well leave with him,” my mom says, utterly heartbroken.

“Momma!” Lyra cries.

“Momma nothing. She ain’t going with him. He’s going the fuck first then she can leave,” Mere grits before roughly shoving Romelo in his back. He practically stumbles into the family room but he somehow manages to stop his fall. “Stupid ass,” he utters.

As soon as they are out of sight, I step to my sister. I’m filled with too many heartbroken and disappointing emotions to really tell her how I fucking feel, so I simply say, “You fucked up.”

Chapter 17

What started out as a perfect evening ended in total chaos and sadness. I felt absolutely horrible for Rex, his brother, Aryel, and especially his parents. Their whole anniversary celebration was ruined. After Lyra’s boyfriend was dragged out by Nymere, Lyra left. Poor Miss Arlene was a mess. Chantel and Dax never walked back into the solarium; they left. So Nyrielle and I cleaned everything up as best as we could while Rex tried to console Aryel and his mom.

“I’m going to follow you home,” I tell him. I’m sitting in my driver’s seat and he’s standing in my doorway. He’s obviously still upset about everything and I can see the hurt in his normally vibrant eyes. He’s also worried about Aryel. She was so worried about her dad and uncle and when Rex knocked the dude out, she lost it and couldn’t stop crying. I don’t think she’s ever seen her dad that upset before. “Did you hear me? I’m following you to your house.”

He leans in and pecks my lips then says, “Okay.”

After closing my door, he walks over and gets in his truck. I start my engine then follow him as he pulls out of his parents’ driveway. Because his home is in Chandler Heights, it takes us almost thirty minutes to get there. He drives into his garage andI park in his driveway. When I walk into the garage, Aryel’s eyes light up when she sees me.

“You’re spending the night?” she asks and I grin but defer the answer to her dad.

“Yeah, baby, she’s staying,” he says and she walks over and embraces me. As we walk into his beautiful home, Aryel yawns back to back from exhaustion, probably physical and emotional. “Let me get her settled then I’ll be back,” he says when we enter his spacious great room.

“Daddy, I want to show her my room,” she says with a slight pout.

“She can see it later or in the morning,” he tells her before leading her to the staircase.

I ease down on his oversized black sectional and make myself comfortable. While I love my boots, my feet are screaming for a release so I remove them. My eyes scan his space and everything screams Rex. The masculine hues of black and gray dominate his décor but the accent pops of red soften everything, also reflective of him and his tender side that I’m obsessed with. About ten minutes later, he returns downstairs and walks over to me.

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