Page 47 of Rhodes to Love

It felt like the mattress enveloped me and like its sole responsibility was to hold me tight. Rhodes was full of surprises. We’d gotten to Austin at about two o’clock this morning, and he’d taken me to the Four Seasons Hotel. I’d never stayed at this hotel chain, simply because I couldn’t see myself paying more than five hundred dollars a night for a hotel room. Hell, I barely wanted to pay two hundred dollars a night.

Rhodes wasn’t lying next to me, so I wasn’t sure where he’d gone. The bedroom was separate from the living area, so he was probably in there. The door was closed to the bedroom, and I knew that was so I could rest. I sat up and stretched then checked the time to see it was nearly eleven. I couldn’t believe I’d slept so long. I assumed my body was more drained than I thought.

As I made my way to the bathroom, I could hear Rhodes answer his phone. He was in the sitting area as I suspected. When I walked inside, I went to the vanity to stare at myself for a moment. I could see Wesley Henderson Senior in my facial features, and I got misty eyed. I didn’t spend as much time with him after I finished high school, because I was busy with school and rodeoing, but he and my grandmother always supported me.

He was my playmate when I was little and had to stay over there for whatever reason. As I thought about it, I never reallyhadto stay there. I was there because I wanted to spend the night, or becausetheywanted me to spend the night. He and I would play Connect 4 and Checkers all the time. When I finally started beating him at those two games, he wanted to switch it up on me and change games. I chuckled to myself at the memory.

I opened the toothbrush that was on the vanity and brushed my teeth then washed my face. I couldn’t take a shower yet, because we didn’t bring any clothes. Rhodes just wanted to get me away, and I was so appreciative to him for that. I had gotten a really bad headache listening to Aunt Tiff scream and cry on the other end of the phone. She was so hurt and angry. When I first heard Milana had done that ho shit, I was angry too, not to mention what she was about to do at my house that day.

When I left the bathroom, Rhodes was standing in the bedroom waiting for me. He smiled big and said, “Good morning. You look so rested.”

“Ifeelrested. Thank you for this, Rhodes.”

“Of course. You ready to go shopping?”

“I just realized I’m not wearing a bra. I can’t go in nobody’s store like this.”

He frowned. “Why not? You look sexy as fuck. Fuck people and what they think.”

I slightly rolled my eyes and chuckled. “I don’t care what people think. I don’t feel comfortable though. I’m gonna take a shower, and our first stop has to be somewhere where I can get a quality panty and bra set… or at least a bra. I can go without panties.”

He lifted his eyebrows slightly and gave me a silly grin, causing me to chuckle. He spun me around and pulled me in his arms, laying his hands on my stomach. “I love you so much, baby.”

“I love you too. Is there anything in there to eat before we go?”

“Yeah. I went down and got donuts. You want a cup of coffee or tea?”

“Coffee, please. I may have tea later. It depends on how I feel. I had a slight case of indigestion after eating that fried food yesterday. That’s the worst.”

“Yeah. My mama used to complain about that. She used to keep Tums in her purse. She said she was sick of it, but obviously not if she kept eating foods she knew would flare it up.”

He chuckled, and I did too as he led me to the kitchen area. I sat at the table while waiting for him to heat up my donuts. I smiled at him as he turned on the Keurig. “I can’t believe you remember that,” I said.

“Remember what?”

“That I like a little heat on my donuts.”

He smiled as the microwave beeped. “Girl, I remember everything about yo’ pretty ass.”

I giggled. “You do, huh? What was my favorite subject in school?”

“Math. Try something harder.”

“What was my favorite meal in school?”

“Girl, you ate anything that wasn’t nailed down. I said try something harder, not impossible.”

I hollered with laughter. “Oh my God! Roselynn kicked. I probably scared her. It’s your daddy’s fault, honey bump.”

“Ooooh, so you already trying to get my baby to be on your side. That’s dirty, KD. You know my princess is going to idolize her father, right?”

I rolled my eyes as I watched him add cream and Splenda to my coffee. “Not if I can help it. She’s gonna be like I was as a kid.”

“Oh yeah? Well, you just proved my point. You may have clung to your mama at times, but you idolized Kenny Henderson. That nigga used to be almost your entire conversation. My daddy this and my daddy that,” he said, trying to mimic my voice.

“Shut up, fool!” I laughed more then asked, “Did you call him to let him know we were leaving town?”

His eyebrows lifted as I laughed. “See what I’m saying? You a daddy’s girl. Admit it. I called him early this morning to let him know I got yo’ pretty ass out of there. I told him where we were and to call me if they needed anything, because you broke your phone.”

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