Page 104 of Bear
“You do,” I grumbled. It wasn’t meant to slip out. I was supposed to be playing the role of the docile ever-grateful son but I couldn’t keep burying things down in my chest. I had to recover quickly so I shifted my concern to Luanne instead of Cecily like I wanted. Luanne was grown. I knew she could handle herself but I still played the defensive role.
“Oh yeah? Why do I need to stop, huh, Lane? Huh, Bear? Why? Y’all know something I don’t know? Is Cecily spoken for?” His arm tightened around her waist.
“I can speak for myself and I’m not spoken for. Just tired of being around a lot of people,” Cecily sighed.
“Well, let me take you away.”
“No,” Lane said after she snuck a quick look at me. “You can’t stand here and disrespect not only Cecily but Lu. You know better than that, Griff.” She walked over to him and put her hands on her hips defiantly. I noticed we had the same look when our heels were dug into the ground. Dad noticed it too because he barked out a sharp laugh. His arm fell from Cecily’s waist though. I was stunned at the game Lane was playing. She weaved a web effortlessly and I saw it all coming to fruition before my eyes.
“I know better? Lane, who the fuck you think you’re talking to? That’s what I want to know.” Dad’s chin tipped upward as he erased the space between him and Lane. I knew that moment because I’d had it with Cecily so many times before. All the rest of us melted away. The only two people in that kitchen were Lane and Dad.
“I’m talking to you. You’re being insanely disrespectful to Lu and Cecily. You think because you’re out of jail and everyone’s happy to see you that you have a fucking crown on your head?”
“Your mouth is reckless. You clearly haven’t had anyone put anything in it to shut you up in a while.”
“Yo, Dad…chill the fuck out.” I hated hearing him talk to my mother like that but Lane was time enough for him and didn’t let it ruffle her feathers at all. Dad was playing right into her hands, evidently.
“I haven’t. I’m sure you know that though. I’m not easy to shut up.”
“You’re not. I’m good at working with difficult women like you though.” He smoothed a hand over his chin and walked toward the doorway. “Lane, let me talk to you for a minute. It’s been a while.”
“It has…” She smirked but it was phony. She hated every second of standing in the same room with him and I didn’t know how the fuck he couldn’t pick up on it. The moment Dad left the kitchen, I pled with Lane only using a look.
She passed by me but I grabbed her wrist in my hand. “Don’t fuck him.”
“If I don’t, he’s going to go after Cecily. You and I both know I’m his only weakness. Always have been.” Her smile was sad and it made me sick to my stomach.
“You don’t have to do this shit. I can end it now.” I said, my chest tightening every time sadness washed across her brown face.
“Bear, let me go, baby. I’ve been down this road before.”
“Lane! Bring your feisty ass,” Dad barked. She flashed me and Cecily a sad look.
“Mom, please,” I pled. She stopped in her tracks and walked toward me until we were face-to-face then she stood on her tiptoes and kissed my forehead.
“You have no idea how long I’ve waited to hear you say that. I love you, Bear. I’ll be back in a minute, I’m sure.”
“Seriously, Lane,” Cecily begged. “You don’t have to.”
“I do. Griff doesn’t need to get his nasty hands on you.” She didn’t say another word before she disappeared out of the kitchen behind Dad. Once again, my mother tossed herself on the sword to save someone else.
I came from a woman like that.Me. The broken dark, jagged devil I was. I came from a woman like her with a good empathetic heart. Maybe that’s what Cecily saw when she looked at me because it damn sure wasn’t whatever I got from my father.
“I can’t believe she did that.” Emotions swam in Cecily’s eyes. I didn’t know how to feel other than pissed that my mother had to fuck my father. It was a strange thing to be upset about but it felt like a violation instead of a mutual thing that was agreed upon. I knew she didn’t want him to touch her. I knew it was one of those things that she’d grin and bear but she shouldn’t have had to. Dad shouldn’t have been so fucking clueless.
The kitchen was steeped in silence as I wiped a lone tear that escaped down Cecily’s cheek. The night couldn’t progress soon enough. As much as I hated the idea of Lane fucking Dad as a diversion, I was equally grateful. It gave me enough time to make sure everyone was still on board and knew how I wanted to handle murdering my father.
The sound of the front door opening and closing jolted everyone out of their trance. Kareema’s phone made a noise and she checked it then looked at me. “Tito’s here,” she told me. Her voice was flooded with relief. I think everyone wanted to get the last part of the night over with.
I nodded then grabbed hold of Cecily’s hand and walked into the foyer. Tito didn’t come with a small army. There was nothing inconspicuous about the way he flooded my house with his men. Luckily, we had the space to accommodate them.
“Shit. How many people are on your team?” I asked him, looking at the huge motherfuckers filing into my house.
“This is only my security detail.” He flashed me a smile then we slapped hands and greeted each other. “Let’s meet my potential client,” Tito smirked knowingly.
“He’s kind of…busy at the moment,” I sighed, glancing toward the stairs.
“Good. That gives me a little time to feel out the playing field. Everyone in here is on your side, correct?” We moved through the house to the backyard. I’d already made up my mind that I didn’t want to do anything messy in the house because it meant Luanne would have to set the scene and Dad would know exactly what was going on the minute he saw plastic lining the floor.
