Page 46 of Anything Necessary for Her
“How do you even know Wyatt?” she quizzed.
“He’s Low’s brother.”
“Exactly, Banks. Last I checked, you and Low weren’t even so much as friends, let alone close enough for you to be hitting me up for a job for his brother and doing his résumé—he told me.”
Nibbling on my lip, I contemplated on whether I should be truthful or not and decided to. None of my sisters-in-law had betrayed my confidence in the past, and usually, whenever my brothers tried to be overbearing, they would come to my aid.
“Low and I have been . . . kicking it.” I grinned unintentionally, making her do the same. “But you cannot tell Shakur.” I put a finger to my lips.
“Why not? You’re grown, and he would have to get the hell over it.” Her brow hiked for a beat.
“I love you,” I admitted with a smile. “But it’s not really about that. It’s more about the fact that I don’t know how I feel about what we’re doing yet. He’s ignorant to relationships and on how to conduct himself in one, and he’s afraid he will do me wrong. And if he’s afraid, shit, so am I.”
“As you should be.” She bobbed her head. “If a nigga tells you he gon’ fuck you over, most likely he will, and you can’t be mad.”
“Exactly. So why tell my brothers, have him betray Asif, and then have my daddy trying to pull up on him with the choppa, just for us to last two months?”
“I get it.” She sighed.
“If I’m gonna cause that kind of bedlam, then it needs to be because I feel like this man is worth it and what we have is real and long-lasting.”
“Well, how long do you plan to keep shit a secret? I feel like, eventually, it will come out, and that will be worse. Someone is gonna see y’all together, Banks.”
Shrugging, I said, “I don’t know. I guess until I feel like I can trust him and what we have. For now, it feels too flighty and unstable.”
I kept my composure, but on the inside, I was worried and fearful that Low and I would fizzle and that our time spent would just be a little secret I kept for the rest of my life and never sprout into anything more. ’Cause at the moment, Low was too mysterious and reckless, and I was too strict and protective of my heart and time to be his guinea pig for relationships.
Presley and I chatted for a little while longer, mostly her explaining to me Wyatt’s schedule and the times he would be working. I wanted to know this information so I could keep his ass in line. Low was busy, and I felt like that made it easy for Wyatt’s ass to slip through his fingers.
My phone chimed a little after Presley left, so I retrieved it to see Wyatt had texted me to say he was here.
He and I had never met, but Low was sure that we exchanged numbers. From there, I created an email and a résumé for him, though I didn’t need to for him to get this job.
I started toward the back door where employees entered and swung it open to see a prepubescent version of Low. He was just as handsome, had his same syrupy brown skin, only he wore his hair braided back while Low had a fade. He had a thin mustache above his lip, which was a far cry from Low’s mustache and beard combo.
Some of the brother’s features were different, though, making me wonder if Wyatt had a different father. He shared Low’s last name, however, so maybe not.
“Nice to finally meet you, Wyatt.” I beamed, but he just gave me a curt nod, his face balled up. “Can you speak, or do you only grunt and growl for responses?”
Sighing like I was the most annoying person on the planet, he replied, “Hi.”
“Come on.” I waved him inside to follow me. I showed him where he would clock in, put his things, his schedule, and then lastly, what he would be doing for the day.
“Nah, I’m supposed to just stand up front and write people’s name down,” he argued, shaking his head at the sink full of dishes that he was supposed to wash.
“Yes, but your trainer isn’t in today, so you have to wash dishes. Plus, your job description consists of you helping where you are needed, not one stationary place,” I explained.
“Nah. Y’all got me fucked up. I don’t even know why I’m here. I’m a fucking minor. Ain’t this against the fucking law?” His brows bunched as he stared down at me.
“Okay, Wyatt, I was trying to be nice, but I see I’m gonna have to be tough with your young stupid ass,” I stated sternly, making his eyes mushroom slightly in surprise. “You will bring your ass here every Tuesday and Wednesday and do whateverthe hell your supervisor tells you to, whether that is washing dishes, being the hostess up front, or even tap dancing for customers.”
“Shiiit! I bet I won’t!”
“Yes the fuck you will!” I closed the space between us, making him press his chin to his chest to look down at me before he chuckled.
“If I don’t? Fuck you gon’ do? Call big bro? Low ain’t gon’ let him touch me.”
Grabbing my purse hanging on the wall, I retrieved my gun that fit perfectly in it to show him. His mouth gaped then closed then repeated the action before I said, “What do you think I’ll do?”
