Page 24 of Her Only Choyce

ChapterTwelve

Lavender

With Jazmine Sullivan blasting,Lavender put the last of the cleaning supplies in the hall closet. She hated lying to Choyce, but she didn’t want him to know she’d moved to Memphis yet. As of now, her lease was for three months. There was something in her gut telling her Choyce wouldn’t want her living there for long, and she would gladly move in with him.

“Whew.” Placing her hands on her hips, Lavender headed down the hall to her new bedroom.

It wasn’t as hard to say goodbye to her crew at Lucky’s as she thought it would be. Though she still owned the restaurant, she’d given complete control to her managers. Her gambling days were over, but between her earnings at the restaurant and playing poker, she had more than enough money saved to take her time finding a new restaurant for this next phase in her life.

Her heart was lighter than it had been in years. The childlike innocence that she was robbed of was slowly starting to return. That wounded little girl who felt abandoned was finally feeling wanted and loved.

Lavender grabbed a bottle of water out of the kitchen then headed to her bedroom to shower and dress. She was anxious to tell Choyce the news in two days. By then, she hoped to have her furniture delivered and the final touches on her apartment. Before heading to the bathroom, Lavender grabbed her phone and saw that she had several missed calls from Choyce.

“Shit,” she muttered, quickly dialing his number.

“I’ve been calling you,” was the first thing he said.

“I know, and I’m sorry. I was cleaning up and hadn’t thought about my phone. Is everything okay?”

“Yeah. Jazzy is in labor, but they aren’t expecting her to have the baby until tonight, so you have time to get here. I’ll Cash App you so you can book a flight.”

“Ah! My sissy about to have our baby?” Lavender rushed to the closet, grabbing the first lounge dress she could reach.

Choyce chuckled. “I’m worried we’re going to try and have our nephew more than his own parents will.”

“Listen. I have no doubt. Are you headed to the hospital, or are you going later?”

“I’m about to go now. I can tell by Mercy’s tone that he’s nervous.”

“Okay. Give me about thirty minutes and I’ll be there. Well, an hour so I can stop and get flowers and balloons.”

“An hour? You’re in Memphis?”

Lavender’s eyes closed and she palmed her forehead. “Um… yeah. I planned to surprise you Friday when we saw each other. I’m here. For good, baby.” Silence filled the line for seconds as she walked to the bathroom. “Choyce?”

“I’m here.” He chuckled. “I just can’t believe what you said. You really moved here?”

“I did. That’s still what you want?”

“More than anything else.”

“Good because you’re stuck with me now.” Smiling, she put the call on speaker and started the shower. “I wanted to find an apartment before Jazzy’s due date so I could make sure I was here when she went into labor.”

“You know you could have come live with me.”

Her eyes rolled playfully as she nodded. “I know, I know, but I want us to ease into that. Things have been moving so fast between us. I just wanted to take some time.”

“Whatever you’re comfortable with, Lav. You know how I’m coming behind you.”

“I know, and I love you for it, too. I’ll see you in a few, okay? I’m about to take a quick shower.”

“I love you, too, boo.”

Lavender disconnected the call and quickly undressed, doing a slight shimmy as she stepped under the showerhead. She couldn’t wait to meet her nephew, celebrate her sister and brother-in-law, and love on her man.

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