Page 51 of Creole Kingpin
A few beats of silence pass before she replies. “I hate to tell you this, Mags ... but if you’re falling for the guy again, the grip on control you’re trying to keep hold of is only going to give you rope burn.”
Fear shoots through me. “Don’t say that. I’m not falling for him. I’m not. That shit is in the past.”
“Whatever you say.” And then she chokes on a laugh.
“What the fuck?” I roll my eyes, even though she can’t see me, and then scold her. “Are you seriously laughing at me right now? Bitch. If you weren’t my best friend, I’d hang up on you. Like, right fucking now, Ke-ke.”
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I really shouldn’t be laughing. But,oh my God, I never thought I’d see the day.”
When she starts chuckling again, I go quiet, really contemplating hanging up on her, but she catches her breath a few seconds later.
“I’m so glad you find it amusing that I’m confused as hell and don’t know what the fuck to do about this man. Jesus Christ. You should see him. And hear him. I don’t know what the hell to believe.” I’m pacing in circles again, trying to keep my voice down, but inside, I’m wigging the fuck out.
“What do you want to do, Mags? What will make you happy?”
Her question stops me mid-step, and I stare at the plasterwork of the building like I’ve never seen white paint before.
What will make me happy?A lump forms in my throat because I can’t let myself think about the answer.
“That’s not helping. I gotta get rid of him. It’s the only choice I have. I’ve worked too long and hard, building my life to where it is, to allow someone to sweep in and change everything on a whim. I can’t trust it. I can’t put my faith in it. It doesn’t work like that.”
“Mags, calm down. You’re freaking out for real now. It’s okay. I didn’t mean to get you riled up. Just take a deep breath.”
The concern in Keira’s tone cuts through the cloud of panic threatening to choke me. I take a deep breath and slowly exhale. Then again.
“Good girl. It’s going to be okay. I promise,” Keira says, and for the first time in our over twenty-year-long friendship, she sounds like the one who has her shit together and knows all the answers. That’s the role I’ve always played.
How the mighty have fallen,Ho-It-All says, piping up.Where’s your self-respect, Magnolia? Losing it right out in the open? When did you let yourself become so weak? And over aman.Yes, how the mighty have fallen ...
It’s the reminder I need to pull my shit together.
“You’re right. It’ll be fine. It’s a shock, is all,” I tell Keira, straightening my shoulders and trying to shake it off. “I just need a bit of time to think. How about we talk later?”
“Are you sure you’re good? Because I can—”
Knowing she’s going to offer to send someone to get me, or to stay on the line until I’ve actually pulled it together instead of just pretending I’m okay, I say, “I’m just fine, girl. You know that nothing fazes me for long. Especially not a man.”
“If you’re sure ...”
Clearly, I’m not doing the best job at selling this. “I’ll text you tomorrow. Give Rory my love. Gotta go.” Before she can protest, I hang up the call.
That’s when I catch sight of Moses, watching me from the corner.
Instantly, my spine goes ramrod straight. “You taking up eavesdropping now too? Can’t a person get some damn privacy?”
His face is completely devoid of his normal easy grin. “I didn’t come back to ruin your life, mama.”
My stomach sinks when I think of what he could have overheard to say something like that.
Then he adds, “And you’re no second-rate backup plan either.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I say as I sweep a hand over my ass to brush off any plaster that might have stuck when I leaned on the building.
“I’ll let you play it like that if you want, but only if you answer one more question for me.”
“I don’t have to answer any of your questions,” I say with attitude that makes me feel more like myself.
I paste a smile on my face that the Cheshire cat would be proud of, and start marching down the sidewalk in the direction of my place. As I expected, Moses falls into step beside me.
