Page 131 of Kissed By the Trillest Thug 2

“I will be.”

I reached for his arm to steady myself.

“You need to call Maylee.”

He frowned.

“What?”

“Tell her she can stay another night at her friend’s house. I don’t want her coming home to this.”

He immediately pulled his phone out of his pocket.

“I got it.”

I looked toward the nursery door.

“We need to get to the hospital.”

MJ slipped an arm around my back, careful not to jostle me.

“I’ll drive,” he said.

All I could do was nod while holding back tears.Why God?I thought to myself as MJ helped me down the stairs,

Hospitals had a way of making time stand still. I didn’t know how long we’d been sitting there. An hour. Maybe two. Maybe even longer. The moment MJ and I walked through the emergency room doors, Maliah had broken. She’d thrown herself into my arms, sobbing so hard I thought her knees were going to give out.

“I’m sorry, Mama. I’m so sorry…”

I didn’t ask her what she was apologizing for. She didn’t have anything to apologize for. I just held my baby while she cried.

Now she sat a few chairs away with Tahari beside her, his arm wrapped protectively around her shoulders. Every now and then he’d lean over and whisper something to her, but she hadn’t stopped crying. I looked over at MJ.

“Baby.”

He immediately looked up.

“Yeah, Ma?”

“Call your Aunt Tori.”

He nodded.

“Tell her to come to Baptist. I don’t want her hearing about this from the news.”

“I got you.” He stepped away with his phone already pressed to his ear.

I looked around the waiting room. Everything felt…blurred. Everything went past me quickly. Doctors and nurses walkedaround, and families were coming and going. The television mounted in the corner was on, but I couldn’t tell you what was playing. I reached into my purse and pulled out my phone. My hands shook as I texted a few people.

Malik’s been shot. He’s in surgery. Please pray.

I stared at the message before hitting send. My husband was so good to everyone. I just prayed that people really sent a prayer up for him. By the time I locked my phone, I realized I hadn’t taken a full breath in what felt like hours. I closed my eyes for a second, and without warning, my mind carried me somewhere else…

The nursery wasn’t finished yet. The crib sat in the middle of the room with pieces of cardboard still scattered across the floor. Malik stood back with his hands on his hips.

“There. I told you I knew what I was doing.”

“You definitely skipped a few instructions,” I laughed.