Page 56 of Kissed By the Trillest Thug 2

“Yeah, baby?”

“When I grow up…”

I looked up at her with all the seriousness a seven-year-old could have.

“I want an important job like you.”

Her smile softened.

“You do?”

I nodded.

“You help people.”

She leaned forward and kissed my forehead.

“You don’t have to wear a suit to help people.”

“I know,” I shrugged, “but I want one anyway.”

That made her laugh again.

“Come on, Mr. Lawyer.”

She reached for my hand, and together we walked toward the front door. The second we stepped outside, I looked at the car.

“Mama…”

“Hm?”

“Can I sit in the front today?”

She didn’t even think about it.

“No, baby.”

She opened the back door instead.

“You’re still my little boy.”

I sighed dramatically before climbing into the backseat anyway. She laughed as she buckled me in.

“One day,” she smiled, “but not today.”

The memory faded as quickly as it came. I blinked, finding myself back in Pops’ Durango. The city blurred past my window. It’s funny… For years I’d begged my mama to let me ride in the front seat. And when she finally did, it was the night she died. I’d give anything to have been told “not today” one more time.

Chapter 11

Eternity

Iturned sideways in front of the full-length mirror and rested both hands beneath the small curve of my stomach. There it was. Still small enough that a loose shirt could hide it. Still small enough that most people probably wouldn’t notice. But I noticed. Every single day, the thought of carrying life again made it a joyous one. A smile slowly spread across my face as my fingertips drifted over the tiny bump. For the past few months, this was all I’d wanted.

After losing our first baby all those years ago, God blessed us with Maliah.

Then he blessed us again with Maylee. When I asked Malik for one more baby, I never imagined getting pregnant would be the hard part. Month after month, every test came back negative. Every appointment ended the same way.“Keep trying.”Through it all, I smiled, but somewhere along the way, I started wondering if maybe another baby just wasn’t in God’s plans for us.

Then one morning, everything changed. Sometimes I still caught myself staring in the mirror to remind myself this was real. The bedroom door swung open. I smiled to myself before I even turned around because only one person in this houseopened doors like he paid the mortgage. Well, that’s because he did.