Page 4 of Nothing Without You

“Chyna, go handle your business. Matter of fact, you want me to come wit’ you?”

My eyes widened. Now that was new. We never did anything together before if it didn’t have to do with the boys.

“No. Thanks, though. I’ll send you a text,” I replied as I dropped down to squat in front of Liam. “Give Mommy a hug. Kee is going to bring you home at the end of the day, okay?”

“Okay, Mama. And sleepover with KJ.”

I shook my head. “Not tonight, honey. Maybe this weekend. Be good today.” I kissed his head and stood up. “Thanks, Keegan. Really. I appreciate your help.”

“It ain’t nothin’. Just don’t forget to let me know what’s goin’ on.”

I nodded, took in a deep breath, and turned to head back to the elevator, dreading whatever waited for me back at my home.

CHAPTER 2

KEEGAN

People tended to call me controlling. In my opinion, people were dramatic as hell. I didn’t build this million-dollar company by being a pushover and not knowing everything about my business, including my employees.

Aight, who was I kidding? I didn’t really give a fuck about my employees as long as they did what they needed to do to keep my company running. Cybersecurity was no joke.

“She left two hours and seven minutes ago,” I muttered.

Jean, my secretary, who had been talking to me about my agenda for the week, paused and scrunched her blonde brows. “Congratulations?”

I mugged her.

“Chyna. She left. Some kind of emergency. I haven’t heard from her since she dropped Liam off this morning.”

Jean’s face melted into a kind smile. She was an older white lady with the kindest blue eyes I’d ever seen. She’d worked for me for the past decade. Outside of Chyna, she was probably the only employee I cared about, simply because she pushed past my hard exterior and decided on day one that she would be a second mother to me.

“Ah, now your distraction made sense. You two still dancing around the fact that you’re smitten with each other?”

I snorted. Jean was old school and had been pointing out how smitten I was with Chyna for the past few years. I couldn’t even argue with the lady. She wasn’t wrong. From the moment I met Chyna, I liked her cute ass.

Growing up in the projects in Desmore Bay got me accustomed to a certain caliber of women. Chyna was nothing like the hoes I grew up around, even though she also grew up in the projects. She was different. She pulled herself up out of poverty. Shorty carried herself with class and dignity. The independence she practiced every day was a huge turn-on. Not only did she understand me on a deep level because we had similar upbringings, but she also understood what it was like to hustle to have better.

Chyna Drayton matched my fly in so many ways, which was why she intimidated the hell out of me. I wasn’t too bigheaded to admit that. At least to myself. If someone else asked, I’d deny the hell out of that.

“That ain’t what we talkin’ ’bout, Mrs. Jean. I’m tryna figure out why she ain’t call me and let me know what’s goin’ on.”

Jean snickered. “Because you aren’t her man, Mr. Slater.”

I blinked at her a few times before I snatched my phone up from my desk. I opened my text thread with Chyna to make sure she hadn’t sent me a text, and I somehow missed it. I knew she hadn’t, but my thirsty ass wanted to triple check. Sighing, I turned in my chair behind my desk and looked out the large windows in my office at Desmore Bay. After a couple of seconds of taking in the sunny day, I dialed Chyna’s number.

It only took her a couple of rings to answer, and I grinned at that before my smile vanished from my face at the sound of her voice.

“Hello?”

It sounded like she’d been crying.

“What’s goin’ on, Doll?” There was just a second of silence before I heard sniffles. My frown deepened. “Talk to me, Chyna. I thought you were gonna keep me updated on what’s goin’ on.”

“I’m sorry. It’s been a nightmare. A pipe burst in my bathroom and flooded my entire bedroom and living room. Liam’s room is okay and so is the kitchen, but there’s so much damage . . . I just got to my cousin’s house so I can figure out what I’m going to do.”

“What do you need from me?” I asked with no hesitation. It was always like that with Chyna. Whatever she needed, I was there to give it to her, no questions asked. Her ass was so damn independent that it normally took her some convincing to take my help, but she was getting better at it now that we had a few years under our belts.

“I have to meet with my landlord back at my place at five. Can you just bring Liam to me at that time? Or do you have a late meeting today? I know sometimes you work late . . . If so, I can come pick him up⁠—”