Rock Chick Reborn (Rock Chick #9)(52)
The holler that tore from me probably shook the windows.
“Shit,” Roam muttered over my head.
“Too soon,” Sniff muttered over my head too.
Roam decided to pack it all in since the damage was done.
“You know, while you’re in this state, Sniff wants his name changed to Julien Jackson, for you . . . and Jules.”
My body started bucking with my tears, but fortunately this time it was silent.
“No offense to you, Shirleen, but you kinda can’t make Shirleen into a dude’s name,” Sniff said.
The sound of my choked laughter could be heard through my continued tears.
If it happened for them, it didn’t matter that it had happened for me.
But like it was for me, it was going to happen for them.
It was going to happen for my sons.
They were going to let the old go.
And be reborn.
“Shit, is she ever gonna quit crying?” Sniff asked Roam.
That was when I pushed myself up and found I was sitting between them on the couch, both of them turned to me, their arms around me, caging me in.
I grabbed hold of Sniff’s jaw, gave it a gentle squeeze and let it go, saying, “Son, if you curse in front of me one more time—”
“Roam cursed and you didn’t give him sh . . . stuff for it,” Sniff clipped.
I turned to Roam and grabbed his jaw, gave it a gentle squeeze, and let it go, saying, “You need to mind that mouth, son.”
“Shirleen, you got a worse mouth than either of us do,” Roam pointed out.
“I’m an adult.”
“We’re both eighteen,” Sniff reminded me.
“There’s worse we could do,” Roam added.
This was all true.
Stymied.
“When I’m not feeding you or putting a roof over your heads, you can talk however you like,” I decreed.
Roam shook his head, his lips twitching.
Sniff rolled his eyes, his lips twitching.
They totally were not going to quit cursing.
Lord.
My boys.
My boys.
Mine.
Roam’s lip twitch vanished as something caught his attention, his face went hard, and he instantly announced, “What I’d like to talk about now is what this player is doin’ here.”
Oh boy.
I faced front to see Moses standing, looking hot, arms crossed on his chest, still no blazer (though he’d buttoned his shirt), smiling indulgently down at me.
I knew my mascara was everywhere.
Damn.
“Get me a tissue, Sniff,” I ordered.
He did not get me a tissue.
He pushed up to his feet. “Give us an explanation, Shirleen.”
Oh boy.
I pushed up to my feet and Roam came up with me.
“You do not give the orders in this house,” I said to Sniff.
“You didn’t know we’d come back,” Roam accused me.
“What are you doing back?” I rapped out, though I had to admit I was curious.
“You asked us seven thousand times if we’d be gone on Friday and how long we’d be out, and you were in your room every night gabbin’ on the phone, and you had a full Rock Chick Powwow in your friggin’ bedroom, so it was hard to miss you were planning a little somethin’ somethin’,” Roam explained.
“And anyway, you didn’t even try to hide those roses,” Sniff put in.
Hell.
“Not real good with the covert, are you, baby?” Moses teased.
I shot him big eyes.
He shot me a big smile.
“We’ll talk to you in a minute,” Roam bit off.
“Roam!” I snapped.
He shot me a scowl.
I turned to Sniff. “So you knew I had something planned with a gentleman friend and you came home and pounded on my bedroom door?”
“We gotta look out for you,” Roam answered for Sniff.
“Yeah, that’s like, our job,” Sniff added.
Okay.
Now I couldn’t be pissed at them.
Shit.
“And we looked out for you and found out you got yourself tangled up with some player,” Roam finished.
“He’s not a player, Roam,” I said quietly.
“Yeah, he’s not, why’s he all cool with you makin’ sure we’re gone before he’ll come get you for a date? Hunh? Why won’t he walk up and knock on the door like a man and meet your sons like . . .” Roam leaned into me, “a man?”
All good questions.
“Moses has daughters and we were going to give it some time and when,” I slid my eyes to Moses before I looked back at Roam, “we were confident in what was building between us, we were going to bring all of you into it.”
Roam shut his mouth.
Apparently that was a good answer.
Thank the Lord.
“You got daughters?” Sniff asked Moses.
Shit.
Roam reached behind me and smacked Sniff up the backside of his head.
“Dude,” he warned low.
“What?” Sniff asked. “That’s cool. Shirleen’s got two boys. This works with this guy, she might get some girls. That’s pretty awesome.”
Lord God, I loved that kid.
“How about we try this again,” Moses decided to officially enter the conversation. He walked forward with his hand up. “I’m Moses Richardson and I really, really like your momma.”