LOVELESS

Chapter 22

Veronica waits outside the door of Sam's new gym.

Moments later, Sam's truck pulls up. He deads the engine and hops out.

"Hey cousin."

"Wud up V. Thanks for coming."

"I would never pass up the chance to see some fine ass men."

Sam narrows his eyes at her. "Even if they're ex-convicts?"

"When I hear ex-convict, I think of how rough the sex would be."

"Shut up. Right now."

Veronica laughs.

"Imma start talking about my sex life with you, and see how you like that shit."

"Well first, you would have to have sex to actually have a sex life to talk about."

Sam ignores her. He unlocks the door before walking inside.

"So what's your plan Sam? You're going to be abstinent for the rest of your life?"

"V, just focus for once. You have any questions before the first applicant gets here?"

"No. But I would like to say how happy I am that you're giving these guys a chance. But hopefully none of them stab you during the process."

Sam scowls at her.

"Too soon?"

He shakes his head. "I changed my mind. I don't want you here."

Veronica hugs him tightly. "Don't be like that, I'm sorry. You know I love you."

"Yeah, yeah. Now get off me."

Veronica releases her embrace and takes a seat at the front desk while Sam sets up the interview area. She pulls her phone out and sees a text from Yemi.

Yemi: You still wanna throw the housewarming party?

Veronica grins, and then looks over at Sam.

"It's too bad you and Yemi are still not on speaking terms. I'm throwing a housewarming party for her, but you and I were like the only friends she had. Oh wait... I can invite Kaylin."

"Who the fuck is Kaylin?"

"Jealous much? You should just call her and stop being so stubborn."

Sam smirks. "Alright."

"Wait, what?"

Sam FaceTime's Yemi, and shows the screen to Veronica. She sees the call is connecting, and then looks up at him in shock.

"Sam, hang up the phone. How did you even get her new number?"

"Hey Sammie." Yemi grins like a little school girl while Sam's signature mean-mug reappears on his face.

"Sammieeeeeeee?! Sammieeeeee?!!" Veronica can't believe her ears.

"You're with Veronica?"

"Yeah. But what's this I hear about you having a housewarming party? Veronica said she's inviting some dude named Kaylin."

Yemi rolls her eyes, and then whispers to him, "Can I please tell you about it when I get off?"

Veronica does a double take. "Hell no! Can we talk about how y'all are on the phone right now? When the fuck did this happen?"

"Veronica! The language," Yemi reminds Veronica of her no-cussing vow.

"Yeah I know, girl. But you have a lot of explaining to do."

"I'll explain everything to you both after I'm done here. I promise." Yemi can see the emotion in Sam's eyes. "Baby, Kaylin is my co-worker. The one that called me last night."

"Babyyyyy?! Babyyyyy?!"

Sam glances over at Veronica. "If you don't cut that Soulja Boy shit out."

Yemi laughs. She stops once she detects Sam's brain is in overdrive. "Please don't think too much about this. I promise you it's nothing. I really didn't want to have the party, but... I'll call you when I get off. In like two hours."

"...A'ight."

"Bye handsome." She blows him a kiss.

"A'ight gorgeous."

Veronica gasps, as Yemi blushes before ending the call.

Sam puts his phone down, and then eyes Veronica as she covers her mouth in shock. "And you better not tell ma."

___

Back in New York, Larry puts a plethora of food onto a tray. He carries it upstairs to his bedroom where Liliana is laying down on the bed. "Ooooh. That smells so good."

"Your favorites. Sancocho, Tostones, and Salad."

"-Ensalada."

"Ensalada." Larry smiles at her correcting him.

"Thank you, honey."

"You feel any better?"

"A little. I'm still a little exhausted though."

"Is there anything I can do to help with that?"

"This food is going to help." She sits up as she takes her first bite.

"You talk to Veronica?"

"Yeah, she's trying to figure out the best time to come. She's worried about leaving Sammie there."

"He's a grown ass man. I wish y'all would stop babying him."

"You better stop judging us."

Larry chuckles. "But for real. Tell Veronica to bring her butt up here. Sam will be okay. He is not thinking about that college girl. Trust me."

"Maybe not. But it's not healthy to want to be alone."

"What happened with that girl in the DR?"

"Oh, she's worse than him. She wants her ex back."

Larry chuckles. "So the plan backfired. That's what y'all get."

Liliana throws a pillow at him, and he blocks it. She then eats more of her food. "Baby this is so good. Did Mai give you these recipes?"

"It depends. If she did, are you gonna try to get me to cook more of it? That shit is a lot of work."

Liliana giggles, almost choking on her food. "You are crazy. Come here." Larry scoots closer to her, and pecks her a few times. "I love you so much."

"I love you more."

"I hope our kids get to experience the love you and I have for each other."

"... Have you ever wondered why Veronica never wants to settle down?"

Liliana contemplates for a moment. "Oh my gosh. I've been so wrapped up in making sure Sam is good, I haven't even thought about Veronica."

"Well, that's something you two can talk about when she moves back. That'll definitely bring y'all closer."

"I'm such a bad aunt."

"We're not gonna do the woulda, coulda, shoulda's. You hear me?"

She nods.

"All that matters is that you're making things better, right now. And I'm proud of you."

Liliana smiles at him. Everything about him is perfect to her, and she's always been so grateful for their relationship.

"You mind if I go downstairs and watch the game?"

"No baby, do your thing. Thank you for cooking."

"Anything for you." He kisses her and walks out.

Once he exits the room, he leans back on the wall. A much needed tear escapes and falls down his cheek. He quickly wipes it off, and walks downstairs, ignoring his emotional pain.

A/N: Because I received so much love, I decided to give you a double update. :)  Thanks for reading y'all.  The next update will be on Monday.  Have a great weekend.