His Emancipator🖤 [His Duet #1]

CHAPTER NINE

                                                            KEILEE.

On Monday, I'm up as early as the figurative early bird. I intend on catching the worm and giving it a piece of my mind. Or squashing it with my expensive stilettos. Depends on my mood.

I don't have time to dwell on the excruciating headache I have from barely sleeping last night. This morning I'm a woman on mission. Roach and Seaman better find a place to hole up in because this woman is coming in guns blazing; figuratively or literally. Also depends on my mood.

Outside Roach's door, my knock is followed by a flat "Come in." Seaman is here too. Perfect. Just the two people I wanted to start my week with.

"Bakari what now?" Roach groans behind his desk. Next to me, Seaman's sultry eyes skirt my frame. I'm not even surprised. His default setting is perversion.

I get straight to the point. "I wasn't informed about the Saturday overtime."

Roach's face doesn't convey any concern about my grievances. "And so?"

"I need to know why."

"If you weren't called it means you weren't needed." He taps his pen on the table, bored.

"You cannot keep doing this Roach. I-"

"You can see yourself out Bakari." He dismisses me. When I continue standing there, he ignores me and goes back to whatever conversation he was having with Seaman.

So much for the internal hype am I right? The brevity sounded so well in my brain. Leaving Roach's office, I make a detour to the washroom. I quickly dry my damp eyes. I wish I'd have said more; I wish I'd have made them listen to me.

Every time my bosses spite me, I want to yell at mama for not being here to tell me what to do. She always knew what to say. I bet her words right now would be; "Keilee, never let anyone undermine you. Whoop their asses if you have to. I'll bail you out and be your lawyer." All the while being an immigration lawyer.

Back at my desk, my phone rings with a call - Dad. I haven't spoken to him in weeks and have been actively ignoring his texts. He's been trying, I'll give him that but I'm not fully ready to look past his mistakes.

"Hello?"

"Hey princess. You've been avoiding me. Is everything okay?"

"You did avoid me for fourteen years." I say, a sharp edge to my voice.

There's a long pause before he says, "I deserve that. Anyway, I'm going to a charity gala on Friday night, want to come?" His words are hopeful.

"I'll think about it." I tell him before disconnecting the call.

It's almost ten years since he unabashedly showed up in my life. I've tried so hard to let him in but a part of me still doesn't want to let go of the anger. Twenty-four years ago he had the option to choose me but his business was more important. Similarly, he had fourteen years to come back but he saw it fit to show up after my mom's death to claim custody of me. I thought in those four years I lived with him, my heart would soften but it only hardened.

Though he tried to put me first and teach me some stuff, his work was still as important. I wanted him to be the father he wasn't for those fourteen years instead I got a workaholic. Every day I hoped he could replace my mama but he never summed up to even a quarter of what she was.

My thoughts are interrupted by Kira's palms blocking my eyes. "Guess who."

"Baby Jesus?" I reply.

She steps in front of me. "Why would baby Jesus be blocking your eyes and would his small hands even fit on your face?"