Chapter 1

 

Serenity James should’ve known something was up the second Tay cracked open her third bottle of Moscato. It was Friday night, the air heavy with that sticky Richmond heat that meant summer was pulling up early, and Serenity was sitting cross-legged on the floor while Bri yanked at her edges like they owed her money.

“Ow, Brielle! I said lay ‘em, not snatch my whole damn scalp off!” Serenity swatted at Bri’s hand, but Bri just popped her gum and kept going.

“Hold still,” Bri said, voice calm like she hadn’t been pulling hair for twenty minutes straight. “You gon’ thank me when you look in the mirror and see a bad bitch.”

Tay leaned over Serenity’s shoulder, peering into the handheld mirror. “Bitch, you already bad! Wait ‘til we hit this club tonight,  the way I’m feelin’? Somebody’s son gon’ risk it all.” Tay tipped her wine glass back like she was toasting to her own foolishness.

Serenity rolled her eyes. “Y’all been hyping this up for weeks, but I still think y’all up to something. Bri, you got that ‘I’m keepin’ a secret’ face on.”

Bri sniffed. “Girl, please. Only secret is how you thirty-seven and still got edges like this.” She winked, then laid the last swoop with military precision.

Tay jumped up and grabbed a sequined dress off Serenity’s bed. “Put this on, Ren! I’m tryna see you out here lookin’ like a snack and a paycheck.”

Serenity side-eyed the dress. “Why the hell I need to look like a snack for y’all? This a girls’ night. Who am I tryna impress?” She wasted no time, slithering into the dress. 

Tay and Bri exchanged a look over her head. Serenity caught it. “Mm-hmm. What y’all plotting?”

Before they could answer, the doorbell rang downstairs. Serenity’s dog, Biggie, went nuts, barking at the top of his lungs.

“Y’all inviting guests to my house too?” Serenity mumbled as she padded downstairs in her dress, edges slick and shiny like she was about to shoot a music video.

She opened the door, and her parents were standing there. Her daddy had that big, proud grin on his face, but her mama’s eyebrows were halfway to heaven.

“Daddy! Mama! What y’all doing here?” Serenity squealed, hugging them tight.

Her mama, Ms. Regina, sucked her teeth and looked around. “What I’m not doin’ is sweatin’ my press-out for some fake girls’ night. Where he at?”

Serenity froze. “What? Where who at?”

Before Ms. Regina could answer, footsteps creaked down the stairs. Tay and Bri peeked over the banister like messy little kids.

“Ohhh… you gon’ see,” Tay said. “You gon’ see!”

That’s when Serenity’s fiancé, Jared, came strolling out the back hallway like he owned the place, suit on, cologne trailing behind him like an expensive lie. He dropped to one knee right in front of her parents, her girls, and Biggie still barking like he was tryna warn her.

“Serenity James… you are my world, my queen, my everything…”

Serenity’s jaw dropped. Her mama folded her arms, sucking her teeth so hard it echoed.

Tay pulled out her phone, already recording. “Girl, don’t say no! I need this content for my TikTok!”

Serenity’s eyes darted to her mama, who rolled her eyes and mumbled under her breath,

“Lord, she ‘bout to marry this mayonnaise sandwich…”

“Shhh, baby!” her daddy hissed, elbowing her. But Ms. Regina just smirked, eyes locked on her daughter.

Because if Serenity was honest, deep in her chest, right under the excitement, she already felt the ache of a line she was about to cross. She just didn’t know whose heart it would break yet.

Serenity’s mouth went dry. She looked down at Jared, still kneeling on her living room rug like this was the fairy tale he’d promised her. His ring box gleamed under the overhead light. Her daddy was beaming like he’d just watched his baby girl graduate all over again. But her mama… her mama was shaking her head slow like she already knew what Serenity didn’t want to admit.

She glanced at Tay and Bri. Tay had her phone up like she was live streaming for the neighborhood. Bri just mouthed, Say yes, eyes wide, urging her on. Biggie gave one last bark and flopped down with a dramatic sigh.

Serenity’s heart thudded so loud she could barely hear herself when she finally whispered, “Yes.”

Jared’s grin split his face in half. He slipped the ring on her finger, a diamond so big it looked like it belonged to somebody twice as sure. He stood, cupped her face, kissed her like they were on a stage and the world was clapping.

Her mama definitely wasn’t clapping.

“Oh, my baby’s engaged!” her daddy cheered, pulling Jared in for a back-slapping hug. Jared laughed like a man who’d just won a prize at an auction. Tay whooped so loud it rattled the window blinds. Bri gave Serenity a quick hug that was more pity than excitement.

Ms. Regina cleared her throat. “Mmm. That’s nice.” She grabbed the wine bottle off the counter, poured herself a full glass like she was about to watch a scandal unfold. “How about we pop open the real champagne you been hiding for this little party, huh?”

Serenity shot her mama a look. “Mama, please.”

Regina sipped her wine. “Don’t mind me, baby. It’s your night. I just know when folks pretend they got forever, sometimes they don’t even have tomorrow.”

Jared’s jaw tensed, but he forced a smile, brushing his thumb over Serenity’s knuckles. “Ignore her, babe. We’re about to plan the wedding of the year.”

Serenity forced her own smile. She stared down at the ring, so heavy it felt like it was pulling her hand straight to the floor.

Tay squealed again, snatching Serenity’s phone off the coffee table. “Let me see your camera, girl! You know I gotta post this ring, tag you in it, make your old high school haters sick.”

Bri elbowed her. “You petty. Don’t be messy tonight.”

Tay cackled. “Why not? She locked him down before the reunion. It’s gonna be a whole event when folks see this rock.”

Serenity’s stomach twisted at the mention of the reunion. The night she’d have to face everyone she’d grown up with. Including him, someone she didn’t want to think about.

She felt her mother’s eyes, sharp and knowing. Regina took another sip of wine, eyes flicking to the engagement ring, then back to her daughter’s face.

“Mm-hmm,” she muttered, so low only Serenity could hear. “We gon’ see, baby girl. We gon’ see.”

Serenity sucked in a breath, letting Jared pull her closer, letting Tay snap a thousand blurry photos. She knew what came next. The wedding showers. The cake tastings. The forced smiles. The polite lies.

By the time the champagne was popped and the last slice of pound cake was gone, Serenity’s daddy was nodding off in the armchair. Ms. Regina stood at the door with her purse on her arm like she’d been ready to leave the second Jared slipped that ring on Serenity’s finger.

“Y’all drive safe,” Serenity said, hugging her mama tight. She smelled the wine on her breath but also that old familiar coconut lotion. For a second, she wanted to bury her face in her mother’s neck like she was sixteen again.

Regina pulled back, gave her that soft look only a mama could. “Don’t forget who you are, baby girl. A ring don’t make you whole. Remember that.”

Serenity forced a laugh. “Mama, stop.”

Regina just smirked, kissed her cheek, and shot Jared a glare sharp enough to peel paint off the wall. “Goodnight, Jared.”

“Night, Ms. Regina,” Jared said, voice tight. He held the door until her parents drove off into the humid spring night.

Ten minutes later, there was a knock at the back door. Jared grinned, grabbed Serenity’s waist, and dropped a kiss on her neck. “It’s the fellas. They just wanna toast us real quick. Put that pretty smile on for me, babe.”

Serenity rolled her eyes but did it anyway. She could hear the deep voices and the smell of expensive cologne mixed with cheap weed floated in before they even stepped inside.

Two of Jared’s boys strolled through like they owned the place. Darius, all gold teeth and New York Yankees fitted, slapped Jared’s hand so hard their rings clinked. His cousin, Tre, grinned wide when he spotted Serenity standing by the kitchen island.

“Damn, Jay. This her? She the one said yes tonight?” Darius asked, looking Serenity up and down like she was a trophy in a case.

“Yeah, this my queen,” Jared said, tugging her closer, pressing his palm against the small of her back like he was staking a claim.

Tre whistled low. “She bad as hell, bro. I see why you locked that down. Look at that little waist, that ass sittin’ pretty. You blessed, my boy.”

Serenity felt the heat crawl up her neck. She knew what she looked like and never downplayed it, tall, smooth brown skin with just enough curve to make folks stare when she walked by. Tonight her girls had her looking like a goddamn problem, hair laid to perfection, lashes soft and flirty, that deep emerald dress hugging her hips so tight it looked painted on. Her nails long and white, diamond ring flashing every time she moved her hand.

Jared smirked at his boys, pride all over his face. “Yeah, she one of one. Ain’t no chick out here touchin’ my lady.”

Darius leaned back against the counter, eyes still bouncing from her face to her thighs.

“You better hold onto that. Streets be hungry, bruh.”

Serenity forced a polite laugh, excused herself to grab a bottle of water from the fridge. As she twisted the cap, she caught her reflection in the microwave door. Perfect, polished, and taken.

But all she could think about was how a man she hadn’t seen in three years used to look at her like she was the only damn thing that mattered.

And for one reckless heartbeat, she wondered if he’d still look at her like that now.

 

****

 

 

A week later, Serenity found herself perched on a velvet barstool in Bri’s big-ass condo, wondering how the hell her life could feel so right and so wrong all at once.

Bri’s spot was spotless, all white walls, gold accents, a giant canvas painting of a Black woman in a crown hanging over the fireplace. The place smelled like vanilla candles and fresh braids, the perfect backdrop for their little girls’ catch-up session before the reunion planning started.

Tasha was sprawled out on Bri’s cloud-soft sectional, scrolling her phone and cackling at some meme. Serenity sat at the island, legs crossed, playing with her new ring like she was still trying to convince herself it belonged on her finger.

In the middle of it all, Bri was zipping around the living room, stuffing her daughter’s pink unicorn backpack with snacks, hair bows, and a tiny denim jacket.

“You got her tablet charged this time, Bri?” Tay teased, not looking up from her phone. “I remember last time she called you talkin’ bout she was bored at her daddy’s house. Had you hot.”

Bri sucked her teeth. “Don’t remind me. She staying two nights this weekend. If he calls me for one thing, I’m changing my number.”

They all laughed, but the air shifted the second the front door opened and in walked Jamal, Bri’s baby daddy, five years deep in nonsense and still fine enough to piss her off every time she saw him.

He stood there, posted in his Nike sweats, tattoos peeking from under his sleeves, beard fresh, that smirk on his face like he’d just heard a dirty joke only he knew. His eyes landed on Bri first, sweeping from her soft locs piled on top of her head to the curve of her hips in those black leggings.

“Damn, Bri,” Jamal said low, licking his lips just a little. “You ain’t gotta look this good to hand off my baby.”

Bri didn’t even glance up. “Jamal, get your daughter’s stuff and keep it pushin’. She’s in her room putting on her shoes.”

Serenity bit back a laugh. Tay didn’t bother. She cackled right in his face. “Hey, Jamal. Still pretending you got a chance, huh?”

He shot Tay a grin. “You still loud as hell, huh?”

“Every damn day,” Tay shot back, flipping her curls off her shoulder.

Jamal turned to Serenity, eyes softening just a notch. “Ren, what’s up? You good?”

Serenity gave him a small smile. She’d known Jamal as long as she’d known Bri, back when he was just that smooth-talking boy on the block with a cheap chain and big dreams. Same energy, just older now.

“I’m good, Jamal. How you been?”

He shrugged, glancing back at Bri like he couldn’t help himself. “I’m straight. Working, stacking. Tryna see my daughter more. And this one here…” He jerked his chin at Bri, who was stuffing a juice box in her daughter’s bag like it owed her money. “Actin’ like she don’t miss me.”

Bri cut him a look so sharp it could slice bricks. “Boy, I don’t miss a damn thing except the child support you still be late on.”

Serenity snorted into her water bottle. Tay gasped dramatic. “Whew, she got you! Anyway, your daughter’s waiting on you. Bye, Jamal.”

He laughed like none of it fazed him, the same cocky grin still tugging at his mouth.

“Alright, Tay. Always a pleasure. Ren, we gon’ see you at this reunion too, huh? It’s about to be wild.”

Serenity’s stomach did that little flip. “Yeah… I’ll be there.”

Bri handed him the backpack, keeping her eyes flat and cold. “She ate. Her pajamas in the side pocket. Don’t call me unless you dyin’.”

Jamal leaned down, pecked their daughter on the cheek as she skipped over, tiny afro puffs bouncing. But when he straightened up, he gave Bri one last look, long, lingering, hungry like he’d forgotten every fight they ever had.

Bri raised an eyebrow. “Don’t.”

Jamal grinned, eyes flicking to Tay and Serenity like they’d co-sign him. “She gon’ be back, watch.”

Bri pointed to the door. “Out. Now.”

He just laughed, taking his daughter’s hand, and strolled out like he owned the building. As the door clicked shut, Tay burst out laughing, clutching her stomach.

“Girl! The way he still be lookin’ at you like you the last meal on death row.”

Bri dropped onto the couch, rolling her eyes so hard they almost got stuck. “I hope he chokes on it.”

Serenity laughed, but her mind was far away, back on that reunion, that ring on her finger.

As soon as Bri closed the door behind Jamal, she plopped down next to Serenity and cracked open a wine cooler like she’d been waiting all week. She kicked her feet up on the edge of the coffee table, eyes flicking between her girls.

“So they really doing this reunion out the country for three days,” Bri said, shaking her head. “I’m actually happy about it though. I need a vacation. It just sucks my baby daddy gonna be there, but whatever. I’m gonna enjoy myself. I miss a few people from high school, but not everybody.”

Tay leaned forward, eyes dancing. “Girl, forget Jamal. You know who else gonna be there? Mr. Billionaire himself.”

Serenity’s stomach dipped. She took a slow sip of her water, trying to play it cool. “Oh, here you go.”

Tay grinned wide. “Don’t ‘here you go’ me. You know exactly who I’m talking about. Cassius Kingston. Mr. Cash Money. Block boy turned Forbes list. He’s coming, Ren. Whole reunion buzzing about it.”

Bri snorted into her drink. “Y’all used to be close. Really close.”

Tay threw her head back and laughed. “One would’ve thought y’all was together the way you two moved. Always together. People swore up and down y’all was fuckin’.”

Bri turned her eyes on Serenity, curiosity sharp as ever. Serenity met her gaze, that old familiar shiver running through her chest, the same one she always felt when Cash’s name came up.

They had a secret. A real one. A line that got crossed and buried under years of silence. Cash swore he’d take it to the grave, and Serenity believed him, she only told one other person and that was Bri.

She shrugged like it was nothing. “We were close. But you know how it goes when your chick insecure. She didn’t like our friendship. He cut me off for her. It is what it is.”

Tay narrowed her eyes. “Mmhmm.”

Serenity looked down at her hand, twisting her ring, her mind flicking back to Jared, to the proposal, to the forced smiles.

“But for real, I wanna keep this engagement on the hush hush,” Serenity said, looking up at both of them. “I don’t need anybody in my business at this reunion. Not him. Not nobody. You hear me?”

Now it was Bri and Tay exchanging a look. The kind of look that said Girl, we know you. We know how this about to go.

Tay’s grin was pure trouble. “You sayin’ that like you got something to hide.”

Serenity’s mouth curved just a little. “I’m sayin’ that like y’all too messy to trust.”

Bri sipped her wine cooler, eyes twinkling. “We just here for the show, baby. And I got a feeling this reunion about to be better than Netflix.”

Tay propped her chin on her palm, eyes locked on Serenity like she was a juicy headline waiting to be read out loud. “So… has Jared decided if he’s going or not?”

Serenity let out a low laugh that sounded more like she was trying to convince herself.

“Girl, I don’t know. He says he might. Depends on work and his schedule and all that.”

Bri raised an eyebrow. “Depends on work? Or depends on him not wanting to be around your old friends?”

Tay sucked her teeth. “Ain’t no way that man letting you out the country for three days with the same people who knew you when you was sneaking boys in your mama’s basement. You know he don’t trust nobody.”

Serenity rolled her eyes. “It’s not even like that. He knows I’m grown. I just wanna see folks, catch up, have a few drinks. That’s it.”

Tay cackled. “That’s what you say now. Wait till Cash walk in that room. Y’all both single in spirit, huh? That ring don’t mean shit when the right one shows up.”

Serenity gave her a side-eye so sharp Bri burst out laughing. “I’m just sayin’! I’m just sayin’!” Tay squealed, hands up like she was innocent. “I wanna see who gon’ be the first to crack. You or him.”

Serenity stood up, snatched Tay’s wine cooler right out her hand and took a sip. “Keep playin’ with me, Tay. For real.”

Bri sat back, swirling her drink, eyes dancing between them. “I’m just tryna see if you and Jared gon’ share a room or if he gon’ stay his possessive ass home.”

Serenity shrugged, trying to sound breezy, but that little knot in her stomach wouldn’t let her be. “He said he’d think about it. But honestly? I hope he don’t come. I need some air. Some peace.”

Tay leaned back and cackled again. “Peace, huh? You better pray that man Cash don’t bring you nothin’ but chaos.”

And for a split second, Serenity didn’t want to admit just how much she missed that chaos.