My mom and dad were so happy to see Monty.
My dad put him to work, of course, but he was more excited than ever to have him at the house.
We spent at least two hours helping get the party together and the entire time, all he talked about was music and how many artists wanted to work with Monty because he was the hottest songwriter in the game.
It was true. And I was proud of him.
He always said he would do big things in the music industry, and I was happy to be around to witness it.
Aunt Judy came into the banquet hall, and her eyes were fixed on me in a way I had never seen.
She looked like she'd seen a ghost.
I thought she was just drunk at first. But when she grabbed my hand and pulled me into the hallway, I knew something else was at play.
"What's wrong, Aunt Judy?" I asked, full of concern.
She stared at me for a moment before she could speak.
I had never seen Aunt Judy look scared of anything, but what she had to tell me looked like it had a death grip on her silence.
"Do you need to lay down?" I asked. "The party isn't until another hour; you can take a quick nap if you need to. You know Dad will want—"
"Brielle!" she shouted to shut me up. "I'm sorry, I just … Please, give me a minute to get my thoughts together, child."
She paced back and forth with one hand on her head and the other on her hip, while I stood to the side in shock, wondering what the hell was going on with her.
"Look," she said, "I have to tell you something. But before I do, you need to promise me you won't say I told you."
I frowned, confused by her bargain.
"Tell me what?"
"Promise me, Brielle. Cause I don't trust that sister of yours one bit. Promise me."
Her finger rose in the air like a flagpole ready to remind the world of its power.
I didn't want to make a promise I wasn't sure if I could keep, but to hear what she had to say, I would've promised her anything.
"I promise, Aunt Judy," I replied in a believable tone. "Now, what is it? What happened?"
Her face was full of guilt and restraint. Pain too.
From the looks of it, I thought she would end up telling me somebody died. And when the words finally escaped her lips, I felt like someone had.
"WHAT!?" I shrieked.
"SHHHH!!" she shushed me and turned to make sure no one was coming in the process. "Brielle, be quiet before someone hears you!"
Her whispers were stern and sharp like they were when I was a child.
I wanted to be quiet and fulfill as much of my promise as I could, but the broken pieces of my heart sliced the inside of my chest like a blade, making me wince in pain and agony.
"How could he do this to me!" I cried. "What did I do to deserve this?"
I fell into Aunt Judy's arms.
My tears stained her expensive dress, that smelled like red wine, perfume, and cigarettes.
I was surprised she didn't push me away, because Aunt Judy was the kind of woman who would push a blind man over for touching her clothes.
"I'm sorry, baby." She patted my head while she cradled me in her arms. "You didn't do anything to deserve this."
"Was I not a good woman? Could I have been better?" I cried. "I loved him even when I didn't have a reason to, and this is what I get in the end? At our engagement party? Why did he even propose to me?"
The questions answered themselves.
Kannon was a piece of shit who I should have let go of years before. And Aunt Judy wasn't shy about telling me that.
"I know you feel betrayed, but this is a blessing in disguise, Baby Girl."
She lifted my chin so that I could look her in the eye. And even though her breath smelled horrible and her eyes were bloodshot red from drinking all morning, I tuned in.
"Kannon was never the man for you. Y'all have different styles, different morals and beliefs. He's a roughneck, and you're a wholesome woman who plays everything by the book."
"But that's why we worked so well, Aunt Judy!" I continued to sob. "Opposites attract, and that's what we are."
"No," she shook her head. "You ain't working shit if he's sleeping with your sister and you're in here crying about it. And this ain't the first time!"
Her words caught my attention and snapped my neck backwards like whiplash.
"What do you mean this isn't the first time?"
"I mean … this ain't the first time he's cheated on you."
She looked guilty again, and her correction didn't feel genuine.
I felt like she knew more than she told me— as if that wasn't already enough — but I didn't push for more.
"This is too much." I stood up and took a few steps to catch my breath. "I just wanna go home. I don't know how I'm gonna be in front of all these people and fake a smile."
Aunt Judy gave me a look … almost like she was disappointed in me—the only innocent one in the family.
It reminded me of all the times I felt like Kannon was giving me dirty looks behind my back.
All the times he lost his cool because I didn't know the lyrics to one of his favorite rap songs or did something my own way.
She was right about one thing though; Kannon and I were two completely different people forcing ourselves to live in each other's worlds.
"I'll tell you what you're gonna do."
Aunt Judy stood up and smoothed the wrinkles out of her dress, fixed her collar, and walked over to me.
Her hand was fidgeting around for something in her purse—the one she carried everywhere just in case she needed to handle business.
I thought she was going to pull out a gun and tell me to kill Kannon with a bullet through the heart. But no.
She pulled out a purple flask that matched her purple dress, unscrewed the top, took a swig, then handed it to me.
"Go on and take a shot of that there," she said. "That's gon' put some hair on your chest. And you need it, dealing with that ex-fiance of yours."
"Aunt Judy!" I laughed, holding the flask in my unsure hand.
"Go head, girl! Take some. And hurry up before your nosey ass mama come in here. She already said I couldn't have nothing more to drink until the party over."
I wasn't much of a drinker, and I was definitely afraid of whatever Aunt Judy had in that flask.
But when I heard Draya enter the banquet hall sounding like she was the most satisfied woman on the planet, I downed as much as I could before I felt the burning sensation of the hairs growing on my chest.
"Ugh!" I wiped the back of my hand across my mouth. "What the fuck is that?"
Aunt Judy let out an evil laugh like Ursula from The Little Mermaid and said, "That right there is my special potion. It's gon' make you brave, tough, and friendly with Monty like you oughta be. Now get out there and act like you don't know nothing about what's going on. I got a lil trick up my sleeve that's gon' give you some closure."
When we reentered the banquet hall, there were more people there than I remembered.
Family I hadn't seen in years, friends of the family, Dad's campaign team. Even some of Draya's old boyfriends were there. And I didn't like any of them.
Except Preston.
He was a sweet guy who really cared about Draya. She was just too blind and stuck on making my life a living hell to see it.
"Hey Preston! It's nice to see you here." I greeted him with a friendly hug. "I didn't know you were still in the neighborhood."
"Hey Brielle," he smiled and fixed his glasses before handing me a bouquet of roses. "I'm in California now. I just wanted to fly in and support the cause. Congratulations."
His eyes shifted from me to Draya, who stood across the room talking to Uncle Carlton, and I knew right away he could've cared less about my engagement.
He was there because he knew Draya was in town.
"Thank you," I chuckled lightly. "Well, it was nice seeing you again. Enjoy the party. There's food, drinks, fun. You know how the Champagne's get down!"
As I walked away, I thought about sneaking out to my car and leaving without telling anyone.
I still had to get dressed and do my make-up, pretend to be okay with Kannon and smile for the cameras. Answer questions the way my dad wanted me to whenever I was asked.
The anxiety I felt about seeing Kannon was enough to drive a woman mad. Let alone putting on a front so that my dad could win over the team he wanted for his campaign.
I felt like I would pass out before the party even started, and be woken up by someone slapping my face, telling me it was all a dream.
But then I saw him.