Author: Moon Roses or Moony
Rating: R for language
Disclaimer: Don't own anything. Any lyrics recognized belong to Insane Clown Posse.
Feedback: Not necessary but greatly appreciated.
Recap: After they finished paying she waved goodbye to everyone and raced Brer to her car, eager to get away from the awkward situation. Once home, she began to unwind and instantly felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders. Even if she and Vince never settled their issues she'd have to learn to be comfortable around him.

Chapter Forty Seven

Shorty spent the next week trying her hardest to follow Dom's orders. She'd fucked up the family dynamics and she was the only one who could right it again. But figuring out a plan that didn't involve getting her ass kicked was more difficult than expected. Every scenario she played in her head seemed to end up in violence or, at the very least, a strongly worded argument. And that was the problem, because Leon would likely have words with her, and Vince, well Vince was likely to beat her black and blue.

In her effort to avoid both men she had to avoid Letty and the rest of the DT team as well. Which was a lot harder now that she was used to having Letty and Mia around whenever she wanted them. She couldn't risk having her confrontations in front of Brer, or anyone else for that matter. No doubt whatever was said was going to be highly personal, and she couldn't face that kind of embarrassment.

But late Friday night when she was sitting on her window seat watching the man watch her, she got a call on her cell phone. "What's up, Lett?"

"Not a damn thing. I'm bored as fuck. We're having people over for dinner again tomorrow, you in?"

"I don't think so," she sighed, watching the man pace beside his bench.

"Come on, girl. Beto's bringing fajitas. Everyone will be here"

"Nah, I think me and the kid'll stay outta the hot seat for a bit."

"You're really killing my boner here, Boo."

Shorty laughed and moved into the bathroom to get ready for bed, "Penis envy still, hey?"

Dinner at the Toretto's sounded like a fabulous idea but she knew she owed that family a hell of a lot. Bringing it back together was going to take much more than a dinner. It was going to take some serious maneuvering on her part.

The next morning she woke before Brer and showered quickly. She'd learned enough in the past few years to take the time to herself when she could get it. Not that she didn't love spending time with her son, because she truly did. But even she needed a minute or two to think about where her life was heading.

When she was finished her shower, she rubbed some taming gel in her hands and pulled it through her loose curls as best she could. She undoubtedly had time to dry her hair but was to lazy, so instead she pulled on a tiny tank top and left her hair down to air dry.

Shorty padded down the stairs in bare feet with Banjo at her side. She opened the curtains in the front room and moved into the kitchen to start cooking breakfast. Surprised that Brer hadn't woken when Banjo left his room she was positive he'd wake once the smell of sausages reached his room. Just like is mother, he was a sucker for food.

Right on cue, Banjo's floppy ears lifted off his head slightly before he took off up the stairs to greet his little human. Minutes later, Brer appeared in the doorway with his pajamas in disarray and his wild curls plastered to the left side of his head.

"Hey, little man. You hungry for waffles?"

"Mhmm," he smiled, as he tugged open the sliding door for Banjo to come and go as he pleased.

"Blueberry waffles?"

"Yes please."

He climbed up onto the stool and watched as she moved around the kitchen preparing their breakfast. Now that September was coming to a close, so was the beach season. A couple more weeks and it'd be much to chilly for a day atop the sand.

"After breakfast, how about we take Banjo to the beach?"

Brer squealed in response and jumped down, racing into the backyard to tell Banjo. Although she was sure he knew the dog couldn't understand what he said he still felt the need to inform him of everything. The relationship between a boy and his dog really was meaningful.

Fixing two plates, she set them on the table and poured two glasses of milk. She called her son to the table and they sat down to eat with Banjo resting at their feet. Brer kept the conversation flowing, talking about the dreams he remember from the night before which mostly revolved around cars and Lalia. He hadn't mentioned his "uncle Leon" again since he heard them talking about him at breakfast from the weekend before. But Vince was often brought into the conversation and Shorty found it equally amusing and annoying that he seemed to be so enthralled with the man who'd meant so much to her only a few short years before.

In fact, he was talking about Vince when the doorbell rang unexpectedly. Shorty placed her napkin beside her plate and ruffled her sons hair, "Be right back, kiddo."

Shorty opened the door and blinked to clear her vision. When that didn't work, she rubbed her eyes, unable to believe what she was seeing was real.

"Uh, Kim," she said, looking past her for Leon. "What are you doing here?"

"We need to talk."

"Well, I'm kind of busy." She knew Kim hadn't heard about Brer yet, and for once she was thankful that racers could care less about who had kids and who didn't. If Kim had known about Brer, and she hadn't figured it out yet due to the timeline, then one sight of her son and she'd know. It was impossible not to known where his bright green eyes came from. That fact was painfully obvious.

"It won't take long."

Shorty knew she should have said no but instead she said, "Yeah, just let me turn off the burner."

She left Kim waiting on the steps and returned to the kitchen quickly to tell Brer that she was just going to step outside. "You just keep eating, babe," Shorty said, dropping another waffle onto his plate.

Kim stopping by her house was incredibly awkward and frankly, unwanted. This was her place, usually free of drama. But now that drama was showing up at her door demanding to be seen. Pulling the door closed behind her she stepped into the bright sunlight and sat next to Kim on the steps.

Unsure how to begin Shorty waited until Kim was ready to say whatever it was she needed to say. "Leon's a good man."

Her brain processed the words and as if in a dream she nodded her head slowly. "Yeah, he is."

"Do you remember when we raced?"

"Yeah, I won."

"You raced good that night."

Shorty had no idea where this conversation was going, and that made her insanely uncomfortable. "Thanks."

"You know, I've loved Leon for a long time. I loved him before you moved back the first time."

With the actual topic now at hand she felt this was going to be a warning more than a friendly chitchat. Talking about Kim's love for Leon was the least likely thing she'd choose to talk about. In fact, she could already feel the hairs along the back of her neck rising in nervous tension. "Good to know, I guess."

"I never understood how you breezed in and," she snapped her fingers, "just like that you were part of their team. I've been trying for years to get in with Dominic Toretto."

She contemplated how best to answer that but knew anything she said would be perceived as negative, "That's your problem. I never wanted to get in with Dom."

"And both Vince and Leon falling all over themselves for you. It was disgusting."

"Mhmm," Shorty said. She decided to let Kim talk because there wasn't anything she could say to settle the situation. Kim had shown up to tell her this and she hadn't been expected to answer.

"Leon's mine now. I don't want you anywhere near him."

"Mhmm."

"I mean it, don't come around the Toretto's anymore. Stay away from the races. This is my world now, not yours. They're my family."

Shorty had heard enough. She could deal with hearing about the love affair between her ex and this new woman. But she sure as fuck wasn't going to be told whom she could spend time with and where she could do it. She stood swiftly and opened her front door, "Oh honey, this ain't high school. Don't think for a second you can come around here and try to intimidate me."

"Leon's mine."

"I'm not here for Leon, for Christ's sake."

"Good, he wouldn't want you again anyways. Not when I give him everything he needs."

Shorty rolled her eyes at the childish comment and stepped into her house. Before she shut the door though, she got in her last words, "I wouldn't bet on that." She was a competitive woman, anyone on her team knew that, just as all the members of the DT team knew. Clearly no one had told Kim that once a challenge was issued she was bound and determined to see it through.

She quietly shut the door, though she was more inclined to slam it. She'd learned when to push her rage into the pit of her stomach for Brer's sake and she used that skill now. If she hadn't she'd have been stomping around the house, muttering curses and throwing breakables.

Brer was putting dishes in the dishwasher when she returned to the kitchen. She rummaged through the freezer and took out a package of chicken breasts and two packages of whole wheat pita pockets. Her plan was already in motion though she had yet to vocally admit it. She was positive Kim was too focused on Leon to know the way into the DT's teams heart was through their stomachs.

"Es sobre, puta," Shorty muttered under her breath, as she set the food in the sink to defrost. "Hey Brer, why don't you go get some swim trunks on?" (It's on, bitch.)

Brer smiled at her before running from the kitchen. His footfalls on the steps were tremendous. She quickly wiped down the counters and washed the frying pan and waffle maker she'd used to make breakfast. She was just making her way upstairs to put on her own bathing suit when Brer shoved past her and sprinted down the stairs.

She tied a yellow bikini on, covered it with sweat shorts and a pulled on her still damp tank top. She made sandwiches for their lunch, added bottles of water and snacks into a large beach bag. Tossing towels on top, she shouldered the bag and led the way to the Escalade. She would have preferred to take her car to the beach, simply for the pleasure of seeing admiring glances, but Banjo just wouldn't fit in the car at his size.

Sliding behind the wheel she pulled out of Echo Park and made her way straight to the beach. The sand was almost empty, most people finding it too cool to be around the water. That didn't affect her and it sure didn't affect her son or dog. Once out o the car both took off and went straight for the water. Brer was stripping his shirt and converse shoes off mid run, leaving them behind for her to pick up as she followed.

They spent the afternoon frolicking in the waves, building intricate sand castles and sea monsters, and throwing a tennis ball for Banjo. It would have been easy to forget what had transpired on the front steps earlier that day, if she'd let herself. But she held onto that crazy conversation and the smart ass anger she'd developed because of it.

After a few hours Shorty dried off her son and chased him back to the SUV. They could have stayed for a few more hours but she needed to bathe Brer and clean herself up before she went to the dinner at the Toretto's. Because that's what she'd decided to do once she'd been ordered to stay away. If she couldn't listen to herself when she said stay away than there was no way in hell she was going to listen to Kimberly.

When they got home, she dusted the chicken breasts with salt and pepper and put them in the oven on low heat. While they were cooking she gave Brer his bath and after she dried him off, helped him pick out an outfit. He dressed slowly, as if he could sense the nervous energy in his mother. Once he was satisfied with his outfit and shoes, she tossed him over her shoulder and took him into her bathroom to do his hair. "What you want today, little man?"

"A mohawk!" he cried, jumping off the toilet and bouncing off what felt like every surface.

She thought the beach would take a lot out of him but apparently it had done the exact opposite and wound him up. She pulled some hair gel from her drawer and snagged him around the middle, depositing him on the counter top so she could fix his hair. She did her best to tame the curls on the side of his head, while fluffing the center of his hair as much as possible. It wasn't a mohawk but it was as close to a faux hawk as he was going to get, and she had to admit that it made him look even more adorable.

Next she plopped him in front of a movie with a juice box and a small bag of Fritos while she took the chicken out of the oven. She set it on the counter to cool before she rushed upstairs to wash the salt from her hair and body. After she towel dried, she took the time to smooth her waves into soft shiny curls.

Choosing an outfit was a little more difficult because she wanted to be casual but she wanted Leon to let his attention wander more than once. The look on Kim's face was going to be priceless and she contemplated taking a camera so she could remember it forever.

Shorty pulled on a cream colored skirt overlain with matching lace and an orange ruffled tank top. It wasn't slutty, or even sensual but she thought she looked nice. It reminded her of the classy way Mia dressed and for once she felt comfortable looking like a girl. She desperately wanted to slide her feet into her yellow Doc Martin lace up's but she refrained and pulled on a pair of cream colored flats. She wouldn't kill in the outfit, but she might just wow her friends and family.

After applying a small amount of makeup she grabbed her large purse and made her way back into the kitchen to finish making the food she was bringing to the dinner. She pulled two packages of cream cheese, a bag of mixed shredded cheese, a bottle of Franks red hot sauce, and a bottle of ranch dressing from the fridge. She shredded the chicken, mixed it with the cream cheese, half the shredded cheese, hot sauce, and the ranch dressing before pouring it into a round ceramic dish. She topped the mixture with the left over cheese and wrapped it with saran wrap.

Setting aside the cheesy chicken mixture she grabbed the two bags of pita pockets and dumped them onto the counter. Taking a large knife she cut them into eights to form small triangles. Moving them into a large Tupperware she put the Cajun seasoning inside and sealed it shut. Stacking the ceramic dish on top of the Tupperware, she grabbed her purse and led Brer to the door.

"Where are we going, Mami?" he asked, as she locked the front door.

He followed her to the car and let her buckle him into the car seat while she told him they were going to Lalia's for dinner again. She could tell he was excited because a large smile pulled his cheeks up and his eyes crinkled at the sides, much like Leon's did when he smiled.

Perhaps it was unwarranted, the spiteful anger she felt for Kim, but she couldn't back down. Her territory had been declared unmarked and she was determined to set everyone in the racing world straight. The fact that Leon was in denial about his son never crossed her mind. She didn't worry about how they'd be received at the table, or how Kim still hadn't heard about Brer. And throwing her innocent sons presence in her face was completely infantile but she couldn't help herself. Whether Leon wanted to admit it or not, Kim was about to find out why Leon would always be in her life and why she'd never stay away from any of the DT team.

Because of the beach day with Brer, she hadn't found time to call Letty and let her know that they would indeed be attending. She only hoped there was enough room and food for them, and that their seats were as far from Kim's as they could get.

A/N: Thanks to demonpixie1, Teleliniel, ILoveAnime89, and Violet201 for the wonderful reviews! Shout out to deidaralover1234 for the favourite and alert. I am trying to wrap this story up, so all encouragement is welcome.

Cheers!