Reese took a moment and leaned against the bathroom door. Her head was spinning and she felt sick as a dog. The last thing she wanted was to talk to someone on the phone. Pulling her towel around herself, she opened the door.

Sharon stood there, looking like a miniature version of their mother, hair braded into two pigtails. She was a plump preteenager, with big brown eyes and smooth chocolate skin. Of all her siblings, she and Sharon butted heads the most. It was probably because their personalities were so similar. Much like Reese, Sharon thought she knew everything.

“You know how long I’ve been knocking on this door?” Sharon asked, holding the phone out to Reese. Reese took the phone and slammed the door without even acknowledging her sister’s question.

“Hello,” Reese said, placing her still-wet ear against the receiver of the cordless.

“What’s up, baby,” a masculine voice said. Even if she hadn’t heard the commotion in the background, she’d have known who it was on the line. Of all the people who could’ve called her that afternoon, Bone was the one she wanted to speak to least.

Bone was Reese’s on-again, off-again boyfriend. He was a notorious knucklehead who was always looking for the big score. Bone and Reese had a relationship that was built on familiarity more than anything else. They had known each other since junior year in high school, and from the gate it was a love-hate relationship. He treated Reese fairly well, but couldn’t manage to keep his hands to himself. On more than one occasion, Bone had kicked her ass. It wasn’t unusual for her to pop up on the block with a busted lip or a pair of designer sunglasses to hide a black eye. When Bone got locked up, it was both a gift and a curse for Reese.

He was currently sitting up on Riker’s Island, waiting to be transported upstate to serve out a three-to-nine for possession with intent to sell. He had made the foolish mistake of running a red light with two ounces of cocaine in the trunk of his car. Unfortunately for Reese, she happened to be a passenger in the car when he got stopped. She got a slap on the wrist and probation, but because of Bone’s record, they slammed him. She had to report to a probation officer once a month, but she had finally managed to get a break from the relationship. Reese bit back the curse that was trying to pop out and found her voice.

“Hey,” she said dryly.

“Damn, you don’t sound happy to hear from a nigga,” he said.

“Sorry, I’m just going through a lot right now.”

“You must be, because I ain’t seen you in almost two months. You don’t miss a nigga?”