Chapter 19
19
Clinton
“ W hile I appreciate those fancy soaps and oils you used, nothing is as good for my skin as the nectar that seeps from your honeypot.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yes, really. Now, take off your clothes and sit on my face.”
“Let me clean this—”
“Nah, fuck that shit. I want my pussy on my face.”
We were in her living room on the couch. When she stood, I shifted my body to lie down. I watched as her satin robe slipped from her shoulders to reveal her naked body. Seeing her baby bump made me feel all types of shit, but mainly, it made my dick stand to attention.
“What are you waiting for? Climb on up here and sit on your throne.”
Her sweet scent already had my mouth watering. I opened wide as she positioned my favorite delicatessen over my face. I’d never experienced pussy this wet and didn’t know it was a possibility until Mona came into my life.
I ate her pussy until my face, beard, neck, and chest were drenched in her essence, then carried her to the bedroom only to do it all over again. When I finally slid into her from behind, I wanted the feeling to last forever. However, five minutes later, I filled her with my seeds and fell asleep with her wrapped in my arms.
“You’ve been in a mood, nigga. Wassup?” Evander asked.
“You think so? I hadn’t noticed.”
“Alyssa has come to me on the verge of tears three times this week because of you. Something is up.”
Alyssa had been my assistant for years. I’d think that if I’d done or said something to her that had her ready to cry, she would be comfortable enough to tell me.
I frowned in confusion. “Really? I don’t recall us—”
“It doesn’t matter if you remember, nigga. The girl was ready to quit. Twice this week, you snapped at her about your lunch order. She said you told her you weren’t eating lunch, but two hours later, you called asking her why your lunch was late.”
“I’ve been swamped with this new client and—”
“That’s no excuse. You ain’t new to this shit. What’s going on with you?”
I released an agitated breath and tossed my pen on my desk. Nothing was really wrong with me, but something was bothering me, and I didn’t have a solution.
“It’s Mona.”
“Is she good? Is the baby okay?”
“Her and the baby are fine. It’s just… She doesn’t want to get married.”
“You proposed?”
“Nah, I haven’t even thought about it, to be honest.”
“Okay, I’m confused.”
“Last week, we talked about marriage, and she told me it’s not on her radar. She’s in therapy, but she doesn’t see her feelings about marriage changing.”
“Damn. I can see where that might fuck you up if marriage is something you want.”
“What’s crazy is, I was indifferent about it until I fell in love with her ass. Based on her past and her resistance to moving in with me, I knew marriage wasn’t something she wanted to do any time soon. I hadn’t planned on being her boyfriend for the rest of our lives, though.”
“I usually have some advice, but I got nothing.”
“I didn’t realize it was bothering me so much because I hadn’t planned to propose any time soon, but her words stung more than I want to admit.”
“This may not be what you want to hear, and it might be the worst advice ever.”
“Let me hear it.”
“Since you weren’t planning to propose, forget about the marriage thing for now, but… give her an ultimatum about moving in together.”
Evander’s idea was horrible, but I found myself agreeing.
“I’ll try it, but you know nobody likes ultimatums. If she tells me to go fuck myself, I’m gon’ beat your ass tomorrow,” I warned him.
“I’m not worried about your ass. You ready to call it a day?”
Before I could respond, my cell phone rang with Mona’s name flashing across the screen.
“Hey, baby.”
“Can you come to my place?” She spoke so softly I could barely hear her.
“Yeah, are you okay? Is the baby okay?”
“The baby is fine. Can you just come?”
“I’m on my way.”
I ended the call and quickly gathered my things.
“Is everything good?”
“Something is wrong, but the baby is okay. I’ll update you later.”
The next thirty minutes were a blur as I weaved in and out of traffic, trying to get to Mona as fast as possible. I parked in her visitor’s space and rushed into the building. Of course, it felt like the elevator moved at a snail’s pace, but I raced toward her unit when it opened on her floor.
After letting myself into her apartment, I paused at the door when I noticed a man in her kitchen. Thankfully, I realized it was her next door neighbor Anton before shit went left.
We’d chopped it up a few times when we ran into each other in the parking garage and on the elevator. He was cool and offered to look out for Mona when I wasn’t around, which I appreciated. He began explaining before I could ask him what he was doing there.
“Her ex was pounding on her door when she got home. Luckily, we were on the elevator together because things may have been much worse if she’d been alone.”
“The fuck did that nigga want?” I wasn’t expecting Anton to answer.
“He wasn’t here for a wellness check, that’s for damn sure. When he noticed us, he charged toward us and went on a rant. I moved her behind me and made sure he couldn’t get to her. He said some disgusting things and called her every derogatory name in the book. When he noticed her belly, he went ballistic. I’ve never seen anyone so enraged. He didn’t leave until I threatened to call the police, but Mona is understandably shaken up.”
“I’m sure. Thank you for being there, man. I appreciate you, and I’m sure she does too.”
“No problem. She’s in her bedroom.”
Anton left, and I rushed to her bedroom. She was curled up in the fetal position on the bed. I got in behind her, wrapping her in my arms.
“I’m here, baby.” I kissed her temple.
“How did he find out where I live?”
“I don’t know, but I plan to find out.”
“Why is he bothering me?”
“Because he’s miserable, and misery loves company.”
She turned around to face me. “He’s never put his hands on me, but if Anton hadn’t been with me, I think he would’ve. When he saw my stomach, something in his eyes shifted, and he lost it.”
“I’m thankful Anton was with you.”
“Me too.”
We spoke simultaneously. “Does the offer still stand—”
“I want you to—go ahead,” I encouraged.
“No, you go first.”
“I want you to stay with me.”
“Oh, thank God. I was about to ask and was hoping the offer still stood. All I need are my clothes. We can put my furniture in storage, and I’ll use my savings to buy out the lease. I don’t feel safe here.”
“Baby, you don’t have to convince me because I’ve wanted you with me since we reunited. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of everything.”
“Did she find out how he got her address?” Evander asked.
I took a few days off from work to move Mona into my condo. He knew about the situation, but we hadn’t talked, so he didn’t know all the details.
“Not yet. We thought he might have been following her, but that wouldn’t explain how he knew her apartment number.”
“Damn. I hate that shit happened, but look at the bright side. She’s living with you and no ultimatum was needed.”
“True, but I’ll always wonder if she truly wants to be there.”
“Don’t overthink the shit, man. She could’ve gone to stay with her mother or one of her friends until she found another place. She had options if she didn’t want to be there.”
“You’re right. She actually asked if we were turning the guest room or the office into the nursery.”
“Oh yeah, she’s feeling right at home with no plans of leaving.”
“You know I’m the king of takeout. Man, we went grocery shopping last night and stocked up. This is the most food I’ve had at the crib since I bought the place. I can’t wait to see what we’re having for dinner.”
“I told you, being a bachelor ain’t got shit on having a good woman by your side.”
“You were most definitely right about that. Let me get to work. I’ll probably work through lunch and stay late to see if I can put a dent in this paperwork. Thanks for holding it down for me while I was out.”
“You know that’s never a problem.”
Evander left and I got straight to work. However, my cell phone interrupted me with a call from an unknown number.
“This is Clinton,” I greeted cautiously.
“Hello, Clinton. This is Tyla Blackwell, Mona’s mother.”
“Oh, hello, Mrs. Blackwell. Is everything okay?”
“Yes, everything is fine. I called to find out if you’re available for lunch today.”
“Lunch?” I looked at the documents on my desk. “Yeah, lunch is cool. What time and where?”
“I’ll text you the details, and it’s not necessary to mention this to Mona. See you soon.”
She ended the call before I could respond. I leaned back in my chair, wondering what Mona’s mother could possibly want to discuss with me. I’d find out soon enough, so I pushed it to the back of my mind and finished as much work as possible before leaving for lunch.
A few hours later, I showed up at the restaurant that Mona’s mother had chosen. To my surprise, Karla, Lariah, and my mother were also there.
“Hello, ladies! I’m sorry I’m late. I got caught up at work. Umm, Ma, what are you doing here?”
They stood as they greeted me, and I embraced each of them, my mother for a little longer than the others, before sitting in the open seat next to Lariah.
“It’s not a problem. We know you’re a busy man, but we didn’t want to delay this meeting any longer,” Mrs. Blackwell stated.
“What’s this about?” I asked.
The ladies looked at me for too long without responding, making me nervous as hell. Were they about to tell me some shit about Mona that I wouldn’t like?
“We started planning the baby shower and wanted your input,” Karla announced.
“And we want it to be a surprise, so we’ll need your help getting her there,” Lariah added.
“We’d also love to know the baby's gender, if possible. If not, we’ll work around it,” Mrs. Blackwell said.
A baby shower? Thank God for her mother and friends because I hadn’t thought about having one.
I finally responded after sighing with relief. “I’ll help as much as I can.”