Sylvia #2
“Mind your manners and have fun.” I kissed my son on the cheek and my daughter on top of her head before they grabbed their bags off the porch. They were already dressed in t-shirts and shorts with sneakers so they were comfortable while they were gone.
“Yes, ma’am.” Selene was fighting not to roll her eyes because she knew that manners part was for her.
She was famous for ignoring anything that Bianca said and had gotten in trouble for it.
I told her she had to respect adults but her come back was she didn’t like nor respect Bianca because she hadn’t earned it.
She tried to help out with her little sister but she said that Bianca wouldn’t let her bond with the little girl.
“Y’all go ahead and get in the car.” Dave greeted them both with a hug but neither of them really followed his direction. “Y’all ain’t hear me?”
“Daddy, we just saw she was hollering which means she’s going to be in a bad mood. Can you walk with us?” Dorian was giving his father a look like all his secrets were going to be spilled if he didn’t handle his girlfriend.
He had the nerve to look ashamed because he knew I was going to go off at any second. My kids not wanting to be bothered with Bianca was normal since they blamed her for what happened to our family. But their observing her bad behavior the way they were seemed to be something deeper.
“You don’t let her talk to our kids crazy, do you?” Because I would march them back in the house without a second thought if either of them said yes.
“She in a mood but I wouldn’t let anyone disrespect my kids.”
“Let’s hope that’s the truth. Y’all call me if you need me.
” I hugged them both again thinking of what I was going to get into for the next few days.
Summer was here and I was thankful that I didn’t have to contend with running around with school for the time being.
Work was still busy but my brothers were more than happy to give me time off when I said I was going to take a staycation since the kids would be with their dad.
“You sure you don’t want to come along with us? We can always get another room and—”
I rolled my eyes at his ass because he was attempting to pull the kids into this so I would be forced into agreeing. Little did he know I’d already talked to them about this.
“I’m not doing this bullshit with you, Dave. You know what this is and I’m not going to fake the happy family funk with you and your girlfriend.”
“Man, c’mon you still hurt behind this shit? I knew you weren’t over me.”
Having heard this argument before, the kids moved further down the steps but still didn’t head to the car.
“Over you? Dave, you’ve been wiped out of my heart and my mind since before the ink of the paperwork was dry.
This is about the two of y’all not wanting to parent two kids who have opinions and feelings.
I’ve dealt with the emotional toil this took on our kids basically solo for years.
You were a piss poor husband but now I need you to step up for your kids.
If you can’t handle taking them for a few days, that says more about you than about me. ”
He waved me off fighting to save face since I’d rejected him yet again. “Man, I’m just trying to be cordial and shit. Inviting you to come and shit is like a peace offering.”
A last-minute trip invitation to sit in a car with a woman who couldn’t stand me for multiple hours didn’t sound like a peace offering. “Sure, Dave.”
“Man, I swear that you are so hard to please. When you get so high maintenance?” He had the nerve to look at me like my self-respect disgusted him and I was sure that it did.
I leaned against the doorframe because I was seconds from walking through it and leaving him outside in this Georgia heat by himself.
“And what’s the alternative to that, Dave? Being easy to please and low maintenance? To be a fucking doormat? No, thank you. You have someone new to wipe your boots on and I’m thankful it’s not me. So, enjoy time with your kids. I’m going inside to enjoy the blessed silence.”
I shot him a fake smile before looking over his shoulder and waving at his girl who was still glaring at me like I was intruding on her property.
The fucking nerve.
I wanted to feel bad for her because I knew she wasn’t his priority.
He’d all but confessed multiple times that he was only with her because I didn’t want him.
He complained about her often early on whenever he called.
Despite my telling him that he needed to get therapy and keep our calls to the kids, he didn’t listen.
Since he couldn’t follow directions I went to the courts who forced him to communicate to me through a parenting app.
We both had to pay for it and he was pissed that I’d given him another bill.
The irony was the child support he paid for the kids went into their college funds since I was sure he wouldn’t make separate contributions on his own.
I left him on the porch speaking to my back because I wasn’t going to give him any more of my time.
My phone buzzed but I’d had my fill of Dave’s shit and I wasn’t about to answer it. He’d be throwing a fit and I would stress about my babies and what they would hear if we got into another argument. Protecting my peace and theirs meant I was going to pretend he didn’t exist.
It had been far easier to learn how to ignore my ex husband than to the only other man who had been allowed inside my body.
That asshole had captured my thoughts for the last two years but I knew it was impossible for me to ever completely forget him.
The damn town I was born and raised in was named after his family.
Every time I looked around one of his funny eyed kin folk were everywhere I looked.
It reminded me of his discolored eye that made him stand out even more than his relatives.
I’d made plans for tonight as a reclamation of my mind.
I couldn’t lie that the idea of mentally reliving the time that we’d shared like I’d done almost daily since I saw him wasn’t guiding my decision.
Hassan had been like a ghost that lingered around when it should’ve moved on the way its physical body had.
The connection that I’d felt that night had to be the cause of why I couldn’t shake myself free of him but it was clear the feeling wasn’t mutual.
There hadn’t been another sighting of him in years and the only person who knew about that night had been monitoring everything that had to do with him and the Beacons just so I had a heads up.
It was crazy that he seemed like a ghost only being mentioned in his family’s website but without a photo.
If I hadn’t known him all my life I’d think that Hassan was a man who didn’t exist.
I entered my bedroom which I’d had completely redecorated after we got all of Dave’s shit out of here.
All of the furniture in the room had been changed from when I was married and I’d let my brothers take some of it and have a bonfire out at my grandparents’ place.
They’d talked about me moving out but I wasn’t leaving my house.
It was a part of my family’s history and I refused to let Dave think he had me that bothered.
The ancestors that occupied these walls before me would drive out any ill intentions he’d tried to leave behind.
He hadn’t stepped foot back in this place after my brothers tossed him off of the property and he never would.
The closet I’d once shared with Dave was now all mine and the number of clothes I’d purchased over the last few years were different than what I used to buy.
Gone were the mom uniforms of leggings and baggy tees whenever I wasn’t at work.
My personality flourished once I got rid of the parasite and I gravitated toward colors and patterns because that was what made me happy.
I’d grown more confident in myself over the last few years and it felt natural.
I no longer had the weight on me that was draining everything out of me.
Besides a few hiccups with the kids having behavioral issues things were good.
My confidence had only increased and my ego had gotten a boost. Despite not wanting to date that hadn’t stopped men from asking.
A few even said that Dave was running around being a hater trying to prevent me from moving on but clearly they saw it for what it was.
I didn’t care because I would never date another man from my home town again.
Hell, I wasn’t worried about dating again at all.
The first time my dreams of Hassan had gotten the best of me I ordered a range of toys that the manufacturers swore would take the edge off.
They lied. I’d made myself cum but the toys lacked the intimacy and the finesse of Hassan.
Nothing matched the length, thickness, and attentive skill he’d used to make me cum.
I’d woken up sweaty many nights after sleeping through a memory of our time together.
I was sure my toys would get a work out tonight after I got back because I was sure the air inside of his family’s hotel would conjure up the feel of him.
Should I have been going there? Hell no.
But I’d been thinking of that place all week.
Drawn to it. And I was hoping that going, having a great meal some good drinks and relaxing would strip him from my brain.
Kinda like immersion therapy since avoidance hadn’t worked.
I pulled out a bright, summer yellow dress that looked amazing against the richness of my skin.
I was taking my mom hat off and it only seemed appropriate to go to the last place I’d felt grown sexy and free.
It was the perfect way to start off the next week of being childfree and I was ready to relax and let my hair down.