24. Aziel
“Baby, are we expecting anyone else?”Desire asked when the buzzer notified us of someone at the gate.
“No, baby. Let me check the cameras. I’ll be right back.”
Whoever it was better have had a good reason to be pressing the buzzer as if their life was in danger. I checked the camera near the front door and froze when I saw a face I hadn’t seen in three and a half years.
“What the fuck?” I whispered.
“Who is it?” AJ questioned. “It better be a damn emergency the way they’re laying on that buzzer.”
He startled me because I didn’t know he was behind me, and seeing a face from the past knocked me off my square.
“It’s umm, damn…”
“Damn, bruh. What’s wrong with you? Spit it out.”
“It’s Iris.”
“No shit?” He pressed the button on the camera to confirm for himself. “What the fuck does she want?”
“I don’t know, but I need to get rid of her.”
I reached for the door handle, but AJ stopped me.
“You can’t go out there. She already seems irate, and seeing you will only make it worse.”
“She came to my fucking house, so I must be who she wants to see,” I whisper-yelled.
“Az, let me see what she wants first.”
I hesitated until she pressed the buzzer again.
“Fine, but hurry up.”
AJ went outside, and my father appeared next to me.
“What’s going on?” he asked.
I shook my head and pressed the button for the camera. “Iris is outside.”
His eyes widened with surprise and concern if that was possible. We watched as AJ approached the gate entrance, and Iris exited her vehicle so they could talk.
“Have you heard from her since?—”
“Not a peep.”
“What do you think she wants?”
“I don’t have a clue.”
“What are you doing here, Iris?” AJ asked.
“I want to see my daughter.”
My stomach sank as I listened through the speaker.
“You don’t have a daughter, remember? You signed over your rights.”
“I want to see my daughter!” she shouted.
“Iris, you have no rights to Azaria. You need to leave now before we call the police.”
“What’s all the commotion?” I heard Desire ask.
When I turned around, the whole family was behind me.
Fuck!
I felt like shit.Desire planned a beautiful day for our families, and it ended horribly. We ended up having to call the police. Although I didn’t press charges, I wanted Iris off my property, and she wouldn’t leave otherwise.
Once things calmed down, the mood shifted. Desire knew some of the history between me and Iris, but her family, mainly her parents, weren’t in the know. My mother gave them a biased earful, and I didn”t stop her because I was still processing what had occurred.
Not long after the police took Iris away, a tow truck picked up her car, and everyone headed home except for my parents, who were spending the night. They volunteered to get Azaria ready for bed while Desire and I cleaned up. We did so silently for about ten minutes before I spoke.
“Thank you for today, baby. I’m sorry it was ruined.”
She’d been sweeping the floor, and I took the broom and leaned it against the counter before taking her in my arms.
“It wasn’t ruined, it’s not your fault.”
“I know, but I still want to apologize. If it counts for anything, everyone enjoyed the food and took plates home.”
“It does count. We were having such a great time before everything went south. Why do you think she wants to see Ria after all this time?”
“I have no idea, but it won’t happen on my watch.”
“But she’s her mother.”
“No, as far as me and Ria are concerned, you’re her mother, and don’t you ever let those words roll off your tongue again. Ria knows nothing about Iris, and I’ve never been more thankful for her innocence than I was today.”
“Why don’t you talk to her and find out what’s going on? Maybe she’s having some regrets about signing her rights away.”
“That’s her problem, not mine.”
“What was her mental state after she had the baby? Maybe she was experiencing postpartum depression.”
“It wasn’t that. Listen, baby. Iris isn’t my problem, but if she brings her ass around here again, I’ll be her biggest one.”
“How can you be so—so—I don’t know, but I don’t like it. I could barely see her, but I could tell something wasn’t right. I’m your wife, but I’m a woman first, and she’s crying out for help.”
“You saw all of that from fifty feet away? Seriously, baby. I know Iris, and she wasn’t here because she has regrets about Ria. There’s an ulterior motive, and I want no parts of it.”
“I don’t think you’re being fair.”
She moved away from me, grabbed the broom, and continued sweeping, which rubbed me the wrong way. I leaned against the counter and folded my arms across my chest.
“What you think about this situation doesn’t matter. If?—”
“Excuse me?”
“Desire, you can’t comment or feel a way about something you know nothing about. Iris no longer exists in my world and will never exist in Ria’s. If you disagree, that’s your problem, but I said what I said. I won’t discuss this with you again.”
Her eyes widened as she angled her head back and to the side. I knew that look because I’d seen it many times from the women in my life. She was pissed, and I was prepared for her to go off, but she didn’t. Instead, she shoved the broom into my chest and walked away.
“You’re wrong, son.”
A speech from my mother was the last thing I wanted to hear right now, but I had no choice.
“You were eavesdropping?”
“No, but you two weren’t whispering. I could hear you loud and clear as I came down the stairs. You’re wrong,” she repeated.
“How? Decisions were made way before Desire was in the picture. I still stand on those decisions, and I’m not changing up because she doesn’t know the whole story.”
“And whose fault is that? It’s your job to tell her the whole story so she understands why you had to make certain decisions.”
“Why do I have to explain decisions I made years ago? They had nothing to do with her.”
“Because she’s your wife, and those decisions now affect her.”
“They won’t if she minds her business.”
Before I knew it, my mother popped me upside my head. “Boy, are you stupid? That is your wife, and she’s willingly taken on the role of the mother of your child. You don’t shut her down when all she wants to do is understand. You’re wrong, son, and you’d better figure out how to fix it.”
Whatever my mother came downstairs to do was long forgotten. She gave me an earful and returned to the guest room. It took me about an hour to finish cleaning the kitchen alone. I did a lot of thinking while doing so, and I didn’t see my mother or Desire’s point of view.
It was late, and the day had been exhausting. I decided to push my thoughts to the back of my head and revisit them in the morning with a fresh mind. When I finally made it to the bedroom, I almost broke my nose when I tried to open the locked door.
“Ain’t this some shit,” I mumbled, shaking my head.
I could’ve made a fuss and forced Desire to let me inside, and I may have had we been alone. Instead, I went to one of the guest rooms. After a quick shower, I slid into the empty bed and immediately missed my wife. However, I let stubbornness win and settled for a lonely, sleepless night.