Chapter 8
Autumn
TWO WEEKS LATER
Ihadn’t been this excited in a long time. I hadn’t been on a date since the day that I learned Wilson lied to me about his wife and kid. Learning that I was pregnant had sent me into a cocoon that I hadn’t been willing to shed. I spent a few days out with my sister and our friends, but not much.
Today was the first day that I would be doing anything exciting. Over the last two weeks, October was intentional about spending time with Auburn and me. It amazed me how she reacted to the sound of his voice, racing into the room to greet him, or running to the door whenever the doorbell rang.
We barbequed in our backyards on a couple of occasions, watched a movie together, and just sat around and kicked it. So, when he rang the doorbell, I was overly excited and nervous.
I grabbed Auburn’s backpack and put it on her back and then grabbed my purse. “Come on, Smooches. Time for some one-on-one with Nana and PaPa.”
I eagerly grabbed her hand and walked to the door, excited for time around other adults and a miniature break from being so hands-on for a second.
I loved my baby, but I did miss being around other adults and getting out to do more than going to the store, to work, and the doctor’s office.
Alternatively, I knew that I would miss her as soon as she was gone.
This weekend would be my first weekend away from her.
I usually took her to the shop with me on the weekends.
“Oh, you ready, ready.” October greeted me when I opened the door wearing my gold and black Cherokee Springs University Tigers jersey and dark blue jeans. I wore a pair of gold and black custom Nike Dunks on my feet.
“I told you that I would be.”
“Did you order the jersey from the store?” he asked, grabbing Auburn and carrying her down the steps to his car.
“No. I actually went to the campus and picked it out.”
“Okay. Okay. I see you.”
“You don’t look too bad yourself,” I stated, motioning at his black jersey with gold lettering. He paired it with some black jeans and all-black Nikes.
“You feeling ya boy, huh? Unlock your car so that I can grab her car seat.”
I did as he asked and blushed at his comment because he was always saying little flirty things like that. I was attracted to October. It was more than an attraction. I genuinely liked him a lot and would love to be closer to him. I was scared to put myself out there to be burned again.
When he returned with her car seat, I locked my car back. He smirked. “Look at you checking a nigga out.”
“I mean, you’re cute and all.”
“Listen to you. Tryna play it off when I know better.”
“Whatever.”
I strapped Auburn in her car seat.
On the drive to my parents’ home, we talked about everything from what we did in high school to our worst dates and most embarrassing moments.
When we pulled up to my parents’ house, I stopped October before he jumped out of the car.
“Listen, don’t hold anything that my grandmother says or does against me.”
He frowned. “Whatcha mean?”
“She can be a bit extra. I’m just saying that she has a good heart, but she might be doing the most.”
He smirked. “Let’s go.”
Within minutes, we were in my parents’ house, and my mother held Auburn in her arms. GiGi came downstairs a few minutes after I re-introduced October to my parents.
“Mm-mm-mm. I haven’t seen you since Smooches was born. Until that day, I didn’t know they still made ’em like this,” Gigi declared, eye-fucking October.
“GiGi, behave. You remember my neighbor, October Patterson. October, you remember my GiGi, Vonda Maddox?”
“I do. It’s a pleasure to see you again, ma’am,” he replied, kissing her hand.
“Girl, ain’t nobody gonna forget a man this fine. I’m proud of you, baby. You sholl made ya’self a nice rebound with this one,” GiGi stated, embarrassing me.
“Mama,” my mother warned.
“What?”
“GiGi, he’s just a neighbor.”
“Like a good neighbor, October is there,” GiGi sang, making him chuckle and me roll my eyes.
“Mama!” my mother declared, bouncing Auburn in her arms.
“Girl, please. Good neighbors sweep cobwebs too.”
“Mama, we have to go. Thanks for watching Auburn. I’ll see y’all later,” I declared, kissing my mother’s cheek, my father, and finally my grandmother.
“Don’t come back too soon, but make sure you wrap it up too. Ain’t nobody turning this house into a daycare, ya hear?” GiGi shouted after us as I rushed toward the living room, dragging October by the hand.
I didn’t stop until we were locked away in the car and pulling off down the street.
“Your GiGi is hilarious.”
“Glad someone thinks so.”
“You don’t?”
“Her little shenanigans ain’t cute. She’s getting too old for all of that.”
“Maybe. Maybe not. She’s just having fun.”
“Maybe I’ll let you have her for a few days and then tell me how much fun she’d be.”
“Man, that woman might blow my mind,” October stated with a chuckle.
I side-eyed him, rolled my eyes, and turned my gaze out the window.
“You still mad about your GiGi?” October teased me during halftime as we made our way to get snacks.
“No. What makes you think that?”
“You’ve been pouting most of the day,” he pointed out.
“No, I haven’t. I’ve actually enjoyed myself.”
“Including when you jumped up, cheering when our team fumbled the ball?” His dark, nut-brown eyes sparkled with mischief.
I shoved his shoulder playfully. “Whatever. It was an honest mistake.”
“Yeah, among the hundreds of other fans who were sitting down, booing?”
I bit my bottom lip as my cheeks flushed with warmth as I recalled that moment.
Someone had thrown something at me and shouted, “Sit down, idiot,” to which October jumped over a couple of rows, yoked the man up, and threatened to beat the shit out of him.
The man apologized until October released him.
“What do you want to eat?” he asked when it was our turn to order at the concession stand.
“I love those hot pretzels, a chili dog, and uhm, . . . I’ll take a purple slushie.”
“Big ass kid,” he teased, grinning at me.
His eyelids lowered as he looked me up and down before he pulled his bottom lip into his mouth and bit down on it.
October was always giving me these looks that pulled me in and made me want to kiss him, or ask him what was on his mind, but at the same time, I was afraid.
I worried that I was mistaking his looks for more than they were.
After we placed our orders, we stepped aside to wait. October pulled out his phone.
“One of these days, I’ma get away from the shop and truly ignore all their messages,” he stated with a chuckle as he texted.
“Is everything okay? Do you need to get back?”
“Nah. I’m good. They’re checking in with me about some parts that should have been in by now. Rather than me texting the supplier on the status, I should have ignored them and let their asses handle it,” he replied.
“Excuse me,” a slim, light-skinned woman who was with a brown-skinned woman stated, walking up to us.
Both women were gorgeous and shapely, although the brown-skinned woman was curvier than the other woman. They wore tight, ripped jeans, heels, and CSU T-shirts with the front hem tucked into their jeans, showing off flat abs and curvy hips.
“What’s up?” October replied, looking up from his phone and smiling at them.
“You’re looking fine as hell in that jersey. We’re not very familiar with the details of football. I was wondering if you might want to come sit with us when you get your order,” the first woman suggested.
My face flushed with shame, and anger coursed through me. Damn, did she not see me standing here beside him?
“I appreciate the offer, love, but no thanks.”
“Well, how about I give you my number and you hit me up later? See what we can get into,” she replied.
“Uhm, don’t you see that I’m with someone?”
“What does that have to do with you taking her number?” the second woman spoke up.
I was tired of the disrespect, and although I didn’t want to be presumptuous about anything between October and me, I couldn’t take another minute of it.
“Are y’all really gonna disrespect me like I’m just not standing here?” I asked.
The first woman rolled her eyes. “Nobody was talking to you.”
“But I was speaking to your disrespectful ass.”
“She’s mad because her man’s eye-fucking you,” the second one stated.
“Hey, chill with that. I said I’m not interested, and definitely not interested in being with any woman who could disrespect herself the way y’all two just did by being so thirsty and approaching a man when he’s standing with his beautiful queen.”
“Oh, my bad. I honestly thought she was your aunt or mother when I saw you,” the first woman stated.
“Because why would you . . .” the second woman stated, waving her hand at me and looking me up and down.
Every mean name I’d ever been called since childhood, every cruel word that’d been spoken about me, and every disdainful look that’d been cast at me overwhelmed me in the moment.
The memories of the embarrassing incident at the bowling alley when Wilson’s wife showed up came rushing back.
I recalled how horrified I was as she called me a cow, fat, ugly, and every other ugly word she had spoken.
I recalled how everyone was watching us and how she kept aiming her camera at me as she live-streamed. I was in that moment all over again.
In spite of being a heavyset woman, I had always felt beautiful.
I hadn’t always been confident about my size, the way my sister, Wynter, had been.
But I knew that my inner person and outer person were beautiful.
Yet, the way they were looking at me and disrespecting me made me want to disappear.
I wondered what October thought when he looked at me and if he was ashamed to be seen with me.
His next actions and words dispelled all those insecurities.
“This is my woman. I don’t get why beautiful queens feel the need to disrespect another beautiful queen.
The only thing that makes sense to me aside from being thirsty is that you’re insecure and someone didn’t love ya asses right.
That ain’t my problem, but what y’all asses ain’t gonna do is tear mine down.
Now y’all can kick mud,” October proclaimed and grabbed my hand, intertwining our hands.
He pressed a kiss to my knuckles, and a flush of security, desire, and adoration ran through me.
When I looked up at October questioningly, I saw something in his eyes that had me growing warm inside.
“Nobody was all that into you anyway, boo. I felt sorry for your ass being caught with someone like her,” the first girl stated.
I jerked my hand away from October, ran up on the girl, and she stumbled backward trying to get away from me. “I will beat your ass in this stadium so bad you won’t know what the hell happened to you,” I threatened.
When she fell, her friend turned to look at me and yelled, “Bitch!” as she reached down to help her friend up.
“Come on, baby. Our order’s ready,” October declared, grabbing my hand again and pointing at the server who was beckoning us.