17. REASON
REASON
With Saje’s legs wrapped around my waist and her nails digging into my back, I hammered into her moist center.
I grabbed her neck as she gripped my dick with her pussy muscles.
It had been a week since I returned from L.A.
, and it was the first time we had alone time in a while.
So, my mission was for Saje to feel how much I missed her.
“Reason, baby… I’ve missed this big, luscious ass dickkk…” She moaned and gyrated her body while I was still deep inside her flesh.
“And I’ve missed bustin’ in this pussy…”
Sex talk only intensified our session.
“Turn that ass around and fuck me back, beautiful.”
Saje speedily flipped over, positioned herself, arched her back, and shoved my dick back inside her.
That fat ass slammed into my pelvis, making me brick up more.
I preferred being in control, but sometimes I let her shine and do her thing.
She rotated, rocked her shit back and forth, and sucked the nut right out my dick.
“Gahdamn, woman…” I bit my bottom lip as I filled my wife up.
“Fuck, Reason!” she sexily cried. Juices squirted out of Saje, drenching my meat.
She collapsed under me, breathing heavily.
Deciding to reverse the roles, I weakly got out of bed and headed to the restroom to get a warm, wet wash rag. I went back into our bedroom, spread her legs, and wiped my baby clean. When I was done, she lay on her side and closed her eyes.
I had to go into the office today, but I needed to talk to her before I left.
“Beautiful, we gotta talk about where we are with the surrogacy process.”
“My love, can it wait?” She slowly rolled over to face me.
“No. We haven’t had time to talk since I came back from L.A., and I need to update you.”
“I trust you. You don’t have to update me on every detail.” She sleepily rubbed her eyes.
This kind of caught me off guard. I was starting to notice Saje hadn’t asked much of anything since the surrogacy decision was made.
“Are you not interested anymore?”
“Uh, yes. Why would you say that?”
I stood next to the bed, hovering over her. “Whenever I try to update you on the progress, you seem to shut down.”
Saje lazily sat up and looked at me. “I’m not shutting down, babe. I’m still processing everything, you know. You told me you understood.”
“I do understand. I just thought by now you’d show a little more interest. Or want to know what’s going on.”
I sat next to her, and she instantly rubbed my back. “Reason, I know you would never lead us astray. I’m used to you being in control, and this is just another situation I’m allowing you to handle. I trust you, husband. I know you’ll always make the best decisions for us.”
“Damn, baby. You hit a nigga deep in the heart with that one.”
“It’s true. I can’t even think of one time you’ve ever led me… or us in the wrong direction.” She blinked back tears.
“Saje.”
“Yes?” Her eyes were glued to mine.
“We found a surrogate.”
For a while, she didn’t speak, just stared at me.
“You good?” I asked.
She sat up straight and adjusted the sheet over her naked body. “Yes, I am. Wow, so it’s really going to happen?”
“Yeah. How do you feel about it?”
“I’m excited for… us,” was all she said.
“There’s still time to back out of it, Saje. If you’re not ready, don’t be afraid to let me know. We can wait a few more months, maybe a year, then we can try again.”
“We can continue with the process. You’ve dreamed of becoming a father for the longest.”
“Saje, what about you? It ain’t all about what I want.”
“It’s a dream of mine too… you know, becoming a mother.”
“Okay then, now is our chance to become parents.”
“Who is the surrogate?”
“I don’t know. To protect our identities, I chose for us to remain anonymous, so it’s only right the surrogate have the same option.”
She grimaced. “Anonymous? I understand us being incognito, but don’t we need to know who is carrying your… our child? What if she’s crazy, weird, or trying to pull a fast one?”
“I get it, and those concerns are legit. Trust me, I’ve thought about all scenarios too.
But the agency we’re working with are professional business folks.
After meeting with the owners, Nehemiah and Amara, who offered to work on our case themselves, they ensured that everything was covered.
If not, you know I’ll handle things my way if needed, but I don’t think we’ll have any issues. ”
Saje tilted her head to the side and took a deep breath, like she wasn’t convinced.
“I got it, baby. When have I ever disappointed you?”
She glanced around as if she was looking for an answer. I reached for her face and made her turn back to face me. “Answer me, Saje?”
“Reason, you’ve never disappointed me.”
“Well, continue to trust me, baby. Your man got this. Aight?”
Saje half-smiled and nodded while I gently wiped a tear from her face and kissed her forehead.
We were going to be good, and in a few months, we would have our healthy baby in our arms.
“Reason St. Pierre! What the hell do you mean, you and that piece-of-shit wife of yours are getting a surrogate to carry my grandchild?” My mama, Tammi, fussed.
“Ma, respectfully, please stop calling my wife out of her name.”
“That should be the least of your worries, boy.”
“What that mean?”
Mama rolled her eyes and smoothed out her dress. “Meaning, you need to be focused on your infertile wife.”
“Mama.” I shot her a glare.
She looked at me, and I was sure she knew the look I gave her all too well. I would never disrespect her, but I wouldn’t stand here and let her disrespect Saje either. I had to draw the line somewhere.
After leaving my office, I decided to visit my mother to tell her the news.
She used to always talk about becoming a grandmother, but when I married Saje, it stopped.
I still couldn’t understand why she hated Saje as much as she did.
When I first introduced them, my mama had a scowl on her face the entire time Saje was in her presence.
I got Saje out of her house immediately. I had her wait in the car while I went back inside to ask Mama what was up and find out why she was acting like that.
Her response was, “I don’t want to get to know her. Reason, something about her ain’t right.”
“Mama, come on. Give Saje a chance.”
“My answer is final. I don’t trust her, and those sneaky eyes of hers aren’t sitting right with me. Don’t bring that girl around me anymore.”
When I left her house that day, nothing I said or did ever changed her mind.
Thinking I had a solution to the problem.
I surprised them both with a trip to Hawaii before my wedding day.
I wanted Mama to get to know Saje because I had already decided I wasn’t going to end my relationship.
I still don’t fully know what happened during their weeklong trip, but Saje expressed that Mama had no problem letting her know and anyone else who listened that she would never accept her.
They had a nigga stressed out during that time in my life.
Mama stopped talking to me for months, but not before cursing me out and telling me she wasn’t attending my wedding.
I had never heard my mother use some of the words she used that day, but I felt her wrath in my soul.
It was something that had me fucked up for a while, but I still loved her.
Years later, my mother still felt the same way about Saje, maybe even stronger. She and Saje stayed away from each other. A daughter-in-law and mother-in-law relationship didn’t exist between them.
I shook my head when I remembered that tough time in my life. I wished things could’ve been different, but I deemed it to be safer to keep them apart. Now that we were going to be parents, I hoped Mama would finally come around to building a bond with Saje.
“Son, I’m just saying. Have you really thought this through? Since that woman cannot get pregnant, don’t you want to look for another wife?”
I had no words for my mother.
I should’ve known she wasn’t going to understand.
I didn’t have to tell her about our decision until the baby was here, but I did it all out of courtesy.
I loved this woman with everything in me.
She was always so understanding and supportive.
But it seemed like ever since Saje entered my life, my mama changed.
Her dislike for Saje took over everything.
The back door opened, and her husband, Omar Brooklyn, who I called Doc, entered.
I remember the reservations I had when they met, but just like I expected from Mama, I got to know him before making any final decisions.
Their love story was one I would never forget because they made sure to retell it every chance they got.
A while after my father died, Mama got into traveling to help her cope.
When her birthday rolled around, I sent her to Paris for two weeks.
Paris was a place she always talked about visiting, so I wanted to make her dreams come true.
As if luck was on their side, Doc was there for his friend’s wedding.
Mama said she was out walking and exploring when she ran into him at the Eiffel Tower, where he and other groomsmen were having a photoshoot.
Doc stopped in the middle of the shoot when Mama walked by and began to court her.
Since that evening, she never left his side.
When she found out he was a heart surgeon in Miami and had been divorced for five years, she said she knew their fate was destined.
She ended up being his plus one at the bachelor party and the wedding.
When it was time for her to return home, Doc wasn’t ready for her to leave.
He paid for her to extend her trip, and they spent another week together, exploring and getting to know each other.
They became two fifty-something-year-old strangers who fell in love on a trip after thinking they would never fall in love again.
When she first told me about him, I almost lost my shit. I was protective over my mama. I was ready to fly out to Paris, but she made me promise to stay put because she was good. How she knew that was beyond me; he was a stranger.
I made her give me all his information, such as his first, middle, and last name, all the addresses where he’d ever lived, social security number, driver’s license number, passport number, license plate number, his parents’ names, names of his siblings, and anything else I could think of.
Basheer and Mama tried to say I was extra, but I didn’t care. I would go above and beyond for her safety.
Doc chuckled at first, but when he realized how serious I was, he quickly provided everything I requested.
I had all his information, but I still made Basheer get a background check done on him.
When it came back clear, and his entire life history was in my possession, it wasn’t enough for me. I had one more thing to do.
I flew to Paris on the next flight out because I wanted to look Doc in the eyes.
Wanted him to know his new interest had a son who would go to war behind her.
A man’s eyes will tell it all. I needed to find out if he was trying to play games with Mama.
I didn’t need her to become anyone’s prey after having a good marriage with my father years prior.
To my surprise, Doc didn’t back down. He answered every uncomfortable question with direct eye contact. By the time I left, I felt better about Mama spending the rest of her week with him. He knew I wasn’t playing when it came to her, and I found out he wasn’t either.
“Did I interrupt something?” Doc asked, entering their home and shaking me from my thoughts.
“Honey, can you believe this boy came here to tell me he’s having a baby?” she blurted while pointing at me.
“That’s good news!” he said excitedly. He had expressed how much he wanted to become a grandfather too. Since he never had children, he never thought it was possible until he gained a stepson.
“The only thing good about it is that Saje isn’t carrying my grandbaby.”
Doc looked confused. “Huh? Did you get someone else pregnant?” He arched a questioning brow in my direction.
“Nah, Doc. I would never cheat on my wife.”
“They are going to have a surrogate carry their child. A total stranger,” Mama said, telling all my business before I could say anything.
Doc’s eyebrows shot to his hairline.
He glanced at Mama. “Dumplin’, I’m sure Reason and Saje have their reasons for choosing this path.”
I looked at my mother, who angrily stared at her husband.
“Whose side are you on?”
“Not now, Tammi,” he said firmly but respectfully.
Her nostrils flared. “I’m the only one who seems to have any common sense around here.”
Doc shot me a look, and I shook my head.
“Ma. Doc.” I looked at them. “I’ma get out of here. I wanted to stop by and let y’all know what’s going on. I’ll check on you again during the week. I love you.”
Despite how my mama felt, I hugged her and kissed her cheek. I bet once the baby arrived, a little innocent face would melt her heart.
“I love you too,” she said.
We never let a disagreement or argument stop us from saying, “I love you.” We believed that anything could happen, that life could change in an instant, so whenever we parted ways, we made sure our love was felt and left no doubt that it would always remain.
Doc walked me outside and then closed the door behind him. “Reason, don’t worry about your mother. You know how much she cares about you. I’m happy for you, and you have my support.” He slipped his hand into his trouser pockets and gazed at the multimillion-dollar home across the street.
Once he was done gathering his thoughts, Doc went on.
“Having a grandbaby is one of the things she talks about often.” He paused again when the loud trash truck stopped in front of the house to pick up the garbage.
Then, when the driver drove away, he continued.
“Your mother will come around once the baby gets here. You’ll see.
She and I will have a long talk when you leave here.
” He patted my back like a father would a son.
“You take care of yourself now and be safe.”
“Thanks, Doc. Love ya.”
“Love you too, Reason.”