Chapter 13 Ghana #2
I smirked and stared at her for a moment as she sipped her champagne. “You still fucking with your baby daddy?”
She shook her head. “Never again. We divorced almost two years ago. He cheated on me with his assistant while I was pregnant with our daughter.”
“Stupid-ass nigga.”
“I agree, but as I told my girls, I wasn’t the best wife to him during the time I was going to school for my doctorate. I was tired all the time, and we barely spent time together because of it. I understand why he stepped out on me, but it doesn’t make it hurt any less.”
“Not you making excuses for him.”
“I’m not. But I can take accountability for the part I played in it.”
“The fact that he married you, took vows in front of your family and God to love you through better or worse, then fucking cheat on you, is what’s blowing me. I’m not the most religious nigga on Earth, and I’ve done my fair share of breaking hearts, but I respect marriages.
“I respect the clause on that contract that says we're locked in for life. If he loved you, made a promise to you, then that love should have been as strong as Noah’s Ark. A love that can withstand any storm. While you were doing your shit to get your career, he was fucking off because he felt neglected? If so, how does that shit work, Ros? You think you deserved that shit?”
She shook her head solemnly. “No.”
“You didn’t. Any nigga that doesn’t admire your hustle or dedication to accomplish your dreams is a fuck boy and would never be a man in my eyes.
If you were my wife, I would have been helping you, encouraging you, massaging you, and letting you rest. I could withstand a dry dick for a couple of months or so because becoming a doctor ain’t easy.
What he chose to do with someone he promised to spend the rest of his life with lets me know he never valued you the way he should have. ”
She looked at me and placed her palm on my cheek. “Are you saying you can do better?” She bit her lip, trying to suppress her smile.
“I’m saying I know what I won’t do wrong.
I’m saying I won’t fumble you, because I can’t imagine not waking up, seeing the sunshine, even on a cloudy-ass day.
Every chance I get to see you, I know everything will be alright for me.
I know I have moments, but I’m going to try my hardest to think before I react.
That’s how confident you make me feel about being able to control this shit. ”
“And you make me confident enough to believe you. Believe in you.” She pecked my lips three times before slipping her tongue in my mouth. I kissed her back until I felt her trying to slide her hand into my pants. I chuckled and pulled away.
“I’m not fucking you in here, Ros. I got us a spot up the road for that.”
“Then let’s go.”
I laughed. “Not yet. Tell me about Taylor.”
She tittered. “Fine. There’s not much to tell, really. She loves to eat fruit, any kind except for cranberries. She loves Ms. Rachel’s ass—”
“Who is Ms. Rachel?”
“A popular educator from YouTube who sings nursery rhymes and does sign language. I don’t know what it is about her, but she has these babies in a trance.
” She laughed. “Umm, her birthday is August third, she loves to give me kisses and get her feet tickled. She’s really the best thing that ever came out of that marriage.
I truly don’t know what I would do without her. ”
I smiled. “She sounds like an amazing baby.”
“She is.”
“You split custody with him?”
She nodded. “He gets her every other week. At first, I didn’t want her around that home-wrecker, but I didn’t want to be the bitter baby mama. If she doesn’t mistreat her, I don’t care about anything else.”
“Humph. Is he still trying to fuck you?”
She looked at me but didn’t say anything. I frowned and sat back, my mind now trying to find a way to check this nigga without killing him.
“Ghana, stop.”
“I ain’t do shit.”
“Yet. I can see you over there thinking. Trust me, he knows he will never touch me again.”
“He needs a reminder from a different source because he ain’t gon’ learn until another man claims you. Right now, he thinks you’re single, so he gon’ try that slick shit, and I’m not one to allow it.”
“You’re talking like you’re my man already.” She giggled.
My eyes went to her. My face was stoic because I didn’t understand why she thought I wasn’t.
“Ros, if you think you ain’t mine, you’re the one that may need to be evaluated.
I don’t give a damn if it’s only been one week or one hour; I’m invested now.
And that nigga gon’ know something real soon.
I’ma give it some time and let you be the messenger.
If he continues, then you already know what it is. ”
A smirk lifted onto her face. “But you don’t want to have sex with me here. My man would never deny me.” She pouted and laughed.
I smiled. “A’ight, shorty. Let me find out you're low-key addicted to me too.”
“I might be,” she said teasingly.
“Let’s get the fuck out of here.”
She laughed when I scooped her up.
“Wait. I need to pee first.”
I placed her on her feet. “Down that hall, straight ahead.”
“You’re not going to come with me?”
“If I come with you, I’m going to fuck you. I have another surprise set up for you.”
“Okay, fine. I’ll be right back.” She kissed my lips and walked away.
I watched her ass sway until she disappeared behind the door, and I shook my head.
Ros was going to be my fucking kryptonite.
Each moment with her was a blessing I didn’t even think I deserved.
Her fine ass had me hooked, and there was no way her bitch-ass baby daddy wasn’t gon’ find out how I was coming behind her.
My phone rang, and I reached into my inside pocket to retrieve it. Seeing Nichelle’s name, once again, was about to make me blow a fucking gasket. This was the seventh time in twenty-four hours that she had blown me up.
Each time I was about to block her, I got distracted because I was busy trying to get shit set up for Autumn. I sighed, walked to a secluded area, and answered.
“You got a lot of fucking nerves to keep calling me, Nich. You must want me to really hurt your deceiving ass,” I said, through gritted teeth.
“I don’t! Please, I need to tell you something!”
“If you're pregnant, bitch, it ain’t mine.” I couldn’t help but take that shot.
“Ghana, baby, I know I was wrong—”
“Stop, Nich. If you called me to talk about us, I swear I’m going to come back to Memphis and make that baby a motherless child.
Leave me the fuck alone. You made your choice.
I will apologize for kicking the baby’s bed, but I’m not sorry for what I did to you.
I wanted to do more, so don’t tempt me to come handle that. ”
“Okay, I get it. But you should know that Nico is plotting against you. I don’t know when he’s coming, but he’s planning to come for what you did to the baby and me. I told him not to do this, but he wasn’t listening. I’m sorry, Ghana. I’m sorry for everything.”
The line was silent for a beat, and I could feel my skin heating. Her telling me that nigga was plotting on me sent murderous thoughts through my mind. It was like a switch had flipped, and now I was on demon time.
“Hello? Are you there?”
“Don’t call my phone again. The next time you do, that baby is going to one of your family members or foster care.” I hung up and powered my phone off. I stood there for a moment, trying to erase this burning feeling in my chest, but the shit wasn’t going away.
I could hear Autumn’s heels coming back down the hall, but still, I stood, staring at the wall, thinking of a million ways to gut that bitch-ass nigga.
“Okay. I’m ready,” Autumn said, placing her hands on my shoulders and running them down my arms. I snatched away from her.
“Don’t touch me.”
“Wha-Ghana. What is going on?”
I turned to look at her. I saw the confusion and nervousness written all over her face.
“Ghana . . .” She swallowed. “Talk to me.”
“We need to go.” I walked away from her and shut off the music. “Let’s go.”
“N-no. You need to talk to me. What just happened?”
My heart hammered in my chest because I knew I was scaring her. I took a few deep breaths before I took her hands. “I’m good, Autumn. Something just came up, so I have to end our nigh—”
She snatched her hands from mine and grabbed her clutch.
“It’s fine. Let’s go.”
“Autumn—”
“I’m fine, Ghana. I don’t know what happened, and I don’t want to upset you. If we have to go, then I’ll give you the space you need to handle whatever it is you need to handle.”
I shook my head of the fog that tried to creep in.
Chill, nigga. Don’t let that shit consume you. Relax. Relax.
“Nah . . . No. We’re going to finish this date. I’m sorry.”
“Can you tell me what happened?”
“Another time. If I keep thinking about it or talking about it, we’re going to have to take a rain check, and I can’t and won’t do that to you. I’m sorry.” I kissed her lips and wrapped my arms around her waist.
She wrapped her arms around me tightly, kissed my neck, and whispered in my ear. “You’re safe with me, Ghana.”
I felt my body relax, and the tension in my chest eased.
“I know,” I replied, kissing her forehead. I shouldn’t have answered that call, but I was glad I did. That nigga Pico was going to see me real soon.
Nichelle was stupid. She knew what I was going to do to that bum when she told me that.
She didn’t want her baby to have a father was what I got out of that phone call.
She knew I was coming for that bitch’s head.
He was plotting against me, so he had to go.
I was going to play it smart, though, because it could be a setup.
But his days were now numbered, and I was going to be sure he had a closed casket.