Chapter 17
“Jenifer, hold on. I think we need to get an extra heavy whipping cream.”
As I lifted the small sticky note with the scribbled ingredients, I read the list over. Then I looked at the items in the cart and shook my head. Mama should have known I would go overboard. We had a big family and needed to have enough food to get through the planning, repast, and whatever else may arise in the time I would be here.
“I’ll run and get it. Do we need anything else? You can head to the register if not.”
“That’s all. I’ll head to the checkout line. The poor cashier is going to be in for a long time.”
Jenifer chuckled. “Because you never know how to stick to a list.”
“Girl, boo!” I waved her off and pushed the basket toward the checkout lines.
I focused my attention on the list; I didn’t notice the man approaching me until I’d crashed into his chest. The firm chest made me pause as I looked up into the familiar light brown eyes of Marquise.
I froze.
It can’t be him. He’s supposed to be in prison.
“Hey.”
He smiled that beautiful, bright, white-tooth smile. My heart pounded in my chest. Was I supposed to speak back? His hands held my arms firmly.
“No.”
I bolted out of the store. I left my cart in the middle of the walkway as I headed straight to the automatic sliding doors. I didn’t stop running until I made it to the car. I got inside and took a moment to catch my breath. When I could breathe again, I pulled out my phone and called Jenifer.
“Girl, where the hell are you?” she quizzed when she answered the phone.
“I… I had to go back to the car. I’ll send you the money for the groceries. I just can’t go back in there.”
My lip trembled as the tears built in my eyes. I blinked rapidly, but the stubborn streams of water fell anyway.
“What happened?” she asked.
“I’ll tell you when you get back to the car. I’m sorry…”
“It’s okay, boo. I’ll be as quick as possible.”
We hung up, and I placed my hands over my face.
When did he get out of prison? Why didn’t anyone tell me? How the hell was I supposed to go back to my parents’ house? His aunt and uncle were their neighbors.
Shit. Marquise will see Quis at my parents’ house.
My lungs burned as the gut-wrenching sob escaped from my lips. I wasn’t ready to reveal the secret I’d been harboring for so long. I felt like God had saved me a lot of trouble when Marquise got arrested the day I was finally going to tell him about the baby. How do I explain a six-year-old child to him now?
I stared out into the parking lot, though my mind had gone back to a different time in my life.
My head pounded. My stomach was in knots as my cramps beat my ass. I’d always had easy cycles, but this month was not nice. I’d curled up in bed as the tears slid down my face.
“Babe,” Marquise called out to me.
“I’m in the room.” My voice strained as I held my stomach and continued to cry.
The bedroom door opened, and Marquise walked in. He sported a gray sweatsuit with the zip up jacket. He held a large gift bag.
“What’s all this?” I asked as I wiped my face and adjusted my body to get a better look at him.
“I know you’ve been feeling like shit, so I got you some of your favorite things, plus some other shit.”
I sat up in bed and rubbed my eyes. He pulled out the heating pad, and my face lit up. “Yes! I need this right now.”
“I know. I’ll plug it in while you look at the other stuff in the bag.” He set the bag in front of me and opened the box with the heating pad. It came with back support too.
“Thank you, my love.”
“It’s the least I can do for making it come early.” He chuckled.
I rolled my eyes. We’d fucked all night long. While I cleaned up in the shower, my period started. I was mad as hell, but grateful it came. We weren’t ready for a child just yet.
I continued to pull out things from the bag. He’d gotten me fuzzy slippers, new silk pajamas, a new bonnet, gummy bears, my favorite chips, ginger ale, and a bottle of wine. It tickled me when he bought me alcohol because I was very much under the legal drinking age. I guess it paid off to have a grown ass boyfriend.
“Thank you, baby.”
“Always, my love. Set up a movie. I’m finna take a quick shower. Order us something to eat too.”
“What do you want?”
“Whatever you get, order two.”
“What if I want a buffalo chicken pizza with olives and jalapenos?”
He scrunched his nose. “I’on’t want that. ”
“Exactly.”
“Tell me what spot you pick, and I’ll look at the menu.”
“Okay, babe.”
He kissed my lips and disappeared into the bathroom. After his shower, he lay in bed with me, and we watched episodes of my comfort show: Criminal Minds.
“You mean to tell me, this white boy that smart?”
I giggled. “Yes. Reed is a genius. He’s one of my favorite characters, and I hate how much he went through.”
“I fuck with it. Okay, and the black dude and white lady are not a couple?”
I laughed. “Nope. They just have cute banter.”
“You bet not have no cute banter with them niggas at the restaurant. Fuck a work husband or bae. I’ll kill a nigga.”
“Marquise, please calm down. It’s never that serious, baby.”
“It is. You mine forever. Any nigga think he can come in and fuck up our happy home will get three bullets to the heart.”
“Understood, baby. I won’t even play like that with anybody else.”
“Good.”
He pecked my lips and snuggled his face into the crook of my neck.
“Honey?”
I blinked back to the present as Jenifer opened the driver’s side door.
“Yeah?”
“Help me with the groceries, please.”
“Okay.”
I got out of the car and went to the back seat to help load the groceries into the car. I moved on autopilot as I filled the car. Jenifer helped as well. When the cart was empty, I walked it to the cart return and got back into the car. I put sanitizer on my hands and folded my arms against my chest.
“What’s going on, Honey? You’re acting like you saw a ghost or something,” she asked as she brought the engine to life.
“I think I did.”
I rubbed my arms.
“What do you mean?”
I cleared my throat. “Um… Marquise works at the store.”
Jenifer’s jaw nearly dislocated as she gasped. “What? You’re lying!”
“No, I swear. We bumped into each other on my way to the register. He gave me that fucking perfect smile and said hey. Girl, I bolted.”
She shook her head. “That’s crazy. I thought he got fifteen. It ain’t been no damn fifteen.”
“Tell me about it. It was like a slap to the face. No one told me anything. I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised by not knowing, huh? I removed all his family from my socials.”
“Girl, you gon’ be all right. You’ll figure out what to do and how to do it. If you are confused, ask God. He gon’ always help you make the right decision.”
I nodded.
“I guess you’re right.”
* * *
“Mommy!” Quis shouted as he waited on the porch with my mama and daddy.
The sight of him made my heart ache. I felt nauseous. How was I supposed to move around the city with my child, with Marquise free? I wasn’t ready to open that can of worms.
“Help Auntie Jenifer with the groceries, please, stinkabutt.”
“Okay, Mommy.” Quis skipped down the steps of the porch and met Jenifer at the backseat door. I got out of the car and grabbed a handful of bags before I walked up the steps. Daddy grabbed the bags from my hand at the door and walked them to the kitchen. We all had a nice assembly line going. While we brought the groceries inside, Mama unpacked them and put them up. Quis grabbed the bag of Cheetos I’d gotten him and took a break in front of the television.
“I’m going to go home, walk my baby, and get her some fresh food. I may not be back today, but shoot me a text. You know I’m always gonna have your back through everything.” Jenifer gave me a hug.
I nodded. “Of course. Be safe. Let me walk you out.”
I walked Jenifer to the front door and stayed on the steps until she pulled off. When I returned to the kitchen, I washed my hands and pulled out the ingredients I’d need to cook dinner. Mama sat in a chair behind the island with a glass of wine.
“How are you holding up, Mama?”
She took a sip of her wine and sighed heavily. “I don’t like to share my feelings, but I’m tired. I’m exhausted, really. Your aunties are all broken and barely holding it together, and I feel like I have to be strong for them.”
I poked out my bottom lip as I chopped my onions, bell peppers, and celery. “You should still be able to have moments where you release those emotions. Being strong doesn’t mean you have to be emotionless.”
She nodded. “You’re right.”
“I know. You’ll get through this. We both will.”
“Amen, baby girl.”
She smiled at me before she emptied her wineglass and crossed her arms over her chest. I could tell something else was on her mind.
“What’s wrong, Mama? I can see it in your face. There’s something else bothering you.”
“It’s just that… Me and your father are in a lot of debt. Between the funeral, Mama’s medical expenses, and the mortgage… we’re struggling bad.”
My eyebrows pulled together in confusion. “Why didn’t you tell me about Granny’s medical expenses?”
“We didn’t want to bother you and make it seem like we were begging for money or anything like that.”
“Mama… be so for real right now. It would never be begging for money. I wouldn’t have the wealth I have today if it weren’t for you. All I need you to do is give me the bills. I’ll stay as long as needed to make sure you and Daddy are good. I can’t in good conscious leave while y’all need me.”
Money was never and will never be an issue to me. I had more money than I needed to live comfortably. The house in Los Angeles was expensive, but I never lived above my means.
“We don’t want to derail all the work you’ve done in Los Angeles. We?—”
“Mama, please. It makes no sense to go back to California if my family needs me in Texas. I can sell my house tomorrow and move out here.”
“Are you sure you want to come back? What if Marquise gets out? Are you going to run?”
I chuckled as I dumped the holy trinity of vegetables into the pot and stirred them with the wooden spatula. Then I added half a stick of butter.
“The funniest thing happened today while me and Jen were grocery shopping.”
“What?”
“I literally bumped into Marquise. Apparently, he’s out of prison.”
Mama gasped. “Really? What did he say? What happened?”
“I ran before we could have a real conversation. I panicked.”
“Well, shoot. What do you plan on doing? You know his aunt and uncle still live next door, so it’s only a matter of time before you run into him and he sees Quis. Do you have a plan?”
I shook my head and added the broth to the pot of vegetables. I stirred the broth until it came to a light boil. Then I added the additional vegetables, which included carrots, peas, and potatoes.
“I don’t have a plan yet. I know it’s inevitable for us to cross paths again, but I’m not sure what I’ll say.”
“Will him being out make you not want to stay here?”
I shook my head. “No. Y’all need me, so I’m going to be a big girl in the situation.”
Mama nodded. “That’s really mature of you, baby girl.”
“I knew the day would come. I really hope Quis doesn’t hate me for keeping his father out of his life.”
“He won’t hate you. When he gets older, he’ll understand you did it to protect the both of you.”
I sighed. “Then why do I feel like poop?”
“Because it’s a tough situation. Don’t dwell on it too much. God got you.”
“He does.”
I smiled and returned my attention to the pot of soon to be chicken and dumplings. Tonight was a savory night, and tomorrow, when the family arrived, I’d have two pans of chicken Alfredo to share amongst everyone.
Hopefully, I had time to plan a meeting with Marquise before he saw my child—our child.