Chapter 2 Zakai
“Daddy, juice.” Zakiyah’s sweet yet squeaky voice snaps me out of the memory my brain had somehow spiraled into.
Zakiyah Eternity Tillman is my reason for getting up every morning and my why for going hard each day.
Zakiyah is two, and I often think about the day her mother selfishly dropped her on my doorstep.
What’s wilder than that is that Danica’s selfish nature didn’t stop with that single act.
Even though Danica left a birth certificate for Zakiyah with my last name, Danica’s words didn’t hold merit to me.
After calling the police for them to meet me at Danica’s spot, it was discovered that Danica had taken her life.
Danica had taken the time to call and inform the police of her intention in advance.
Upon their arrival, they found a suicide letter where Danica blamed me for her actions and said that her life wasn’t worth living anymore.
Initially, Danica’s parents took Zakiyah, believing me to be a monster responsible for causing their child’s actions.
I let them take the baby, but I also made an appointment at the hospital for a DNA test the next day.
It was unbelievable how Danica and her parents could point the finger at me for something she did.
Hell, the reason I broke up with Danica was that her trifling ass had been spreading her pussy around Ribax like butter on toast. The shock and joke were on me when the paternity test confirmed that I was Zakiyah’s father, which had me instantly becoming a single father nearly two weeks after learning of her existence.
To make matters worse, Danica’s parents have been refusing to deal with Zakiyah.
Their initial willingness to raise Zakiyah vanished the moment the test results came back.
It’s cool, though. My baby will always be straight and doesn’t need those fair-weather folks.
“Juice, Daddy,” Zakiyah whines, causing me to look at her holding her sippy cup out toward me.
Zakiyah makes being a single father at thirty-three worth the sleepless nights I have whenever she’s sick while erasing any lingering frustration I have with her mother.
As a policy analyst, I make enough money to support myself and Zakiyah, but sometimes I still find myself feeling lonely at the end of the night.
I also find myself wondering if I’m doing all that I can for my daughter while occasionally overcompensating her minimal requests due to her mother’s absence.
“I’m sorry, Kiki. I got you.” Standing, I pick Zakiyah up and take the cup before heading toward the food and drink station to refill her beverage.
Looking at Zakiyah, I already know that she’s fighting sleep. Her juice request is only going to push her over the edge, which happens within twenty minutes, before my dad comes to grab her from me.
“I’m not sure how I feel about my niece being in the middle of that melee,” my sister Asia says, bringing my attention from the dance floor where my parents are dancing.
Asia Tillman is six years my junior, but our bond has become stronger over the last two years, courtesy of my daughter. Asia ensures that Zakiyah doesn’t feel a lack of a mother figure. She has also helped me perfect my ponytail game so my daughter never leaves the house looking disheveled.
“She’s in good hands, or did you forget that those two raised the two of us?”
Zakiyah is being held by Dad, who’s smiling wide while my poor daughter obviously sleeps through it all. My parents are celebrating their thirty-fifth wedding anniversary with a party that Asia and I put together for them.
“So embarrassing. By the way, do you still need me to be your plus one for your work party?” Asia asks.
“If you can pull yourself away from reruns of Scandal long enough to pity your big brother.”
“Chile, I suppose. Just remember that I take my payments in all things Coach. How many eligible bachelors will be in attendance, though? I want to consider my options when I select my attire for that night.”
“Don’t have me simultaneously losing my job and spending a night in jail, Sis. I keep telling you that you ain’t old enough to date.”
“Imagine being a cockblocker with hurt feelings because I disobey your baseless attempt at keeping me under your thumb. I’m a grown-ass woman.”
A sly smirk upturns my lips at seeing the deep frown on Asia’s face that accompanies the inflection of her tone while staring daggers at me. Getting Asia riled up doesn’t faze me, because preventing her from being hurt by anyone she chooses to date will always be my goal.
“You seem a little bitter, Sis.”
“You’re aggy. Let me go rescue my niece before I cuss you out in this nice establishment.” Rolling her eyes, Asia walks toward the dance floor, causing me to shout to her retreating back.
“Love you, Lay.”
A smile upturns my lips as I watch Asia walk away, and a low chuckle escapes my mouth when Dad and Ma attempt to prevent her from rescuing Zakiyah.
My parents are the blueprint I desire whenever I find a woman worthy of spending forever with.
My deepest desire is to find a love that not only complements my life but also enhances it.
Hopefully, one day, Zakiyah will be on the sidelines with my wife and me while we celebrate our thirty-plus years of marriage.
My only constant prayer is for Big Homie to allow me to show Zakiyah what love between my future wife and me looks like in our home.
A Week Later . . .
I could be cuddling on the couch with Zakiyah, watching reruns of Good Times instead of pretending to like my coworkers. I’m not in the mood to listen to another boring spiel from Adrian about the splendid job we’ve done. Who the hell even uses words like splendid anyway?
“Why are you pouting? It’s not often that you get to let your hair down since Zakiyah snatched your freedom like a thief in the night.
I’m ready to turn up, so I’m hoping your employer isn’t cheap.
Smile. This is gonna be a good time, especially since you’ll be walking in with the prettiest escort you could have found to accompany you,” Asia says, cutting off my internal rant about suffering through another stupid work event.
“Don’t make me regret bringing you, and don’t get comfortable, because I doubt that I’ll be here long,” I grumble.
My appearance at this wack party is mandatory, but the length of time I’m present isn’t, so I might have a good two hours in me before Zakiyah has a fake illness that requires me to vacate these premises.
Walking through the ballroom doors at the hotel the company uses for functions, my eyes immediately scan the room as I watch my colleagues mingle.
The techno music blasting around the area, along with the various people dancing off-key, lets me know that my departure timeframe has now become shorter.
“Oh wow. This is about to be fun. Let me go turn up.” Asia releases my hand before she smiles, then two-steps toward the makeshift dance floor.
Shaking my head, I peruse the room until I make eye contact with my boss, who waves me over.
As a policy analyst, I work alone most days, which makes my relationship with my boss controversy-free.
The only thing I dread whenever I have to talk to Adrian is his need to discuss meaningless things that hold zero interest for me.
“Good to see you, Zakai. If you need alcoholic beverages, you’ll have to obtain them from the bar, as the corporate representative forgot to arrange someone for the open bar option.
However, whatever you indulge in will be taken care of as long as you let the bartender know you’re with our group,” Adrian tells me when I’m two inches in front of him.
Perfect. I can hide out at the bar without having to think of another excuse not to be in this room.
“Gotcha. Let me go grab a drink. I’ll be back.”
My feet can’t get me out of the room fast enough now that I have an alibi to utilize.
My reprieve doesn’t even allow me to stop long enough to tell Asia where I am going, deciding to send her a text when I get to the bar.
Twenty minutes later, while indulging in my second glass of brown liquor, my eyes land on a woman whose beauty has me sitting up straighter to take her in.
The burgundy satin dress with a deep V provides an enticing glimpse of her full breasts that make my mouth water.
The subtlety of her makeup highlights the warmth of her toffee skin as my eyes mentally catalog her beautiful face.
Her perfectly arched brows, full cheeks, short pixie cut curls, and mesmerizing almond-shaped eyes have me stuck in a deep absorption of adoration.
All I can do is stare in her direction as a man comes over, taking a seat beside her while the two engage in a conversation I shamelessly eavesdrop on.
All seems to be going well until another woman enters the area with a wide smile, heading for the man, causing my forehead to wrinkle when her arms wrap around ole boy.
The knowledge of the goofy dude being married to the newcomer has my eyes bulging while I watch the scene before me.
“Happy anniversary, baby,” he says in a shaky voice as his eyes peer over to the woman he’d been talking to before he damn near drags the new woman away.
The beauty he had been talking to looks like she’s on the verge of falling apart as I wonder if maybe their meetup wasn’t by chance. Shaking my head, I finish my drink and make my way over to the woman whose misty eyes call me like a siren.
“Say the word, and I’ll catch that nigga to let him know how much he has you fucked up,” I say when I reach the bombshell.
When her body shifts toward me, and I have her full attention, my chest tightens and releases. I stare into her eyes, and her words cause me to decide the trajectory of her night.
“I think karma will eventually provide the justice I can’t. Besides, I wouldn’t want to see you get into any trouble on my behalf.” Wait, either I’m hearing a choir of angels or the voice of my future. Be still, my fucking heart.
“If you insist, but how about I help you forget what just happened? No strings attached.”
For countless seconds, all she does is stare into my eyes as if she’s trying to determine my motives or some hidden secret my mouth is incapable of communicating.
“I’m Caziya.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Ms. Caziya. I’m Zakai.”
“I’ll take you up on your offer, but only because I could use a distraction and a friend after finding out that my man is in fact someone else’s man.”
Damn. I knew something about that encounter felt off, and this woman was on the brink of heartbreak with a single interrupted conversation.
“I respect it. What can I do to help?”
“Help me turn tonight into something beautiful and untainted by the tragedy of the demise of my relationship.”