Chapter 6
CHAPTER 6
RHODES
“C an I pick you up, KD?”
“I’m already in Beaumont. I had to go to UPS before my appointment to ship some stuff to Nashville.”
“Okay. Well, I’ll see you soon.”
“Okay.”
I ended the call, feeling extremely anxious. Today was the day we would find out the sex of the baby. I’d been texting Karima every day, and I popped up on her at the diner again. It wasn’t hard to find her. She was always in Nome. I knew if I went around lunchtime, she would be at the diner. Her uncles were there again. While they didn’t surround her to protect her, I could tell they were all ready for action if needed.
Their eyes didn’t leave me the entire time I was there. I wasn’t there long though. Karima said she needed to go home and rest. I truly believed that was her way of avoiding me nicely. She wanted me away from her because her feelings were probably at war, making her feel crazy as fuck. I was just happy that I wasn’t getting the version of her that I’d gotten in Nashville.
Today, I planned to take her to lunch after her appointment, if she allowed me to. While I knew she loved Whataburger, I wanted to take her somewhere a little nicer, not a fast-food place. I’d ask her about it when we were face-to-face. She was still semi-affectionate with me at the diner. Over the phone, she was more disconnected. She only talked about how she was feeling and the baby. She thanked me for the flowers I’d sent and that was it.
My aunt said this would be a process, and she wasn’t lying. At least KD was communicating with me. She could have still had me blocked and not informed me of anything until after the baby was born. I knew she still loved me. If she didn’t, there would be no way she would be allowing me in her space like this.
It only took me about fifteen minutes to get to the doctor. Cheek was on the outskirts of Beaumont. It was just a small community. Our physical addresses were listed as Beaumont. Nome was its own town, along with China. Had I picked her up, I would have had to go in the opposite direction of the doctor’s office to get her then come back to Beaumont for the appointment. I surely wouldn’t have minded though.
When I got to the parking lot, I saw Karima walking inside. Hopefully, she would wait for me in the lobby. As I thought that, she called. “Hello?”
“Are you here yet?”
“Yes. I’m looking for a parking spot.”
“Okay. I’ll wait in the lobby. There were spots in the garage. You just have to walk a little further.”
“A’ight. Thanks.”
She ended the call as I made my way to the parking garage instead of circling through the lot like a vulture. Sure enough, there was an open spot near her car. I parked, thankful I didn’t do another lift on my truck. Had I done that, I wouldn’t have been able to get in the garage. My truck would have been too high. Quickly hopping out, I power walked to the entrance.
When I saw her standing there, I smiled. She wore a fitted shirt, showing off her baby bump. I swore, she was so beautiful. She was holding back right now because she was hurt by my actions, but by the way she smiled at me, I knew she would be mine again at some point, as long as I didn’t do anything stupid.
When I walked inside, I went to her and hugged her loosely and kissed her head. “What’s up, baby?”
Her cheeks were rosy. I didn’t know what she was blushing for. “Hey,” she said.
“How are you feeling?”
“I’m okay. How have you been?”
“Pretty good. I’m a little anxious right now though. I mean, I’m excited too.”
She smiled. “I’m excited to find out what we’re having. Are you hoping for a boy or girl?”
“Honestly, I don’t even care. I just want it to be healthy. That’s it. I already have the ultimate gift having you be the baby’s mother.”
Her face reddened a bit, then she grabbed my hand and started walking. Holding her hand this way gave me a wonderful feeling inside, although I knew it didn’t necessarily mean anything more than what it was. Karima was kindhearted and loving. She used to hold my hand at school all the time. When we got to the elevators and she pressed the up button, she turned to me.
“You look nice, Rhodes.”
I brought my other hand to our joined ones and said, “Thank you, baby. You always look beautiful.”
“You should have seen me when I woke up this morning with my hair looking like a bird’s nest and slobber on the side of my face.”
I chuckled then bit my bottom lip. “I would have loved to see you when you woke up this morning… and every morning.”
She turned red again as the elevator door opened. She went inside, still holding my hand, then stared up at me. “How’s your aunt and uncle?”
“They’re good. They ask about you all the time.”
She totally ignored my last statement, but I knew she heard me loud and clear. When the doors opened, she led me to the office at the end of the hallway. I opened the door, and she went to the desk to check in. I was right behind her, wanting to be a part of the entire experience. If I could go in the restroom with her to leave her urine sample, I would.
She smiled up at me, and we went and sat in the waiting area. Once we sat, I glanced down at her pink nails. She rarely got her nails done because she said she was too rough for that shit. She would break them all the time. She did get pedicures though. Whenever she wasn’t wearing boots, she had on some type of open-toe shoe. She had some pretty ass toes too.
The fact that she had her nails done only sank me a little bit though. It made me think about how what I did had affected her life… her livelihood. She couldn’t do what she loved because I was only thinking about myself. I knew she wanted children eventually, but she wasn’t prepared for this. Instead of sinking further in my thoughts, I focused on complimenting her, letting her know she was seen. “Your nails are pretty, baby.”
“Thank you, Rhodes.”
I lifted her hand and kissed it. This high yella complexion was my weakness. Karima was so fucking pretty. The fact that she didn’t act as if she was better than anybody only made her more attractive. She was better than everybody in my damn book. Shit, in the dictionary next to the word woman, they should have put a picture of her beautiful ass. Fuck a Mona Lisa or a Marilyn Monroe. My baby was the prototype… the epitome of what a woman was.
“Karima Henderson?”
She stood, and I stood right behind her and followed the nurse into another area where she took Karima’s weight. Afterward, she went to the restroom to leave a urine sample. When she came out, she led us to an examination room. She gave directives to Karima and left. I watched KD glance at me while holding the gown, so I asked, “You want me to step out, baby?”
“You don’t have to. You’ve obviously seen all I have to offer.”
“Hell yeah. A fucking masterpiece.”
She blushed again, then began taking off her clothes. I stood from my seat to help her. I just wanted to be able to touch her skin. She didn’t need help undressing. She refused to look at me while I helped her though, especially when I unfastened her bra. Quickly draping the gown around herself, she then pulled off her underwear.
I swore, had she let me slide those panties off her, I would have licked her clit while I was down there. I hadn’t had sex in four months, and I was suffering big time. My dick was hard as shit, wanting to get a taste. She turned around, and that open gown gave me a view of her ass. I had to grab my dick and threaten to break his ass if he didn’t get himself under control. I released it as she turned around.
“Did she say it needed to be open in the front or the back?”
“I don’t remember what she said, but I would assume it needs to be open in the front.”
“Right,” she mumbled.
I could tell she was nervous. Her hands were trembling as she took the gown off and stood there in all her naked glory. Got damn! I stood and helped her after I watched her miss the sleeve a couple of times. She stared up into my eyes after sliding her arm in the sleeve. I licked my lips and was about to lean in to kiss her pretty lips when there was a knock at the door.
I backed away as Karima wrapped the gown around herself and said, “Come in.”
She sat on the examination table as the doctor and nurse walked in. Her eyes never left mine as the doctor said, “Good morning! How are you feeling, Miss Henderson?”
“Good morning. I’m doing well. Still no morning sickness.”
“That’s always a plus.”
The doctor looked over at me, so I said, “Hello, Doctor Pieternelle. I’m Rhodes… the father.”
“Nice to meet you, sir.” Going back to Karima, he checked her and asked a bunch of questions about her health and diet. Finally, he got to what we’d been waiting on. “So are y’all ready to know if you’re having a boy or girl?”
He chuckled as Karima excitedly nodded her head. “We’re beyond ready, Doc,” I said, then chuckled.
“Okay. The ultrasound tech will be in here in just a minute. I’m glad everything is going well, Miss Henderson.”
“Me too. Thanks.”
When he left, I stood from my seat and went to her. Staring into her eyes for a moment, I leaned in to kiss her lips. She backed away slightly and turned her head.
“I’m sorry. I’m just extra sensitive right now. I love you so much, baby.”
I rested my forehead against hers for a moment, my feelings doing their best to surface and embarrass the hell out of me. I backed away from her just as there was a knock at the door. The technician came in pushing a machine that I assumed was for the ultrasound. She spoke and got the particulars out the way then had me go on Karima’s other side.
Once she began, I grabbed Karima’s hand as I stared at the screen, trying to figure out just what I was looking at. Glancing down at Karima, I could see she had a frown on her face as well. Finally, the tech circled something and began typing. The words began appearing on the screen. It’s a girl!
“We’re having a princess, baby,” I said to Karima and lifted her hand to my lips.
“A girl,” Karima said as the tears trickled down her cheeks.
I wiped them with my thumb, feeling overjoyed that she was the woman I was sharing this with and thankful that she was allowing me to be a part of such a memorable experience. This was a day I would never forget, because unless Karima gave in to me, this princess would be my only child.