Chapter 24 Alicia
Some Time Later . . .
Cancun Mexico
“Daddy! Daddy! Wook!” Carlee came running over to Basil, her bouncy curls blowing in the wind while she ran full speed to show her daddy what she had found.
The girl was obsessed with my man, and not in a creepy/bad way either, just in a way that a daughter loved her father, and it was the cutest thing.
A few months ago, we were out having dinner when we ran into Leo and Nora. I thought seeing them together was going to irritate me, but it actually did the opposite. Basil had been nothing short of amazing to my children and me from the first day we met him.
Leo approached our table. He spoke to everyone, gave the kids a hug, but when he picked Carlee up, she screamed her head off and reached for Basil, yelling, “Daddy! Daddy!”
I was shocked and felt a tiny bit bad for the look on Leo’s face.
He didn’t make a fuss about it, but I could tell he was hurt by the way all the kids weren’t giving him the love he was looking for. He had no one to blame for that but himself.
He had his chance to love me and do all the things he was supposed to do, but he chose to walk away. Chose to abandon his family. Chose to allow another man to come into our lives and show up in ways I never thought possible.
We were in Cancun on vacation with his brother and sister-in-law. Basil promised them a vacation when they got out of school and allowed all the kids to put where they wanted to go in a hat, and Siori had won. I had no idea how her little self knew anything about Mexico, but here we were.
Just looking at that big smile drawn up on Basil’s sexy-ass face had my heart doing the most. He loved it when the kids called him Dad or Daddy. I always saw a sense of pride and appreciation each time they said it.
He liked it when I said it too.
Basil opened his arms to receive her. Carlee opened her hand and presented the seashell that Basil had the kids do a scavenger hunt for. The reward was buying them anything they wanted. “Aye, y’all can stop looking! Lee Bear won!” Basil yelled.
I could see them all pouting as Sheena and I laughed.
“What you want as your prize, baby girl?”
“Uhm . . . Barbie car!” she said, excitedly.
“Then a Barbie car it is.”
“I swear, you need to stop spoiling these kids. That’s why they looking mad now. Just look,” Sheena said, watching the kids approach, looking big mad.
“Uncle Baye, that’s not fair. She cheated,” Siori fussed.
“How did she cheat, SiSi?” he asked her.
“She saw where you hid it because you took her with you!” Sahira exclaimed.
Basil laughed. “Why you cappin’, niece?”
“I am not. I saw you.”
“A’ight, a’ight, maybe she did see, but she’s the smallest one out here. It’s only right that she won.”
“No fair, Uncle Baye. I think we all should get something since you helped her,” Brenton said.
“He’s right, Baye. It’s only fair,” I told him.
“Whose side are you on?”
“Always yours, baby. But you still have to make it right.” I winked at him.
“Fine.”
“Yayyy!” the girls shouted.
“I want a Tiffany’s bracelet,” Sahira blurted.
“I want a moped,” Brendan countered.
“I want another hoverboard!” Carsyn followed up. They all blurted out what they wanted as Basil’s head fell back, looking overwhelmed.
“That’s what your ass gets,” Bilal said as we all laughed.
“Okay, kiddos! Y’all ready to go to the water slide?
” Seth, our new manny, asked, coming back from the restroom.
Since Basil and I had become official, I wanted him to get back to overseeing his company.
After an incident with one of the nannies being neglectful, I knew he needed to be more hands-on.
The whole thing was a shit-show. He had to do damage control to keep the family from filing a report against the company and removing the bad review from the website. He ended up having to refund the family the money they spent, even adding interest to keep them from getting his company shut down.
We debated about it for days because he was being stubborn, but I argued for a living, so I knew I would win in the end.
Seth was nothing short of a godsend. He reminded me of Basil in a lot of ways, but with a masculine/feminine energy.
It wasn’t as easy as it was for the kids to warm up to him as it was with Basil, but once they realized Seth wasn’t a pushover and was actually fun and funny, they eventually warmed up to him.
The kids cheered, and Seth came over to get Carlee.
“Come on, sugar mama. Let’s go boss the other kids around.”
“Daddy, you come?” she asked, looking up at Basil.
“In a little while, princess. I’m going to play with Mommy for a little while.”
“’Kay. Be hurry, ’kay?”
Basil chuckled. “I be hurry, baby.” He kissed her cheek, and Seth took her hand.
“Y’all enjoy yourselves. I got them for the rest of the day.”
“Thank you, Seeeth,” I dragged and smiled.
“No problem, queen.” He winked.
“Aye, don’t get yo’ ass fired, my nigga,” Basil warned.
Seth and I laughed as he scurried away. I loved messing with Basil because he swore Seth liked me, but the man clearly liked men. Basil yanked me over to him, making me straddle his lap.
“Keep playin’ with me, and you gon’ fuck around and find out.”
I giggled. “Find out what exactly?”
“You asking like you want to find out.”
“Maybe I do,” I flirted.
“You know, there’s a whole suite with y’all name on it,” Bilal stated.
We laughed as I kissed his lips.
“Who would have thought that when you took Yara off the case, you’d actually get the woman of your dreams. You guys are the perfect match.” Sheena gushed. I looked at Basil through the slits in my eyes.
“Oh, really?”
He licked his lips before tucking the bottom one in, trying to hide his smile.
“You didn’t tell her?” Bilal asked.
“No, he failed to mention that. I knew something was fishy with him showing up instead of the person I chose.”
Sheena laughed. “What did he tell you?”
“That there was a glitch in the system, so all the nannies had been assigned already.”
“Oh, wooow!” Sheena dragged while her and Bilal laughed.
“Aren’t you glad I omitted the truth?” he asked, kissing the tops of my breasts.
I smirked. “You didn’t omit anything. You straight up lied.”
“Same thing.”
“You wanted me that bad?” I bit my lip while raking my fingers through his locs.
“Bad as fuck. I wasn’t trying to deceive you, but there was a reason you kept showing up in my path. I had been where you were—thought the person I was with loved me, but it turned out to be a lie.
“I was familiar with your sadness. I wouldn’t call it a trauma bond, but maybe a heartbreak bond.
I knew how it felt to get my heart broken by the person I thought was my forever.
I wanted to be your hero, even before I knew you were going through a divorce.
I know that sounds messed up, but something inside of me kept my spirit gravitating toward you.
And when I saw that you requested my services for a nanny, I knew that was nothing but the Big Homie telling me you were mine. ”
An involuntary tear slipped down my cheek, and Basil swiped it away with his thumb, then sucked it from his finger.
“Awww,” Sheena cooed.
Bilal chuckled. “It’s this nigga licking her tears for me.”
“You’ve licked mine before.”
“I’ll lick anything you produce,” he said, winking at her as Sheena blushed.
“I ain’t know you was about that vampire life, bruh,” Basil teased.
“Aye, fuck you.” We all laughed.
I looked back at my favorite person, taking in his handsome features.
“I’m glad you did. I won’t lie and say I wasn’t attracted to you when I saw you in the deli.
I had to pray the impure thoughts I was having of you away.
Then, when I saw you at the LEGO store, you invaded my thoughts for a while after that. Do you remember what you told me?”
He nodded. “That God was preparing you for greater, and nothing He does is without purpose. You were going to find that pretty-ass smile again.”
“And I did. The fact that my kids—”
“Our kids,” he corrected.
I rolled my eyes playfully. “Our kids took to you so quickly, I knew there was no way I could get rid of you at such a vulnerable time in our lives. Thank you for catching me before I drowned.”
“You’re welcome, baby. Thank you for accepting the life raft.”
I slid my tongue in his mouth, and he latched on. We kissed like no one was around before we broke apart. Basil stood with me in arms and headed toward the resort.
“Nasty asses!” Bilal called out behind us as I giggled all the way back to our suite.
“Don’t run, baby. Take your dick like a champion.”
“I can’t! You’re too deep!” I yelled, squeezing my muscles, trying to relieve some of the pressure.
“I’m trying to put these twins in your spine. Open up, mama. Don’t resist me.”
“Mmmm, Baye!”
“Come on, Cream. Pull our babies outta me. They almost there.”
I threw my ass back, trying to hurry up and make him cum.
We had been going for over an hour now, and my body was drained.
I didn’t know if I could cum again after seven damn times already, but Basil had the stamina of a damn Energizer bunny.
I’d never get tired of having sex with him, but he put me through the mattress every time.
I couldn’t get enough of his ass, and vice versa.
“That’s right, baby. You throwing it back like you like it or sumn.”
“I lov—ooh, shit!” My groin stirred, my body stilled, and another orgasm traveled through me just as he gripped my hips tightly. I heard his breathing pick up, and a growl came before he released inside of me.
“Fuck, Cream!” he yelled before dropping his weight down on me. We both lay still, trying to catch our breaths. He kissed along my jawline until I turned my head a little more, capturing his lips with mine, and we shared a passionate kiss.
I absolutely, positively would give this man whatever the hell he wanted from me. He proposed to me a few days after my birthday, and of course, I said yes. We planned the date for June of next year. I was excited and felt more confident about us than I’d ever been with my ex.
Basil rolled off me, then pulled me to him.
“I love you,” I told him, kissing his chest.
“I love you more, baby. Baby Brooke gotta be nestling in them eggs now.”
I laughed. “What if it’s a boy?”
“Oh, you already know he’s going to be a junior.”
“You don’t mind having a baby before marriage?”
“I want whatever you want, baby. In my head, you’re already my wife, so it doesn’t matter. You ain’t never going nowhere, and I’m going to make sure of that.”
I couldn’t help the grin that crossed my lips.
I never would have thought this would be my life.
From getting married at twenty-six, having a baby every year after, to my ex-husband divorcing me through text, to me hiring a manny that came into my life and not only healed me, but also showed me a love I never knew was possible after my divorce.
Basil was everything a woman like me ever dreamed of.
He was intentional.
He was perfect.
He was . . . My Perfect Manny.
The End.