Chapter Eighteen #2
Without even trying, my brain immediately compared her to myself. She was model-tall and just as skinny. Her breasts were small and perky in her fitted shirt. Even before the boys, I was never as skinny as her.
“Somebody take this baby. I’m going to need my hands free for this,” Mama says, however, I don’t take my eyes away from the couple in the window.
Andrew placed his arm around Kiely’s narrow waist, pulling her into his side. He looks down into her face in a way I don’t remember him ever looking at me. He looks at her as if she were the most precious thing in his life.
The pain is sudden. A tightness clogs my throat, constricting my breathing. My heart knocks painfully against my chest.
I shut my eyes and clutch a hand to my chest.
“Oh God, Ella, are you okay?” Pam asks beside me.
I can feel her arm on my shoulder, but I can’t yet open my eyes. I’m fighting to keep my heart in my chest and my breathing normal.
“That’s it,” my mama announces. “Jada, hand me my purse. I got something in there for his ass.”
Faye Alaxander is licensed to carry. Nothing good can come from my mama getting that purse.
I take a deep breath, tamping down on the sudden pain. That’s when I hear a voice in my head. One that is deep and strong and has the ability to pull me out of the darkest of thoughts.
“I got you, El.” Mitch’s voice is so prominent in my head, it’s as if he’s standing right beside me. A calm washes over me like a summer rain. The same rain that we got caught in months ago when we made love in his truck.
A smile graces my face right before my eyes open. All the girls are staring at me. Jada has my mother’s purse in her hands as if she were seconds away from handing it over.
My shoulders drop as I let out a sigh.
“I’m all right. Jada, do not give her that purse.” I chuckle.
Meagan looks to Jada and then me. “You sure you’re okay? For a second, you looked like you were having a heart attack.”
I assess my emotions. The tightness in my throat is gone, and so is that rapid beating of my heart.
Why do I care about a man who never valued or cherished me?
A man who never looked at me like I was precious, even though I carried two of his children.
Let him bring his fiancee to the party. Hopefully, he treats her better than he treated me.
“Yeah,” I admit. “I’m good.” And I was. I think the pain of seeing him with her for the first time is a natural reaction. But now that it has passed, I’m really good.
“I see the whole gang is here.”
Everyone in the room swings their heads toward the door. We all got distracted by how I felt that we weren’t paying attention to where Andrew and Kiely were. Now, they are standing in the entrance of the party room, hand in hand.
I once again take the two of them in, standing together so happily. I wait for the pain to hit me again, but this time it’s absent.
“I’m glad you guys could make it,” I say cheerfully.
“You are?” Pam mumbles beside me.
I cut my eyes to her with a warning before turning back to the couple.
“Cameron will be glad to see you.”
Andrew’s gaze narrowed at me before a slow smile spread over his face.
“Kiely picked out the perfect gift for him.” As he speaks, he brings Kiely’s hand to his lips and places a kiss on the back. The entire time he keeps his gaze on me.
Once again, I wait for the stab of pain, but it didn’t come.
“My baby has a knack for buying gifts.”
The baby in question lets out a giggle, causing Andrew to turn to her. They gaze into each other’s eyes. I swear I could roll my eyes from here to Timbuktu.
“I imagine it was easy for her,” Jada crossed her arms over her chest. “I mean, they are around the same age.”
Someone snorts, followed by a few chuckles. I fold my lips into my mouth to keep from laughing.
Andrew turned to glare at me as if I had made the comment.
“Well, Kiely, you can place the gift down on that table over there.” I point to the square table in the corner we’re using to hold all the gifts.
Kiely holds the bag out to me. “Can’t you put it over there?”
“Little girl, if you don’t—” Destiny grabs my mom’s arm, pulling her back to her side and cutting off her rant.
“Kiely, the table is right there.” I keep my voice light and sweet. I could have told her young ass to stick that gift down her throat. But I wouldn’t give her nor Andrew the satisfaction of knowing they bothered me.
“Come on now, Ella,” Andrew sneers. “Kiely doesn’t know anything about stuff like this. This is more your speed.”
Although the insult was subtle, I picked it up. His perfect Kiely didn’t have kids so she wouldn’t know anything about a birthday party.
“She doesn’t know how to put a fucking bag on a table?” Jada asks.
“Most people learned that skill in kindergarten.” Destiny’s tone is filled with condescension.
“Now ya’ll leave the girl alone,” Mama says with a stern look. “You know she’s only been out of grade school for a few years. These things are hard for her.”
Pamela burst into laughter, and soon the rest of the gang followed. I try to keep the peace and hold in my humor.
The smirk on Andrew’s face is long gone. He’s so angry now he’s damn near bright red.
“I can’t believe you’d—”
His angry words are cut off by a deep voice. A voice so poignant it makes my heart rate speed up and my thighs clench.
“Everything alright?”
As if he had been summoned, Mitch was standing in the doorway. His arms folded over his large chest. His blue gaze is on me as if he’s searching for a physical injury. I swear everywhere his gaze reaches feels like an intimate touch.
“Yes, everything is fine.” I rub a hand down the front of my shirt.
Mitch walks further into the room. He comes right up to me and, without a word, takes the bag from Kiely, placing it down on the nearest surface. Without even trying, he deescalated a tense situation.
Andrew steps back and chuckles, drawing our attention. “Why am I not surprised to see you here?”
Mitch turns to face his best friend, his jaw tensing slightly. “What’s that supposed to mean? Have I not been to every birthday party the boys have had?”
He’s not lying. Mitch has never missed a party.
Andrew scoffs. “Whatever, Mitch.”
Immediately, the tension in the room feels stifling.
Both men glare at each other as if one wrong word could cause them to tear these people's furniture up in here. I did not want this to be the time everything came out in the open. Although it was only us in the private room, there were a few of Cameron’s friend’s parents hanging around, and I didn’t want to give anyone an inside peek of our dysfunction.
So, I do what I do best and deescalate the situation.
“Well, like I said, Andrew, Kiely, I’m glad you two could make it.” I had to say something to break the tension in the room.
Andrew seems to relax a little. His angry glare turns from Mitch and softens only a little when it lands on me.
“I’ll always show up for my sons,” he emphasizes the word my and glances at Mitch when he says it.
I don’t comment. I watch as Andrew leads Kiely over to one of the empty tables. He pulls out her chair for her, and when she sits, he pushes it up to the table before he takes a seat. I watched the entire exchange, trying to remember when he had ever pulled out my chair for me.
“Hey,” Mitch placed his hands on my shoulders and turned me to face him. “Are you alright?”
The girls and my mother watch us wearily before they all walk away. It’s like they are purposely giving Mitch and me space.
“Yes,” I finally say.
He stares into my eyes for a long moment before he seems to believe me.
“I came as soon as I saw them. If you want, I can make them leave.”
I chuckle and shake my head. “Mitchell, I’m fine. I promise. She is going to be his wife soon. I have to get used to seeing them together.” I glance in their direction.
They are sitting right beside each other. She’s leaning on him, and his arm is wrapped around her as they look out at the play area. Andrew places a kiss on Kiely’s neck, and she smiles up at him.
The twinge of pain is back, but lasts even shorter than the last time. It’s so fleeting, I almost didn’t recognize it.
I turn back to Mitch with a smile. “Besides, how do I compete with that?”
“Ella,” my mom calls out, getting my attention. “The pizza is here.”
One of the best things about this place is that not only do they supply you with a place to play, but they also cook their own pizzas.
I step away from Mitch, heading over to the employee designated as our party specialist.
After gathering all the kids and the parents who stayed behind, we all sang "Happy Birthday" to Cameron before allowing him and his friends to dig into their pizza.
I was busy refilling drinks and grabbing extra chips like a madwoman. The girls were all helping me out, even Jada was distributing extra slices of pizza. My phone buzzes in my pocket, and I pull it out, glancing down at the screen.
Mitchie: Come to the family bathroom.
Shocked that I hadn’t noticed Mitch missing, I look around the room. My gaze falls on Andrew, who for some reason, was staring at me. I skip past him and continue my perusal of the room. Mitch was indeed missing.
Me: I can’t leave right now. I’m feeding the kids.
I go to slide my phone back into my pocket when it buzzes again.
Mitchie: Don’t play with me, El. Bring your ass to the family bathroom. NOW!
It’s something about a man that can back it up, telling you what to do. Not every man gets that privilege, but Mitch definitely did. I bite into my bottom lip, contemplating going into that family bathroom.
My phone buzzes again.
Mitchie: Don’t make me come get you. You know I don’t care about your ex’s feelings.
Sliding my phone into my pocket, I handed the bag of chips to Destiny.
“Hey, can you finish handing these out? I have to go to the restroom.”
“Sure. We got it.”