Chapter 28
TWENTY-EIGHT
“I was hoping he would make this easy,” Shuga says, then sighs.
“You know he likes to be in control, even if he isn’t. Asali was wrong and he knows it. Not showing today was his power move, but trust me, it didn’t land. He doesn’t know me as a lawyer. If he doesn’t want to settle this amicably, we can take this to a judge,” I tell her.
In the hopes of settling their divorce quietly and quickly, I arranged an amicable meeting with Asali and his prepaid lawyer.
I even agreed to meet on neutral grounds because I didn’t want to appear dominating in my office.
Shuga and I arrived at the reserved conference room at the courthouse at ten till four and waited forty minutes.
Asali nor his attorney showed and neither responded to our text and call attempts.
“I don’t want that. Hell, I didn’t want any of this.
” After shaking her head, she adds, “He chose another life with another woman. Clearly, he didn’t want what we had, so why do this?
” Her frustrated tone reveals she’s just venting, not expecting me to answer.
Instead, I start packing up my things. Her phone rings as I pack.
“Asali,” she answers. “Where else would I be? But why aren’t you here?
” After huffing out an exhausted breath, she says, “He’s my attorney.
I’m not talking to you without him with me…
No… I said no… Then I guess we will let the judge decide.
That should be fun considering you are living with your mistress,” she says, then ends the call.
“So he’s not coming?” I confirm.
“He doesn’t want to talk about anything in front of you, his son. His pride, as always, is overshadowing everything. In his defense, you know the type of man he is,” she says.
“Man I thought he was,” I correct her. “As your son and lawyer, I don’t want you talking to him alone. I don’t trust that.”
Her eyes narrow and she snaps her neck back.
“Asali can’t make me do anything I don’t want to,” she assures me with a hint of attitude.
“Draw up the settlement. I’ll meet him and see if he will sign.
If he does, this is all over. If he doesn’t, we let a judge decide.
I just want this over so I can find my peace again and move on.
Being stuck like this is torture. I loved that man for all of my adult life, it’s hard,” she admits.
“That’s why I don’t want you meeting with him by yourself,” I confess and she rolls her eyes.
“Let me be very clear, I love your father but I love myself more and I don’t want him anymore.
” She places her cell into her handbag then stands.
“Type up the settlement. He can keep the joint account, his truck, and even my car. It was a gift, and hell, I can get another one. He can even have the furniture in his reading room, but the house stays mine and he can’t touch anything connected to Nina Wright.
His little girlfriend won’t benefit from my hard work. ”
“I got it. Aven will have it ready Monday afternoon.”
“Good. I’ll let Asali know then. I don’t want this messing up Sunday dinner.”
“It won’t,” I tell her.
“Oh, it’s not canceled?” she asks in a weird ass tone.
“Nah. Did you cancel it? My wife is supposed to be cooking her steak pasta. We have six big ass sirloins in the freezer for dinner. Who canceled it?” I question, genuinely confused. No one mentioned a cancellation, not one of my brothers.
“I’m just asking. I heard there was a dinner with your sister soon. Just checking,” she says with a smirk and I just shake my head.
I scheduled a small barbecue at the crib for my brothers to meet Alami. They all agreed to come, even stubborn ass Tre. They also agreed to keep the shit a secret from Shuga until afterwards. I definitely planned to tell her, just after they had all officially met Alami.
So which one of them niggas snitched?
“Who told you?” I ask.
“Does it matter? You didn’t and it’s at your house.”
“I wanted them to meet her first and then I was going to tell you. I didn’t want to hurt your feelings or anything.”
“My feelings were hurt the minute I learned of the affair. The hurt has passed; the anger just hasn’t but it will.
As for your sister, she’s innocent. I’m glad y’all are getting to know her.
You should and you don’t have to worry about me when it comes to her.
One day, who knows, I might want to meet her…
Maybe.” She shrugs then steps to me. Her little hand pats the side of my face.
“Lying to me and keeping things from me hurts. That’s it. I’m stronger than you boys think.”
“I know, Shuga. My bad.”
A smile spreads across her pretty face then she says, “I know. Now let’s go.”
“You want to come over for dinner? Mireya texted. She picked up something.”
“No, baby. I’m good. I actually feel like painting and I have some black eyed pea soup at the house. Kiss both of them for me and I’ll see y’all Sunday.”
We leave the conference room and exit the courthouse. After I watch her pull out of the parking lot, I text my brothers.
Me: Who told Shuga?
Tre: Not me.
Shiro: Me either
Ace: Me.
Deuce: Of course. Ace is a Shuga’s boy.
Ace: Fuck you.
Deuce: That’s some wild shit.
Shaking my head, I start my ride and head home.
There’s five o’clock traffic, so I don’t make it home until almost forty-five minutes later.
My wife’s Range is parked on her side of the garage, so I park on my side then exit my ride.
When I enter through the small foyer that leads into the kitchen, the security system announces my entrance and seconds later, I hear little feet shuffling on the floor.
“Daddy, we got legs,” Niya squeals as she rushes to me. “You hungry?”
“I am. Are y’all waiting on me to eat?” I ask.
“Yes, we been waiting.”
“Let me put my things down and change first,” I tell her.
“But no bath. Mommie said we bathe after we eat,” she says and runs off but I can’t move.
Mommie? Did my heart and mind hear the same thing or am I tripping? I hope like hell I’m not. Mommie?
It’s just one little word, but for Niya, for me, it carries the weight of a thousand.
I can be a lot of things to my baby girl: her provider, her protector, and her father.
But mommie is the one thing I could never be.
Never. A mother’s love and presence in a little girl’s life is needed and how comfortably and naturally Niya just said Mommie has my whole chest swelling with a love I didn’t know I could have or feel.
After taking a few moments to process the one word, I pull my shit together then step into the kitchen. My wife walks in from the small hall at the same time. Like she does every time we occupy the same space, she steps into mine and wraps her arms around my neck.
“What?” she asks with curious eyes. “Why are you smiling so hard? Things went well with Asali?”
Real shit, I forgot all about Asali and his no-show stunt once Niya said Mommie. That’s the only important thing in this moment and I’m dying to hear it again just to make sure my ears really didn’t just hear what my heart wants.
“I’m home. First, my heartbeat greeted me, and now, I have my heart in my arms. Of course, I’m smiling,” I admit and she simpers. Her soft lips press into mine and I give her what she wants and deserves by kissing her lovingly.
When our lips break, she rests her hands on the sides of my face. She stares at me as if she’s trying to decode or decipher me. “The meeting must have been really good,” she says.
“It was nonexistent actually,” I tell her and her smile drops. “He didn’t show. He told Shuga some shit about not wanting to discuss things in front of me. It’s him trying to have the upper hand.”
“Oh no. How did Shuga take it?”
“Better than me,” I admit.
“She’s so strong. I just love her spirit and resilience. She’ll get through this and anything else he tries just fine.” After kissing me again, she says, “Go take this suit off. Niya is ready to eat these crab legs. I got the sailor’s feast with extra corn and sausage from her favorite.”
“I’ll be right back,” I say before walking out of the kitchen.
My wife calls out for Niya. “Sweetheart, you wanna come help melt the butter?”
“I coming,” she yells as she whisks past me.
Coming home to my family is the best feeling in the world.
As I walk through the house, I take it all in.
My wife is finally in the home I built. Her favorite painting, by my Shuga, is hanging in the small book room.
The small pieces of décor and furniture accents she’s added blend perfectly and her plug-ins and aroma satchels in the air vents have the house smelling like a home.
This is us and I love it, her, and our family.
Once in the room, I undress, remove my Hublot, and change into sweats and a tee.
After washing my face and hands, I return to the kitchen.
On the island, there are two large aluminum pans filled with deshelled snow crab legs, king crab, jumbo shrimp, corn on the cob, red potatoes, and sausage.
My wife is holding my baby girl up as she drizzles melted butter over the food.
“I left some for me,” Niya says as she very carefully places the bowl on the island. She lifts her head and sees me. “We eating here,” she explains.
“You want a beer?” my wife asks as she places Niya on the floor. Nothing tastes better with seafood than a cold Bleu Mountain Brew. Since I always have Niya with me at the Seafood Spot, I never indulge, but tonight, I can. I’m home with my family.
“Yeah,” I answer.
“I’m going to have one too,” she says.
While she grabs the beers and a bottle of water for Niya, I snag a sausage and pop it into my mouth. I’m hungry as hell. Between my team meeting to discuss Alami’s start tomorrow, my battery case, and my meeting with Shuga and Asali, I haven’t eaten anything since a chicken biscuit for breakfast.
“Daddy,” Niya exclaims with a giggle. “We ’bout to eat.”
“What did he do?” my wife asks playfully when she turns around.
“He got a sausage,” Niya says.
“And we didn’t even say grace,” my wife adds while shaking her head. “He’s hungry like us.”
“I’m so ready,” Niya says.
My baby girl walks over to my side of the island and I lift her and place her in the high back stool.
After sliding the drinks closer to me, my kyau joins us and sits between Niya and me.
I blessed the food and Niya gets up on her knees and starts grabbing crab legs and corn.
I swear she dips her entire little hand into the butter before biting the crabmeat.
Everything is delicious, perfectly seasoned and cooked.
I hate overcooked shrimp and that’s never a problem at the Seafood Spot.
Niya tastes the king crab, and when I see her big eyes light up, I know our bill is going to get even higher going forward.
She really likes it. So much that she abandons her normal snow crab for the king crab.
“Daddy, we doing the muffins,” Niya announces with a big ass smile and I have no clue what my baby girl is talking about. My wife instantly reads my face and explains before I can ask for more details.
“Once a month, the kindergarten team does Muffins with Mom. A different mother volunteers and brings them to the school. I’m doing January and I’m getting those giant muffins from a place in Crescent Falls and taking them in,” she says.
“Except Jordan,” Niya adds.
“Right. Jordan gets a mini muffin,” my wife says before turning to me and whispering, “I’ll explain Jordan later.”
“I want strawberry.”
“You can have strawberry. They have all flavors but you’re going with me to pick them out. It’s your class and your day. You’re even going to pick Jordan’s little one,” my wife says and Niya laughs.
Honestly, I don’t know why Jordan is getting a mini muffin and I don’t care, at least not right now.
I’m just taking this moment and their conversation in.
The love, connection, and bond between these two is so heartwarming.
So effortlessly and naturally, my wife has stepped into the role of being my baby girl’s mom and Niya’s face says it all.
I heard right. Niya for sure finally called my wife Mommie.
They continue with their conversation and I just sit back, drink my beer, eat my food, and soak it all in. If there was ever a perfect moment to immortalize, it’s this. I’m truly a happy man.
We eat until there’s a dent in both pans; then together, we pack up the leftovers and clean the kitchen. While my wife gets Niya bathed and in her pajamas, I take a much-needed hot shower.
I make it to Niya’s room just in time. She’s tucked under her covers. Her small head, big ass bonnet, and arms are the only things visible. My beautiful wife is setting up the television. When I step to the bed, Niya smiles then pulls her covers back.
“Daddy, look at my new jammies,” she gushes. “Imma princess for real.”
“These are so pretty. I like them,” I compliment.
“We got them today after school.”
“Y’all went to the mall?” I ask.
“Yeah, baby. There was an hour wait for the food so we decided to shop while we waited. There’s a new kid boutique there and they had some cute stuff. We got those and a few more outfits,” my wife says as she steps to the bed.
“I’m wearing my new jeans at Sunday dinner. You’ll see them,” Niya adds, beaming.
After kissing Niya’s forehead, I ask, “Well, did you get me something?”
“No,” she says with a laugh. “They don’t have big people clothes. You gotta go to yo’ store, Daddy.”
“I will, baby girl. But you get some sleep, okay? Sweet dreams and I love you,” I tell her.
“Dream sweet, Daddy. I love you too.”
From the other side of the bed, my wife places the remote on Niya’s nightstand then leans in. “The remote is right here but everything is set. Have the sweetest dreams tonight,” she says before kissing Niya’s cheek. When she does, Niya wraps her arms around Mireya and squeezes her.
“Dream sweet, Mommie. I love you.”
Embracing Niya, my wife, my kyau, says, “I love you too, sweetheart.”
My life is finally complete.
The moment we are out of Niya’s room and her door is closed, my emotions overwhelm me. My wife loving my daughter and stepping into her life as her mother so effortlessly has left me speechless. I have no words, just feelings.
Slightly startling her, I back her into the wall in the hall. My right hand caresses her cheek as I lean in and kiss her with all the love I feel. Her body melds into mine as she kisses me back with the same passion.
The love I have for her I can’t even try to put in words. I just know it’s her for me and no one else.
When I finally release her soft lips, I still have no words adequate enough to express my feelings but I try to say something. “I can never thank you enough for how you love and accept Niya but I’ll spend the rest of our life together trying,” I promise.