12. Micaiah #2
“What do you mean what am I gonna do? The same thing that I did with Malachi.”
“You cannot take custody of this child, Micaiah.”
“I don’t mean that way. I’m simply saying that I will be in her life, take care of her, and help raise her. I’ll be and do everything she needs me to be and do.”
“I think it’s ironic she hasn’t had a child in all this time, and now she miraculously gets pregnant when you come into her life. Did you know that she was going to a fertility specialist? I’m not so sure that she doesn’t know who you are, Micaiah.”
“How the fuck do you know that?”
I wasn’t surprised that she got pregnant when I came around, because she had been a virgin. I was surprised that despite me using protection, she got pregnant, but I knew she hadn’t touched my condoms either.
“I had an investigation done—”
“And I told you to leave that bullshit alone!” I thundered, feeling extremely protective over Myraj.
“I don’t trust her, Micaiah.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose, and I warned myself to calm down.
The last thing I needed or wanted was for Malachi to hear me snapping.
I had only shown respect to people in my life, especially in his presence.
Arabella was pushing buttons that I didn’t know I possessed.
It was making me wonder if those emotions had been there all along, or if they were tied to Myraj.
I had always shown patience to Arabella, no matter what bullshit she was on.
We had an excellent working relationship as client and agent and as friends.
It was when we crossed into the emotional abyss called “beyond friends” that shit went left.
Sex was great, but anything else was toxic because of her manipulative ways.
The manipulation she used as an agent, to negotiate things on my behalf, didn’t sit well when she turned it on me.
“I’m not asking you to, Arabella. This is something I have to work through.”
“You need to focus on your upcoming campaign launch and send her a check in the mail.”
She was pissing me off. “Nah, I need to space things out between us where my personal life is concerned so I can figure shit out with Myraj.”
“What does that even mean, Micaiah?”
“It means that you need to worry about my career, and that’s where the line is drawn.”
“I have built your career, Micaiah.”
“I appreciate all you’ve done, Bell, you know I do; but this . . . this is mine to handle.”
“Fine. I hope to God she doesn’t break your heart or take you for every red cent that you’re worth. I’ll be calling you about the next phase of the campaign.” She exhaled in exasperation, grabbed her purse, keys, and phone, and left my office.
I sighed and lifted my phone as I heard her slam the front door. I pressed the number and waited through three rings before I heard the sweet voice greet, “Hello?”
“Hey. I was just calling to check on you. How are you feeling?”
She giggled. “Glad that this part is over. Protected. Cared for. Thought about.”
I chuckled. “Would that have anything to do with the care package that I sent you?”
“Absolutely. It was very thoughtful of you, Micaiah. You got all my favorites. Can’t believe that you remembered all of that. Thank you.”
“I recalled everything we talked about the morning we talked until the sun came up.”
“I’m surprised. I wasn’t expecting anything.”
“I wanted you to be comforted and know I was thinking about you throughout the day and especially when you received them.”
I sent her a bear, an aqua blue blanket, white roses, gourmet brownies, a tub of walnut maple ice cream, fuzzy aqua blue and orange socks, a massage pillow, four different flavors of tea, and a delivery of Greek food from her favorite Greek restaurant.
“It seems we were on the same page today. Did you enjoy your gift?” she asked.
“I did. You didn’t need to do all that.”
“I could say the same thing about you.”
“I didn’t want you to feel alone. Even though I opted to receive the news by myself, I wanted you to feel like I was with you.”
“I did feel that way, and I wanted the same for you.”
“I uhm, meant to call you earlier, but I got caught up.”
“It’s okay. I figured you might need time to process the news. How are you feeling?” The concern in her voice was genuine.
I surveyed my emotions, and a slow smile came over my lips. I had been thinking about that earlier when I played with Malachi outside; not the stress of the situation, but the beauty of it. I loved my son, and I had no doubt I would love my daughter just as much.
“Honestly, I was stunned at first, but I’m settled. I have peace, and I’m actually excited.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. I have a princess to add to my kingdom now.”
She giggled softly. “Yes, you do.”
“How are you feeling?”
“Micaiah, I can’t say that I’m feeling much different. I already knew the answer. My concern was more about how you would take the news.”
“You’ve got nothing to worry about where I’m concerned, beautiful. I’m still the same guy that you met. Promise that won’t change. If anything, you’ll see me become more protective. That comes with the territory of having children.”
“I get it. This is a new experience for me, and I know I’ll be protective of her too.”
I didn’t want to tell her that I was just as protective over my daughter’s mother as I was my daughter. She would come to see that in time. Instead, I made plans to have dinner with her so that we could discuss our expectations.