Chapter 9 #3
The sales associate had barely unlocked the glass case before I heard the little girl behind us.
She wasn’t loud enough for anybody else to pay attention, but something made me turn anyway.
She walked straight toward us with that little girl still holding onto her hand.
The baby bump was a little more noticeable up close, and I sneered.
She never once looked at me this time and every bit of her attention stayed on Rome, and the closer she got, the tighter his hand became around mine. I think he felt her before he saw her.
"What the fuck you doing?" he muttered under his breath with his smile disappearing the second he turned around. I could tell he didn’t want to cause a scene.
Behind closed doors and in the streets he may have been a different kind of animal, but in Aventura, he knew the police were always ready to lock someone up.
She stopped right in front of him. "I've been calling you."
"So?"
"So?" she repeated, looking at him like he’d lost his damn mind. "Nigga, that's all you got?"
Rome glanced toward me for half a second before stepping in front of her lowering his voice. "Ashley, this ain't the place."
"I don't give a fuck where we at."
"You need to."
"No..." She shook her head. "You need to answer your damn phone."
Rome looked over his shoulder to make sure that nobody was paying attention before looking back at her. I knew that look all too well. Had we not been in this store, he would’ve been trying to kick her ass like he did me. "I'll call you,” he told her through gritted teeth trying to keep his cool.
She placed one hand on her hip and shook her head. "You said that three days ago."
"I said I'll call you,” He repeated.
"And I said—"
"Ashley." His voice dropped again. "Aye, just stop."
She looked him dead in his face. "You really standing here acting like I don't exist?"
People had started slowing down now. Nobody was standing there outright watching, but you could feel it.
The sales associate looked between all three of us before quietly taking a step backward like she wanted no parts of whatever this was turning into.
Meanwhile, I stood there without saying a word.
Ashley let go of the little girl's hand long enough to dig inside her purse all frustrated.
She finally pulled her phone out and held it up in front of his face.
"Twenty-three missed calls are in your phone, that’s how many times I’ve called you."
Rome didn't even look at the screen. "I seen 'em."
"You saw them?" She laughed with one brow raised, looking more disgusted than amused. "And you still ignored every last one."
"I been busy."
"Busy?"
Her eyes flicked toward me for the first time before landing right back on him. "You got time to play house, but you don’t have five minutes to call me back after I went to the doctor?"
Rome clenched his jaws. "I said I'll handle the bill."
"When?" She snapped.
"When I get to it."
"No." She took one step closer. "You gone handle it now."
The little girl tugged gently on Ashley's hand. "Mommy..."
Ashley looked down for a split second and rubbed her daughter on top of her head without taking her eyes off Rome.
I then realized this wasn't a woman trying to embarrass him.
This was a woman who'd gotten tired of waiting on his ass.
Rome took another step toward Ashley, putting just enough space between the two of us that whatever he said next wouldn't too many people wouldn’t hear, including me but too bad Ashley wasn't interested in whispering.
"You really gone stand here and keep acting like I'm bothering you?" she asked, folding her arms across her chest. "That's what we doing now?"
"I told you I'll call you."
"You don’t gotta call me."
His frowned. "What?"
"I said..." she repeated, speaking slower this time. "You don't have to call me."
For the first time since she'd walked into the store, she smiled the kind of smile people wore after they'd already made up their mind about something. "I already know where you live."
Rome's expression became darker. "What the fuck that supposed to mean?"
"It mean exactly what I said."
"You threatening me Ashley? I promise you don’t know me like you think you do." He warned.
Ashley laughed softly and shook her head. "I don't have to threaten you, Rome. I gave you every opportunity to handle this behind closed doors, so I’ll let child support handle it." She looked him dead in his face. "You ignored me."
"Like I said, I been busy and I don’t owe you shit."
"No,” she said. "You've been hiding."
"I don't hide from nobody."
"Really?" She took one slow step toward him until they were damn near nose to nose.
"You got about five seconds to leave me the fuck alone,” he told her again. Me watching him hold his composure was crazy since I knew firsthand he probably wanted to break her jaw right here, right now.
Ashley didn't move. "Or what?"
"I ain't gone tell you again."
"And I ain't either."
She reached into her purse and pulled out a folded sonogram picture. My heart started pounding. Ashley unfolded it slowly, looked down at it for a second, then held it out toward Rome. "You keep acting like this baby don't exist. By the way, it’s a girl.”
Rome never reached for it. "I don't want that shit." His words came out so cold they almost didn't sound real.
Ashley blinked acting as she was taken back. "You don't mean that."
"The fuck I don't."
The little girl looked up at Ashley, then at Rome, confused by what was happening. "Mommy..."
Ashley swallowed hard before continuously looking at him. "You really gone say that in front of my daughter?"
"I don't give a fuck where we at,” he told her.
I stood there looking from Ashley to Rome, wishing like hell the floor would split open and swallow me whole.
My heart was beating so hard I could hear it in my ears, but I refused to let either one of them see me lose it.
This wasn't the place nor the fucking time and especially not with everybody in the store pretending they weren't listening while hanging on every damn word.