11 #2
“Bitch, Monty just needs to get a room.” Sade came and stood next to her cousin, as they watched the crowd.
“Girl, fuck Monty and fuck her too. They can have each other.”
“It don’t look like he was asking for permission.” Sade was rubbing salt in her cousin’s freshly opened wound, the same as she’d always done to her.
Caprice was praying that things went according to her auntie’s plan and she would be working again soon.
Her auntie was a high ranking deputy at a prison in another parish and she was trying to pull some stings to get her on.
Although Caprice had worked in the prison system since she was in her teens, she didn’t leave under the best circumstances.
Her first job was as a deputy and that was basically all that she knew.
Unfortunately, she couldn’t even put her previous job or past experience on the application.
Relationships with inmates were strictly prohibited and they would never hire her if they found that out.
With all the knowledge she had, she would be considered a rookie if she did get the job.
After hours of partying, everybody seemed to be drained. The DJ had slowed the music down, making the atmosphere seem more mellow and relaxed. Clover and Dash were the only two on the floor, slow dancing while talking intimately amongst themselves.
“Chile, Dash and Clo look like they’re ready to make another baby.”
Caprice saw the way her cousin kept sneaking peeks at them.
She was doing a great job at pretending that she didn’t care.
Her face held no emotion but Caprice was too petty to let it go.
Sade was always trying to throw Iva in her face, and she was returning the favor.
Honestly, she didn’t know why Sade even wasted her time getting upset.
Dash was never leaving Clover and they all knew that.
He even told her cousin the exact same thing to her face multiple times.
Caprice always wished that Monty was more like his brothers when it came to relationships but she wasn’t as lucky.
“Bitch, Dash is not my nigga. You need to focus more on your own man. Hell, that’s if he’s still your man. I’m starting to think the nigga left and you just ain’t saying shit.”
For some reason, Sade’s comment hit below the belt.
Lately, Caprice had been feeling the exact same way.
She and Monty seemed like no strings attached roommates who only saw each other in passing.
Still, she wasn’t about to let her cousin think she had one up on her.
Caprice was about to reply until she heard loud clapping and cheering.
She had zoned out for a minute but the noise snapped her back into the present.
She saw Diva and Clover recording something on their phones as a large crowd gathered.
Being as nosey as she was, Caprice made her way over to everyone else to see what was up.
She wanted to cry when she saw Fonzo on one knee holding a black velvet box with what she knew was an engagement ring inside.
It seemed as if everyone’s relationship was progressing but hers.
Not only was Amina getting her first child, she was getting a husband too.
Caprice tuned out the speech that Fonzo made but she put on a fake smile and clapped when everyone else did.
Of course, Amina accepted his proposal and everyone seemed to be happy for them.
“Congrats, Mrs. Hankerson. You bout to be joining me and Clo on the winning team.”
Diva was all smiles as she and Hank pulled Amina in for a hug and officially welcomed her into their family.
Although Clo and Dash were divorced, she still kept her married last name.
Dash would have probably died if she didn’t.
Now, more than ever, Caprice was really feeling like an outcast.
It was almost as if she had no place in Monty’s life or his family.
She knew that her time was up, but they had her fucked up if they thought she was leaving quietly.
“Well, I’m going in for the night. It’s no rush for y’all to leave though. I’ll be up to let y’all in whenever y’all decide to come in.” Caprice and Sade were staying with Drea, and she was ready to go. She was tired of seeing Hank and Diva drooling all over each other.
“Girl, I’m ready to go too. This shit was boring as fuck.”
Sade grabbed her purse before downing the rest of her drink.
There was no need for Caprice to say anything.
She grabbed her crossbody and prepared to head out with them.
She glanced over at Monty before she left, but he was too busy watching his ex to notice.
Monty saw when Caprice left and he couldn’t be happier.
He honestly didn’t know why she even felt the need to come at all.
He didn’t know much about Drea, other than her being his father’s teenage ex, but she seemed to be a little touched.
He still didn’t know how she befriended Caprice, but they were both dumb in his opinion.
Monty was tired of playing the same game with her and he was too real not to tell her how he really felt.
But, first, he had to grow up and have a much needed talk with Iva like Dash and Clover had been telling him to.
He was tired of disguising his feelings as hate when he knew that wasn’t really how he felt.
All that arguing back and forth about nothing wasn’t getting them nowhere.
Watching his brother propose to his girl was yet another wake up call.
As hard as he was, he loved the idea of being a family man.
That was all that he saw growing up and he wanted what his brothers had.
“How you been?” Monty asked when he walked over to Iva. He saw her walk to the bathroom and waited close by until she came out. He wanted to laugh when Iva looked around to see who he was talking to.
“Who, me?” she pointed to herself as she asked the question.
“Yeah, you.” Monty couldn’t even be mad at her reaction. She was so used to him coming at her sideways, and he was sure that she was shocked that he was talking with sense.
“I’ve been fine, Damont. How about you?”
“I’m straight but damn. Why you calling me that?”
“Because it’s your name. What’s good, Monty? I’m not trying to be at Mrs. Leo’s party fighting, so you better move around.”
“Man, fuck all that. What’s good with you? I just feel like we need to really talk on some serious shit.”
“I’m listening.” Iva crossed her arms over her chest defiantly. She was ready for Monty to start up with his usual bullshit. She wasn’t in the mood to play the blame game and she was honestly over it.
“I owe you a sincere apology.” Monty looked her in the eyes as he said what was on his mind.
Iva was shocked and she was sure that her face showed it.
She listened, as Monty poured his heart out and finally took accountability for the role that he played in their breakup.
He didn’t make excuses or try to justify his actions.
He just manned up and kept it real. Until that moment, Iva never realized how much she needed to hear that.
It was a form of closure that she never thought she’d get.
“I appreciate that, Monty, more than you know.”
“Even though I don’t aways act like it, I really do love you. I gotta move a lot of shit out of the way but I’m getting it right for the both of us. Shit is gonna be different this time, and that’s a promise.
Just make sure you give all them bitch ass niggas their two weeks’ notice cause I’m coming back for what’s mine.”
And with those parting words, Monty kissed her forehead and walked away, leaving her speechless.
Iva had to take a seat to process her feelings.
Monty was her first and, if she was being honest, her only love.
As hurt as she was by his betrayal, her feelings for him never went away.
She played hard to get but she wanted him to fight for her when he got released from prison.
Never in a million years did she expect him to come home to the same bitch that he cheated on her with.
That hurt more than anything but she never gave him the satisfaction of knowing that.
Now, more than ever, she prayed that they got a second chance to get it right.
“What about these?” Amina stood up and modeled a pair of silver strappy heels for everyone to see.
“Yes, sis, those are so cute.” Clover smiled and nodded her approval. She’d actually picked the shoes out for her but Amina was trying them on to see how they looked on her feet.
“I told you, girl, Clover got an eye for that kinda shit. We would have been in here all day if I had to help.” Diva knew how to put her clothes together, but Clover was a natural.
Amina and Fonzo were going to the courthouse to get married but her parents were throwing them a small reception right after.
Neither of them wanted anything big and they wanted to welcome their first child into the world as husband and wife.
They also didn’t want to overwhelm anyone with trying to do so much in such a short time.
Diva and Clover were putting the baby shower together as well, and she appreciated them more than they knew.
Although Diva was her mother-in-law, she and Clover were also like the sisters that she never had.
Amina didn’t have a very big family and the few she had didn’t live in New Orleans.
Her brother never got a chance to get married or have kids, so her parents were overjoyed that she was expanding their family.
“They look so cute on your feet.” Irie smiled as she looked at Amina walking back and forth.
Usually, Irie would be spending her off days with her husband and kids.
Since her kids were with her mother, she and Troy decided to hang with their friends for a while before spending time with each other that night.
Iva would usually be with them but her books were full for the day.
She had been taking a lot of Saturdays off from the salon lately so she decided to work the entire weekend to make up for it.
Irie and Clover went to brunch and were about to go to the nail salon before Diva called.
They ended up meeting her and Amina in the mall instead.
“Thanks, y’all. I love them too. They’re gonna look so good with my dress.” Amina was excited about her upcoming nuptials and addition to her family. She loved the changes in her body and Fonzo couldn’t stop touching her newly formed baby bump.
“Did y’all finish the guest list for the reception yet?” Diva asked, as they walked over to the register.
“Yeah, we did.” Amina sighed.