Chapter 26
Cayla
When we pulled up to Ms. Flora’s house, the porch light was still glowing.
The air was cool, and the faint sound of barking dogs filled the quiet between us.
One thing I loved about living in New York was that it was truly the city that never slept.
Kassidy parked in front of the house and turned off the car.
“She probably fell asleep on her,” he said with a small smile.
“Yeah,” I murmured, glancing toward the front door. “Ori usually knocks out around the same time.”
We sat silently in the car for a little moment.
Before I could pop my door open, he had leaned over the center console and gently kissed my lips.
He pulled back and then stared me in the eyes as if he had done something wrong.
Before he could open his mouth to apologize, I quickly leaned over and kissed him again.
This time, I let my lips open slightly and let my tongue explore his mouth.
In silence, our tongues danced to their own tune.
At the end of our kiss, he tapped my lips one last time and then tapped my nose with a gentle peck.
“Whew, I’m glad that’s out of the way,” I admitted.
He let out a chuckle before using his hand to rub the back of his neck.
This brown man in front of me was blushing, and it was the cutest thing to see.
He popped his door open and came around to open mine.
Before we even made it up the steps, the front door to the house opened.
Ms. Flora stood there with Oriana slumped against her shoulder.
Her thumb was half in her mouth, and she was wrapped in a soft pink blanket.
“She was an angel,” Ms. Flora whispered with a smile as she handed her over. “She didn’t cry once. We watched Finding Nemo, and she was out before Dory even found Nemo.”
I chuckled.
“Thank you so much for watching her. I really appreciate it.”
She waved her hand, brushing it off. “Girl, hush. It was nice having a baby around here again. It’s been too quiet in this house.”
Kassidy stepped forward and reached for Oriana, careful not to wake her.
“Come on, little mama,” he said softly, his voice low and tender. “Let’s get you home.”
I stood there watching him carry her down the walkway.
The porch light cast a warm glow over him.
The sight of him holding her so steady, gentle, and protective did something to me.
Ideally, I would have wanted to have my happily ever after with the father of my child, but he made the thought of having my happy ending with a stepfather feel so damn good.
Orion having a child before we had one was a lesson that I never wanted to repeat.
Kassidy didn’t have any children, and as crazy as it may sound, it didn’t matter that I had one; my next man couldn’t have any.
Ms. Flora’s voice pulled me back. “You know,” she said, her tone calm but full of meaning, “that boy’s been through a lot.”
I turned to her, and she was looking out toward where Kassidy was buckling Oriana into her seat.
“He doesn’t always talk about it, but I see it in him,” she continued. “He’s always been the type to take care of everybody else without asking for anything in return. It’s good to see him smiling again.”
Her eyes flicked to me. Her glare was soft but sharp at the same time, like she could see straight through me.
“You make sure you keep that light in him. He deserves to be happy.”
I swallowed the lump in my throat.
“I’ll try,” I said quietly.
I should have been confident in my response, but something deep down inside had a feeling that I would somehow fuck this up because of my own baggage that I was toting.
I was still healing, and maybe, just maybe, I probably shouldn’t have even been dating.
Especially a man of Kassidy’s caliber. He deserved love that didn’t come from a damaged source.
“Don’t just try, baby, just do. ’Cause from what I can see, you deserve to be happy too.”
Her smile made me stop overthinking myself. I fucking deserved a love like this. I wasn’t about to let what Orion had put me through make me miss out on what could be the best thing for me. Before I could respond, Kassidy came back up the steps.
“She’s out cold,” he said, a faint laugh slipping out. “Didn’t even flinch when I buckled her in.”
Ms. Flora waved us off. “That’s because she feels safe.” She winked at me on the sly. “Kassidy, hurry and take them home so you can be in for the night.”
Kassidy leaned down and kissed her cheek. “Thank you for watching her again, Nana.”
He took my hand as we walked down the steps. His fingers slid together with mine like it was the most natural thing in the world. Like we had been locking hands forever. The night air felt cool against my skin, but the warmth between us lingered.
When we reached the car, he opened my door first before circling to his side. I looked back at Ms. Flora’s porch one last time. She was still standing there waving. Slowly, her limp carried her back into the house. I turned back to Kassidy, catching him staring at me.
“What?” I asked, smiling.
He shook his head slightly. “Nothing. I was just thinking… this feels right.”
I felt my chest tighten a little, but it was the good kind of ache.
“Yeah,” I whispered. “It does.”
As he pulled away from the curb, I looked out the window and caught one last glimpse of the house fading in the distance. Tonight felt too damn perfect, and that feeling worried me more than anything. Silently, I prayed that this man beside me… was for me.
The next morning started like any other.
Oriana was running around the living room in her footie pajamas, clutching her stuffed bunny while I tried to spoon oatmeal into her mouth between her giggles.
A knock came at the door just as she smeared oatmeal on her cheek.
I sighed, wiped her face, and went to open it.
Orion stood there, looking as smug as always.
He had a fresh lineup, sporting a white tee, some gray sweats, and his Cuban chain catching the hall’s light.
“Morning,” he said casually.
I shifted my weight against the door. “Hey.”
Keeping things short and sweet was just how I liked. He nodded toward the playmat behind me.
“Is she ready? I told you I was taking her today.”
“I remember,” I said, “I just finished feeding her. I just have to toss some clothes on her. You never told me where you’re going, though.”
“It’s a baby shower,” he said, looking past me into the apartment, “a family thing.”
Something about the way he said family made me uneasy, but I didn’t want to argue in front of Oriana.
She spotted him and squealed. “Dada!”
The excitement in my baby’s little voice made me smile, although I hated who she was greeting. Orion had lightly brushed past me to meet her halfway.
“Hey, baby girl,” he said, scooping her up with that easy charm that always softened me once upon a time.
He kissed her cheek, and she laughed, patting his face with her tiny hands.
“I gotta toss some clothes on her,” I reminded him.
“Hand her coat here. She can hop in the car like this. I told you I already had clothes for her.”
I sighed before going to the hall closet to grab her coat. After handing it to him and watching him dress her in it, I gave him her diaper bag. As he held it, I just double-checked to make sure that she would have everything she needed.
“I already told you she ate. I packed extra snacks and her blanket.”
“Got it,” he said, heading for the door.
“Bye-bye, Mama,” Oriana babbled, waving her chubby hand.
“Bye, baby. Be good,” I said softly.
I waited for a moment before rushing to the window.
I watched as he buckled her into her car seat.
Once he had her strapped in, he glanced up before pulling off, but I couldn’t read his face.
That was our first smooth transaction around each other, and honestly, I loved how easy it was.
I didn’t have to endure him saying anything slick.
This was how I preferred things to go for us.
The apartment was too quiet after that. I tried cleaning and sorting out the laundry, anything to fill the silence. Hours passed.
Orion hadn’t sent me a text updating me on things with Oriana.
There was no picture or anything. Whenever I had her, I made sure to flood his phone with photos of her, but he couldn’t do the same.
My heart skipped a beat when my phone started buzzing in my robe pocket.
I sighed when it wasn’t Orion hitting my line to update me about my baby. Instead, it was Zynea.
“Hey, girl,” I answered, balancing a basket of clothes on my hip.
“Hey, nothing,” she said quickly. “Have you been on Instagram today?”
“No… why?”
“Cayla,” she sighed. “Go look at what I sent you… like, right now.”
A chill crept down my arms. I set the basket down, placed Zy on speaker phone, and then opened the link she had sent me.
My stomach flipped the second the profile loaded.
It was Brandi with her round belly showing under a pink lace dress.
Her hand was gently placed on her stomach, and she was smiling like she owned the world. The caption read:
Celebrating Baby Olivia… Thank you to everyone who came out today.