Chapter 14
DELANEY
NINE DAYS LATER
“Naijhel, do you want breakfast, baby?”
I pulled the carton of eggs out of the refrigerator, along with a pack of bacon and biscuits. I was starving after all the love we made last night. That man had me climbing the walls, going out of my mind. Every time we made love, I felt closer to him than before.
When he took my family and me to the island for a mini-vacation, I could have stayed cocooned there with him forever. I hadn’t wanted our trip to end, but he proved to me that just because the vacation was over didn’t mean the feelings we created were.
“Naijhel?” I called out after I had placed the bacon in the oven.
When he still didn’t respond, I left the kitchen and went looking for him. I heard him in the bathroom when I stepped into the bedroom.
“No. Just give me a few minutes, and I’ll be there. Yeah. No, it’s not a problem, beautiful. No, you’re not interrupting anything. You always will be a priority in my life. I’ll be there soon. Love you.”
He ended the call and gripped the edge of the sink with his eyes closed. I stood behind him for several seconds before he splashed his face with water, then dried it off.
When he turned around, he jumped at the sight of me. “Oh, hey, baby.”
“Hey, is everything okay? I was coming to see if you wanted breakfast, but you seemed to have an urgent call.”
I backed out of the bathroom, but Naijhel grabbed me just after I crossed the threshold and wrapped his arms around me.
He kissed me and replied, “I’ll have to pass on breakfast, but I’ll call you later, okay? I’ve got some business I need to handle.”
“What kind of business?”
He shook his head. “Nothing major. Just some stuff. I’ll call later.” He kissed me on the forehead, grabbed his keys and phone off the dresser, and disappeared without a backward glance.
After breakfast, I busied myself with cleaning the house and checking on a request for some artifacts that we wanted to display at the museum. Later, I read a book and took a nap. By the time that I woke up, I still hadn’t heard from Naijhel.
I called him to make sure everything was okay, and the phone just rang without an answer.
He texted a few minutes later saying that he was caught up, but he would be back this evening.
My heart was starting to feel heavy. Whether I liked it or not, his behavior was reminiscent of what I had gone through with Clayton.
I didn’t want to be that girl, but the phone call this morning and his subsequent actions were leaving me feeling a little insecure about my relationship.
After a while, I finally got up and cooked.
I baked manicotti, zucchini, and crusty Italian bread for dinner because Italian was his favorite food.
I ran to the store and picked up a nice Prosecco to go with it.
We would have cannolis for dessert, and hopefully he would drink from my well and have me as a nightcap afterward.
With that thought, my thighs clenched as I sat on the couch doing a crossword puzzle. I reached forward and grabbed my mug of tea off the table in front of me, just as my phone rang. I set the crossword puzzle aside when I saw that it was Aria.
“Hey, Aria.”
“Boo, you have to go on Sociogram and go to Clayton’s account.”
“No, I don’t. Why would I do that? Besides, I don’t follow him anyway,” I replied as my stomach clenched in knots. Anytime his name came up, I became afraid because I had no idea what he was up to or what he was capable of doing next.
“Girl, just go on there.”
“No. I don’t want to hear anything that he has to say. Besides, why are you still following him, Aria?”
“You know why. I’ve been praying for that nigga’s downfall, so I’m just lurking in the background and waiting.”
I sighed and pulled my phone away from my ear. “Just a second.” I put the call on speakerphone so that I could talk to her while I navigated to the popular social media app.
“I don’t know if he found God or had a coming to Jesus meeting or what, but . . . you know what? Just check it out. He’s apologizing.”
“About what?” I asked as I typed his name in.
“You.”
“Me?”
“Yeah.”
Clayton’s livestream video popped up, and I clicked on it.
“I’m a good man. I mean, I know that I’ve made some mistakes in the past, and I’ve done some not so good things, including dragging my ex-wife’s name in the mud when we were going through a divorce. But you all know that is human nature.
“We don’t often do what we should do, but we allow circumstances, emotions, and other people’s opinion to drive the narrative.
That’s what I did when I was going through my divorce.
As a result, I’m here to apologize because I wasn’t honest about who she was, including the tales of abuse.
I’m ashamed that I behaved that way and that I allowed other people to get in my head and coerce me into saying the things that I did.
I took a few key moments in our relationship and distorted them into something else for my benefit. ”
“Bullshit! You pulled that shit out of the air, and what wasn’t pulled out of the air was you taking what you had done to me and twisting it around!” I screamed. I was furious, and I knew that I shouldn’t have come on here to listen to his lies.
“But now she’s mixed up with this guy who’s worse than I am.
To top that off, he’s a lawyer who opposed her in a recent court case.
That’s all I’ll say about that. But she needs prayer.
Please send prayers her way, because she’s about to go down a dark and dangerous path.
She doesn’t even see it coming. I could warn her, but she doesn’t listen to anything that I say. ”
I ended the livestream because I did not want to see anymore.
“He hasn’t changed, Aria. I knew that I shouldn’t have watched that. Now it’s messed up my energy,” I complained.
“I’m sorry, baby. In some ways, he was trying to take responsibility for some of what he’s done, but that went left quickly.”
“He’s not taking responsibility; he’s placing the blame at other people’s feet. What do you want me to do with that?”
“Nothing. I genuinely thought that he was going to keep on keeping it real. Do you think that he’s going to report Naijhel?”
“I don’t know. That’s what I’ve been worried about for a while now.”
“Can you call and get through to him?”
“It would be a waste of time. Clayton’s an idiot.”
“Well, call Naijhel and warn him.”
I sighed. “Yeah, I will.”
“What’s going on?”
“I don’t know.”
“I thought that man was loving you down. As good as he is to you, you have no reason to sound so down.”
“He’s just . . . Can I run something by you, and you’ll keep it real with me?”
“Always.”
“I feel like there has been some distance between us since I told him that I loved him.”
“You love him?”
“Yes.”
“When did you tell him?”
“Before the vacation at Sorrel. It was the night that we first made love.”
“Maybe it scared him, and he wasn’t ready to hear that. Or maybe he’s wondering if you just said it because the sex was so good. Have you told him since?”
“No. I’ve been afraid to.”
“All I know is that you guys didn’t seem distant to me at the island. He was all about you, all over you, and you were right by his side every step of the way.”
“But I feel like that was the only time. What if it was all for show? Was he doing that to impress my family?”
“Is that how you feel? Because if so, you need to have a conversation with that man.”
“In the days after I first said it, I felt the distance. But like you said, I felt closer to him at the island. He was all about me. I thought we were getting our flow back until this morning.”
“What happened this morning?”
I told her about the mysterious phone call, how he had run out, and how he hadn’t returned my calls, just texted to say he’d be over later.
“I don’t know. It was all so suspicious, but that could be because of what I’ve been through. I believe in my heart that he’s a good man, and I don’t want to judge him unfairly, but I also don’t want to be a fool again, ignoring red flags.”
“Do you love that man?”
“I do. I’m afraid that I’ll push him away, though, Aria, and I don’t want to do that.”
“I could be wrong, but here’s my honest opinion.
That man is crazy about you, and I don’t see him letting that go or screwing that up.
He’s been nothing but good since you two have been together, and he takes good care of you.
I know age is just a number, but Naijhel is ten years older than you, and he’s very mature.
You can tell him your feelings, and I think he’ll know how to handle them.
Compartmentalize what’s real and what’s not, because your feelings can easily be influenced by your past with Clayton.
I’m sorry, big sis, but that man did a number on you.
It has you questioning your own judgment and second-guessing anything any man tells you. Talk to your man.”
“You’re right, and I will talk to him this evening. Thanks, li’l sis. I love you.”
“Love you, too, sweet thang. I’ll talk to you later,” Aria stated.
After our call ended, I sat on the couch, staring blankly at the crossword puzzle. I wasn’t in the mood to solve any more mysteries. Seeing Clayton truly disturbed my spirit and played on the insecurities I was already having about my current relationship.
The doorbell rang, jerking me from my thoughts. I hopped off the couch and headed to the front door. Seeing the delivery person at my door, I assumed that the packet was from Naijhel. He was always having surprises delivered to me, and I appreciated him for it.
“Hello. How can I help you?”
“I need you to sign here for this packet,” he stated, turning a clipboard around to me.
I thought briefly that it was Naijhel, and maybe he was sending me some tickets to a cruise or something. But after I signed, I got a better look at the envelope.
I could have kicked myself for not paying enough attention. “Shit! What does he want now?” I asked, walking back inside and kicking the door closed.
My stomach knotted as I proceeded to open the envelope. Was he serving me with more papers? I had nothing left to give the man, and I had not done anything else. I should have known that apology on Sociogram was to cover up some more of his bullshit.
But when I opened the envelope, I found a cashier’s check in the amount of one hundred thousand dollars from Clayton.
What the hell was going on? I picked up the phone and dialed the number that I knew by heart.
I had changed my number during the divorce, and I hated for him to have it now, but I knew that he wouldn’t answer a number marked private.
He had always been that way throughout the duration of our marriage, so I decided not to block it when I called.
It took a few rings before he answered the phone.
“What is going on?” I demanded.
“You saw my live? I noticed that you were on there.”
“And the check, Clayton. What the hell are you up to? Haven’t you taken enough from me?” I realized that I was trembling and on the verge of tears. I hated that I had given that man so much power over me during our marriage that he still retained some today.
“Del, it might be hard to believe, but I’m not up to anything. I’ve been doing some soul searching lately, and I know that I did you wrong. I really want to start my life over with a clean slate, and that can only happen if I clear up the misdeeds of my past.”
“I don’t know what this is all about, but I don’t believe a word out of your mouth. You’re such a liar, Clayton. Always were and always will be.”
He cleared his throat. “I’m serious, Del. I know it will take some time for you to believe me, but I’m honestly turning over a new leaf.”
“You know, I really don’t care whether you do or don’t. You have no power to take up any more space in my life or mind, Clayton.”
“You have every right to be angry with me. But I’m sorry for cheating on you, lying on you, and taking everything from you.
The check is the proceeds from the sale of the house.
I know that this doesn’t make up for all I did, but I hope that it will go a long way to putting things back in order for you, Del. ”
“Well, it’s a start, but money won’t fix the damage my reputation suffered when you dragged me on social media.”
“I know that it won’t, but hopefully, my video might help.”
“Whatever.” I wanted to end the call. I had the answers that I needed, but I didn’t believe him.
“Listen, I have just one piece of advice for you.”
I scoffed. “You have advice for me? I wouldn’t take it if it saved my life.”
“It just might, so you should take it. I just wanted to tell you that you need to watch the company that you keep.”
“What is that supposed to mean?” I asked.
“Exactly what I said. Naijhel King isn’t who you think he is. That’s all I’ll say,” he replied.
“Well, thanks for nothing. Have a nice life, Clayton.” I ended the call and tucked the phone into the pocket of my joggers.