Chapter 23-Kenya
“Wow! Look who stopped by to check up on me,” Tobias stated dramatically, clutching his chest in shock.
“Don’t even, Tobi. I still come over here every Sunday, like I always have.” I may not have stopped by during the week anymore, but I still saw him at our scheduled time.
Sundays were different for me now. I hadn’t been sitting around the table for brunch, but I still stopped by to see Fancy and my father.
I would park at the back of the house and sneak in through the kitchen to avoid seeing my mother. She never stepped foot in the kitchen, so I felt safe.
With limited freedom, I would sit and chat with Fancy, eat, and then she would give me the food for Tobias. Then I would be on my way.
“Tell me anything. But where is the food that my mama sent you with? A nigga in here starving,” he said, referring to the food he knew I had for him.
“If you learned to cook, you wouldn’t be hungry.”
“Wait a minute. Kenny, you just said that like you know how to cook. Didn’t you almost burn your house down last year trying to boil some pasta noodles or something?”
“Let my past be my past,” I responded, causing us both to laugh. “That was a one-time accident. We both know that I can cook because Fancy made sure of it.”
“Whatever, just give me my food.”
I handed him the plates with crepes, spinach quiche, hash browns, bacon, and eggs with sautéed mushrooms.
“I am about to smash the hell out of this food.”
“What do you have planned today?” I asked as I watched him put his food into the microwave.
Tobias liked his food scorching hot. Where the average person would warm their food for thirty to forty-five seconds, he would warm it for two minutes and would eat it as soon as it came out. It was a wonder how he hadn’t burned off all of his taste buds.
“Damn, Devon got you ready to run out on me already? He stole my best friend from me,” he said as he acted like he was stifling back tears.
“Tobi, stop,” I said and snickered. “I am just asking you what you have planned for today.”
“Nothing really. Sundays are my days to unwind and chill with you. I see that I am going to have to find a hobby or somebody else to chill with. But, umm, speaking of something to do, is Kendra’s husband still cheating on her?” he asked, laughing like what he said was actually funny.
“There isn’t anything funny about what Ivan put her through,” I said, defending her in her absence. I wasn’t sure why she was even the topic of discussion.
“Stop. You know, just like I know, Kendra married that nigga for a check. Nothing more and nothing less.”
“She loves her husband.”
“No, she loves his bank account.”
“Why are you so pressed about Kendra?” I asked as I felt myself becoming irritated.
I may not have agreed with everything that Kendra did, and even as close as Tobias and I were, I wasn’t going to let him talk about her in front of me.
“Did you just say pressed ? Damn, what is Devon doing to you over there? Got you using slang.”
“That is beside the point.”
“I’m just asking. Word on the street is that Ivan is, and I personally think it’s funny that she has a stick up her ass when her spot ain’t even secure.
I saw them the other day while I was out doing some shopping.
She walked past me like she didn’t know who the hell I was.
It was sad that he spoke, and she didn’t, but maybe he spoke to me because he knows that I know what the business is. ”
“Tobias, what are you talking about?”
“One of my homegirls is getting ready to drop his son.”
“Wait, doesn’t drop mean fight? Oh, my God. Is somebody trying to hurt Ivan Junior?”
He shook his head and laughed. “Kenny, Devon may be teaching you a few things, but you still have a long way to go. I’m not talking about drop as in fighting. I am talking about drop like she is about to push out a bright ass baby for that nigga.”
I looked at him in disbelief as he sat eating his food. He sat there, chewing, seemingly unbothered, like he just hadn’t given me life-altering, heart-shattering news. While this didn’t personally affect me, my heart ached for what it meant for Kendra and the kids.
“What?”
“My homegirl, Rasheeda, is pregnant with Ivan’s son. Little dude should be making his arrival soon. Kendra is about to be somebody’s stepmama.”
“And you are just now saying something!” I yelled in anger. “Kendra is going to be devastated when she finds this out. I have to tell her. Oh, the embarrassment that she is going to face.” I began pacing frantically as my thoughts defied speeds beyond 100 miles per hour.
“This is their second child together. She will be fine.”
“Wait, what are you saying?”
“Rasheeda is pregnant with her and Ivan’s second child. She and Ivan already have a daughter together, Aiysha. I think she’s around Ivan Junior’s age.”
“Tobias, how could you just now be saying something? I know that you and Kendra don’t have the best relationship, but you should have at least said something to me. Now, I have this information in my lap, and I have to figure out a way to tell my sister that her husband has another family.”
“I’m sure she knows. Rasheeda knows her place, but Ivan takes care of her just like he takes care of Kendra. And it’s not like Ivan tries to hide their family. Kendra is living her life in a glass house.”
“I can’t do this, and I’m not doing this,” I said as I grabbed my belongings and ran to my car.
I couldn’t believe that Tobias knew all of this information and made the decision not to tell me.
Kendra may have been a lot of things, but I didn’t think that she was the type of woman to have knowledge of her husband having another family and be okay with it.
I could say that , but I also had to acknowledge that Kendra was a financially maintained, stay-at-home mother.
She didn’t finish college, never had a job, and didn’t have a true skill set.
She didn’t even have a hobby outside of shopping and working out. The attorney in me knew that she could take Ivan Sr. to the cleaners for breaking their vows.
Kendra had to know that, and she also had to know that I would fight for her in the courtroom.
Then I thought of the kids. I couldn’t imagine how Kennedy, Kirsten, and Ivan Jr. would feel. Life as they knew it would be altered if and when their father’s indiscretions came to light.
She couldn’t know. She wouldn’t stay if she knew. I was trying to reason with myself.
I wanted to call her, but I couldn’t.
No, first I needed to work through my feelings regarding Tobias before I could have a productive conversation with anyone, especially Kendra.
Hurt, angry, and confused, I couldn’t fathom the fact that he knew and didn’t say anything. I thought that our relationship was better than that, but I was wrong.
By the time that I made it to my house, I had six missed calls from Tobias, and I didn’t plan on returning any of them.
Once I got in, I found myself just pacing, turning my living room floor into a mini track. When I finally snapped out of my pacing trance, I could see that my footprints had made a circular pattern in my carpet.
I looked at the metal clock that hung on my wall and saw that it was nearing eight o’clock.
On an average day, I would have been in bed. However, because of my conversation with Tobias, my day was far from average . I followed my instincts and called Kendra.
A phone call wasn’t the ideal way to find out that your husband was having an affair and had an outside, growing family, but how else could I tell her?
“Kenya, are you okay? What are you doing up this late?” She panicked as soon as the call connected.
“Yes, I am fine. Kendra, I don’t know how to say this, but—”
“Oh, my God, is something wrong with Mother or Father? I’m on my way.”
“No. No. It’s not that,” I said, trying to diffuse and redirect the conversation.
“Thank God. Well, what is going on?”
“Do you mind coming to my house? I don’t think that this conversation should be held over the phone.”
“It’s kind of late, but I don’t mind. The nanny is tucking the kids in, so I will be on my way in a few.”
“Sounds great,” I replied and ended the call.
I decided to take a shower to make up for the time it would take Kendra to arrive at my house. Also, the living room floor didn’t deserve any more wear and tear from my anxiety-driven pacing.
When I finished putting on my silk pajamas, I walked to the front of the house, and just as I was about to call Kendra to see if she changed her mind about coming, the doorbell rang.
Normally it only took her thirty to thirty-five minutes to get to my house from her house, but it took her close to forty-five minutes, according to my clock.
I didn’t grumble because it gave me additional time to mentally prepare myself to be the bearer of bad news.
“Good evening,” I said when I opened the door for her to come in.
“Hello,” she responded as she hugged me, then walked through my front door. “I love those pajamas. They look so stylish and comfy. You look good, Kenya.”
I studied her body language as she walked around my living room. From her demeanor, I could only assume that she didn’t have a clue as to what I had to tell her.
She looked too stress-free to know that Ivan was having an affair. Well, to me, it was more than just an affair. Ivan had a family and another life, and considering how Tobias delivered the information, there were feelings involved between Ivan and Rasheeda.
When a man puts the resources, time, and energy into building a family with someone and making sure that the other person was happy, there was a deep connection there.
All the factors were in place for Kendra to be my next client.
“Thank you,” I replied.
I walked over to the couch that she sat down on, sat next to her, and turned off the television. The only reason for it being on was to keep my mind occupied, but it was a failed attempt.
“So, what was it that you needed to speak with me about?”