“Who’s the father?”
Mandy couldn’t bring her gaze to meet his.
Dante repeated the question again, his voice tense, “Who is the father?”
The doors were closing in on her. Her mouth went dry. She took a hard swallow in an attempt to work up moisture. “David Hendricks.” The name cut her throat as it cracked out.
“The same David from the reunion? The same jerk who made it a point to say how great we looked together?” He smacked the steering wheel. “Bastardo.”
Mandy slumped, leaning on the side of the door for support. Instead of the truth setting her free, it left her exhausted—spent like a wilted balloon vying to hold on to the last remnant of air before making a slow descent down to the ground.
“You could have told me.” The heat of his glare shot lasers into her soul. “You should have told me…”
His words lingered in the air, getting stuck in the thickness of tension separating them. Nothing she could say would give him resolve. She herself was still trying to process coming face to face with the beautiful eyes of the little brown girl all left alone. Where would she fit into this?
“I’m sorry.” She sniffed, holding back tears.
“I am too.”
They pulled into her driveway. Dante got out, opened her door, and then grabbed her bags.
“I’m sorry. I love you, but I can’t do this.” He dropped her bags on the porch.
“Dante.” She reached for him, and he snatched away. “Dante!” Her calls went unanswered. Dante continued back to his car and pulled off.
Chapter Seventeen
Mandy sat staring at the young girl, correction her daughter for the past hour. She’d been that way since social services had dropped her off two days prior. Monique explored the house while she watched. What was she to do with her? She wasn’t ready to be a mother then and had the faintest clue of what to do now. Her parents were of no help, as they’d refused all of her calls since the airing of the show. Yes, she could have prepared them, but she was too busy trying to deal with it herself. To add to it, she hadn’t heard from Dante in the last few weeks either.
Monique walked around the house, silently touching things until she came across a picture. “Are these my grandparents?”
Finally ungluing herself from the couch, Mandy went to her. “Yes, those are my mother and father.” She looked at the little girl sitting in front of the happy couple. “I was about your age on the picture.”
“I can’t wait to meet them.” Monique gave a toothy grin of adult teeth mixed with baby teeth.
Mandy gathered her in her arms, giving her a big hug. “I’m sure they’ll be happy to see you too. I’m sorry I wasn’t around for you.”
Monique’s eyes lowered. Then she brought them back up. “If you hadn’t given me up then I wouldn’t have gotten to meet my mom and dad.”
Mom and Dad. Although she knew the words weren’t meant to be hurtful, they singed her a bit. “You’re right, and I’m sorry they had to leave you.”
“Oh no. They had to leave because it was my time to be with you.”
Who was this kid? A tear formed in her eye. “Why do you say that?”
“Because my aunt told me that one day, I’ll get to spend time with you because you’ve missed me so much.” Monique squeezed her tight.
“Your mom was one smart lady. Let’s get going so I can get you registered for school.”
Mandy handed Monique a pink backpack, and they headed out. Almost two hours later, Monique was registered at the local school, after Mandy had done extensive research. When she’d bought the home, the nearest school’s ranking was the farthest item from her mind. If it wasn’t up to par, she had no problem sticking her in a private school, but thankfully the school was ranked at the top.
Her cell phone rang, interrupting her drive to the office. “Hello.”
“Wow, so you are alive?” a sharp voice responded.
“Tasha? Girl, I’m so sorry!” With everything going on, she’d neglected her friend and hadn’t talked to her since before the entire fiasco.
“What are you sorry about? Keeping a secret from me that wasn’t any of my business in the first place, or not calling me after it all blew up in your face?” The harshness in her voice subsided away.
“Both.”
“Mandy, you’re my friend. Your life before me is your life. My only concern is that you are okay. You are okay, aren’t you?”
She ran her hand down her face and focused on the road. “Define okay. I gained a child and lost a man.”
“Dante will come around, and if he doesn’t, so be it. Your daughter’s the one who needs your love and attention now. I’m sure she’s going through a lot.”
A soft giggle escaped her lips. “You’d be surprised to know that she’s the one keeping me together. She’s amazing and wise beyond her years. I just dropped her off at school, and she’s the one who told me it will be okay.”
“That’s because she has her mom’s spirit. You’re the one always picking people up when you’re down. Now it’s your turn. Think of all the people you’ve helped outside of me. Heck it’s your job.”
Tasha had a point. Mandy had worked on other couples’ home lives for years. Maybe it was her turn to get fixed, her therapist, a four-foot wide-eyed girl with a beautiful smile. “You may just be right. Hey, I have to go. I’m booked solid today since I took off the past few days. Dinner next week?”
“I’m going to hold you to it. Bye.”
She clicked off the hands free device and turned into her parking space. Monique did bring a ray of hope into her life, but she’d breathe a little bit easier if she could just get Dante to hold a conversation with her.
Chapter Eighteen
Mandy closed the door on the last applicant. No way she’d let them anywhere near Monique. The woman reeked of cigarette smoke, had piercings everywhere, and if the left arm sleeve tattoo wasn’t enough, she had more going up her neck. References or not, she’d have to pass.
It became clear that Mandy needed help after Monique’s fourth day at school. There was no way she could continue her practice if she had to leave everyday by three o’clock and pray traffic wasn’t bad in order to get her off the school bus. She looked into afterschool care programs, but the people in charge were underpaid and failed to properly monitor the children. A prime example was while talking to the woman in charge, a bigger kid tripped a kindergartener as they walked across the room.
When the woman rolled her eyes and said, “That little boy is always crying.” Mandy excused herself.
She’d posted an advertisement on numerous nanny websites and even one on Backpage. So far, the top two prospects were bilingual. Not only could they teach Spanish to Monique, maybe she could learn a thing or two.
Mandy sighed at the idea. A Spanish-speaking woman is what Dante’s mother wanted. Thinking about Dante would fail to accomplish anything to do with getting a nanny. She needed someone who loved kids and wanted to be a positive influence in their life. Frustration set in. She tried calling her parents again.
“Hello.”
Relief washed over her as her mother’s voice came through the line.
“Hey, Ma.”
“When were you going to tell us you were dating some white man?”
Confusion swept over her. “That’s why you haven’t been answering my calls?”
“Why else? We already knew about the baby. All that morning sickness you went through before you moved. You weren’t fooling anyone. I was just thankful you did the right thing and went to college.” Her mother’s matter-of-fact words stung her ears.
“You never brought it up.”
“For what? I agreed with your decision. Had you kept that little girl, then you wouldn’t be where you are now. I didn’t raise a welfare case. Now back to my question. Who is this white man?”
“Dante. I…I met him at my class reunion. He’s really nice.” Thinking of him hurt her heart. Her mother had enough
ammunition without knowing she’d hired Dante.
“He wasn’t so nice when they zoomed in on him walking off the set.”
Her mother was playing a professional game of chess, and Mandy couldn’t keep up. She didn’t have the energy. And she’d been honest with herself over the past week and didn’t blame Dante in the least. “It was a shock, Mom.”
“Shock or not, he left you high and dry. How come you couldn’t find you a nice black man? There are plenty of black professionals out there.”
In actuality, there weren’t. Professional black women out numbered the men two to one, and the ones who were dated outside their race, so why not her? It had been the subject of debate with she and her girlfriends on many occasions. Mandy resigned to let her mother have this argument. The phone being answered was enough for her.
*****
All eyes were on Dante as he sat at the dinner table with his family. He’d avoided them for two weeks and couldn’t prolong any further. His father showing up at his job, no doubt at the urging of his mother, the day before made sure of it.
“I guess we don’t have to wait for Mandy to get pregnant, no?” His mother wouldn’t be denied her answers. She didn’t miss a beat as she handed his sister, Isabella the pot of gazpacho. “I’d prefer a grandchild of my bloodline and knowing them from birth though. Cada uno sabe donde le aprieta el zapato. Each person knows where problems lie. Ah…she had her reasons. The question is what are you going to do, mi hijo?”
Her soft brown eyes bore into his. Dante looked away. It was too big of a sting and all too fresh in his mind to say for sure. Not revealing an ex was one thing…but a kid? He placed his head in his hands and covered his eyes. Thinking of it stole his appetite.
His father spoke, “Leave him alone, Rosa. Can’t you see he’s hurting enough?”
“Sí, pero. Think about the little girl. She lost everyone.”
Silence fell across the table. Dante felt lower than low, but he’d been blindsided and a bit jealous. In his mind, he’d be the one giving her a precious gift. Together, they’d raise a child as a family. It wasn’t something he’d voiced out loud, but his heart knew the truth.
“The child isn’t the issue, Madre. It was being lied to. Es una mentirosa. How can I trust her again?”
“El pasado es el pasado. The past is the past. It was before your time. Eat.”
Dante accepted the heaping of food. His mind waivered over the rest of the meal. His mother had her say and left it alone. The final decision would be his and his alone.
Chapter Nineteen
Mandy haphazardly flipped through her client files. No wonder so many single parents referred to themselves as superwoman. If she failed to find a nanny soon, her clients would tire of her shifting them around and drop her all together. Thankfully her book, with the help of the Ricki Lake Show, skyrocketed to number one.
The alert on her phone went off. It was 1:30 p.m. already. She closed the client file and rushed from the office. This afternoon was another day on the nanny search. Realizing her house wasn’t the best places for interviews after dealing with a few weirdoes off the none-nanny specific sites, she’d decided on the coffee shop near her office.
Moments later, she sipped her favorite cup of vanilla latte while scanning a bright-eyed perspectives resume. On paper, the woman looked heaven sent. She even held her own with Mandy’s barrage of prearranged questions.
“I’ll give your references a call and get back with you.”
“Thank you so much.” The woman’s high cheek bones rose when she smiled. “I look forward to hearing from you.”
She excused herself as Mandy fumbled around in her leather case in preparation for the next interviewee.
“I see you’re still overly prepared. What’s with you and the checklists?”
The deep voice spoke to her soul. It had been weeks that seemed more like months since she’d heard it. She looked up into Dante’s blue eyes. “What…what are you doing here?”
He took a seat. “Applying for a job. I hear you’re in need of a nanny. But, from my understanding, if it’s guy, the term should be manny.”
They’d come full circle. Dante sat in the very seat when she first met him. He looked as handsome as he did on that very day. Her heart raced at the memory. “I don’t have time for games right now.”
“Who’s playing?” Wrinkles formed along the ridge of his forehead. “I believe it takes more than one person to raise a child. Preferably, it would be the parents, and when not, someone kind and caring could step in.”
“Dante, what are you trying to do? You have our own business, and I seriously doubt you plan on giving it up for a meager wage.”
He grabbed her hand, sending electric chills up her arm and down her spine. “I let my own emotions get in the way. I was so focused on you not telling me while not realizing how much pain you’d been in by keeping the secret. I can’t imagine what it felt like, and I sure can’t imagine what your daughter has gone through.”
Was she dreaming? A lump formed in her throat. Dante continued speaking, alleviating her will to form coherent words.
“I loved you from the moment I saw you. This is just a hurdle. If you’ll still have me, I’m here.” He held out his arms to her.
She exhaled. The final breath out her wilted balloon released into the air, but it was immediately restocked with new life. He’d come to her because he’d wanted to, not out of her desperation. Dante’s outstretched arms a reminder of their union, she went to him. As she choked back tears a, “yes,” managed to escape her lips.
*****
Eleven months later Mandy told her daughter to quit fidgeting in her seat for the third time. “Calm down Monique we’ll be there soon enough.”
“I’m too excited. I can’t believe I finally get her today.”
“Okay but you’re making it hard for me to see out the back window.” Mandy laughed into the rearview mirror.
Monique sat on her hands and tried her best to be still. Moments later Mandy pulled in front of Paw Prints Surgery. The car barely rolled to a stop before her daughter bolted out of the door.
She opened her mouth to protest but it was useless. Grabbing her purse she locked the doors and headed inside.
“Hey there,” she spoke to Tina as she made her way to the back.
“Somebody’s excited.” Tina finished writing on a pad and followed.
“Excited is an understatement.”
Mandy walked through the double doors just as Dante handed Monique a small puppy. The smile she gave could ignite a thousand candles. The bull dog licked her face and let out a yippy bark.
“She’s so cute, daddy!”
“And she’s all yours.” Dante looked up. His eyes connected with Mandy. Fire burned behind them, a hidden message she knew all too well. He wanted to be between her legs. She knew because she desired the same. They’d both had a pretty long week.
“How’s the married life?” Tina interrupted their moment.
“It’s only been two weeks, but so far so good,” Mandy answered. “How about you Dr. Perez?”
“Who can ask for more?” He walked around the table and rubbed Mandy’s newly protruding belly.
The End
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