Sugar

by S. L. Jennings

Braelyn snatched her sunglasses off. “You’re one bold bitch.”

  “I’ve been called worse by those who matter.” Cadence snarled, resisting the urge to punch her into non-existence. “Do you?”

  Two men strolled by holding hands, walking a Yorkie who had pink bows. They were followed by a group of teenagers being obnoxious and smoking weed that was so strong Cadence almost got a contact high.

  “Showing up at your job was the best way to get Jackson’s attention since nothing else seemed to work,” Braelyn confessed.

  “Nothing else? Like what?”

  “It doesn’t matter,” she remarked with a dismissive side eye. “We met the summer I worked at The Shedd Aquarium. I interned in the dolphin habitat for my final class and assessment before receiving my degree in marine biology,” Braelyn said pulling a cigarette from her purse and lighting it. “Jackson worked security, and we became friends.”

  “I don’t remember you from back then,” Cadence remarked, flipping through her memory banks.

  “You were pissed with Jackson because he didn’t meet you after work and hung out with his coworkers instead,” Braelyn confessed with a smug expression. “You caused a big scene and security asked you to leave.”

  Cadence remembered that day. Clearly, she didn’t remember Braelyn. She almost caught a case because Jackson asked for a break after she was adamant about not having children. Jackson held his ground, and they were separated for some time. Cadence wanted to talk more about it, and things got out of hand, hence security being called.

  “That’s the first night we slept together,” Braelyn revealed, and there was a flush to her ivory skin that showed she still harbored feelings for him. “We were a regular thing for months until Jackson told me he proposed to you.” She took a pull from her cigarette.

  Only oral, huh?

  Cadence took a deep breath and held it in anticipation of Braelyn’s ignorance. As expected, she blew the smoke in Cadence’s direction.

  “I thought we were building something,” Braelyn added, crossing one leg over the other. “I was in love with him.”

  Why is the side chick always the one catching feelings?

  “Then I found out I was pregnant,” she said, Braelyn’s expression could’ve won her an award for the best drama queen. “Jackson turned into the biggest jerk I’d ever known. He didn’t even ask if I wanted to keep our baby, he just gave me the money for an abortion and told me to get rid of it.”

  “That doesn’t sound like him,” Cadence admitted fanning the smoke out of her face and putting a little distance between them.

  “I was alone and scared. I couldn’t finish the last assessment because it was too dangerous since I was expecting. I didn’t graduate,” Braelyn said pursing her lips. “These waitressing jobs are barely making ends meet. Student loans are eating up my entire paycheck, and dammit I need some help.” Braelyn paused and cut her eyes at Cadence. “Why are you staring at me like that?”

  Cadence stood. “Let me tell you something–––”

  Braelyn bounced to her feet. “I don’t want your money. I need Jackson’s,” she alerted Cadence, taking one last pull from her cigarette. “But if his finances are tied up with yours, then I guess I’ll take yours, too.” Braelyn simpered, sliding on her shades.

  “You don’t want to mess with me,” Cadence cautioned. “My attorney will wipe the floor with your classless ass.”

  “I think I’ve proved I’m not one to be fucked with.” Braelyn dropped the cigarette and squished it with her sandal. “Don’t call me again unless you’re handing me a check.”

  Chapter 7

  “Jackson’s on line one,” Jennifer tapped on the door, then stuck her head into Cadence’s office.

  Cadence had blocked his calls on her cell phone, so now he was calling the office. The begging to come home and the incessant pleas to believe him saga had become too much. Her plate was overflowing with demands and expectations at work while trying to figure out Braelyn’s real angle. Cadence wasn’t in the mindset that a man couldn’t cheat, but something about his denial––– and the reason for it gave her pause. They were at a breaking point, but even then, his claims of the timing of conception were off by three whole months.

  She only had a few days left to make a final decision on taking the Germany position, and she still didn’t know which way to go.

  “I also have that information you’d asked for,” Jennifer informed Cadence.

  Cadence pressed the hands-free button. “Hit me back in five minutes.” She disconnected the call, then removed the headset. “Talk to me.”

  “Simon and Irene Nevels worked for Adali back in the sixties,” Jennifer said, handing Cadence a folder. “They had two sons, Charles and Jacob. Irene had an affair with one of the mechanics and gave birth to a set of fraternal twins, a daughter and a son. Simon refused to accept Irene’s daughter because she favored her father and people would know of Irene’s infidelity. He demanded Irene to give up the baby girl, but she’d left him instead and took her daughter with her. Guess that daughter’s name.”

  Candace sunk into the office chair. “Braelyn Nevels.”

  “And her estranged twin is, Steven Bekker,” Jennifer said, with a raised brow.

  “What …”

  “Steven took his mother’s maiden name after Simon died. He no longer wanted to be associated with the man who kept him from his mother and sister. The Nevels name carries a lot of weight with Adali–––”

  “Apparently it still does,” Cadence remarked, sifting through the papers in the folder as she recalled the night of the Global Reveal.

  Jennifer continued, “He wanted to climb the ladder on his own merits, so Steven Nevels became–––”

  “Steven Bekker,” Cadence whispered. “Damn.” She cradled the papers to her chest. “Who’s your source?”

  “The one and only, Irene Nevels.” She nodded with a smirk on her face. “Irene still loathes her ex-husband. She’s wanted to tell her story for years, but Simon had threatened to cut Steven off, but now that he’s deceased, it no longer matters.”

  A red light flickered on the office phone.

  “I’ll get it. More likely than not, it’s Jackson.” Cadence slipped the headset on and moved the hair away from her ears. “Thanks, Jennifer.”

  Cadence pressed the hands-free button. “Cadence Goldsmith.” After a brief pause and listening to the sound of his breath, she said, “Jackson. You promised you’d give me more time.”

  “This is my first weekend with Jackie,” he confessed, sounding a lot less like the confident man she knew. “I’m not sure how to treat this child or if I even want to spend time with her with, but I know I can’t handle this alone.”

  She dropped the paperwork in her hand, took Jackson off hands-free, and placed the headset over her curly hair.

  “Why are you telling me this?” she whispered.

  “I don’t know what to do with a six-year-old girl. I don’t know what she likes or eats. I don’t know anything.”

  The panic in his voice softened her stance. “Your mom’s there. I’m sure she’ll be able to help,” Cadence suggested.

  “I’m in a hotel. My parents don’t know we’re having troubles and they definitely don’t know anything about Jackie,” he admitted. “I don’t know how to tell them about all of this when I’m still unsure how this woman managed to get impregnated and I’d never had intercourse with her. Baby, you know if I’d done anything remotely like this is suggesting, we wouldn’t be married right now.”

  “You’re going to have to tell your folks eventually. She’s their granddaughter.”

  The line went quiet.

  “Are you there?” Cadence asked, glancing at the display to make sure the call hadn’t dropped.

  “I’m here,” he muttered. “I was wondering if we could stay at the house this weekend.”

  “Jackson …”

  Pain shot across her forehead faster than Flo-Jo crossing the finish line. Tension hea
daches had become that annoying friend that randomly appeared and didn’t know when to leave.

  “Please,” he begged. “Jackie can stay in the spare bedroom, and I’ll sleep on the couch.”

  “One moment.” Cadence placed a hand over the mic. “Yes, Jennifer.”

  “There’s a Dr. McNabb on line two.”

  “Thanks.” Cadence removed her hand from the mouthpiece.

  She’d been anticipating that call for the past forty-eight hours. Dr. McNabb had some explaining to do. Cadence wanted to share her info and have her doctor at least be objective in walking through the scenarios.

  “Jackson, I have to go–––”

  “I promise we won’t be a hassle,” he said. “I’ll be out of there early Sunday.”

  “Sure. Whatever,” Cadence snapped. “I gotta go.”

  She pressed her palm against her forehead, took a deep breath, then pushed the button for line two.

  “Good afternoon, Dr. McNabb. I have a question for you?” Cadence said in her most professional voice. “Do you have a patient by the name of Braelyn Nevels?”

  “I’m not able to disclose that information,” she replied. “HIPPA laws prevent me from doing so…it’s unethical.”

  “I know it is, that’s why I’m asking,” Cadence countered. “My records have been shared with this person.”

  “Not by me,” Dr. McNabb insisted.

  “So, she is a patient there.”

  “That’s not what I said, and I don’t appreciate you putting words in my mouth.”

  “She knows that I’m your patient, and a little more about me than she should. I’ve never had any interaction with this woman until–––”

  The image of Braelyn rubbing her belly flashed in her head, followed by a pregnant woman storming out of Dr. McNabb’s office with a messy bun and giving her the evil eye.

  “I saw her leaving your office six years ago,” Cadence whispered in disbelief. “I was in the waiting room.”

  “I cannot confirm or deny that because it’s against the law to discuss another patient’s information,” Dr. McNabb defended. “You need to find another therapist. I can’t have a patient who thinks I’m a liar or breached their trust.”

  Before Cadence could correct her error, the call ended.

  How deep was this woman intertwined in their life?

  Chapter 8

  Cadence would give anything to wash the stench of Braelyn Nevels down the drain along with the soap scum as she rinsed her skin under a steamy flow of water. The realization that Braelyn––– and possibly Jackson––– had played her smoother than jazz on a breezy summer night was enough to make Cadence do something that would land her on The First 48.

  The doorbell rang, pulling Cadence away from her murderous thoughts. She stepped out of the shower, grabbing a terry cloth robe that hung nearby. Wet ringlets of curls dripped water onto the floor creating a sloshy path.

  Jackson and Jackie were on the other side of the door. They hadn’t agreed on a time, but she didn’t expect him this early. Cadence tugged the robe closed, tied the belt, then let them in.

  Her husband’s eyes danced as he gazed at her and managed to smile. “Hey, you.”

  “Hello.” Cadence tightened the robe around her and didn’t return his lustful glare. “Why are you here so early? You know I’m not usually home at this time.”

  “Jennifer said you were gone for the day. I tried your cell but couldn’t get through.”

  Zeroing in on Jackie, Cadence said, “Hi, Jacqueline who everybody calls Jackie.”

  “Hiiiiii,” she purred. “How come daddy rings the doorbell? Then she looked up at Jackson. “Did you lose your keys?”

  “This is going to be an interesting weekend,” Cadence mumbled after Jackie hopped over the threshold.

  “Thanks for doing this.” He paused in front of her, then closed his lids and inhaled. “That jasmine fragrance sure smells good on you.”

  Cadence held the upper part of her robe together, then turned her back to him. “I’m going to get dressed.”

  She slipped on a pair of running shorts, a loose-fitting crop top that draped off one shoulder, and flip-flops. Cadence wasn’t going to allow Jackson to draw her into his web of charm. He always knew the right things to say and how to say them, except for this whole Braelyn situation. For that, he was saying everything that kept her confused. This weekend was about creating some semblance of normalcy for Jackie.

  After chicken nuggets, French fries, teaching her how to play UNO, and watching Princess and the Frog for the second time, Jackie had finally petered out. She laid on the floor with her feet propped on her daddy’s thigh, and her head resting on Cadence’s lap with a draw two UNO card wedged between her fingers.

  All evening, Cadence observed the way Jackson tended to Jackie. Their exchanges were natural and beautiful. If he showed this much love and affection for a daughter he just met and wasn’t sure was his, regardless of what the DNA test proved, she could imagine how attentive and caring he would be to one he raised from birth. Seeing him this way had Cadence second-guessing her stance toward having a baby.

  “I’ll be back,” Cadence said, placing a throw pillow under Jackie’s head. She grabbed a fleece blanket from the linen closet and draped it over her little body.

  “May I?” Jackson asked lifting a beer from the refrigerator.

  “Sure,” she said approaching the patio doors. “Come sit out back with me.”

  The crickets chirped as the warm wind blew through the garden. Jackson lit the fire pit, and they settled on the patio sectional in the midst of the serene ambiance. Cadence hated to disturb nature’s groove.

  “Braelyn said y’all slept together the night we broke up.”

  “That’s not true,” Jackson defended. “I have no reason to lie to you. We weren’t together during that time. What would I gain in doing so?”

  Cadence pondered that last question, especially knowing what Braelyn was capable of. She’d say just about anything to make Cadence feel inadequate.

  “Did you know that Braelyn has been around all throughout our marriage?”

  His eyebrows drew in, and she shifted so she could engage him face to face.

  “I couldn’t understand at the time why a woman who didn’t know me could gawk at me with such hatred.” She shook her head. “It all makes sense now. I didn’t figure it out until today, but this was all part of her plan,” she explained, finally piecing together at least part of things.

  “Braelyn and I crossed paths when I went to therapy right before we got married. She was pregnant.”

  Jackson slid his palm under Cadence’s hand.

  “Other than Braelyn being the mother of my child, I have zero interest in her. This whole ordeal is a mystery, and I’m scared,” Jackson revealed. “I’m afraid of losing you for something I look guilty of but didn’t do. I can’t explain it, nor do I understand how this is biologically possible. Unless I have a twin brother, I know nothing about.” He chuckled, but not in an amusing way.

  “Our relationship is the purest and most genuine I’ve ever had. I hope one day you can give our marriage another chance. I love you more than the air I breathe.”

  The funny thing about it was that she believed every word.

  Chapter 9

  The following morning, Jackie stood over Cadence shaking the bed. “Cadence. Wake up. I’m hungry.”

  “What?” Cadence moaned after the mini earthquake halted.

  “I’m hungry.”

  “Where’s Jack––– your daddy? Where’s your daddy?”

  “He’s sleep.”

  So am I.

  Cadence rolled out of bed, splashed some water on her face before ushering Jackie into the kitchen. She grabbed a box of Raisin Nut Bran cereal from the top shelf in the pantry.

  “Ugh, I don’t eat that,” Jackie exclaimed with a frown. “That’s nasty. Do you have Fruit Loops or Lucky Charms?”

  “No.”

  Cadence traip
sed into the living room. Jackson was out cold on the couch wearing a pair of plaid boxer shorts and a black wife beater. She wanted to melt all over that chocolate.

  “Go brush your teeth and change your clothes,” Cadence instructed. “We’re going out for breakfast.”

  Lumes, one of Cadence’s favorite spots near the Beverly area on the south side had the best breakfast around.

  “My mommy used to be one of them.” Jackie pointed at a woman wearing a white shirt, black skirt, nude stockings, white sneakers, and an apron. “We ate there all the time.”

  “Where?”

  Jackie grimaced, then said, “The Pancake House, but we haven’t been there in a long time.”

  “Why not?” Cadence asked around a mouthful of food.

  “Cause she don’t work there no more,” Jackie answered breaking off a piece of bacon and stuffing it into her mouth. “But mommy said not to worry. So, I don’t worry.”

  A cold shiver pricked every nerve in Cadence’s body. “Where does your mommy work now?”

  “Nowhere,” Jackie replied stuffing in some pancakes. “We live with mommy’s boyfriend. His name’s Lester.” Her facial expression darkened. “He yells at mommy a lot.”

  What if the real reason Braelyn sought out Jackson was that she needed someplace to keep her daughter safe.

  “Does he yell at you?”

  “Sometimes. But mommy puts me in the bathroom and tells me to lock the door. I can’t come out until it gets quiet.”

  Cadence tried desperately not to react. She put her focus on the French toast and sausage. Evidently, Jackie needed her father in her life more than she knew. How could a little girl living under duress have such a spunky spirit?

  After breakfast, they got manicures and pedicures, followed by shopping at the mall. Jackie loved trying on new clothes and was excited about her new wardrobe. Then, they visited the pet shop and bought four goldfish. Jackie said it was for each member of her family, including Cadence and Jackson. The little girl was already accepting Cadence. Despite how this little girl came into her life, she’d grown fond of the funniest six-year-old she’d ever encountered.