by Nikisha Mock
“Hold up, Lana? Y’all BFFs now? Damn, the police got them already? Well that was fast considering they asses don’t know shit usually.”
“I’ll tell you about Lana in a minute. The police got them right after I tried to beat the breaks off Tracey’s big ass. Once I realized who she was, I kind of blacked out. I couldn’t believe she was actually there at the hospital grieving with the rest of us when she was the one that put Cam there. It was a real big scene. Rommell was ready to shoot her ass; the boys had to rush him out of there.”
“I bet he was. Damn Yanna. It’s been a helluva few days for you. I’ll let Al know you straight. Don’t worry about that. When you think they gonna let Cam out?”
“He said the doctors might be releasing him today so I’m on my way home to change clothes.
By the way, have you been to the doctor yet?” I asked, remembering her potential STD scare.
“Yeah. Luckily for Indy, I ain’t got that shit. It was gonna be trouble for her if I did. But aye, we’re not even gonna stress over all that right now, alright? You go home and get yourself together. I just gave them some of my blood so time will tell. I’m still a little nervous. We’ll get up later,” Star said then she hung up before I could say anything else.
I had really grown to like Star. I didn’t want to see anything bad happen to her. I said a quick prayer thanking the Lord that her test had come back negative. As mad as Star was, I was actually scared of what she might have done if the test had been positive. Sometimes, the darkness that could be seen behind Star’s eyes scared me. Indigo had really crossed the wrong one this time and I don’t think she knew it.
When I got to my house, I stopped my car at the end of my driveway. The crime scene tape was still there and so was Cam’s car. I wasn’t prepared for that. I was so consumed with all of my other thoughts that it didn’t even dawn on me that this would still be here. It had rained the day before so I was sure there was no blood there but in my mind, it all came rushing back. Me pulling up to my house to see Cam’s car already there, him getting out and asking what was taking me so long to get out of the car, and then the pop. That incredibly loud popping sound. I remember trying to scream but the sounds wouldn’t leave my mouth at first.
I remember the blood. All that blood. It looked like Cam was bleeding to death. Then came the people. Neighbors. Standing around staring like vultures. I tried to dial 911 but my hand wouldn’t stop shaking.
Then I found my voice. I was screaming for somebody to help us. I felt arms around me and asking me to move out of the way. Somewhere between screaming for help and crying for Cam not to leave me, I missed the sirens altogether. I didn’t notice that the paramedics were trying to get me to move out of their way so they could help my baby.
Everything was a complete and total blur. I was told later that I went into shock. Thinking back, if they knew I was in a state of shock then why did they let me drive my car? Knowing me, I probably told them that I was fine. I shook my head at the thought. One thing that I never forgot was the feeling that I had lost Cam. I didn’t realize how much I loved him until I was faced with the possibility of losing him.
Things could have gone in a totally different direction. Thank God, Cam was only shot in the shoulder and the bullet missed all major arteries. I’m glad that we knew who did it instead of constantly wondering and worrying. I would have been a nervous wreck if the shooter was unknown. Briefly, I wondered what would happen to Tracey and Fallon in jail but I quickly dismissed those thoughts. Karma would be the biggest bitch for both of them I was sure of it.
I stopped sitting in the car looking crazy and decided to get on out and face it. I snatched the crime scene tape up and wondered why the police would leave it there. I went inside and turned the shower on as hot as I could get it. In record time, I was showered, dressed, and ready to head back to the hospital. Both my girls, Eva and Ciara, had sent texts to check on me and I told them the good news of Cam getting out today. As I headed back to the hospital, I was wondering what Fallon must be thinking as she sat in a jail cell. That’s where her crazy ass needs to be.
Chapter 6
Eva
“Hi, I was wondering what time is my appointment with Dr. Jones tomorrow.”
With everything that had happened, I almost forgot about my appointment but those dreams of mine quickly reminded me. I was glad that Tyler was so supportive. Even though I still had mixed feelings about Dr. Jones he was helping me cope with everything so I knew going to see him would definitely be beneficial to me.
Work was work and I was sick of it. I truly hate call centers. It’s the same old thing, day in and day out. We’re attached to electronic cords and forced to read monotonous scripts but we’re told to try not to sound like robots. We talk all day to people who want to complain about one thing or another and I couldn’t give two shits about whatever it is that they are mad about.
My coworkers make my days at Howell’s Customer Service Center go by faster because they are indeed a bunch of fools. We manage to cut up all day and still get our work done. It pisses management off but oh well. If they don’t like it then they can sit down and take some of these damn calls. This job was a means to an end, which was my never-ending pile of damn bills. Having Tyler there with us really helped but the struggle was still real. I’m an eternal worrier though. In actuality, we were straight but I knew that having that second income could stop in a flash so I never counted his money into the equation. At the end of the day, it would always be me, Miles, and Kyla. You will never catch me slipping and counting on being with a man to keep me above water. I had to always be in a position to handle my own. That’s how my mama raised me.
My workday came and went and I was glad when it was over. I picked up Miles and Kyla from the afterschool program. They were excited and loud as usual.
“Mommy! Guess what? I got an A on my spelling test!” Kyla beamed.
“That’s wonderful, honey! I’m so proud of my smart and beautiful baby girl,” I smiled at her.
“Yippee,” Miles said while never looking up from whatever was so important on his cell phone.
“Mommy, can you smell the hate?” Kyla said as she rolled her eyes at her brother.
I had to laugh. My kids were real jokesters. They kept me entertained, that’s for sure.
“Miles, was that nice? You stay giving your sister a hard time.”
“My bad, ma. Sorry you little baby,” Miles said and playfully nudged Kyla.
“Stop Miles! You get on my nerves,” Kyla whined.
It was times like these that made me smile and wish I had a brother or sister to play fight with. Even though my kids fought for real sometimes, I knew they loved each other. When they grew older, their bond will be as tight as ever. Not nearly as tight as Fallon and Cam though. Now that was weird. I was happy to get Yanna’s call that Cam was going home. I know he was more than ready to get out of the hospital. My plan was to get the kids at home and settled, cook them dinner, and make sure their homework was done. Then I was going to go check on Yanna for a little bit. I had to make sure my girl was okay.
When the kids and I got home, Tyler was already there. That was surprising. Since he had started working as a personal trainer at this new gym in town, he was rarely home before six. Walking into the house, we could smell that something really good was cooking on the stove. Kyla ran up to greet Tyler in the kitchen and hugged his legs. He swooped her up into his big arms and kissed her cheek, which always made her giggle.
“Wassup, man?” he nodded at Miles and held his hand out for a pound. Miles returned the favor and said hey to him. I loved the interactions between my kids and Tyler. We all fit together so perfectly.
“Hey you,” Tyler said as he put Kyla down gently and reached for my hand. I walked over to him smiling and enjoyed his embrace.
“It sure smells good in here. What’s in the pot?” I said as I tried to look around him but he blocked my view.
“Nope. You’re not getting a
sneak sample. You go get cleaned up and I’ll be done in a little bit,” he said as he playfully pushed me out of the kitchen.
“Ain’t this a big turn of events? I’m gonna write this date down. You must be up to something or you want something,” I said playfully.
“Oh, I want something alright,” he said as he winked at me.
“Umm, eww,” we heard Miles say and we both laughed, forgetting that the kids were in the living room doing homework.
Dinner turned out to be one of the most delicious that I’d had in a while. Tyler made us seafood gumbo. Since he knew shrimp was my favorite, he was heavy on the shrimp. We had French bread and a nice side salad with it. The kids loved it and so did I. It felt good to have my man cook for us for a change. After everyone was fed and satisfied, I sent the kids upstairs to take their baths and then all of us watched a movie together. We fit together like the perfect little family. I prayed that it lasted.
Kyla fell asleep in the middle of the movie as usual so Tyler picked her up and took her upstairs to bed. Miles was talking on the phone to another girl, I was sure. I smiled at him and made jokes, annoying him but I didn’t care. I know he secretly enjoyed how playful I could be. I told him not to stay up too late and left him to do whatever little boys do when they’re on the phone trying to impress some girl.
Tyler was sitting in the living room, phone in hand, and didn’t notice that I had come back down. Either I was imagining it or he looked a little startled when he noticed me sitting down beside him. He put his phone up real quick and reached over to pull me close to him.
“Dinner was really, really good baby. Thank you for doing that,” I said as I kissed him softly.
“Aww, that wasn’t nothing but a little something I threw together,” he shrugged trying to sound modest.
“Boy, stop. Don’t get the big head. I said it was good so take the compliment,” I laughed.
“But I thought you liked when my head got big?” he said in a sexy tone.
“See? That’s your problem now, always trying to start something,” I laughed.
“Yeah, but you never try to stop me, do you?”
“Of course not,” I said as I stared at him.
He was so damn sexy to me. He had on a wife beater and some gym shorts. His legs were becoming more defined and the curls in his close cut were looking like they needed my fingers running through them. He smiled at me and those dimples made me melt. He’s the type of guy that women get weak for when he smiles at them. That’s also one reason I was feeling a certain way about him working at the gym. I’m not one of those insecure chicks that suspects everyone wants my man, But ladies in the gym? Hell, men in the gym for that matter. Men stare at the ladies in the gym and the ladies play damsel in distress for the men in the gym. Sure, many people go there to only workout but there are others in there on the prowl. After dealing with that mishap at the club with Tyler, he didn’t have too many passes left.
“I was thinking that maybe we should start setting a date for the wedding. I don’t wanna pressure you with all the details because I know how dudes hate that stuff but we do need to agree on a date. Whatcha think about August 8th?” I had been meaning to ask him about it and now was as good a time as any.
“I was wondering when you were gonna start that,” he laughed. “Whatever date you want is fine with me, E. I love you. You’re gonna be my wife. So if you say we’re getting married on eight-eight then so be it,” he smiled and kissed me.
“Hey, I like that. Eight-eight. I didn’t even think about it like that when I was checking out Saturdays on the calendar. I figured if we do it in early August it’ll be before the kids go back to school and they can stay with mama while we go on our honeymoon. Which brings me to my next question, where would you wanna go for a honeymoon?”
“I was thinking about that and even though a lot of people do it, I think I wanna go to Cancun. I heard about this real nice resort over there that we could check out.”
My eyes lit up. I had always wanted to go to Cancun but never got around to it. “That’s perfect! I’m sold. Let me start looking now. I’m so excited, baby!” I squealed as I jumped on him and bear hugged him, planting kisses all over his face and neck.
“Damn, if I had known you would act like this at the mention of Cancun, I would have taken you a long time ago,” he laughed at my excitement.
“I’m so excited and happy. I am more than ready to be your wife.”
“I’m ready to make you my wife. Come here.”
We kissed as he ran his fingers through my hair. I was letting it grow out so now I had a nice short bob cut and I kept a fresh blowout because I was giving the relaxers a rest for the moment. I kissed his face and rubbed his head. We sat there for a minute, enjoying touching each other then his phone rang. He tensed up a little, or maybe that was me tripping and imagining things, but he never reached over to get it. I looked at him and he stared straight ahead at the TV then looked at me.
“What?”
“You’re not gonna answer your phone?”
“How? I got a handful of hot and thick caramel right here. You expect me to move with all this in my hands? Shiiiit, I’m good right here.”
I playfully punched him in the arm and moved to allow him space to reach over and get his phone. He looked at it and turned it off.
“That was Jay. I can call that nigga back anytime.”
I wish I could say that answer satisfied me but it didn’t. Why do I always do that? I want to believe in Ty and trust him. For the most part, I do, but damn if certain things didn’t raise an antenna. I pushed the thoughts away and went back to daydreaming about honeymooning with him in Mexico. I knew we would have a ball.
I excused myself and told him I was going up to take a shower and that he was free to join me. He winked at me and told me he would. When I got upstairs, I heard Tyler say Jay’s name so I figured he finally called him back but then he said something that caught my attention. It’s not so much the words he was saying, but it was his tone. It was soft and hushed. When he laughed, it was flirty, not that big and hearty laugh he always had when he was talking to one of his boys. I didn’t know what it was but something, however small it may be, was off. I pushed it to the back of my mind momentarily because one thing is for sure and two things are for certain, the truth always comes out. It’s only a matter of time.
Chapter 7
Ciara
I was getting ready for date night with my boo thang and I was too excited. I put on my favorite pair of ripped jeans and a cute tank that stopped above my naval. He told me this date was a chill date so no need to get fancy but of course I had to dress it up a little. Ever since I had been working out with him regularly, I was beginning to like my new look and wanted to show a little skin. It had only been a few months but the change was noticeable already. I almost started not to wear the short shirt because I noticed that my little tummy that had once started to get a little flatter was now starting to move in the opposite direction. I shook it off as bloat then I remembered that I hadn’t had my period yet.
My periods haven’t always been regular. When was the last time that I saw my little red friend? I made a mental note to check my day planner in my nightstand drawer. I always marked the first day of my periods in there so that I could keep up with them. I thought about how irresponsible I was for not noticing that it was late.
Thinking about nothing but Darren had my head was in the clouds. I had to get a grip on that mess quickly. I went all in with Jay and look where that got me. Even though I went through a spell last month where I slipped and messed around with him a few times, I knew it was really best if I cut him off for good.
Besides, Darren seemed like he was truly a good man and I wasn’t about to give up on him for Jay’s ass. So, I made the decision to cut Jay off and he had been trippin’ ever since. I thought about that blue Lexus again and wondered if it was really Asia. I made a mental note to be sure to check my surroundings when I was coming and g
oing. I refused to be afraid in my own home. Hopefully, I won’t have to fight this chick but she was pushing it for real.
Enough of that, I thought, as I continued to prepare for my date. I opted for a cute heel instead of flats or sneakers and I put on a simple bracelet and necklace to complete my look. It doesn’t take much to make a simple outfit look cute and sexy. Just then, my phone rang. It was Darren telling me he was outside. He asked if I was expecting company. I said no and asked him why he asked that.
“Because a car rode past here real slow like they were going to stop until they saw me.”
I exhaled and asked what type of car.
“Black BMW. Not sure what kind because I was focused on whoever was inside. What’s up, Ciara? You got something you need to tell me?”
“Umm, no and I’m not sure I appreciate your tone either. I’m coming out. We’ll finish this conversation in the car.”
Inside I was boiling. Jay drove a black BMW and I was pretty sure that was him riding by. Then my cell phone went off. When I looked at the text my suspicions were confirmed.
Oh alright. I see you still wit the old man. It’s cool though. I’ll be around. He can never replace me.
I laughed at Jay’s jealous ass and walked out of the house. I got in the car and greeted Darren with my usual kiss on the cheek but he wasn’t feeling it.
“What’s up, Ciara? Who was that dude who rode by here? Be honest because I will find out,” Darren said, shocking me so much that I had to sit back and look at him. Has everyone grown an extra pair of balls overnight?
“Gee, Darren, I don’t know. Why don’t you tell me who it was since you already seem to be accusing me,” I said immediately getting on the defensive.
He sighed. “Aye, I’m sorry, okay? What am I supposed to think, huh? You’re the one that told me how dude used to pop up here unannounced so you can’t blame me for thinking it was him. You never answered my question. Was it him?”