Two's Enough Three's a Crowd

by Brenda Hampton

  After we left the store, we went to Wehrenberg Theaters on Manchester and watched a kiddie movie she was dying to see. The theatre was packed, and women were all over me, telling me how adorable me and my child were. Like me, Mackenzie enjoyed the compliments, but I think she enjoyed being at the movies with me more.

  On the way home, she played with two of her Barbies in the car. When I turned up the music, she yelled, “Jaylin, that’s too loud. My dolls are trying to sleep.”

  “They don’t look like they trying to sleep to me. They actually look like they getting ready to go clubbing or something.”

  “No, they don’t go out. They go to work like you and Mommy do.”

  “Well, that’s good. Then I’ll turn off the radio so they can get some sleep.”

  Mackenzie laid her dolls on her lap like they were asleep.

  “Jaylin?”

  “Yes, Mackenzie.”

  “Are you really my daddy? I heard you tell those women you were, but you told me you wasn’t.”

  “Mackenzie, I’m not your biological father. I just told them that because they were being too nosy.”

  “If I be nosy, would you be my daddy then?”

  I laughed. “It’s not nice to be nosy, Mackenzie. Being nosy can sometimes get you in trouble.”

  “Okay, then I won’t be nosy. But will you still be my daddy?”

  I didn’t want to confuse her, but I knew if I told her I wouldn’t, it would probably hurt her feelings. I also knew if I tried to avoid the question, she’d find another time to ask me. For a little girl, she was smart, and had smoothed me over better than anybody had done before.

  “Jaylin, you didn’t answer my question,” she said, looking up at me with her big, light brown eyes. “Are you going to be my daddy or not? If not, I’ll find me another one,” she said, pouting.

  “Stop pouting, Mackenzie. I’ll be your daddy only if you stop pouting when you don’t get your way.”

  She cheesed and showed her pearly white teeth. “So, I can call you Daddy now instead of Jaylin?”

  “No, Mackenzie. Continue to call me Jaylin. Daddies have names too, okay?”

  I was so glad when we got home. Mackenzie helped me get the bags from the car and we carried them in the house. There was a note on the kitchen table from Scorpio that said she went to Jackson’s house to pick up her script and she would call later. She even left his number for me to call, if I needed to reach her. I threw the number in the trash because I wasn’t the type of brotha to check up on his woman.

  Mackenzie ran to her room and played with her Barbies. When I heard the loud music from her CD player, I went to her room to tell her to turn it down. I stood in the doorway and watched her dance like she was damn near twenty years old, twisting and turning her body like she was putting on a show.

  “Mackenzie!” I yelled. “What are you doing? Little girls aren’t supposed to dance like that. Who taught you how to dance like that?”

  “My mommy. She dances like this all the time. She makes a lot of money when she dances like this,” she said, doing another one of her mother’s moves.

  I picked up Mackenzie and took her into my room. I sat her on the bed and put one of her Barbie dolls in her lap to keep her busy. Then I ran downstairs and searched the trashcan for Jackson’s number. When I called, no one answered; the phone just rang and rang. I tried three more times, only to get the same thing. No, this bitch ain’t a stripper, I kept thinking. She couldn’t be.

  I jogged back up the stairs and went straight into my closet. Most of her clothes were neatly lined up on one side. I went through her clothes piece by piece, until I came to a gray garment bag that looked thick and full. It was in the far back of the closet, hidden away from all the rest of her clothes. I laid it on the bed next to Mackenzie and unzipped it. The evidence hit me right in the face: all kinds of slutty outfits, leather and lace two-piece sets, belts and whips. There were even a few pictures of her with next to nothing on. I guess she gave them to her fans, because her signature was on the bottom.

  I crumbled the photo in my hand. The only thing I could think about was packing up her shit and kicking her ass out. But when I looked at Mackenzie, I didn’t know what to do. I put Scorpio’s belongings back in the garment bag and back into the closet.

  As I searched for more evidence in the closet, the phone rang. Mackenzie answered and talked, so I knew it was Scorpio. When Mackenzie gave me the phone, I took a deep breath.

  “Hey, baby, you miss me?” she asked, like shit was all good.

  “Miss you so much. I need you, right here and right now,” I said, trying to show Mackenzie a little respect by not dissing her mother.

  “You know, I’ve been thinking about that good loving you gave me last night. I hope it’s on again for tonight.”

  “Oh, you’d better believe it’s on.” I wanted to snatch her ass through the phone and beat the shit out of her. “How soon can you get here so I can give you some more?”

  “I was calling to tell you I’m on my way. Jackson made some changes to my script and it looks pretty good. I’ll tell you all about it when I get home.”

  “Sure, can’t wait.”

  I hung up.

  Mackenzie stood in front of me and dropped her head. “Daddy, are you mad at me for dancing like that?”

  “No, Mackenzie, I’m not. But do you think you can do me a huge favor?” I said, lifting her chin. She nodded. “Do you think you can take a bath and go in your room and play with your dolls?”

  “Yes. I need a nap anyway. Can I borrow your pillow? Yours is thicker than mine is,” she said, taking the pillow off my bed and heading toward the door. “Good night, Daddy. Thanks for the dolls and the movie today. I almost forgot to thank you.”

  “You’re welcome, Mackenzie. Anytime.” She ran back over and gave me a squeezing hug. I picked her up so she could kiss my cheek. She wiped the spit off my cheek with her hand and smiled.

  “Daddy?”

  “Yes, Mackenzie,” I said, putting her down, trying to hurry her off.

  “I love you, Daddy.”

  I was silent. She caught me completely off guard. She looked at me and waited for a response. And for the first time in my life, I felt good about saying, “I love you too.”

  She strolled out of my room with two of my pillows, as if her dolls needed one too. My heart ached; if I put Scorpio out, Mackenzie would leave too. I was in a no-win situation. I had no idea what I would do. Stephon warned me about getting too attached, but in no way did I see this shit coming.

  No sooner had I tucked Mackenzie into bed than Scorpio was on her way up the steps. I met her at the top of the stairs right after I closed Mackenzie’s bedroom door.

  “Did I hurry enough for you?” She dropped her purse on the floor, put her arms around me, and puckered up to give me a kiss. I moved my head back to avoid her kiss and took her arms from around my waist.

  “We need to talk,” I said, walking into my bedroom.

  “Jaylin, I hope you’re not upset with me. I left Jackson’s number so you could call me. And this time, I did call to check in.”

  She followed me into the bedroom. I sat on the chaise and slowly rubbed my hands together. Scorpio stood on the other side of the bed. I knew she could see the fire burning in my eyes.

  “You got one chance to tell me the truth. If you fuck up, I’m gonna knock your ass straight to Egypt,” I said sternly.

  “Jaylin, you’re scaring me. Are you that upset with me—”

  “What in the fuck is your occupation?” I yelled.

  “What? What do you mean by what’s my occupation?”

  I hopped up and stood right in front of her. “Please, don’t make me do this,” I gritted. “What in the hell do you do for a living?”

  She looked down at the floor and removed her jacket. She laid it on the bed, and that’s when I lost it.

  “Hang the motherfucker up!” I grabbed her hair. “Stop leaving shit around the damn house and hang the mot
herfucker up!”

  “Jaylin, what is wrong with you? Let my hair go!”

  She tried to move my hand from her hair, but I grabbed it tighter and slung her ass on the bed. When she fell down, I hopped on top and pinned her hands down above her head so she couldn’t move.

  Soon, she started to cry. “Stop, Jaylin! Please stop! I’ll tell you, if you just please get off of me!”

  I continued to hold her hands down tightly, and the bitch tried to kick me in my motherfucking balls. I grabbed her ankles and pulled her off the bed as hard as I could. She went flying and her head hit the floor.

  “Oh my God! Would you please stop and just listen for a minute?”

  I sat on top of her again and held her hands because she tried to scratch me. We tussled for a while, and I couldn’t believe it when my hand went up and smacked her face. She covered it and cried, but she had finally calmed down.

  I saw my red handprint swelling on her face, and I got up and went into the bathroom. I could see her in the mirror as she sat up beside my bed and continued to cry. I felt awful for what I had done. I’d never laid my hands on a woman. I took a towel from the closet and wet it.

  “Here,” I said, giving her the towel. She looked up and took it from my hand.

  “Are you ready to listen to me now?” she said, looking at me with tears flowing down her face.

  “No, I don’t want to hear anything you have to say. All I want is for you to get your things and go.” I calmly poured myself a drink.

  “Jaylin, don’t do this. Things have been going so well for us. The reason I didn’t tell you about being a stripper is because I was ashamed, and I didn’t think a man like you would be interested in someone like me. Since we’ve been together, I’ve slacked up on putting myself out there like that. I’ve been trying to better myself by going back to school, and I’m working hard at getting my script together.”

  I took a few sips of the Remy Martin and looked at her with disgust. “So, are you saying, all these late nights you’ve been coming in, you haven’t been out doing your thing?”

  “Twice, Jaylin, that’s it. I did two parties just so I could pay for my tuition. I didn’t want to ask you for the money, so I did what I had to do to get it myself. They were just parties, Jaylin. And after I made my money, I left.”

  I had firsthand experience with strip parties, so I couldn’t do nothing but stand my ground. “Scorpio, just go. Listen, you don’t owe me an explanation. Just get your shit and leave.”

  I left the room because I didn’t want to hear any more of the bullshit. I went downstairs to my office and sat in my chair. She followed.

  “Baby, I’m sorry. I never wanted to lie to you, but if I told you what I did for a living, there would be no way to earn your respect. You would’ve thought that sex was all I was good for.”

  “Am I missing something, Scorpio? Sex is the only thing you’ve shown me you’re good for.”

  “You know that’s not true. I ...I hoped that maybe one day I would be able to look back at this and laugh. Laugh with you when I told you what I had to do to get my education paid for and make a better life for Mackenzie and me.”

  “Cut the fucking act, all right? You flat-out lied to me and that’s all there is to it! One thing I can’t stand is a lying, conniving-ass woman. You are not the type of woman I want to be with. When you get that education you’re talking about, or when you become a real playwright, holla at me. Until then, let me go help you pack your shit.”

  Scorpio stood at the end of the stairs with tears streaming from her red eyes. I moved her ass aside and went back upstairs to my room. I pulled her things from the closet and laid them on my bed. She walked up and stood with her arms folded, as if she wasn’t going anywhere.

  When I put her last piece of clothing on my bed, she broke down and pleaded with me again. “Why do you have to be so stubborn? You know people make mistakes sometimes. All I’m asking for is another chance. I promise I will never take off my clothes for men again. All I care about is being here with you, and if I would’ve known you’d react this way, I never would’ve done it.”

  “And all I care about is you getting the fuck out of here. Now, if I have to tell you one more time, Scorpio, I’m gonna put you out of here my damn self.”

  I guess she got the picture because she started to make progress and got her clothes off the bed. “Jaylin, what about Mackenzie? If you want me to leave, you go wake her and tell her she’s got to leave.”

  I stared at the wall. I had briefly forgotten about Mackenzie during our heated argument. She wasn’t going anywhere, and that’s all there was to it.

  “Come pick her up tomorrow. Better yet, send somebody over here to get her. I don’t want to see your face, so your cousin or sister will be just fine. Tell them to come late because I need time to tell her what happened.”

  “I need time too, but you won’t allow me that. I’ll wake her and take her with me tonight.”

  “No, you won’t. I told you to send somebody over here tomorrow to pick her up, didn’t I?”

  “And I’m telling you she’s my daughter and she’s coming with me tonight.”

  Since Mackenzie liked me so much, I had to say something that would deeply hurt Scorpio’s feelings. “If I wake Mackenzie and ask her if she wants to go with you or stay here with me, you know damn well what she’ll say. She’s well aware of your trifling-ass ways and doesn’t take too well to you as it is.”

  “What did you say?” She walked over to me. “Trifling? Did you have the nerve to call me trifling?”

  “I call it as I see it. Now get the fuck out of my face.” I pushed her away.

  She smacked my face. I felt a scratch and my face burned. I put my hand on the scratch, only to see a dab of blood on the tip of my finger. Before I knew it, I grabbed her hair again and slung her ass damn near across the room. I sat on top of her and smacked her around a few times, then tried to push her down the steps to get her the fuck out of my house. I threw bunches of her clothes and shoes over the handrail and they landed in the middle of the foyer. Then, I ran downstairs and forced her and her clothes out of the front door. I wanted the bitch to take a cab, but since I wanted her out so badly, I didn’t even care that she took the damn Corvette.

  When I threw the last piece of clothing on the front lawn, I went back into the house and slammed the door. I watched as she walked back and forth, loading up her car—no, my car—with her belongings. I wanted to go outside and kick her ass again. I had never stooped to this level with anybody, and if a bitch had made me go out like this, I didn’t need her.

  When I went upstairs to my room, I heard the Corvette speed off. I picked up my drink and stood at the bar cart, thinking about how this bitch had lied to me and then made me kick her ass. Flat-out tried to provoke me, when all she had to do was tell the truth. I felt like a fool for ending my relationships with Nokea and Felicia for a woman who was nothing but a liar. I picked up a wine bottle and threw it at my glass bedroom doors. They shattered, and the wine splashed on the walls and all over the carpet.

  Seconds later, Mackenzie came down the hallway. “Mackenzie, watch out for the glass!” I yelled as she tried to step over the shards on the carpet. I picked her up to make sure she didn’t cut her feet.

  “Daddy, what happened?” She rubbed her eyes. “Is Mommy home yet?”

  “Mackenzie, Mommy won’t be home until tomorrow. Get in my bed and go back to sleep.”

  I was glad that she didn’t ask any more questions because I wasn’t prepared to answer her. I went into the bathroom and ran some bath water to relax me. I closed my eyes and thought about the drama with Mackenze that would surely arise soon. As far as I was concerned, she wasn’t leaving my house with no one. If Scorpio sent her sister over to get Mackenzie, she’d be wasting her time.

  26

  NOKEA

  My belly looked as if I’d swallowed a watermelon. I was busting out of everything in my closet. When Pat and I went the Galleria t
o buy some maternity clothes, I saw Stephon there with one of his boys in the food court. He told me Ray-Ray was getting married and said they were at the mall to get fitted for their tuxedos. When I asked about Jaylin, he didn’t comment. He pretended as if he didn’t hear me and quickly changed the subject. I knew something was up, so after talking for a while, I invited him to my place for a friendly dinner.

  What Jaylin and I shared was probably over, but I still thought about him a lot. I wondered how his new relationship was going, and I wondered if he was connecting with Mackenzie. The biggest thing I wondered about was if he was happy. Was there anything he’d told Stephon about missing me, and was Felicia still in the picture? I was sure that during our dinner, Stephon would entertain me by giving me the scoop on Jaylin.

  Later that day, Stephon came in with what looked to be a bottle of wine. When I took the bottle from his hand, I saw that it was actually a bottle of Welch’s sparkling white grape juice. I laughed as I carried it to the kitchen, where I was in the midst of finishing dinner.

  Stephon looked remarkably well. He always kept his head clean-cut and shaven, and his goatee was trimmed and shaped perfectly. He had on a Sean Jean blue jean outfit and some clean white tennis shoes. When I asked for his jacket, I could see his thick muscles busting out of his oversized white T-shirt.

  “So, Shorty, what you cooking?” he asked, standing over me and looking into the pot on the stove.

  “I’m cooking some spaghetti with cheese and some garlic bread. I was going to fry some chicken, but I forgot to thaw it.”

  “Naw, this is cool. Actually, it smells pretty good.”

  “Here, would you like to taste it?” I put a dab of sauce on the tip of the spoon. “It’s hot, though, so be careful.”

  Stephon blew on it and I put the spoon into his mouth. He moved the sauce around in his mouth and then nodded.

  “Pretty good, Shorty. Jaylin told me you couldn’t cook.” He laughed.

  “Oh, no, he didn’t. If I put my mind to it, I can cook. Besides, we always used to go out. But whenever I cooked, he loved it.”