“I know and that’s my reason for apologizing to you. You didn’t deserve the way I came at you and I promise that it’ll never happen again.”
“Good, because the next time an apology might not be enough,” Duke warned.
“I just told you that there won’t be a next time. I’m not used to the cold shoulder that you’ve been giving me. I’m not pressed behind sex either, but I couldn’t even get a kiss or a hug from you,” Brandis frowned.
“That was your punishment. But since you’re out of the hot seat, come here,” Duke said pulling her over towards him.
Brandis moaned with satisfaction when their lips connected. She never knew how much she missed his kisses until now. Duke was kicking himself for waiting so long, but he had to teach her a lesson.
“I’m finally out of the doghouse,” Brandis yelled excitedly. “Now I see how poor Tank felt.”
“No you don’t. Mia had that nigga going crazy. I would never take things that far with you,” Duke laughed.
He and Brandis talked and it felt good to be back to the way they were before all of the drama took place. Duke missed their intimacy and he couldn’t wait until the day was over and they could be alone once again.
Chapter 11
It was the last Friday in September and the day of Anika’s skating party. Mia and Brandis spent just about the entire day helping Moonie make party bags for the kids. Anika was obsessed with Hello Kitty, so that was the theme of her party. Of course, Moonie went overboard and bought everything that she could find. She had huge Hello Kitty shaped gift boxes with lots of candy and trinkets inside. Moonie, Tootie, and even Brandis were wearing clothes to match the theme, so Mia had to follow their lead. She found a pair of Hello Kitty leggings with the matching shirt to go along with her pink and white Air Max. Tanya baked a beautiful cake and a few cupcakes to go around it. Anika’s Godmother, Lisa, rented out the entire back end of the skating rink to give them enough room to enjoy themselves. She didn’t have any kids, so she always went to the extreme when she did anything for Anika or Lil Anthony. Lisa was Mitch’s first cousin, so it was only right that she christened her favorite cousin’s only two kids. Since Lisa never wanted kids of her own, she loved to spoil her loved ones.
“You look so cute Mia,” Moonie said when her daughter walked into the house.
Mia and Tre came over to help her bring the cake and the party favors to the skating rink. Lisa was already there setting up the decorations, but the food was being provided by the facility. Moonie had to pick up three of Anika’s friends, but the rest of them were coming on their own.
“Thanks, but I feel like a hot mess. This heartburn and acid reflux ain’t no joke,” Mia complained.
“I have Nexium if you want some,” Moonie offered.
“She ain’t taking nothing that her doctor didn’t say she can have,” Tre butted in when he walked through the door.
“Boy, Nexium ain’t gon’ harm her or your baby. It’ll work faster than those Tums that she keeps chewing on,” Moonie answered.
“I don’t care. Her doctor didn’t say that she can take that,” Tre repeated.
“Okay, y’all do see me standing here right? Stop talking about me like I’m not in the room,” Mia frowned.
“Did you try baking soda and water Mia?” Moonie asked her.
“Yeah, but it didn’t work. I kept throwing it back up,” Mia answered.
“We’ll ask the doctor what else you can take when we go back to see him next week,” Tre said.
He started grabbing everything that Moonie needed to bring to the party. After making a few trips loading everything into the cars they were ready to go.
“I told you that I invited Nina right? She’s bringing her niece and nephew to the party,” Mia informed her mother.
“Yeah, that’s cool,” Moonie replied as she locked up the door.
When they arrived at the skating rink, Tiara, Nina, and Brandis were already there. Tiara picked Nina and Brandis up since Jabari had to work. Lisa had five tables reserved in the game area, but nobody was allowed back there unless they were a part of their party. Mitch had purchased fifty dollars’ worth of quarters and sent it with Moonie just in case any of the kids wanted to play the games. He was at work until later that night, but he still wanted his daughter and her friends to have a good time at her party. As soon as Anika and her friends walked in, they immediately ran up to the counter to get a pair of skates. She never acknowledged her Godmother or anybody else, but they already knew how she was.
“Damn Lisa, you got it looking like a real party up in here,” Moonie smiled at her best friend.
“It is a real party bitch. Just because it’s at the skating real doesn’t mean it’s not real,” Lisa sassed.
“You know what I’m saying heifer. People don’t usually go all out like this if it’s not at a hall or their houses,” Moonie replied.
“I know girl, but you know I don’t half step when I do shit. It’s all or nothing. That’s why I can’t wait to help you with Mia’s baby shower,” Lisa said as she rubbed Mia’s round belly.
“Yes honey, I’m getting started on that bright and early Monday morning,” Moonie noted as she put the cake, and the party favors exactly where her friend told her to.
“Here comes grandma,” Mia announced when she saw Moonie’s mother Clarita walking over to them holding a bunch of gift bags.
Mia couldn’t help, but smile as she watched her grandmother making her way through the small crowd of people. The Terrytown skating rink stayed busy on the weekends and this particular day was no different. Kids and adults alike came out to skate or listen to the DJ spin some New Orleans bounce music as he did every night.
“Hey everybody,” Clarita smiled as she sat the bags down and hugged and kissed everybody.
Her face lit up like a Christmas tree when her eyes landed on Mia. Granted, she wasn’t at all happy when she found out that Mia was pregnant, but in her eyes, kids were a blessing from God nonetheless. Moonie was her only child, and Mia was bearing her first great-grandchild. She was just happy to be alive and well to witness it all. Mia was now engaged to the father of her child, so that was also a positive thing.
“Look at you and this big ole belly,” Clarita said while rubbing Mia’s belly in a circular motion.
“Grandma you just saw me a few days ago,” Mia giggled.
“I know, but it looks like you grew overnight. Your skin is glowing like a light bulb.”
Mia and Tre sat down and made small talk with her grandmother as all of the guests arrived. Clarita was one of the sweetest people that anyone could have the pleasure of knowing. She and Moonie were nothing alike. While Moonie could always be found in the club, Clarita spent most of her free time with the women from her church. They did a lot of age appropriate activities, and that kept her vibrant and active. Since her husband passed away some years ago, she looked forward to her twice weekly outings. Clarita also liked to spend time with her grandkids. She loved the six of them unconditionally and would do anything for them. Although Moonie did a lot of things that she wasn’t pleased with, she still loved her one and only child to no end. Clarita would always say that she and her husband spoiled Moonie, and that was the reason why she did some of the things she did. When Moonie gave birth to Jabari, she was only fifteen years old. It broke her parents’ heart, but it didn’t stop them from loving and spoiling their first grandson. Jabari never had to want for anything, and Clarita basically took him from Moonie and did everything for him that her daughter should have been doing. That only gave Moonie free reign to run the streets and do what she wanted to do even more. It wasn’t very long before she popped up with baby number two. Once again, the excitement from their first granddaughter outweighed anything that their daughter ever did. Clarita and her husband took the reins once again and took over the responsibility that belonged to their daughter. Once Moonie got up to baby number six she was in her own house, but that didn’t stop her parents from coming to ge
t the kids every weekend to give her a break. It wasn’t until Moonie’s father’s health started to decline that the every weekend visits ceased.
Clarita’s husband Myron was diagnosed with prostate cancer, and they ended up moving to Katy, Texas for a while. She wanted him to be seen by the best, so the doctors at M.D Anderson clinic were first on the list. She begged Moonie and the kids to move away with them, but, of course, her stubborn daughter declined. Her life was in New Orleans, and she didn’t want to leave it behind. Clarita even offered to give Moonie her house to raise her kids in since she and her husband would be renting an apartment elsewhere. Moonie declined that as well and stayed in The Court where all of her friends were. Clarita tried to visit as often as she could, but it was so hard to travel while trying to take care of a sick loved one. She sent for the kids a few times, but as they got older, their visits along with the daily phone calls stopped. When the doctors told Myron that there was nothing else they could do about his cancer, he and Clarita packed up and moved back to their home in New Orleans. Myron felt that if he was going to die he wanted to be surrounded by all of his family and friends. Three months after their move home, Clarita buried her husband and started adjusting to living as a widow. She tried to resume her role in her grandkids lives, but things had changed quite a bit while she was gone.
Moonie was so used to having her weekends free that she couldn’t adjust to being home with her kids and not running the streets. Instead of her stepping up to the plate and taking care of her own kids when Clarita left, she started letting Mia do it for her. She would always give Mia money or buy her some new clothes and shoes so that she wouldn’t complain. After a while, it became normal for Moonie to leave the kids with her oldest daughter and hit the clubs just like before. It broke Clarita’s heart to see Mia’s childhood being stripped away from her, but Moonie didn’t seem to care. Clarita was so happy when she found out that Mitch was back in her daughter’s life. He was the one, and only man that she knew didn’t have a problem setting Moonie straight.
“Look at Anika,” Mia laughed while watching her little sister lead a soul train line of skaters around the floor.
The party was in full swing, and the kids really seemed to be enjoying themselves. Even Moonie and Brandis were on the overly crowded floor skating with them. A full hour had passed, and everything seemed to be going well until Tre nudged Mia and pointed towards the front door. She looked up just in time to see Paige and her nieces walking in carrying bags and a cake. What struck her as odd was the fact that Rainey and London were trailing in right behind them. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that they were there for a party. Mia just found it ironic that they were having it on the same day and place as Anika’s party. She was thankful that their party was all the way on the other side of the room. Hopefully, Paige and Moonie wouldn’t bump heads. At least that was what Mia and Tre were praying for.
Chapter 12
Paige was furious, but she didn’t want her foul mood to ruin her son’s birthday party. The original plan was to have the party at the park, but her finances didn’t allow her to do it. She’d finally saved up enough money to move into her own apartment and almost canceled his party altogether. The apartment was much further than she wanted it to be, but it was nice, and the rent was affordable. Hammond, Louisiana was about an hour away from New Orleans, but Paige had to do what she had to do. Her new boo told her about the apartments because he and his brothers knew a few people from the area. Once Paige saw the price and the area she was all in, no questions asked. She used just about every cent she had on her first month’s rent and deposit. Once she paid to have her utilities turned on and put groceries in the house, there was no money left for a party. Shane felt bad for his nephew, so he paid for him to have a smaller party at the skating rink instead. It wasn’t what Paige had in mind, but it was better than nothing. Her son was happy, and that was all that mattered to her.
“What’s wrong with you?” Rainey asked bringing Paige back to the present.
Paige had been in a bad mood for the past half hour, and she didn’t know why. Rainey kept her word and assisted her with planning her son’s birthday party, but Paige was still acting shady. Rainey was in a good mood because Paige had come through and got her a job with the janitorial service that she worked for. The work was super easy and allowed her to keep some much needed money in her pockets. Paige didn’t speak up for London, but Rainey couldn’t worry about anyone else at the moment.
“You’re really asking what’s wrong with me right now,” Paige snapped. “I told you that I don’t want to be around none of Tank’s side bitches, but you invite this bitch to my son’s party anyway.”
Rainey was happy that Paige was whispering because she didn’t want London to hear their conversation. Paige was being too petty right now, and Rainey didn’t have time for it.
“That girl is not one of Tank’s side bitches. Yeah, they had sex, but they were never in a relationship. It’s not even that serious, but I’ll leave if it’s going to be a problem,” Rainey said angrily.
“Don’t even worry about it. I’m not trying to ruin my son’s party behind no bullshit. Tell her to help you put these tablecloths on the tables while I go order the pizza before the kids get here,” Paige replied before walking away.
Rainey called London over, and they along with Paige’s nieces began to set up the two tables that were reserved for them. They were in the public area, so the party tables were surrounded by other tables that the public was allowed to use. Once Paige’s son Damon’s guests arrived they went on about their business while the adults sat at the tables and talked. London, Rainey, Paige and her nieces were the only adults there until her sister-in-law Michelle came a few minutes later. Everything was going good for more than an hour until Paige’s son came over and complained about another child pushing on him.
“What happened Damon?” Paige asked him.
“I was trying to go on the other side to play the games, but that boy over there pushed me down and told me that I couldn’t,” he whined.
“What boy?” Paige yelled.
“He’s all the way over there at another party. They said that it’s a private party, and nobody can play the games,” Damon answered.
“I hope you pushed his ass back,” Paige fussed.
When her son put his head down without responding she knew that he hadn’t. Damon was forever being bullied at school and everywhere else and Paige was sick of it. Her other kids never had any problems defending themselves, but he was the one exception.
“You are too damn scary Damon,” Paige yelled. “Somebody is always doing something to you, and you never fight back.”
“My daddy’s girlfriend is over there, and she told him to leave me alone.”
“Your daddy’s girlfriend?” Paige asked him.
“Yeah, the one that he was at Super Sunday with,” Damon replied.
Paige knew exactly who he was talking about, and that infuriated her more. She knew that the little boy in question had to be one of Moonie’s bad ass kids. More than likely it was the son that Moonie had with Mitch that pushed Damon. He and the youngest daughter were the worst of all. They were natural born fighters, but they got it the honest way.
“Let’s go,” Paige scoffed while standing to her feet and grabbing her son’s hand.
“Where are you going?” Michelle asked her.
“I’m going over here and tell this bitch to control her bad ass kids. Those lil bastards are always putting their hands on other people’s kids. They really got me fucked up,” Paige fumed as she walked away.
Michelle, Rainey, and London got up to follow her, but her nieces stayed behind. They already knew that she was talking about Moonie, and they didn’t want to be a part of any drama. After they had gotten jumped by Tre’s people, Sariah and Shania were done with Paige. She always involved others in her mess, and they’d both had enough. She was still trying to get them to get back at Mia, but her pleas fell on deaf ear
s. Although they felt bad about what Dalvin had done to her, Paige deserved everything that she got and more. They were so happy when she moved out of their house a few weeks ago and got a place of her own. Shane basically let her run the house when she was there, and they were miserable. Since Paige moved an hour away, they wouldn’t have to see her as often as they did before, not that any of them was complaining.
Moonie was sitting down eating pizza when Paige and her busted up entourage came stomping over to their table. Moonie recognized the little boy as the same one that lil Anthony had just pushed down, but she didn’t know that he was Paige’s son. He had to be her son the way she pulled him along as she made her way over to them. Moonie figured she was pissed about what her son did, but she would just have to get over it. Kids fought all the time, and that was a part of life. Moonie chastised her son and the situation was over and done with as far as she was concerned.
“You need to teach your kids to keep their damn hands to themselves. I don’t have a problem slapping a child,” Paige barked angrily.
“You slap one of mine, and that’ll be the last time you raise your hand to anybody,” Moonie replied.
Creepin' 3: A New Orleans Love Story Page 8