Heartbreak And Past Mistakes

by Chenell Parker

  “Nothing much. What’s good with you?” Zina spoke back.

  “I can’t complain,” Deuce shrugged.

  “How’s your son?” Zina asked.

  “She didn’t have him yet. It’ll be any day now though. What are you having?” Deuce asked as he gestured at her stomach.

  “I haven’t found out yet,” Zina replied.

  She was only three months into the pregnancy when she went to the abortion consultation and she had just entered month number four. She was all set and ready to get rid of the baby, but Tripp found out before she could. The baggy clothes were a dead giveaway. He begged Zina to keep it and she reluctantly agreed. She really didn’t want any more kids and she told him that. He swore that he was going to be there to help, but she already knew how that would go. Tripp was still heavy in the streets, so the bulk of the responsibility would be on her. He was a great provider so she didn’t mind. They were trying to do the relationship thing and it was going good so far.

  “Lyric told me about the talk y’all had. I appreciate that,” Deuce said.

  “I just kept it real with her. I know how to do that if nothing else,” Zina replied.

  “Yeah, that’s true,” Deuce agreed.

  “I didn’t appreciate that bitch Sanai putting my name in the middle of her shit. I heard she got that ass spanked at Ace’s and that’s just what she needed,” Zina replied.

  “How have y’all been?” Deuce asked while changing the subject again.

  He noticed that Armani was all in their conversation and he didn’t want to say anything in front of her. Some things would never change with Zina and that was one of them. He hated how she didn’t even try to be discreet when talking in front of her kids.

  “We’ve been good. I heard you got engaged. Congrats,” Zina said.

  “Yeah, I did, thanks,” Deuce replied, right as Tripp walked into the store.

  “What’s up Deuce? You good?” Tripp asked as he walked over and gave him dap.

  “Yeah, I’m straight bruh. You been good?” Deuce spoke back.

  “You know me fam. Just trying to get this money. Since you retired, it’s more for me to get,” Tripp joked.

  He was draped in labels, chains, and gold teeth. His entire appearance screamed dope boy and that’s exactly what Zina was looking for. Tripp was always flashy, so that was nothing new. He and Deuce were always cool and nothing had changed since he got with Zina.

  “You can have all that bruh. I put in my time. I like living the square life now,” Deuce replied.

  “Nothing wrong with that. When I get my money right, I’ll probably be the same way,” he said, making Zina frown.

  When Deuce saw Darnell heading their way with his shoes, he was happy and ready to go.

  “I’m about to get up out of here. Y’all be easy,” Deuce said as he hugged the kids again and walked out with his cousin.

  “I know Zina ass ain’t pregnant again. She was the main one talking about she was done with kids,” Darnell said once they walked away.

  “Maybe things have changed,” Deuce shrugged.

  “That’s fucked up though. She knew how bad you wanted a baby,” Darnell fumed.

  “And I got one with the person that I’m supposed to have it with. I’m happy that we didn’t bring a baby into all that drama. That probably would have made shit worse. I wish her all the best. I’m happy and I hope she is too,” Deuce replied.

  He was happy that he and Zina didn’t have any animosity towards each other. Things didn’t work out between them, but that was life. They both wanted different things and they seemed to have found what they were looking for. He got a mature woman who was about her business and Zina got her dope boy.

  ***

  “Shit Lyric,” Deuce hissed as he looked at her on top of him.

  His bottom lip was caught in between his teeth as he held her hips while she bounced on him. Lyric was two days overdue and her stomach was huge. She was still as active as ever and that included the bedroom. She and Deuce got it in multiple times a day and she never complained. Her doctor planned to take the baby in three days when she went back to her appointment and she was ready. She still went to work faithfully until that time came though.

  “Wait boo,” Lyric said as she stopped moving.

  “Don’t stop baby. You wet as fuck too,” Deuce moaned as he started bouncing her up and down again.

  “I think my water just broke,” Lyric said as he continued to thrust upwards into her.

  “What that mean?” he asked her, clueless as to what she was saying.

  “The baby is coming,” Lyric replied, making him freeze up.

  “Right now!” Deuce yelled in shock.

  “Not right now, but soon,” Lyric said as she slowly climbed off of him.

  Deuce’s entire lower half was wet and so was the bed underneath him. He jumped up and pulled Lyric out of the bed with him. They didn’t have time to change sheets or clean up their mess. She would have to let Melody know and she would do it for her.

  “Are you in any pain baby?” he asked as they went to the bathroom.

  “No, I’m good,” Lyric replied while starting the shower.

  They both jumped in and freshened up before getting dressed to go to the hospital. Lyric called everybody while he drove and they assured her that they were on their way. She felt bad for interrupting Kierra while she was on her date, but she didn’t know. A guy who managed the bank that she went to had been asking her out for weeks and she finally accepted.

  “Stay right here baby. I’m going get you a wheelchair,” Deuce said once he parked the car.

  “I’m fine Bronx. I can walk. Just get the bag,” Lyric instructed.

  “You sure you’re not in any pain?” he asked again.

  “No, I’m good,” Lyric replied as they entered the hospital.

  They checked in and were escorted up to the labor and delivery room. Once Lyric got checked in, Melody and Wanda came into the room to see her. She was already six centimeters and she didn’t feel a thing.

  About three hours later, she and Bronx were welcoming their eight pound baby boy into the world. Lyric was expecting excruciating pain and several hours in labor. Thankfully, she didn’t experience either. Since it was after midnight when she had him, everybody went home and promised to return when they got some rest.

  Later that morning, Deuce helped Lyric take a shower and dress their son. Soon after, Melody and Lenard came with breakfast, followed by Wanda and both of his grandmothers.

  “He looks just like you and your daddy. I got another Ace,” Melba said as she held the baby close.

  She got emotional, so Deuce rubbed her back to offer a little comfort. She was begging him and Lyric to call their baby Ace in memory of his father, but they didn’t mind. If that was going to make her happy, they were all for it.

  “You did so good baby. You didn’t stay in labor for five days like I did,” Melody spoke up.

  “Tell the truth for once ma. How long were you really in labor with me?” Lyric asked.

  “It was only four hours but it felt like five days. I was young and you ripped my insides apart,” Melody said, making everyone laugh.

  “I told you. She’s too dramatic,” Lenard replied.

  “Okay, so who gets to take him home first?” Melody asked.

  “Who?” Lyric questioned.

  “What do you mean who? My grandson,” Melody replied.

  “Are you serious ma? He’s going home with us,” Lyric noted with a frown.

  “I know that Lyric. I’m talking about when he’s a little older,” Melody corrected.

  The baby was barely a day old and she was trying to make a grandparents schedule already. Lyric knew that she was going to have to have a talk with her because Melody did too much. She was being petty and trying to make sure that Wanda didn’t get more time with the baby than she did.

  “He’s not going home with nobody for a long time. Y’all are more than welcome to visit him as
much as you want to though,” Bronx spoke up, making Lyric smile. She liked how he addressed the subject without offending anyone.

  “So, we’re calling him Ace and not BJ, right?” Mildred asked, just to be sure.

  “Yes,” Melba spoke up as she looked at the baby lovingly.

  “Lord, I just hope he’s not as bad as his daddy was,” Mildred said as she looked at her precious great-grandson.

  “Oh no. I didn’t know that Bronx was a bad child. I need to start praying over my baby right now,” Lyric replied.

  “He was spoiled and bad as hell,” Wanda laughed.

  “And smart too. He was using full sentences before he even made two. His daddy was the same way,” Melba noted.

  Lyric sat there and listened as Bronx’s mother and grandmothers told her stories about him and his childhood. Some were funny and others made her look at her son and cringe. She was asking God to skip a generation and not give her a son half as bad as his father was.

  After receiving visitors throughout the day and most of the night, Lyric was happy when it was just her and Bronx. Melody had a few more houses for them to look at and she swore that one of them was going to be the one. Lyric was hoping that she was right because she needed a bigger place for her son and future husband.

  Chapter 50

  Four weeks had passed since Lyric gave birth to their son and Mr. Malone made good on his word. He purchased a beautiful office building for the firm and someone had already bought the old one. Lyric had only seen it in pictures, but it was nice. She hadn’t gone back to work yet, but she and Bronx went to go pack up her old office. She had never seen her new one yet, but Mr. Malone assured her that she would love it. They weren’t scheduled to move in for another two weeks but he was letting Lyric move her things in early. She was scheduled to go back to work in two more weeks and she didn’t want to have to do so much when she did.

  “Are you outside?” Mr. Malone asked.

  “Not yet but I will be soon,” Lyric replied.

  “Is my Godson with you?” Mr. Malone asked.

  “No. He’s with my mama and daddy,” Lyric replied.

  “Oh, well, I guess I’ll let you in anyway,” he joked.

  “Well thanks,” Lyric laughed.

  “I’ll text you the code to get in,” he replied before hanging up.

  “Is he serious about christening the baby?” Bronx asked.

  “Very. Why? You don’t want him to?” Lyric asked.

  “Hell yeah I do,” Bronx replied.

  “Seriously Bronx. It’s not just my decision to make. I won’t be upset if you don’t want him to. He asked, but I haven’t given him a definite answer yet. He just started calling him his Godson since he came saw us in the hospital,” Lyric said.

  “I’m good with it baby. My son is winning already and he’s only a month old,” he laughed.

  “What about the houses that my mama showed us? Which one is your favorite?” Lyric asked as she looked at him.

  Melody had been working her ass off trying to find them a house and they had narrowed it down to three. Lyric had a favorite, but she wanted his input too. Their wedding plans were coming along nicely but finding a house seemed almost impossible.

  “I told you that I’m good with whatever you want,” he replied.

  “You are no help at all. Do you even care about where you’ll be living?” Lyric asked.

  “I’m good with four walls and a bathroom. I don’t care about all the specifics like you do. It don’t matter to me if the kitchen has an island and all that other stuff that you asked for. I’m good as long as you and my son are there,” Bronx replied.

  “Aww boo. You are too sweet. My favorite is house number two. It’s the biggest and the prettiest,” Lyric said.

  “What about my hot tub?” Bronx questioned.

  “The patio is huge. We can get an even bigger hot tub. And just for being so sweet, you can get your freak room and stripper pole,” Lyric winked.

  “That’s what the fuck I’m talking about. I’m tearing that ass up in two more weeks. I already got it marked on my calendar,” Bronx replied excitedly.

  He had been begging Lyric for sex, but oral was the most that she gave him. She was following her doctors orders and not doing anything until her six week checkup was done.

  When they pulled up to the new building, Lyric’s mouth opened in shock. The pictures didn’t do it justice and it was even more beautiful up close. There was a work crew in the parking lot putting up assigned parking spaces while another crew put up the huge law firm sign. Mr. Malone told her to park and enter from the back and now she knew why.

  “This place is huge,” Lyric said when she entered the code and walked inside.

  “It’s nice as hell in here too,” Bronx complimented.

  Instead of the four floors like he had before, the new office only had two. The investors and receptionists were going to be on the bottom floor while all the attorneys occupied the second.

  “What do you think?” Mr. Malone asked when he walked down the stairs to greet them.

  “I love it. The other building had four floors but you can fit in here and this one only has two,” Lyric replied.

  “And the price was too good to pass up,” Mr. Malone said as he walked over and greeted Bronx.

  He was dressed down in jeans and tennis and he looked weird to Bronx without a suit. He looked more relaxed and not as stressed as he’d been for the past few weeks.

  “Where is the elevator? I got a bunch of boxes in my trunk,” Bronx noted.

  “I’ll help you with that in a minute. Let me give y’all a tour of the place first,” Mr. Malone said as he walked off with them following right behind him.

  Lyric was in awe as he showed them all the offices and board rooms. Even the mailroom was huge and she knew that Jared was going to love his new work space. There were two kitchens on both floors. They both looked like they belonged in someone’s home and were equipped with everything that the employees would need. Mr. Malone even had a charging area for people to charge their phones and other electronic devices. His office was like something out of a magazine with expensive black lacquer furniture and a private conference room connected to it. He had his own personal bathroom and mini fridge, so he never had to leave his office if he didn’t want to. The place was pure heaven and Lyric was in love with it already. She had seen everything except her office and she was wondering why. She wanted to see how it looked because she was ready to decorate. She and Paisley had been looking at some things online and she got some great ideas. She even knew what colors she wanted and she couldn’t wait.

  “This place makes the other office look like a shack. But, what’s up with my office? Am I fired or something because I haven’t seen it yet?” Lyric laughed.

  “That’s never going to happen and you should know better. Your office is right here,” Mr. Malone replied as he pointed to a closed door that was right next to his.

  She had totally forgotten that he told her that their offices were right next to each other. Lyric would have been opened the door to check it out had she remembered.

  “You said that was another conference room,” Lyric said.

  “So, I lied; sue me. You won’t win though,” he joked.

  “Who’s work space is this? This is a nice area,” Lyric said as she pointed to a huge open area with two big desks sitting in it.

  The area was right outside of their offices and it was big enough to fit at least ten more desks in it. They had chairs lined up against the wall almost like a waiting area. A huge tv was mounted on the wall and a coffee station was set up right next to it.

  “That’s for Nova and your secretary whenever you hire one,” he replied.

  “I already told you that I don’t need a secretary,” Lyric said.

  “And I’m telling you that you do,” Mr. Malone countered.

  “Okay, but I want to see my office now,” Lyric requested.

  “You might want to hold her han
d Bronx. Just in case she faints or something,” Mr. Malone replied with a smirk.

  Bronx grabbed Lyric’s hand and waited until her boss opened the door and revealed her new office. At first, Lyric was quiet as she looked around in amazement. As soon as the shock wore off, she let out an ear piercing squeal as she ran over and gave Mr. Malone a big hug. If Bronx never knew it before, he knew it now. Mr. Malone considered Lyric family. They made the right choice in letting him christen their son because he was going to be in good hands.

  “This is beautiful. How did you do all of this?” Lyric asked as she wiped the happy tears from her eyes.

  Her office was almost as big as his was and she had a personal bathroom too. The only thing she didn’t have was a private conference room, but she didn’t need one. The entire room was decorated in soft pink, black, and white. The huge “Girl Boss” picture that she wanted was hanging up behind her desk and the pink sofa was pushed up against the wall. The bathroom had the same decor and Lyric loved everything about her new work space.

  “Paisley and my wife did everything. That’s why she’s been picking your brain about what kind of decorations you wanted,” Mr. Malone replied as Lyric continued to look around.

  “Thank you, Mr. Malone. I love everything. I have to thank Paisley and your wife too. I can’t believe that y’all did all this,” Lyric beamed.

  “This is nothing compared to what you did for us. You saved my daughter’s life and I’ll forever be grateful to you for that,” he replied sincerely.

  While Bronx and her boss went to go retrieve her boxes from the car, Lyric took a few minutes to admire everything. Words could never express how much she appreciated everything that Mr. Malone and his family did for her. He was always saying that he was indebted to her but she felt like it was the other way around. He went above and beyond for her, and she was eternally grateful. Working for Mr. Malone was her first job and she was praying that it was her last. There was no other job that she could go to and get treated half as good.

  “I feel like it’s too pretty in here to even sit anything down,” Lyric said as she and Bronx unpacked her stuff.