I Should've Cheated

by Tysha Jordyn

  “Really, Kai? You’ve been M.I.A. for days, you lied to me, and you’re sneaking in the door in the middle of the night after you lied to me; so yeah, we’re gonna need to deal with this now.”

  “Look, what part of I need to check on my mom don’t you understand? And you wanna talk about being M.I.A, where have you been the past few days? You knew I would be out of town, so that was perfect timing for you to disappear, huh?” Kai shot back; Braelyn hoped her panic didn’t show on her face.

  “I’ve been right here at home, you’d know that if you were here,” Braelyn snapped back.

  “You sure about that? Because if you were, then why are the papers still piled up outside when we both know you bring it in every day you get home from work. So, again, where have you been?”

  “Look, I’ve been here. I hung out with Roxy a few times, but I’ve been home, in bed, alone every night while you were who knows where,” Braelyn made a quick mental note to bring Roxy up to speed so she could cover for her.

  “With Roxy...you sure about that?” Kai gave Braelyn a knowing glance as she snatched up the cordless handset and watched her shift uncomfortably.

  “Look, this isn’t about me, and the fact that you’re doing everything under the sun to shift the blame makes me feel like you’re hiding something – or someone. Really, Kai? That’s what we do to each other now? Lie? You know that’s not even how we get down.”

  “Not how we get down, huh? Look, I’m really not tryin’ to get into this with you right now. I need to find out what’s going on with my mom, so this will just have to wait.”

  Kai left Braelyn standing at the foot of the stairs and headed up toward their bedroom just as her sister came on the line.

  “Naya, what’s going on with Ma?” Kai was met with a long pause, “Hello? Naya? You there? What’s going on?” Kai was in full panic mode now.

  Naya’s voice broke as she struggled to get her words out. “Kai…Mom’s gone,” Naya muttered between sobs, “We tried to call you. Where have you been? Oh God, Kai, she’s gone!”

  Kai’s grasp on the handset slipped, sending it bouncing off the plush carpet underfoot. Kai fell to her knees, body numb, tears instinctively cascading down her cheeks. Braelyn heard Kai hit the floor with a thud and ran upstairs to see what was going on. She found Kai kneeling in the middle of the floor, her tear-stained face grimaced as she struggled to catch her breath.

  “What happened? What’s wrong?” Braelyn’s anger instantly took a back seat as she rushed to Kai’s side. “Kai, what happened? Is your mom okay?” Braelyn asked frantically.

  “She’s gone…” Kai managed to mouth as she fell into a fit of crying.

  Braelyn sunk to the floor and pulled Kai into a hug, her chest a bib for Kai’s tears. As if frozen in time, they both held their spots on the floor, Kai’s sobs serving as the soundtrack to Braelyn’s guilt. In that moment, all Braelyn could think about was how she’d grilled Kai, falling just shy of accusing her of cheating when in reality, she was the one deep in a pool of infidelity—one that she wasn’t sure she could walk away from. Braelyn was far from denial, and she knew she felt something deep—more than just fucking—for Sevaughn; but in that moment, her love for Kai consumed her, and all she wanted to do was ease Kai’s pain and fill the void she knew would exist after her mother’s death.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Sevaughn pulled into the circular driveway, still rattled from the drama a few hours earlier. One of the buyers at the drop had gotten a “bad feeling” and what was to have been a simple exchange ended in gunfire. Tony took a round to the leg and Sevaughn had reluctantly left his side at the hospital. Tony assured her that he would be fine, so Sevaughn made the drive home to try to make some sense of what Tony had started to tell her earlier that day.

  There were a few occasions when Sevaughn noticed the seat in her SUV wasn’t in its normal position, but she’d just dismissed them all as oversights. Sevaughn had been switching vehicles so much lately that she figured she was just slacking on her usual attention to detail. Now that she thought about it, Brooklyn had been eerily calm the last time they chatted, almost in an I know something you don’t think I know manner. She quickly replayed every single drive she’d made over the past few days, trying to figure out when and how Brooklyn could have tailed her undetected.

  Taking a deep breath and returning her service weapon to its shoulder holster, Sevaughn stepped out of her car. The glow of the lamp in the master suite reflected softly on the manicured bushes that hugged the causeway, letting Sevaughn know that Brooklyn was waiting up for her. Perfect, she thought to herself. Turning her key to disengage the deadbolt, she stepped into the foyer just in time to see Brooklyn descend the first flight of stairs.

  “Welcome home, darling,” Brooklyn hissed sarcastically.

  “Well, hello to you too.” Sevaughn struggled to keep her cool, instantly irritated by Brooklyn’s voice.

  “Didn’t think I’d see you tonight…figured maybe you had another rendezvous at your hideout.”

  “What are you trying to say?” Sevaughn asked, feeling as though she were walking into a sea of landmines.

  “Nothing...I just expected you to be deep under the cover, I mean undercover, tonight,” Brooklyn toyed with Sevaughn.

  “Look, if you have something on your mind then just say it.”

  “Oh, there’s nothing on my mind…that you need to know of right now,” Brooklyn responded cryptically.

  “Right now, huh? How ‘bout you tell me why you were following me?” Sevaughn went right in for the kill. Brooklyn’s face registered confusion for a millisecond as she wondered how Sevaughn knew about her movements.

  “Why would I follow you, babe? Is there something I need to see?”

  “Girl, don’t play with me. I know you followed me. Maybe you should pay closer attention to who’s following you,” Sevaughn’s irritation betrayed her as her voice began to rise.

  “Babe, I have no reason to follow you. I know you’d never betray me. Our love is forever, right?” Brooklyn’s words oozed sarcasm with a dark twist of malice.

  “Look, you know how important this bust is, so I can’t have you following me and fucking things up for me! I can’t protect you if you’re not where you should be!” Sevaughn snapped.

  “Aww, my ever so dedicated girlfriend, she wants to protect me, has my best interest at heart, eh? Does that best interest include tying that bitch up and fucking her while you’re on duty?” Brooklyn retorted.

  Shit, Sevaughn thought to herself, how the fuck did she get inside the spot? WHEN the fuck did she get in? How much did she see?

  “Why do we have to keep havin’ the same fuckin discussion? If you think I’m fuckin’ someone, why the fuck are you still here?” Sevaughn shouted, now seething with anger.

  “So you really expect me to believe that you’re not fucking her…”

  “Since you’re in the mood for questions, answer me this – why haven’t you called your family yet?”

  “You let me worry about that, you just focus on telling me why you think I’m too stupid to see that you’re fucking her,” Brooklyn attempted to regain control of the conversation.

  “Brook, you know, I’m really starting to question a lot of shit you’ve been feeding me…what’s your real motivation for wanting me to find this chick? What are you really up to?”

  Sensing she was losing control of the situation, Brooklyn attempted to redirect the focus to Sevaughn’s extended absence of late. “How does she know how you like it? Did you teach her how to feed her pussy to you like that?” Brooklyn stayed focused on her mission, not missing a beat.

  Sevaughn was completely shocked as she replayed the last time she’d bathed in Braelyn’s juices. “Brook, you’re fuckin crazy, you know that? Now I see why–”

  “Don’t you dare…don’t even go there…if you know what’s good for you…don’t do it,” Brooklyn gave Sevaughn a cryptic warning.

  “That a threat?” Sevaughn chall
enged.

  “We can go there if you really want to…but we both know you don’t want to…that pretty face you can’t seem to get enough of? History…keep fuckin’ with me,” Brooklyn stared Sevaughn down, a crazed flicker in her eyes.

  Sevaughn’s mind drifted back to the last time she and Braelyn were in the loft, how the wine glasses were sitting beside the dried moisture rings on the sofa table…they’d been moved; and with Braelyn still upstairs asleep, she sensed someone else had been in the loft, but quickly dismissed the thought as ridiculous. Now, however, as Brooklyn teased her with morsels of information, she suspected her initial feeling was correct, and that the someone else had been Brooklyn.

  Fuck, she exclaimed in her head, how the fuck did she get the code to the damn elevator? Sevaughn knew Brooklyn well enough to know that she didn’t make idle threats, so she had to act quickly to diffuse the situation and keep Brooklyn from hurting Braelyn. She quickly switched gears and prepared to dish out Brooklyn’s surefire pacifier.

  “Listen, Brook, it’s been a long day. Tony got shot, we almost blew cover today, and all I want to do is curl up in my woman’s arms...is that too much to ask?” Sevaughn’s tone softened as she teased Brooklyn with the promise of intimacy.

  Eager to bask in any show of affection from Sevaughn, Brooklyn immediately calmed down, her clit already throbbing as she sensed she’d be riding Sevaughn’s face shortly. Sevaughn climbed the first flight of stairs, pressed Brooklyn’s body into the wall, lifted her chin, and leaned in for a soft kiss. Losing her fingers in Sevaughn’s locs, Brooklyn pulled her girlfriend deeper into the kiss, parting her lips as their tongues danced a vigorous joust. Her soft moans floating up toward Sevaughn’s ears, Brooklyn eased her legs open, allowing Sevaughn’s fingers an unobstructed access to her pussy, lips dripping with anticipation.

  Right on cue, Sevaughn slid one finger into Brooklyn’s pussy, removed it, traced the path of her lips, and came to rest on her clit. Applying a soft amount of pressure, Sevaughn slid one finger back inside Brooklyn’s sugary walls while her thumb rested on her clit. Building a rhythmic balance between sliding and strumming, Sevaughn gave Brooklyn a double dose of stimulation. Brooklyn’s body melted into Sevaughn as her hips started a slow wind, grinding against Sevaughn’s fingers. Her moans grew louder as she broke their kiss and leaned closer to her girlfriend, taking Sevaughn’s earlobe into her mouth.

  Brooklyn rained soft nibbles across Sevaughn’s lobe and moved down to her neck, knowing that was Sevaughn’s spot. Brooklyn’s grind growing into a gentle buck, Sevaughn reignited their kiss, withdrew her fingers, and introduced her hand into their kiss. Their lips briefly separated as they lapped up Brooklyn’s juices in unison, licking Sevaughn’s hand clean. Their lips rejoined as Sevaughn swept Brooklyn up in her arms. They made their way up the second flight of stairs and padded toward the master suite. Brooklyn retreated for a quick moment as Sevaughn laid her out across the bed.

  “Wait…do you love me?” Brooklyn asked, instantly reminded of how she’d observed Sevaughn between Braelyn’s thighs.

  “Of course I do, Brook.”

  “Tell me, I want to hear it.”

  “I love you,” Sevaughn offered, partly sincere as she looked down at Brooklyn’s face and was reacquainted with that initial flutter she had when they first met.

  “And?” Brooklyn questioned, giving Sevaughn an implicit cue.

  “And our love is forever,” Sevaughn responded as she sucked Brooklyn’s bottom lip, drawing her mouth into another kiss as she ripped Brooklyn’s drenched thong away from her body, tossing it to the floor.

  Sevaughn pressed Brooklyn’s legs to the moon, buried her face in all of Brooklyn’s wetness, and rained one eruption after the other down on her. As each orgasm passed, Brooklyn pleaded for a break from Sevaughn’s frantic tongue action, but her pleas were ignored. Each time Brooklyn attempted to ease her hips outside of reach, Sevaughn gripped her thighs, brought her back within mouth shot and resumed her lingual assault on Brooklyn’s clit. Sevaughn took Brooklyn’s body to the brink of shutdown the rest of the night, finally relenting as the sun began to creep across the horizon to the East. Satisfied that she’d quelled Brooklyn’s inquisition for a short spell, Sevaughn watched Brooklyn’s sated slumber, all the while racking her brain to figure out how Brooklyn had been able to sneak in and out of the loft undetected, especially while she and Braelyn were there.

  Chapter Sixteen

  “Lemme make sure I heard your triflin’ ass right. You expect me to let you bring your lil’ bastard child up in my house to raise? Have you lost your fuckin’ mind?”

  “Look, Roxy, I fucked up. I know that and I’m tryin’ to right a lot of wrongs, baby. And I can’t do that if I’m not there for my child,” Robb pleaded.

  “And what the fuck does that have to do with me? Did you give a fuck about being a better man while you were out trickin’ off with these random ass hoes? NO!”

  “Can you calm down, please? Just please calm down so we can talk, I’m not tryin’ to argue and fight. I’m tired of doin’ all that.”

  “Calm down? You REALLY think I can just sit here calm and listen to you pour your heart out about this fuckin baby! Well that shit is NOT gonna happen, muthafucka!”

  “Roxy, please—”

  “Don’t you dare! I’m not gonna just roll over and take this shit! The fuck I look like raising somebody else’s fuckin’ child! Fuckin’ bastard! You made me kill my fuckin’ baby, but all of a sudden THIS bitch is good enough to have your baby?!” Roxy struggled to hold back the searing tears that threatened to skate down her cheeks.

  “Is that what this is about? Roxy, baby, come here...come sit down,” Robb maintained his calm tone as he patted the empty spot next to him on the sofa. “Roxy, I never once said you weren’t good enough to have my baby, that’s not what that situation was about. We just weren’t ready, and I know that’s not easy to hear, but I just wasn’t ready to be a father.”

  “So all of a sudden you’re fuckin’ ready!”

  “Baby, no, I can’t say that I am ready, but apparently God thinks I am, and I can’t keep livin’ my life so reckless. I think this is a sign that I need to get my shit together, so that’s what I’m tryin’ to do,” Robb tried to rationalize his newfound walk on the straight and narrow.

  “Bullshit! That’s straight bullshit! You don’t give a fuck about anyone but yourself! And every fuckin’ time you laid down with one of those bitches, you came home to me like ain’t shit happen! All those times I had to run to the damn doctor cuz your ass brought some shit home! And on top of all that, you make me kill MY fuckin’ baby cuz you weren’t ready! I fuckin’ hate you!” Roxy snatched a candelabra from the mantle and aimed right for Robb’s head; he ducked just in time, sending it bouncing off the sofa.

  “Roxy, I’m not sayin’ I don’t have some fucked up ways, because I do, I know that; but I’m tryin’ to do right now, don’t I get credit for that?”

  “Go ask your fuckin’ baby mama if you get credit for that shit!”

  “You never even mentioned the abortion after it happened. How was I supposed to know you felt like this? Why didn’t you ever tell me? Baby, we could have talked through it.” Robb was genuinely remorseful at seeing how distraught Roxy was about the abortion more than a year later.

  “How the fuck do you talk through killing a baby? Huh? Tell me that!” Roxy’s strength finally wavered, and the levy that held her tears gave way. Robb crossed the floor, hugging her from behind to offer comfort.

  “Don’t touch me! Don’t fuckin’ touch me!” Roxy half tried to wriggle from his grip, but finally relented and allowed herself to succumb to all the emotions she’d been bottling up since Robb announced the pregnancy.

  “I’m sorry baby, I’m so sorry. I never meant to hurt you in any of this, ma” Robb begged Roxy for forgiveness and for once in his life, his apology was genuine. He wasn’t sure why it took an outside pregnancy to open his eyes, but he now saw Roxy for what sh
e brought to his life, and he knew he needed her now more than ever. “Roxy, on my life, I wanna make this right. I know I can’t undo it all, but I want to make this all right for you. Just tell me what you need me to do. I’ll do it,” Robb begged.

  Roxy had no words in the moment, so she let her sobs speak for her. They stood motionless for what seemed like hours, Robb’s embrace tightening with each new round of Roxy’s cries.

  **********

  Roxy lay reclined against the headrest of the Jacuzzi tub as the jets forcefully propelled warm streams of water up and down her body. She was emotionally sated, her mind drifting back to how everything felt perfect just hours ago.

  **********

  Her getaway with Plan B coming to an end, Roxy slid into her driver seat and retrieved her cell phone from the center console. She left it there so she’d be able to enjoy Plan B uninterrupted. Besides, she knew the only person who’d blow her phone up was Robb, and she wasn’t even slightly interested in checkin’ for him at that time. Just as she suspected, her phone screen reflected 20 missed calls and 111 missed texts. ‘Damn,’ she thought, ‘that fool is persistent.’

  Roxy quickly scrolled through her missed alerts, finding that all except for a few calls were from Robb. Braelyn had called and texted her a few times in the middle of the night, which was weird. She debated calling her right away and decided to just get up with her later. ‘Shit, she’s probably laid up with dread head anyway,’ Roxy mused to herself.

  The more she thought about it, the more Braelyn was starting to work her nerves with her fake ass pretentious act, pretending to be Ms. Prim and Proper while she broke her neck to sneak into dread head’s bed every chance she got. ‘Greedy bitch,’ Roxy thought to herself.

  Just as she pulled onto the highway, Robb’s picture flashed across her in-dash display. Sharply exhaling, she answered the call.