“When’s the last time you had your period Brooklyn?” He asked. I wasn’t a very good liar and Dominic knew it all too well.
“A few days ago,” I lied. I hadn’t seen my period for the past two months, but I was too scared to say anything. I think I knew that I was pregnant all along, but denial was better than acceptance.
“You’re lying so try again,” he replied.
“I’m not lying. Don’t try to tell me about my body,” I replied defensively.
“So your cycle is still on then right?” He asked.
“No, it’s over” I replied. Even I didn’t believe what I was telling him, so I know he wasn’t buying it.
“I told you a while ago that I pay attention to everything. When your cycle comes on, it stays down for five days. Sunday was the twentieth and today is the twenty-third,” he said.
“Okay, so what’s your point?” I asked.
“We had sex every day this month up until Sunday and your period didn’t come down one time. If it came down a few days ago like you said, it would still be down. I know your body just as well as you do so, please don’t try to play me,” he said catching me in a lie.
I didn’t get a chance to respond because the doorbell started ringing. I rushed to answer it, thankful for the temporary distraction. The cable man had finally arrived. I let him in and sat back down on the sofa. I picked up my iPad to continue reading, but Dominic snatched it from my hands.
“Why did you do that?” I snapped.
“You’re worried about the wrong thing right now. You need to tell me what’s up,” he said.
“Nothing is up. I don’t even know what you’re talking about.”
“Are you pregnant Brooklyn?” He asked looking directly into my eyes. I couldn’t take the way he was staring at me so I turned my head.
“Look at me and answer my question,” he demanded while turning my head to face him. “Are you pregnant?”
“Yeah,” I said in a small voice.
“What the fuck Brook! So you were trying to hide the shit from me?” He yelled scaring the hell out of me.
“No, I was going to tell you, but…”
“But nothing! When were you going to tell me? You couldn’t even answer the damn phone when I called you. What, were you trying to get rid of it or something?” He yelled cutting me off mid-sentence.
Once again, I dropped my head and looked away. He stood over me with his arms folded across his chest.
“So even after everything I’ve told you about me wanting a baby, you were still going to get rid of it?” He said sounding hurt.
“It’s not like that Dominic. I was only going to the clinic to get birth control. It never crossed my mind that I could be pregnant,” I lied again.
“Okay, so now that you know, what’s the plan?” He asked.
“Well, Candace said that Bryce…” I started to say.
“Who are you pregnant by Brooklyn?” He asked cutting me off again.
“What are you trying to say? I’m pregnant by you!” I yelled as my heart fluttered in my chest.
“That’s my point, you’re carrying my baby. I don’t give a fuck about what your cousin or your brothers have to say. This has nothing to do with them,” he said.
“I know that, but I didn’t know what to do. Candace was only trying to help me,” I said defending my cousin.
“How, by helping you get rid of it? You can’t be serious right now. When you found out, I should have been the first person that you called.”
“I wanted to call you, but Candace said that I shouldn’t talk to you until after everything was done. Co-Co said I should have it, but Candice didn’t want Bryce or my other brothers to find out,” I confessed.
“I keep hearing you say what Candace and Co-Co wants, but did anybody ever ask you what you wanted? This is your life and your body and everybody is calling the shots, but you,” he said.
Once again, he was right. Everybody was telling me what to do, but nobody ever asked me what I wanted to do. I was scared to death of having an abortion. I looked it up online and that only increased my fears. One website even showed the entire process and I cried the whole time that I watched it.
“Do you even want to have an abortion?” He asked me.
“No, I never did. I’m more scared of having an abortion than I am of having a baby,” I confessed.
“Well, why didn’t you tell them that Brooklyn? You have to stop letting everybody else run your life. You already know how I feel. I know you’re scared, but I promise I’m going to be here with you every step of the way,” he said sitting down next to me.
“How are you going to do that? If I have this baby, I’m not hiding it from your fiancé.”
“Girl you sound crazy. I’m not hiding my baby from nobody. I’m going to be honest and tell her. I want to be with you when you tell your family too,” he said.
“No, are you crazy!” I said looking at him.
“I’m not crazy at all. I’m just taking responsibility for my actions.”
“Dominic my brothers will kill you,” I said seriously.
“Brooklyn nobody is scared of your brothers, but you. What’s done is done. They might as well get use to me because I’m going to be around for a long time,” he replied.
“Maybe you can come with me to tell my parents, but I don’t want you there when my brothers find out.”
“It’s cool with me however you want to do this. So how far along are you?” he asked.
“I’m nine weeks,” I replied causing him to smile. He reached over and pulled me onto his lap and kissed my lips. It felt so good to be with him again and my mood was better than ever. I straddled him and deepened our kiss until someone cleared their throat behind me. I jumped and turned around to face the cable man. I’d completely forgotten that he was here.
“Are you done?” I asked feeling slightly embarrassed.
“Uh, yeah, I just need you to sign this form,” he said handing me a piece of paper.
Once he was gone, I resumed my spot on the sofa next to Dominic.
“So tell me everything that happened when you found out that you were pregnant,” he said.
I started at the beginning and told him everything that took place from the time that my cousins walked in on us up until now. He kept saying that he was happy that David had convinced him to come over here today or he probably would have never found out. He was also pissed that my cousins took me to an abortion clinic behind his back. I kind of regret saying anything to him, but it was too late now. Dominic ended up spending the entire day at my cousins’ house with me. We ordered a pizza and watched movies in between making plans to go talk to my parents. We decided that Friday would be the day. Instead of going to the abortion clinic, I would be telling my family that I was pregnant and I was terrified. I was more afraid of them finding out who I was pregnant by more than anything. My whole family knew that Dominic was engaged to be married to Kennedi. He assured me that my baby and I would never want for anything and I believed him.
I jumped up when I heard a car door slamming in front of the house. I looked at the clock and saw that it was almost six in the afternoon. I was so busy enjoying my time with Dominic that time flew right by me.
“Co-Co and Candace are home. This should be fun,” I said sarcastically as I looked over at Dominic.
“I’m happy they’re here so I can tell them what’s up,” he replied.
“Please don’t start anything Dominic. Just let me talk to them,” I begged.
“You had your chance to talk and you didn’t open your mouth. If I leave it up to you, they’ll be choosing my baby’s name and everything else,” he said shaking his head.
As soon I heard the keys being inserted into the doorknob, my heart started racing. Candace was the first one to enter, followed by Co-Co. Even though Dominic’s truck was parked out front, she paused when she saw him sitting next to me on the sofa.
“Hell yeah, it’s about to be on and popping
up in here,” Co-Co clapped.
“What’s going on Brooklyn?” Candace asked me.
“Dominic knows about the baby,” I replied with a lowered head.
“And she’s not having no damn abortion,” he snapped.
“Damn it Brook, we talked about this already,” Candace sighed.
“No Candace, you talked about it. You never asked me how I felt. I’m scared to have an abortion. I know that Dominic is going to take care of my baby so I’m not worried about that. We’re going to tell my parents on Friday and I promise that your name will never be mentioned,” I said.
“I don’t understand what you’re scared for. It’s not like this is the only place we’ve had sex. She could have gotten pregnant anywhere. But I don’t appreciate you dragging her to an abortion clinic without even telling me first. And you know better than anybody how I feel about kids,” Dominic said to Candace.
“I can admit that I might have gone about doing things the wrong way, but you have to admit how fucked up things are. Her brother is dating your fiancé’s cousin. And you use to be in a relationship with my best friend. This is a modern day version of The Young and the Restless,” Candace vented.
“You’re right, this isn’t the best situation, but it is what it is. Honestly, I don’t care how nobody else feels about her being pregnant, I’m happy about it,” Dominic said.
“I know you’re not going to tell Kennedi though, right?” Candace asked.
“Yes, I am. I was wrong for cheating on her, but I’m not keeping my baby a secret,” he replied.
“Just don’t tell anybody before I tell my mama and daddy,” I said.
“Alright, but I have to tell David,” he said laughing.
“I can’t believe that you’re going to have a baby,” Candace said while staring into space.
“Girl after the way we saw them going at it the other day, she might be having twins,” Co-Co said.
“Oh, let me do this before I forget,” Dominic said while standing to his feet. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a wad of money. After removing two hundred dollar bills, he handed each of my cousins one.
“What is this for?” Candace asked.
“That’s the money that y’all put up for the abortion that’s not happening,” Dominic replied.
“And bitch don’t ever ask questions when a man hands you money, just smile and say thank you,” Co-Co said while frowning at his sister.
“Come walk me outside Brooklyn, I have to go,” Dominic said.
I walked with Dominic to his truck feeling like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders. I was still scared to tell my family, but it had to be done.
“You don’t seem like you’re happy,” he said while wrapping his arms around my waist.
“I really don’t know how to feel right now. I guess once we tell everybody, I’ll feel better.”
“So when is our first doctor’s appointment?” He asked.
“Our?” I said with a raised brow.
“Yes, ours. You know I’m not missing a beat with this pregnancy,” he replied.
“I haven’t even made an appointment yet, but I need to do it soon. When I talk to my mama, I’ll ask for her help with that.”
“Okay, well, let me know. I love you,” he said looking me in my eyes. This wasn’t the first time he’s told me he loves me, but I really felt it this time.
“I love you too,” I replied and I meant every word of it.
I went back inside after Dominic left. My emotions were all over the place. Dominic was so excited about the baby, but I was too nervous to join in on his happiness. My life was about to change drastically and that scared me the most.
CHAPTER 24
DOMINIC
Friday came much faster than I wanted it to. I was kind of nervous about talking to Brooklyn’s parents, but it had to be done. I’d met them a few times when I was messing with Nadia, but Brooklyn was never around. The first time I ever laid eyes on her was at her brother Bryce’s house. They also knew that I was with Kennedi so I was scared about what their reaction would be. I just really wanted them and everyone else to know where I stood. As long as I had breath in my body, Brooklyn and my baby would be well taken of. Another thing that had me nervous was having to break the news to Kennedi. I knew without a doubt that she would be devastated. She was trying her hardest to give me a baby, but she hadn’t succeeded yet. Lately, she’s been talking about going to a fertility specialist to assist us with starting a family. Then, I still had to talk to my family and I wasn’t looking forward to that either. I wanted to tell David when I first found out, but he never answered his phone when I called. He wasn’t at work yesterday and I couldn’t talk at home because Kennedi was always around. I had a few hours to kill before I had to pick Brooklyn up so I was pulling up to his house now to deliver the good news. I picked up my phone and dialed my brother’s number.
“Open your door, I’m outside,” I told him.
Just as I walked up to his door, it swung open. A short brown skinned woman came walking out with a small duffle bag in her hand. She looked me up and down with a scowl on her face before she left.
“Damn, what’s her problem?” I asked David as I laughed.
“That bitch is crazy. Every time she comes over here, she leaves some of her stuff. I told her to take all of her shit home and don’t bring it back,” he replied.
“Dude you crazy for real,” I said doubled over in laughter. My brother was deathly afraid of commitment. If it seemed like a chick was getting too attached, he would cut her off in a minute.
“So what’s going on with you? You act like you can’t talk in front of your little dream Barbie,” David said.
“Man you need to stop all of that. But I really couldn’t talk in front of her.”
“Why? And what happened with you and my sister?” He said referring to Brooklyn.
“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about,” I said smiling.
“What the fuck are you smiling all hard for? She must have given you some,” David said.
“Nah, it’s even better than that. She’s pregnant,” I said looking at him for his reaction.
“Man is you serious?” He asked with a smile on his face just as big as mine.
“Yep, she’s nine weeks.”
“That’s what’s up, congratulations bruh,” he said pulling me in for a brotherly hug.
“Thanks, man,” I said hugging him back. We were excited like I didn’t already have a fiancé at home.
“Does Kennedi know?” He asked.
“Nah, not yet, but she will soon. Me and Brook are going to talk to her people today. I guess I’ll tell Kennedi after that. Shit, I might not be having a wedding after she hears that.”
“That’s good news, right? You marrying her for all the wrong reasons anyway,” David said.
“Man, but a baby? That shit is going to kill her when she finds out,” I replied solemnly.
“I don’t know why you’re looking so depressed. She can’t give you a baby so somebody else did it.”
“That’s what’s going to hurt her the most. She wanted to give me my first child.”
“But she can’t though. That’s not your fault. See, my girl Brook is going to get the job done. She’s not going to have all of those problems that Kennedi had. That’s why it’s not good to be having all that damn surgery when you’re young like that. It fucks your body up in the long run,” David vented.
“What the hell does surgery have to do with anything?” I yelled in confusion.
“She got that weak ass womb and can’t have any babies. If I was you, I would back out of the wedding now before it’s too late,” David said seriously.
“I can’t do that man. I love Kennedi, I’m just having a baby with Brooklyn,” I said like it was that simple.
“You really sound stupid right now. You might love Kennedi, but you’re in love with Brooklyn.”
“Nah, I got feelings for her, but I’m not in love w
ith her,” I replied.
“Boy you’re not fooling anybody but yourself. I saw how sick you were when Brooklyn wasn’t talking to you. I really think you’re marrying Kennedi because you think you owe her something. She helped you out and now you feel indebted to her. It’s never going to work because that’s not where you want to be,” David preached.
“I’m still there so it must be where I want to be.”
“Like I just said, you’re there because you feel obligated to be there. You and Kennedi don’t even have nothing in common. She doesn’t like anything you like. Hell, our families don’t even get along,” David said.
“For you not to have a woman you sure have a lot to say about mine. I only came over here to tell you about the baby. I’m not trying to get into all of that right now,” I said getting aggravated.
“Don’t get mad with me, that’s just my opinion. You know I’m here for you no matter what you decide to do.”
“That’s all I need to hear. I know you don’t care for Kennedi too much, but just respect my decisions. This is already hard enough as it is,” I said.
“So you think she’ll still want to get married after you tell her about the baby?” David asked.
“I don’t know, but I hope so, but at the same time, I’m not neglecting my baby for her or anybody else. If she still wants us to be together, my baby is going to be a part of the package,” I said honestly.
I sat around and kicked it with my brother until it was time for me to go get Brooklyn. My nerves were getting the best of me so I sat outside of her cousins’ house in my truck trying to calm down. I couldn’t let her see me sweat after everything I’d told her. She was so scared and I kept telling her not to worry, but I was doing the same thing.
After a few minutes, I called Brook and told her I was outside. I took a few seconds and admired her beauty as she made her way to my truck. It was like everybody saw her beauty, but she was oblivious to it. Her self-esteem was far from being low, but I don’t think she saw herself like other people saw her. She was flawless to me. Her pleasant attitude only made her seem even more beautiful than she already was.
You're My Little Secret Page 12
