My heart raced, as I feared for the worst.
“What’s wrong?” I said, sitting on the bed. “I’m sorry I’m late, but…”
“Erica’s grandmother called today,” she snapped. “She’s coming to get her in the morning.”
My frustrations showed too. To comfort Cydney, I reached out to hug her.
“Baby, don’t be mad. I told you not to get too attached. We both knew that Erica couldn’t stay here with us forever.”
She pulled away from me. “I never said she could. But with you being her father, you have some rights, don’t you?”
“She’s not my child, Cydney. You know that.”
“But nobody else knows, except for me, you and Laquinta, right? Erica’s grandmother doesn’t know, does she?”
“I really don’t know. I’ve only met her a few times, but there’s no telling what Laquinta told her.”
Cydney painfully held her forehead then closed her eyes. “Can’t you do something…anything, Isaac? Do you even care?”
“Yes…yes, I care. And I’ll talk to Virginia tomorrow and see what she says about letting Erica spend time with us. I’m warning you, she’s a bitch. And if it doesn’t involve money, she ain’t trying to hear it.”
Cydney lay back down next to Erica and kissed her cheek. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Where have you been all day?”
I released a deep sigh. “Please don’t be mad at me, but I was out looking for Miguel. I caught up with him at his sister’s house. There was a scuffle and he got shot. Raymond was there too and things got pretty ugly. He wound up shooting Miguel, and before the police got there, I left.”
Cydney covered her mouth. “Is…is he dead? And what happened to Raymond? Did the police arrest him?”
“I really don’t know what will happen to Raymond, but Miguel’s injuries looked pretty serious.”
“What made you go to his sister’s house? Have you been keeping in touch with her?”
“Only to find out if Miguel was there. I just happened to call and she told me he was on his way there.”
Cydney took a deep breath. I could tell she wanted to know more. “Why did Raymond shoot Miguel? I thought they were buddies.”
“Can you believe that Raymond is Trinity’s ex-husband? When Miguel arrived, he saw that Raymond had hit his sister. Miguel got angry. He tried to attack Raymond and that’s when he pulled the trigger.”
“Oh my God. Why did Raymond hit Trinity? Was he upset about something?”
I hated to lie to Cydney, but I couldn’t damage the progress we had made. “Baby, I don’t know. By the time I got there, Trinity gave me the scoop. She let me inside and Miguel and Raymond were arguing.”
“But you said that you and Miguel had a scuffle. How did he scuffle with you and he’d been shot?”
I knew exactly where Cydney was going with this, and since I was lying my ass off, I had to cut our conversation. “Actually, we didn’t scuffle at all. After he’d been shot, I roughed him up and left before the police got there. My kicks weren’t nearly enough punishment for what he’d done to you, but I guess you can say that Raymond took care of my business for me.”
Cydney swallowed and looked away. She was in deep thought about something.
“Get some rest,” I said, comforting her in my arms again. “We’ll continue to talk about this tomorrow.”
As usual, I went downstairs to calm myself. It had been a busy and crazy ass day. I didn’t know what was going to happen to Miguel, but I hoped like hell that he somehow got what he deserved. To me, being shot and a good ass kicking wasn’t enough. As for Laquinta—what a joke? She’d lied to me about seeing him and I didn’t want anything else to do with her. I knew that if I kept in contact with Erica, that would put me in contact with Laquinta. It was time to put final closure to it all.
By morning, I’d gotten only a few hours of sleep. I heard Cydney upstairs walking around, so I got up to check on her. When I got upstairs, she was fully clothed and so was Erica. Cydney had her beautifully dressed in a pink and yellow polka-dot dress. Her hair was in one perfectly combed afro ball and it had a pink and yellow ribbon around it. Cydney said that Virginia was coming at seven o’clock. It was already a quarter till.
“Let me hold her,” I said, reaching out for Erica. Cydney hesitated to give her to me, but she turned her over. “Hello, precious. You look beautiful this morning.”
My thoughts quickly turned to yesterday. Had Laquinta shot at me, I would’ve very well taken her life. Erica was on my mind the entire time I stood by the door. And even though she had a lousy ass mother, I hoped like hell that Laquinta was capable of bringing happiness to her little girl’s life.
I kissed Erica and held her up in the air like I’d always done before.
“Be careful with her,” Cydney said, biting her nails. “You’re wrinkling her dress, baby, put her down.”
Seeing how tense Cydney was, I put Erica down. I even handed her back to Cydney and allowed her a little more time.
Moments later, the doorbell rang. Cydney looked at me and quickly handed Erica over to me. She then opened the door, smiled at Virginia and invited her in.
Virginia quickly acknowledged Cydney and held her arms out for Erica.
“There goes Ganty’s baby.” She took Erica from my arms and kissed all over her. “Your Ganty missed you. Look at how pretty you look. Who made you look so pretty?”
Erica smiled and clapped her hands. “Da-Da,” she said.
Virginia looked at me. “Did you buy her this pretty dress and doll her up like this?”
“No. My wife, Cydney, did. She’s been taking care of Erica a lot more than I have.”
Virginia turned to Cydney, looking her up and down.
“Thank you,” Virginia said. “I don’t know what’s wrong with that damn daughter of mine, but I’m going to set her straight. She will not get Erica back until she gets her shit together.”
Cydney nodded and Erica reached out to her. Virginia acted as if she didn’t want to turn her loose, but Erica put up a little fuss. Virginia released her to Cydney and she was all smiles.
“You be good for your grandmother and don’t forget everything that I taught you, okay?” As Cydney spoke, Erica nodded. “Don’t nod. What’s the word?”
“Yes,” Erica softly whispered.
“Good girl,” Cydney said, giving her a hug.
Virginia got really jealous and took Erica from Cydney’s arms.
“We’d better get going,” she said.
Cydney quickly spoke up. “Do you mind…can she visit us sometimes? Isaac is her father and we’d like to spend some time with her too.”
“I…I don’t think so. Laquinta told me that Isaac wasn’t Erica’s biological father. I don’t want her growing up confused.”
“Confused?” Cydney said, raising her voice. “Your daughter is the one confused. Isaac and I both have attached ourselves to Erica and we can’t help it that we were lied to.”
“I’m sorry, but I’m in control of things now. Erica already has a family. She’s not about to be tossed from one home to another.”
Rage covered Cydney’s face. I knew she was about to lose it, so I stepped up to her and placed my arm around her waist. “It’s okay, baby. Calm down…”
She snatched away from me, “Do something about this, Isaac! Are you going to stand there and do nothing?”
“Baby, there’s not much I can do.”
She begged Virginia. “If only once a week, please let her come over and visit with us.”
Virginia had no sympathy for Cydney. She turned towards the door and opened it. “Thanks again for watching her, but that ain’t happening.”
“Please,” Cydney begged.
Virginia walked, leaving Cydney in anger.
“Do something!” she yelled at me. “I can’t believe you’re just standing there after all you’ve done for that little girl!”
I had my reasons for not stopping Virginia, but on
ce I grabbed Erica’s bags of toys and clothes, I went after Virginia to please Cydney. Virginia had put Erica into the car and I put the bags in the trunk. She had a change of heart when she looked up at Cydney biting her nails, while looking out of the window.
“Only one day, Isaac. You and your wife choose one day and not on the weekend.”
“Thanks, Virginia, but that won’t be necessary. My wife just lost a child and she got extremely attached to Erica. We’ll get through it. Just make sure Erica is taken care of and make sure that her biological father knows that he’s her daddy. I don’t want to confuse her, because in the long run, if she continues to see me and my wife, she’ll really be confused.”
“I agree,” Virginia said, looking at Cydney. “That’s what I was trying to tell her. I hope she understands.”
“Eventually, she will.”
I kissed Erica and waved goodbye. She waved back. Shortly after, Virginia got in her car and drove off. When I went back inside, Cydney stood with her arms folded, waiting for a response.
“I…I’m sorry, baby. She just wouldn’t agree to it.”
I held Cydney in my arms again. It was a bad ass feeling to see her so hurt. I felt for her, but there was no way possible for us to move on if I kept in contact with Laquinta or her family.
CYDNEY
My heart was crushed. Never in my wildest dream did I think I’d get so attached to my husband’s lover’s child. Thing is, I knew Erica would someday leave us. But the way Virginia just came in and took her was devastating. She gave no thought to my feelings. Her decision was based out of pure jealousy.
Once Isaac told me what had happened at Trinity’s place, I didn’t expect to see Erica ever again. This time, I’d really set myself up for a downfall. I couldn’t stop myself from being so angry inside.
Isaac was doing any and everything possible to make me forget about what had happened. He’d taken me shopping, to the movies and to the park. One night, we went dancing and had ourselves a blast. It was as if we were falling in love all over again. A serious plus was that he cooked dinner for us everyday. He’d even talked about taking a trip together, but I wasn’t up for a vacation. I told him maybe some other time, and for the next several weeks, I was in and out of my slumps. That was until I got a call from Virginia. I was excited to hear her voice. She called to thank me for teaching Erica so many things.
“I’m sorry for bugging you,” she said. “But I’m amazed at all of the things Erica has learned. These games you bought her are really helpful.”
“Yeah, we had fun learning things. Erica’s a good girl. You should be proud of her.”
“I am. And I just wanted to say thanks. I kind of rushed out of your house without showing you my appreciation for what you and your husband did.”
“I guess you had your reasons. All I wanted to do was see her from time to time. She seemed really close to Isaac and I didn’t think it would hurt anything.”
“Well, Isaac and I agreed that it wasn’t in Erica’s best interest to be running back and forth. I’m sorry for your loss with the baby, but a loss like that can never be replaced.”
My brows arched inward. I was confused. “What loss? What are you talking about?”
“Isaac said you’d lost a child. I offered to let the two of you see Erica, but he said it wasn’t in your best interest.”
“You what?” I yelled. “Virginia, don’t play games with me, please. I’m seriously hurt by…”
“Mrs. Conley, I’m too old for games. I offered to let the two of you see Erica, but I’m not going to make the offer again. I just wanted to say thanks for everything that you did. For you to accuse me…”
As she caught an attitude, I slammed down the phone then made my way to the kitchen where Isaac was. He had on an apron and blue jeans. His chest was bare as he stirred a spoon around in a pot. When he turned around, he reached out a spoon with spaghetti sauce on it.
“Baby, you’ve got to taste this. It’s the best I’ve ever made.”
“How could you do that to me?” I whispered.
He sighed from looking at the blank expression on my face. “Do what? What is it now? I haven’t even been anywhere to do anything?”
My voice rose. “Why did you tell Virginia that we didn’t want Erica to visit us? You knew how much I wanted to see her. Damn-it, Isaac, you knew it!”
He stood almost speechless. “I, we…when did you talk to Virginia?”
Tears were in my eyes. “It doesn’t matter. Why do you keep on hurting me? Don’t you ever get tired of hurting me?”
“Look,” he said, stepping up to me. “You’ve got to stop all of this crazy talk and get yourself together. Erica was here for a purpose, and as soon as you realize what it was, then you’ll be able to see things differently.”
I covered my mouth, wanting to throw up. Instead I pounded Isaac’s chest and could’ve killed him for the hurt he’d cost me. He reached for my hand and held it.
“We can always have a baby, Cydney. Why can’t we have our own child?”
I reached up, trying to slap his face hard. He tugged at my arm and yelled at me.
“You’d better get your shit together! I’m sick and tired of being your damn punching bag! The only reason I didn’t accept Virginia’s offer is so that you or I wouldn’t have to deal with Laquinta again. If we’d kept Erica in our lives, you know damn well Laquinta would’ve continued to do more harm to our marriage. I want to save my marriage, baby. I…I want a child with you, and I saw what a good mother you could be. I can be a good father too. Just give us a chance, okay?”
I was so disgusted with Isaac that I just walked away. I went back into our bedroom and lay across the bed. Shortly after, he came in and tossed the white envelope on the bed. The divorce papers inside were hanging half way out, staring me right in the face.
“Finally,” Isaac said in a soft tone. “You got what you wanted. Take those to your lawyer and let’s be done with this marriage. I’m tired of dealing with it.”
Isaac went into the closet and pulled out several pieces of his clothing. He laid them on the bed and went back in the closet for his suitcase. He put the clothes on the bed inside of it. He then went back into the closet, and as he spent more time in there gathering his things, I removed the papers from the envelope and saw that he’d signed on the bottom line. I lightly gasped. My heart dropped to my stomach, and I took a hard and hurtful swallow. Seeing his signature on the papers made me realize how badly I didn’t want this to happen. Maybe I overreacted. Now, I understood why he wanted to cut ties with me and Erica. Being with her showed me what a good mother I could be. Isaac was a good father too and the love we showed Erica, even knowing that she wasn’t his, could be given to our own child.
I laid the envelope on the bed then made my way towards the closet. Isaac was squatted down while throwing his shoes in a pile. I walked in and touched his sweaty back. He turned his head slightly to the side.
“I…I’m sorry.” I paused. “I do want a baby, Isaac. Please give me a baby.”
Frustration was written on his face. “You don’t want a baby, Cydney. You want a man that you can boss around, hit on, reject and tell what to do.”
As Isaac continued to rant, I dropped my cotton robe to the floor. I stood naked and held out my arms for him to embrace me. He didn’t budge.
“Make love to me,” I asked while rubbing the waves in his hair. “Please take me in your arms and comfort me. I admit that I’ve made some mistakes too. I never wanted to reject you, and all I wanted was for you to feel my pain.”
While still on his knees, Isaac turned and looked my body up and down. He seemed shocked by my words and could barely move. I lifted my right leg and placed it on his strong shoulder.
“What’s the matter? You forgot how to make love to me?” I asked.
Isaac looked up at me and then the direction of his eyes shifted between my legs. He put his hands on my waistline, squeezing it. Feeling more of me, his hands lowered t
o my ass and softly touched my cheeks. He was gentle, and once he positioned my leg on his shoulder, I wasn’t prepared for what had happened next. Isaac’s curled tongue went inside of me and separated my neatly shaven wet slit. He swiped his tongue against my clit and his fingers went into me from my backside. As he rotated his fingers, there was no way possible for me to keep my balance. I stretched out on the floor then opened my legs wide to welcome him inside. Isaac got back to business, and I squirmed around like a slithering snake. My legs trembled from the tingling sensation inside and I was so ready to come. One thing I knew, though, was Isaac hated to put in all of the work. He wanted to be pleased too, and as he was in the midst of loving my insides with his tongue, I sat up and scooted backwards. All I had to do was look at him and he knew what I wanted to taste. He stepped out of his jeans and lay on his back. I straddled my legs across his face then maneuvered my head down low. His dick was thick, hard and scrumptious looking. With pleasure, I put it into my hungry mouth. I gave Isaac much pleasure, so much that he took a moment away from my insides to take tiny bites at my inner thighs.
“Ahhhh, baby, that feels good,” he complimented. “I love the way you make me feel. Daaaamn, I love this.”
Slurping sounds filled the closet, and I could feel his body getting tense. He never liked to come like this, so I lifted myself to cease my action. I remained straddled across his face and he held my thighs tightly over his face. He vibrated my insides with his deep tongue, and seconds later, I felt my juices starting to flow in his mouth. I pulled my hair and tightened my thighs on the sides of his face. The feeling was so good that a tear rolled from the corner of my eye.
“Isaac, I love you,” I whispered. “My pussy…we love you so much.”
Isaac to a second to say, “I love you too, but it’s time for this foreplay bullshit to come to an end. Can we please get the hell out of this closet?”
Having it my way, I lay on my back and positioned Isaac between my legs. “Sometimes,” I said, putting his dick inside of me. “We just have to go with the flow. You don’t want to take that out so we can go somewhere else, do you?”
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