I Can't Let Go

by Chenell Parker

  “What’s good Vee? When are you and Tino gonna try for another baby?” Koi, one of the girls who worked in her shop, asked.

  “Girl, I don’t even want to think about that right now. I’m just waiting until after Thanksgiving and Christmas to start planning our wedding,” Venus replied.

  “That ring is nice as fuck. And just think, you’ll be officially connected to Cardia for the rest of your life,” Koi instigated.

  “Fuck that bitch! It was because of her and her hoe ass friend that I lost my baby. I can’t wait to deal with them hoes. You need to hook up with Mell’s fine ass again. Make that bitch lose her mind like she did before,” Venus said.

  “I tried but that nigga was on some family shit. Cardia got him scared to look at a bitch now.” Koi shrugged.

  Koi was who Venus hooked up with Tino’s sister’s man. Cardia was always throwing Kimora up in every conversation and Venus was tired of her taking silent shots at her. Instead of stooping to her level, Venus decided to hit her where it hurt. She and Koi saw Mell out at the daiquiri shop one night and she introduced the two of them. They hit it off immediately and had been kicking it for months. Koi was really feeling him, but things went left when Cardia caught them together. Mell cut Koi off and Cardia had been having it out for Venus since then. She ended up hooking Tino up with one of her best friends months ago and they were still messing around. Venus followed him to the other woman’s house one day and that was how she found out.

  “His stupid ass.” Venus frowned.

  “Fuck Mell. I’m trying to see what’s up with Dirty. That nigga looks good as fuck.” Koi smiled while licking her heavily glossed lips.

  “I’ve been trying friend but he’s acting bad,” Venus said.

  “He keeps throwing that prison marriage in a bitch face as if I give a fuck,” Koi replied.

  “His stupid ass is being faithful to a bitch that’s not even on the streets. I could never.” Venus frowned.

  “Stop lying bitch. You wouldn’t cheat on Tino if he went to jail,” Koi pointed out, making Venus smile. Venus kept a lot of her business to herself but if only Koi knew.

  “I’m about to go grab something to eat. You want something?” Venus asked her.

  She had a taste for some taco soup and one of Val’s restaurants made the best. After taking Koi’s order, she called it in and was on her way to pick it up soon after. Thankfully, Val only owned the restaurants, but she didn’t work in them. Venus knew that her mother-in-law only tolerated her because she was pregnant. She was no fool and she knew that Val still hated her. She was cordial and that was good enough for her. Besides, Venus was about to be official, even though Tino didn’t tell his parents about their engagement yet.

  “Hey girl. I came to pick up my order,” Venus said when she walked in and was greeted by the hostess.

  “Hey Venus. Sorry to hear about your baby. How is Tino?” the hostess asked her.

  “Thanks, and he’s fine. He’s in Miami,” Venus replied. She was hoping that her man came home before Thanksgiving. She didn’t really have anyone besides Zoe, and she was tired of intruding on her and her family during the holidays. She was sure that Zoe’s husband was tired of it, but he loved Zoe too much to complain.

  “Here you go Venus. Enjoy,” the hostess smiled as she handed her a bag of food.

  “Thanks girl. See you later,” Venus replied as she walked out of the restaurant. As soon as she opened the door, she frowned when she saw Tino’s cousin, Franco, about to enter. Out of all the Lopez men that she had ever been with, she regretted being with Franco the most. He was generous with his money, but Venus worked hard as fuck for whatever she got from him.

  “What’s good Vee?” Franco smirked when he saw her.

  “Hey,” Venus replied as she tried to go around him.

  “Why the dry greeting? Is that any way to treat your potential baby daddy?” Franco laughed.

  Venus cringed when he said that because she regretted making such a stupid decision. She slipped up and fucked Franco again when Tino went to Miami. She had just found out about another one of Tino’s side bitches and she was in her feelings. When she saw Franco out at the club one night, he rented them a room and fucked Venus like she was nothing more than a hoe on the streets.

  “You were not my baby’s father,” Venus said.

  “I guess it doesn’t matter now. You saved me a lot of time and money,” Franco replied with a shrug.

  When Venus first told him that she was pregnant, he told her to get rid of it. When she refused, he threatened to have somebody beat it out of her. Venus swore that the baby belonged to Tino, but she wasn’t sure. Their family features ran deep, so no one would have questioned paternity. Franco claimed to love Amari so much but that didn’t stop him from having a bunch of hoes. He told Venus that he wasn’t going to let her ruin his marriage, but he was doing a good job of that all on his own. Franco only cheated on his wife so that he could do things with other women that he would never ask Amari to do. She was the mother of his kids and he thought too highly of her.

  Just like all the other Lopez men, he loved hard. He didn’t want his wife to swallow his babies. He wanted her to give birth to them the right way. Venus didn’t mind swallowing. She had done it more times than she could count. It was the way Franco did it that she hated. He didn’t like to nut in her mouth. He preferred to unload in a cup instead. That nasty bastard literally liked to see women drink his cum. It was disgusting but that shit turned him on more than anything.

  “Move out of my way Franco,” Venus said as she pushed him. He didn’t budge and the humorous look on his face was starting to piss her off.

  “I heard that my cousin went to Miami to visit our uncle. I can have a room booked in less than an hour. You know I pay very well,” Franco said as he pulled a wad of money from his pockets.

  “Fuck you!” Venus hissed.

  “That’s what I’m trying to do. I’m sure my cousin won’t mind. It’s not like we’ve never shared women before. You’re a toss-up Vee. He’ll never wife a bitch who’s been passed through half the men in his family,” Franco said, making her feel low.

  “Well, I guess you don’t know your cousin as well as you think you do,” Venus said as she flashed her engagement ring.

  “That means nothing to me and I’m sure that it means even less to Tino. You’re not the one Vee. You wouldn’t even be in the picture if Kimora was still around. I mean, I don’t blame him for keeping you around after how well you took care of him. Tino is young with his whole life ahead of him. Why would he want to marry a woman who can’t even give him kids?” Franco questioned as her eyes filled with tears.

  He hated to be so harsh with her, but it was true. It was a conversation that the family often had amongst themselves when Tino wasn’t around. Val was his father’s baby sister and she often voiced her concerns. She wanted grandkids and she was almost sure that Venus couldn’t give them to her. She missed Kimora just as much as her son did, but she had been gone for a while now.

  “Fuck you Franco! You’re calling me a toss-up, but you used to lie to your wife just to fuck me. You were throwing more money at me in a day than I made in a month,” Venus snapped angrily.

  “See, that’s your whole problem. You think money equates to feelings. Tino copped you a Jag and that made you think that he was in love with you. We’re Lopez men baby. Money is nothing to us. And trust me, my wife is good. You think she gives a fuck if I leave her in an eight-bedroom mansion for an hour to go fuck somebody else? A pair of her shoes cost more than what I gave you. Don’t flatter yourself though. You’re only one of many. If you don’t want the money, I know a few others who do.” Franco shrugged as he walked away.

  He didn’t know it, but he’d successfully made Venus feel like shit. True, his wife lived like a queen. Just like Zoe’s husband, Franco dished out thousands to get his wife’s body right after she had their kids. She was dark skinned with perfectly white teeth and a perfect body to match. Unlik
e most of their family, Amari didn’t look down on Venus the way they did. She had Jamaican roots and her family grew up dirt poor. They all said that she was crazy, but Venus didn’t see that side of her. Amari was always nice when she talked to her and it was never forced. That was the only reason why Venus felt bad for messing with her husband.

  Tears fell down her cheeks as Venus sat in her car and thought about everything that Franco had just said. She wondered how things would play out if she was never able to give Tino kids. He obviously didn’t care about that and the ring on her finger was proof of that. Still, Venus needed some reassurance. She picked up her phone and dialed Tino’s number. When he didn’t answer, Venus sent him a text asking him to call her back. She had to get the ball rolling on planning their wedding. She didn’t need her man to start looking at her like the rest of his family did. At this point, Venus didn’t even care about having a big wedding. She only wanted the man. She just prayed that things changed and she was able to give him a baby soon. If not, she was sure that a lot of other women wouldn’t mind doing it for her.

  “ I want chicken tenders and fries and cake and nuggets,” Santina said as she talked Kimora to death.

  They were on their way to surprise Hassan at his office and take him out to lunch. Santina’s school called all the parents to pick up their kids because of a water pipe burst. The city had to turn all the water off in the area and Kimora had just picked her up.

  “Okay baby,” Kimora replied, just to shut her up.

  “When is uncle Prince coming back mommy?” Santina asked.

  “I don’t know, hopefully soon,” Kimora answered.

  Prince had made an impromptu visit to see them, but he only stayed for two days. He claimed that he had some important business to handle and he would be back soon. Kimora wanted to spend Thanksgiving with him since he didn’t have any family. Since the holiday was only four days away, she seriously doubted if he was coming back before then. Al hated Carmel and he hadn’t been back to visit since he left. Their mother was flying back to New Orleans the day before the holiday and Kimora wished that she could go with her. She missed everything about New Orleans, but she wasn’t in a hurry to return. Especially if it meant running into Tino and his family.

  When they walked into the office, all eyes were on Kimora as usual. She smiled and waved at everyone as she made her way back to Hassan’s office.

  “Hello,” Kimora said as she smiled at Hassan’s new secretary. That was her first time meeting the other woman since he hired her.

  “Hi, Kimora, right?” the woman smiled.

  “Yes, I’m Kimora. And you are?” Kimora asked.

  “I’m Harmony. And this beauty right here must be Santina. Hassan talks about the two of you all the time. Besides, his office is full of your pictures.” Harmony smiled.

  “Well, it’s nice to meet you Harmony. We’re just coming to take the boss out to lunch,” Kimora replied as she and Santina walked away.

  Hassan was on the phone when they walked into his office, but he smiled brightly when he saw them. He hurriedly wrapped up his call and gave them his undivided attention.

  “Seeing the two of you is the best thing that’s happened to me all day,” Hassan said as he stood up from his desk.

  “We came to bring you out to lunch daddy!” Santina yelled as he picked her up.

  “That’s even better because I’m starving,” he replied as he kissed Kimora.

  “You okay boo?” Kimora asked him.

  “Yeah, I’m just drained. Between trying to run things here and helping my pops with his reelection campaign, I don’t have enough hours in the day,” Hassan sighed.

  “Aww, you need a drink,” Kimora said while rubbing his back.

  “And a little bit of you,” he whispered as he kissed her cheek. He’d taken his medicine for the past two days and Kimora had no complaints. She felt bad when he got sick afterwards, but she was happy for the much-needed release.

  “Let’s go because I’m hungry too,” Kimora replied as they left the office.

  As soon as they walked out of the building, Hassan’s father called. Kimora cringed when he invited his parents out to lunch with them because his father got under her skin. He was an arrogant bastard who bragged about every little thing. He was a big deal in Carmel and lots of people respected him. Hudson was on a first name basis with a lot of higher ups and he always got what he wanted.

  “Look at my beautiful grandbaby. Come here and give your grandpa a hug,” Hudson said as soon as they got out of the car. He and his wife were already at the restaurant waiting for them out front. Santina ran over and jumped into his arms before they all walked in and were seated.

  “I want cake,” Santina said excitedly.

  “No, you need food,” Kimora replied.

  “That’s grandpa’s big girl. She can have whatever she wants,” Hudson said as he and his wife smiled at Santina.

  “She’s not getting cake before she eats,” Kimora noted as she looked at him fearlessly. She didn’t give a damn about the hold that he had on everyone else. He had her all the way fucked up.

  “The election is looking good son,” Hudson said, deciding to change the subject.

  “Yeah, it is,” Hassan replied.

  “There was never any doubt in my mind. I mean, nobody is foolish enough to run against Hudson Forbes. Carmel belongs to me,” Hudson said as he raised his glass for a toast.

  “That’s right but let’s not forget about our baby. Hassan has been doing a great job of running the insurance company all by himself,” Elaine said.

  “That’s right. I’m proud of you, son. The king and prince of Carmel.” Hudson smiled, making Hassan smile too.

  They raised their glasses in a toast as Kimora tried not to look as annoyed as she felt. She was happy that they’d already placed their orders and she was hoping that they didn’t take too long with the food. Between Elaine making out over Hassan and Hudson gloating about the election, Kimora was ready to go. Santina was playing a game on her phone, so she didn’t even have anything to keep her occupied.

  “Yay! My chicken tenders!” Santina yelled when the food came out. Kimora was happy because everyone at the table was finally silent. After a while, Santina started talking and all the attention was on her. Then, as usual, Elaine opened her mouth and dominated the entire conversation.

  “We’re having everything catered so you guys don’t need to bring anything,” Elaine said.

  “What’s wrong baby?” Hassan asked when he touched Kimora’s hand.

  “Nothing, I’m good.” Kimora smiled.

  “My mama was talking to us about Thanksgiving and you zoned out,” Hassan replied. That part was true, and she had tuned them out a long time ago. They were done eating and she didn’t understand why they were still sitting there.

  “Yeah, we’re doing it big this year. We’re having a few of Hudson’s colleagues over and we’re having everything catered. It’s going to be an event to remember,” Elaine gushed.

  “One that will secure my spot at the top of the reelection ballot.” Hudson smiled.

  “No, the benefit dinner will be the event to do that,” Elaine noted, right as Kimora’s phone rang.

  “It’s my cousin Autumn!” Tina yelled when Autumn’s picture popped up. It was rude but Kimora didn’t care. She needed a distraction, so she took the phone from her daughter and answered.

  “Hey cousin,” Kimora said when she picked up.

  “Kimora! You and Nita need to get here now! Al and Prince got shot up!” Autumn said, making Kimora’s heart drop.

  “Oh God! Are they okay? Please tell me that they’re okay,” Kimora said as tears fell from her eyes.

  “I don’t know. Me and grandma are on our way to the hospital now. They had me and you as the emergency contacts for Prince, but your number changed so they called me. I don’t know if they called Nita or not but y’all need to get here. Grandma didn’t want to tell her something like that over the phone,” Aut
umn said.

  “Okay cousin. I’m going over there now. Keep your phone on. We’ll be there as soon as I can book us a flight,” Kimora promised as she jumped up from her seat.

  “Is everything okay baby?” Hassan asked.

  “No, I need to go back to New Orleans. My brother and Prince got shot up,” Kimora replied as she grabbed Santina’s hand.

  “Oh Lord,” Elaine said as she dramatically grabbed her chest.

  Hassan rushed Kimora out of the restaurant and straight to her mother’s house. She was sure that Nita hadn’t gotten the call because she would have been calling her if she had. When they pulled up, Kimora was happy to see that both her mother and father’s cars were parked in the driveway. She grabbed Santina and rushed into the house as Hassan sat in the car and tried to get them on the next flight out. Since it was last minute, he knew that the tickets were about to cost a grip.