by Kiki Swinson
distraught. My worst fear had been confirmed. Duke was cheating on me! I didn’t want to believe it,
but now it al made sense. The day I had gone into Saks with him, Caroline’s old white ass laughed at
me. She knew I was one of many stupid ass women who fel for Duke Carrington’s shit. Things were
starting to slip fast.
I sat in my car for at least an hour before I could final y drive. The first place I went when I left the
mal parking lot was to CVS. I needed to find out why al of a sudden I was so sick
.
Cheaper to Keep Her Unique
Chapter 15—Damn, Damn, Damn
I raced back to the condo feeling and looking a mess.
With my little pharmacy bag in hand, I went into the bathroom and fumbled out of my jeans. I sat
on the toilet and ripped open the smal box. My heart was hammering so fast I was almost out of
breath. I pul ed out the little white test stick and forced my urine out in a fast stream. I put the stick
between my legs and when I thought I’d gotten enough piss on it, I set it on the side of the sink.
I was so nervous I started gnawing on my fake nail tips. “C’mon . . . c’mon,” I urged, staring at the
test. As if my utterances would make the results appear faster. The little window that turns pink when
it was time to read the test results seemed to take forever. Final y, it was completely pink, which
meant, it was time to read the results.
I inhaled deeply and picked up the little device. This was the new and improved test . . . the one
that showed the words pregnant or not pregnant so there was no mistaking the results. And for sure,
there was damn sure no mistaking what the capital letters read . . . PREGNANT.
I cupped my hand over my mouth. I didn’t know whether to feel happy or sad. A baby! A fucking
baby! Me, a mother! Damn, damn, damn!
Al kinds of thoughts invaded my head. The final thought was that this could only be a good thing.
Although Duke and I hadn’t been together long, he had taken care of me and I knew he wouldn’t turn
his back on his own baby. He didn’t have any kids or so I hoped. I figured a baby would make him
very happy. Maybe this was what he needed to bring him home at nights and make him spend more
time with me. Maybe if I gave him his only child, he would final y marry me. With that in mind I grew
excited. This baby would be the best thing for our relationship. I told myself. I was excited.
I walked around the condo touching my stomach over and over again. I kept playing what I would
say to Duke repeatedly in my mind. I definitely wasn’t going to tel him over the phone. I would cal him
and tel him I needed to see him right away. I could just envision him snatching me up in a big bear hug
and whirling me around. I was thinking he would shower my face with kisses and tel me to sit down,
because he didn’t want anything to happen to his precious baby.
The thoughts made me so antsy, I was going to cal Duke and interrupt whatever he was doing.
Yeah! That was what I decided to do. I could hardly contain my excitement as I dialed his cel phone
number. I gripped my cel phone tighter and tighter each time Duke’s phone rang on the other end
without an answer. My stomach was in knots now. A feeling of dread and disappointment washed
over me.
Then I heard his voicemail. “This muthafucka is ignoring my cal s!” I screamed out loud. I ran my
shaking hands through my hair. “He better answer this fucking time!” I dialed the number again. This
time it went straight to voicemail. “Ok, maybe he is trying to cal me back,” I reasoned.
I hung up my phone and stared at it, waiting to see if Duke’s cal back would come through. I kept
looking at the phone. With each minute that passed my blood pressure went higher and higher. I was
fucking fuming mad now. “How does this bastard know if I’m cal ing for an emergency or not!” I
screamed out.
I cal ed Duke’s number back again. It immediately went to voicemail. That meant he turned his
phone off. After he saw my missed cal , he had the nerve to turn his phone off. I threw my cel phone
down on the floor and tossed the pregnancy test into the trash. My happy moment had once again
faded to black. Without Duke, there was nothing to be fucking happy about.
After cal ing Duke’s phone at least a dozen more times, I must have dozed off because I was
startled by my cel phone’s loud ringing. I jumped up and looked around. I was on the floor in front of
the bed, where I must’ve cried myself to sleep. I went and picked up my phone. It had already
stopped ringing. I knew it was Duke cal ing to tel me he was sorry for not answering my cal s.
To my great disappointment, when I looked at my cel the screen read Diamond. I sucked my
teeth. But I guess she would do. I pressed send to cal her back. She answered on the first ring.
Diamond was screaming into the phone almost breathless. I couldn’t understand her at first, but then I
heard his name.
Diamond had said Duke’s name in the same sentence with the words . . . another bitch. With my
phone to my ear I raced towards the condo door.
Cheaper to Keep Her Unique
Chapter 16—Too Many Hoes
The tears were rol ing down my face like waterfal s during my entire drive.
I drove with reckless abandon. I was speeding like a madwoman and I cut off more than one
driver. When I final y pul ed my car into the Magic City parking lot, I couldn’t put it in park fast enough. I
stormed through the club’s doors and stopped. I moved my head left to right scanning for Duke’s ass.
My chest was heaving up and down and I was no longer upset, I was in a blind fucking rage. Final y, I
saw Diamond rushing towards me. She had her hands out as if she was going to try to stop me.
“Wait, Lynise . . . wait!” Diamond cautioned me.
“No, fuck that Diamond! Where is he?” I screamed over the loud music.
“Let me just calm you down first. I don’t want you to—” Diamond tried reasoning.
“Move!” I cut her off and pushed past her.
I knew right away where the fuck Duke was at. She didn’t have to tel me. I stalked towards the
champagne room. I could hardly breathe. I could hear Diamond running behind me. It was too late for
al of that. I snatched the door open and I gasped at what I saw. I could see Duke sitting back on one
of the leather sofas and the ass cheeks of the new stripper Diamond had told me about named
Christa. She was standing on the couch straddling Duke’s face. He had his hands on her ass pushing
her towards his open mouth. This muthfucka was actual y eating the pussy of a strange bitch! How
fucking dare he! I was the one kissing him on the mouth. I had never been in that position with Duke. It
was always straight up and down hardcore fucking.
I felt as if I was going to stop breathing. My vision became completely clouded with red. I clenched
my fists together and I charged straight for them.
“Arrggghh! You muthafuckin’ liar!” I screeched as I moved forward. I felt like I was possessed by
the devil. The girl whipped her head around and screamed when she saw me coming straight for her,
but it was too fucking late.
I snatched that bitch off the sofa by her long hair, which was a wig and it came right off. She was
so shocked she didn’t have time to break her fal or keep her wig on. She landed on the floor on her
naked ass. I reached down and grabb
ed the little patch of real hair she had slicked back to put her
wig on. With one hand I held onto Christa’s real hair and with the other hand I started pounding her in
the face. She tried to grab my hair but I was wailing on her ass so hard she couldn’t see to grab my
long ponytail.
“Lynise! Oh my God!” Diamond screamed out.
But I wasn’t letting go of the bitch. I couldn’t, no, I wouldn’t let this bitch or any other bitch
disrespect me.
Duke was busy trying to fix himself. The asshole had also begun taking his dick out of his pants
when I caught him. His shit was literal y open around his waist. I guess he was going to fuck the bitch
too. The girl was screaming but I wasn’t letting her go and I continued banging her in her face. Final y, I
felt Duke grab me around my waist.
“Lynise, stop this shit! She ain’t do shit to you!” he barked at me, final y able to pry me off his little
nasty bitch. I had her hair al tangled around my hands and my knuckles ached from hitting her. I was
out of breath and sweaty.
Perspiration donned my body from head to toe. Plus, I was stil beyond pissed off. My reflexes
made keen and I was stil in kick-somebody’s-ass mode.
“Oh, you gon’ defend this bitch! Fuck you! You a nasty bastard! Al that shit you talked about not
being the strip club type of nigga! You’re a fucking liar!” I screamed until my voice started cracking.
Duke let me go with a shove and I went stumbling. It was as if he was dismissing me. “Lynise, go
home. I’l be there when I can,” he said calmly, putting his hands up in a talk to the hand kind of motion.
This bastard had the audacity to act cool and try to send me away like I was a child.
“Fuck you asshole! You’re a dirty muthafucka! You think I don’t know about the bitches in Saks
and al that too, right? You piece of shit! You whack dick nigga!” I was trying to find any words that
would make him feel even close to the amount of humiliation and hurt I felt.
“You hide behind your money and your fancy cars! But you ain’t shit!” I continued my rant. “You
come from shit and you ain’t never gon’ be shit! You gotta buy pussy! You think any of these bitches
would give you the time of day if you was that same ’hood trash you were born as!” I was throwing
his personal secrets he had confided in me during some of our dinner dates back in his face in public.
I just wanted him to feel as embarrassed as I did.
Duke grabbed my face roughly. “Shut your fucking mouth!” he hissed. There was a crowd in the
champagne room now. The security guards were trying to level with me to get me to leave. I wasn’t
having it.
“Your mama didn’t want you! That’s why you gotta buy women!” I continued, mumbling as he put
pressure on my face. That was the last straw for Duke. He grabbed me by my hair and started
dragging me from the club. Diamond was screaming for him to let me go. The security guards knew
Duke and evidently knew him wel , because they just let him drag me as if I was a rag dol . I should
have realized then how big his ass was in the eyes of many, but a woman scorn is a woman who
can’t think straight in the heat of the moment.
“Get off of me! Owww!” I cried out in pain. Duke continued dragging me out the door. When we got
outside he pushed me down to the ground right in the dirt of the parking lot. I was on my knees
screaming and crying. Al of my former co-workers from the club were outside watching the drama.
Duke lifted his foot and kicked dirt on me. The dusty dry earth got on my face and in my hair, on my
hands and knees. I started coughing and crying even harder.
“I picked you up from the gutter and the dirt, and bitch, I wil send you right back if you ever
disrespect me in public again. Now take your needy, funky ass home!” Duke spat, kicking me in the
ass.
“Aggghhhhhh!” I screamed as I tried to pul myself off the ground. I didn’t even have the strength to
move. I actual y felt as if I wanted to die rather than live with the utter embarrassment and shame I
was feeling.
Diamond came over to me. “C’mon on, Lynise. I’m sorry about al of this. I can’t believe this
nigga,” Diamond consoled as she helped me get to my feet. I grabbed onto her and just sobbed
uncontrol ably. Not only was I humiliated at how Duke had treated me in front of my co-workers, I was
left with the reality that I was pregnant by him, a man who had no regard for women.
Diamond came back to the condo with me and helped me clean myself up. That’s when I told her I
was pregnant.
“Oh no, Lynise. After what happened tonight you need to be heading to the chop shop and getting
that baby out of you,” Diamond said flatly. I knew if it were under any other circumstances, she would
have been very happy for me.
“How can you say that Diamond? He cheated yes, but he doesn’t know about the baby yet.
When I tel him, it might change things between us,” I said, dabbing tears from my eyes.
“Do what you want, Lynise, but bringing another life into a fucked up situation is a big decision,”
Diamond began her lecture. “This nigga just cheated on you in a public place. Then he kicked dirt on
you, literal y and kicked you in the ass. Obviously, he is not the man you thought he was . . . a real man
ain’t gon’ do no shit like that.”
I couldn’t even look at her because her words were driving a knife in my heart.
“Just remember our fucked up childhoods with no good ass fathers,” Diamond reminded me.
She had a point.
But I was stil holding onto hope that once Duke knew about the baby he would come around. I
was real y thinking that as soon as he knew he would make me his wifey.
Diamond made sure I was al right and then she got ready to leave. I gave her a long hard hug
and thanked her for everything. When she left, my feelings went from sorrow to straight unadulterated
anger. I kept playing the club scene over and over in my mind. I was stupid repeating the worst day of
life in my mind. That thought coupled with me replaying the voice of the old bitch ass saleswoman at
Saks mocking me made me feel even worse.
I stormed into the den, unlocked Duke’s desk and took even more money out of his lock box.
Usual y, I would only take a few of the bil s from the middle so he wouldn’t real y notice, but this time, I
said fuck him and took two whole stacks of money. I was sure it had to be at least a couple of
thousand dol ars. I also picked up some of his business papers, household bil s and some business
contacts. I took al the stuff and stashed it away in a secure place amongst my things.
Just as I finished hiding everything, I was startled by the condo door slamming. I jumped and
rushed over to the bed before Duke could come into the room. “Shit,” I huffed under my breath
thinking that was a very close cal . I wasn’t expecting Duke to come to the condo after everything that
had happened. I was sure he would leave me in the condo alone for the night.
Duke came into the room and headed straight for the bathroom. At first, I tried to wil myself to
stay calm, but my emotions got the best of me. I couldn’t keep it together any longer. I didn’t know if it
was my hormones from being pregnant or what, but I busted out crying in the bed. I got up and tried
to go into the bathroom to talk to Duke but he had locked the door. I began ba
nging on the door and
screaming for Duke to open it.
“Duke, how could you do this to me!” I roared through my tears. “I gave up everything for you! You
humiliated me! I can’t believe you!” My throat was burning from screaming so much.
Final y, he opened the door. I looked at him out of my red, swol en eyes. His facial expression was
like stone. “Lynise, if you ever embarrass me like that again in public, you wil be out of my life. I wil
not tolerate that bul shit drama. I’m not up for it,” he said al nice and calm.
I was stunned at what he said to me. It took a minute for his words to register in my mind. And his
stone-faced expression was intimidating. But I stood my ground.
“How could you act like I did something to you!” I screamed through more tears. “You were fucking
cheating on me in the place I used to work! In front of al my friends and former co-workers!”
“I thought you were ready to move on,” he replied. “What’s done is done. I don’t want to hear al of
this bul shit screaming and crying. I thought fucking with you was gonna be drama free. I thought you
were a real woman and could handle a real man. I guess not. I gotta go.”
His words real y cut like a dagger through my fragile heart. I bent over and cried some more. It felt
like he had actual y stabbed me in the heart. “How could you!” I wailed. I had fal en to my knees again.
My legs were too weak to stand.
“Grow up Lynise. Or get your own shit and get the fuck outta mine. Oh wait, you can’t because
you ain’t got shit . . . everything you got I gave you. If you want to keep it that way then stay the fuck
out of my way and just go with the flow.”
With that, he exited the room and slammed the front door behind him.
I fel back on the bed and let the tears run. I stil hadn't been able to tel him that I was carrying his
child. One part of me wanted to pack up my shit and leave.
I didn’t know if I could just accept Duke’s blatant disrespect, but another part of me was
convinced that when I broke the good news to him about our baby he would jump for joy and final y
put a ring on it.
Cheaper to Keep Her Unique
Chapter 17—It Ain’t Personal
I woke up the next morning to a ringing phone.
