by Eden Fortae
“What do you want with her?” He glanced at his watch and raised a large brown envelope.
“I’m here on behalf of my client—your father. If I could come in, I’d like to go over some documents with you.”
With the chain still in place, Eden opened the door as much as it would allow. There, she took in the undistorted facial features. Nothing changed about the man who’d used to slip her candy. He still wore a friendly smile, his wavy hair cut close, and his goatee still had that singular patch of gray in it. Seeing him now brought back all her childish wishes of waking up with him as a dad. Then she remembered that he, too, witnessed the unfair treatment and did nothing to help.
“Long time, baby bird. You ok?” His concern prompted Eden to duck her head behind the door and wipe her face one last time.
“Yeah. You said my dad sent you?”
Once he finished staring, he held up the envelope once again. “Actually, his manager asked me to come by and review this with you. Your father consented.”
“Kenneth? Consented to what?”
“A Non-Disclosure Agreement. Your brother-in-law is concerned that your return to New York may generate interest in an unfavorable manner for your father. If you have a minute, I can go over what this means for you.”
If she didn’t already feel shitty, hearing that they believed she only came home to cause trouble would have been a gut punch.
“It means they want to silence me,” she whispered, feeling the sting of new tears threatening to push forward. “I’m not signing anything.” She retorted and closed the door. Locked and secured, Eden went back to the room, needing the shower to cover her emotions. Along the way, she stepped over her phone as it buzzed on the floor. Eve wouldn’t give up. She kept calling despite the rejected calls and voicemail. The one text she read led to the phone being stored under her pillow. When it landed on the floor, she didn’t know and didn’t care.
Typically, Eden would avoid the mirror until the steam from her shower had the chance to work its magic. This time, she found herself staring at her reflection after removing her interview clothes.
The eyes people often complimented were puffy and red. Streaks of black from the makeup she neglected to remove, marked the journey of her tears. Her hair was a tangled mess, partially stuck to the side of her face.
What she saw in the reflective glass was what she worked so hard to hide. What she saw was who she didn’t want to be. That girl needed approval and acceptance. That girl sought validation but found a world of hurt.
Feeling the onset of tears, Eden hurried into the shower. Instead of changing the water settings, she welcomed the sting of the blistering stream to redirect the pain.
“I shouldn’t have come back,” she repeatedly whispered until her thoughts turned to Kya. It was just a matter of time before everything came out. Before the truth snuffed out what was left of their friendship.
“Run away and play victim,” she mumbled until she was practically screaming. Absently, she washed up, careless to the fact that her skin was red and angry from scrubbing too hard.
By the time she dried herself off and dressed, she felt worse. The desire to hop on the next flight to Atlanta weighed heavily on her heart. Kya didn’t need her anymore. With her achievements and newfound family, she’d lose nothing.
As Eden was about to climb back into bed with her vibrator, the sound of her phone still buzzing brought about irritation. She ignored it the first three times, but when the bell from a new text echoed, she snatched it up.
She expected to see her feelings being minimized further, to be called sensitive, and overdramatic but was met with something else.
Buenos días hermosa. You should send me a pic for contact.
Eden’s stomach tightened as warmth passed through her. This was the first time he deviated from his standard text, and she couldn’t ignore it. Replying her first thought, there was a slight shift in her mood.
What are we...13?
His response, a smirking emoji made her smile. With it, a picture obviously was stolen from Kya’s Instagram. It was a then-and-now post. In one, teenage Eden and Kya were wearing matching pajamas posed and duck lips. The new picture was a selfie they squeezed in between the excitement and distractions the night they reunited.
This is my favorite. You and Kya look like trouble back then and a fucking headache now.
She laughed, covering her mouth despite being alone.
Idk if I should thank you or curse you out. Figures you’d steal a pic just like you stole my number.
Several seconds later, her phone rang. Suddenly there were butterflies in her stomach, and her hands were trembling. Shaking it off, she answered before the call was missed, gathering her pillows as she slid back to the headboard.
“I’m curious to know what part of my last text made you think it was ok to call me?” She heard him laugh lightly before he spoke.
“The part where you answered my call. If you didn’t want to hear from me, I suspect you wouldn’t have bothered to respond to me at all.”
He had her there. The thought of ignoring him this time hadn’t crossed her mind. Too amused, she reacted without thinking, and that was a problem.
“Hmm. What can I help you with, Donovan?”
“I can think of a few things…”
“Good-bye, Donovan.”
“I’m joking!” He laughed again, sparking a new set of tingles and an unintentional smile.
“Sure, you were. Why are you even up this early on a Saturday?”
“I’m up at four everyday to workout. Working right now. You were on my mind. I figured I’d reach out and ask for some of your time.”
The answer was no. It had to be. “And what would you do with said time?”
“You know, take you to McDonald’s, let you supersize, then take you to the cheapest motel I can find and make you pay it back.”
“I think you like it when I tell you good-bye.”
“You could read tax law to me, and I’d enjoy it because it’s you. I like your voice, your facial expressions, and–”
“Flirting with me.”
“Loveeeee that.” He dragged his words, causing a stir within her. The butterflies were flapping away, making it hard to keep still. She’d gone from leaning against the headboard with her knees to her chest to laying on her side, cradling a pillow.
“Why is that? My resistance has to be annoying.”
“I can explain it better over dinner.”
“I have dinner plans already. Nice try, though.”
The pause after that caused her stomach to flip. He’d been quick on his feet throughout the entire conversation and suddenly seemed at a loss. For reasons she couldn’t explain, she added, “Girls night. I’m helping Kya unpack and meeting Karrina.”
“ǃAye dios mío! You’re mine. Tell her that.”
Her brows rose as she sat up, bringing the pillow with her. “You keep saying that.”
“Where’s the lie?”
Laughter was the last thing she expected, yet all she could do. “All of it is a lie, Donovan. We discussed this. We’re not even good friends yet.”
“Exactly why you should let me take you to lunch.”
“First, it was dinner.”
“Gotta keep shooting until I make the shot.”
“You’re never going to make it.”
“We’ll see. I guess I’ll get some work done and wait for Kya to post more pictures I can screenshot.”
“You have no shame.”
“You like that?”
“I’m amused.”
“Good. That means I’m one step closer.”
“To?” She was back to sitting with her knees to her chest, absently wiggling her toes.
“You’ll see.”
“I hate surprises.”
“You’ll love mine. Anyway, enjoy your day and have fun tonight. Don’t be surprised if I crash and kidnap you.”
“From what I hear, Karrina will kick your ass.”
&
nbsp; “As long as I get to see you first.”
“Good-bye, Romeo.”
His laughter sent the butterflies into one last frenzy, “Later, Edy.”
She kept the phone to her ear, waiting for the call to end, and when it didn’t, she heard him laugh again. “So you’re going to listen to me breathe, like a creep?
“You have an End button just like I do.”
“Hang up, Donovan.”
“Why haven’t you?”
“You called me, you hang up.”
“So that's how it works? I just learned something.”
“You’re stalling.”
“You are, too.”
Masterfully masking her amusement, Eden kept her voice calm. “Ok, we hang up on three.”
“Who’s counting?”
“Donovan!” Her smile was breaking through. As if he could see her, she pulled her lips inward then released them with a heavy sigh. “If you don’t end this call on the count of three, I will.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“One...Two…”
“You even count cute.”
“How does someone count cute—never mind. One…Two...”
“Three. Adiós hermosa.”
“Bye.”
After a few seconds, she heard muffled laughter and ended the call. Dropping her phone on the bed, Eden shook her head. Not even a full minute later, it was going off again. When she picked it up, she noticed a new text from Eve accompanied by four more sent during the call.
So invested in the conversation, she missed the notifications. So impacted by their moment, she was able to delete her sister’s texts and put the fallout behind her without being triggered.
Going back to Donny’s text, she saved the number, reading the small thread a few more times, no longer fighting a smile.
The time was set for five, but Eden arrived early. Any time spent with Kya was time spent outside of her mind. Despite all her trials, Kya still had a kind spirit. Being around her was like seeing the sun after days of rain. The simplest things initiated laughter, drowning out the earlier thoughts. When the conversation turned serious, they found themselves jumping topics and laughing again.
Sitting on the floor, unpacking books and photo albums, Antonio came up, and Kya’s mood changed. It began with their meeting at her mother’s funeral, detailed their father’s feud, and left nothing out. When they reached the part about Karrina, there was no surprise their friendship survived.
“You’ve always been forgiving, Kya. In this case, it’s good you were.”
“Being forgiving is how I ended up with a broken heart that still longs for the man responsible.”
“I knew you still loved him. You have this look on your face whenever he’s mentioned.”
Kya’s eyes lowered to her glass of wine. When she looked up, they were teary. “I don’t know how to stop, Edy. He ended things. That hurt, but I envision him crying for me at the hospital, and it doesn’t make sense. I tell myself that if he cared, he’d show me. Then he sends gifts, and I kick myself for using that to keep loving him.” She laughed, but Eden wasn’t fooled. “This is the first time I’ve said it out loud.”
Scooting across the carpet, she brought Kya’s head to her shoulder, rubbing her back as she cried harder.
“I met with Eve yesterday. She blamed me for our family’s issues, so I left and have been ignoring her since. I could block her and end it once and for all, but I haven’t. Although it’s not the same, I think we’re both hoping things will right themselves.”
“How can she blame you when you were the one treated differently?”
“How could he walk away from you after you loved him?—bullshit, and all? He’s crazy.”
Kya lifted her head, “Of course you’d say that. You love me.”
“Yeah, but he said he wanted to kill you, and you fell in love anyway. You’re crazy, too.”
Kya climbed to her feet, pinching Eden along the way. “Thanks, Edy.”
“For? I’m serious about that shit. You should design yourself a jacket that makes you hug yourself.”
“Right after I put you in a banging dress for my auction,” Kya beamed as she retrieved her phone from the counter.
“Is that your way of telling me I better be there?”
“Yes.”
“Pushy bitch,” she joined her in the kitchen to top their glasses.
“Damn right. Speaking of, I’m going to introduce you to Maxine Foster. She’ll get you the exposure you deserve.”
“Kya, no.”
“Yes.”
“No. I appreciate it, but I don’t want you to exhaust your resources and pull strings for me. When it’s my time, things will go my way. Until then, I’ll put up with modeling my own shit and keep trying to get in with an established company.”
“But why, Edy? You have what it takes to be so much more than an employee. They’ll stifle your creativity and undervalue your talent.”
“Probably, but experience matters. That’s one of the reasons I decided to go to Atlanta. I thought I could link up with a label, design for them, and pad my resume, but no one took me seriously until I took my clothes off. Even then, the doors that opened led to places I didn’t want to go. Essentially, the only upside to being there was being so far away from people who couldn’t stop scrutinizing me long enough to love me.”
“Alright,” Kya leaned her hip against the counter with her arms crossed. “Tell me exactly what you want.” Her somber tone set Eden back a few paces. Rarely was she asked what she wanted.
“To be like everyone else. To not be the center of attention or subject of a conversation until I’ve earned a reason to be proud of myself.”
By the time she concluded, Kya was staring at her with glossy eyes, and her lips pulled inward. Wordlessly, she came over and wrapped her in a hug that made them both shed a tear that ended with laughter once more.
“We’re turning into crybabies like Rina.” On cue, the doorbell rang. Quickly, Kya wiped Eden’s eyes, then her own as she made her way to the front door. To be on the safe side, Eden used the sleeve of her sweater to pat her face.
“Really, Rina?”
“What? We were coming in at the same time. I paid for the pizza and grabbed a slice as a reward for taking the stairs and not telling the old judgemental bitch across the hall to kiss my ass. Progress.”
Eden heard her before she saw her. The slight rasp of her voice denoted a fiery side. The way she beamed when she rounded the corner belly first with two cardboard boxes practically on top of it spoke of a likeness Eden felt immediately.
“Well shit. Hi, I’m Rina.” The boxes and half-eaten slice were passed to Kya as the female equivalent to Antonio Cortes extended her hand, shamelessly looking Eden over.
“Eden. I’ve heard so much about you and your family.”
“As I, you–the woman who has my cousin giddy like a little girl. I understand, now.”
“Excuse her,” Kya separated their hands, “she’s a part-time lesbian.”
“Full-time if you’re interested.” Karrina quipped.
“Neither Chris nor Donny would accept that.”
Karrina rolled her eyes, folding her arms, “Can’t blame me for trying.” Carefully, she eased onto the sofa holding her belly.
“You wouldn’t want me anyway,” Eden sat across from her. “I’m the black sheep of my family, hard to please, and I’m non-committal.”
“My family’s welcoming, I’m kinky as fuck, and I can change that. Where do I sign up?”
“Rina,” Kya shook her head, leaning against the center island, “I’m telling you, Donny isn’t having that. Jermaine looked at her, and Donny went caveman.”
Karrina made a face, rolling her eyes a second time. “You actually like that, puto?”
Eden cracked a smile, “He’s growing on me.”
“That’s the charm. Once he’s comfortable, you get to see the real Donny and the real Donny smiles all the time. I think he knows it melts p
anties.” Karrina pretended to gag. The sight had Eden laughing to herself, and Kya waving her off. “You feel that way because he’s your cousin. I see him like family, too, but I can admit he’s sexy.”
“Sexy is a bit extreme. He’s ok.”
“You sound like a hater, Rina.”
“If it talks like a duck, walks like a duck, then bitch, it’s me. I’ll leave it alone for now, but I can’t promise that we won’t revisit this after I drop this kid. I love a cutie with a big booty.”
Eden and Kya shared a look. “I warned you, Edy.”
“She told you I’d try to take you home?”
“She said you’re crazy. I think you’re funny as hell.”
Karrina beamed once more, taking as much of a bow as she could from her position on the sofa.
Initially, Eden expected there to be jealousy. In her absence, this woman took her place. She was the rock, shoulder, and ear for Kya. They’d been through just as much and maybe even more than she and Kya had. The decision to leave and not share the hard stuff with Kya was her own doing. If she was, there was no one to blame but herself. However, Karrina felt more like a missing piece than a replacement.
“While you two flirt, I’m going to be nice and invite my father to the auction. If I’m not off the phone in ten, one of you call me.”
Kya moved toward the back of the apartment, leaving them to their own devices. Remembering why they were there, Eden grabbed the nearest box. Karrina groaned, pushing off the sofa to join her. She’d done her best not to stare at Karrina’s stomach. Being so close, it was impossible.
“When are you due?”
“Not soon enough. I swear this kid gets heavier every day. My sister made it seem so easy with my nephew.”
“Anthony, right?”
“Uh huh. Kya’s future husband.”
“She told me he has a little crush on her.”
“Little crush?” Karrina scoffed, “That boy didn’t come to my house nearly as much before Kya started staying there. He really believes he’s going to marry her one day.”
“That’s cute.”
“Yeah. That’s also why my brother won’t be spending that much time with this one. He won’t have my son seducing his teachers. Do you want kids?”
