"Yeah, right, Cashmier. Grandson or not, poop on my sofa means it needs to be gone."
"Okay then, where am I supposed to change him? You told me earlier not to use the bed, and now not the couch, so where do you want him? On the floor?"
"No, of course not on the bare floor. Lay a blanket down for the little man.”
“Okay.” I shook my head.
“I'm about to go to the gym. If you leave, lock up, please."
She walked out of the room like she didn't have a care in the world, and I believe that's because she truly didn't.
Sometimes I secretly wonder if it was my mom who had my father murdered because she hasn't grieved as long as you would think a wife of thirty-three years would. I know time helps people move on, but it hasn't been much time since that happened, and the way he died still makes my stomach twist in knots to this day. Hell, some days I can't even eat thinking about my father, and then the situation happening with Hov shortly after, really had me losing weight.
King instantly cried when I laid him on the couch to prepare the ground for him.
"Shoo, shoo, baby," I hushed King softly, crouching down to lay out blankets across the hardwood floor.
I cleaned my baby and then put him in something warm since the two of us were going back out into the frigid air tonight. I mean, there was no point in being here if my mom wasn't. This house gave me bad vibes anyway, and the kind that were heavy.
Once King and I left and got inside my car, I turned the heat up until the vents hissed hot air. Snow was forming fast on the streets and was lying thick and heavy on my windshield. My phone had alerted me, as I came down the elevator, that a snowstorm was approaching and that drivers should be in the house by 10:00 before the streets turned completely white.
I planned to be in the house way before that and in my bed, wrapped up, praying for whatever rest I could get with King clasped against my chest. I always slept on the right side of the bed with everything I needed to care for him on the left, since there was nobody there to take up space for now. This wasn't at all how I expected life with my first child to be, but I know things will change once I had a father who stepped up.
When my phone rang on the dashboard, I glanced at the screen and saw Alana, the nurse from the DNA clinic, calling. I answered her call damn near on the first ring, and my stomach turned a flip, ready to hear what she was about to say.
"Hey, Alana."
"Hey, Cash, can you talk?"
"Yeah, I can. What's up? Any news on the test?"
Alana had already informed me two days ago that Crew tested positive for the baby of that bitch Pernelle, who was Emoney’s girlfriend. He brought her in the same day as me, and that alone made my blood boil, but I wasn't about to retreat andlet her make Crew into daddy of the year. That was my job, and when I'm done with his ass, he will be on his best Bill Cosby shit. That's why I didn't feel bad about what I was doing. It will be for the betterment of us all after a while.
"Yes, and it is good news. The DNA swap worked, and the test came back positive. The automated emails should be sent out in about thirty minutes."
I exhaled deeply because that was the news I had desperately needed. I gripped the steering wheel and shook my arms, celebrating quietly enough not to disturb my baby. I wish I had thought of this when getting the baby tested for Hov. Then I would be the one living happily in his arms instead of that ghetto bitch that he loves so much. Putting Crew’s DNA on a swab that was supposed to come from King was genius. There was no way that test would’ve come back with zero probability.
“Perfect, Alana, and thank you so much for your help."
"You welcome! I'm happy to help you, and that $50,000 will keep my daughter in private school for the next 4 years. I'm happy she won't be at that horrible school getting bullied anymore."
“Good, I’m glad it helped you too. But please remember that this secret stays between us for life. Not a soul needs to know what we did."
"Of course not. I don't want to lose my license for this and potentially get jail time. My lips are zipped forever and I’m thankful that you asked me to do this before he came into the room that day. It for real helped change my daughter’s life for the better."
"And mine too. Talk to you later, Alana."
“Later.” She hung up the phone.
Not knowing for sure if the baby belonged to Crew put a dent in my pocket, but paying the nurse to tamper with the test was an investment. A smart one.
King could really be Crew's baby, but he could also be one of the few other men I slipped up with when I was trying to get over Hov treating me like a burden that he was waiting to drop. I've slept with a few rich dudes and a couple of men that shouldn't even know what my pussy was like. This year, I've slept with five dudes total, but only two of them I wanted to be King's dad. True New York royalty that would protect us for life.
I looked back at King, who I could see through the mirror strapped to his seat. He blinked up at me with the exact eyes and same round face I had as a baby. It was a good thing that he looked like me, because if he grew up and didn't resemble Crew at all, I could blame it on him being my twin. No one questions a child's looks compared to the father if the baby looks exactly like their mama. Thank God for my strong genetics.
"You have a daddy now, baby boy," I told him softly, even though he didn't understand a thing I said. Relief washed through me warm and slow, settling into my bones like heat finally hitting frozen skin. For the first time in months, I felt safe.
As I drove in silence as the snow thickened on the roadway ahead, an idea hit me that could speed up Crew taking action for our lives, and that’s when I pulled over on a side street near my favorite sandwich shop and let my engine go as I waited for the perfect time for one of the last schemes I hope I have to pull. I just pray this doesn’t backfire and he steps up like I've been praying he would.
