I shook my head. “No, never, Princess.”
“Oh, ’cause I was about to say your sons are eating me alive from the inside out. That’s why my stomach is growling like that.”
I smiled because I couldn’t believe we’d lucked up. El’s second pregnancy would make us the parents of three, and I was getting two sons. Tears came to my eyes because I knew God had blessed me a double portion because of what Star did to me, lying and making me think I had a son all those years to protect her image. Now, I would have two of my own, plus my perfect Pea, who was becoming mouthier by the day.
“You know your daughter told me she was going to curse me out if I didn’t buy her pizza earlier today,” El said as if she was reading my mind.
I chuckled. “Her little ass is getting out of hand.”
She mean-mugged me. “Um, I know, and it’s all your fault. You have officially spoiled her rotten.”
I rubbed circles on her belly with a grin. “Oh, hush. Your ass is spoiled too.”
“I’m grown though,” she tried to argue.
I shook my head. “Anyways, what do you want to eat, big mama?” She acted like she was about to wring my neck, which had me cracking up. “I’m sorry. I’m just playing, baby.”
She climbed off me and walked over to our dresser. “Whatever. I want Auntie’s, but I want the fried chicken from Food Lion.”
I couldn’t do anything but laugh, because she was always talking about how spoiled Pea was as if she wasn’t just as bad. Who requested food from multiple spots? Um, spoiled people.That’s who!Lifting my phone, I placed an order for the food she wanted through WeDash.
“Where you going?” I questioned when I saw her sliding on a pair of sweatpants.
“I want to watch the sunset.” She glanced at me, tossing the covers off my legs. “You joining me?”
“Of course,” I replied, going into our closet to throw on a matching pair of gray sweatpants to the pink ones she wore.
“Well, you can just carry me out there then,” she said, sitting on the bed.
This woman was terrible, and I loved it. Sliding my feet into my slides, I walked over to the bed and scooped her up easily. She giggled before resting her head on my chest. I carried her through the house until we were out in the backyard. Pea was staying the night with Shay, so we had the house to ourselves.
“Where would you like to sit, your highness?” I teased her.
“Hammock, please, and I need the remote. I want to play some music.”
I took her to the hammock and lay her down. While she got comfortable, I walked over to the table to grab the remote for the surround system. I handed it to her. “Thank you, my black king,” she joked.
“Mhm, you just using me.” I kissed her forehead and went to sit at the lounge. I pulled out my secret stash of Kush and rolled up a blunt. The soft sound of R&B poured from the speaker system. I sparked up, then lay back with my feet up. I couldn’t help but watch El lounging in the hammock while humming along to the music. The peace that covered her face was the reason I worked so damn hard.
She jumped up when “Swangin’ On Westheimer” began to play. “Dance with me, bae,” she whined. She bent over to prop her phone up, probably to record a video of us.
I stood up and positioned myself behind her when she swayed her hips. I held onto her with one arm while smoking with the other. Because the sun was going down, and we didn’t have the lights on, only our silhouettes could be seen on thevideo she recorded. The streaks of orange, blue, and pink in the background were truly breathtaking.
El wrapped her arms around my neck, sedating me and keeping me in the moment. I loved the way her body felt pressed against mine. I took her hand, then spun her around so we were face-to-face. I groped her ass cheeks before pausing to set my blunt down. It was nearly out anyway. When my hands were free, I wrapped her in a bear hug, knowing I was never going to let this woman go.
“I love you,” I whispered in her ear.
“I love you more, baby,” she replied. “I’m looking forward to spending my life with you, husband.” Because El was pregnant, she wanted to push the wedding back until after she gave birth, but we went down to the courthouse and applied for our marriage license at the top of the new year. Needless to say, I was loving married life.
The music stopped playing when a phone call came through. El rushed over to grab it. Seeing her on her phone reminded me of her food I’d ordered. I went to check mine and saw the driver was arriving. El went to sit on the lounge chair with her feet tucked under her. It sounded like she was on the phone with Mani, so she wasn’t paying me any mind.
Turning around, I went into the house to get the food. I stopped to grab some cash from our stash in the kitchen, then opened the front door. The driver was just getting out of her car. We swapped, and then I was on my way to the kitchen. The food smelled so good it had my stomach growling too.
I took the time to put everything in bowls, then laid it out on a tray. I carried it all out like a buffet spread. El got excited when she saw me coming. “Ooh, best friend, I gotta go. It’s time to eat.”
“I hate yo’ greedy ass,” I heard Mani say. I could only laugh because I learned quickly that pregnant El did not play about her food.
When she hung up the phone, NBA’s “You the One” started to play. I smiled down at El and winked because she knew what was up. Returning in the house, I grabbed the pitcher of lemonade El made from the fridge along with some glasses. She was making plates for both of us by the time I came back. I placed the things down in my hand, then took a seat beside her.
