I wasn’t sure what I expected when my baby girl and son-in-law talked about their baby shower. I didn’t expect it to be star-studded. I did expect some of his teammates to come, but there were other athletes and entertainers here as well. The celebrities brought the media.
As much as Simonette understood that she was the wife of one of the highest paid baseball players in the league, she still hated the spotlight that came with it. She just wanted to be the forensic scientist that she was. When you pointed out that she had her own spotlight, she denied it.
My baby girl had been highlighted on national news because of her work on high-profile cases. Her dedication to her work with the back log of sexual assault kits had also gotten attention. It inspired others to join her in the efforts to reduce the amount of sexual assault kits. I was so fucking proud of who she became in spite of her evil ass mother.
“I’m going to have to set up an appointment with you. I can’t give you all my money, because most of my accounts are with Washington-Smith Brokerage Firm. I still want to see what you can do though,” Daylen told Julius Junior.
We were at what was considered the men’s section of the shower. The planner thought of everything, and I appreciated that. I introduced everyone to each other, and it seemed like they were all getting along. JJ and CJ were starstruck for a second but were over it quickly.
JJ nodded his head. “Shoot, how about you get me a meeting with the hiring manager of Washington-Smith. I’ve wanted to work there since I started my career. I think I’m good enough to walk with the big boys now.”
Daylen smiled. “Well, shit! You know they just opened an office here in Augusta. It’s a small office, but I do know the office manager. I can do that. I’ll give him your business card and let him know that I want you to manage some of my accounts. He’ll check you out.”
JJ’s eyes bucked. “Wow, you would do that, man? You have no idea how much that would mean. They are the biggest investment firm internationally. I know they piss off white boys daily.”
We all chortled. “You can’t stop Black excellence. They’ll try, though,” I said before I took a sip of my drink.
Two days after our meeting with HR and legal, it was leaked that Jubilae and I were in a relationship. On our walk to the elevator, hand in hand, someone on the floor took a picture. It wasn’t hard to find the leak, and they were terminated. The day after it went public, as Conner forecasted, questions arose about Jubilae being hired.
I wanted to crash out, as Rissa would say, about some of the commentary around my woman. I understood hate and racism, but I also understood my innate right to protect my woman on all fronts first, then my reputation, then the company. Everyone wanted me or Jubilae to make a statement, but like our legal counsel let the vultures know, our personal relationship was not up for discussion. The only subject that needed to be discussed was whether our hiring practice while selecting our president was discriminatory. It was proven that it was not, so there was nothing further to discuss. Hell, from my perspective, we saved the company money on rooming.
Declan chuckled. “They try and fail. That’s the history of being Black excellence in this world.
“Daddy, do you want some fries?” Simonette asked after she waddled up to the table that we sat at. She set a basket of fries in front of Daylen who dived right in.
The fact that there was a man here whose sole purpose was to make french fries any way you wanted it sickened me. I couldn’t even say that it was a pregnancy craving because Simonette loved them since she was a little girl. If anything, the pregnancy amplified the damn craving.
“No, I do not want any french fries, baby girl. Thank you for offering. Charles, did you want some fries?” I asked Jubilae’s father who was at the table in the mix.
He was a cool old man that loved his daughter deeply like I loved mine. We hadn’t had a one-on-one conversation yet, but I was sure it was coming. I was prepared.
He smiled. “No, I’m fine for now. I’m sure Julie will bring me some if she gets some.”
My heart smiled at his dependency on his wife. I wasn’t sure if he realized that he had it, but he did. Julie was your old-school, country, take care of her husband kind of woman. The modern woman who was too into herself would probably cringe at how attentive Julie was to Charles. We’d been here for a little over an hour, and she had been over at least three times to check on him. He’d gotten up just as many times to check on her as well. They were on a level field when it came to their attentiveness to each other.
“Pop Pop, I can get you some,” Simonette offered.
My brow peaked at her reference. My parents and Simone’s died when she was much younger, so she never had the chance to really have grandparents. My little baby had love all around her and still craved more from different avenues that she never had.
Charles smiled. I couldn’t tell if he was alright about her nickname for him or not. One thing this man had was a poker face. “No, baby girl, I’m alright. What I want you to do is sit down somewhere. Where is Jubilae, Joy, Julie, and Rissa?”
She took a fry from Daylen’s basket, who looked at her with tight eyes. He cracked me up because as much as he hated it, he loved it. She pointed over her shoulder. “They’re over there opening presents. I got tired. I’m gonna go back over. GlamMa Julie said that I have to send everyone who gave me something a thank you card. I never knew that was like a thing. I thought I could just say thank you on the mic.”
“That’s what the hell we’re going to do. Just like we did at the wedding,” Daylen mumbled. “You send people pretty cardsand shit, then they throw those shits away. Wasting our damn money.”
Simonette laughed before she bent down and kissed his lips. “I love you. I’m going to go write the names down and stuff. Glammie Jubilae and GlamMa Julie said they would help me send them out.”
I snickered when she waddled off. “You know your bank account is going to pay for thank you cards, son? I hope you know that,” I jested.
“I’m already knowing. Pop Pop, your wife and daughters are already costing me money. I’m going to send you an invoice for half this bill when I get it,” Daylen said with a twisted lip and humorous tone.
Charles roared into laughter. “Well, son, if sending thank you cards is what will keep the ladies happy, then I’ll foot half the bill. It’s all about keeping them smiling. If you’re with the right woman, keeping a smile on her face will make her want to keep a smile on yours.”
“Bitch! I will beat your ass in here! Play pussy and get fucked!”
All of our heads snapped in the direction of Rissa’s elevated voice. My blood boiled when I saw Simone, Lanette, and Lanette’s daughter, Lauren.What the fuck are they doing here?
Daylen was the first out of his seat, and I was the next. The closer I got to the situation, I saw Jubilae standing in front of Simonette who had tears running down her face. Julie had a tight hold of Rissa’s wrist, who was still cussing and fussing.
