“Daddy, you got us matching pajamas?” Keyami asked me as she held up the black-and-white pajamas. I saw the idea online, and I wanted to try it with them.
Growing up, we never did fun shit at home with my parents, and I wanted to do things differently. Since I was on the road so much, I wanted to make our time together even more meaningful.
“Yeah, baby girl. We’re having a movie night in the theater room. Y’all gotta get in the tub first, so don’t put them on until after we eat.”
“Yes, this is so cool! Thank you, Daddy.” She hugged me before racing back to her room.
Naiari sat on the couch, typing away on her phone. I tried not to show my ass, but I could tell she was upset based on how aggressively she was texting. It made me wonder who the hell she was talking to that had her all in her feelings.
“Aye, I know damn well you aren’t textin’ another nigga in my house. Yo, you violatin’, shorty.” I scratched the side of my beard as I walked over to her. She looked up at me as if I had shit on my face.
“What are you talking about? I wasn’t texting another man, but even if I was, why would it be any of your business? You’re talking about me disrespecting you as if I belong to you. I must have missed the memo because the last time I checked, we were co-parents, and you don’t pay my phone bill,” she shot back.
I wasn’t used to anyone putting me in check, so it caught me off guard for a moment.
“If you weren’t texting a nigga, then why would you be so upset? Your whole demeanor has been off since you got here, so what's up?”
Her face softened as she sat there, staring into space. It only confirmed that something had to have happened to have her so distracted.
“It really wasn’t a big deal. My momma and I got into an argument, and it got pretty heated. I was texting Nova about it and got pissed off all over again. I didn’t realize it was so obvious,” she explained. Her eyes were puffy, which let me know she had been crying. Instantly, I felt bad for going off on her.
I sat next to her and lifted her onto my lap. A part of me expected her to give me pushback, but instead, she leaned her head on my shoulder.
“What was the argument about?” Latasha wasn’t the best parent, , but I would never disrespect her, because she was Naiari’s mom. Plus, she was better than mine, so I had no room to judge.
Naiari stayed quiet for a moment before she decided to speak up.
“She went off on me about you. I guess she feels like I’m being stupid for allowing you into my life after what happened. According to her, you never cared about me and only dealt with me because I was desperate and easy. Then she went on and on about how she was there for me when you left me and never looked back. I don’t even know where all the hostility came from, but it hurt my feelings. Then, when I said my peace, she smacked me.”
Her revelation pissed me off as I tilted her chin so I could examine her face. There was redness on the left side of her cheek. It irritated me because there was a better way to handle disagreements. My thumb gently brushed against her cheek before I leaned down and pressed my lips against it. Naiari jerked slightly, then relaxed in my hold.
“You believe her?” Her mother’s words replayed in my head.
“What?”
“Do you believe what she said about me not caring about you?”
We locked eyes, and I could tell there was a part of her that was conflicted. I couldn’t even be upset because I was the cause of her doubt.
“I don’t think you only wanted me because I was easy. Hell, you wouldn’t even touch me for the longest time, even though you knew I had a crush on you. I’m not gonna lie, though; some of her words struck a nerve. I spent most of my pregnancycrying and wishing you were out in the free world with us. When I found out you were released and never came for us, I felt slighted. Like maybe my feelings for you had been stronger than yours were for me. Either way, she was wrong about me chasing you. Regardless of how I feel, this is about our kids and building a relationship with you. I’ll sacrifice whatever I have to in order to make sure they have what they need.”
“I can’t believe she said all of that. She sounds bitter, but I don’t understand why. Either way, she was wrong about everything, and this is the second time you brought up something like this, so this is the last time I’m gonna address it.
“I’ve wanted you from the moment I saw you on the playground. The only reason I tried not to take it there was because I knew you deserved better. You had a light in your eyes, and I didn’t want to dim it because of my upbringing. I stopped believing in fairy tales long before you came along, but I didn’t want to strip you of hope.
“Then, when we got older, I got tired of hiding my feelings. Most of the niggas our age weren’t about anything, so I figured it was better for us to be together because I actually loved you. I fucked up, and those mistakes cost me more than I ever bargained for, but it doesn’t change the reality of the situation. You were my first and only love. I spent so many nights in that hole thinking about you and wondering if someone was out there loving you the right way. My reasons for pushing you away were to protect you. I loved you enough to let you go because I thought it was for the best. Instead, the shit backfired on all of us, but we can’t do anything to change what happened. We can’t go back and right all of our wrongs. All we can do is focus on the future and try to make the most of it.”
“How are we supposed to do that?” she whispered with her eyes trained on me. My dick jumped, and I knew she felt itbecause she bit down on her bottom lip. Leaning forward, I crashed my lips against hers.
“Mmmm.” Cocoa moaned into my mouth as I fed her my tongue. My hand reached inside her shirt and pushed up her bra. Her nipples stuck straight out like pebbles, and my mouth watered. Without a second thought, I leaned down, taking her left one into my mouth.
“Ooh.”
I lightly sucked on one while I twisted the other between my fingers. Cocoa squirmed in her seat, and I knew her pussy was soaking wet. She stroked the back of my neck while I continued to suck on her nipples. My dick grew harder by the second, but now wasn’t the time. As much as I wanted to take her in the room and wear her ass out, we needed to get the kids settled first. It took every bit of restraint in my body to pull away from her. I groaned in anguish as I readjusted myself.
Naiari sat there panting, turning me on even more.
“Why did you stop? You don’t want me?”
