Page 47 of Pretty and Loco

“This is light; you got one more set of 50 squats to do.” I coached her.

“I’m tired.”

“Stop whining. Open your mouth for me.”

“Yes, daddy.” She joked, making me laugh as I squirted water into her mouth and then slapped her ass for motivation.

She finished the set, and I let her breathe and sit down. She sat near me, cheering me on as I finished the rest of the workout without her.

When it was time to go, I stood from the bench and grabbed our things. I noticed her shoestring was loose, stepped in front of her, and leaned down to tie it.

I stood back up, and she said, “Careful, Mr. Sanders.”

I turned to her, raising an eyebrow. “What?”

“The last man who made me feel like this got them taken away from me.”

I didn’t know what the fuck she was talking about then, but now I know she meant the shoelaces. Cause she couldn’t have any in the fucking mental institution.

“I’ll be back, baby. Jim is calling me.” I said as I excused myself from the table.

“Sanders. Who the heck is that you had me investigate?” He asked as soon as he answered the phone.

I looked around to make sure that I was alone.

“I guess you can say she was an ex that I just bumped into on the cruise. She’s finessed Eris into offering to hire her for our baby shower.”

“Ugh,” I could hear him cringe. “That’s tricky. I wouldn’t allow that. This seems like a lifetime movie waiting to happen. One minute she's decorating the baby shower, and the next she’s cutting it out of her belly. Watch your ass. If you need a restraining order, let me know.”

“You think she’s dangerous?”

I asked from a legal standpoint not that I would think twice when it came down to Eris and Rocki.

“I think it’s a very real possibility. Listen, I’ve got to go. If you need anything else, let me know.”

We disconnected the call, and I went back over to the table. Before I knew it, Leah, the dude, and the baby came up the stairs and headed over to the bar. After a minute, I felt her eyes on me, and I turned toward her. She watched me over the rim of her cup, then winked.

The same wink that got me to hop off the back of a chair and follow her ass through a crowded club had me ready to push her off the boat in the middle of the Atlantic.

If it was anything that dealing with Leah taught me, it’s that never to meet a woman covered in blood and dressed as a possessed doll and think she wasn’t about to cause me hell. She had a card in front of her telling me exactly who she was, and I didn’t take heed to it.

If I could do anything about that night over, I would still go out, but I definitely wouldn’t take my ass to the Museum of the Forbidden.

Isat at the table, just feet from Rocko, and drank my Bahama Mama. He turned toward me with the coldest look in his eyes. The one that used to soften whenever I came around. Now it was just ice.

He was still as handsome as the last day that I had seen him. He had a fresh lineup, his beard neatly trimmed, his skin was clear, and he was walking around shirtless, wearing only a pair of swimming trunks. Around his neck was a single Cuban link. A necklace that made me shift uncomfortably in my seat when I remembered the many times it had been on my back and my forehead. Hell, even his tattoos looked fresh. Dark ink, clean lines, like everything about time had been good to this man.

I had imagined how the moment would go when we finally crossed paths, every day for the three years we hadn’t spoken. I wanted to ask him if he missed me, to test whether he would still fold at my touch, even though he claimed to hate me and said he never wanted to see me again. I knew he never meant any of that shit.

As if she could sense my thoughts, his wife looked over at me and smiled.

I returned the gesture politely before turning toward my daughter, trying not to stare.

Bitch

I remember finding out that he was getting married. My reaction was like Cleo on Set It Off when she was about to drive through the barrage of police officers. All I was missing was a cigarette. Then she had the audacity to be drop-dead gorgeous. Eris was stunning; there’s no denying that. Their engagement announcement photos looked like that default family that they put in picture frames. I hated it.

I couldn’t help it. I played nice earlier, but I had no desire to be friendly with the woman lying next to my man and carrying his second child and first son. Per his Instagram, they had already planned on naming him a Junior. His namesake. The son who would likely follow in his footsteps and continue his legacy in sports and entrepreneurship. Disgusting.