My Best Friend (5 page)

He pointed to his office. “This is where I spend most of my time when I’m home.” His office had two desks, and on one of the desks, there was a picture of them when they’d graduated college and an all-in-one desktop and two laptops. One huge wall was full of books.
H
e pointed to
the living room. “
I come
where
when I want to relax and watch TV.” Kay had seen his house when it was being built, but she hadn’t seen the final product. He always came over to her house. He took her down the hall. There were pictures of his parents, grandparents, and him when he was younger. He opened the door to the room she would be staying in.

She turned to him. “This is your room,” “I can stay in the guest room.”

“I’m going to treat you like the Nubian queen that you are. I’m not taking no for an answer.” His room had a fire place in the middle of the room with a California king-sized bed decorated with fluffy white blankets with too many blue pillows, two night stands with white lamps on each side, and the windows had elegant white and blue curtains. He walked her through and
guided her to the
bathroom;
he had an over-sized shower and separate jet tub.

I’m in heaven,
she thought.

He ran the water with bubbles in the tub and made sure the temperature was right and left the room. He put on her favorite music. “If you need anything, buzz me. Every room has an intercom,” he said and closed the door.

He was in the kitchen finishing up dinner when his doorbell rang. He walked over to the door and swung it open to find Kimberly on the other side. She was a skinny, tall and beautiful
brunette with stunning green eyes, and she knew she was smoking hot. She was wearing a white blouse, navy blue skirt, and black pumps.

“Jason, did you forget you have a girlfriend? I haven’t seen you in days.” She pushed him out of the way to go through the door. “What have you been up to?”

“Helping a friend,” he answered.

She kissed
him on the lips. “Oh really?
Helping a friend? Why is there a purse on the table, music playing in your bedroom, and the bath water running?”

“I have a friend over.”

“A friend...” she said with suspicion in her voice. She was starting to get mad
, by the look on her face
. “So that’s why you couldn’t call back your girlfriend? But you can have a friend over in your bedroom? What the fuck. Who is it?”

Jason felt annoyed.
“Its Kay.”

“Are you sleeping with her, Jason?”

“No, Kim
berly, I haven’t slept with Kay.
”

“I want her out of your house now,” she demanded. “I don’t want her here.”

He looked at her. “This is my house, and you don’t tell me who I can or can’t have in it.”

She walked up to him. “If you don’t throw that bitch out, we’re done!” she yelled.

He was shocked.
Did she just give me an ultimatum?

“All she wants is your money. She is trying to seduce you. That’s all she’s ever wanted. She wants what I have, but she will never be me.”

His voice got a little loud
er
. “Don’t you ever, ever, talk about her that way. She’s my best friend, and she has been in my life long before I met you. She doesn’t care about my money because she has her own, and she doesn’t want me in her bed. I don’t take ultimatums lightly. How dare you come over to my house giving me orders? You want me to choose, then I guess our relationship is over.”

“Are you crazy? You’re choosing that black bitch over me?” She yelled sarcastically. “I can’t believe you’re giving me up for that hood rat.
” She moved her hands up and down her body, showing him.
“
She is, and will always be beneath me.”

Jason turned and opened the door. “Get out.”

“What?” she yelled. “You’re kicking me out?”

He r
epeated, “
get
out of my house.”

“What if I don’t? You going to hit me?” she asked, not moving.

“I would never put my hands on a woman, no matter how mad I become. Just get the fuck out.”

She looked at him. “I thought you loved me.”

“All you
do is think about
yourself. It’s always been about you. You live to put others down. We lasted this long because of Kay. She was the one that told me to give you another chance every time I wanted to end things with you. I tried to see the good in you, but this is the last straw. You didn’t even bother to ask me why she was here or? What had happened? You just jumped to conclusions. I’m done.”

Her eyes fired up when she turned to leave. She looked down the hallway and saw Kay. She whispered. “She’s pregnant.”
Then
yelled. “She’s pregnant! How could you get her pregnant? With all the white women, you choose to lay with that black bitch and get her pregnant?”

Kay stormed over to them. “Who the hell are you calling a bitch?”

J
ason stopped Kay, and whispered.
“Stop. Remember what you told me once? She’s not worth it. This is not good for the baby. Let me handle her.”

She
started turning
. “You’re lucky I’m pregnant,
”
and
we
nt back down the hall toward the
room.

He looked at Kimberly. “Kay is, and will always be, more woman than you’ll ever be
. She always thinks of other before herself
. She’s a professional and not even close to a hood rat. I didn’t want us to end like this.”

Kimberly slapped him. “I can’t believe you choose that nig—”

Before she could finish, he yelled, “Kimberly, get the fuck out!”

She turned and left, and he slammed the door behind her.

After a few minutes, Kay came back into the living room. “Why did you let her assume the baby was yours?”

“Why
were you eavesdropping?”

“Answer me.”

“She assumed that I was the f
ather, but I didn’t tell her I was
. In my heart, though, she’s starting to feel like mine. Tommy doesn’t want her, and I do. It takes a man to raise a baby, and I’m a man
willing and able. Kay, just go finish getting dressed. We can talk about it over dinner.” She watched him as he passed by her. “I’m going to wash up.” He started toward the guest room.

*
**

They sat down at the dinin
g room table, and he served
pasta and salad with a glass of wine for him and milk for her. “Milk?” she asked.

“It’s good for the baby. Let’s talk. Where do you want to start? Baby or us?”

“Baby.”

He looked at her with somethin
g she cou
ldn’t quite figure out.
“I would like to adopt your baby. We can raise her together. I can be her father. Tommy would be more than happy to give up his parental rights. Kay, when Kimberly assumed I was the father, I thought why not? Nobody knows. You’re my best friend, and you know that I will always be here for you and the baby. I know you need some time to think about this. I understand it’s a big step, co-parenting and all.”

She was shocked. She hadn’t expected that from him. He had always been the most caring man she knew, but this was way too much. “You’ve been here for me and I know you will be there for her too, but you don’t have to
do this.
You’ll be in her life
as her uncle
.”

“I don’t want to be her uncle. She needs a dad, and I can be there for her. Don’t you want her to have a fath
er figure in her life?”

“I can do it by myself. There are thousands of single mothers, and their kids grow up to be good people. How can you love another man’s child?”

“That’s simple,” he answered. “Because she’s yours.” Her eyes started tearing up. “Kay, why do you want to do it by yourself when you have me? Just think abou
t it. Now, about the kiss.” S
he got u
p and started to leave, he said, “o
h so you’re not going to talk to me about how you feel? I thought we could talk about anything.”

She turned. “Until now. I’m tired Jason; I’m going to sleep.” She walked out the room.

He cleared the table and cleaned the kitchen. He couldn’t understand why she was so hesitant to allow him in. He
wanted her to open up to him, kno
w
ing
she’d been through a lot in her life with no family to turn to, but he was here, and he was her family now. He couldn’t stop thinking about her lips. All through dinner, all he’d thought about was kissing her. At that moment, he realized he had always wanted her, but he never said or did anything because they were so
different. But, after getting to know her all these years, it had taken her baby to make him realize how much more than friends he wanted to be.

“Damn,
I love her.”
He was about to pass by the room, but the door was open so he knocked and walked in. “Do you
think we can talk now?” he asked.

She was lying in the bed, and
looked away from him. “About?”

He walked closer to her. “About us, what that kiss m
eant to the both of us.”

“It was nothing, Jason, just hormones. It was something that happened in the moment, the excitement of the baby kicking, nothing more.”

“Can you please look at me?” he whispered.

She turned and looked into his eyes. Facing her Jason whispered, “It meant something to me. I’ve wanted to kiss you since the moment I set my eyes on you in the library, but there was never a right time to tell you how I felt. You were seeing someone or I was. When you told me you were pregnant you broke my heart. That’s when I thought that was it. I’d lost you to Tommy. Kay, I love your baby. I never thought I wanted to be a father until now. I accept you the way you are with your faults and flaws.” He stroked her cheek. “You know I would do anything for you. I would give my life for you.” A tear fell from her eyes, and he wiped it. “You don’t have to tell me how you feel now, but you know how I feel.”

He was about to get up when she pulled him back and lightly kissed him. The kiss turned into a passionate kiss. She had been dreaming for this to happen again. She melted in his arms. As he started kissing her neck, she began to moan.

He could tell he’d found one of her spots. He pulled away. “Do you want me to stop?”

She answer
ed him by kissing him,
feel
ing
him getting excited. She
started slightly pulling way recalling
what he’d said. He’d said he loved her baby, but he’d never said
he loved her.
“This is a mistake. You’re my friend, and I don’t want to ruin what we have. I don’t want to lose you if things don’t work out.”

He caressed her face. “Kay, I know you’ve been hurt, but I would do my best not to hurt you.
I know l
ove
sometimes
hurts. We just have to give it a chance. I can’t promise it will always be easy, but I can promise you I’ll always be there. I know we can do this together. Kay, please tell me what you’re feeling. We have always been honest with each other.”

She looked at him with passion in her eyes. “Jason, from the moment I saw you I wanted you too, but I let what other people thought cloud my feelings. You’ve been the best thing that has happened to me. Maybe I never acted on it because if I didn’t let you in, I wouldn’t lose you.
Everyone I’ve ever loved has left me but you. I just kept getting involved with men that I knew would hurt me, but I never imagined that I would end up pregnant by a jerk and woman beater. There have been times I wished the baby was yours, but she is not.”

“Kay, it’s always been me and you against the world.” He lowered his gaze to her stomach. “She might not be mine by blood, but she will be mine in every other form there is. I love that baby with all my heart, and she’s not even here. Imagine when she is here,” he said with love in his voice. He turned away from her.

He sat on the edge of the bed with his back turned to Kay. She stood up and walked in front of him. “Give me your hand.” She took his hand and put it on her stomach. “I want you in our lives. I’ve never felt this way about anyone, and that’s what scares me.”

He took her hands in his and looked into her eyes. “Let’s be afraid together. We can make it together, because I love you Kay. Yes, I said it. I love you. I’ve felt this way for a long time but didn’t have the courage to admit it. I’ve never felt this way about anyone else. I’ve never loved anyone the way I love you.”

Tears st
arted rolling down he
r
face. He wiped the tears, pulling
her into his arms, and began to kiss her lips. It was the sweetest kiss she’d ever had. He indulged in her sweet, lovely lips.

She felt safe in his arms. She had never been kissed t
he way he kissed her,
feel
ing
the love he had for her. The love was always there. They just hadn’t wanted to see it.