Naughty 2: My Way or the Highway (5 page)

 

I was so glad to be home. A week away from everybody really gave me a chance to clear my head. One thing was for sure, I wasn't going to give up on Jaylin. Some day, this all had to come together for us, and this time, I was in it for the long haul. Our nine-year relationship had turned to ten. Ten years of good times and bad times, but the most important thing now was our son. Hopefully, LJ was going to bring Jaylin and me closer together, and eventually Jaylin would come around and see things for what they truly were supposed to be.

Sunday was a day I had longed for. I woke up at five o'clock in the morning just to prepare myself. I'd left a message with Nanny B the night before, and asked her to tell Jaylin we'd be there no later than one o'clock in the afternoon. I knew he'd said by noon, but one extra hour wasn't going to kill him.

I ate breakfast, then went into LJ's room. He was still sound asleep. When I'd checked on him earlier, he'd had a smile on his face like he knew he was going to see his daddy today. He was lying peacefully, and I couldn't resist holding him. All I could think was how Jaylin and I had made such a beautiful child. He was the cutest little baby I'd ever seen and was looking more like his daddy every day.

When Stephon and I had talked, he'd said he'd like to continue to be a part of LJ's life, but I had convinced him that under the circumstances, it wouldn't be the best thing to do. He'd agreed, but made me promise to at least bring LJ by his barbershop sometimes to see him.

Stephon's forgiveness really had me worried, though. For me to walk away from him at the altar, he was handling himself extremely well. Deep down I knew he was hurt, but he was putting up a front like he really didn't care. Maybe he did understand why I couldn't go through with the wedding, or maybe he had somebody else in his life and didn't know how to break the news to me. I wasn't going to stress myself too much about it because I believed my decision worked out for all of us.

Around 12:15 P.M., LJ and I were just about ready to head out. There was no sense in me calling Jaylin to let him know that we were on our way; I was sure he was having a fit already since we were late.

LJ looked darling. He wore a blue-jean outfit with a hat to match. I put on the white Nike tennis shoes I'd found at St. Louis Mills when Mama and I had gone shopping earlier. LJ's soft, curly hair peeked out the sides of his hat, and his grey eyes sparkled when I looked into them.

We pulled in front of Jaylin's house, and I carried LJ on my hip as I walked to the door. I rang the doorbell and patiently waited for someone to answer. After I rang it several more times, Jaylin finally opened the door. His face lit up as he reached for LJ.

“Well, hello to you too,” I said, handing LJ over to him.

“Hey, sorry, come in. I actually forgot you were coming,” he said, looking like he had just gotten out of bed.

“I left a message with Nanny B last night. She didn't tell you?”

“No, but that's okay. I'm glad you came. 'Cause if you hadn't, you know I was coming for you.”

I followed behind Jaylin to his office. I took a seat on the couch, and he sat in his chair while lifting LJ up in the air, looking at him eye-to-eye. “Do you know how happy your daddy is to see you?” he said, talking baby-talk to him. I couldn't do anything but smile after finally seeing them together. At that moment, I knew just how wrong I was for trying to keep them apart.

I watched him sharing precious moments with his son, and after a while heard someone walking down the steps. I'd thought Jaylin was alone. When Scorpio came into his office, I could have died. My smile vanished as she looked over at me. “Hi, Nokea,” she said dryly, then turned to look at Jaylin.

“Hello,” I replied.

Jaylin sat LJ on his lap, then turned him around so Scorpio could see him. “Look, baby. Ain't he handsome? I bet you didn't think I could pull something off like this, did you?” he asked her.

“Yes, Jaylin. He is gorgeous, and I never said you couldn't, so be quiet.” Scorpio turned toward me. “Do you mind if I hold him?”

“No, not at all,” I said. Of course, I didn't want her to touch him. I only tolerated her because of Jaylin, and I cringed as she took LJ off his lap to hold him. When she sat down in one of the leather chairs, her silk robe slid open and showed her goods. She quickly crossed her legs, but I had already seen that she didn't have on anything underneath. Of course, with Jaylin having come to the door in his robe, I figured they had probably been in the middle of screwing when I rang the doorbell. If not, I was sure they had been at it all night long.

It really wasn't like me to hate on another woman when it came to Jaylin, but after listening to him call her “baby” my feelings were hurt once again. And if that wasn't enough, Mackenzie came into the room and added to my pain. She hopped in Jaylin's lap, and put her arms around his neck.

“Good morning, Daddy.” She kissed his cheek and he kissed hers.

“It's not good morning, Mackenzie, it's good afternoon. And what did I tell you about speaking to guests when you see them in the house?” She laid her head against his chest.

“But I didn't see her,” she said, looking at me, then putting her fingers into her mouth. She lifted her head and her eyes got wide. “Hey, that's your wife, Daddy! That's the one who you married the other day.”

Jaylin shamefully covered his face and shook his head. I smiled at Mackenzie, and Scorpio stood up and brought LJ over to me.

“You have a beautiful baby, Nokea.”

“Thanks,” I said, taking him from her.

“Come on, Mackenzie.” Scorpio took Mackenzie by the hand. “Let's go make some of your favorite pancakes.” Mackenzie pulled her hands back and wrapped them tightly around Jaylin's neck. “Mackenzie, did you hear what I said, honey? Let's go make breakfast.”

“But I don't like the way you make your pancakes. I like the way Daddy makes them.”

Jaylin chuckled and kissed Mackenzie on the cheek. “Baby, I'll be in there to cook you some pancakes in a minute. In the meantime, eat a big bowl of Captain Crunch, okay?” Mackenzie hopped down off his lap.

“Okay, Daddy, but hurry, all right?” She waved at me. “Bye, Daddy's wife.”

Scorpio and Jaylin both yelled, “She's not Daddy's wife, Mackenzie!” Scorpio followed Mackenzie to the kitchen.

Jaylin got out of his chair and sat next to me. He reached for LJ again and leaned back, laying him on his chest. He removed the little denim hat and stroked his curly hair. With a huge smile on his face, he rubbed his hands up and down on his son's back and squeezed him.

“He feels so good in my arms, Nokea, you just don't know. Thing is, I can't figure out if I'm upset with you for keeping him from me, or if I'm happy that we have a damn good future ahead of us.”

“Jaylin, all I can say is I'm sorry. I was wrong for keeping him from you, but at the time I thought that I was truly doing what was best for me.”

“Right, right, but going forward I don't want no shit from you about him, Nokea. I want to see him a minimum of three or four times a week. I'm willing to adjust my schedule to make sure that happens.”

“Now, you know how complicated your schedule can be. Why don't you just call me on the days you're not too busy and I can bring him to you? If you call ahead of time, that will make it easier for me.”

“That might work. And whenever you have something to do, let me know and I'll make arrangements as well.”

“Sounds like a plan to me,” I said, enjoying our pleasant conversation.

“What about his expenses? How have you been handling those?”

“It's been okay. I mean, he's not wanting for much, but having a baby has put a slight hole in my pockets.”

“Well, no child of mine is going to be just okay. Once I found out he was mine, I set up several mutual funds for him. There are some other things I wanted to do like investing in his education, but I just haven't gotten around to doing that yet. I've been thinking about child support for him. You have my word that I will take care of him, so I don't want no damn court telling me how much I need to pay. If you don't mind, I'll have my attorney put together a promissory letter that says I'll give you . . . let's say five thousand dollars a month? Will that be enough?”

“Six sounds better,” I said jokingly.

“Okay, then six. But you better use this money for him. Your hair, clothes, nails... and all that other stuff remains on you, all right?”

“Don't you worry about that because I got me. And six thousand is too much, I was just kidding. Four would most certainly suffice.”

“I say five. So, I'll call my attorney tomorrow, and once he puts everything in writing, I don't want you reneging on my offer.”

“I won't, but honestly, you really don't have to go through all the trouble. I trust you.”

“Naw, thing is, I don't trust you. I've been honest with you about almost everything in my life. You're the one who be telling lies.” Jaylin gave LJ back to me and went over to his desk.

“That's not so, Jaylin, and you know it. I allowed Stephon to lie to you about LJ being his because I had to.”

He pulled his calculator out and bounced his pen up and down on his desk. Then he opened a square leather burgundy book and started writing. He looked up at me.

“There are certain things that shouldn't be lied about, Nokea, like your love for someone, your credentials, and your loving children. You catch my drift?” He dropped his head and continued to write.

Jaylin ripped the paper from the book and gave it to me. “This should financially make up for my lost time. I don't care what you do with it, but several months ago I had another responsibility. You made sacrifices, so I'd like to repay you.” I took the paper out of Jaylin's hand. It was a check for $65,000.

“Jaylin, no. You don't have to do this. I know you would have taken care of LJ had you known, and there is no need for you to give me this much money.”

“Nokea, I'm not going to argue with you. There's no reason you should have a hole in your pocket when I don't. This money is petty when it comes to my son. I'll make it up in a few months anyway. So, take it. Fifty-five thousand is for your financial setback, and ten is for the ten years of any pain and suffering I may have caused you. If you have any problems at your bank, let me know.”

Now, after breaking it down like that, I wasn't going to argue with him about the money. Every bit helps, and this was more than any court would ever offer me. Besides, I was sure Jaylin had plenty of money hidden away and this wouldn't set him back. The courts would never know his true net worth, and even though he never shared with anyone how much money his grandfather's estate was worth, by Jaylin's lifestyle, and many years of investing, I knew he had inherited millions.

After Jaylin cooked Mackenzie's pancakes, he asked me if LJ could spend the day with him. He told me to pick him up by ten o'clock that night, so he could get some rest before he went to work. I asked him if Scorpio was going to help him, but he said he was kicking her out too to have time with his son and daughter.

This was definitely the Jaylin I'd fallen in love with. He seemed so different, but my only problem was his relationship with Scorpio. It seemed as if she wasn't going anywhere any time soon. I felt like I had the upper hand because I knew he was still in love with me. I also knew that if I didn't work fast at getting him back, she would eventually replace me. I was willing to do everything in my power to make sure that never happened.

 

I was running around the house like a chicken with his head cut off. Trying to man up—pretending that I could handle two kids in the house at once and I was paying for it dearly.

LJ was lying on my bed screaming at the top of his lungs, and Mackenzie was trying to get him to stop crying by giving him her Barbie dolls. When I realized that maybe he was wet, I took off his diaper, only for him to piss right in my face. I sat on the edge of my bed laughing and thanking God these kids had mothers. I for damn sure wasn't cut out for this and the proof was in the pudding.

LJ did number two and it seeped out of his diaper onto my satin Gucci sheets. I threw my hands in the air and did what I did best: called Nanny B. She'd already made plans, but when I pleaded with her, she changed her mind and told me she was on her way.

There was no way I was calling Nokea or Scorpio for their help. After I'd kicked Nokea out, she'd made me promise not to call her until it was time to pick up LJ. Scorpio had said she was leaving anyway, insisting that she had some homework to finish.

The doorbell rang and I rushed to it thinking it was Nanny B. Instead, it was Stephon on the porch with his head hanging low.

“Say, can I come in?” he asked.

I held the door open to let him inside. “Please, make it quick. I'm spending time with my kids today.” I felt proud as I was holding LJ in my arms.

“Cool, I won't be long, but, uh, why haven't you returned any of my phone calls?”

“Man, I hope you didn't come all the way over here to sound like one of my women with this phone call bullshit. You know damn well why I haven't returned your phone calls. Been busy and ain't got time for snake-ass niggas in my life.”

“Okay, that's fair. But I just wanted to say that I'm sorry. I made a big mistake asking Nokea to marry me, but I can't change what's already happened. If time is what you need, fine, take all the time you need. When you're ready to talk, call me or come hollar at me at the shop.” He turned toward the door. When I opened it to let him out, he stood with his hands in his pockets.

“What?” I yelled. “Why are you still standing there?”

“ 'Cause, Jay,” he said as his eyes watered. “I tripped, cuz, and the last thing I wanted was for Nokea to come between you and me.”

“Well, too late for that shit. You should have thought about the consequences a long time ago.”

Stephon took a hard swallow and walked out. I took my foot and slammed it against the door, closing it. When I looked out of the window, Nanny B was getting out of her car. She was talking to Stephon for a while, then started laughing when she saw me open the door with LJ in my arms.

She took him from me. “Jaylin, he's been crying because he's wet. I can feel how soaked he is just by holding him.”

“Damn, I just changed him. How many times does he have to go?”

She shook her head and slowly walked up the steps with him in her arms. I followed. Mackenzie was taking a nap in her room, so Nanny B went into one of the guestrooms. She laid LJ on the bed and started to undo his diaper.

“Aren't you going to put something underneath him? That comforter cost me a fortune,” I said.

She gave me a hard stare. “Go get a diaper, please,” she said, kissing LJ on his feet. I rushed into my room and grabbed a diaper out of his diaper bag. I went back into the guestroom and gave it to her. “Did you see how you put his diaper on? It wasn't wet. He leaked through the sides because it's not taped up on him. Now, come over here and let me show you how to do this right.”

I walked over by Nanny B and looked down at LJ. “But the comforter . . . Can't we put something underneath him so he won't mess it up? I just had to change my other sheets—”

“Jaylin! Go get a towel or something, please!

This anal behavior of yours has got to stop. Especially since you have children around the house.” I ignored Nanny B and ran to the closet to get a towel. She snatched it out of my hand and slid it underneath LJ's bottom. Then she showed me the correct way to change his diaper. I guess since I hadn't removed the sticky tabs on the side, that could have been why it wouldn't stay up on him. I'd thought that pulling his pants up would keep his diaper in place, but what did I know?

Nanny B sat in my beige leather rocker and laid LJ on her chest. She rocked back and forth a few times, and in less than five minutes, he was asleep. I sat on the edge of the bed and felt like a proud father with the little progress I'd made today. I didn't really know what I would do without Nanny B around, so I asked if she would move in with me.

“There's plenty of room, Nanny B. Besides, you're here most of the time anyway.”

“Jaylin, I don't know. Let me think about it. You really seem like a man who needs his privacy.”

“I do, but I need my children in my life even more. I need proper care for them, and that means more to me than anything. So, please,” I begged. “Think about it and let me know in a couple of days.”

“I will,” she whispered. LJ squirmed around in her arms. “Why don't you go get some rest while Mackenzie and LJ are both asleep? You look tired. If you and Scorpio wouldn't have been up all night fooling around, maybe you could have gotten some rest.”

I kissed her cheek and left the room. I checked in on Mackenzie, and since I knew she probably felt neglected because LJ was around, I climbed into bed with her. She woke up just long enough to put her arms around me and went back to sleep.

LJ's loud crying woke up Mackenzie and me. I sluggishly went downstairs to the kitchen to see what all the fussing was about and Mackenzie followed. Nanny B had him all taken care of. He had a bottle in his mouth and was going at it.

“He's fine. Babies do cry, you know?” she said.

“I know, but he cries a little too much, doesn't he?” Mackenzie said.

“I agree,” I said, giving her five. We both laughed.

“He doesn't cry any more than you two did when you were babies,” said Nanny B. “And, Mackenzie, you still cry, don't you?” Mackenzie's eyes watered, and she wrapped her arms around my legs as if her feelings were hurt.

“Come on, baby,” I said, rubbing her back. “Let's go upstairs and see if we can get LJ together.”

I took LJ from Nanny B and we all headed upstairs. I put some old sheets on my bed so my good ones wouldn't get messed up, and Mackenzie, LJ, and I sat up watching the Cartoon Network channel.

Mackenzie's Barbies were all over the bed and LJ was staying occupied by putting them into his mouth. He was learning early, I thought, and was definitely going to have his way with the women just like I did.

Nokea came thirty minutes early. Nanny B was downstairs and opened the door for her. When she came into my bedroom and saw me sitting in bed with my kids, she smiled and put her hand on her hip.

“I knew you couldn't handle it. So, don't lie. You called the nanny, didn't you?”

“Woman, please. Nanny B comes over on the weekends anyway. So, don't go talking nonsense.”

“Jaylin, stop lying. She already told me you called her crying, begging, and pleading for her to come over here. You should be ashamed of yourself for lying. I thought you said earlier our child is one of the things we shouldn't lie about.”

“Okay, busted. But you know I was just playing too, don't you?”

Nokea lifted LJ off the bed. “Yeah, I thought you were playing, but I also knew how much I missed my little baby today.” She rubbed noses with LJ and kissed all over his face. I was slightly jealous because he started cracking up as she talked to him. When I talked to him he just looked at me and stared. Shortly after, he'd start crying. I guess he probably wasn't comfortable being around me yet.

“Hello, Mackenzie,” Nokea said, noticing Mackenzie's frown.

“Hi. Is LJ going home?” she asked.

I scooted Mackenzie next to me in bed. “Yes, but he'll be back with us next weekend, okay?” I said. She smiled and laid her head against me.

“Jaylin, you know you got that little girl too spoiled. She isn't going to be any good when she gets older.”

“Don't go telling me how to raise my kids. If I want to spoil them, I can.”

“Well, don't come running to me when they get out of control. You have to start putting your foot down and you can't let them run over you like Mackenzie does.”

“Just...Be quiet,” I said, irritated by Nokea's comments. “Things were going cool between us, until you started running your mouth trying to tell me how to raise my kids. First of all, don't say that shit in front of her. If you got something to say, pull me aside. Have a little respect, all right?”

“And you have respect by cursing like that? I just think—”

“I just think you were leaving.” I got off the bed, gathered LJ's things, and escorted Nokea to the door. Before she left, I held LJ and kissed him again. Nanny B and Mackenzie gave their good-byes as well.

After my long nap earlier, I couldn't go back to sleep for nothing. I called Scorpio and told her Mackenzie and I were on our way. It was raining outside, so I covered Mackenzie with my jacket and we ran to the car. Mud covered the bottom of our shoes and messed up my floor mats. I thought about how badly I'd dissed Brashaney for the mud on her shoes, and seriously thought about calling her to apologize, since it had been raining that day as well. But when I thought about her trying to slap me, she was better off left where she was: behind.

I parked in Scorpio's driveway, and there was a nice-ass silver-and-blue Kawasaki motorcycle parked there as well. I wasn't sure who it belonged to, but I covered Mackenzie again and we ran to the door. Scorpio opened with a pencil in her mouth and a grin on her face. She wore a short flimsy flowered sundress that showed her shapely, pretty legs and her cleavage. Mackenzie rushed in, but I stood outside and observed her.

“Are you coming in or what?” she asked while fidgeting and teasing her hair with her fingers.

“Don't you have company?”

“Yes, but he's just—”

“I'll talk to you later, all right?”

I walked off and Scorpio ran up behind me. “Jaylin, why are you tripping? It's not even like that. He's just my tutor, and he came over to help me with my homework.”

“Your homework, huh? That's cool, then go do your homework. Why you out here trying to explain something to me that really ain't my business?”

“I just don't want you getting the wrong idea. But seems to me, you're a little jealous.”

The rain had slacked up a bit, so I had a moment to set the record straight with her. I stepped face-to-face with her. “Scorpio, let's get something straight, right here and right now. You are free to date any damn body you want to. And, so am I. So, jealous? No. Disappointed? Yes. Disappointed that I fucked you the way I did last night. You really didn't deserve it, and it was a waste of my time.”

Her mouth opened in disbelief. “What? If anything, you don't deserve me. I'm trying to be nice and spare your fucking feelings, but you're too much for me. If you really want to know, your dick ain't that damn good, Jaylin, I've been the one wasting my time.”

“Okay, if you say so, baby. But the next time I fuck you, or if I decide to fuck you again, keep all that hol-laring, moaning, and groaning, ‘Oh, I love you so much' bullshit to yourself.”

“I will. And the next time we get up, it'll be my call, not yours.”

The rain started to pick up again, and I was in no mood to stand outside continuing this argument with Scorpio. Her gripes about my ill treatment fell on deaf ears, so I got in my car and headed home.

The windshield wipers screeched against the window, as the rain slowed again. My mind wandered back to my amazing day with LJ and Mackenzie. They had turned my whole life around and made me feel like I could breathe again. My only problems were these damn crazy-ass women I had in my life. Nokea, Scorpio, Brashaney, and Felicia, who at least wasn't too far gone. I couldn't figure out which one was stressing me the most. Was it Nokea for declining my proposal and denying me my son all these months? Was it Scorpio for allowing me to support her and thinking she could bring home any Tom, Dick, and Harry she wanted to and I would keep paying the bills? Or Brashaney, who was just flat-out downright stupid, and couldn't look like a true lady no matter how hard she tried? Maybe even Felicia, who really wasn't stressing me at all, but I couldn't stand because we had too much in common.

I snickered about how Scorpio claimed I wasn't
that
good. What nerve? Out of all the women I'd slept with, she knew better than to let something that stupid slip from her mouth. Every time we had sex, she'd be coming four and five times in less than an hour. As a matter of fact, since I'd met her ass, she hadn't been able to go one week without my dick inside her. The only time she'd been without it was when I kicked her out for lying to me about being a stripper. So, she could kiss my ass with that statement. She knew it didn't get any better than this, and whoever it was at her place, he was wasting his time.

I was on Wild Horse Creek Road in Chesterfield when I noticed a silver Jaguar slumped on the side of the road. I pulled over behind it and got out of my car. As I neared the Jag, a young white woman with long, straight blond hair was inside dialing her cell phone. She looked frightened, but when I offered to help she seemed to relax. She opened the car door and got out as the rain started to pour down on both of us. I took my jacket off and put it over her head.