This Could Be Us But You Playin' 2 (10 page)

Dominique unwrapped her arms from around Kaleb’s waist and she pushed him back a few inches. He looked down at her, confused by what she was doing. Immediately, he stepped back with his hands up, believing that she thought that he was trying to make a move. What she did next surprised him. Stepping in his direction, Dominique draped her arms around his neck and pulled him towards her. Her tongue snaked back and forth in his mouth as she kissed him deeply. Knowing it was wrong, Kaleb didn’t do anything to stop her; instead, he kissed her back. At the moment, he was just as caught up as she was and didn’t want it to end. Lost in the love that he had for her, Kaleb closed his eyes and reached down to allow his hands to roam her body.

“Do you really want to do this?” he asked when Dominique reached for his belt.

“Yes,” she moaned, leaning in to kiss him again.

Kaleb hated to say what he was about to say next because he was sure it would ruin the mood. He knew it had to say it anyway. “I’m not going to play games with you, Nikki,” he told her, breaking their kiss. “If you plan on being with your dude, we have to stop this. I can’t keep getting hurt when you decide to walk away.”

“I know,” Dominique whispered. “I love you, Kaleb.”

“I love you too, but—”

“No buts. Just make love to me.”

With no other words spoken, Kaleb reached down and picked her up. Dominique wrapped her legs tightly around his waist and kissed him again. When he turned and started to carry her to the other side of the balcony, Dominique wondered where he was going. Once Kaleb slid the other set of doors open, she was surprised to see that it was also connected to his bedroom as well. Leaving the entrance open, Kaleb carried Dominique over to the king sized poster bed and placed her on it before lying on top of her. They both just stared into each other’s eyes, lost in the love that they had for one another. Neither of them said a word. After a minute or so, Dominique pushed Kaleb back again. Thinking that she had changed her mind, he looked at her with puppy dog eyes.

“I want to take a shower first,” she told him, making him feel much better.

“Only if I can join you.”

“That sounds like a plan.”

Kaleb stood up and grabbed her hand, and together they headed towards the master bathroom. When her feet hit the heated floors, Dominique couldn’t do nothing but give credit where it was due. She looked around and was very pleased with what she saw. There were double sinks and a square shaped jetted tub that had wooden blinds over it. Since the blinds were open, Dominique could see that the tub looked out to his bedroom. If none of the things were there when Kaleb moved in, Kendra had done her thing and done it well. She had definitely transformed the place to something beautiful. Dominique wondered why she hadn’t taken up interior design since she was so good at it, instead of nursing. 

Dominique watched Kaleb as he stepped over to the shower and turned it on. Water began to pour from the faucet that was inside. When he turned around, he walked over towards her and started to remove the dress she was wearing. Now, standing in front of him clad in nothing but her panties and bra, Dominique felt no shame. Gone was the shy girl that she had once been. Now she embraced everything about her body. Kaleb had told her on numerous occasions that she was beautiful and she believed him. She had no choice but to. The way he looked at her while she was naked let her know that he enjoyed seeing her that way, and because of that, she didn’t mind giving him exactly what he wanted. 

When he unclasped her bra, grabbed her left breast, and placed it in his mouth, Dominique tossed her head back and closed her eyes. Slowly, Kaleb flicked his tongue back and forth across her erect nipples, driving her crazy. The sound of her pleasurable moans could be heard over the running water. Dominique was hot and ready. After a few more moments of sucking her breasts, he removed his mouth and bent down to slide down her panties. Dominique stepped out of them while looking down at him. Once she was naked, Kaleb stood and proceeded to take off his own clothes. Ready to feel him inside her, Dominique assisted him and in a matter of seconds, he stood there in all his glory.

“My God!” she said, glancing down at the beautiful stick that hung from between his legs.

Kaleb was the first to step into the shower, with Dominique following behind him. Before the water could fully wet their bodies, they were all over one another. Their lips locked and they kissed each other like there was no tomorrow. As they kissed, Kaleb’s hands roamed all over Dominique’s body. He gripped her ass, while she grinded up against him. Not able to take it anymore, he picked her up and placed her back against the shower tiles closest to the faucet. Water rained down all over the two of them, wetting Dominique’s hair completely. She didn’t mind one bit because she planned to wash it anyway. With her arms wrapped tightly around Kaleb’s neck, Dominique waited while he used his left hand to slide his dick up and down the middle of her southern lips. With the head aligned right outside her dripping hole, he pushed his hips into her, causing them both to grunt in pleasure.

“Shit, don’t move,” Kaleb ordered. “Please, don’t move.”

Dominique laughed. “Why not?” she asked, even though she already knew the answer. She just liked to hear him say it.

“Cause I don’t wanna cum yet,” he explained. “This tight ass pussy.” When he felt her clenching her muscles, he looked up at her. “You so damn hardheaded.”

“You like it.”

“Damn right,” Kaleb agreed, placing both of his arms under her legs and gripping her ass in his hands. “I’ve missed this pussy, so you have to excuse me because I plan to make up for lost time.”

“Mmmm, that’s what I like to hear,” Dominique said before he lifted her up and brought her back down on his manhood with enough force to make her scream.

Chapter 8

“Hey, daddy,” Dominique spoke into the receiver once the call was connected.

There was a slight pause before she heard Jessie’s voice. “Hey, Pumpkin, how you been?”

“I’ve been good. I’ve missed talking to you.”

“I know, baby. I’ve missed you too,” he said. “Shit has been crazy here lately. These dudes don’t know how to act, so they’ve been shutting the jail down.”

Dominique smacked her lips. “Well, that sucks. You shouldn’t have to pay for other people’s stupidity.”

“That ain’t how it works in here, Pumpkin. We are all one, and if somebody acts up, we all have to suffer the consequences,” he groaned. “Anyway, enough about these knuckle heads. Tell me something good. Where is my grandson?”

“He’s sleeping right now. Do you want me to wake him up?” she offered, already getting up from the coach.

“No, let that baby sleep. He can talk to this old man any time.”

“You’re not old, daddy.” Dominique giggled, sitting back down.

“Yeah right, I’m pushing forty.” 

“That is not old.”

“Well, what do you call it?” he asked, now laughing.

“Seasoned.”

“Seasoned? Girl, you act like your daddy is a piece of meat.” Jessie cracked up. 

“Wait until you get out of there, it will definitely seem like it,” Dominique told him. “Those ladies gone be all on my daddy. You gone have to beat them off.”

“Trust me, I’m done with beating,” Jessie joked. “I won’t be putting my hands on nobody unless I have to.”

Dominique’s mouth dropped. She couldn’t believe her father had said that. “That’s not funny, daddy.”

“I know, and I’m sorry baby. Have you spoken to your grandmother? I called her right before I called you, but she didn’t answer.”

“Oh, so you only called me because you ain’t have nobody else to talk to?” Dominique pretended to pout. “Now my feelings are hurt.

“Don’t be like that.”

“I’m just playing.” She laughed, “Do you want me to call her?”

“Yeah, if you can please.”

After telling her father to hold on, Dominique clicked over and dialed her grandmother’s number. It rang a few times before the answering machine came on. When she went back to the other line, she waited a minute before telling her father to hold on once again. This time when she dialed Franny’s number, someone answered on the second ring.

“Hello?”

Dominique looked down at her phone confused. The female who picked up was not her grandmother, nor NiChia, and she thought that maybe she had dialed the wrong number. When she was sure that she had called Franny’s house, she spoke into the receiver, “Hello?”

“Hello?” the female repeated in an irritated tone.

“Who is this?”

The chick smacked her lips. “You called here. How you gone ask who this is? Who are you?”

“Girl, give me the damn phone,” Franny snapped before she got on the line. “Hello?”

“Hey, grandma, who was that?” Dominique asked, wondering who the smart mouth heffa was that was answering her phone.

“That was your sister.”

“That wasn’t Peanut. If so, she must be sick, because her voice sounded different.”

“No, it was Tiffany.”

Dominique thought she was hearing things. “Tiffany? When did she get over there?” she asked, not able to believe it. She had not spoken to her sister in years.

“She just got here. That damn momma of yours done kicked her out.”

“Oh my God!’ Dominique screamed. “I’m on my way over there right now. Tell her not to leave!”

“She’ll be here when you get here, Nikki,” Franny said with a smile in her voice.

Dominique immediately hung up and jumped up from the couch. She was still in shock by what she had heard. Tiffany was at her grandmother’s house, and Monique had kicked her out.
That’s not really a shocker,
she thought to herself. Monique was not above telling someone to get out of her house. Since Tiffany was about to turn twenty, it was surprising that she had let her stay that long.
She probably was using her to watch the kids, and when she got tired, she told her she had to go. That woman is still crazy as hell.
As Dominique raced up the stairs to her bedroom, she heard her phone ringing. Jumping across the bed, she reached for the cordless on top of the nightstand and hit the send key.

“Hello?” She answered out of the breath.

“
You have a collect call from, James, who is an inmate in the Johnson State Prison. Press one to accept and…”

Dominique quickly pushed one. It had just hit her that she had hung up on her father. “Hello, daddy? I’m sorry.”

“Damn, Pumpkin, what happened?”

She went on to tell her father about what happened when she clicked over. Jessie was just as excited to know that his other daughter was as his mother’s house as Dominique was. He couldn’t even remember the last time that he had heard her voice. It had to been at least six years, which was even longer than it had been for Dominique. With Monique keeping the rest of the children away, he wasn’t able to talk to them like he had been with Dominique, who was a little older. Even though she was locked down pretty much like the other kids, she was still able to visit Franny, which was how he was able to talk to her.

While Jessie was glad to know that he could finally speak to his second oldest daughter again, he was pissed because the fact that Tiffany was there let him know that his ex-wife was still on the same bullshit she had been on years prior. What the hell gave her the right to kick her own flesh and blood out of the house? Jessie could tell that nothing had changed with Monique, and he wondered if he could stop himself from ringing her damn neck when he got out after he served his last months in prison. As much as he wanted to stay out of jail, he knew that Monique had a way of getting under his skin, and the fact that she knew what was at stake for him could make her want to push his buttons even more. That reason alone had Jessie thinking of an alternative to seeing his children once he was released. Maybe his mother would go by and get them because he was sure if he had to see her face, there would be trouble, and trouble was not what he needed.

“That is so good to hear!” Jessie yelled. He was truly happy to finally be back in touch with his daughter.

“I know, right? I’m about to get DJ dressed and ride up there now,” Dominique told her father. “Can you call back in a few hours? I know she would love to speak to you.”

“I sure can, Pumpkin. What time is it now?”

Dominique leaned in and looked at the time on the cable box. “It’s a quarter to three.”

“Alright, well, I’ll call back around six, six-thirty. That way I can make sure that you’ve gotten there and y’all have talked.”

“Okay, I’ll talk to you then.” Dominique smiled. She was so excited. “I love you, daddy.”

“I love you more, Pumpkin,” Jessie replied. “You make sure that you and my grandson drive safe, alright?”

“Will do,” she told him before they disconnected the call.

Putting the cordless phone back onto the base, Dominique went into her closet to find something for her to wear. When she settled on her outfit, she went across the hall to DJ’s room and found him something as well. She planned to let him sleep until she was finished getting dressed, so things could move quicker. Back inside her room, she walked over to her dresser and proceeded to try to do something with her hair. After letting it air dry a few days prior at Kaleb’s house, it was a mess. Not able to really worry about it at the moment, she headed into the bathroom to wet it again, and brushed it up into a high ponytail; which she secured it with a hair tie. Dominique turned her head from side to side, pleased with the new result. Now that her hair was out the way, she proceeded to go back into her room and get ready.

Dressed in some blue jeans, a baby tee, and a pair of Air Max, Dominique laid her purse on the bed and went to grab her son. DJ continued to sleep while his mother picked him up out of the bed and carried him across the hall. He didn’t move a muscle when she laid him on top of her bed. Dominique laughed at how knocked out he was.
This damn child acts like he has a job or something.
DJ slept right through his mother removing his pajamas, as she got him dressed. By the time she had gotten on his shoes and was about to pick him up, he started to stir. With drowsy eyes, he looked at Dominique, no doubt wondering why she was breaking his sleep. 

“Hey, mommy’s baby,” Dominique said, looking down at her son with a smile. He was so handsome.

DJ was the perfect mix of her and Deondre. He had his daddy’s dark skin tone, and even though he was only two, everyone knew that he was going to be a big boy. Since Dominique was an itty-bitty little thing and Deondre was six-two and over two-hundred pounds, DJ would get his stockiness from his dad. Everything else was all Dominique’s, from his eyes, down to his little gapped toothed smile; he looked like his mommy. Dominique gazed at her son with loving eyes as he dozed back off. His little head went back limp, and seconds later, she could hear him breathing hard once again. Grabbing her purse off of the bed, as well as DJ’s diaper bag, she headed down the stairs and out of the door, headed to her car. She couldn’t wait to see her sister again.

*****

It took Dominique a little less than an hour to get to McDonough. She tried her best not to speed, but quite a few times, she found herself doing just that. Exiting the freeway, she made a few turns until she pulled onto her grandmother’s street. Seeing Franny’s house within view gave Dominique butterflies in her stomach. While she was happy to finally see Tiffany after all these years, she was nervous at the same time.
Would she be happy to see me, or will she still feel some kind of way because I left?
Dominique asked herself. Although she hoped that Tiffany would welcome her with open arms, she was sure that there were some ill feelings that her sister was harboring. She remembered one of the very first conversations that they had. Tiffany was quiet on the phone when Dominique called, and once she asked her what was wrong, Tiffany laid it all out on the table.

Tiffany told her sister that she was mad at her for moving away and leaving her alone with their mother. She explained that she was also upset with Franny, as well, because she hadn’t taken her with them when they left after packing up all of Dominique’s belongings. Feeling bad for leaving her sister, Dominique went on to explain why she had left. She also let her know that it wasn’t as easy to Franny to get her. If she had, Monique would have surely had a fit. With Dominique gone, Monique turned her attention to her second oldest daughter because she needed someone to care for the kids while she was away doing God knows what. Dominique already knew that it would happen. It was no shocker, but there wasn’t anything she could do about it. Monique was in charge of her home, and since Dominique was staying with Franny, she didn’t have a say so in anything, not that her opinion would have mattered if she still resided in the household. If she had spoken up, she already knew that her mother would have made it extra hard on Tiffany, and Dominique didn’t want that. So, instead of pushing the issue, she just left it alone, while praying that everything worked out for her sister. She shared this with Tiffany, who said that she understood. After that, everything was good between the two of them.

For months after she left, Dominique called Tiffany to not only check up on her, but to see about her other siblings as well. They talked about everything under the sun. It was almost like old times, except for the fact that they no longer lived under the same room. Their conversations varied from school to boys. They even spoke about what was going on in the house since Dominique was no longer living there. Sometimes, she and Tiffany get to chat for an hour or more, while other times Monique would cut their call short even before they really had a chance to say anything. Dominique knew that it was hard on her sister because every time they had to hang up, she would cry. Knowing that there wasn’t really anything she could do about it, Dominique promised Tiffany that things would get better for the two of them.

By the time she had gone away to college, getting Tiffany on the phone was almost impossible, and within those next few weeks, Monique had changed the house number, leaving Dominique no way to contact her sister at all. Since Monique no longer allowed the children to visit Franny, nor did she even bother to answer the door whenever she dropped by her house, Dominique was forced to let things play out and hope that her siblings would reach out and contact her when they were old enough. Pulling into her grandmother’s driveway, Dominique killed her engine. She glanced into the rearview mirror and saw that DJ was still out for the count. Taking a deep breath, she removed her seatbelt, grabbed her purse and DJ’s diaper bag, and climbed out of the car. After unstrapping DJ out of his car seat, she took a deep breath and walked up the driveway towards the front door.

“Here she is.” She heard as soon as she stuck her key into the lock. Before she got a chance to turn the knob, the door slung open and there was NiChia. “Hey sis.”

“Don’t hey sis me. I’m still gone cuss yo’ ass out about the shit you pulled at the bar the other day,” Dominique said through clenched teeth. “What the hell do you be thinking—”