Baby Momma Drama (46 page)
Authors: Carl Weber
“Yes. Monica’s here.”
“What about the baby? Was the baby with her?” I held my breath as I waited for his answer.
“The baby’s right here,” Ron answered. He sounded uncomfortable. “We were hoping you’d come pick him up. Otherwise, we have to turn him over to child welfare.”
There was no way I was gonna let that happen. Ever since that first day that I held him, I’d been waiting to have my son in my arms again. Now that I finally knew where he was, I didn’t want to waste any time getting to him.
“I’ll be right there, Ron.”
“Good. But listen, you need to do one thing before we can let you take him home.”
“Just name it; I’ll do it.”
“We just need to see some type of proof that he’s your son.”
“What about the lab results from my paternity test? We had it done right after he was born.”
“That’s perfect. Just bring those so we can make copies to keep on file here. You understand. We just have to keep everything documented.”
“No problem. I’m on my way.” I hung up the phone and went into the dining room, where everyone was listening to Big Momma tell a story about her own wedding.
“I’m sorry folks, but I have to go out for a minute,” I announced. “Just make yourselves comfortable till I get back.”
“Is everything all right, Dylan?” Jasmine asked as all eyes turned to me.
“Yeah, I guess. They found my son. I’m about to pick him up.”
“Who found him?” Big Momma was the only one talking. Everyone else had their mouths hanging open.
“The police. They arrested Monica, and they have the baby at the station now.”
The room fell silent. No doubt everyone was as shocked as I was at this point. My mind was racing. I couldn’t even think straight enough to give them any more details.
“Well, go on, then, son,” Big Momma broke the silence. “We’ll be right here when you get back.”
41
Jasmine
I threw my napkin on the table and got out of my seat.
“I don’t believe this shit!” I shouted to no one in particular as I headed for the back door.
“Where you going?” Big Momma demanded to know as she followed behind me. Stephanie was right on her heels.
“Jasmine, what is wrong with you?” Stephanie shouted at me.
I stopped and turned around to look at them.
“What do you think is wrong? I can’t believe he’s gonna bring that baby back here. Just when things were starting to get good between us.”
Big Momma raised her eyebrows and shook her head.
“Child, what else did you expect him to do? He can’t just leave that baby there, now, can he?”
My shoulders slumped. “No. You’re right. It’s just that I went through so much baby momma drama with Derrick and Wendy, I promised myself I’d never do it again. No more men with children.”
“Please, Jasmine.” Stephanie sucked her teeth. “You knew Dylan had a baby. Shoot, you been the one listening to him talk about how bad he wanted to find his child. Did you think this couldn’t happen?”
I couldn’t answer her. Of course I knew that this could happen. It’s just that things with Dylan had been going so well, I’d lulled myself into a false sense of security. Even though I never said it to Dylan, part of me thought Monica was long gone and she’d never become an issue.
“Child, don’t you see?” Big Momma said. “The fact that Dylan has a child don’t have to scare you away. You oughta be proud of him.”
“Proud?”
“Yes. Proud. How many baby daddies you know are even willing to acknowledge their children, let alone take them in and raise them without the momma?”
“I know,” I sighed. “But how do we know it’s gonna be without Monica? Eventually, she’ll get out of jail and she’ll be knocking on Dylan’s door. Then what?”
“You deal with that when it happens,” Stephanie said.
“Dylan is a good man, Jasmine,” Big Momma told me. “If you ask me, this just proves it even more. He ain’t the kind of man who’s gonna let Monica ruin things between you, even if she is his baby’s momma.”
Stephanie agreed. “She’s right, Jazz. If you’d stuck around long enough last time, he might’ve been able to prove how he could handle Monica. You never gave him a chance.”
I had so many regrets. So much of what had happened to me since Derrick got out of prison could have been avoided if I had just given Dylan the chance he’d asked for. He’d tried to tell me he wouldn’t let Monica ruin what we were just starting. But I was too scared to trust that. It was easier to stick with the baby momma drama I was already living than to take a risk with someone new who might bring me the same kind of shit. I wasn’t ready to take that risk, so I ran right back into Derrick’s arms. This time, I still wasn’t sure. But at least I could make my decision without another man ornnplicating my thoughts.
“I don’t know if I can do it,” I said. “I’m really scared.”
Big Momma put her arm over my shoulder. “its all right to be scared, child. But don’t let that stop you from living. We’re here to help you if things get rough. And Dylan is a good man. I have faith that he’ll do right by you. Just give him a chance to prove it.”
Big Momma led me back to the living room. Someone turned on the TV, but I couldn’t tell you who did it or what we were watching. I was lost in my own thoughts until Dylan came back with the baby.
“He’s here!” Stephanie yelled when we heard the car door closing outside. They jumped up and ran to the door to greet him, but I couldn’t. I wasn’t excited about seeing the baby, and I knew I wouldn’t be able to hide my feelings. It would ruin Dylan’s moment for me to walk over there with my face all screwed up.
Dylan had a nervous smile on his face when he came through the door. Even if I had wanted to glimpse the baby from my seat on the couch, I couldn’t, ’cause Big Momma and Stephanie and Momma were all over him in a flash. From all the oohs and ahhs they were yelling, I guess the baby was pretty cute, all bundled up in his daddy’s arms. It didn’t take long before Big Momma told Dylan to hand the baby to her so she could hold him. Now the minicrowd gathered around her.
Dylan spotted me on the couch and left his son with the group of cooing women. I tried to smile, but I know I must’ve looked sad, because his face changed to reflect my mood as he approached. He sat down next to me.
“You okay over here?” he asked.
I shrugged my shoulders. I hated to be ruining this for him, but I couldn’t lie. “I don’t know. This is really scary to me.”
“Me, too.” He took my hand gently. “I’ve wanted this moment for months, but I can’t describe how nervous I was, walking out of that police station with my baby. I kept expecting someone to come tell me it was a mistake. Tell me to give him back.”
“What about Monica? Did you see her there?”
“Yeah. They let me talk to her for a few. She looked real bad.”
“Where’d they pick her up?”
Dylan explained to me the little bit that he knew. Monica had gone to Richmond with the baby right after she left the hospital. The guy who’d picked her up at the hospital was some old guy she’d been with a few times before. He took her back to his place in Richmond. They had an arrangement. She could stay there with her baby, and he’d supply her with enough crack to keep her flying high, as long as she was willing to give him some ass every day. That lasted for a few months, until Monica was so cracked out she lost her figure and her beauty. The guy drove her back to Petersburg in a hurry and dropped her in some rundown neighborhood where he knew Monica would find her way to the nearest crack house.
That’s where the police found her and the baby. Shed only been there a day or two when they picked her up.
“What about your son, Dylan? Is he all right?”
“Yeah, thank God,” he sighed. they had him checked out. Said other than a little dehydration, he seems to be okay. She managed to take care of him the best she could. I’m gonna take him over to the hospital tomorrow just to be sure everything’s all right.”
We looked over at the women, who were still cooing at the tiny baby. They all burst out in excited laughter when he gave them a tiny smile.
“Ooh, Dylan. This one’s gonna be a heartbreaker,” Stephanie said from across the room.
Dylan smiled as they headed outside to the porch with the baby. He looked back at me.
“It was so sad seeing Monica like that. I can’t believe it’s the same woman I used to love.”
I gave him a halfhearted smile. Sure, I felt bad for her. No one uses crack because they want to end up like that. She couldn’t help herself. But I hated her for doing this to her baby, and for getting in the way of Dylan’s and my happiness.
“So what’s gonna happen to her?” I asked.
“They said she’ll be going before the judge tomorrow. Chances are, she’ll be locked up for a while this time, since it’s not her first arrest for drugs.”
There was a strange relief, knowing she wouldn’t be around for a while. But I knew there were no guarantees.
“And the baby can stay with you? What about after she gets out? Aren’t you scared of getting too attached to him? She’ll probably come out and wanna take him right back.”
“I don’t know. I suppose it’s possible that she could want him back. But for now, she knows she fucked up. She knows that baby is better off without her.”
“She does?” I was surprised. I know it must’ve been hard for a woman to admit her child didn’t need her.
“She never wanted to hurt him, Jasmine. That crack just had a hold of her senses. She actually told me she’s glad they arrested her. At least now our son has a chance.”
“So she’s okay with you keeping him?”
“Yeah. She told me to get a lawyer to draw up papers giving me full custody.”
My mood was starting to brighten just a little. Maybe things could work out. It wasn’t gonna be easy, but at least I could now see that it might be possible. Someday down the road, we might have to deal with Monica. But Dylan had shown me over and over that he was a good man. A strong man, who wouldn’t let his baby’s mother put me through the shit that Wendy did.
“Jasmine?” He put his hand under my chin and turned my face toward his. “I love you.”
My eyes filled with tears. He’d never said those words to me before.
“And I love you, Dylan”
“I love my son, but I love you, too. I want both of you in my life. I know it’s not gonna be easy, but I’m willing to do whatever it takes to make this situation all right for you. Can you bear with me, give this a try?”
It was time. Time to let go of my fears and trust what my heart was telling me. I took Dylan s hand and led him out to the porch. When we got outside, I made my way through the circle of women surrounding the baby.
“Momma, gimme my turn to hold that beautiful little baby,” I said Everyone turned to look at me. Big Momma had a huge, satisfied smile on her face. They handed me the baby, and I held his tiny body close against my chest. My heart was pounding, but it felt good. I was so full of love and so full of hope. The baby looked up at my face and smiled at me.
“Well, little Davon. It looks like it’s gonna be you and me and your daddy from now on.”
The following is a sample chapter from
Carl Weber’s eagerly anticipated upcoming novel
SO YOU CALL YOURSELF A MAN.
Carl Weber’s eagerly anticipated upcoming novel
SO YOU CALL YOURSELF A MAN.
This book will be available in January 2006
wherever hardcover books are sold.
wherever hardcover books are sold.
ENJOY!
JamesCall me kinky, but there is nothing in the world that turns me on more than hearing a woman scream pleasurable obscenities as I make love to her. And that’s exactly what my lovely wife, Kathy, was doing as I held onto her hips and made love to her from behind for the second time tonight. Our two boys, James Jr. and Michael, were with my mother-in-law for the weekend while Kathy and I were taking advantage of their absence by spending some quality time together. We’d gone out to dinner, taken in a movie, then come home and finished off a bottle of wine before making love on the living room carpet. We were now on our second round in our bedroom, going at it like two lusty college students in heat.
“I love you, James,” my wife moaned affectionately, clutching the sheets just as an orgasm overtook her body.
“I love you too,” I growled back as my body stiffened and my own pleasure erupted.
Totally spent, Kathy lay flat on her stomach while I gently collapsed onto her back, gasping for air. After a brief recovery, I slid my sweat-soaked body off of hers. She snuggled up next to me and I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her in close, her back to my front. I was so exhausted, I wanted to just close my eyes and let the sedative of sex take me to dreamland, but I couldn’t do that because it was against the rules we’d created almost a year and a half ago to keep our marriage together. Somehow, I was going to have to force myself to stay awake at least ten more minutes and talk to her before allowing myself the enjoyment of sleep. I kissed her neck, whispering in her ear, “You okay? Do you want me to go down on you or anything?”
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