Give Me The Reason 2: A Love Story (6 page)

Chapter Eight

Cameron and Ava were all smiles. It appeared that Delaney was going to recover just fine from her injuries. Once she fully opened her eyes, the doctors asked everyone to leave the room. Dr. Beard was on vacation, so another doctor was called in his place. This made both Cam and Ava a bit nervous, because for the past three weeks they’d been dealing solely with Dr. Beard and had come to like and trust him. Dr. Clark was a young African American doctor who had a warm and friendly demeanor. He promised to take good care of Delaney. He’d explained that since she awoke from the coma in less than thirty days that her chances of a full recovery were slightly better than patients who remain comatose for longer periods of time.

Dr. Clark explained that he needed to have an MRI scan of her brain performed to predict and track her recovery. He did his best to reassure them that Delaney would be just fine in time.

Ava looked around for Cane, but soon discovered that he was nowhere to be found. In the excitement of it all, she forgot all about the fight that Cam and Cane were having prior to Natasha alerting everyone that Delaney was coming to.

“I wonder where Cane is.” Ava asked Cam. She truly felt bad that he had to find out that Delaney wasn’t his biological child in the way that he did. She would have preferred that she and Cam have had the talk with him at her house, and not in a public setting.

Cam looked around and he too wondered where Cane ran off too.
Just like him to run out
when shit hits the fan,
he thought to himself. “Who knows, babe, but I’m sure we will continue this later. Right now my only concern is Delaney. I know you didn’t want things to happen the way they did, but I just couldn’t hold it in any longer.” Cam was over the whole situation. He felt like Cane needed to know the truth and he didn’t regret it one bit. His only regret was keeping Delaney’s paternity a secret for so long.

Ava nodded her head up and down and wrapped her arms around his waist. She was finally in a happy place. The drinking was a thing of the past and she was ready to move forward with her life. Delaney’s recovery, along with reestablishing their relationship, was her top priority. The next hurdle would be telling Delaney the truth, and the thought of that alone had her wanting to hit the bottle.

Cam and Ava looked up to see Natasha, headed in their direction with two men following closely behind. Ava inhaled deeply and rolled her eyes. Cam noticed the look on her face and decided to question Ava.

“What’s up with this attitude you seem to have with Natasha? I’ve been meaning to ask you about that. Every time the girl comes around, you’re always making some snide remark.”

Ava never told Cam about the secret she’d been keeping that only she and Dana knew about. It was too painful for her to discuss, let alone say out loud.

“I just don’t care for the child, never have and never will,” Ava spat.

“We will talk about this later,” Cam stated. He didn’t want to get Ava going and have her cause a scene. Natasha was a sweet, beautiful young lady who he’d grown to love like a daughter over the years. Ava was going to have to explain herself sooner than later, but he had a feeling it all had something to do with Cane and he was almost willing to bet his last dollar on it too.

“So when can we go in to see Delaney?” Natasha questioned. She could hardly wait to wrap her arms around her best friend.

Ava shrugged and pursed out her lips. Cam gently nudged her and shook his head.

“Well, the doctor said that he needed to take her upstairs and perform an MRI and some other tests. I’m not sure how long it will be before we will get to see her,” Cam answered. “Well, who are these two gentlemen?” he asked, nodding his head in the direction of Jason and Drake.

“Oh you remember my husband, Jason.” Natasha smiled proudly while cutting her eyes at Drake. “And this is Tyson’s business partner, Drake Porter,” she quickly added. Drake licked his lips and winked at Natasha, luckily for him Jason didn’t catch it.

Cam smiled brightly and reached out to shake Jason’s hand. “I remember you, son! You two dated in high school right? It’s been a long time.”

“Yes, sir, it has been a long time. I recently came in off the road from long distance truck driving, so I can be here for my baby,” he said, placing a protective arm around Natasha’s waist. He shot a quick look in Drake’s direction. He peeped the arrogant smirk Drake was sporting.

“That’s good to hear, son. Nice to see you again,” Cam said before directing his attention to Drake. “I believe I saw you the day of the accident, correct?” Cam asked Drake. He never forgot a face, a name maybe, but never a face. There was something about Drake’s persona that Cam didn’t care for. He just couldn’t put a finger on what it was at the moment.

“Yeah, I came to the hospital as soon as I heard that Delaney was involved in an accident,” he replied, and glanced at Natasha. She was the one who called him that night for Tyson’s phone number.
I bet her husband didn’t know about that phone call
, Drake thought to himself.

Natasha cut her eyes at Drake, and if looks could kill his ass would have been dead on arrival. They were going to have a serious talk later about his strange behavior. He made it clear that she was nothing more to him than an occasional fuck, so Natasha was confused as to why he was toying with her in front of her husband.

“I think I know him,” Natasha said, pointing in the direction of the young male doctor that was walking towards them.

“Yeah, he does look familiar to me too,” added Jason.

Cam glanced up. “Oh, that’s Dr. Clark, he’s treating Delaney while Dr. Beard is on vacation. I was worried at first, but so far he seems to have a handle on things,” Cam said.

The young doctor walked up and smiled warmly at everyone. “Well folks, Delaney is doing fairly well. I just have to wait on the radiologist to get back with me on the results of the MRI and I will have more information on her condition.”

“Chris? Chris Clark is that you?” asked a stunned Natasha. She couldn’t believe her eyes! Dr. Clark was Chris Clark, Delaney’s first love and first heart break. He still looked the same. A pretty boy, with white stunning white teeth, and that killer smile.

“Hello, Natasha, nice to see you again. I don’t believe I’ve seen you since high school.” Chris smiled, maintaining his professionalism. “Hello Jason.” He smiled and nodded.

“What’s up, Chris? I didn’t know you were a doctor! That’s a good look,” Jason said, just as stunned as Natasha.

“I just moved back to Atlanta about six months ago. I’m glad to be back home. It’s unfortunate what happened to Delaney, but I will do everything in my power to offer her the best treatment while she is under my care.” Chris was trying his best to maintain his demeanor. His heart broke when he was called in to work and discovered that his first love was in a coma. He never stopped loving Delaney. After she caught him having sex with Yvonne during their last year of high school, Delaney refused to talk to him. He never got the chance to explain himself, and he’d carried the guilt of that day around with him for years. Chris never meant to hurt Delaney. He’d truly loved her and still did ‘til this day.

Ava stood off to the side not saying a word. Her face appeared to be in a permanent scowl. If she had it her way, she would throw Natasha’s ass out of the hospital. While Dr. Clark was catching up with Natasha and Jason, Ava whispered to Cam to pull Natasha to the side and tell her not to mention anything to Delaney about Cam being her biological father. Ava wanted Delaney to hear the truth from herself and Cam only.

Cam gently tapped Natasha on the arm, “Can I speak to you privately for a minute?” he asked.

“Sure Unc,” Natasha replied and followed Cam as he walked a few feet away from everyone else. Her mind was still reeling from the revelation that Chris is a doctor and happened to be treating Delaney. She wondered what Delaney was thinking or if she’d even recognized the fact that Chris was her doctor.

“Baby girl, I know you witnessed the fight between my brother and me in Delaney’s hospital room. I also know that you overheard what was said about me being Delaney’s biological father. I need for you to keep that information between us until Ava and I are able to have a talk with Delaney about all of this. Do you think you can do that for me?” Cam knew that Natasha wouldn’t say anything, but to sooth Ava’s mind he asked her anyway.

“Oh of course, I won’t say anything to Delaney. Although I have to say I was totally shocked. This has been one helluva day. I have to admit I am more worried about Delaney now that she has come out of the coma. She has a lot to face once she is fully awake and aware of her surroundings. I don’t know all of the details, but there is something going on between her and Tyson and now the news of you being her biological father and not her uncle. Then to top it all off, her new doctor is also her first love, and the one who broke her heart. Damn!” Natasha had her own issues, but she also knew that she needed to be there for Delaney when all of the shit hit the fan.

Cam stood and listened to everything Natasha said and the weight of it suddenly hit him. He started to doubt his decision to tell Cane about it at all. Maybe he should have just carried the truth with him to his grave. Hurting Delaney was the last thing he wanted to do, but on the flip side he felt like she deserved to know the truth as much as he deserved to be known as her father. Playing uncle was getting old, and he thought about the day that she had a child of her own, which would be his grandchild. He wanted the honor of being called Pop-pop or Granddaddy. Cane didn’t deserve the title that he’d been carrying in Delaney’s life all of these years. All he ever did was take Delaney and Ava for granted. Cam was the one who was always there for them, even when he moved to Texas for the first few years of Delaney’s life, he still stayed in contact with Ava and religiously sent money to take care of his seed.

“It will be tough on her for a while, but she will pull through. My baby girl is a fighter. So you say Dr. Clark and Delaney dated in high school, huh? She never told me about it,” Cam said sullenly. He knew that after high school she started changing, but he figured she was going through growing pains.

“Yeah they did, after he broke her heart she was never the same. Besides, she already has daddy issues, so trust has always been a hard thing for Delaney to have in people. Once she finds out that you are her father, along with whatever Tyson has done, this is going to really set her back.”

Natasha wasn’t trying to intentionally hurt Cam’s feelings, but she felt like she should be straight forward with him. Knowing Delaney the way she did, this was going to throw her world off kilter.

Cam hung his head and let the reality of it all sink in. He knew the road ahead of them was going to be bumpy for a while, but he was optimistic that in time everything would smooth out.

“I hear what you’re saying and I intend to fully be there for her in every way possible. Even if she shuts me out, I will patiently wait,” he said.

Natasha embraced Cam in a hug before walking back over to the guys. Ava was now sitting down in one of the waiting chairs with the same hateful look on her face. Natasha ignored her like she wasn’t even there. She refused to let Delaney’s hateful mother bother her or make her feel unwanted. Jason and Chris were laughing and talking about old times, and Drake was nowhere to be found. Natasha breathed a sigh of relief that he was gone. Good riddance!

Chapter Nine

Tyson stood in Ashanti’s hospital room holding his newborn baby boy. He felt a mixture of emotions like he’d never felt before in his life. His heart swelled with an unexplainable love when he looked down at the tiny new life he held in his hands. The baby didn’t have a name so the little wrist band on his arm read, baby Moore, which was Ashanti’s last name. Ashanti was sleeping peacefully in the hospital bed. Tyson called her family shortly after she gave birth and her mother and sister said they would be there just as soon as they could.

Giving the baby his name was not something Tyson was prepared to do until he knew the true paternity of the baby. He knew they would have to name him soon, but he would discuss a name with Ashanti before she was released from the hospital. Tyson sat down and cradled the newborn in the crook of his arm. He didn’t have much experience with babies, but the nurses showed him how to hold the baby, and he was doing pretty good so far. Tyson searched the baby’s face for any sign that he was his child, but he couldn’t really tell since he was a newborn and his face was swollen and puffy.

“Man, I can’t believe that I’m a father,” he said out loud. Ashanti was awake, but she played sleep as she watched Tyson holding the baby. She could see the joy and pride in his face and she was prepared to do whatever it took to keep it that way.

“Well believe it, daddy,” Ashanti said startling Tyson.

“Oh I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you,” he said glancing up at her. Although he was no longer in love with Ashanti, at this moment he had love for her. The glow on her face was radiant and she looked beautiful after giving birth to their son. For the first time since she arrived back in town, he smiled at her. Tyson figured he may as well find a way to get along with her if they were going to raise a child together.

“You didn’t wake me. I was just laying here watching you with your son and enjoying every moment of it.” Ashanti had forgotten how angry she was with him for not answering her phone calls and leaving her all alone in the ninth hour. The moment they were sharing made it seem less important.

“I want to apologize for leaving the house and turning my phone off. But once I received word that Delaney was out of the coma, I jumped up and headed straight to the hospital. I can admit that I was wrong. I’m just glad you and the baby are ok,” Tyson said while looking down at the sleeping infant in his arms.

At the mention of Delaney’s name, Ashanti’s smile disappeared. This was supposed to be their moment and he just had to bring the bitch up and ruin the happiest day of her life.

“If you don’t mind, I would rather not discuss her. I just gave birth to a beautiful son, our son.” Ashanti pouted. The news that Delaney was possibly in recovery did not please Ashanti in the least. She knew this bitch was going to be a problem, but she had plans on making Delaney’s life a living hell. This baby was her ticket back into Tyson’s life. The way he was all goo-goo eyed over the baby proved it. Now all she had to do was make sure the paternity test came back naming Tyson as the father, and she knew just the man to make her dreams a reality.

“I’m not trying to ruin your moment, Shanti, but Delaney is a part of my life and she will be a part of our son’s life as well. I thought you understood that. You are going to have to accept that you and I are over. This little man right here is our priority and the only thing that we have in common,” Tyson said standing up and handing the baby to Ashanti. Little man was squirming and started whining which probably meant he was hungry. Tyson didn’t want Ashanti to get it twisted, his heart belonged to Delaney. He knew that Ashanti desperately wanted to make things work between them, but he made sure to remind her of his love for Delaney every chance he got. His intentions weren’t to hurt her feelings, but to force her to see the reality of the situation.

Ashanti rolled her eyes and adjusted the bed in the upright position before she took the baby from Tyson’s arms. She was all smiles when she looked at his chubby little face.

“Is Mommy’s baby hungry?” she cooed. Ashanti removed one of her breast from inside of her night gown so she could feed her little man. Tyson immediately turned around in search of the remote control so he could power on the television. Breast feeding was a natural thing that mothers do, but he didn’t feel right sitting there watching her.

“Tyson, don’t be so dramatic. It’s not like you’ve never seen my breasts before. I remember a time you loved seeing me naked,” she said, noticing how uncomfortable he was acting. Tyson flipped through the channels ignoring her comment.

After Ashanti fed the baby, Tyson laid him down in the hospital bassinet. He needed to go see about Delaney, so he figured he would use this opportunity to go check on her.

“Well, Imma head on out, and I will be back to check on you and the baby a little later. We need to discuss having the paternity test done, and also giving him a name.”

Ashanti cringed when he mentioned the word paternity test. If she had it her way, the test was going to be pushed back until she could get her plan in motion.

“Oh, so you’re gonna run out on your child to go see ya lil’ girlfriend? What a joke!” Ashanti bitterly replied.

Before Tyson could respond, there was a knock at the door and in walked Drake.

“Well, look at the happy family,” he joked. Drake knew Ashanti was pregnant from day one, but he never told Tyson. Fucking Ashanti was another thing he never told Tyson about either. He tried to warn Tyson on several occasions that he should answer Ashanti’s phone calls. But he refused to do so and now he was in this fucked up situation. Deep down Drake knew that the baby could possibly be his, because she got pregnant shortly after they started fucking, which was only two weeks after she left Tyson. Secretly he was hoping the baby was Tyson’s so he could make a move on Delaney. Drake didn’t have a conscience. He always went after what he wanted by any means necessary. From the day he ran into Tyson and Delaney at the restaurant, he knew he had to have her. Her beauty was breathtaking and she was exactly the type of woman he needed on his arm.

Tyson sighed heavily, he wasn’t in the mood for Drake’s jokes today. He of all people knew that Tyson loved Delaney.

“Man cut the shit, how is Delaney?”

“Damn dawg, get ya panties outta ya ass. Can’t you take a joke?” he chuckled. Drake walked over to Ashanti and planted a kiss on her forehead. “Hey, beautiful, congratulations on your new bundle of joy.” He glanced over at the baby and he had to admit he was a handsome little fella. Drake couldn’t tell if the baby looked like him or not, it was still too early to tell.

“Thanks, Drake!” She beamed. Ashanti didn’t feel uncomfortable with Drake in the same room as Tyson, because she knew he didn’t want to be her baby’s father just as much as she didn’t want him to be. Once she discovered the type of man Drake really was beyond the money and his charming persona, she knew Tyson was the man for her. His money wasn’t as long as Drake’s but, he wasn’t broke either.

“I asked you a question, bruh. How is Delaney?” Tyson asked for the second time. He really wanted to know if she asked for him again. Nervous energy coursed through his veins.

“To be honest with you I don’t really know. The doctors had taken her up for some tests, so we didn’t get to see her yet,” he replied.

“Ok bet, well I’m gon’ ‘head down to see what I can find out. I will be back later,” he said looking at Ashanti. She simply rolled her eyes and sighed heavily. The little bitch could have her moment for now, but before it was all said and done, Tyson was going to be hers.

“Whatever, Ty!” she said waving her hand at him.

Once Tyson left the room, Drake pushed the door closed and walked over and sat down beside Ashanti. “We need to talk, ma.”