Page 72 of Forever Mine

My community was a haven in the city with well-kept common areas and neat beds of duranta, heather, and ixora. While I walked, I thought about what I wanted to say to Scott. I didn’t want our conversation to be exclusively about Lucy, but also about us and where we were headed as a couple. There could be no us if I didn't know what was going on with him.

I showered and kept my thoughts positive while ignoring the weight in my stomach. By the time I finished, the girls were up. From the smell seeping into my bedroom, I knew Mom had started breakfast.

When I felt ready to face the day, I rounded up the girls and supervised their morning routine. After that, we sat down to Ackee & Codfish with fried dumplings. Mom had a special way in the kitchen; her dumplings were tiny, flaky, and delicious. Between them, the girls put away nearly a dozen dumplings while daring each other to see who could eat the most.

Mom and I cleared the table and washed up, before we all climbed into the car. I left Mom at her place and dropped Renée at home. Rita and I blew air kisses, and I promised to fill her in later.

Pity nothing had happened beyond me getting a nasty shock.

I checked my phone to be sure I hadn't missed a call from Scott, but he hadn't made contact. At home, I settled Angel in front of the television. Although I felt guilty about leaving her to fry her brain in front of the set, it was easier to keep her occupied while I decided what to do. Should I call Scott now? Or wait until later in the day? It was ironic that now I'd decided what I wanted, Scott was silent.

Reading turned out to be a bust. After ten minutes I threw the mystery novel aside and picked up my laptop. I called Scott through Skype, but he wasn't online. WhatsApp was my next option. I sent him a message.

Trying to reach you. Thought you were going to call.

He wasn't online immediately, but he saw the message five minutes later.

Still, he didn’t call. Then, a switch flipped in my brain and I got off the bed. This wasn't who I was. Shevaughn Young waited around for no one—whether or not she was in love.

In the middle of my mental rant, the phone pinged. Scott had sent a message.

Lucy went into labor. Talk later.

The bottom fell out of my stomach. Why was Scott so invested in the life of someone he said he was finished with? And why did he think I needed to know he was playing baby daddy to his ex?

Since I didn't understand his reasoning, nor did I want to, I chose not to respond to his message.

I was done.

***

I kept my fingers crossed that Scott would get the message I'd sent him with my silence. He'd tried contacting me later that Saturday afternoon and after repeated calls and messages on different media, he'd given it a rest. His attempts to reach me continued throughout the week, but I held firm and didn't respond to him.

It was easy to go back to my pre-Scott routine. It meant concentrating on what I had to do at work and spending more time with Angel. Other than that, I took to watching movies late into the night, which left me tired in the mornings.

After doing that for five days, I crashed into bed early on Saturday night and woke on Sunday, determined to do something different. Trying not to think about Scott was making me edgy, and I didn't like it.

I packed a basket, collected Mom, and we went to the beach. Angel and I frolicked in the water and I slathered sunblock on both of us a second time and lounged on a towel, enjoying the kiss of the breeze.

Angel lay with her head propped on my arm and fell asleep, while I chatted with Mom. This was the best I'd felt since the disaster with Scott. Mom dozed in the lightweight folding chair we'd put in the back of the car, and I was feeling sleepy as well.

My mind strayed to our last trip to the beach and how Scott fitted in as if he belonged to the family. When I started wondering whether he was coming back, I shut down those thoughts and turned my mind to the preparations I had to make for the summer.

Angel would be going to Miami to spend a month with Nolan, based on our custody arrangement and there were things I needed to buy for her trip. Instead of having Nolan fly down for her, maybe I'd travel with her and shop there. After everything that happened, I needed the break.

I also had to find a replacement for Scott. His visit made our team eager to upgrade their skills as much as they could. My aim was to keep them on par with, if not better than, the other studios.

I chided myself for filling my mind with work when I was supposed to be relaxing. My phone pinged, and I dug it out of my bag.

Scott.

I thought he'd given up, since I hadn't heard from him since Friday. I opened the messaging app and read what he'd written.

Where are you?

I sucked my teeth. Why did he need to know?

As I squinted at the screen which wasn’t easy to see with the sun’s glare, the phone rang. It had to be him calling. Before I consciously thought about what I was doing, my thumb swiped the screen. I put the phone to my ear and pulled in a breath, but Scott got a word in before I did.

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