Page 40 of Honey's Special Roux

I giggled. “Yeah, you are. You’ll have to fight my sister, though. I know she’ll be ready to kidnap my baby all the time.”

“I’ll get a calendar going. No matter what happens, you know you’ve got a solid foundation and village behind you.”

“I know. I’m blessed, no matter what.”

We talked for a little while longer. Conversation was hard to keep going because my mind kept wandering to the potential baby resting inside of me. The poor thing was probably confused with my bad eating habits and love for a good alcoholic beverage. If I was pregnant, I needed to get my diet under control to make sure the child inside of me got the proper nutrients it deserved.

“Thank you for brunch and bringing this to my attention. Once I take the test and get the results, I’ll probably text you instead of calling. I might be too busy crying.”

“Aww, pooh. It’ll all be okay.”

I gave her a tight hug, and she kissed my cheek. Once inside the Uber, I released a breath and made a game plan. I ordered the box of tests to be delivered to the front door so I wouldn’t have to get on the road when the driver dropped me off.

* * *

Pregnant.

Pregnant.

Pregnant.

All three tests read the same thing as I looked at them on the bathroom counter. I would be twenty-one when the baby graced their presence in the world. From my calculations, I should be about eight or nine weeks pregnant, but I’d find an ob-gyn to confirm next week.

How will I tell Marquise?

I’d have to butter him up for sure. My mind mulled over my options. He was a man who loved to eat. I’d make him one of his favorites and make the announcement after he got properly fed and thoroughly fucked.

I sent a picture of all three tests with my face in the selfie to the girls’ chat I had with my sister, Jenifer, and one of our other friends, Cyera. Cyera was always traveling, so keeping up with what time zone she was in was tough.

The chat went crazy with reactions. It wasn’t a surprise when my sister called me.

“Hello?” I answered innocently.

“Don’t. Are you pregnant for real?” she asked softly.

Chamille was a few months shy of eighteen years old. She was grown as hell and living her best life as a senior in high school. She received acceptance letters from almost every school in Texas. I told her she didn’t have to be confined to in-state schooling. She told me that most schools were anywhere from two to five hours away from where our parents lived. She said as long as she was a safe distance away she didn’t mind living in-state. Plus, tuition was cheaper for in-state students.

“I am. I took all three tests, and they damn near yelled the results at me before the pee was on them good.”

She burst into tears. I sat on the phone with her, quietly letting her release her emotions. She was my baby sister, and she couldn’t believe I was about to bring a life into the world.

“Have you told Mommy and Daddy yet?” she asked once the wave of emotions had settled.

“No. I’m going to tell them once I’ve gone to my doctor’s appointment and got more answers to the inevitable questions they’re going to ask.”

“Smart. Granny’s finna be a great granny. I am cackling.”

“Please don’t remind me. She’s going to have a lot to say when I tell her. She’s been distant since I started dating Marquise. It sucks. That used to be my girl.”

“She’ll come around. You know she wanted to see you with someone else—someone safe. She’ll get over it when she meets her great grandbaby.”

“I hope so.”

We talked for a while as I got dinner prepared for my man. Smothered chicken over white rice, green beans, and dinner rolls. I poured his favorite wine and took a hot shower. When I got out, I moisturized my skin and put on a red and black lingerie set.

I applied his favorite perfume of mine onto my hot spots and skipped down the steps to wait for him to arrive. In my impatient waiting, I paced around the house.Would he be excited about a baby? Would he want me to abort? What kind of parents would we be?

I’d known him for almost five years, but five years wasn’t a long time at all. We’d transitioned from teenagers to young adults. I got away with buying alcoholic beverages because a lot of spots we frequented didn’t card me. I looked old enough, and when I did drink, Marquise or Jenifer were the ones to supply the liquor.

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