Page 23 of U + Me

I was new at being a parent since I had never got the chance to really be one for Kimmie. Even though I couldn’t see nor reach out to her per Rochelle’s demands I never failed on providing for her financially. I even had her future set and secure, I was just sitting back and waiting til I could get her back in my life and now the time had presented itself.

It was taking everything in me not to really tell Kimmie how her mother got down because I had been the blame, but I was sure that Kimmie had somewhat of a clue of the type of person her mother was. All the other stuff she needed to know she would find out in due time.

The hotel was off a busy street called Golf Road, and since it was a busy area, it was surrounded by strip plazas, a mall, and plenty of restaurants. It wasn’t far from the freeway, which was one of the reasons why I chose this hotel.

I was a very busy businessman in my prime building two empires that I planned to hand over to my daughter once I retire. While I sipped and smoked, Alexander O’Neal’s,If You Were Here Tonight, was softly playing in the background from the wireless speaker in the room that was connected to my music playlist from my phone. I reminisced about how things were when Rochelle was pregnant with Kimmie, to her first birthday, and then her leaving me and cutting my daughter out of my life. The years that passed I submerged myself in work in hopes of it one day paying off and benefiting my daughter even though she wasn’t in my life.

My cell ringing and vibrating on the table broke me from my thoughts as I quickly grabbed it thinking it was Kimmie.

“Hey you, how’s it going?” The smooth melodious voice on the other line instantly soothed my soul.

“It could be worse. You and Claudia cool?”

“Yep, I was just thinking about you. I miss you.”

“Is that right.” I chuckled smoothly.

“If you here tonight,” Pamela sang along to the music, “by my sideeee,” she continued, causing me to laugh.

“You know yo ass is silly. I would love to be beside you right now.”

“You sound tense, is everything going okay?”

“It’s been a lil over a week, I haven’t gone this long without some lovin’ since… shit, I can’t even remember. Tense is an understatement.” I exclaimed, causing us both to laugh.

“Just take it one day at a time, baby,” Pamela softly encouraged. “Give both you and your baby girl grace.”

Pamela was the main woman in my life, but we were not in a committed relationship. What we had would confuse others but worked perfectly for us. Pamela catered to all of my needs, she was the perfect example of what a complete package was in a spouse or companion. The only thing was I wasn’t looking for a wife, and she wasn’t interested in ever getting married again. Our arrangement was complicated but perfect for us at the same time.

When I first met Pamela, I had a gang of women I hooked up with but now, I’ve dropped that down to just a couple. I wouldn’t say that I was a sex addict, but I could confidently say that I had to have sex, a lot of it and very often. A sex addict was someone that indulged, not giving a damn about the consequences and that was never me. I loved to indulge but I was extremely mindful about who I indulged with. If you didn’t have as much as I did to lose, then I couldn’t chance it.

I was a self-made millionaire and alpha man who didn’t have the capacity to be with one person. Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t commit to one woman. It just wasn’t who I was and all the women in my life knew and understood their places. I worked hard for everything I had, and I would never risk any of it for a piece a pussy.

Pamela was the only woman in my life that if I had to choose just one, I would choose her a million times over. It was a fact that she was that strong female that could handle a man like me because for the past fifteen years, that was exactly what she had been doing and doing it well.

“I gotchu…what you got going on today? It’s been a lil minute.”

“Nothing much, and yes it has. Debating if I’ma go out for dinner or just stay in. I only called to check on you because I know you let Kimmie go to her friend’s house. I’ve been giving you your space to bond.”

“That’s what’s up. I appreciate that. What time is dinner?”

Pamela was a classy, sophisticated, beautiful woman who enjoyed her life as a single woman, I’d be a fool to think I was the only man hitting. Dinner was a more than likely a date with one of the other men in her life. I was never pressed about another nigga cause I knew none of them could ever compare to me. If they could they would lock it down and that hadn’t happened yet.

“Reservation is for seven.”

“Go, eat good, and have a nice drink so you’ll be relaxed. Once you make it back to the crib, I’ll come cap the night.” Gerald Levert’sDidn’t We, started playing so I turned it up a little bit. “I wanna thank your momma for raising a girl like you,” I sang to the lyrics. “And I wanna thank your daddy, for hooking up with your momma and doing the things they were doing when they made you.”

“I love when you sing that song to me. Whenever I hear it all I hear is you singing and not Gerald,” Pamela laughed causing me to laugh.

“Shit, you know I cut up with the vocals and the dance floor. This my shit.” I bopped in my seat feeling the beat. That brown liquor was starting to make me feel good.

“I could really use a nightcap, but what about your daughter?”

“Once she knocks out for the night she rarely gets up. I’ve never seen anyone sleep like a log like that. I mean she be out like a damn light.”

“Sounds familiar.” Pamela laughed. “Just like her daddy. Did you get to meet with your lawyer?”

“Briefly over the phone, an emergency came up and she had to go to the county for one of her clients. She said the paperwork for full custody might not take as long as I thought. I have to meet with her one more time but in person, then we’re gonna head back up north.”

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