Page 52 of Sunday

“You made it sound like it was a one-time thing.”

“She wants to stay in contact. That’s all.”

“Then how come I’m just hearing about her?”

“She’s no one important. Like I said, she reached out because she knew I lived here now. We were just catching up on each other’s lives. We just chat on the phone from time to time. End of story.”

She stared at me for several long seconds before she breathed out a long exhale.

“I know what you’re thinking, baby.” Sunday reached across the table and grabbed my hands to comfort and reassure me.

“I don’t think you do.”

“I do. You’re thinking about Taylor and the lies she told. You’re thinking about how badly she hurt you and how you don’t want to go down that road again. I get it. But, baby, trust me. I promise that I won’t cheat on you. You’re a good man, CJ, and I love you with all my heart. I look forward to raising our son with you. Why would I mess up a good thing?”

“I don’t know, Sunny. Why would you?”

“I wouldn’t, baby.”

“Same thing that I thought about Taylor.”

Sunday shook my hands and stared into my eyes. “Listen to me and look at me, please. I’m not Taylor, and I would never do the things that she did to you. I love you, and you mean the world to me. I want what we have, Cedar. That’s all I want.”

“We have a baby involved in this thing, Sunday. When I walked away from Taylor, it impacted no one but me and her. I’m not playing that game with my seed. I told you I’m possessive and protective about what’s mine, and that includes you. But I can’t force you to want to be with me or do right by me. What I won’t do is get a child caught up in some bullshit. So, if this is the end of us, if you want something different, then tell me now before we go further.”

Sunday’s face scrunched up, and she looked as if she might cry for a moment. “I hate that you hurt as badly as you do. I truly do. I hate that you have all this baggage from your past. And Ipray that one day, I won’t be the recipient of the weight of that. But I’ll stand by your side until you see that I’m not her. This baby . . .” She placed her hand on her belly. “Our baby means the world to me, and I’m gonna give him the best, loving, protected, and safe home and environment possible, with both his parents involved in his life daily.”

“I hope so, Sunny. Because I’m serious.”

Sunday released my hands and walked around the table to sit on my lap. Wrapping her arms around my neck, she used her locked wrists to pull my head closer to her. She dipped her head, stared into my eyes, and whispered, “I know that you are. I love you, Mr. Jackson.”

“I love you, Sunny. You got my heart, girl. Treat it right.”

“I promise,” she whispered.

When she brushed her lips against mine, I let the rigidity in my body wash away. I bit her bottom lip until she opened it for me. Sucking her lip into my mouth, I grazed my tongue over it and slowly slipped it into her mouth.

Our kiss was slow but heated, and in it, a million words were spoken about the depth of my feelings for her. When she pulled back, she stood. I smacked her on the ass. “Get you some rest before our company arrives later,” I ordered.

“Are we good?” she asked, repeating the question I always ask her.

“Yeah.”

“Love you.”

“Love you, too, Sunny.”

As she walked off, I couldn’t help but wonder what she wasn’t telling me.

Sunday

“Girl, I remember when I was pregnant with Janaya, every payday this mall saw me. Onesies ‘n’ Booties has the cutest baby clothing for the best price,” Janae informed me as we hopped on the escalator to go to the third floor of the mall.

“I hadn’t wanted to jump the gun just yet. I just wanted to get a little further along in my pregnancy before I started shopping.”

“Yeah, they say you should wait until you’re out of your first trimester.”

“Well, I’m safely out of that zone. In two weeks, I’ll be in my third trimester. It seems like time is flying by some days.”

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