Page 56 of The Friend Zone
When he learned he was going to be a father, he’d been upset and disappointed in himself. He never envisioned himself as a father but acknowledged he had not done what was necessary to prevent getting his fiancée pregnant.
Despite his reservations, the night Prince was born, Omar took a last minute flight into New York. He arrived at the hospital minutes before he entered the world and was able to cut the umbilical cord. Once he held Prince in his arms, he was all in. Until Dana, he never believed he could love another person so much. The unveiling of tonight’s secrets dealt a devastating blow to his soul.
Dana approached and handed him a cup of hot tea.
“You don’t have anything stronger?” he asked.
“You don’t need anything stronger,” she said quietly.
“You’re wrong. I would kill for a strong drink right now. A lot of strong drinks.” He sipped the tea and then set the cup and saucer on the table. He didn’t want it.
“Are you going to be okay?” Dana asked.
“Yeah.” Then he laughed. “No, not for a very long time.”
There was a moment of silence as he reflected on his relationship with Athena.
“You know what the crazy part of this whole messy situation is? I didn’t want kids. When she told me she was pregnant, I was furious at myself for being so careless. I told her straight up I was getting a vasectomy because I didn’t want any more kids, but I wanted a life with her. She assured me she was okay with marriage if we didn’t have any more children. Then I found out she was cheating on me, but little did I know she cheated on me long before the incident around Prince’s birthday.”
“When you told me you and Cole didn’t have the best relationship, I didn’t know it was this bad. He’s so angry and bitter.”
“He’s been angry and bitter for a long time.” He brushed her bottom lip with his finger. “I’m sorry you were exposed to so much ugliness tonight. I knew he didn’t like me, but I didn’t have a clue how much. He doesn’t just dislike me. He hates me.”
Knowing how much his brother despised him hurt in a way he never expected, like a cork screw being plunged into his stomach and then twisted for good measure.
Dana took one of his hands in hers. She seemed at a loss for words, but she didn’t have to talk. Her presence provided the comfort he needed. Having her by his side the entire night softened the blow of the revelation in the restaurant.
Omar pulled her under his arm, and she hugged his torso.
“At some point Athena and I need to talk,” Omar said, wrapping his forefinger in one of her locs.
“Because you have to figure out what to do about Prince,” Dana said.
“Yeah, and I have a million questions. The main one being, Why? I don’t care so much about why she cheated with my brother, but I need to understand why she let me believe Prince was mine. For four years. Damn.”
“You don’t have to rush. You can take your time and figure out how you want to proceed.”
He stayed quiet for a spell.
“I’m so glad you were there tonight. I don’t know what would have happened if you didn’t show up.”
“I’ll always have your back, Omar.” She gazed up at him. “Like I know you’ll always have mine.”
“Thanks, sweetheart.”
He gave her a soft kiss.
25
Omar and Athena sat across from each other at a table outside Alon’s Bakery north of Atlanta. All around them, people ate lunch and a few pedestrians strolled the sidewalk to visit the stores in the shopping center.
Since the night of Kitchen Love’s soft opening, they hadn’t communicated except for a text she sent letting him know she and Prince were leaving the condo. His mother called later and told him she and his father allowed Athena and Prince to stay at the house with them until she flew back to New York.
“Thanks for meeting me,” Athena said.
Omar didn’t respond to the comment because he didn’t agree to meet her out of the goodness of his heart. He needed an explanation for everything he’d learned a week ago, the night his life went to hell. Knowing she cheated on him three years ago had been hurtful, but finding out the man she cheated on him with was his own brother and the father of the child he thought was his, was the deepest of betrayals.
“I chose the wrong brother to have a child with.”
