Page 11 of Guarding Our Love
I held my ring up and stared at it for a minute as the water cascaded down my body. I thought about the happier times when Roy and I first got together. I remembered the day he proposed to me like it was yesterday. There was no hesitation when I said yes. Things were great then. I wasn’t sure what happened that changed it, but there was still time to fix it if we both wanted to.
“Good morning, Sloan.”
I jumped when I heard Roy’s voice as he stood at the toilet.
“Good morning, Roy.”
I could see him through the shower door, and it used to turn me on whenever I saw his dick, but now I felt disgusted.
“Do you want some company?” he asked as he shook his dick then flushed the toilet.
“No. I’m about to get out.” I quickly rinsed off and shut the water off. If I didn’t, Roy would have still come into the shower, and I didn’t want him touching me.
Roy stood next to the shower and handed me my towel when I got out.
“Thank you.” I wrapped the towel around my body and walked over to the sink to do my skincare routine and brush my teeth.
I washed my face with the turmeric soap from Immortal Glo every morning and night then finished with some Glo oil. When I finished getting dressed, I would spray some of the rosewater I got from the website as well. I loved the way the products made my skin and smell.
Roy sucked his teeth and stood next to me. “What’s your problem?”
I put toothpaste on my toothbrush then looked at Roy in the mirror. “I don’t have a problem, Roy. I have a headache, and I’m trying to get ready for work like you should be doing.”
“I’m not going to work today. I’ll take the boys to school and pick them up, but I have some business to handle.”
That was news to me. Any other time Roy missed work, it was because of the boys or a doctor’s appointment. He also would tell me ahead of time, not the day of. He probably wouldn’t have said anything if I hadn’t mentioned him going to work.
“Oh, okay. I’m glad you can get the boys because I need to go to the store after work. I’m going to get some new accessories for the bathrooms. Do you need anything from Tommies?”
Tommies was a black-owned store that was like some of the big-name stores that sold everything from household products to groceries. It was a one-stop shop.
Roy looked at me like I was crazy. I was sure it was because he expected me to say something about him coming in so late, but I wasn’t. He sure wasn’t because then it would bring light to the situation. Maybe he thought I didn’t know. I innocently smiled at him then proceeded to brush my teeth. He ran his hand over his hair. Roy always wore his hair low with waves. He was dark chocolate with the whitest teeth I’d seen before.
“Um, yeah. I need some more toothpaste and boxers.”
I spit the toothpaste out and looked up at him in the mirror. He’d just gotten some new boxers a month prior, so I wasn’t sure why he needed some already.
“Oh, okay.” I went back to doing what I needed to do so that I could get out of the bathroom and away from him.
Roy gave me one last glance and left the bathroom. I wanted to laugh at the confusion on his face, but I didn’t.
Forty minutes later,I walked into work a few minutes before I needed to be there. I made sure the boys had breakfast, and I stopped at a bagel place that was on the way to the hospital. Roy tried his best to act like everything was normal, but he and I both knew it wasn’t. I pushed Roy to the back of my mind and focused on my patients for the day.
After I checked on Mrs. Hamilton and made sure her discharge stuff was together, I went to check on Mr. Cooper. Isaved him for last, just in case he wanted to talk.Or if Calil was there.My inner thoughts kept going to places they shouldn’t have been. Calil should be the last person on my mind. When I got to Mr. Cooper’s room, I knocked on the door and opened it when he permitted me to come in.
“Good afternoon, Mr. Cooper. How are you today?” Disappointment filled me a little when I noticed he was alone.
“Hey, Sloan. He’s not here.”
“Huh?” I walked further into the room and stood near the foot of the bed.
Mr. Cooper chuckled and looked at me like he knew I was full of shit. I heard what he said and knew exactly who he was talking about.
“It may have been years since I saw you, but you ain’t fooling anybody. Come have a seat if you have time.” He nodded to the chair next to his bed.
I had time since he was the last patient that I needed to check on. I would spend the rest of the day in my office, going over paperwork.
“Calil had practice, but he should be here sometime later. How have you been? Have you been here all this time?”
