Page 66 of Cause When You Love Someone
Essen looked me up and down as she grabbed her hips. “I’m happy you came over here. I thought you were going to leave without speaking to me.”
“Of course not,” I lied. “I just finished taking pictures with the kids. How are you?”
“I’m good.You’reglowing.”
A nervous laugh slipped through my lips. “Girl. It’s the sun.”
“Yeah. Okay,” she replied, her voice laced with doubt. “I see you’re filming again. You got the girls out here twerking to get on camera.”
“Little do they know, it’s not always as good as it’s cracked up to be,” I declared in a faraway tone. “I’m about to head toanother location to film. I just wanted to come over and say hi. I’m happy I ran into you guys.”
Essen pulled me in for a hug. “It was good to see you, Clarke. Don’t be a stranger.”
Proud that I made it through the conversation without asking about Ishmael, I freed an uneasy breath as I walked away. I made it a few feet away from the parking lot before Chaz’s voice stopped me in my tracks.
“You have got to be fucking kidding me,” I grumbled. “Go home, Roger! There is no reason for you to be here or speak to me. The only reason I haven’t put your ass in jail is because of your babies. I refused to be the reason you can’t provide for them.”
A distant look narrowed his eyes. “You keep saying there’s nothing to talk about, but according to the text I got from your mom this morning, we gota lotto talk about. I thought her weird ass was being messy, but then I read the article.”
My head jerked back. “What are you talking about?”
He waved his phone in my direction, and I snatched it from his grasp. My eyes raced across the screen, soaking in every word of my business being on the internet. The article was written in a cutesy way, but the details could only come from one of two people.
“This is a lie. This is wrong. We are not having a baby!”
Chaz’s sly grin morphed into a flat line. “We aren’t, butyouare?”
“That’s not what I said,” I answered in a rush.
His long fingers reached for my hair, but I side-stepped his affection.
“If you touch me again, you’re going to jail or hell. It all depends on how I feel that day.”
“After finding out you’re having my baby, I’m willing to take the charge or time with the devil.”
In the midst of the argument, a few girls walked by and offered us congratulations. Chaz beamed at the idea of being attached to me, whereas I got the urge to puke at the thought. It was bad enough that Derrick hugged me tight enough to start a rumor. Now, Chaz was under the impression we were going to be a family.
Giving the nuisance my back, I spun around and stomped off to the parking lot. When I approached Rock, I could tell by his expression that he was ready to deliver an affirmation.
“Not right now, Rock. I don’t want to hear it,” I snapped. “Do me a favor and call my mom a car. She can’t be trusted. Her and her big mouth ass can’t ride with me anymore!”
Chapter 11
Clarke
Grown Woman
Most times, I crawled into a hole when my business hit the internet. This go around, I put on my finest threads, jade-colored stones, and walked into my lawyer’s suite with my head held high. Although I was fine with attending the meeting alone, Sage insisted on tagging along, and I accepted his support. Lately, he was the only person I knew who was in my corner.
We sat in the office, gossiping for about five minutes before Kelis Troy joined us in the office.
“No mom today?” she asked while relaxing in her oversized leather chair.
“Nope. She won’t be attending any meetings with me from now on. I’m dissolving our contract.”
“Wait. Are you serious? You two have been a team since I became your lawyer.”
“So you should know how serious I am. I want to update my will too.”
