Page 37 of Desire

“The school? Why aren’t you home?”

“Because I couldn’t take Ria. Can you come now?”

“Why couldn’t you?—”

“Aziel, please! I’ll tell you the details when you get here.”

She ended the call before I could say anything else, which lowkey pissed me off. I looked up, and all eyes were on me.

“Is everything okay?” Brendan, one of the men I was meeting with, asked.

“Actually, I need to head out. That was my wife, and I need to meet her and my daughter. Can we pick this up via video conference next week?”

“Of course,” Daniel, the other man, said.

I stood and dug into my pocket for my wallet.

“Don’t worry about the bill. We got it.”

“You sure?”

“You’re good, man. Go take care of your family.”

“Thanks. I’ll be in touch.”

On the way to Little Black Pearl, I racked my brain trying to figure out why Desire wasn’t allowed to leave with Azaria. She’d been bringing her to school and home for the past few weeks. No reason came to mind by the time I arrived. When I approached the door, a woman was waiting just inside and opened it for me.

“Mayor Harris, I’m Mrs. Duncan, the school director. I’m sorry to interrupt your day, but?—”

“Where’s my wife and daughter?”

I didn’t intend to be rude, but I didn’t have time for the formalities.

“Waiting in the classroom.”

“Thank you.”

I walked past her but could feel her right behind me. When I entered the classroom, Desire was pacing while Azaria sat coloring at one of the tables.

“Baby.”

She and Azaria looked in my direction and rushed toward me.

“Daaddyy.”

“Hey, baby girl,” I greeted, swooping her into my arms. “Did you have a good day?”

“Yes, look what I colored.” She held a piece of paper up to my face.

“It looks good. Let me talk to Miss Chambries. Go finish coloring your picture for a minute.”

“Okay, Daddy.”

I put her down, and she ran back to the table. When Desire and I made eye contact, her worried eyes concerned me.

“C’mere and tell me what’s wrong.”

She stepped into my arms, and it was as if a dam had been released. I let her cry for a minute, but I was anxious to know what was wrong. Without my urging, she pulled away from me.

---