Page 20 of Mister Jeweler

February

Bianca was right—Jacinthahadn’t detached when she needed to, and shit hit the fan. Things were going really well for Jacintha and Elite. So well that she tried to cut Henry off to really focus on her marriage. That changed after she and Elite went to a Valentine’s Day party and saw Henry there with another woman. She couldn’t help but wonder if that was the woman he’d been cheating on all this time.

After that night, they met up to talk, and ended up fucking again. That was a week ago, and Jacintha had been trying her hardest to stay away, but that had proven to be easier said than done. Now, she could no longer deny the fact that her period was late, and based on the timing, Jacintha had no earthly idea who the father of her child was.

On her way to see Henry, Jacintha picked up a pregnancy test. The last few times they’d seen each other, he fucked her rough and hard—like he was angry with her. He hadn’t mentioned it, but Jacintha was sure Henry recognized her husband. She was honestly surprised he continued to mess with her, but that was the power of a woman’s pussy. When it was good enough and the arrangement provided enough excitement, the average man would be willing to risk it all.

She ended up going to the bathroom as soon as she made it to his hotel room, not even bothering to speak to him. After peeing on the stick, she set it on the counter and made her way outside. Normally, seeing Henry in just his boxers would have warranted immediate arousal. Now, it made Jacintha turn her nose up.

“We need to talk,” she announced.

“About what?” he asked, sitting on the edge of the bed.

Instead of getting close and sitting next to him, Jacintha leaned against the wall by the TV.

“I think I’m pregnant.”

His expression remained blank as he stared at her. “And?”

“And I don’t know if the baby is yours or my husbands.”

“Regardless, let that nigga think the baby is his. He don’t know we fucking, right?” Her head shook. “Then you’re good.”

Chuckling, Jacintha crossed her ankles and arms. “So you’re okay with the idea that you may have a child out here whose life you won’t be a part of?”

Henry shrugged. “Under normal circumstances, I would say no.”

“So what makes this an abnormal circumstance?”

“The fact that your husband is Elite Benson.” Rolling her eyes, Jacintha clenched her jaw. “If he finds out that you cheated with me, he’s going to kill me.” Henry chuckled. “Ain’t no child or no pussy worth that.”

“Henry…”

“I ain’t no pussy ass nigga. If he wanted to jack it out, I would go one on one with his ass. But your man is known to blow a nigga’s head off and not lose a second of sleep over it. I’m not risking my life to remain in yours.”

“So that’s it? We’re done?”

Nodding, Henry stood. “If you’re pregnant, yeah. It’s been fun, but shit has gotten too serious and consistent with us anyway.”

Finding his excuse amusing, Jacintha chuckled and shook her head as she headed to the bathroom. Done with the conversation, she decided to remain in the bathroom until she got the results. The short number of minutes seemed to drag. When they were finally up, she looked at the test and cursed under her breath. Almost three years married to her husband, and she’d never gotten pregnant. Now that she was having an affair… she was. Jacintha didn’t know if that was God’s way of punishing her, if it was karma for her bad choices, or if God was finally giving her the baby she’d been wanting with Elite in an attempt to convince her that she was exactly where she needed to be.

Whatever the case, Jacintha tossed the test and headed out of the bathroom. Without even bothering to tell Henry, she left his room too. If curiosity got the best of him, he’d check the test. If not, she was cool with that too. This baby was going to have to be a blessing for her and her husband, no matterwhothe father was.

??????

Jacintha sat on the edge of their bed, unsure of how this conversation was going to play out… unsure of how her husband would feel. Hell, she wasn’t even sure how she felt. Yes, this was what she wanted. It was the only thing she wanted. But not like this. Not right now.

She stood, cupping her hands in the center of her. Elite had been home long enough to mutter a quick hello and let her know that he was heading out to meet the guys before jumping in the shower. This had been their routine for as long as Jacintha could remember, or at least, the routine of their marriage. Seems boyfriend and fiancé Elite were a hell of a lot different from husband Elite. And knowing what Jacintha knew now, there was a part of her that wished she could go back. Not necessarily to never marry him, but to make sure that she didn’t settle for the pattern they’d hopelessly fallen into.

The shower cut off, and Jacintha scratched her elbow as she jerked her body in the direction of the door. Her fingers and toes tingled as a feeling of emptiness settled in the pit of her stomach. Inhaling a deep, shaky breath, Jacintha scraped a hand through her hair as the shower door creaked open and closed.

Her eyes shifted to the wall in front of their bed. There were three pictures. In the middle was a picture of them on their wedding day. It was housed between two blown up scripts of their vows for one another. Jacintha’s eyes lowered to their bed and the gray, black, and white comforter set that covered it. Plopping back down on the edge of the bed, Jacintha wiggled her fingers as she released a loud sigh.

Elite opened the bathroom door, stepping out in nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist. That was new too. He used to always walk around their bedroom in the nude. With her set of twins living with them full time, they didn’t have the freedom Jacintha thought she’d have in her home on a daily basis.

She hadn’t realized how much she took walking around naked, loud sex, and being able to smoke freely for granted until those luxuries were taken away from her. Being a mother was something Jacintha had always wanted, though, and she wouldn’t trade her twins in for any amount of freedom in the world.

“Um…” Elite met her eyes, but Jacintha quickly looked away, bouncing her left leg in the process. “Can we talk before you go? It won’t take long.”

---