Page 30 of Mister Jeweler

“The beginning is always a great place to start,” Sonya replied.

“I cheated on my husband.”

While Sonya’s head hung, Baxter sat up in his seat and asked, “Who put their hands on you? And why?”

“The guy I cheated with got me pregnant. He didn’t want me to tell either of our spouses about the baby. I told him that I would and that I would not get an abortion, so he took care of it himself.”

“I just have one question,” Sonya stated, voice low and trembling. “Why are you telling the world Elite did this to you if he didn’t?”

“Because I was angry!” she yelled, ripping her shades from her face. “And hurting. And wanting my husband to pay for what the hell he’d done to me!”

Baxter laughed. “What he’d done to you? Jacintha… You cheated on him. Why are you trying to punish him as if this was his fault?”

“Did he cheat on you as well?” Sonya asked. “Talk to us, baby. Because you’re not making a lot of sense.”

“I know, Ma.” Sighing, Jacintha sat back in her seat. “In that moment, I just wanted Elite to pay. I was projecting my anger toward Henry onto Elite because I knew Elite was upset with me. As far as I was concerned, Elite was the reason I cheated, but that wasn’t true or fair. I chose to cheat, I chose to not take care of myself and put me first in a healthy manner, and I chose to punish my husband for something that I did.”

“Well, I won’t argue with that,” her father said. “So how are you going to fix this?”

“I don’t know. I can try to drop the charges, but I don’t think it’ll be that easy. They are trying to add more charges and give him the maximum amount of time for each one because of his past. I hadn’t thought about that before I called the police.”

Sonya’s head shook as she stood. “I am so disappointed in you, Jacintha. You know to fix this and make amends before God avenges Elite on his behalf.”

Jacintha chuckled and wiped away a tear. “There isn’t anything God can do to make me suffer more than I already am.”

“I’m not going to come down on you too hard, your mother will do that enough for the both of us,” Baxter said as Sonya left the room. “What I will say is that this is your chance for a fresh start. We don’t condone cheating or even divorce, but this your life, Jah, and you have to do what’s best for you. What makes you happy and fulfilled. Because that’s the only way you won’t make such horrible choices like this again.”

“That’s just it, Dad. I was happy with Elite; I just wasn’t happy with me. Now I’ve messed everything up.”

Scratching his temple with a shake of his head, Baxter sighed. “I don’t know about that, baby girl. When Elite came over here to talk to me, there was a lot of pain in his voice and eyes. I don’t think he wants to let you go completely. If you drop these charges and come clean to help repair the damage you’ve done, I think that’s a great start to fixing your marriage.”

Jacintha wanted to disagree, but that was what she wanted. Her heart longed for her husband already. Losing him confirmed just how much she loved him. She wasn’t too hopeful that Elite would give her a chance to fix what she’d broken, but Jacintha had nothing else to lose… so she had to try.

??????

Jacintha had been home for a few hours before banging on the door had her leaping from bed. She’d been sitting in the middle of it, dressed in Elite’s shirt, crying her eyes out. With all the losses she’d suffered through recently, Jacintha wondered what reason she had to live. Her twins would be okay without her now that they were with their father. Her parents were probably embarrassed by her. And the only man, outside of her male family members, to show her true love and respect, no longer wanted anything to do with her.

Though her father tried to motivate her to put herself first during this moment of freedom and carve out the life she wanted to live, Jacintha still felt hopeless. She could only pray once she grieved her losses, she’d be able to heal and move forward with her life.

When she opened the door, the sight of Elite scowling almost made her smile. Though she wanted his love, Jacintha was so happy to see him she didn’t care if it was because of hate. He was already taller than her, but his wide, hard stature as he hovered over her made him appear to be ten feet taller.

“What did I do?” she asked innocently.

Her puffy eyes and tear-stained cheeks put out a little of his fire. Nostrils flaring, Elite stared at her for a few seconds before sighing and slamming the door.

“What the fuck is wrong with you?”

“Right now, or in general?”

Elite’s eyes tightened and he rolled his tongue over his teeth to keep from smiling. “I’m not in the mood to play with you, Jacintha.”

Unable to resist, Jacintha smiled softly as she wiped her face. “I know, but I was hoping it would make you smile.”

“Why are you crying?” he deflected, crossing his arms over his chest.

It felt like forever since she’d seen him. Even though his appearance was more disheveled than usual, he was still handsome. Elite usually kept his hair in individual plaits, but that day, it was pulled up into a messy bun. A black hoodie and sweatpants set covered his cashew colored skin. His mustache and goatee were thicker than usual, and he had stubble lining his jaw and cheeks now too. Normally, Elite’s honey-colored, deep-set eyes were clear and bright. Today, they were dark and puffy.

Had he been losing sleep too?

---