Page 63 of Kandi's Crush: A BWWM Sweet Billionaire Romance

“I trust him.”

“What about money? I don’t expect you to work here. You shouldn’t be working at all. He has plenty of money to support your dreams.”

“I want to work. I’m twenty-one years old, sitting at home would bore me to shreds. I need a purpose.”

“Children. If you’re working, who raises the children? Nannies? You see what nannies and staff did for him. Do you want my grandbabies to grow up like that?”

“It’s been four months,” I sighed. “We aren’t discussing kids.”

“Fair enough. Let’s talk about race. He’s white, and you’re black. How are you going to feel when someone mistakes you for the nanny and not the mother? What are you going to do then?”

“You raised me not to care what strangers think. I can’t control how stupid people think.”

“He’s your first. Don’t you want to know how it is to date and sleep with other men?”

“I saved myself for a reason. I’m satisfied with him, and I don’t care about any other men.”

Marie-Therese let out a loud groan. I braced myself, hoping and praying the sisters wouldn’t begin arguing.

“Celeste, stop it. If you keep badgering her, she won’t want to come around us anymore. You pretend that you don’t care, but you miss her. Apologize and let’s move on from this shit.” My mother glared at Marie-Therese before continuing with the questions.

“Aren’t you afraid?he will tire of your virginal ways? What if he wants something hotter than missionary with one woman every night? Are you prepared to bring in another woman to be the star in your marriage?”

“Ha! This is the reason I didn’t tell you about our relationship or the wedding. Stop trying to manage my life.”

“You think this shit is easy? I sacrificed everything for you. I had hopes and dreams, but I made the best of it so I could give you a better life. You’re supposed to build empires, not be some rich man’s concubine.”

“You know what? I’m done with this.” I slammed down the coffee cup on the desk. Coffee dripped along the side onto the white desk. Let them clean it up. I marched over to the cabinet and pulled out my purse. I hooked my arm in the strap, adding a casual yet snide, “Bye, Auntie. I will see you around.”

“There she goes. Grown women don’t run. They stand in their truth,” my mother scoffed.

“Yeah. Whatever. Bye,?Celeste.” I stormed out the door into the warm, autumnal sun. I peeled out of the parking lot and headed home.

When I reached our building, I kept going. I drove around the city for an hour. I let the stress overtake me, shedding a few tears. I didn’t want Chadwick to know that I lasted less than fifteen minutes at the office. He couldn’t know that I ran out before the tears slid down my cheeks.

I hated that I’d been unable to answer my mother’s questions. It would bother me to be mistaken for the nanny. And I had thought about the chance that he may get bored with me sexually. Sometimes, I even wondered if he’d married me for my virginity.

I couldn’t believe I was at one of the lowest points of my life. I had love, and I was in love. But I needed my mother.

I sighed and pushed down my negative thoughts. I wasn’t good without my family, and I wouldn’t have been good without Chadwick. Yet, if I had to choose, I would pick him every single time.

Chadwick

I hovered over the stainless-steel kitchen sink while I wolfed down a peanut butter and grape jelly sandwich. Since Kandace had become a permanent fixture in my life, I’d become more conscious of cleaning after myself and lending a hand with the household chores. But that didn’t mean I didn’t revert to my old ways now and then. I used the organic peanut butter and jelly dispensed from squeeze tubes. I chose the convenience of eating over the sink because there would be no utensils or plates to wash or tables to clean. I could wash any crumbs that fell into the sink into the garbage disposal.

The elevator chime announced Kandace’s arrival. Between bites, I called out to her.

“Sweets! That was fast. Guess what? We received a contract for the smallest unit on the third floor. Let’s go out and celebrate.”

When she didn’t respond to my greeting, I leaned over to look for her in the foyer. She stood in the entry, red-rimmed eyes accented with dark circles, lack of consistent sleep and sadness painted on her face. I turned off the music app and walked over to her. The loft was quiet, the pads of my feet slapping against the marble floor the only sound in the cavernous space.

“What’s wrong?” I asked with a hint of caution.

“Celeste being Celeste.” She sighed and shrugged her shoulders.

Oh no, not again.

There were three people in my marriage, and it was more than a little crowded. Kandace and my mother-in-law hadn’t spoken since the day Kandace stormed out of Scrub-A-Dub. Celeste was still a constant fixture in our lives. Memories of the good times with her mother flooded my wife’s conversations and inserted their way into our activities. The only time Kandace didn’t worry about Celeste was when we were making love.

---