Page 31 of You Make Me Feel

“I haven’t decided yet. He knows how long we’ve been around each other and how we didn’t hang out after work hours. He would never believe that the baby is from you. I’ll probably tell him the truth and swear him to secrecy. He’s very attentive and will ask questions if he wants to know something.”

“Yeah. I figured that out about him.”

He chuckled, and I relaxed in his arms once again and stroked his hairless chest. I closed my eyes and hoped that things continued going well between us. That situation at his job with Mya made me nervous. That woman seemed like she could be fatal attraction crazy. I didn’t want her stalking him, appearing in places, freaking him out. These women were something else, and I didn’t put anything past them.

I’d told him Monday to be careful, and I seriously meant that. The behavior he described was scary. He said when her mom had come to pick her up, she threw an entire fit. Her mom had said that she would calm down on her own, and once she did, she got her out of there, vowing to take her to see her doctor the following day.

Seemed like we both had issues with crazy, ignorant people. I hadn’t heard from Jarod’s ho ass, but I was more than sure I would before Sunday rolled around again. Unbeknownst to Oliver, I still wanted to make him suffer. He shouldn’t get off scot-free. It wasn’t fair or right. He needed to man up and do what he should as a father. The problem was that I’d agreed Oliver would be my baby’s father. There was no way I could have both. Oliver would walk away from me so quickly if he knew I was still fucking around, trying to get Jarod to accept his responsibilities.

“What are you thinking about, baby?”

“How I love lying in your arms this way.”

I stared up at him and gently pulled his face to mine by putting my hand on the back of his neck. There was no resistance as he pressed his lips against mine. Despite my mind telling me not to, I slid my tongue to his and kissed him passionately, causing my body to heat up with desire. When his hands slid to my ass, I knew this was going too far. I wanted to have sex with him, but at the same time, I didn’t. My body craved him, but I didn’t want him to think I had fallen all in yet. My mind was in such turmoil, and I didn’t want to cloud it even more with sex. That was what got me into the predicament I was in now.

I slowly pulled away as he stared at me. He didn’t say a word; he only pulled me even closer to him and kissed my forehead. I felt like crying, but I knew I would surely throw up again if I did. Doing my best to change the direction things were going, I asked, “Did you have your consultation yesterday?”

“Naw. I had to cancel it. I’ll never hear the end of it, either. Shannon gon’ put her foot in my ass. I can already taste the leather.”

“Shannon? Mr. Taylor’s sister-in-law?”

“Yeah. I met her at my cousin’s house. They’re best friends, and my cousin works for her.”

“Oh, that’s cool. Shannon is crazy as hell. When she comes in the office, she and Mr. Taylor go back and forth like they are real-life sister and brother.”

I giggled as I thought about the instances. Those two could go back and forth with the best of them. However, Mr. Taylor said Shannon was mild compared to his other sister-in-law, Sonya. I slowly shook my head as I thought about them. Tilting my head back, I stared at Oliver, then asked, “Are you hungry? I have some leftovers in the fridge.”

“Naw. I’m good. I ate not long before I came over. Let me know if you wanna try to eat something. Maybe I can go get you some soup or something. You probably need something light on your stomach.”

“Yeah. Maybe later. Are you only staying tonight?”

“I don’t know. You want me to stay longer?”

“Yeah, I do. This is nice.”

“If I don’t have to return to Houston Friday, I’ll stay. I just couldn’t go another day without seeing you.”

“That’s sweet, Oliver.”

“Mm,” he hummed as he nuzzled his nose to my neck. “You smell good, baby.”

“Thank you. So do you.”

I closed my eyes and rested in his arms, totally relaxed, knowing he had my best interest at heart. This was the first time I thanked God for my pregnancy. It forced me to see him, therealhim, and not just my perception of him. I would be a fool ever to let him go. I made a vow, at that very moment, to let shit go. That included Jarod. If he didn’t want to experience the joys of being a father, that was on him. I had a man lying next to me who wanted to experience everything I had to offer him: all of me.

* * *

“Are you nervous?” Oliver asked me.

“Extremely. I just want everything to be okay.”

He kissed my forehead, grabbed my hand, and led me inside the doctor’s office. It had been over a week, and it was time for my first appointment. I was able to keep Mr. Taylor at bay. I didn’t want to tell him before I told my family. However, he would know the truth. My family would only know what Oliver and I had discussed. This was his baby, and honestly, it was. I still hadn’t heard from Jarod’s ass. He didn’t show up to church Sunday, like he dared me to out him.

To hell with him. I refused to allow my pettiness to rule over me at this moment, especially since I was partly to blame. I had a baby to think about now. Having Jarod in the picture would only keep me stressed out. Oliver brought peace to my life, and every day I was with him convinced me of that. We sat together at church Sunday, and Kiana and my mom had a field day grilling me about him and asking why I didn’t ask him to join us for dinner.

That would be what happened this Sunday. I wanted to tell them at Sunday dinner, but something in me told me to tell them today. After I got checked in and we sat in the waiting area, I turned to Oliver. “What do you think about talking to my parents today?”

His eyebrows lifted. “Really? I mean, we can do it whenever you want to, but you said you weren’t in a hurry to have the conversation.”

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