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“What?! Do you really believe all that?!”

“Say,” I sighed. “If you not gon’ own up to nothing then we can end this conversation. I’ma just continue to keep you at a distance because you keep working against me. I don’t have time for that, bruh.”

“Alright,” she groaned while rolling her eyes. “I’m sorry for not wearing the right colors and it was petty of me to keep those clothes in them bags. But I didn’t do any of that to make Lourdes mad.”

“Okay, Rahesha.” Her apology was fake because she wasn’t owning up to her actions. I didn’t expect her to admit that she was going out of her way to agitate Lourdes because she disliked her and hated the fact that we were together and having a baby. I didn’t need her to admit it because I knew what it was. Therefore, I knew how to carry her going forward. She was going to be on the outside looking in when it came to things that pertained to me and my family. I could show her better than I could tell her.

“HEYYYYY, ALIIIIII!” Pinky twisted up. It was a nice 72 degree day, but Pinky was down bad for wearing those True Religion denim shorts, crop top, and thigh high leather boots. She had a plaid flannel over it but it was wide open, so the only thing it covered was her ass. Everything else was on full display and she looked a mess. She’d gone under the knife one too many times, so she was shaped like a cartoon character. Nothing looked natural, her belly button had disappeared, and everything appeared to be stiff and hard.

I simply nodded because I didn’t have the patience to entertain another dumb ass hoe right then.

“Girl, this man looks just like his daddy and he’s mean like him, too,” she tittered. “Is that your lil baby mama?!”

“Yes, I’m his girlfriend,” Lourdes smirked.

“And ain’t nothing lil about her,” I added. That slang didn’t go over my head and I know it didn’t go over Lourdes’ either.

“Oop, I know that’s right! My invitation to the baby shower must have gotten lost in the mail, nephew.”

“Nah, we only invited close family and friends.”

“How? I saw Shakie was there and your mama ain’t never been close to her.”

“Do I look like my mama?” I snapped.

“No, but I’ve been your mama’s best friend since birth. I was there when she pissed on a stick and found out she was pregnant with you, so have some respect.”

I laughed. “The only reason I’m not gon’ be completely disrespectful is because we’re in the presence of children, but ion know you like that Pinky. You asking about my baby shower and who was there when you didn’t show up to half of my mama’s baby showers. But y’all best friends? Okay.”

“Girlllll, let me go inside before I curse this disrespectful child of yours out.” She switched off.

“Ms. Pinky booty looks like balloons under her plaid shirt,” Icelyn giggled.

“More like basketballs,” Phoenix muttered.

“Alright Rahesha,” I chuckled while she stood there laughing like a drunken fool. “Back up so we can go.”

Chapter 16

Lourdes

Experiencing Hawaii for the first time just two weeks shy of being eight months pregnant meant I couldn’t do much of anything except relax and I loved it. I’d been enjoying sleeping in, walking the beach, waddling around in the pool, and the best part was being alone with my man. We had a lot of alone time in New Orleans but we were always accessible. It was nice for just the two of us to get away and block everybody out. This was definitely the break we needed before baby girl blessed us with her presence in January. Time was flying and I was trying not to freak out about giving birth, but I was petrified. If I could skip past that part and fast forward to Alouri being in my arms then I would because I was so ready to meet her and love on her. The calmness of Hawaii was helping to calm my nerves and helping me to think positively because I had a lot to be grateful for.

“Good karma, my aesthetic. Keep my conscience clear, that's why I'm so magnetic. Manifest it, I finessed it. Take my pen and write some love letters to heaven…” I sang along to Just like Magic with Ariana Grande and twirled around in the pool with a Mai Tai mocktail. The last time I had real liquor was for my birthday in Miami and I was very much pregnant at the time, but I didn’t know yet. I’d always been someone who only indulged in alcohol when I went out or for special occasions, and I hadn’t been outside since my world was rocked at the end of June. I was in the house stressed, depressed, and figuring out my life. I didn’t even think about going out anywhere, so I stopped drinking and I was so thankful for that because my poor baby would’ve been swimming in Hennessy and Don Julio. I was still crossing my fingers and praying to God every night that my baby didn’t have any birth defects from the liquor I did consume when I didn’t know I was pregnant. We wouldn’t know for sure until she was born.

I’d joke about being jealous whenever I was around people who were drinking alcohol, but I hadn’t seriously craved it since learning I was pregnant. If consuming liquor had affected my daughters health then I’d probably never view alcohol the same again. Being pregnant had already changed my perspective. If I had taken this Hawaii trip back in the spring I’d need an alcoholic beverage in my hand at every second to have fun. But here I was having the time of my life with my glorified juice and music blasting from the patio tv and speaker. My mind was clear, I was at peace, and I felt so loved.

“Why are you recording me?” I giggled when I noticed Armias by the glass door that led to our master bedroom. Our villa was too big and grand for just us two, but I had zero complaints. I was singing my praises upon arrival and sucking dick multiple times a day to show my appreciation. I truly loved it here.

“Because you look beautiful,” he replied smoothly. I smiled in response because I felt beautiful despite not having my hair done or wearing any makeup. I opted to wear my natural hair because I knew I’d be doing a lot of swimming. I’d been styling my hair in slick back buns and ponytails the few times we did leave the villa, which was only for dinner and beach days. At that very moment my kinky, curly hair was wet and hanging free and I wore a soft pink string bikini with an itty bitty triangle top. Well it wasn’t so itty bitty when I bought it a year ago, but my titties had doubled in size since then thanks to Alouri.

He walked out and closed the sliding door behind him. He wore Fendi swim trunks with matching slides and no shirt. “Why you taking a sunset swim without me?”

“You were knocked out.”

“Because of you and that mouth,” he smirked while stepping down the steps to join me in the pool. I was staring directly at his dick print and thinking about sucking him up again.

“Man, you on demon time,” he laughed as he wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me to him. “What you want, doll baby?”