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Then the girls met with Jas and he ordained their request to plan and host, but only if he could pay for it. The girls felt it would be his shower, too, which seemed unfair. My father offered to pay, but Jas refused. Jas insisted on the expense, leaving my father to concede, yet have them agree to allow him to host here on his property. Incurring one another in life again had still been a bone of contention for Jas and my dad. Nonetheless, it all worked out for me. The one singular drawback of my shower was not having my mother present. She refused to attend here in my father’s home. So, she’d been planning a post-delivery shower inDellalater on this spring, something I’d not been looking forward to. It would be senseless!
During my stroll, I spotted four people chatting. Good-looking people at that. Jas and his intern, Ava, were standing over a woman with a curly tapered bob, wearing the biggest diamond wedding ring I’d ever seen from such a distance. She was sitting at an angle, knee-to-knee with a smooth almond-skinned man with a stunning bald head and the most radiant green/goldish eyes. Those eyes were on me in approach. Of course, I strutted their way. I had to. Ava and Jas resembled a couple, chatting with a “fellow-couple.” And Jas looked damn good with those dark, messy coils in a tan’ish brown two-piece suit over a white dress shirt and with white sneakers. It corresponded with my mauve sequin mini empire dress with layered tulle.
Surprisingly, and for the first time since we’d broken up, that unusual spirit of jealousy emerged.
“Well, who do we have here?” I beamed.
The woman turned around, exposing her gorgeous freckles and warm golden complexion. She smiled with big eyes. “Oh, you’re gorgeous.” She gushed.
“Takes one to know one.” I offered my hand. “I’m Shi-Shi.”
She took my hand in a shake as she rose to further greet me with a kiss on my cheek. “Of course, you are. It’s great to meet you. I’m sorry the first time is at your baby shower, but I’ll take it. I’m Bilan Ellis.”
Ellis?
I smiled as her fine ass husband stood to grant the same salutation, though I didn’t understand the connection. “Hey, Shi-Shi. I’m Sadik. I see you’ve made my little brother here a very lucky king.”
Grinning into his beautifully translucent eyes, I explained, “I aim to please.” Then I shrugged. “It’s what I do. Na’ah I mean?” I rolled my shoulders and winked, earning me a crack of laughter from everyone in the group except for my baby’s daddy.
He gazed over my entire being with what felt like wonder in his eyes. Jas and I may have officially abandoned our relationship as a couple, but he didn’t fail to make me feel seen and…beautiful. Him not laughing was also telling of him expecting my silliness. I may have been living with hurt, confusion, and fear for my future, but I fought every day to be me. Humor was one of my easiest expressions outside of work.
“I saw you in theAsè Garbcommercial,” Bilan mentioned. “I had no idea it was you until my father-in-law mentioned it while we were in the great room waiting for dinner to be served. He lowered his reading glasses and said, ‘I think that’s Sin’s girl. But can’t be. She pregnant. I think that nigga lying. She too pretty.’” She laughed after doing an impression of what I assumed was an older man. Even I found that crazy hilarious.
“Yeah,” Sadik interjected. “You ain’t tell me about the commercial, Sin.”
They made a big deal aboutmygig from a few months ago. The commercial I shot, dancing in their latest foot and coat line asAsè Garbexpanded their ready-to-wear products.
“I forgot to. I had lunch with him the week it went live,” Jas answered and I wondered where he’d gotten that information from. Only a few knew the specific timeline.
Ava laughed along as though she knew more about these people than I did in her lilac pants suit with a cropped jacket highlighting the small waistline I missed having. Now,Ineeded to be in the know.
“So, why do I feel like I’m missing the connection here?” I asked with a smile. “How do you two know Sin?” Of course, I had to be the asshole by using that name.
“Oh, my bad.” Jas’ eyes closed in realization. “Ashira, Sadik’s father is the big homie. Used to mentor me. Remember theEllis Bombardier?”
“Yes…” I answered warily.
“This is the youngest of the Ellis men, Sadik. I’ve known him since…forever it seems. I had to hit him up for hisEllis IIover in the fall.”
My hackles stood straight and eyes raked over to a smiling Ava holding a champagne flute, one of my mother’s favorite designs she left behind.
“Oh, yeah?” I asked. “Where did you go?”
“Cuba,” Jas supplied casually. “I hadn’t been to thePor el Amor del Amorestate since being off parole. TheEllis Bombardierwas too big.”
“Too big for you? Was it just you and Juggy? Or did you two kiddos have company?” I waggled my eyes.
No one made a sound. Jas nodded, eyes locked into mine keenly. Jas had either caught on to my line of questioning or wanted to fuck. With this level of laze in his eyes, I couldn’t choose.
“And Man,” he murmured, “of course.”
I nodded, satisfied with that answer. “Of course.”
I’d never forgotten Jas’ threat to me last summer, here in my father’s home. He all but told me he’d kill the next man I fucked. Part of me wanted to keep as far away from his deranged ass as I could—as I’d practically been doing—and the other, more cynical, part of me wanted to challenge him on it. But I’d been very pregnant and working hard between theAsè Garbopportunity, being given the choreography gig with Alana, and having the final touches put on the club I’d purchased.
“Well, whenever you need it, you know what to do,” Sadik offered, breaking the eye-war Jas and I had ensued.
Jas lifted his palm for dap, to which Sadik received. “I appreciate it, Deek.”
