AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Don’t lie to me,” she said after laughing.
“Fine. It was more than once, but I was with her because I felt like I would lose you when you found out.” He scratched his head and sighed. “I was securing something with her because I planned to tell you before the wedding. I decided not to tell you because I didn’t want to hurt you. I felt like if I just kept it from you and treated you even better to make up for it, that things would be okay between us.”
“Did you honestly not know she was pregnant?”
“Not at all. We stopped having sex and I cut her off. I asked that we get a new temp in, which is why she had to go to a different office before her assignment was up. She was calling and texting a lot, telling me she was in love with me and wanted to be with me…”
“And that’s why you randomly changed your number?”
He nodded before muttering, “Yeah,” quietly. “She cornered me when we did a family dinner at your parents’ house demanding an explanation or she would tell you, so I told her the truth. I told her I was dumb as hell and chose not to practice discipline but I regretted it immediately. And I told her I didn’t want to hurt you or lose you. It took a little persuading, but I eventually got her to see you were most important in this situation. I told her if she cared about you at all that she would let me go and she had. We talked after everything went down and she told me finding out about the baby is what made her want me, but she knew I wasn’t going to choose to ever leave you, Royalty, that’s why she hadn’t said anything about it.”
Royalty released a soft chuckle as her leg shook under the table. His words hadn’t brought her solace—they only confirmed what she’d been feeling about her sister all along. She cared less about Steven’s cheating and more about the fact that her sister seemingly always wanted her spot, or what belonged to her. There was always a competition between them that started with their parents love and attention.
“This thing between my sister and I… that’s not anything new. I didn’t think you were a weak man, unable to control your desires, but that was my fault.”
“Royalty…”
“I’ve always said Regal wants everything that I’ve had or that belongs to me. That was a subject I confided in you about. And you give heryou?” She scoffed. “Because you enjoyed her company?”
“Baby…”
“Just get out, Steven. Everything that belongs to you here will be dropped off within the next few days. Please don’t come here or reach out to me again.”
“So that’s it?” He sat up in his seat. “You’re not even going to give me a chance to fix this?”
Royalty laughed. “You slept with my sister and got her pregnant, Steven. There’s nothing you can do to fix that.”
His head shook. “But I want to be with you…”
“Then you shouldn’t have fucked my sister!” she roared, slamming her hand down on the table. Royalty shot up from her seat, shaking with anger. “I want you to leave, Steven. Get out!”
He stood, holding her eyes for a few seconds before leaving with a hung head. As soon as the door closed behind him, Royalty ran her fingers through her hair and released a whimper. She’d get over losing him soon enough. One thing Royalty couldn’t deny was her ability to detach from things and people quickly. But there was no doubt in her mind that her heart would hurt deeply until she got to that point.
four
At the soundof beating against her door, Royalty stirred in bed. She’d spent all day yesterday looking up apartments in Memphis, only to decide she wanted to move to a completely different city. Not only did she want to avoid the risk of Steven popping up on her, but Royalty wanted to get away from her family as well. Royalty could admit that a lot of toxicity between her and her family came from her wild child era.
Unable to communicate in that moment, she acted out, creating a cycle between her and her parents that she still suffered the effects of today. It didn’t matter how many times she told herself it was her parents’ responsibility to identify the problem within her and create a solution, Royalty was also aware of the fact that she could only take responsibility for her own actions.
What started as neglect turned into rebellion and simmered into outright resentment toward her parents. She’d tried to establish a healthy relationship with her sister out of guilt, even going as far as asking Regal to be her maid of honor. Royalty felt as if they missed out on a lot of time to bond throughout their childhood because they were pitted against one another. Now, Royalty was convinced she didn’t know her sister at all.
Sitting up in bed, Royalty looked around the room. She had no idea what time it was, but the sun was out. Her phone vibrated on the nightstand, and Royalty assumed whoever it was, was at her door. Sitting on the edge of the bed, Royalty grabbed her phone and rolled her eyes at the sight of her mother’s name.
“Hello?” she answered with sleep thick in her voice.
“Come open the door.”
Not bothering to vocally agree, Royalty disconnected the call. Groggily, Royalty made her way to the door, opening it to find both of her parents standing on the other side. They both smiled at the sight of her, and Jennifer immediately pulled her daughter into her arms. Hugging her back softly, Royalty closed her eyes.
Once they were inside of her home, Royalty motioned toward the couch for them to be seated.
“Let me freshen up and I’ll be right back,” she said, heading down the hall.
In her bathroom, Royalty stared at her reflection for a few seconds before washing her face and brushing her teeth. She used the bathroom, then made her way back out into the living room. It didn’t surprise her to find her mother in the kitchen making a pot of coffee. When it was done, Jennifer fixed them all a cup. They sat at the dining room table, where her father was the first to speak.
“How are you, baby girl?”
“I’m good, actually. I got a lot of clarity and peace last night.”
