Coveted (29 page)

I felt myself wavering; I wanted to give in to him so badly. I felt myself slowly being lowered to the floor. I knew what Kaden was trying to do, and the sad part was I could not seem to stop the situation from happening. Everything felt so comfortable and so familiar.

He continued to softly whisper as he pushed the other strap of my dress down, “I can make you want me, but I want you to want me on your own.” Want I wanted at the moment, was to be able to focus. His kisses had started to make their way down my stomach and I was beginning to breathe shallow spurts of breath in anticipation of what was to come.

“
Say you love me Naima. I can tell you still do, and your body still does, but I want to hear you say it.”

I couldn’t even breathe and Kaden wanted me to talk, was he for real? Pushing my dress down past my hips and down my legs, and released a deep sigh as his mouth neared my inner thighs. Arching my back, letting my head fall back to the carpet I could feel myself beginning to lose the little grip on reality that I had left. Lifting his head slightly, he gently grabbed the sides of my lace bikini panties with his teeth and began to pull them down the length of my frame. He was deliberately doing everything slow to make me feel every inch of my own body. It was driving me insane.

“Baby,” he whispered, as his mouth began working its way up my leg, “I’m waiting for you to say it.” My mind was groggy, what did he want me to say? I couldn’t remember what he had been talking about.

“Mmmmmhhugh,” was all I could manage to get out. Why was he doing this to me?

“Tell me you love me.” The kisses that he was strategically placing had me gripping the carpet so hard; I thought my knuckles would pop out of my skin.

“I love you, I always have, I always will.” I gasped out in response. Hearing me say the words, Kaden lifted my hips, spread my legs and buried his head deep within my vee. The sounds of ecstasy and rhythm of lovemaking could be heard long into the afternoon.

Trying to compose myself after Kaden’s visit was difficult. I found myself blushing every time I thought about what had transpired between the two of us, right here in my office, with my co-workers within hearing distance. I did love him. It was time for me to stop fighting the inevitable. I was a goner at sixteen. He knew it, my mom knew it, I was the only one still running away from embracing it.

Gazing out my office window as I had done on so many occasions before this one, I couldn’t help thinking about what Kaden had said. He knew I did want more children; it’s just that under the circumstances, we were living our lives; I couldn’t take the risk of bringing anymore in the world when he and I couldn’t get our marriage together. But now that we were taking the correct steps to improve things, I was more than siked about the whole situation. Very siked indeed.

Sitting in my chair to go through my day planner, I realized that I needed a date to Damir’s party. I’d be damned if I went alone looking like the rejected ex. Please.

Smiling to myself, I decide to give Kaden a call. He would give me anything right now, so attending a party shouldn’t be too much of a stretch for him. Retrieving my cell out of my workbag, I called my husband; it felt so good to be able to say that again.

He answered the phone on the first ring. “Wow, was your finger on the answer button.” I laughed into the receiver, “A little anxious aren’t we?”

His deep voice came across the line, “For you, always.” A blush was sweeping across my body. I felt like we were in high school again, “You miss me already?”

What. Did I. That was an understatement. “So, what do I owe the pleasure of this call too, maybe a return trip to your office?”

I didn’t think it possible for my blush to deepen, but deepen it did. Ignoring his question, “As a matter of fact, I had a very good reason for calling you.”

“Any reason you call, is good enough for me, my beautiful Mocha.”

Kaden was definitely in it to win it. I will give him that. “I was calling because I wanted to know if you would attend a party with me tomorrow night. It’s for a client of mine by the name of Damir Collins and my presence was requested long ago.”

“Damir?” his voice held one of question, “I didn’t know that you knew Damir. He and I have talked some business recently. He invited me to attend the party as well, so of course I will be honored to have my wife on my arm tomorrow evening.”

He and Damir had talked business, as in they knew each other. Damn. Now this was going to be extremely awkward. Kaden had no idea that Damir and I were seeing each other, even if only for a short amount of time. I wonder should I tell him, or just let sleeping dogs lie. Screw it, I choose the latter.

Naima 30

The party……………

The evening of Damir’s party has finally arrived. I am the happiest of the happy. My make-up artist and hair stylist were due to arrive at the house at any moment. The outfit I would be wearing for the evening had been delivered, and Kaden was picking me up at quarter to eight. My teams of workers were already at the Newseum setting everything up. It was going to be a fantastic party, if I do say so myself.

When my hair stylist arrived, I decided to make a drastic change. I wanted a haircut. Something different, to go with my new attitude and new life moving forward with Kaden.

Arriving at the Newseum that evening with Kaden on my arm and the brightest smile on my face, I could hear the music jumping as we were standing at the entrance, waiting for the door attendant to cross our name off the guest list. Even though I had been in charge of organizing the party, I had relinquished day of event coordinator control over to another consultant at the company. This way I could be a guest and enjoy the festivities.

Once the attendant cleared us at the door, the vision that beheld me when we walked into the room was incredible. The seventies had been recreated in this modern space and it was marvelous, there was a disco ball in the center of the floor that was twirling and sparkling. The strobe lights were bouncing off the walls and the DJ was laying it down with all the hot tracks from the seventies. They had even gone back as far as having records. It was great.

Everyone seemed excited to be in attendance, there was a happy energy surrounding the room. People were decked out in their short, short minis and big afros. Bell-bottoms and platform shoes littered the room. Fabulous. It was just fabulous.

Kaden and I were moving toward the refreshment table, when the crowd shifted and I could see Damir with his arm around a very pregnant Amber. Proper protocol was that the host greets all of their guests but I didn’t want him to wait to bring himself over to us. I grabbed Kaden by the hand and marched us over there to greet them. Damir and I had not spoken since I phoned to check on Amber after Emeri’s assault on them.

Tapping him lightly on his shoulder once we reached their side of the room, I waited patiently as he and Amber turned to greet us. My eyes bulged wide, when they landed on Amber’s face. She still looked like the same person, but you could see where she had been assaulted. Her once perfect nose was slightly crooked and there was still a little swelling around it and despite all of that, she had the nerve to be smirking at me. If she only knew how much worse that made her look. Unlike her, my nose was still intact and I wasn’t swollen and pregnant. Shoot, I know I looked good.

Trying my best to avoid staring at her, I focused all of my attention on Damir who I hadn’t seen since the last time I was at his house. His face registered one of shock when he saw whose hand I was holding. Proceeding to shake hands with Kaden before acknowledging me, I stood by and waited patiently.

“Hey Kaden, I’m glad you could make it.” Turning to me, “Nice to see you again Naima, I like the hair. It suits you.” Returning his gaze to Kaden he said, “So, how do you two know each other?”

“Naima is my wife.” I smiled immediately. I love the way “my wife” had rolled of his tongue with ease.

Damir’s face tensed up, “Your wife?” Turning to me, “This is th--” I averted my eyes and pulled Kaden by the hand. My work here was done. “It was nice seeing you again Damir, you too Amber, though these are better circumstances I believe.” Her smirk faded, when I gave her the sweetest smile I could while Kaden and I headed for the other side of the room.

Everything at the party was going smoothly until Haven walked up to Kaden and me on the dance floor with a man that was vaguely familiar to me but I could not readily identify. I felt Kaden’s body react immediately. Glancing at his face, I could see the anger mounting in his eyes and knew there was only a matter of time before he lost his temper.

“Hey Naima, hey Kaden.” Was she serious? How was she just going to roll up on us in the middle of a party and try to be sociable like we were all cool? Kaden and I proceeded to walk around her and her guest, until that witch grabbed me by my arm. “Naima, don’t be rude. I’m trying to make an effort. Can’t you meet me half way?”

If I were not a main player in this game, this situation would have been comical. Unfortunately, for her, I found nothing funny about someone playing with my life, someone that I had once considered a best friend that I could trust.

“Haven,” I said calmly, doing my best not to cause a scene, “please take your hand off me.” That only caused her to tighten her grip.

“Naima, please give me a chance to explain, you haven’t returned any of my calls and this is the only time I have been able to see you outside of the office incident. Which I forgive you for.”

“Forgave me for? Bitch are you crazy? I wasn’t the one doing anything to you.” Pulling my arm out of her grasp, I turned to face her so we could square off inch for inch. So much for trying not to cause a scene, she had drove me too it.

“I’m not the one that was fucking your husband, oops I forgot, you don’t have a husband.” I stopped to act as if I was pondering, by putting my finger to my chin, “I wonder why?” Clenching my hands into fists, I was officially pissed off “Then you tell my husband that he fathered your child, when in all actuality he did not. And you have the audacity to stand here and say you forgive me, bitch fuck you. Why don’t you try forgiving that.” I said as I turned and walked out of the main hall. Chest rising and falling rapidly, I had to calm down. I cannot believe I let her engage me in a public display of foolishness. That was not my style at all.

A couple minutes later, after getting some water and my breathing had returned to normal, I realized that Kaden had not followed me out. Walking over to the door at the main hall, I glance around the room and see him in the corner mesmerized by the slides that have been playing on the screen in the back of the room since we had arrived.

Making my way over to him as fast as I could, since people occupied almost every inch of free space in the room, Damir sure knew a lot of people that wanted to celebrate with him. Finally descending upon the area where Kaden was, he was so engrossed with the screen he didn’t notice that I had approached him. Tipping my head up to get a better view of his face, he seemed a little on the pale side and was gripping his champagne flute so tightly I was afraid it would shatter in his hand.

Turning to look at the screen, I looked at the slide show to see what would make him have such a violent reaction. But the only pictures being displayed were those of Damir and his family.

“Hey baby,” he jerked his head to look down at me in shock, “you ok?”

Shaking his head a little, he mumbled, “unbelievable.”

“What’s unbelievable?” Glancing back at the screen he tightened and flexed his hand about five more times before he responded.

Never taking his eyes off the screen he said, “I saw that girl the night she died, it was about two years ago.”

Turning to look back at the screen, I felt like I was in a trance. “What girl?”

“The one with the golden locks and the dimples.”

Watching as a pretty girl came across the screen fitting that description with the
words in loving memory…Alanna you are missed,
running across the bottom of the screen.

Ok, so that was Damir’s sister Alanna, but how did Kaden know her? I was confused. It must have showed on my face because his next words to me were, “I met her when I was in Dallas,” swallowing audibly, “The night I had my accident.” Then putting his champagne flute on the table he walked out of the room.

I was beginning to put two and two together, I think. I knew the team was partying in Dallas at a strip club the night Kaden was in the accident that took him away from the second love of his life…football. I also remember Damir telling me that Alanna had been killed almost two years ago in an accident. Therefore, the only conclusion I can piece together is that they were in the same accident and that means if it was at a strip club Kaden was probably cheating on me then too. I could feel a migraine coming on, goodness. Would Kaden’s past ever stop coming back to haunt us?

Emeri

I could see them all in their having a good time celebrating Damir’s birthday. Scoping the security all around the building, I almost laughed out loud, which would have given me away as I hid in the back alley behind the Newseum. Did Damir honestly think that having all this security would stop me from getting in to celebrate his birthday with him? I was here to make sure that he had a birthday he would never forget, and with thirty being a milestone and all, it would definitely be a momentous occasion. I was counting on it.