Single Ladies (15 page)

* * *

Ms. D lay back in the bed. She had eight stitches on the side of her skull, and an IV to replace the fluids and blood she'd lost. Lamar had spoken to the doctor; he told the doctor he was Ms. D's son so that he could get the information he needed about her condition. She had gotten dizzy and fallen. She hit her head on the sink, and the last thing she remembered doing was washing the dishes and drying out NaNa's bottles. Everything after that was a blur. Although she was getting on up in age, she told herself that she was healthy. She had been having dizzy spells, but none when she had been babysitting. She wasn't on any medication and felt great most of the time. Lamar shook the doctor's hand and took a seat beside Ms. D's bed.

“Did he say when I could get out of here?” Ms. D asked, looking at Lamar.

“No. They need to run some more tests on you. So just sit back and relax. That is a nasty gash,” Lamar said as he poured a cup of water for her. The door opened and a petite brown-skinned nurse entered.

“Excuse me, Nurse. When can I leave?” Ms. D asked, ignoring Lamar.

“Dr. Patrick wants to check you out before he discharges you. I'm going to take some more blood from you in a few minutes,” the nurse answered.

Ms. D smacked her lips, and began mumbling curse words to herself under her breath. Lamar tried to hide his smile as he watched her pout like a toddler.

Ms. D looked out the window. Hospitals, doctors, needles, medicine, and fucking bills. The cherry on top is usually some kind of bad news about your life. That was why she had stayed away from doctors and anything medical for the last two years. Her head began to throb, reminding her that she had no choice now but to sit, wait, and pray about the damn tests they would be running on her. Patience wasn't one of her strong suits, and waiting was going to be more painful than the stitches in her head.

Lisa sat on the porch waiting for Naomi's father, Ralphy, to drop her off from her weekend visit with him. This was the first weekend in two weeks that he had been able to spend time with Naomi, due to his schedule. Lisa wasn't sure what his schedule was, but it was no longer her concern. They had filed for divorce, but it wasn't official. Yet, Ralphy was living his life like the papers were signed by the judge and filed. He had a new look, new house, new cell phone number, and a new group of friends. His world was exclusive, and it excluded her. She had no way to contact him directly, so she communicated with him through his relatives, or on days like today when he would personally drop their daughter off. Despite everything, Ralphy loved Naomi with all his heart, and she was a daddy's girl through and through.

Her cell phone began to ring. She looked at the table beside her chair on the porch and then realized she had left it in the house on the chair by the door. She grabbed it in time to hear the click on the line. She checked the caller ID, but the call showed as private. She cursed, thinking she could have missed a call from Ralphy. She heard a horn beep twice, and she opened the screen door and stepped outside. The white 2012 Range Rover seemed to glisten in the sunlight. It had tinted windows and a set of twenty-four-inch rims complementing the already stunning SUV.

As the SUV parked, the back door opened and Naomi jumped out beaming. “Mommy!” Naomi yelled, trying to grab the bags from the back seat.

Lisa walked down the steps, and held her arms out for Naomi, who giggled and placed bags in her open arms. The driver's door opened and Ralphy walked around the car to help Naomi get her bags from the back seat of the Range. Ralphy, like his truck, seemed to glisten. The dude had more than stepped up; he had flown up an entire level. The last car he had was a 2007 Buick LeSabre.

“She gonna need some help with these,” Ralphy said, pulling the bags from the back seat.

“Mommy, we went shopping.” Naomi said, taking a bag from her father.

“Wow, I see,” Lisa said, looking at Ralphy. He wore a white fitted V-neck T-shirt under a black leather Polo jacket. The shirt hugged his slim waist, tight stomach, and broad shoulders. His dark True Religion jeans sat just on top of the Louis Vuitton sneakers. The aviator frames complemented his rich brown skin, low-cut wavy hair, and neatly trimmed beard. She inhaled the scent of Creed that emanated from him as he handed her the bags. She swallowed. The scent, the clothes, and his swag actually made it hard for her to focus.

“You look good,” Lisa said, reaching over and grabbing the iced-out letter R Ralphy had dangling from his chain. “I see the single life treating you good,” she said, letting the piece go and looking over at the Range.

“Who said that I was single?” Ralphy said, laughing as he walked back to his SUV. Ralphy got in and rolled the passenger window down. Lisa then noticed the dark-haired, young, beautiful Latin chick sitting in the passenger seat texting or something on her phone. She never looked up to even acknowledge Lisa.

“Drop her off at my mom's house next week at the same time,” Ralphy said to Lisa before rolling up the window.

He pulled off before Lisa could respond. She was trying to process what had just happened. Her brain was playing catch-up as she stood on the sidewalk with her mouth open, watching the SUV head toward the stop sign.

“Mommy, let's go inside so I can show you my clothes. Mommy!” Naomi said, pulling on Lisa's shirt.

“Yeah, baby, sorry, come on.” Lisa slid the bags up her arm and walked up the sidewalk to her house. She put on a smile for her baby. Naomi skipped ahead of Lisa, as she tried to mask the hurt and shock she was feeling. He had left her, and had moved up and moved on.

* * *

Tammy felt her legs being opened and something warm caressing her clit. She opened her eyes and blinked a few times to focus them. She looked down to see Darious's long, strong tongue caressing the walls of her wet box. His tongue slid in and out of her, and she moved her hips to meet his strokes.

Darious looked up at Tammy and smirked. “Good morning,” he said before covering her clit with his mouth.

“Goo . . . ugg shit!” Tammy said as Darious sucked her clit and thumped it with his tongue. Instinctively, she tried to pull away from his mouth, but his strong arms held her still as he devoured her clit.

“Oh, baby. Oh, D . . .”

Darious slowly slid his hand up her stomach to her right breast. He held his tongue still for a moment, and gently pulled her long nipple with his index finger and thumb. He pulled her clit into his mouth and attacked it with his tongue. Tammy screamed and wrapped the sheets around her hands. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head as her juices dripped down Darious's chin. Her screams vibrated through his body down to his dick, which twitched against the bed. He flipped her over and pulled her back to his lap. She was panting and still riding her orgasm when he slid his hard rod between her fat pussy lips. The sound of her breathing sent fire through him. This morning was not going to be gentle like last night; this morning, she was going to feel the power of his body.

“I'm about to tattoo my name inside that pussy. You're mine, you understand?” Darious grabbed her arms and held them behind her back with his left hand. She looked back at him curiously, and he began to pound her pussy. Yeah, he was going to thug fuck that pussy so damn good that her pussy couldn't even respond to another nigga's dick.

* * *

Lamar walked into Ms. D's hospital room and sat down in the green chair beside her bed. “Hey, Ms. D, I gotta go do some thangs. Falisha is on her way down here.”

“Y'all can go on. I don't need nobody here with me.” Ms. D said, wiping the tears from her eyes.

Dr. Patrick had her take a few more tests, and a mammogram earlier. The mammogram told her what the doctor wasn't saying. They had found a lump in one of her breasts, and she didn't need any damn test to tell her that the monster that had plagued the women in her family had now caught up to her. Most of the women in her family were usually diagnosed before the age of fifty. She was five years beyond that point, and she knew that her number was now up.

“No, you don't need to be alone. We are here for you,” Lamar said, taking her hand. There was a light knock at the door, and Dr. Patrick entered with a large folder and small laptop in his arms.

“Ms. Hudson, how is your head feeling?” Dr. Patrick asked as he sat down on the small black rolling stool.

“My head will be fine, Doctor. Please, just tell me what you got to say. I don't like beating around the bush. Just say it.”

Dr. Patrick turned the television on and turned to channel four. He placed the laptop on the cart, and typed something on its screen. Images appeared on the television screen. Ms. D sighed as she stared at the dark mass on the X-ray.

“The tissue we took tested—”

“I don't give a shit; and, no, I don't want no damn chemo. Just give me my oxycodone for my head and my damn marijuana card, so I can smoke my weed in peace,” Ms. D said jokingly.

Dr. Patrick turned the television off, and turned to Ms. D. “Ms. Hudson, we have made so many advances in medicine. I would like to discuss your options.”

“What did I just say, Dr. Patrick? I ain't doing shit!”

Lamar looked at Dr. Patrick. “Hey, can you give us a few minutes, Dr. Patrick?” Lamar said.

Dr. Patrick nodded, and grabbed his laptop. He looked at Ms. D one last time before walking out the door. Ms. D began mumbling and staring out the window.

“Ms. D, he is just trying to help. You acting like you giving up without a fight.”

“Boy, I'm fine. I don't want to hear any of that bullshit he got to say. I've seen what this thing does to women, and I don't want to go out like that. Just let nature take its course.”

Although Ms. D was trying to mask her fear, Lamar could see it in her eyes. She was the closest thing he had to a mother and, at the moment, it seemed the roles had reversed. He would have to be the one to tell her what was best for her, even if it meant he would have to knock some sense in her on the other side of her head.

* * *

Tammy turned on her phone, and it immediately began to vibrate and beep. The text messages buzzing across the screen were all from Falisha, saying something had happened. She dialed Falisha's number, hoping that it was just some Falisha drama and nothing had happened to her kids.

“Damn, bitch, dat dick must be good,” Falisha said, answering the phone.

“You need to mind ya business,” Tammy joked. “What you want anyway?”

“You need to go pick ya kids up from Kim's. Ms. D fell and split her head open last night, and she's in the hospital,” Falisha said as she walked to her car.

“What?” Tammy said as she jumped up from the bed looking for her clothes. “Shit, she okay? Are the kids all right?” Tammy didn't bother looking for her underwear. She slid the shirt and jeans on as Falisha explained to her what happened.

Darious awoke to Tammy searching for her shoes, and talking on the phone. “What's wrong, baby?” Darious asked, getting up and grabbing his pants.

“I gotta go pick my kids up. The sitter in the hospital. She got hurt last night,” Tammy said, strapping on her shoes. Darious put on his white Duke T-shirt and grabbed his white Nike tennis shoes.

Tammy grabbed her purse and walked down the stairs to the door. Darious followed without asking any questions. He locked his door, and clicked the alarm on the car. Tammy opened the passenger side door and sat down. She nervously chewed on her nail as she waited for him to get in the car.

* * *

Falisha walked down the brightly lit hallway with trepidation; hospitals always made her anxious. As she made her way around the corner, she thought back to the last time she had been down the halls of a hospital. Memories of visiting Fox when he was shot flooded her mind for a minute. She found room 807 and knocked on the door.

“Hey, Ms. D, the party can start now. Or maybe you don't wanna party anymore; you drinking some of that shine and hit ya head!” Falisha said, laughing.

Falisha walked over to Lamar and plopped down on his lap. She kissed his cheek and caressed his face. “Hey, baby,” she said, making sure her ass was on his crotch.

“Now, girl, why you down here? They 'bout to let me go. Just got a little cut on my head is all.” She cut her eyes at Lamar, warning him with her eyes to keep his mouth shut about the cancer situation. She didn't want to hear the sympathy shit; all she wanted was for them to release her, so she could go home to her own bed.

“So what did the doctor say?” Falisha asked, concerned about Ms. D's well-being.

“Oh, nothing. I fainted, then hit my head on the sink on my way to the ground. I'll be outta here in a minute,” Ms. D answered.

“That's good,” Falisha said, kissing Lamar on his cheek again.

“Look, I don't want to see y'all making no babies in front of me. You better go to one of dem broom closets,” Ms. D said, laughing.

“That sounds like a good idea, Ms. D. Listen at you talking about getting freaky in the hospital!” Falisha said, rubbing Lamar's chest. There was a knock at the door, and Dr. Patrick entered with a petite Asian nurse.

“Ms. Hudson, we got the rest of your tests back, and I need to keep you overnight. We want to watch that head wound,” Dr. Patrick said, looking at Ms. D and then Falisha. “Those types of injuries can be tricky, and require monitoring. Nurse Hong will give you something to help you sleep. You need to get some rest,” Dr. Patrick said with a smile.

Ms. D forced a smile, but she wanted to jump off the bed and slap the hell out of him. Staying overnight was not what she wanted to do. Lamar looked at her with pleading eyes for her to listen to the doctor. She inhaled and nodded. She knew that her situation was serious, and that she needed to at least try to listen to what the doctor had to say. She also needed to know what stage the cancer was in, so she could prepare herself for what was ahead of her.

* * *

“Are the kids okay?” Darious asked, looking over at Tammy as she put the phone down. She had just spoken to Kim, who assured her that her babies were good.

“Yeah, they're fine. Kim got them right now,” she answered, looking out of the window with a sad look on her face.

Darious could see the stress in her eyes. “Come on, shawty. Don't beat yaself up about that,” he said, trying to make her feel better.

Darious wasn't a parent, so he really didn't know how it felt not to be there for your children when they needed you. She knew that turning off her phone was irresponsible; that was something she couldn't do as a mother with small children. She knew there wasn't any way for her to predict Ms. D getting hurt, but she knew better than to cut off the only line of communication to her. Anything could go wrong without a moment's notice, and it did last night.

She turned to Darious. “I was thinking, maybe you should—”

Tammy's cell phone began to ring before she could finish her sentence. She looked down at her phone and saw that the number was blocked. Thinking that it was probably Falisha calling from the hospital, Tammy answered it.

“Hello,” she answered.

“You have a prepaid call. You will not be charged for this call. This call is from Chris.”

Tammy's stomach gurgled and then tightened. She looked over at Darious; she knew that answering the phone would be an issue. She quickly hung up the phone. A few moments later, it rang again. She turned the ringer down, placed it in her purse, and stared out the window. Talking to Chris with Darious in the car would not be the ideal situation. Chris would grill her, and ask her about a million questions, and then after he had interrogated her, he would tell her he loved her. He would expect to hear her say it back, and that was not something she wanted to say in front of Darious. She knew not saying it to Chris would send him into a rage. Her brain fired, and she remembered she was supposed to take the kids to see him today.