Chapter Twenty-one
Jasmine
After several long days and nights of vomiting, cold sweats, and nightmares, I wished like hell I’d taken Tionne’s offer to join her and the other girls on the beach. I really appreciated her offer to come home and check on me, too, but my hands were full. Being on call all day and night was no easy feat. However, I could finally see the original King James begin to emerge. To say I was grateful would’ve been an understatement. His whole demeanor had changed in a week. He was more attentive to my needs and had even cooked dinner and catered to me last night. It felt like the old days with no distractions. No industry calls, no blogs to read, and no television to watch. We had taken a vacation from the world, and it felt great!
“Jazzy, I want tonight to be special, so pick out your best dress and flyest heels.” He lay down on the pool chair next to me and grabbed my hand.
“What’s the special occasion?” I smiled.
“Today is the day that I asked you to marry me all those years ago.” He winked as I calculated the dates in my head.
“Baby, I can’t believe you actually remember that.” I was impressed.
“Jazzy, you’re my rock, my world, and my foundation. Without you, I’m nothing, and I don’t want to lose you.”
“I’m not going anywhere, King.” My voice was unsteady, and my hand was trembling.
“Now go take your fine ass upstairs and get ready. I got everything set up in the formal dining room. No peeking.”
“Scout’s honor,” I said with my fingers crossed behind my back. I wasn’t promising anything, and he knew I was going to peek. I had to see what he had prepared and what gifts were waiting for me.
“Oh, my God,” I exclaimed. The sight was breathtaking. King had pulled out all the stops. I was beaming with excitement. This gesture proved that his love for me hadn’t died. There were ten dozen roses in a variety of red, white, and pink scattered around the room. I took notice of all the boxes, which were strategically placed in every chair of the twelve-seat dining set.
“I thought I said no peeking,” King said from behind me as he wrapped his strong arms around my waist.
“Baby, can I at least open one?” I was as bright-eyed as a kid on Christmas. King walked over to the head seat, then pulled the yellow-wrapped box from the chair.
“Only one though. After this one, go upstairs and get ready.” He smiled as I pulled on the ribbon.
The sound of the doorbell stole our attention. “Who could that be? I’ll be right back,” I said, placing my gift down.
“I’ll get it. You continue opening your gift.” King placed the box back in my hand, then walked off. I tore into the pretty paper and gasped when I saw the diamond necklace, matching tennis bracelet, and ankle bracelet. They each had diamond-encrusted hearts hanging off of them. The necklace had King’s name on the back, the tennis bracelet said, “Jordan,” and the ankle bracelet was blank. Was King trying to give me a hint that he was ready to have a baby? The tears began to fall. I couldn’t contain myself. Tonight would be the night I would tell him we were expecting.
“King, who was at the door?” I asked when he returned to the dining room.
“It was D-Bo,” he said casually, but something in his voice concerned me. D-Bo was his bodyguard and right-hand man. He did anything for King. Sometimes, that wasn’t a good thing.
“What did he want?” I raised an eyebrow.
“He brought over our flight details for tomorrow.” He averted his eyes from me.
“Tomorrow?” I looked at him suspiciously. “Where are you going tomorrow?”
“The label wants to shoot this video for my next single in Atlanta. I should be gone no more than two days.” He fumbled with his hands.
“Are you okay?” I finally spat it out because he was acting too awkward.
“Jazz, I’m good, girl. Now go upstairs and get ready.” He playfully grabbed my ass. I did as I was told.
It took me two hours to get ready, but the end result was flawless. My makeup was gorgeous, and my hair was on point in a French roll and Chinese bangs. My skin was oiled and smelled of Juicy Couture. I had chosen a red Christian Dior spandex dress that fit like a glove all the way down to my ankles. The front of the dress dipped low in a V-cut that stopped just under my pierced navel. The back scooped off of my shoulders, exposing the cross that was tatted under my neck. My shoes were crystal-covered red bottoms. They went so well with the jewelry from earlier.
I made my way down the off-white spiraled staircase, then headed into the dining room. “Damn,” King and I said in unison. He was standing there looking fresh to death in his custom black and burgundy Christian Dior three-piece suit. He pulled my chair out, then took the one to my left at the head of the table.
“You look beautiful, Mrs. James.”
“Thanks, baby, and you look debonair,” I said, filling my champagne flute with water.
“Tonight, I will be serving McDonald’s.” He lifted the brass lid that was covering my food. Sure as shit, there was an Angus burger and an order of fries. I cracked up laughing.
“What is this?”
“Well, I wanted to show you that I haven’t forgotten where we come from.” King smiled and leaned in for a kiss. “Jazzy, I’m all about new things and different experiences, but I never want to forget what made me who I am. You loved me when this was all I could afford, and that means so much to me. I love having you in my life, and I look forward to growing old with you.” He raised his flute. “Here’s to our future.”
“Speaking of our future”—I nervously raised my flute—“we’re having another baby.” I clinked glasses with him and held my breath.
“Say what?” He scooted back from the table.
“I’m pregnant, King.” I smiled, but the look he gave me was deadly.
“See, bitch, you just like the rest of them hoes out to get my money. A nigga blows up, then y’all start poking holes in condoms and shit. What the fuck am I going to do with another baby, Jasmine?”
“King, I just thought it would be nice for Jordan to have someone to play with.” I tried to keep an even tone, but I was slowly registering what he had just said.
“Jordan is four and don’t even know his own name, so how in the fuck is he going to play with some-damn-body?” His fists hit the marble table, causing me to flinch.
“Don’t you talk about my son like that!” Now I was up and out of my seat. It was one thing to disrespect me but a whole different thing to disrespect my baby.
“What, Jasmine? You know what I’m saying is true. Your son is a fucking retard, and it’s all your fault.” King shook his head in disgust.
“How can you say that? Especially when he’s your son too? Jordan is a person with feelings, not a retard. You treat him like shit, and he feels it. It hurts. How in the hell could you talk about your only son that way?” I was boiling hot and had reached for the butter knife on the table before I realized it.
“Oh, shit.” He laughed. “You gon’ stab me?”
“You better not let one more bad word about my son come from your mouth, or I just might stab you.” My hand was trembling.
“As of tomorrow, your pregnant ass and your son need to find another place to stay. I got five kids already, and I for damn sure don’t need any more.” He said it like he hadn’t just dropped a bomb on me.
“Five kids? Who in the hell are the other four?” I felt weak and tried to hold myself up by holding on to the back of the chair.
“Don’t act brand new. You knew I was fucking around. I got Prince, Princess, King Jr., and Queenisha.” He smiled, obviously proud of his offspring. “Shit, I got the whole royal family. All my kids are going to be something, too.”
I watched as he pulled a folded piece of aluminum foil from his back pocket. He opened it up and sniffed. No wonder he was wilding out. His ass was getting high again.
I bet D-Bo brought that shit to him earlier.
“How can you be so fuckin’ evil? You’re the devil. I should’ve left your ass a long time ago.” Although the tears were falling, I was numb to the pain.
“But you didn’t, did you?” King removed his suit jacket. “Part of the reason that I stay with your dumb ass is because you take everything that I dish out.” He laughed and I winced. “I fuck hoes, then come home to you with the juices on my dick from the next bitch, and you still suck it because you ain’t got no other choice.”
“Fuck you, King.” I gripped the butter knife like it was a machete. “You better not come any closer.” I was about to murder this nigga. Not only had he just confirmed his many affairs with multiple women, but he had also admitted to having children, two of which belonged to that bitch Tracey. “You ain’t nothing but a piece of shit. I’m sorry that I ever loved you.” I wiped my eyes.
“Yeah, yeah. That’s what they all say,” I heard him mumble as I ran upstairs.