My heart raced. My blood surged through my veins like white fire as images of Bree and Deanthony fucking danced in my head, his hands on her breasts, his face planted between her thighs. I thought of how often they were doing this behind my back, fucking in my bed. How could I not see it? I knew something was up when I caught them together in my old room at Mama’s the night I brought Bree to meet everyone. I saw how Deanthony was looking at her at the birthday party like she was a slab of fucking beef.
I wanted the earth to open up and swallow them. I couldn’t shake the image of her sucking his dick or Deanthony eating her out.
“Kashawn, baby, are you all right?” Ma asked. She tried to ease my hurt.
“Mama, not now.”
She couldn’t make this go away. Hell no, not this. I broke past her, past a cluster of family, friends, and hospital coworkers. “Where the fuck is he?” I entered the living room. Bree was gone. Good. Fuck her. Ma and Yvonne were right about her. She’s a whore.
I fucked Deanthony. I fucked Deanthony. I fucked Deanthony.
Her words were razor-sharp barbs ripping through my mind. I was so stupid. How the fuck could I have been so naïve? I should have left that slut where I found her. I should have married a white woman.
I had Deanthony in my sights. Our eyes met past the house full of people. Yeah, bitch, your secret is out.
“You had to do it, didn’t you?” I yelled. All eyes were on me. “You just had to fuck her. Is she why you came back? You two thought, what, that you could take up where you left off?”
“Kashawn, let’s go outside and talk about this.”
“Talk about what, huh? Talk about what, motherfucker?”
I wanted to kill him, rip his fucking head off.
“It just happened, bro. We weren’t trying to hurt you.”
“You weren’t trying to hurt me? Were you trying not to hurt me when you stuck your dick in my wife?”
Gasps of shock and awe filled the room. “Kashawn, stop that in this house,” Ma protested.
“Why don’t you tell me… no, tell all of us how good my wife is in bed? Her pussy’s real good, isn’t it?”
“Kashawn, don’t do this. Not here,” Tangela said, taking me softly by my arm.
I charged past my guests toward Deanthony. I was on his ass like white on rice, slamming his face into the wall. He pulled at me as I punched him continuously in the face with my hand tight at his throat. His lip was split. Blood trickled down his chin.
“ ’Shawn, stop. That’s your brother!”
He deserved the ass-kicking he was getting.
“Fuck him. I don’t have a brother!”
He slid to the floor. I kicked him in the stomach and ribs. I punched until I felt arms under me, yanking me off Deanthony’s sorry ass.
“Get off me! Get the fuck off me!”
Uncle Ray-Ray pinned my arms behind me. He was bigger than me, strong as an ox.
“Just like old times, right, bro? I can’t have shit because of you! You’ve always wanted what I had.” I spat on Deanthony like he wasn’t shit and, as far as I was concerned, he wasn’t. “Are you happy now? You ruined my fucking marriage!”
Tyrique and Jayson helped him to his feet.
“Leave him there. Let his ass bleed,” Kashawn said.
Jayson gave Deanthony a handkerchief to wipe his lip.
“Get him out of here. We’re not brothers. You’re dead to me, bitch. Get the fuck out of my house.”