“Please be quiet.”
Kiara didn't speak about it much, but it still tore her up that he already had another daughter with Alexis. She respected the little girl because she was a life that didn't ask to be here, so Kiara wouldn't fault her for that. She gradually learned not to blame Alexis for what happened. When she first met Rashad, Alexis may not have known he wasn't single, but a married man always knows that he has a wife.
“If this is my last and final chance to tell you I'm sorry about the past and how much I wish I could have a future with my real family, then there it is. That's where my head is right now.”
Kiara yearned for pain-relieving drugs and wished she had a pill that could make Rashad shut his trap. He just couldn't seem to see the big picture. She felt painfully sore and desperately wanted to close her eyes and forget everything that was going on.
Right then Eddison popped his head inside the doorway. A bouquet of flowers was in one hand, and several inflated balloons were in the other. He stood there and evaluated the scene.
Kiara gasped at his appearing there without warning. She never informed him that she was on the way to the birthing center. She realized Adina must have given him a heads-up. Kiara's original plan was to call him as soon as she came out from under the anesthesia, but then Rashad showed up.
Rashad glanced at Eddison, then at Kiara.
“Is this the guy?”
Eddison walked over to Kiara and leaned over to lightly kiss her on the lips. He mouthed the words “I love you.” He placed her flowers on the bedside table. He looked Rashad in the eye and extended his hand.
“Hi. I'm Eddison Osborne.”
“I don't give aâ”
“I heard you just ask if I was the guy. But I'm not the guy. I'm the man.”
“If you don't get out my face with that bullshit.”
“Hey, man, show some respect to the woman and to the child.”
“Cornball here got the nerve to be on a righteous tripâ”
“Oh, my God, please, Rashad,” Kiara said as she struggled to sit up. “Don't do this!” Eddison rushed to her side. “Babe, don't overextend yourself,” he told her. “You need your rest.”
Kiara noticed how keenly Eddison stared at her. He glanced at the baby then back at her. She saw desire mixed with hope flicker in his eyes. It floored her that two men in one day looked to her as their savior. She felt regretful that she hadn't informed him about Jazz the second she found out. When she first got the DNA results, she wanted to tell Eddison but found it was difficult to form the words that could potentially break his heart.
“I'm sorry, Eddison, butâ”
“Are you sure? Are you positive?” he whispered.
“Eddison, if I could change things . . .”
“Yo, did you not hear her? This baby is mine,” Rashad said.
“All right. But may I hold her?”
“Sorry for the letdown, but your services are no longer required, man. No surrogate fathers on standby anymore.” Rashad held the newborn in one arm and pointed to the door with his free hand. “Go,” he told him.
“I'm not trying to start any trouble.”
“Too late for that. You need to bounce up outta here, my man.”
Instead of leaving, Eddison took a step closer. He wanted another look at Jazz. “I promise you, I only want to see the baby. Would it be all right if I held her, Kiara?”
“Of course it's fine if he wants to hold her.”
“Nope, it's not happening,” Rashad argued. “This baby is mine; that means I will get to decide what she does. As her father, I have a say-so and I want to start exercising my rights, right now.” Rashad stood his ground and protectively held Jazz closer to his chest.
For Kiara, her daughter's first day on the earth seemed like it had gotten off to an interesting start. And she felt completely embarrassed, since the attending nurse had stood nearby trying to mind her business. She was busy reading charts, but the woman stopped what she was doing when she heard them bickering.
The nurse came over to Kiara. She gently smiled.
“Do you want to hold your daughter again, Mom?”
“Yes, I do.”
“No, she doesn't,” Rashad said, rocking Jazz in his arms.
“Rashad,” Kiara said, “why are you acting so possessive?”
“You know exactly why. Don't you remember the way you've played me with Myles the past few months? You've dictated when I can see him. The exact hours I can see him. By law, you did not have the right to do that. And I don't like how you put me in that position by using our son as a pawn. That will not be happening with our daughter.”
The nurse stepped in between them. “Shhh.” She hissed. “Whatever issues you have, this is not the time or the place. You all are going to have to lower your voices. Don't think I won't call security.”
“But I'm the father. If anything, call security on that guy. He has no good reason to be here.”
Kiara's tiredness didn't stop her from chiming in. Eddison joined her. Then Rashad had a few words to say. The nurse clapped her hands.
“Everyone! Calm down and watch your tone. Jazz doesn't deserve this. Kiara is in recovery and this room must be cleared. Come on, give the baby to me right now,” the nurse pleaded with Rashad. “It's time to take little Jazz.”
“Take her where?” he asked.
“I still haven't held her,” said Eddison.
“Give her to me now,” the nurse demanded.
But Rashad refused to let go. He asked, “Is this a conspiracy?”
“What?” Kiara said, completely horrified.
“How do I know who this woman is?” Rashad said. “She could have went to a uniform store and walked in this place wearing that outfit and flashing a fake badge. It's not like it's never happened before.”
“Rashad, you're crazy.”
“This so-called nurse could be one of this dude's relatives plotting to steal my daughter from me.”
“You sound like such a fool,” Adina snapped as she stepped back into the room. “You have no idea what you're talking about. I've stood outside that door listening. And I've had enough of your buffoonery. This baby is your daughter, all right? And if you keep it up, today will be the last time you ever see her again.”
“How dare you threaten me, Adina, over my own child? See, this is why I wish my wife had kicked you to the curb permanently. You're sticking your nose where it doesn't belong.”
“I knew her first, Rashad. Who do you think she called when you were treating her like crap, huh? Unlike you, Kiara can't divorce me. I will always be there.”
“Bull, pure BS,” Rashad told her.
Kiara sat up in bed. “Leave my dear friend out of this, Rashad. Plus you should be more worried about the next baby of yours that's about to pop out of that awful woman you're living with. Now hand over Jazz to me. I'm demanding that you leave my room right now. Security is on its way.”
Rashad was tempted to run out of the door holding his daughter in his arms. She was fifty percent his. And he was sick of Kiara's imperious behavior. He held onto the child for a brief moment longer. The only reason he decided to smile at the baby, tell her he loved her and hand her over to the nurse was because he didn't want to hurt anymore. He didn't want to hurt Kiara anymore. For in some strange way, he still loved her.
* * *
Several days later, after Kiara got released, Adina came to pick her up from the hospital. Jazz Eason was in great health and Kiara's spirits were soaring.
“I feel like I'm in a dream,” she gushed on their way to her house.
“I'm sure you do. I'm glad for you, girl. A lot of women wish they could have one child, let alone two.”
“Well, these tubes will be tied soon.” Kiara laughed.
“Oh, does this mean that you and Eddison are done for good? Because I was really hoping that even though Jazz's daddy is you-know-who, I still wanted that good man to stay in your life.”
“What man in his right mind would want to be a part of my complicated world, Adina?”
“A man who loves you for you. And if you decide to get your tubes tied, you would completely and totally kill the dream that he might have of being with you and having a child of your own together.”
“I haven't made a final decision about getting my tubes tied yet. And Eddison has his choice of eligible women who don't have my issues. I'm sure he'll find someone else in time.”
“Kiara, it sounds like you're giving up.”
“I am facing reality. I can't bear the thought of hurting him any longer. He's been too good to me.”
“Why not let him continue being good to you? Think about it, all right, sweetie?”
“I'll think about it later. Leave me alone,” she pouted.
“I will back off. Your life is yours to live.”
Thirty minutes later, they arrived at Kiara's house. Instead of going through the garage, Adina insisted they enter through the front entrance. Adina led the way and quietly rang the doorbell.
“You're so silly. Just use my key. It's in my purse.”
“No, thank you.”
The door swung open. Mama Flora, the woman who raised Kiara, was there to greet them. And John, her grand pop, was standing there, too. Married over forty years, at one time the couple had inspired her with their long union. And although Grand Pop at one time threatened to leave his wife, there he was, still in the picture.
“There's my Sugah and my new great-grandbaby,” he said. “And my beautiful granddaughter.”
“Hello, you guys. I'm so surprised. And here I am looking like who did it and why.” Kiara grinned at her grandparents.
“You look like a new mom. Now hand her over.” Mama Flora took Jazz from her hands and resisted the urge to kiss the baby.
Myles dashed out from hiding behind Grand Pop.
“Mommy, did you miss me?” he asked. “I missed you. Where's my baby sister? I made her a present.” She had wanted Myles to visit her while she was in the hospital but due to the emergency surgery, she decided to wait to see her son until she got home.
“Ohhh, my precious Myles, God, I missed you sooo much. I hope you were a good boy while I was in the hospital.”
Kiara bit her bottom lip. Seeing her family surround her with their love and support made her so incredibly thankful. And in that moment, she felt hopeful that she'd have the strength she'd need to get through this season of her life. Kiara had always been incredibly independent. Maybe it was time she learned to let those who loved her give her a helping hand.
“You all are a lifesaver,” she hollered to Flora and John.
“That's why we are here,” said Grand Pop.
Kiara ventured farther inside the house and ran into Tony Fu, her favorite employee among those that worked for her at TSWU. He was in the kitchen, wearing his headphones and putting the finishing touches on some cupcakes that he baked with the help of Myles. When he spotted Kiara, he broke out in a shuffle and made Kiara laugh. “What the hell? Tony, hello, my friend.” She couldn't stop giggling. “I never expected all these people to be up in my house. Y'all some sneaky-ass devious people.”
Adina had hauled in her travel bag from the car. “Tony, please be a sweetie and go get some more of Kiara's things. They're in the trunk.”
Kiara walked into the media room, which was decorated from floor to ceiling with dozens of balloons and streamers.
A huge banner with the words “Welcome Home, Jazz and Kiara” was strung across one wall.
“You all outdid yourselves. And I love you for it.”
“Kiara, we'll take care of the baby and settle her in the nursery. You go to your room and maybe get into a nice change of clothes. We've cooked and we're sure you're starving by now.” That was Grandma Flora.
“Yes, ma'am. And thank you.” She stared at Mama Flora and noticed her maternal ways; Mama Flora loved to dote on Kiara. If she noted a hair out of place, she was standing at her granddaughter's side, putting each strand of hair into place. She was always offering her something to eat, offering her spending money, or just being there when she needed her.
Flora's nurturing presence instantly made Kiara think about her biological mother. Even though she never really knew what it was like to have a mother, Kiara wished so badly that her mom was around to share in this moment.
Pamela Banks had been dead thirty-five years. Kiara had no true memories of her, yet each time a special occasion happened in her life, Kiara yearned for Pamela. She imagined that her mom would be so happy that their family now consisted of three generations.
Kiara took that moment to go and find her daughter. She wished she could tell her everything Flora had told her about the woman. Her daughter was awake. When Kiara looked into Jazz's eyes, she knew it was a reflection of her mother Pamela staring back at her. It was her mom's way of letting her know that, although she was gone, she still knew what was happening in her daughter's life.
“You're a special little girl and I love you very much.”
Kiara softly said good-bye to Jazz and handed her over to Mama Flora. As she walked down the hall and into her bedroom, she wiped away a stray tear. Mourning for something you lost was a lifelong process.
Kiara quietly shut her bedroom door and placed her purse on top of her bed. She heard noise in her bathroom.
“What the hell?”
When she opened the door to her bathroom, she saw petals floating on top of some bathwater. Smooth jazz music played in the background.
“You finally decided to come back where you belong,” he said, “with me.”