Page 30 of Passion

I took a water hose and put it up her anus, turning it on full blast until her belly was full and the water was leaking back out. When I pulled the hose out, shit flew every-fucking-where. I literally had to get naked because I didn’t want shit getting all over my truck. I knew this would be bad, but whew, shit! I was glad I drove my truck and not my Audi. My client allowed me to rinse off in his barn and gave me plastic to put on my seats. I didn’t know what I was thinking by not being fully prepared for what I knew could happen.

At least OG was feeling better. That was all that mattered. She hopped up from that ground so fast. For a minute, I thought she was gonna knock me to the ground. It was like she was trying to thank me. When I left, I went straight home and took a shower. Elle had already left to go spend time with her kids by the time I got home from work, so I didn’t get a chance to see her before I left.

I missed that woman so much. This shit was destroying me from the inside out, and I found I was becoming a little more hostile around people. The only time I didn’t feel that way was when I was around animals. Because of that, I felt like I should have stayed my ass home today. However, I wanted things to work between me and Giselle, and I knew this was a step in the right direction if things went well.

When I turned in Paul’s driveway, I saw that people were already here. I was sure one of those cars belonged to Clayton. I sent Elle a text message, letting her know where I was and that I loved her then headed to the front door. Before I could ring the doorbell, Paul opened the door. “What’s up, bruh?” he asked.

I slapped his hand and gave him a half hug. “Same shit different day, man. You good?”

He chuckled. “Yeah, I’m cool. Come on in.”

When I walked in, I saw his two other friends that were at the gathering last time and Clayton having a drink. “Gentry made it!” Paul announced.

Felix stood from his seat and extended his hand for a shake. “What’s up, man? Good to see you again.”

His brother, Derrick, did the same and nodded. When I turned to Clayton, he smiled slightly and extended his hand. “Sorry we got off on the wrong foot. I’m going to make an effort to get along with you and get to know you.”

I nodded and shook his hand, not offering any words to make a promise of bonding with his ass. I went to the bar and got a beer. I wasn’t trying to get lit like their asses. There was no way I would get fucked up and end up having to spend the night here. I needed to get home to Giselle. That was if she even came home tonight. If this nigga got fucked up, she would have to stay with her kids all night. As I watched him down some brown liquor, I could feel myself getting pissed.

He walked over to the bar and poured a glass of Hennessy. That shit was gonna have him on his ass. He didn’t mix it with anything, so he was drinking that shit straight. As I drank my beer in silence, he came and sat next to me. I swore I wanted to knock him on his ass. “So, how was your workday? It has to be a hard job taking care of animals.”

“It was good. Work and animals are never a problem. I was born to do this, so animals are rarely hostile around me.” I glanced at him and continued. “It’s humans I have the most problems with.”

He chuckled. “Shots fired. I deserved that.”

“Like the old people say, only a hit dog holler.”

I chuckled, and he laughed too. “My grandmother used to say that shit.”

He shook his head slowly then said, “I do regret my first interaction with you. I guess I was just angry that she left me in the dark. I really do want to get to know you since you’ll be interacting and playing a critical role in who my kids will become.”

I nodded, trying to get myself to relax a bit. “What do you do, Clayton?”

“I’m a financial analyst.”

I nodded repeatedly. “That’s cool. Do you work for a company, or do you own your own business?”

“I just started my own business about a year ago. So I set my own schedule. I have a few contracts, one with a Fortune 500 company. Unfortunately, because it’s still getting off the ground, I have to put in more hours to make sure things are moving along as planned.”

“Understandable. My business was the same way. I just developed a habit of working my ass off. It’s hard to slow down now, but I’ll do whatever I have to do for Giselle. She’s that special to me.”

He nodded. “She’s a good woman. I suppose this whole thing caught me off guard. She’s never usually a spur of the moment person. When it came to the kids, we talked about it for at least a year before we actually went through with it. I’m pretty sure she warred in her mind before she actually decided to go this route for a mate. She said she didn’t want anyone to try to talk her out of it, but her silence about it made things harder.”

I nodded, somewhat understanding where he was coming from. “Yeah, but you know she wouldn’t put the kids in danger, right?”

“Not knowingly. I know that much about her. We’ve been best friends for a long time. I love her with my whole heart, but those kids are my babies, and it’s my job as their father to protect them. I’m in protective mode.”

“Well, you don’t have to be. I’ve never spoken to them, but I can imagine when I do, I’ll get attached. I’ve heard so much about them already. You wouldn’t have to worry about me treating them like ‘stepkids’ either. If I love their mother, I’ll love them too. I’ll be treating them like they’re mine, and that’s no disrespect to you.”

He nodded. “That’s all I want. I just have a hard time trusting people. I’m going to get there. Please just be patient with me.”

Lying ass nigga. I was more than sure Paul had filled him in on just what type of nigga I was. He knew those kids would be safe with me. He wasn’t dealing with no ordinary nigga that would fall for his bullshit. I glanced at him but never responded. He had no intent of giving those kids back to Giselle no time soon unless the courts forced him to.

“You want something stronger than that beer?” Paul asked.

“Naw. I need to be able to drive home. No disrespect to y’all niggas, but I would much rather lay in my own bed.”

They laughed, nodding their heads. I was the only one in the room that had a woman to go home to, but with the way things were going, I didn’t know how much longer that would be the case. This ‘I do’ was starting to turn into an ‘I don’t,’ and I was sick inside.