“We have three beautiful kids, a house, one grandma and one wannabe grandma.”
She laughed, “Mom is trying isn’t she?”
I nodded, for once in her life Carol seemed to have settled down. It seemed that all she needed was love. Or maybe she was getting older. Either way, Nia was happy and so was I.
“Okay, it’s now or never.”
“Stop being like that. It’s all going to work out you’ll see.”
I could hear little Teresa, our little girl crying and we both sighed, I did it because no doubt Nia would go into the room and decide that she wasn’t going into the meeting anymore. She had already had second thoughts about this whole charity, and the donations were through the roof. She had worked so hard to put it all together, and I wasn’t going to let her give up now.
Before we even entered her room. Mom was standing with Teresa in her arms. “You guys still here? You need to get going.”
I nodded because that was my sentiments exactly. Nia walked up to her, “But maybe she needs a feed.”
Mom tutted, “She does, and you’ve expressed enough milk for the week. Now, get going.”
Nia’s back was against the wall, and then mom said something which I could tell was distasteful for her. “Besides your mom is coming around to help me out later.”
“Glad you’re getting on so well.”
Mom shrugged, “I think that it’s important for the grandkids. She even said that she wouldn’t wear her leather boots this time. I believe that it scared Gia last time she came here wearing them.”
I laughed, “It scared all of us.”
Nia hit me as the mood changed, but it did. Her mom put Cher’s outfit to the Academy Awards back in 1992 to shame. The only problem was Carol wasn’t going for an award. It was supposed to be a dinner for the whole family to go out on neutral ground. Mom saved face, by saying that she wasn’t going to sit at a table with Carol wearing that.
“Okay let’s do this.”
I nodded thinking that at last, we were finally leaving the house. We peaked in on Gia and Alex who were playing with Ken and Barbie.
“I just don’t get how they don’t get tired of playing with them damn dolls.”
Nia wasn’t actually listening as we both hopped in the car and she recited her speech a million times. She had spent all night rehearsing, “Babes, it’s going to be fine.”
She nodded as she took a deep breath, “You’re used to starting your company. This is the first time that I’ve started anything in my life.”
“And you’re going to be good at it.”
“I just had a baby; I shouldn’t even be doing this.”
“Yes, but mom’s need you out there. So do dads. The company is to help single parents like the way we were but on a larger scale. How many people have contacted you already about their health insurance? Life insurance? Things that they worry about every single night. People need this. You need this.”
She agreed, “Is it wrong, that I’m so fucking excited to open those doors.”
I stopped at the lights and kissed her, “I love you Nia soon to be James.”
“I love you more Hunter James. And I can’t wait for this divorce to be final so that I can be your wife.”
I was going to wait for her to start her first day in opening the office doors, but I couldn’t contain myself any longer. “Open the glove box.”
She looked at me suspiciously and then she saw the letter. She opened it and said, “When were you going to tell me?”
She hit me.
“You were stressed, and somehow I thought that it would be better to wait.”
She opened it like a child on Christmas day. Then she started to mumble the words. The most expensive divorce in the world. Ed had used every trick in the book to contest it, especially emotional and financial blackmail. He even claimed bodily harm when Tiana threw him out. I paid him more than he deserved just so that he was out of our lives for good. The lawyer drew up the papers, and he signed them. He was a nasty piece of work. The type that would come and haunt Alex for it, just so that he could extort more money out of me. This way it was done. He had no leg to stand on, and he couldn’t get any more from me.