“I don’t know. Marriage seems to be a little too complicated for me. I don’t have time to be answering to someone. I don’t want to micromanaged, and if I get tired I want to be able to walk away,” Countee explained.
“I used to think like that too. It just takes finding the right one,” JD explained, “The right woman will have you switching your whole life around to be with her. Right, Samuel?”
“That’s very true.”
Averie
I’d finally taken a breather to relax. Vivian planned the perfect party. She went all out with food from several different ethnicities, barbecue, a dessert bar, and unlimited liquor. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves.
I saw Morris walk into the house followed by two of the prettiest little girls.
“Hi, Ms. Patterson,” Morris said after making his way straight to me.
“Hi, Morris. Who are these beautiful young ladies?”
“These are my daughters, Skye and Phoenix. Skye and Fee, this is Ms. Patterson. She is one of daddy’s colleagues.”
“Hi,” they both said.
Skye seemed a little shy while Phoenix was surveying the room to see what was going on.
“There are some other kids here out in the bouncy house. I can take you out there if your dad doesn’t mind,” I bent down to speak to the girls.
Four brown eyes looked anxiously at Morris waiting for his answer.
“There is someone there monitoring the kids, so they are safe,” I assured.
“Okay, but when it’s time to eat, you will leave the play area without any fuss?”
“Yes, sir,” they both said.
I offered my hands; each girl took one.
Morris walked behind us as I led the girls to the play area. Vivian had hired a couple of the workers from Keeva’s daycare to monitor the children in the play area.
“If you need your dad, tell one of the grownups, and they will come and get him okay?”
They both nodded their heads.
“Alright, go ahead,” Morris said.
The girls ran straight for the bouncy house without looking back.
“Samuel is in the living room. I will show you where he is.”
We walked together to where the men were congregating.
“Averie, I wanted to say thank you for recommending Sarah, the family attorney. She has been so helpful.”
“Are you still thinking about taking their mother to court?”
“Right now, with the help of a mediator that Sarah recommended, we are okay. I really don’t want to fight their mother in court. I’m the dad, and courts don’t favor us very often in child custody hearings. To get the courts to rule in my favor, I would really have to hurt their mother, and I don’t want to do that but if it comes down to it, I will.”
“I understand. Those things can get very messy.”
“Yes, that’s something that I’m trying to avoid. The girls would be the ones that suffered the most.”
“Well, they are even more beautiful in person. If you need anything from me, let me know.”