A soft smile adorned her lips. “You remembered.”
“I remember everything about you—about us. It’s why I did what I did, and I don’t regret it.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t wait for you, Zi. I guess I didn’t think you’d still want me when you came home. So many things had changed, and I knew when I agreed to marry Akeem, it didn’t feel quite right. I know what happens is going to be all over social media since he is a high-profile actor. But, sadly, I don’t even care. Seeing your face after all these years feels nostalgic, and I realize that I never really stopped loving you.”
“That’s all that matters, baby. Were you living with him?”
She nodded. “Only because he suggested it since my lease was up on my condo. It only made sense for me to move in with him since we were set to get married.”
I didn’t like the thought of her being with anyone else, but I couldn’t be too upset. She was right. Fifteen years was a long time, and people did change.
“You don’t have anything to worry about, though. I got you. Always.”
She smiled at me and kissed my lips. We talked for a little bit more before Al brought the food out. French toast, eggs Benedict, beef sausage, and beef bacon were what he whipped up.
“Gosh. Everything looks so good,” Dinny said.
“Thank you, ma’am. I hope you both enjoy it. Let me know when you’re ready for lunch, Mr. Sullivan.”
I gave him a curt nod and bid him adieu. Dinny said grace, then we dug into our meal, enjoying the comfort of silence between us. My thoughts went to last night when she told me she lost our baby. That shit stung deep because I just knew our kid would have brought us both so much joy. It was made out of pure love and would have been an amazing kid, considering who their mother was.
But I understood what she meant when she said she didn’t want the baby to be without a father. I would have taken care of them from behind the wall, but she was raised in a two-parent home, and I knew she would have wanted the same for our baby. It didn’t hurt any less, though. He or she would have been a beautiful thing to come home to.
“What are you thinking about?” she asked, cutting through my thoughts.
“You,” I replied. “How are you mentally?”
She chewed slowly before swallowing and giving me her attention. “Before or after you kidnapped me?” She laughed.
“Both.”
“Before, I was . . . okay. I found peace when I finally found something I was good at and interested in. It distracted me from mourning my losses. Now, I feel as if something has been restored inside of me.”
“How do you feel about having a baby?”
She smirked. “I haven’t thought about having kids after losing our baby. It was something I couldn’t get over, and I blame myself for not taking care of myself after you left.”
“It’s not your fault, Dinny. If anyone is to blame, it’s me. If I didn’t do what I did, we would have a fifteen-year-old, spoiled-ass kid, and possibly two younger ones that followed.” We laughed.
“Why do you ask?”
“Because I want to try again. I’m hoping you’re pregnant right now after last night.”
She shook her head. “I’m on birth control.”
“You ’bout to stop taking them, right?”
“I could, but it’s going to take time to get out of my system.”
“That’s cool, as long as you stop. I want the life I promised you. I know losing the baby may have been hard on you, but I’mhere now, and I don’t plan on going anywhere anytime soon. All you gotta do is say yes, and I’ll handle the rest.”
The blush that settled on her face gave me chills. This woman who sat before me now was everything I knew she would and could be.
A dream.
My dream.
God knew what He was doing when he created her for me. After losing my people, Jordin and her family, along with my best friends’ people, filled the void left by their absence.
I took her hand and kissed the back of it.
“You ready to start living out your happily ever after?” I asked, smiling over at her.
That beautiful smile lifted on her face. “I am.”