Authors: Tina Brooks McKinney

Snapped (Urban Renaissance) (28 page)

CHAPTER SIXTY-ONE

MERLIN MILLS

“Sweetheart, are you okay?” I held Cojo in my arms.

“How did you find us?”

“Later. I just want to know if you and the baby are okay.”

“We are fine. He hit me in the face to get me into the car, and slapped me around a few times. Other than that, he hasn’t touched me.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. I didn’t know if I would have been able to handle it if my brother had sexed my wife twice. It was bad enough the first time, and I was still trying to get those images out of my mind. “Thank God!”

“I’ve got good news.” She was smiling like there was no tomorrow, and it caused me to smile as well.

“What’s that?” I started to work on untying her.

My mother was right by my side.

“It’s your baby. The test results are ninety-nine percent accurate. I think that is what set your brother off ’cause he followed me to the doctor’s office again.”

“Sweetheart, I love you.” I was happy about the news, but I still worried about what had happened from the time that he’d snatched her until now. Although I vowed to love the child, regardless of who the father was, I knew I would eventually have a problem with it that could jeopardize our relationship. I leaped in the air and screamed, pretending all was right with the world. “I’m gonna be a daddy!” With all the excitement, I forgot to finish untying my wife.

“Do you think you could untie me? I prayed that you would come and rescue me, but damn, my arms have become numb.”

“I’m so sorry, sweetie. I just lost my head. You don’t know how bad this whole thing has been stressing me.”

“Let’s not talk about stress, just unhook me. I’ve got to pee.” When she was finally free, she hugged me and my mother then ran to the bathroom!

CHAPTER SIXTY-TWO

MERLIN MILLS

Cojo snuggled with me in our bed. Our interaction had been different since we started going to counseling. I was thankful and I was looking forward to the birth of our child. “I can understand now how you wanted to forget your brother. He’s one piece of work.”

“You don’t know the half of it. He made all of our lives miserable, and I’m glad that he’s finally off the streets.”

“Well, I forgive you for not telling me about him. I might not have married you if I knew he was floating around in your gene pool.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yeah, ’cause crazy doesn’t fall far from the tree.”

“That’s not fair. We’re brothers because we share the same parents, but I don’t really know shit about them.”

“Well, he is about to find out ’cause I just got off the phone with your momma and she don’t want to have anything to do with him.” She paused then said, “I love you.”

“I love you too, boo, and our daughter.” I rubbed her round belly. I felt like I was given a second chance at happiness. Everything was working out in my favor and I was thankful to God.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1.
Should Merlin have forgiven Gina?

2.
Why didn’t Merlin and Gavin confront Ronald?

3.
Why did Gina continue to love Ronald?

4.
Was Cojo a fool for trusting Gavin?

5.
Why did Gavin continue to torment Merlin?

6.
Why didn’t Merlin take his anger out on Gavin instead of Cojo?

7.
Should Cojo have left Merlin?

8.
Do you believe Cojo and Merlin will live happily ever after?

9.
Why did Braxton wait so long to speak to Cojo?

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

A native of Baltimore, Maryland currently residing in Covington Georgia, Tina wears many hats, as she balances her time among being wife, mother, talk show hostess/interviewer, and the creative force behind the drama trilogy:
All That Drama
in 2004,
Lawd, Mo’ Drama
in 2007, and,
Fool, Stop Trippin
in 2008. All are published under the imprint of Strebor Books, a division of Simon & Schuster’s Atria Books.

Deep Deceptions
was the first book published with her new publisher, Urban Books, LLC, under the Urban Renaissance imprint and it released in November 2009. Tina is currently working on the sequel to
Deep Deceptions II
.

As an avid reader, taking in everything she could get her hands on, Tina decided to share her love of books with the world by hosting an Internet radio show called
Real Talk With Tina Brooks McKinney
. Tina’s show focuses on both traditional and self-published authors whose voices are seldom heard. To learn more about this show, log onto:
www.blogtalkradio.com/tinabrooksmckinney
. The show airs on Tuesday nights at 7:00 EST, but previous shows are available in the archives.

Tina uses fictional characters to address real issues occurring in the world. Known for her “tell it like it is” banter, Tina hopes to enlighten and entertain her reading audience. Thus far, she has been successful.

Tina loves to interact with her readers and is always interested in meeting more of them. You can contact Tina at [email protected]
yahoo.com
. She is also available for book club meetings, chats, and conferences. Check her tour page to see if she is coming to a City near you!

www.tinamckinney.com

Notes

Urban Books, LLC
78 East Industry Court
Deer Park, NY 11729

ISBN: 978-1-6016-2229-7

This is a work of fiction. Any references or similarities to actual events, real people, living, or dead, or to real locales are intended to give the novel a sense of reality. Any similarity in other names, characters, places, and incidents is entirely coincidental.

Distributed by Kensington Publishing Corp.
Submit Wholesale Orders to:
Kensington Publishing Corp.
C/O Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
Attention: Order Processing
405 Murray Hill Parkway
East Rutherford, NJ 07073-2316
Phone: 1-800-526-0275
Fax: 1-800-227-9604

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