Give Me The Reason 2: A Love Story (2 page)

“So you done just stepped in and took my place in my wife and daughter’s lives, huh?”

Cane knew the decline of his family was all his fault, but it didn’t make the pill any easier to swallow. Cam had always been the better man. He excelled in school and in life, always doing the right thing. Cane learned at an early age that he had magical powers when it came to women. They fed his ego and made up for his shortcomings. He was never the sharpest crayon in the box, but he knew how to sling his wood and make the women cream. Women would do anything he asked of them, including giving him their hard earned money.

Sure, he made a decent living, but he despised manual labor. He always felt he was too good to be slaving in some damn factory. So he used women to supplement his lifestyle. Ava never asked him how much money he made at the Coca-Cola Bottling Company, and he never offered her the information either. Often times, he used the money he was getting from his side chicks to pay their bills. Ava didn’t work, so Cane did what he had to do. In his twisted mind, he was helping her and Delaney live a good life.

Cam ran his hands down the sides of his face before responding. He wasn’t in the mood to go back in forth with his brother, but it seemed like he didn’t have a choice. It was obvious that Cane wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon.

“Why you gotta do this now, bruh? Your daughter is fighting for her life, and you want to sit here and compete about who has the bigger dick.” Cam chuckled and clasped his hands together staring directly into Cane’s eyes.

“Nigga, you ain’t no damn competition! Ava is my wife!” Cane yelled. He stood up and walked over to Cam. He was ready for whatever.

“Man, you betta sit yo bitch ass down, because you already know you don’t want to go there with me,” Cam said through gritted teeth. He stood up preparing himself for what was about to go down. He didn’t like causing scenes in public places, but if this nigga came for him, he was going to be ready. Closing the door shut with his right hand, he stood tall hovering over his youngest brother. Cam despised Cane’s selfish ways. There had never been a time in his life where he put anyone’s needs and wants before his own. He loved Cane because they were brothers, but he strongly disliked him as a person. In Cam’s eyes, he was a poor excuse of a father and husband, and he didn’t deserve Ava nor Delaney’s love.

Cane was sick of his older brother always belittling him in front of his wife. He charged at Cam throwing the first blow, but Cam was too quick and ducked, causing Cane to stumble. Ava became enraged. She stood up and moved directly in between her husband and the man she loved. She was thankful that no one else besides the three of them was in the waiting room while these two were going at it. Ava wasn’t sure where Delaney’s boyfriend and his friends were, but she was glad they weren’t around to witness the family feud.

“Stop this shit right now!” she yelled. Ava took a deep breath before continuing. “I am so sick and tired of you two fighting. Cane you are dead wrong for the way you are treating your brother. He is the only one who has been there for both Delaney and me. All you’ve ever done was run the streets, sleeping with any bitch that was willing to spread her legs. I loved you more than anything else in this world, and you continued to hurt me time and time again. But the ultimate betrayal is when you fucked my best friend, and began having an ongoing affair with her. I stopped loving you a long time ago Cane!” she admitted.

The emotional pain she endured over the years is what had driven her to start drinking heavily. She loved Cane with everything in her, but nothing she ever did was good enough to satisfy his sexual appetite. She began to feel as if the issue lay with her, maybe she wasn’t pretty enough or sexy enough to hold her husband’s attention. The years of infidelity began to affect her self-esteem to the point that she no longer cared how she looked, because no matter what she did to maintain her appearance, he never seemed to notice or care.

Tears were rolling down her face as she let out the pain she’d been holding in for years. Ava knew she should have left Cane years ago, but she kept hoping that he would change one day. She also felt that if she gave Cane up, he would run over to Dana and she couldn’t stomach seeing the two of them together as a couple. Creeping behind closed doors was one thing, but publicly making a spectacle out of her was out of the question. In her heart, she would always hold a special place for Cane, because he was her first love and first lover. However, she was ready to move on and had made peace with her decision.

Ava felt like she deserved to be happy for once in her life, and she wasn’t going to let Cane or anyone else stand in her way. Cam was a godsend and her heart now belonged to him wholeheartedly. It might not sit well with people that she was in a relationship with her brother-in-law, but Ava was never one to care about the opinions of others.

“Babe, I can admit my wrong, but does that excuse you from carrying on like this with my brother?” Cane questioned, waving his arms in the air. He was almost in tears and for the first time in his life, he felt the pain he’d been inflicting on Ava for years. Her words cut him deep and guilt consumed every fiber of his being. He loved Ava, but he knew he could not commit to being with just one woman.

Cam stood by silently as his brother and Ava talked. He had to allow Ava to handle this without his involvement. She needed to make the decision to leave Cane on her own. He never once asked her to get a divorce, but in his heart, he yearned to have Ava all to himself.

Ava ran her fingers through her hair and inhaled deeply. “I want a divorce, Cane. It’s time for us to let this façade of a marriage go. We’ve both made mistakes and there is nothing we can do to change the past,” she stated. Finally, being able to say those words felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders.

Cane bowed his head and slumped his shoulders. This day was bound to come, but nothing could prepare him for hearing Ava say the dreadful D word. In his heart, he knew he was no good for her nor Delaney.

“Just like that, huh?” he questioned, defeat clearly written all over his face. There were no words left for him to say to convince her to stay with him. All of his dirty deeds had finally come back to bite him in the ass.

“Yeah, just like that,” she said with her voice full of conviction. The moment was bittersweet for Ava. She inwardly smiled for having the courage to finally let Cane go. Now her only hope was getting the chance to make things right with her daughter. God-willing she would have the opportunity to reestablish her relationship with Delaney.

Cane nodded his head up and down, as he ran his right hand along his full beard. Suddenly he felt like an unwanted stranger. He stepped past Ava and approached his oldest brother.

“I may have been the one to destroy my marriage, but I will never forgive you for stealing my wife!” he declared. Without saying another word, Cane turned and walked out of the waiting room, slamming the door behind him.

Cam quickly rushed to Ava’s side and embraced her. He was extremely proud that she’d finally stood up to Cane and told him exactly how she felt. Cam didn’t feel any remorse towards his brother, he’d had years to rectify the situation if he’d truly wanted too.

“Are you okay, love?” he asked, staring deeply into her eyes.

Ava smiled and nodded her head, “Yes, I am more than fine. Cane needed to hear that and I am finally ready to move forward with my life. I deserve better and I know that now.”

Ava buried her face in Cam’s chest, a place she’d always felt safe and secure. She smiled at the thought of a better life that lay ahead of her.

Chapter Two

Natasha was exhausted and could barely keep her eyes open during the drive home. She still couldn’t wrap her mind around the fact that her best friend was in a coma fighting for her life. No one knew nor understood her the way Delaney did. She couldn’t imagine life without her best friend and she prayed that she wouldn’t have to find out either. As Natasha flipped the signal light to exit right off of the highway towards her Stone Mountain home, she suddenly felt the urge to vomit. Her stomach churned as she cupped her mouth with her right hand, steering the vehicle with her left hand looking for a safe place to stop the car. There was no way she was going to vomit inside of her car.

She then pulled over to the shoulder of the road, placed the gear in park, and opened the driver side door of her cherry red Dodge Charger. After quickly removing her seat belt, she leaned over and vomited on the side of the road. Natasha reached into the console, grabbed a few napkins and wiped her mouth. Another wave of nausea washed over her, and she leaned out the door and vomited once more.

“What the fuck is going on with me?”
she said out loud to herself. Leaning her head back on the headrest, she wiped her mouth and tossed the soiled napkin outside of the window. She took a few minutes to get herself together before pulling back on the road and heading home.

To Natasha’s surprise, Jason was already home. The big blue rig he drove was parked in the cul-de-sac, minus the trailer. A surge of nervousness shot through her body as she exited the car. She felt a mixture of happiness and sadness at the same time. Their relationship was rocky and had been for several months. The love was still there, but she’d been carrying around feelings of guilt for having an ongoing affair with Drake. Even after Drake said it was over between them, they continued to sleep together from time to time.

Natasha slowly walked up to the front door and used her key to let herself in. She kicked her black open toe wedge shoes off and proceeded to walk towards the living room. Jason was laid back on the sofa watching a football game on the seventy-inch flat screen television.

“Hey babe.” She leaned down and planted a quick peck on his cheek before sitting down on the loveseat directly across from him.

Jason glanced up at Natasha. “Oh hey, I didn’t hear you come in,” he dryly replied and reached for the remote control. After turning the television down, he sat up and faced his wife. It didn’t take him long to notice her bloodshot eyes and the forlorn look on her face. “Baby, are you okay?” he asked. Sure, they had their issues, but he loved Natasha more than anything in the world.

The tears began to well up in her eyes before she spoke the first word. Jason jumped up and quickly rushed to her side. He sat down and wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

“Talk to me, baby what’s wrong?” He cupped her face in his hands, forcing her to look at him.

“Delaney was in a car accident and she is in a coma! I don’t know what I’m going to do if she doesn’t pull through.” Natasha broke down crying hysterically. The walls of life seemed to be closing in. She felt helpless to do anything to stop her world from crashing down all around her. Her marriage was on the rocks and her best friend was in the hospital fighting for her life. Guilt consumed Natasha as she cried on her loving husband’s shoulders.

“When did this happen and why didn’t you call me? I would’ve been there for you, babe,” he explained. Jason knew things were bad between them, but not this bad. Something had to give. He had to find a way to be there for his wife. The money was good, but if losing his wife meant he would have to come off the road, then that was a risk he was going to have to take. He would find another way to make ends meet. Losing Natasha was not an option.

Natasha sniffled and gazed into her loving husband’s eyes. “It all happened so fast. All I could think about at the time was being by her side. I knew you would leave the road the moment I told you, but I also know how important your job is to you and I just didn’t want to burden you.”

Jason placed Natasha in his lap like a little girl and cradled her. “Burden me? Bae, there is nothing or no one in this world more important to me than you are. Don’t ever feel like you can’t call on me when you need me. I will drop everything for you. Do you understand me?” he asked, rocking her in his arms. He placed soft kisses on her forehead as he struggled to fight back his own tears. That settled it. He was calling his job tomorrow and taking a leave of absence. His wife needed him and anything outside of that could wait.

Natasha melted inside when he spoke those words. She made a promise to herself that she would never see Drake again, or any other man for that matter. Jason was the only man she truly loved and he completed her. “Yes, bae, I understand. I promise from this day forward that I will call on you when I need you.”

The churning in her stomach started up again, but she swallowed hard to keep it down. At that, moment she suddenly remembered that she hadn’t had a menstrual cycle. Come to think of it, she wasn’t really certain when she last had her period. Her cycle had always been sporadic. It was never consistent so she really hadn’t paid it much attention. Panic set in and her heart was beating at an accelerated pace. She and Jason hadn’t slept together in months due to the time he spent on the road and all the arguments they were having as of late.

Jason felt her body tense up. “Are you ok?” he asked, concern etched across his handsome face.

“Yes, I just need to take a shower and lie down for a while. I’m really tired from sitting up at the hospital for the last two days,” she lied.
Oh my God! Please don’t let me be pregnant!
she thought to herself. If she was in fact pregnant, there was only one person who could be the father. The only way that she would really know for sure, was for her to make an appointment with her OB/GYN. Natasha planned on doing just that first thing in the morning. But first, she was going to go out tomorrow and pick up a home pregnancy test just in case she had to wait to get in to see her doctor.

Jason stood up and carried Natasha into their master bedroom. He laid her gently on the bed and kissed her forehead. After removing all of her clothes, he walked in the adjoining bathroom and ran her bath water in the Jacuzzi tub, not forgetting to add her favorite scented bubble bath to the hot water. Once the tub was nice and full, he picked Natasha’s naked body up and gently placed her into the bath water.

Guilt consumed her as she watched her husband lovingly bathe her in silence. The scent of vanilla and chamomile filled her nostrils. Jason washed her body from head to toe before removing her from the tub and drying her body off. Jason massaged her favorite lotion all over her body and lay down beside her in the bed. Although he desperately wanted to make love, he could tell that she was extremely tired and needed some rest. He spooned Natasha from behind and gently rocked her in his arms.

Natasha felt safe and secure in her husband’s strong arms. The thought of losing Jason was too much for her to bear. What if she was pregnant? How could she expect Jason to stay with her and take care of another man’s seed? So many thoughts were running through her mind preventing her from getting some much needed sleep.

“I’m calling the job tomorrow and requesting a leave of absence. I want to be here for you, baby, the way you need me to be,” Jason whispered in her ear. A lone tear slid down her face.
Why have I been so stupid?

Natasha turned around and faced her husband. Jason smiled and wiped the tears that were falling from her eyes.

“Why are you crying? I thought you wanted me around the house more often?” he inquired.

“I do, bae, it’s just that I don’t know if this is a good time for you to quit your job.” She offered him a weak smile. Natasha wanted nothing more than for her husband to spend more time at home, but she wasn’t prepared for him to do it so suddenly.

“I’m not going to quit, but I am going to take some time off. You need me right now, and if the truth be told, you’ve needed me for some time now. It’s time that I step up to the plate and be there for you, like you’ve always been there for me. We have enough in our savings account to float the bills for a while. I’m the man of the house, so don’t worry about the bills, I will take care of everything.”

Natasha inhaled deeply and closed her eyes. How could she have been so dumb to cheat on a man that would lay down his life for her? Drake was a sweet distraction that she allowed herself to become fixated upon. There was a chance that she could be carrying his child. The thought of that terrified her. All she ever wanted was to be a mother, but somehow the joy of motherhood didn’t seem so joyous now knowing who the father would be.

“I love you so much, Jason,” she said, nestling her face in his chest. Natasha couldn’t stand to look into his eyes another minute without wanting to confess all of her indiscretions. Jason hugged her tightly. His dick stiffened as he cradled her soft, naked body. Suddenly, Natasha bolted out of the bed and ran to the bathroom.

“Baby, are you okay?” Jason asked, quickly jumping out of the bed. When he reached the bathroom, Natasha was bent over the toilet puking her guts out. Consumed with worry, he rushed to her side and began to rub her back.

Once she was finished, Natasha slowly rose from the toilet and leaned against the cold porcelain sink. Jason wiped her face with a cool wet wash towel. Avoiding eye contact with Jason, she took the wash towel from him, covered her face with it and inhaled deeply.

“Thank you, baby,” she said into the face towel. First thing in the morning she was going to the nearest drugstore to purchase a pregnancy test. Oh how she wished she could call Delaney to help her figure all of this mess out. Natasha could always count on her best friend to be in her corner no matter the occasion. Dana, her mother, would only cast the blame on Natasha. Honestly, she was to blame for being selfish and seeking love outside of her marriage, when all she really had to do was reach out to her husband. Instead, she sought solace in the arms of another man who clearly had no interest in her other than her pussy.

Jason felt an overwhelming uneasiness in the pit of his stomach. He could sense his wife’s nervousness, but he wasn’t quite sure where it was coming from. Jason took Natasha by the arm and guided her back into their bed. He lay quietly beside her trying to quiet the voices in his head. Natasha was behaving strangely and he had no idea what it could be other than the dilemma with Delaney. Still something in his gut was telling him something else was going on.