Mrs. Jones: Book One (The Jones Series #1) by B.M. Hardin Read Free Book Online Page B

today,” I said to him and tried to touch his hand but he moved it away.
    “Is it mine?” he questioned.
    No…maybe…I don’t know…is the answer that I should have said, but of course I didn’t.
    “Of course it’s yours. How could you ask me something like that? Santana, there is no one else. I did go to North Carolina. But you were right it wasn’t to visit my family…it was to visit my dead friend Joey’s---mother. His death had been on my mind so much lately that I thought by going to visit his grave, and talk with his mom, might help. In the past it used to,” I said.
    Now, that was one of the best lies I’d ever told…and it kind of made sense.
    “Why couldn’t you just tell me Niveah?” Santana asked.
    I shook my head.
    “I don’t know. I didn’t want you to think that it was anything that you were doing, or our marriage, that had me feeling strange or thinking about Joey and his death. I just didn’t think you would understand,” I said.
    “You never gave me the chance to,” Santana responded standing up from his chair.
    He walked around his desk and stood directly in front of me.
    It wasn’t until then that I noticed that he wasn’t wearing his wedding ring.
    “I saw a divorce attorney yesterday. Life is too short and I refuse to be in a marriage if my wife can’t manage to open her damn mouth and tell me what’s going on with her,” Santana said and reached in his pocket.
    My heart seemed as though it’d stopped beating. I thought that he was about to pull out papers but instead he pulled out his ring and placed it back on his finger.
    “I’m on your side Niveah. I just want to love you. Enough is enough. No more past secrets, or whatever you want to call them. Don’t ever lie to me again,” he said as my head started to nod and the tears began to fall from my eyes. I stood up and he embraced me.
    His hands found their way to my stomach.
    “So this is for real; I’m going to be a daddy?”
    “According to that stick full of pee…absolutely,” and I managed to laugh just before kissing him.
    Thank God for second, third and fourth chances.
    ~***~
     
    Weeks and weeks passed and everything was on the right track and headed in the right direction.
    I kept in touch with Joey, just to keep the peace. I hadn’t seen him and didn’t plan to anytime soon; especially since I was starting to show. I hadn’t told him about the baby. I was planning to break the news to him soon but I wanted to let enough time pass so I could at least try to pin it on my husband.
    As for Santana and I; we were better than ever.
    He was happier than I’d ever seen him before and so was I. But I must admit, this being pregnant thing was definitely overrated. Though I’d been pregnant before, I’d never been over four to six weeks; but now I was around fourteen weeks and I was ready for it to be over!
    I was tired of sleeping, I was tired of eating, and I was definitely tired of peeing!
    This baby just couldn’t come fast enough!
    I wondered why it had to take a whole nine months. Three or four months seemed like more than enough time to bake a baby, and then get it out of the oven. There wasn’t too many things that I could say that I hated, but, I hated being pregnant! There was nothing at all that I liked about it, but I must admit that I was just a little excited.
    I was hoping for a precious little girl, while Santana was praying for a little boy.
    A mini-me would be perfect; but on the other hand, I was just praying that the baby, whether boy or girl, looked like at least one of us…and not Joey.
     
    “Niveah, are you dressed yet?” Santana yelled from the living room.
    I waddled slowly into his presence.
    I was so uncomfortable. I’d never felt so fat in all of my life. Pregnancy clothes did nothing for my figure. I’ve never been too shapely. I wasn’t plus, and I wasn’t exactly skinny, I was just stuck somewhere in between. I didn’t have the curves that most African American women