Page 23 of Surrogate For My Best Friend’s Man 2

“I can’t get Deuce out of jail.”

“Then find somebody who can.”

“I don’t know what the FBI has.”

“Then find out.”

I stared at him. “Rell…”

He stepped toward me again. “And don’t think I’m playing with you.” His voice dropped. “If this shit comes back on me…” He pointed at me. “…I’m coming straight to you.”

My breathing got shaky. “I swear I didn’t tell my daddy anything.”

“You better be telling the truth.” He headed toward the door then he stopped. He turned around and looked at me one more time. “ I ain’t going down behind you.” His eyes stayed on mine. “And if I find out you the reason Deuce sitting in that cell…” He paused. “…you gone have a whole lot more to worry about than Alisha beating your ass.”

He walked out and slammed the door behind him. I stood there frozen. My heart was beating so hard I could hear it. Rell thought I was the snake. The FBI had Deuce, I didn’t know what was going on with Shante and my babies. I slowly sat down on the couch and covered my face. I didn’t know how the hell I was supposed to fix any of this.

But one thing I did know was I wasn't ready to lose Deuce. You can’t help who you love. Maybe him being in jail will make him realize he loves me more! I was sitting on the couch staring at my phone when it started ringing. I looked down and it was Deuce. My heart jumped. I grabbed it before it could ring again. An automated voice came through first.

“This is a prepaid collect call from Wayne County Jail. This call is subject to monitoring and recording. To accept this call, press one.”

I pressed one.

“Hello?” I answered.

“What sup.”

Just hearing his voice made my chest loosen.

“Hey.”

He sounded tired. I could hear doors slamming in the background and somebody yelling down the hallway. For a second, I forgot everything, I thought maybe he was calling because he missed me. Maybe sitting in that cell had finally made him realize how bad yesterday got.

Maybe he was calling to apologize. Then he said the one thing I wasn’t expecting. “I need you to stay away from Alisha.”

I sat there staring at the television. That’s what this was? Not an apology, not asking how I was doing. Not even asking if I was okay after getting my ass beat in front of his whole family. He called me from jail to tell me to stay away from his wife.

I sucked my teeth. “I wasn’t going over there.”

He reminded me not to call his family, not to go looking for his lawyer, and not to do anything that could make his situation worse. I barely said anything. What was I supposed to say? He was sitting in jail, and somehow he was still worried about controlling what I did. Then he told me he had to go and just like that the call ended.

I sat there with the phone in my hand. I don’t know why I expected more. Maybe because I still loved him. Maybe because I thought being locked up would make him realize how much he needed me. Instead, he sounded more worried about keeping me away from Alisha than he did about what happened to me. That shit hurt, I tossed my phone onto the couch and stood up.

I walked into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator even though I wasn’t hungry. I just needed something to do. I grabbed a bottle of water and leaned against the counter, Deuce was still Deuce. Even sitting in the county, he was trying to control everything.

And the worst part, I still wanted to believe he was doing it because he cared. I shook my head. “Girl, you stupid.” I took a sip of water. Maybe I was but I still wasn't ready to let him go.

ALISHA

Iwoke up with Brittany damn near laying across my neck. I opened my eyes and looked at her. “Girl…” She was knocked out, mouth wide open, one leg across my stomach, she looked like she had a long night. I carefully moved her over and climbed out the bed. My whole body was sore. My hand was still aching from yesterday.

I looked down at it and shook my head. “Yeah that shit was worth it.” I mumbled to myself. I walked into the bathroom and looked at myself in the mirror. My hair was a mess and my eyes were swollen, I looked tired as hell. I splashed some water on my face and stood there for a second.

I didn’t want to think about yesterday. So naturally my mind went straight there. I grabbed my toothbrush. “Nope I ain’t doing this.” I said to myself. I brushed my teeth, washed my face, and took a quick shower. After drying off, I stood in my closet trying to figure out what the hell I was wearing.

I wasn’t trying to look cute because I wasn’t going anywhere fancy. I just wanted something comfortable. I grabbed a pair of black leggings and a loose gray hoodie. I threw on my bra, pulled the leggings up, and slipped the hoodie over my head. I sat on the edge of the bed and put on my socks and slides. Then I looked in the mirror, my face still looked tired.

I pulled my hair into a messy bun and put a little concealer under my eyes. “That’s good enough.” I wasn’t about to put on a full face of makeup just to go sit at my mama’s house. I walked back over to the bed and rubbed Brittany’s little back. “Come on, baby.”