Chapter 2
For a moment, I thought Monique had misunderstood something.
Raise her baby?
Me?
I looked at Darius.
He wouldn't meet my eyes.
"Darius, what is she talking about?"
He rubbed both hands over his face.
"Tasha, just give me a second."
I laughed bitterly.
"A second? You told someone I'd raise a baby I've never heard of!"
Monique began crying.
The newborn stirred against her chest.
I lowered my voice immediately.
Whatever Darius had done, that tiny child didn't deserve to be frightened.
I stepped away from the bed.
"Let's talk outside."
Darius shook his head.
"No. We can explain everything here."
I stared at him.
"You've had plenty of chances to explain."
Monique spoke again.
"Please stay."
I turned.
She looked terrified.
"I need you to hear what he promised me."
I hesitated.
Then moved closer to the chair beside her bed.
"All right."
She took a shaky breath.
"My name is Monique Harris. I'm thirty-two."
I nodded.
She continued.
"I met Darius eight months ago."
My chest tightened.
Eight months.
Eight months of late meetings.
Weekend errands.
Missed dinners.
And excuses about work.
I looked at him.
"Were you sleeping with her?"
He opened his mouth.
Monique answered first.
"No."
I turned.
She shook her head.
"We never had that kind of relationship."
I felt confused.
"Then what?"
Monique looked toward the baby.
"His younger brother was my boyfriend."
I froze.
"Malik?"
Darius looked down.
Malik Cole.
Twenty-six years old.
The younger brother Darius rarely mentioned anymore.
The brother he'd told me was working in another state.
I stared at Monique.
"Malik is the father?"
She nodded.
My head began spinning.
I remembered Malik.
He was funny.
Always joking.
Always arriving late.
He had struggled with money and moved between jobs.
But he was kind to me.
I hadn't seen him in almost a year.
Darius said Malik wanted distance from the family.
Now I wondered whether that was another lie.
"Where is Malik?" I asked.
Monique's face crumpled.
Darius closed his eyes.
I felt something cold move through me.
"Where is he?"
Monique started crying.
"He died."
The words hit me like a physical blow.
I stared at Darius.
"What?"
He looked at me.
"I'm sorry."
I shook my head.
"No."
My voice grew louder.
"No, you don't get to say that."
He reached toward me.
I stepped back.
"Your brother died and you didn't tell me?"
Tears filled his eyes.
"It happened four months ago."
Four months.
I thought about the last four months.
Darius had celebrated my birthday.
We'd gone to dinner.
He'd laughed at movies with me.
He'd talked about our future.
And all that time, his younger brother was dead.
I sat down because my legs no longer felt steady.
"How?"
Darius swallowed.
"A car accident."
Monique wiped her cheeks.
"He was driving home from work."
I covered my mouth.
Malik was gone.
And I hadn't even known.
I thought about his mother, Gloria.
Had she known?
Had the family buried him without telling me?
Then I remembered something.
Four months earlier, Darius had traveled to Birmingham for what he called a business conference.
He'd been gone three days.
I had packed his suitcase.
Kissed him goodbye.
And reminded him to drive carefully.
Had he attended Malik's funeral while I waited at home?
I stared at him.
"Was that trip for his funeral?"
He nodded.
I began crying.
"You let me think you were at a conference?"
"Tasha..."
"Why?"
His voice broke.
"Because Malik and I weren't on good terms."
I couldn't understand.
"So you erased him?"
He looked away.
Monique interrupted.
"There's more."
I turned toward her.
She was struggling to hold the baby while wiping her tears.
I reached instinctively for a clean tissue and handed it to her.
She thanked me.
Then said, "Malik wanted Darius to help us if anything happened."
I looked at Darius.
He stared at the floor.
Monique continued.
"Malik knew he had debts. He was worried about leaving us without support."
I nodded slowly.
"And?"
"Darius promised he'd help."
I swallowed.
"With money?"
"With everything."
My stomach tightened.
Monique looked at me.
"He said you were wonderful with children."
I stared at her.
"He told me you'd always wanted to be a mother."
My chest hurt.
That part was true.
For years, Darius and I had talked about having children.
We'd tried for a baby once.
When it didn't happen quickly, we decided to wait until we were married.
I had confided my fears to him.
My hopes.
My sadness when friends announced pregnancies.
He knew how deeply I wanted a family.
And apparently he'd used that dream to make promises without asking me.
"What exactly did he promise you?"
Monique looked toward the document.
"He said you two would take custody if I couldn't care for the baby."
I stared at her.
"Couldn't care for the baby?"
Her eyes filled.
She looked away.
For a moment, nobody spoke.
Then she whispered, "I'm sick."
I looked at her.
"What do you mean?"
She swallowed.
"I have a heart condition."
My stomach tightened.
"The doctors knew pregnancy would be difficult. But things became worse during delivery."
I glanced toward the medical monitor.
Suddenly, her exhaustion made sense.
She looked beyond tired.
She looked frightened.
"Are you going to be okay?"
She shook her head slightly.
"They're still evaluating me."
I looked toward the sleeping child.
A tiny girl.
Completely innocent.
Then back at Monique.
"Does your family know?"
She looked down.
"My mother died years ago. My father isn't involved. Malik was the only person I had."
My anger shifted.
Not away from Darius.
But toward the terrible situation he'd hidden.
I turned to him.
"So instead of telling me your brother died and his pregnant girlfriend needed help, you invented a hospital emergency?"
He nodded miserably.
"I panicked."
I stared at him.
"You've been panicking for four months?"
He had no answer.
Monique looked at me.
"There's something else."
My stomach dropped.
I wasn't sure I could take another surprise.
She reached for the folded document.
"This isn't just a request for help."
I looked down.
A section near the bottom contained two names.
Darius Cole.
And Tasha Bennett.
My name.
I stared at the signature beneath it.
It looked like mine.
But I hadn't signed anything.
My breathing stopped.
"Darius..."
He closed his eyes.
I looked up.
"Did you forge my signature?"
He whispered, "I was going to explain."
May you like
And that was when I realized his lies had gone far beyond hiding a family tragedy.
He had started making decisions about my life without my permission.
