Love’s Suicide(62)
Author: Jennifer Foor

I held out my arms, but didn’t adjust how close I was to Brooks. Bobby was going to fight to be a part of her life. I got that. It was time for B to know who her real father was. She climbed up on my lap and looked at him. He leaned in and kissed her on the head. She smiled, but kept leaning on me. “B do you know who this is?”

She nodded.

“Do you know his name?”

“Books.”

We both laughed. “Sweetie, Brooks is your daddy.”

B was confused. Her face curled up like she was about to cry. “No. He not.”

Brooks wasn’t giving up. He held his arms out for her. “Come here, kiddo. Let me show you something.”

I followed them into the bathroom and saw him stand her on the vanity. Brooks pointed to his face in the mirror and then to hers. He looked at her and pointed to his eyes and then her eyes. She stood there, looking at their twin reflections in the mirror. He pulled me next to them. “Mommy, Daddy, and B.”

She laughed at us, pointed to herself, and said “B”, then to me. “Mama.” She looked back at Brooks and seemed confused. Then she got close up to the mirror and poked at her eyes. B scrunched her face and pointed towards Brooks’ eyes like he’d showed her. “Mine.”

She knew something was similar, but didn’t understand how it all tied together. Brooks reached his arms out and she climbed back into them. “You’re mine, little bug. I’m your daddy.”

“Daddy?” She still seemed confused. He smiled and looked at me. “It’s going to take her a while to get used to it.”

I was hopeful and knew he was right. If there was some instant way to get her to understand we would have already done it. “She needs to know the truth, though.”

B rested her head against Brooks’ chest. “How about we take it day by day and let B figure it out herself? I’m not going anywhere, Kat. We’re going to raise her together, whether you want to stay friends or get married. It’s up to you.”

I wrapped my arms around him and B. “I don’t deserve this.”

“You’re getting it anyway, so shut up be happy. You’re going to have a lot of bad days coming your way. No matter what, I’ll be there.”

Since it was nearing dinnertime, Brooks insisted that we order room service and lay around watching movies. I’d brought B enough of her little toys to keep her occupied. Brooks had brought along his iPad and was streaming one of her favorite cartoons. He liked hanging out with her and I appreciated it. She wasn’t going to understand what was happening with Bobby and I knew she’d miss him. With him being arrested, I didn’t know if a judge would even consider letting him see her. When I thought about Bobby’s love for her, it hurt me. He may not have respected me, but he would have done anything for her. Just because I didn’t want anything to do with him, didn’t mean I wouldn’t let him visit B. He’d been her only father.

The sun started to go down and it was about that time when my cell phone started ringing. I knew immediately that it would be about Bobby. Brooks looked right at me. “Just answer it, Kat. He can’t hurt you.”

I accepted the call. “Hello?”

“Really, Katy? This is how you’re going to f**kin’ be? I’m tellin’ you right now, you better be home when I get there.”

I took a deep breath. “It’s my house and you’re not welcome there anymore. I want you out, Bobby. I’ve taken pictures of what you did to me this time, and I even had to get a stitch in my head. I’m done with you hurting me for things I didn’t do.”

“Don’t even go there. You’re with him right now, aren’t ya?”

“That’s none of your business. I want a divorce, and I’m not changing my mind. I never should have given you a second chance. I should have known you wouldn’t change.”

“Bitch, I ain’t givin’ you a divorce, and I sure as hell ain’t lettin’ you take that little girl from me.”

“You don’t have a choice, Bobby. She’s not yours. If I want to keep her from you I can, and you know it’s true. She’s got her daddy’s name on that birth certificate. Now, if I were you, I’d think long and hard about what you say to me from here on out. I’d like to eventually be able to come to a visitation agreement with you, provided that you go back to anger management and get help. If you try to harm me, in any way, my offer is off the table. I’ll make sure you never see her again.”

“This ain’t over!” The line went dead.

I felt like I was dizzy, and Brooks grabbed both of my hands to calm me down. “Come here.” He pulled me into a hug. “You’re safe, Kat. I’ve got you.”

I reached my arms behind his back and clung to him for support. “Please don’t ever let go.”

I could tell from Bobby’s voice that he wasn’t going to be happy with walking away. Not only did I fear for my safety, but I also worried that he was going to do whatever it took to come between me and my relationship with Brooks.

My phone didn’t ring again, and after a couple of hours passed, I was still in Brooks’ arms, holding onto the only man that could protect me. B had come over and climbed beside us, so Brooks could read her a story. He changed his voice for different characters and she got a kick out of it. “Again.”

He’d start again, reading the story, as if it were the very first time, all the while holding me with his bad arm, because I’d begged him to not let go.

Brooks got up to stretch, and B began jumping on the bed. “Don’t do that. You’re going to hurt yourself, bug. How about we go for a ride and let Mama get some rest?”

She shook her head. “Bye byes.”

I was thinking that they’d be going in a car, but he sat her down in a wheeled chair at the desk and started running her from one end of the room to the other. She laughed and begged for him to continue. He walked over and kissed my forehead. “Take a nap. I’m going to tire her out and hit the snack machine. I’ll bring you up a soda.”

I smiled, knowing that B was in the best of hands. As soon as they left, I picked up my phone and called Sarah.

“Katy, tell me that you’re not shacked up with Brooks when Bobby is sitting in a jail cell that you put him in.”

“He beat me again, Sarah. This time I needed stitches. He accused me of things that I wasn’t even doing. He threatened Brooks life and then mine. I know you and Dave love Bobby, but I can’t live like that anymore. Since I know he called you two to get him out, I just wanted you to know the real story. I’m not shacked up either. I’m in a safe place with my little girl, and until I speak to a lawyer I won’t be back at my house. If you could ride by there in the morning, I would appreciate it.”