FEVERISH UnbRoken Read online

  *****

  Two days later, on an early Sunday morning, a taxi drove Imani, carrying only one suitcase, to her parents’ home. She hadn’t told them she was coming for a surprise visit because it was a surprise to her too. After getting fired and feeling like a reject from The Apprentice, Imani decided to lick her wounds in the comforting arms of her mom and dad. There really was no place like home, and her parents always seemed to center her when life got crazy.

  Imani’s parents lived in a cozy two-story house on a quiet cul-de-sac. She had so many good childhood memories. Most of the people who lived on this street had been there forever. Time appeared to stand still in the good old town of Cashmere, Georgia. Imani had known almost everyone on this block since her family had moved there during her fifth-grade year. Just like her parents, those neighbors hadn’t left and probably never would.

  There was something comforting about being around familiar surroundings. Imani smiled as she saw Mrs. Addison walking her new German Shephard when the taxi turned onto her street. Imani’s mother had told her that Mrs. Addison was depressed after her golden retriever, Max, went on to doggie heaven; he had been a gift from her late husband. Imani was sure it was a devastating loss. She made a mental note to herself that she would make it a priority to stop by before she returned to Chicago.

  Dr. George, her neighbor directly across from her parents’, was walking toward the curb in a pair of house shoes and a robe much too small for his round frame. He bent over to pick up the newspaper at the exact moment Imani’s taxi drove past and almost flashed her his goods. She wrinkled her nose. That wasn’t exactly a sight she wanted to see this early in the morning. And, she thought, when did he lose so much hair? He was balding right on the top.

  Imani slowly inhaled when they came to her mom and dad’s house. There were too many cars parked in front of their two-car garage. Each of her parents’, brother’s, and sister’s cars were in the driveway. She never understood people who had garages but never used them. That kind of real estate was priceless in Chicago.

  Imani got out of the car with her bag and walked the short distance from the curb to her parents’ door. She turned the knob, knowing they hadn’t locked it. Why did they still do that? Nowadays, it was much too dangerous. Serial killers were on every block. She would have to have a talk with them about it later. For now, she walked inside, dropping her bags onto the floor right where she stood.

  Looking around the room, Imani was glad some things would always stay the same. “Mom . . . Dad . . . I’m home!”

  In her robe, Felicia Jones rounded the corner from the kitchen drying her hands on a dish towel. A radiant smile spread across her heart-shaped face. She hadn’t started getting dressed for church yet. “Imani Annette Jones, is that you?”

  With outstretched arms, she pulled Imani into a bear hug. The excitement of seeing Imani for the first time in a year made her want to sing. “Thank you, Lord, my baby is home!” Her high-pitched voice was elevated more than usual. “You should have told us you were coming. I would have planned dinner.” Felicia continued to hold Imani in a tight embrace and rocked her from side to side as she yelled up the stairs. “Mike, Aaliyah, Maddon . . . get down here. Imani is home!””

  Her mama’s smile was contagious. She couldn’t help but return it. “I didn’t want a big fuss.”

  “It’s never a fuss when your child comes home for a visit.”

  Imani heard her dad’s heavy footsteps coming down the creaky stairs with Aaliyah and Maddon not far behind.

  Michael Jones beamed. His broad grin mirrored her own. “Who’s this stranger walking up in here this early in the morning?”

  Imani left the comfort of her mother’s arms to walk directly into her father’s. “Hey, Daddy.” Her cheek rested on his shoulder. He kissed the top of her head.

  Maddon was her twin, literally, and he wanted in on the action. “Hey, Brat!” So, did Aaliyah. When Imani turned around to embrace them, she was stunned. Her eyes went wide.

  “Y-you didn’t tell me about this.” Imani looked around the room then back into Aaliyah’s eyes as she pointed to her stomach. “Nobody did.”

  Aaliyah rubbed her swollen belly. It was protruding through her robe. “I asked them not to. I wanted to be the one to tell you. Now that you’re here . . .” Aaliyah threw up her hands and wiggled her fingers. “SURPRISE! You’re going to be an aunt in about three months.”

  Imani was shocked. Her baby sister was having a baby, and as far as she knew, Aaliyah hadn’t eloped or gotten married. “Wow.” She didn’t know what to say, and now wasn’t the time to grill her. “Congratulations?” Imani hugged her and whispered into her ear, “We’ll talk about this later.”

  Her mom chimed in. “Maddon, get Imani’s bag and put it in the guest room. I better call Trinity because I won’t be going to church today. My baby’s home.”

  Imani turned. “Guest room? Why can’t he put them in my room?”

  Her mother hunched her shoulders. “You didn’t tell us you were coming and Maddon has a house guest staying in your old room, which is now my new guest room. The poor soul is having a bit of a time. Anyway, that room is larger.”

  Imani was ready to protest.

  Felicia shook her head and wagged her finger. “Don’t do it. I can see your beautiful face puffing up like a fish. Don’t get all huffy because it won’t change a thing. It’ll just give you wrinkles.”

  Imani was about to open her mouth to complain when her father pulled her back into the crook of his arms. Always the diplomat, his lips hovered close to her ear, and he whispered, “You’re not going to win this one. Let it go, and live to fight another day.”

  Felicia did feel a little bad giving her room away. Still, that’s what happens when kids grow up and move away. Imani was lucky that Felicia hadn’t started to redecorate it yet. She turned to Maddon and Aaliyah. Her lips curved upward. “At some point, your kids are supposed to move out. Especially when your children start having their own.”

  They turned toward each other wondering who their mother was talking to since neither one of them had any plans on moving anytime soon—even with a baby coming.

  Chapter 3

  Maddon opened the door to the guest room and dropped Imani’s bags on the floor. She brushed past him and flopped down on the bed. She toe’d off her gym shoes then proceeded to fall flat on her back with her arms raised above her head. “God, it’s good to be home even if I have to sleep in this little box because you’ve got some girl in my room.” Imani sat up on her elbows and glared at Maddon. “When did mom and dad start allowing that?”

  “Calm down and stop being a brat . . . BRAT. You know damn well mom and dad would never allow shackin’ up even if it was during an apocalypse. It’s a guy I met at the airport yesterday on my way back from my business trip. He’s going through a rough time and seemed like he needed to get away.”

  Imani scrunched up her face. “You let some strange man sleep in my bed?”

  Maddon lifted his brows up and down then responded sarcastically. “Yep. He’s a serial killer.”

  “That’s. Not. Funny. Make sure you burn the sheets.”

  “We survived the night. He didn’t kill anyone. All kidding aside, our flight was delayed several hours, and during that time we struck up a conversation. After talking, he seemed cool, just going through a rough time. When we landed here, I found out his connecting flight to Chicago was canceled, and he couldn’t get home until tomorrow. So, I invited him back with me. Dad and I are both over six foot three and in pretty good physical condition. If he tried anything crazy, I think we could take him.” Maddon laughed. “So, stop trippin’. Like mom said, he’s just going through a rough time and needs to disappear for a few days.”

  She twisted her lips in a wry smile. “As long as he doesn’t leave anything in my bed, I guess it's okay.”

  Maddon started to walk backward out of the room. “Remember . . . what mom said.”

  Imani had a blank look on
her face. Her mother said a lot. “What in particular?”

  “I heard her say explicitly that you don’t live here no mo! Therefore, it’s not your bed.” His throaty laugh rang out throughout the upstairs as he closed the door just as Imani threw a pillow at him. It bounced off and dropped onto the floor.

  Imani couldn’t help smiling to herself as she thought about how some things would always be the same.

  *****

  Imani changed out of her skinny jeans and button-up shirt to take a quick shower. After standing under the hot spray for over half an hour, she got out and put on a pair of cut-off sweat pants and a thick pullover hoodie that hid all her curves. As Imani stood in front of the mirror looking at her reflection, Imani decided not to bother with any makeup. She had scrubbed her face clean and was attempting to put her coily hair up into a banana clip. Starving, Imani hurried so that she could head downstairs to get something to eat.

  Before she hit the bottom of the steps, Imani could smell the aroma of bacon. Her stomach rumbled. Just as she made it the rest of the way down, Aaliyah met her at the base of the stairs holding two cups of steaming hot coffee. She handed one to Imani. “It’s about time you came down. I was about to come drag you out of that shower.”

  Imani took the cup with both hands. “I so need this. Thank you.”

  “Breakfast isn’t ready yet. Let’s go sit out on the porch until mama’s finished.”

  Imani laughed. “Are you sure? That bacon smells done. I should at least ask if she needs help in the kitchen.”

  Aaliyah was in the process of bringing her cup of coffee to her lips but stopped midway. “No, you shouldn’t. You have absolutely no business in a kitchen anywhere unless it’s to get bottled water.”

  Imani arched a brow. “Heeeeeey . . . none of that. I’ve gotten much better in the kitchen over the last couple of years.”

  “Riiight.” Aaliyah rolled her eyes and grabbed her sister’s free hand. “Come on, let’s go. We’ve got a lot to catch up on.” She yelled out. “Ma! Imani and I are going to sit out on the porch, but before we go, she wanted to know if you needed any help?”

  A chorus of voices hollered back, “NO!”

  A cheeky smile appeared on Aaliyah’s rounded face exposing a deep set of dimples.

  Imani rolled her eyes. “Shut up.”

  They went out onto the porch. Aaliyah still held her sister’s hand as they sat down on the two-seat wicker chair. Imani couldn’t help but think pregnancy looked really good on Aaliyah. Her caramel complexion was silky smooth and definitely had that pregnancy glow. She hadn’t gained a lot of weight. The few pounds she had put on were mostly concentrated in the center of her stomach.

  She spoke in wonder. “I can’t believe my baby sister is going to have a baby. You’ve got to tell me everything. Especially why you didn’t call and tell me!”

  Aaliyah rolled her head around her shoulders. “Honestly, there’s not much to tell.”

  Imani wasn’t buying it. “Nuh-uh. You’ve got to do better than that. Who’s the father? Do you love him? Is he still in your life? I have so many questions, but I’ll start with those.”

  “He’s a nice person. We’re in a complicated situation.”

  Imani’s eyes narrowed. “Oh. My. God! Is he married? Who is it?”

  “You’re always so dramatic. No! You know I’d never knowingly sleep with a married man. Your imagination is too much.”

  Imani turned her body so that she was facing Aaliyah and pulled her leg up onto the seat. “Then, what’s up? I don’t see a ring on your finger.”

  “You don’t see a ring because we’re not engaged. I’m not sure if I want to be.”

  “So, he asked?”

  Aaliyah nodded. “Yes. He wants to ask Daddy for my hand.”

  “I hear a but in your voice.”

  “I’m not sure if I love him enough. We didn’t plan this pregnancy. It sort of happened.”

  “Wait? I’m confused. You’re having a child together with this man who shall remain nameless, because you haven’t given it to me, but you’re not interested in marriage?”

  Aaliyah blew out a breath. “I don’t have a ten-point plan for my life like you and mama. I don’t live that way. I met Drew—” Aaliyah exaggerated his name, “where I work at the Art Carousel. He owns the gallery. We were immediately attracted to one other, and within weeks of meeting, I found out I was pregnant. We’ve spent the rest of this time trying to get to know each other. If—and I mean if—after I have the baby, provided we can still stand each other, maybe I’ll think about moving on to the next level.”

  “What’s the next level? Marriage?”

  “God no. You sound like Mama and Daddy. I’m thinking we can try being exclusive.”

  “Exclusive?” Imani couldn’t keep the sarcasm from her voice. “Aren’t kids more permanent than a husband? I mean, you’re pregnant, and you need to consider being exclusive? No offense but seems like you would have a hard time dating right now anyway.”

  Aaliyah swatted her thigh and smiled as if she had a secret. “You don’t have to be in a relationship to have sex and get preggers. And, you’d be surprised at how many guys have a fetish for sexing up pregnant women.”

  “Wow. Okay. Moving on. I’m just going to ignore that last comment. I will say, no one can blame you for wanting to take your time building a relationship. Would I have liked it to happen in order, marriage first, yes, but shit happens. I will say you’re brave.”

  For the first time, her smile disappeared. “No, I’m not. I’ve already made one choice without thinking clearly. I want to ensure Drew is the one.”

  Imani searched for the right words. “You live in this house with Mama and Daddy. You’re pregnant and not married; that is brave. I know Mama’s got to be losing her mind, and I’m proud that you’re taking control of your life and not letting life control you. Make the decisions you think are best for you and my niece or nephew.”

  Aaliyah’s eyes flew to Imani’s. “Really? You don’t think I’m making a mistake?” She’d always looked up to Imani and telling her she was pregnant without being married was almost as painful as telling her parents, which was why she hadn’t said anything until now.

  Imani dropped her foot to the ground, placed an arm around her sister’s shoulder, and touched her forehead with hers. Her words were soft but heartfelt. “Considering I’m still at point one in my ten-point life plan, who am I to tell you how to live yours? Whatever you decide to do, I’m here for you.”

  Aaliyah whispered, “Thank you.” It was obvious Aaliyah was trying to be tough but was more than relieved after talking with Imani. She cleared her throat. “You took it better than Maddon. He was ready to kill Drew.”

  Imani bobbled her head. “Of course, you’re our baby sister and, he’s your brother. He probably went all caveman on you, and rightfully so.”

  She laughed. “You guys have this thing, and I just knew once he found out, you would automatically know or something.”

  “We do, but not this time. At the end of the day, if you’re happy, I’m good. Are you sure you’re good?”

  “Yes. I’m better than that. Now that we’ve examined my love life, what about you? Are you still dating . . . what was his name? Tray? Tracy?”

  “Tray was two boyfriends ago. There was never a Tracy. I think you mean Tyrese and no.”

  “What happened with this one?”

  “The usual. He got on my nerves—for about three months too long—before I finally put the kibosh on something that I knew wasn’t going anywhere in the first place.”

  “Wait . . . did you even date for three months?”

  Imani bit her bottom lip. “Four.”

  “Wow. You don’t give these guys a chance, do you? You’re so quick to kick someone to the curb.”

  “Four months with the wrong man is a long time!” Imani sighed. “On paper, Tyrese was almost perfect. I could cross off almost everything on my list that I’m looking for in a man with him. He w
as a gentleman and had everything I wanted in a guy, except . . . I kept waiting for fireworks. There was just no real spark. When he started asking for more than what I was ready to give, I broke up with him.” Imani paused. “Do you have that with Drew—fireworks?”

  Aaliyah nodded. “Oh yeah. Our chemistry is ridiculous. I’m just afraid it might burn out way too fast, and I’m doing my best to slow things down—if you exclude being pregnant and all.”

  “Yeah. There is that. What I want to know is why is it so difficult to find a guy that can be both a gentleman and makes me say his name in three different languages during sex! I’ve just never been able to get the balance right. Usually, the guy is one or the other. I want both. Mama got both.”

  “Yuck. I think I’m going to vomit. I don’t want to think of them like that. But seriously, everybody can’t be like Daddy, Imani.”

  Imani took a sip of her coffee before responding. “Why not? I won’t settle. I’ll wait until I find someone close. I’m in no hurry. I have a career—no—an empire that I want to build. Hopefully, the right guy will come along in due time.”

  “I think love overlooks a lot of faults.”

  “That’s stupid. If true, I don’t want any part of not being able to think rationally.”

  Aaliyah gazed thoughtfully at Imani. “It’s not about being stupid. It’s about being able to have someone love you flaws and all. We all have flaws, you know, even you. I wonder . . .”

  Imani raised an eyebrow. “What? What do you wonder, and why are you looking at me like that?”

  “Have you ever been in love?”

  Imani squirmed in her seat. Was this real? Was she actually getting relationship advice from her baby sister? Still, she thought about the question. Had she ever met a man who made her heart go pitter pat? Maybe pitter but no pat, and maybe pat without the pitter. Unfortunately, no one made her heart do both at the same time. “How did we get on the subject of my love life?”

  Aaliyah didn’t push too hard. She wasn’t an expert on the subject herself, but she’d known what being in love felt like. She wasn’t so sure about Imani. Aaliyah hunched her shoulders. “Just curious. Especially since you’re single, and Maddon’s homeless house guest is kind of hot.”