Fireworks 3 and 4

Chapter Forty-One

    Dark hair pulled back into a ponytail that was way too tight, dark eyes with a slight slant, and a nose a bit too large in proportion to the rest of her face. It was a face that had an unconventional beauty, and looked gorgeous from certain angles, when complemented by certain makeup. It was a face that the public was already criticizing - not that he'd ever allow the public to control what he found attractive. Currently, that face held an expression of disgust.

    Drake's legal team flanked him on both sides. Each lawyer was dressed identically, wearing the same designer suit, with the same rigid looks on each of their faces. None of them spoke initially, not even jovially with each other. None of them cracked a smile. They sat regally, with an air of intimidation.

    Meanwhile, Sophie sat at the long conference table facing Drake with the lawyer she'd put on retainer with money he'd given her. He'd given her money, and she had wisely hired a lawyer to get more money from him. Their child was nowhere to be seen, off in a hotel room somewhere with a best friend posing as a nanny for the low price of several thousand dollars a week.

    The stare-down was real. Even though they'd shared intimate moments years ago, it felt like the first time he was really looking at her.  There was something beautiful about every woman on the face of the planet. They were women. He didn't always give them the respect they deserved, but he always appreciated the beauty in each and every one of them. And even though Sophie's face wasn't necessarily the most beautiful by the standards of many, her body was undeniable. Exaggerated curves and modest up top - although she was looking a lot less modest up top these days, as a result of breastfeeding most likely.

    It was a long time before anyone in the room spoke. Drake stared hard at Sophie for what seemed like ages. She stared daggers right back at him. His five lawyers stared at her one lawyer.

    "So...you want more money from me," he said after the twenty-minute-long staring contest.

    "I didn't realize just how expensive children could be," she returned with a straight face.

    "You didn't bring him with you?"

    She narrowed her eyes and laughed. "What? Bring him here? To meet with a bunch of lawyers?"

    "To see his father."

    "If his father had wanted to see him, he would have visited."

    "You ignored my phone calls for months."

    "Because you were a dick to me and your entire team ignored my phone calls."

    He looked away from her and held his tongue. A Kanye line popped into his head out of nowhere: Eighteen years, eighteen years, she got one of your kids, got you for eighteen years. Those lyrics were promptly followed by the idea of remixing the song with his own twist and spin on it. The public would eat it up, he thought, leaning close to one of his lawyers and using the lawyer's pen and business portfolio to jot down his ideas. When he was done, he capped the pen and straightened his posture. Once upon a time, he had a clear path planned out for himself; he'd been able to visualize how his life would be five years, ten years down the line. But with Sophie and a kid factored in, he could no longer visualize how his life would be. Right now, he and Sophie were being nasty and spiteful towards one another and it begged the question, Is this how it will always be between us? Showing up to meetings completely lawyered down, is that how our interactions will have to go? Or will we ever find some way to be civil with each other, at the very least? Will she always look to get more and more money from me? And if I do give her the money she wants, will she use it to raise our child, or will she use it to live some lavish lifestyle she wouldn't have been able to afford otherwise?

    Her eyes never left his face. She stared steadily at him, silently daring him to deny her request.

    "Being nasty to each other isn't going to get us anywhere," he finally said after awhile.

    "Stop being nasty to me then," she told him. "And apologize for the times you've been nasty to me in the past. Then we can move on."

    "You-" He stopped himself and leaned forward, pointing at her. "You confessed to Maliah that you were looking for some rich rapper or some rich baby daddy that you could scam, and you told her that you'd found one. Forgive me if I handled receiving that news poorly."

    "We met up. You wanted something from me. You got it. I wanted something from you. I got it."

    Anger rose up within him.

    "We both got what we wanted at the end of the day, so why does the vibe between us have to be so hostile?"

    "Because what I wanted was a night or two of relaxation and good company, whereas what you wanted was to have a secured bag for the rest of your lifetime."

    "The rest of our child's lifetime," she corrected smoothly. "And you can use your little polished words to sugarcoat what you really wanted, but I'm here to serve you with a dose of reality. What you wanted was for a woman to fill your bed, a woman to fill up, so to speak. You wanted someone to fuck whenever you were ready to fuck. And you got that. I told you that maybe you should put a condom on. Remember? Do you remember?"

    His cheeks reddened.

    "And you insisted on not putting one on. So you can blame me or make me out to be some kind of monster if you want to, but the truth of the matter is you got exactly what you wanted - and exactly what you deserved. You have this fancy team of lawyers here and rather than negotiate custody so you can spend more time with your son, I'm calling meetings to make sure that your son is well-cared for and well-provided for. When you leave this meeting, I want you to think about that for a while - if you can fit that in between playing the victim and making yourself out to be such a good guy."

    "Sophie."

    "Aubrey."

    When he couldn't think of what else to say, she tilted her head and surveyed him

    "You don't look so hot. Did you need us to have this discussion some other time? Since you are paying for our hotel stay, I mean."

    "No. We can finish the meeting."

    She turned her head, and her lawyer picked up where she left off.