Diamonds in the Rough: VOL. I

four

"I can't believe you were taking his fucking money all this time. Then you're being paid. I looked like a damn fool in that court room. Why couldn't you have told me about that!?" Zaria snapped at Laron as soon as she answered her door. It was day three of Chasity being away with her dad.

Zaria had done all the crying she could in the past two days. For losing her daughter temporarily, but also for how Laron had done her. The judge had been right, she needed to pump her brakes. She didn't know the man in front of her. She couldn't if he would do something this low and lie about it.

"He's her dad. The nigga should be helping you. You was struggling living in one of the ugliest cities in Michigan. Chasity deserved better than that."

"I would rather struggle then be back here." Zaria spat angrily. "You don't know what he did to me. What he can end up doing to my daughter. I was doing just fine without him." She stressed closing her eyes. "I can't believe you did all of this."

"I was only trying to help Zaria."

"Seems to me you were trying to advance your career on my daughter's expense at that."

"Baby."

"Don't call me that." Zaria shook her head. "I think we need to take some time apart Laron. Do I even know you? How could you ask me to marry you knowing that your using my child's father. I want to see the receipts and shit his mother has."

"That's not important."

"Why where did the rest of the money go?" Zaria folded her arms.

"Your house and car." Laron spat back. "I'm a lawyer I don't need that nigga's money. Come on Zaria. You met my fucking family, they would never go for me bringing home a woman with a kid with nothing but-"

"A woman with a kid with nothing." She repeated cutting him off. "The same kid you like to claim as your step daughter?"

He licked his lips. "Look you trying to flip my words and shit. I ain't do nothing wrong. You didn't want to deal with the nigga. Or have him around Chasity. I made sure you still got some help, so what if it was just financial."

"You made him look like a fucking saint in that courtroom. While I looked like an idiot that just falls for anything. If I wanted to deal with that shit again, I would have stayed with Murphy."

"Ain't that where you would rather be right now?" Laron asked without thinking. Zaria laughed shaking her head. She pulled the ring on her finger off and threw it in his face slamming her door shut. She locked it and turned around making her way toward the living room. When she stepped inside she almost stumbled back and fell on her ass.

Murphy caught her before she reached it. "It's just me. Sorry I wasn't trying to scare you." He spoke as he helped her to stand up straight. Zaria pushed away immediately.

"What the fuck are you doing here? Where is Chasity!?"

"She's with my mom and Mario bowling. I wanted to come and talk to you."

"Talk for what Murphy? I don't have anything to say to you about the past."

He looked her over and nodded his head. "Good cause I don't care about that. I'm here to talk about Chasity." Murphy moved around her and took a seat on her couch. Zaria rolled her eyes as she moved over to the one opposite it. She plopped down.

"What about her?" She asked in a dull tone. Zaria fought the butterflies in her stomach as she lifted her legs folding them pretzel style. Her head was beginning to hurt so she pulled her glasses off and set them on the table in front of her. Zaria could picture Chasity picking them up and putting them on her.

Even when she warned her daughter it would mess up her eyes. Everything Zaria did, Chasity wanted to do it as well. "I found a camp for her. It's summer and my mom always put us in some type of program so we wasn't sitting around bored, or on devices and shit all day." He explained.