This November

Chapter 26

Davina did whatever magic she could to get Aida to agree to sit down with him, face to face, and have a conversation about his son. Aida did not want to drag this out to court, so maybe if they came to an agreement, this could all go away.

Even though Davina was mad at him, and kicked him out of her place so he had to find a five-star hotel to crash until he decided his next move, she still was at his side as a mediator.

"Just shut your mouth and agree to whatever I say."

He gave his sister a look with raised eyebrows. This was his child they were talking about, he was going to speak his mind. They were in a meeting room at the law firm that Davina worked for. This was his first time at her job, but he did not get to see much of the office, she escorted him to the room and sat him at the table as they waited for Aida and his son, hopefully.

"I can't speak to my son?"

"We don't know what Aida is going to agree to right now."

"I want to see my son again and I want him to know who I am, that's all I'm asking."

The door to the room opened and a clerk held the door open as Aida walked in. Aida dressed as if she was an attorney at the law firm herself. Nice-fitted suit, blond hair in an updo, face perfectly made, and she carried a briefcase. He looked around her, but he did not see Anthony.

"Where's my son?"

Davina smacked him on the shoulder.

"Aida, please have a seat. It's nice to see you again."

Aida sat at the table across from them, closest to the door. He watched her and wondered why he ever messed around with someone he could never be in love with. Horny teenager he was, he should have done better.

"First of all Malik, I don't appreciate you trying to ruin my family when all you had to do was talk to me."

"Bitch, I did try-"

"Malik!" Davina grabbed his arm. "That is not how you talk to the mother of your child? I don't care if you two can't get along, hate each other, want to kill each other...this is not about who you fucked ten years ago. This is about a kid that could get seriously fucked up because you two fucked with no care in the world."

He calmed down a bit after his sister's words. She was right. Aida slept around as much as he did, she had to know she was partly to blame for this.

"There are two people in this room to blame for this and I'm not taking sides because I'm related to one."

His sister was wrong for that.

There was a laptop in front of Davina and she typed on it before she spoke again. "Aida, you wanted to meet, so if you don't mind, let's get things started."

Aida sat there a moment, hands clasped together in front of her on the table. She stared directly at Davina as she waited, but then focused her attention on him when she began to talk.

"Malik, I'm sorry. I was wrong for trying to cut your son out of your life. But you have to understand where I was coming from. You left, didn't want any parts of me or my child. I had a man who wanted to do the right thing, and I knew it was possible he was not the father. I should have told him. I'm wrong for that."

Now they were getting somewhere. Maybe the guy wouldn't have married her if she told him there was another possibility of the father. Maybe he would have demanded a blood test then, and he would have known it was his son ten years ago.

Everything could have been different if he stayed in town. Stayed for Nova, and stayed for his son.

"I finally told my husband." She paused and sniffled as if she was about to cry. "He told me he wants a divorce. That he wants nothing to do with me, will fight for full custody of my other children, and never wants to see Anthony again."

Whoa! He was not expecting that. He came in and blew up her world. That made him feel sick.

"Aida, I'm sorry. I'm sorry he-"

"No, don't be." She wiped a tear from her eye. Davina got up, grabbed a box of Kleenex, and handed it to her. "Thanks." She grabbed a couple and dabbed at her eyes.

"I'm assuming this is why you have a change of heart?" Davina asked.

"Anthony didn't ask for any of this. The man he thought was his father now hates him. How can I explain this to him? He will hate me."

Aida cried into her Kleenex. He got up and walked over to her and put his arms around her. Tried to comfort her the best he could. He did not know what to say. He did not have to like Aida, but he didn't want to see her in this state.

"I'm sorry," was all he could muster.

He pulled up a chair so he could sit beside her, and rubbed her back in a comforting manner.

"I never was in love with him anyway, but he gave me a family and stability. He wants to test our other kids but I never...I didn't sleep around like that, despite what you think of me. It was just you and him. Men do the shit and get awards. Women do it and we're whores."

There was truth in her statement, and yes, it was wrong. He himself thought bad things of Aida for doing the same thing he had done. He was a male whore as well.

"No one thinks you're a whore," Davina said. "So tell me, what do you plan to do now?"

"I want Anthony to know who he really is. I will explain everything to him the best way I can. We're at my mother's now. The divorce is going to be messy. That's why...Davina...can you represent me?"

"Girl, I am not a lawyer yet, let me pass this bar. I will get an attorney for you and work with them. Now, what are we doing for now? Malik is willing to be a part of his son's life. Financially he will support him, and if needed we'll come up with a back child support arrangement and go from there."

His sister was going to bleed him dry, one because she was upset with him, two because he deserved it. He was willing to pay any amount of money they felt was right. All he wanted was his son. A relationship with his son and do a better job at it than his father. He made enough mistakes in his life that he would teach him to do better.

"Malik, I don't know you...as the man you are today, so I need to know you have his best interests at heart."

"I do. Trust me I do."

"And we will see about that," Davina said with an eye roll. "We can work on some of the legal ramifications, changing his birth certificate if you want. Custodial arrangements, finances, all of that. And I said I am not taking sides. The fit parent will be the majority custodial parent."

He was not asking for full or even partial custody of his son. All he wanted was to build a relationship, and then from there, he would love to have him for breaks and holidays, summer break, and even more.

This trip was turning out better than he expected.