I give the women time to read the multi-page document and watch the children play. When they’re done, I add, “You’ll notice that this document, once signed by all parties, also holds Phillip to providing child support; and if he ever fails to do that for more than two weeks, you’ll be able to take him to court. So, it’s protecting you both too.”
Giselle sighs and says, “I’ll have to read it over a little more at home and think about it, Joanna.”
“I understand. What about you, Katrina?”
“Do we really have a choice?” she asks with a scowl.
“No, you don’t, not if you want to keep draining Phillip of every cent he makes. We’ve added up the figures with the attorney. Did you know that he’s currently giving you both about ninety-five percent of what he makes? He’s been incredibly generous to the point that he’s hurting himself. But now he needs a break. Let him keep twenty percent for himself and see the kids a full day each week. I know it can’t be easy on him to think he may not get to see them again.”
“You make it sound like you haven’t talked to him about it,” Giselle remarks.
“I haven’t. We sort of broke up.” I start to blurt out that he doesn’t even know that his friends and I have been talking to an attorney for him, but that could be all the women need to tear up the agreement and walk away.
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Giselle says. “He seemed to really care about you.”
“Yeah, he did,” I agree. “But after the dog bit Asher…”
“That’s why he left you?” Katrina asks.
“Yes.”
“Oh.” If I didn’t know any better, I would say that she looks and sounds almost sad about that. “So why are you still here trying to help him if he dumped you?”
“Because I want him to be happy, even if I’m not in his life.”
“That’s really sweet of you,” Giselle says. “And I think we all overreacted about the dog bite.”
“Easy for you to say, it wasn’t your kid that had teeth marks in his hand!” Katrina scoffs.
“Give it up, Trina! Are the marks still there?” Giselle asks the other woman.
“No.”
“Then it’s over and done. Joanna is right. I’ve been holding Sierra’s hand when she suddenly trips and falls over the air and tears up her knees. They’re kids, shit happens, like when Asher tried to eat that detergent pod…”
“I was in the shower, and he was only three!” Katrina shouts defensively.
“And thankfully you got out and stopped him right when he popped it in his mouth, or he could’ve been really sick.”
“But he wasn’t.”
“And the dog didn’t tear his hand off either, so let it go, Trina.”
Katrina gets up in a huff and goes to round up Asher. He’s clearly not happy about leaving the playground so soon, but he takes his mother’s hand and starts to the parking lot. When he sees me, he smiles and waves his other hand happily.
“She’ll sign the agreement,” Giselle says as we watch them leave. “She’s gotten too dependent on Fi-, I mean, Phillip’s money not to.”
“I hope so,” I say with a sigh as I watch Katrina help Asher into his booster seat in the back of her car. I hear a pen click and look back down at Giselle. She’s signing her name on the agreement.
“You don’t have to rush into this. Go home and think about it and decide if you want to consult an attorney.”
“I know it’s a good deal, so there’s no point wasting money on a lawyer,” she says when she hands the document back to me. “Tell the attorney to have Phillip call me to schedule what day he wants Sierra to come over.”
“Thank you,” I tell her with a smile as a tear escapes the corner of my eye. “He’ll be so happy to see her.”
Chapter Twenty-Five
Fiasco
“What’s with the Sunday morning meeting?” I ask in annoyance when I drag my ass to the pool hall at nine a.m. on my day off.
The truth is, all I’ve been doing lately is sleeping when I’m not working. A few shots, and then I’m out like a light with no dreams of Joanna or playing with the kids. It’s just darkness.
“We’ve got important shit to discuss,” Malcolm says from the doorway of the chapel. “Get your ass in here. Everyone’s waiting.”
I shuffle my feet to the table and collapse into my chair, surprised to find everyone else looking so…awake and happy. But the difference between them and me is that they all woke up in bed this morning with the woman of their dreams next to them.
Malcolm passes out a stack of papers to each of us, sliding mine down the table.
“What’s this?” I ask him.
“Read it.”
I wait for someone to make a joke about whether or not I can actually read, but everyone’s head is bowed, reviewing the papers.
My eyes skim over it, and I see my name in all caps, my real name. “Seriously, what the fuck is this about?”
“It’s a custody and child support agreement between you and your baby mamas,” Nash informs me.
“I don’t understand. I fucked up when Asher got bit by the dog. Katrina and Giselle said I would never see the kids again.”
“That wasn’t your fault, Joanna’s, or the dog’s,” Malcolm says. “Shit happens. Honey shoves peas up her nose every time we have them because
