CAKE

One Hundred Thirty-Four

Casey 

"Are you sure you don't want to come with?" I question the brown-skinned beauty as I pull her naked body closer, my lips landing on the back of her neck. I kiss her neck and shoulders as I wait for an answer. She hums, pretending to actually think about it. "I think I'm okay. I'm getting sick, I don't want the kids to get sick too."

I roll my eyes and groan. "Fine, fine. I won't ask again," I pout as I scoot closer as if I wasn't close enough. We lay in bed for a while before I mutter again, "Are you sure you don't want to come with me?"

Mallory chuckled as she turned around. "Baby, I'm already letting you be here, kissing me. I have a fever, I feel like shit, I'm always tired," she goes down the list.

I smile as her cognac-brown eyes keep my gaze. "And yet you are still as beautiful as ever. How are you so lucky?" I tease.

She rolls her eyes. "I want to go with you. But I can't. Daeja and Dominic are only a few months old, their immune is not as strong as yours. Their health comes first."

My smile grows as I eye the woman. "Look at you with your mom talk. And you say you don't want kids," I joke. Mallory eyes me, slightly annoyed I called her a mom. I just laugh it off, not entirely threatened by her glare. 

"Hey," I mutter as I pull her knuckles up to my lips. "Thank you."

"For what?" 

"For forcing me to talk to you. That conversation probably would've been the end of us if we decided to have it in the future. A part of me was preparing myself for the worst. But we talked about it and my feelings have grown more than I thought they would. I am seriously in love with you, Mallory."

I watch the brown-skinned woman in front of me smile. "I'm glad we talked too, baby. I might not like the conclusion we came up with... right now but I'm willing to compromise for you."

"Compromising like that against something you were... against, that shows me how much I mean to you."

"You meant that much before I had to compromise."

I shrug my shoulders and change the subject. "You know I might not be back tonight. It's Cass's birthday and she and Eddie want to spend time together... which might include making another baby," I mutter before cringing at the thought.

Mallory chuckled, "Oh I am well aware. Jesus, those two are... they're worse than us. They just hide it better."

Laughing, I nod my head. "They were never this bad. I mean... shit they dated for a year before I ever found out. When I was with... ol' girl, I promise you, I thought they were separated by how little they touched each other. Well... up until Cassie was born, then it was kind of obvious they were still fucking."

"Some things you can keep to yourself baby," she chuckles, slapping my cheek lightly. I smile at the pet name. It gets me every time. 

"Have you talked to ol' girl since she moved?" she questions.

I hum, "Yeah. At my birthday party."

"A month ago? Are you two fighting?"

I shake my head, "No, not fighting. It's just hard to find time to see each other, not like we even do that. When she lived across from me, it was easy to see her at least once every week but now she lives god knows where. And I don't think she goes to see Mom or Cass as much as she used to since I have yet to bump into her."

"She's taking that seriously."

I hum in confusion, wondering what she was talking about. Mallory quickly shakes her head before scooting into me and intertwining our bare legs. "What time are you heading out?"