Page 122 of A King’s Obsession

“Jru, whose baby is that?”

Her head lifted slowly. For a moment, she looked genuinely confused, like she was waiting for me to explain what the fuck I'd just asked her.

“Ezra, are you serious right now?” Her eyebrows pulled together as she glanced at Malachi, then back at me. “What the hell do you mean, whose baby is this?”

I dragged a hand across my beard, trying to make sense of the six months she'd been gone and the pregnant woman standing in front of me.

“I'm asking you a question, Jru. You disappear for six motherfucking months, and now you standing here pregnant. What the fuck am I supposed to think?”

Her mouth fell open, and I watched the hurt flash across her face before it turned into anger. She let out a bitter laugh, shaking her head as though she couldn't believe what she'd just heard.

“Oh, so that's what we doing?” She adjusted her glasses, her eyes beginning to water. “After everything we've been through, that's the first thing you wanna know? Who I've been fucking?”

“Jru, I ain't say all that.”

“You ain't have to!” Her voice rose as she took a step back from me. “And so WHAT if I went off and got pregnant by somebody else? Nigga, YOU FUCKING MARRIED!”

She didn't wait for an answer. She turned and headed straight for the door, wiping angrily at the tears spilling down her cheeks.

“Jru, wait a motherfucking minute!”

I started after her, but Malachi caught my arm.

“E, let her go for a minute.”

“Get the fuck off me!”

I jerked away from him and drove my fist into the wall beside the door. Pain shot through my knuckles, but it wasn't enough to touch the frustration burning through my chest.

“FUCK!”

“OH, HELL NO!”

Ashlynn's scream cut through the room, pulling everybody's attention toward the bed. She had one hand wrapped around the side rail and the other pressed against her stomach, her face twisted as another contraction rolled through her.

Malachi spun around so fast I almost laughed despite the shit going on around us.

“Baby, I'm right here.” He hurried toward the bed, reaching for her hand, but Ashlynn snatched it away long enough to point toward me.

“THEN GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE AND HANDLE YOUR FUCKING CHILDREN! I'M NOT ABOUT TO HAVE THESE BABIES BY MYSELF!”

Yara moved to the opposite side of the bed, rubbing Ashlynn's shoulder while Malachi tried to help her through the contraction. I stood near the door with my hand throbbing, watching my brother get cursed out by a woman who looked two seconds away from climbing out of that bed and beating his ass.

“Breathe, Ash,” Yara said, keeping her voice steady.

“YARA, IF ONE MORE PERSON TELLS ME TO BREATHE, I'M GONNA STOP FUCKING BREATHING ON PURPOSE!”

The door opened before anybody could respond, and a nurse stepped inside. Her eyes traveled from Ashlynn to Malachi, then landed on the damage I'd put in the wall.

“What's going on in here?” she asked, her expression tightening. “We need to keep this room calm. She's in active labor.”

Yara immediately stepped forward, smoothing a hand over the front of her blouse. “I'm sorry. Family situation. We're handling it.”

The nurse looked directly at me, clearly deciding I was the source of the problem. Smart woman.

“Sir, if you're going to remain on this floor, I need you to lower your voice and stop disrupting the other patients.”

I opened my mouth, but Malachi shot me a warning look from beside the bed.